PixlBit

                                

   I finally picked this up for $30 at Walmart today. This game has haunted me since it came out last October. I enjoyed playing the demo and everything I heard since has told me that I MUST get this game. I love turn based strategy and I love Firaxis, but with all the many games of interest that have come out since (especially for the 3DS), I just haven't had the money to pick it up until now. I'm so excited.

     The reason why I finally had budget for this game is that I changed my method of buying games. I decided to focus my attention on a single game that, to me, is the reigning champ of a given year. Here's a quick run down of the games I ranked number one for the years of the current (7th) generation (technically we're already in the 8th gen. For me, though, it doesn't start until ALL the major consoles are out this holiday).

     2013: Ni No Kuni [PS3]: (subject to change if something beats it in awesomeness this year, but I doubt any will. Even Pikmin 3 sits at number two below this in my eyes) I played the first hour or so this week and had a good cry. This game's story will pull at your heart strings.

     2012: XCOM: Enemy Unknown [Xbox 360]: Finally in my collection! Play Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars if you want the closest thing to a handheld version of XCOM on 3DS. That game's awesome in the same way!

     2011: Okamiden [DS]: I just restarted it this week after playing about half of it when it came out. I just love the Japanese Ink wash style (Sumi-e) used for this game. It was a tough choice to put this number one in 2011, but I loved Okami on PS2 so much, that any sequel had to be the event of the year for me.

     2010: Valkyria Chronicles II [PSP]: Similar to Okamiden in that any sequel of a beloved game of mine, has to be the highlight of the year. I wish it had come out on PS3, but I still love it on PSP.

     2009: Muramasa: The Demon Blade [Wii]: So many great games this year, but I'm such a sucker for the Japanese art style used in Vanillaware games, that if I only had one game to play from that year, it would be this one. I could play it over and over and never get bored of the visuals.

     2008: Valkyria Chronicles [PS3]: Another tough choice, but the one game I would pull out of a burning house from '08, if I could only reach one. The Battle of Live Tactical Zones (BLiTZ) system is the best mix of turn and real time strategy in ANY game. The incredibly gorgeous watercolor art in this game also thrills me to my soul.

     2007: Crackdown [Xbox 360]: An impossible year to choose a top game, but I had more fun with Crackdown in co-op than anything else. Two people can run around this sandbox world and do whatever you want until, by some accident, you've achieved the goals of the story. No sweat though, reset the world, and do it all over again. It's never the same game twice.

    2006: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion [Xbox 360]: This year I have some of my very favorite original Xbox games on the list, but I have to give the top spot to the game that sold me to the new system. 

    I like this new method of mine because it reigns in my to-buy and to-play list for games even more than ever. I'm only thinking about one game per year and trying to complete it fully before I move on. Resisting the new releases as they appear is incredibly difficult, and I'll probably cheat from time to time if something really floors me, but I want to have a complete knowledge of the games at the very top of my lists and clear my head of every little thing that comes out every week.