Not all zombies are created equal. It's actually kind of crazy that we now live in a time where pop culture can quickly identify the differences between zombies from different franchises. Dying Light's zombies don't mess around. They are oppressive, hungry, strong, and way too fast. It's actually the first time that the hopelessness of a zombie apocalypse has ever struck me. Climbing to a roof top after the sun goes down, seeing no hiding spot in sight, and knowing how far away safety is is intimidating. It becomes crippling when you realize zombies are climbing up right behind you and you don't have time to stop to think about what to do next. You can only run. And jump. And pray you don't fall.

The zombies complete the experience, but lost in Dying Light's grim atmosphere is the realization that first person traversal can actually be entertaining. In a year full of open world games, Dying Light took some of the biggest gameplay risks in the genre and still managed to make its world fun to run around in. Leaping across rusty rooftops is as smooth watching a zombie fall off a rooftop from your perfectly placed kick. It plays so well, it's almost easy to forget that you are in constant danger. At least until you turn around and the lights go out. Thanks for making me respect the dark again, Dying Light.

Stay tuned for more Games of 2015 this month as we build towards The 2015 Grimmys - Horrible Night's Games of the Year Awards.

I was married before Tinder came out, which is fine, but Tinder produced my Favorite Internet Thing in 2015 with this:

I can’t say I was waiting with bated breath – while I had dumped a lot of hours into Fallout 3, I took a pass on New Vegas and have never ventured into the world of Skyrim, partly because of the same thing that happened to me when I fired up Fallout 4: Oh, my god, this world is huge. I’m never going to get everything done! And for the first several hours, that’s how I felt. I appreciated the improved gunplay, loved how they changed V.A.T.S., and thought for such a gigantic game, it was pretty darned good looking.

And then it happened.


I found the first set of power armor and mini-gun and a deathclaw came tearing around the corner, charging towards me and I unloaded on it, killing it and watching it slide face first on the asphalt to come to rest at my feet. I am the Vault Dweller and the wasteland of the Commonwealth is my playground. Thank for recess, Fallout 4.

Others Agree This was a Game of 2015

Justin Lacey - "The loot fucking matters. I've never been so terrified in my life. It's like Bethesda wanted to find a way to quadruple the time I wanted to spend in its world. It's all worth it though because I can make a gun that will terrify you and barely scratch your skin, or I can make a rickety, one handed piece of shit that will literally make your head explode. What was I doing again?"

Aaron McNeal - "I finally played Fallout 4 again after over a month of other games. So worth it. I got locked into a battle with what I best described as an unfair legendary Mr. Gutsy with some minigun style armament. I defeated it on the second try, stopped to loot it, and a few seconds after the scuffle had ended, a car I was too close to exploded and I screamed with the fury of a thousand mole rats on the day the bombs fell."

Stay tuned for more Games of 2015 this month as we build towards The 2015 Grimmys - Horrible Night's Games of the Year Awards.

The premise worked. Four versus one. Five friends playing one vicious game of hide and seek, except this time the person hiding wants to destroy the planet. Evolve nailed it. After every battle the voice chat would be filled with stories. The team would be going on and on about the mistakes they made or the last minutes saves that happened. Then, the monster shows up. It is either lauded with yelling or shamed with laughter as it catches up on what all was happening hidden from its view during the game. That was fun, let's do it again.

Getting five adults together at the same time for a gaming session requires the entire universe to align just right, but Evolve rewarded us the few times that could happen. It's ironic, too, because Evolve isn't at its best when things go well. Evolve stands out when everything goes wrong, when chaos happens and friendships are tested. As I sat trapped in a human-sized plant, watching my life slowly drain away and my friends cluelessly running farther and farther away, I thought about rage quitting. In that moment, I had flashbacks to my elementary school playground and the good times when my friends wouldn't casually let me die on the battlefield. Maybe things were better then? Probably not, because even my imagination didn't make monsters as cool as Evolve. I could customize them for free, though, so maybe it is a toss-up. I kid, Evolve, thanks for making me realize who my true friends are.

Stay tuned for more Games of 2015 this month as we build towards The 2015 Grimmys - Horrible Night's Games of the Year Awards.

As a guy who normally likes to squeeze every bit of enjoyment/achievement points out of a game before moving on, I wasn’t sure what to do with Destiny when it came out other than play, hit the level cap, discover that the light level system was, in a word, stupid, and move on to something else.

Then someone and Bungie actually played their game, realized it was boring and frustrating, and more or less fixed everything with The Taken King both in terms of getting rid of Dinklebot (Peter Dinklage) in favor of That Video Game Voice Guy (Nolan North) and in creating a leveling system that makes sense and adding significant amounts of content. It’s not a perfect game, but every time I turn it on, I’m pretty impressed by the new content, modes, and runs that pop up and I’m constantly on the hunt for better gear and fulfilling my bounties. While nothing is ever going to live up to the hype that The Other Justin spat after he played the beta (I believe it was along the lines of “It’s like Halo and Mass Effect had a space baby”), The Taken King is the game we should have gotten from Bungie in 2014. Destiny and its fans thank you, The Taken King.

Others Agree This was a Game of 2015

Justin Lacey - "The difference with The Taken King is that I no longer had to try to like Destiny. I've never transitioned so smoothly into an obsession. One week I'm playing other games, the next week I'm on a regular schedule co-oping with my gaming friends and getting a hyped for their loot drops as I am for my own. It felt really good like a major wrong had be righted in the gaming world. Of course, once I caught my breath to take it all in another Taken Lieutenant drops in and all of my guns have to fire at once to burn that bastard to the ground. Smile maniacally. Repeat."

Stay tuned for more Games of 2015 this month as we build towards The 2015 Grimmys - Horrible Night's Games of the Year Awards.