2007 has come and gone. While I was able to take some time off of work in the first half of the year, my new fathering duties and a slight growth in my non-videogaming hobbies cut deeply into my free time spent playing video games. All is not lost, as there were still a few games out there that everyone should consider (at least everyone who has similar tastes in strategy gaming….) Just think of my short list here as the daytime awards, where all the smaller categories are awarded as opposed to the big evening celebration put forth by Cary.

Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (many platforms)

This little puzzle game with streaks of role-playing advancement took the gaming world by storm last winter. It has now propagated onto nearly every gaming platform. If you haven’t tried it out yet, be sure to give it a whirl. At its heart, it is a simple gem-matching puzzle game, but various game modes pit you against computer opponents where you can use collected gems to cast spells to affect each other and the game board. With a near lack of violence (they’re just puzzles, after all) this game is also great for younger gamers.

Worms Open Warfare 2 (DS)

I hadn’t realized another port of the popular Worms franchise was coming to the DS.  In Worms, players take turns shooting weaponry at each other’s team of worms. The standard weapons require aiming an angle and adjusting the power of the shot to hit thing accurately. Of course, there are many non-standard weapons and tools that allow special actions such as modifying the game area, moving around, or are simply extra-powerful limited use weapons. Previous handheld versions of Worms were lacking my favorite tool, the ninja rope. Using the ninja rope to move around terrain requires a lot of skill and can be a great advantage in battle. I was pleased to see it back in the game. Gamers who haven’t mastered the ninja rope can fall back on the far easier jetpack to get around (which can also be turned off for games where I want skill to trump luck…) While the game is nothing particularly new or exciting, it can be played online using the DS wireless capabilities. With the multiplayer online options and a solid recreation of the Worms title, I have to say it is one of my favorite titles of the year.

Panzer Tactics DS (DS)

It has been awhile since I played a classic hexagon based WWII wargame. When computers and computer games were first taking off, there was an entire niche of the industry working on moving board-based wargames onto the computer platform. Computers were able to take over the grunge work of calculating the effects of terrain, morale, supply, experience, command, and other factors taking the burden off of players who would otherwise have to look everything up on a table in a rulebook. In some ways, it was the heyday of computer wargames. Panzer Tactics DS brings back much of the best of those days in a handy portable package. While probably not detailed enough to completely satisfy a true grognard (as wargame fans are sometimes called), the game manages to capture much of the best of the true wargame genre while adding in a few concessions to the pick-up-and-play style of games most DS owners are used to. Panzer Tactics DS surprised me with its depth of play, and I look forward to spending more time with it in 2008.

Singstar 80’s (PS2)

It isn’t the first Karaoke style game to appear on the market, but it seems to be the one that did it right. The Singstar series of games come with two very nice microphones and a listing of 20-odd songs. Players can sing duets or duels back and forth while the game grades players’ pitch and rhythm (it can’t tell if you’re using the right words.) Most homes don’t have their own Karaoke system, so this is an easy way to give this popular (and silly) entertainment a whirl. The Singstar series did things right by getting the rights to the videos and song performances by the actual artists that made the songs famous. The 80’s version was my first purchase as those were songs played during my formative teenage years. I’ve enjoyed the title enough that I went on to get another version (Singstar Pop) in December to add to our collection of songs.

Xbox Live (Xbox 360)

2007 was the year I finally made the plunge into Microsoft’s line of consoles. After watching and waiting for a long time, prices were reduced on the 360 and the Marvel Alliance/Forza Motorsport 2 pack-in of games were enough to tempt me into buying a system. While there are things I like, and don’t like, about the system I have to admit the online aspect of the console is far and away better than anything on other systems. I’ve played online using a PS2, Wii, Gameboy DS, and a Windows computer and the Xbox Live matchmaking system is a great plus in favor of the Xbox console. As a compulsive collector and explorer the “achievements” awarded to gamers as you play through various games are far too tempting and I find myself having fun just collecting the odd achievement in a game by doing things I would otherwise have skipped right by. Knowing which of your friends is online and what they’re playing makes joining up with them far easier than any other online matchmaking system. Other consoles have online play function differently through every game title, which makes joining up with a friend a deliberate activity, rather than something that can spontaneously happen, like on the 360. I’m now past the “honeymoon” stage of Xbox Live as I see that I still have some difficulty matching my schedule up to play with my many scattered friends, Xbox Live is the hands-down winner when it comes to online game play.

Looking towards the future, there are a number of titles from 2007 I still plan to enjoy, I’m simply too cheap to buy them when they first come out. I’ve also come to the realization that my eyes are bigger than my stomach when it comes to wanting games and having the time to play them. Sometime in the next year or so I look forward to getting a hold of Quickspot and Picross (on the Nintendo DS), Portal (on the PC or 360), and Super Mario Galaxy (on the Wii). Even though I didn’t have a lot of time to play this past year, I managed to find quality titles that served me well. Here’s hoping 2008 will continue the trend.

Tags: Misc