2018 was not a big gaming year for me, mostly because I'm a thirty-three year old family man running a small business. There were some big Triple-A releases, but I'm a PC-exclusive gamer, so I missed out on Red Dead Redemption 2 and Spider-Man. In fact, I didn't play a game in 2018 that was actually released in 2018, so the title is misleading, but this is a yearly series, and I'm not changing the title. Here's what I did play.
Best RPG: Divinity Original Sin 2
I bounced off of the first Original Sin because its size and scope were intimidating and other titles grabbed my interest. Developers Larian have made big improvements to the sequel, including voicing all NPC dialogue, and it feels like a throwback from years ago, when Fallout was a cRPG series and Bioware hadn't been gobbled up by EA. The turn-based combat is great fun; arenas quickly become wreathed in fire, smoke, and blood. The writing and quest design are interesting, and you'll find yourself doing things that you've never done in another RPG, like conversing with a haughty princess turned fireslug, or searching for a forelorn dog's lost mate (grab the Pet Pal perk so you can talk to animals). I recommend playing it on an easier difficulty to start out, however, because there are a lot of nuances to master.
Best Multiplayer Game: Quake Champions
Quake Champions is a throwback, a title that will probably only appeal to gamers who grew up playing arena shooters like Quake 3 and Unreal Tournament. The skill level required to be competitive is higher than modern shooters like Call of Duty or Battlefield; the movement mechanics alone will take you longer than you'd expect, and I still have problems strafe jumping. I put over 100 hours into Quake Champions in 2018, and they recently added Capture the Flag, although the latest update apparently broke the game. QC has been marred by a buggy nature and an impatient fanbase too ready to tear the game down. The title is still in early access, and they just eliminated the lootbox based economy, so I'd give the game a try, because it's likely to get better.
Best Expansion: Witcher 3: Heart of Stone
I grabbed Heart of Stone years ago, and somehow never played it, likely because I was suffering burnout from over one-hundred hours in the Witcher 3. It's a satisfying romp through the world of the Witcher, and though it doesn't really add any new mechanics, it features Gaunter O'Dimm, who is a much more menacing villain than anyone in the original game. There's also a memorable section where you control a possessed Geralt through a wedding, which lets our stoic monster slayer loosen up and act pleasingly out of character. Recommended to Witcher 3 fans, who probably already played it long ago.
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