Solid year, with some games that I waited for and delivered, some not, and some that surprised me.

The Witness was something I really looked forward to, and for the most part it delivered.

I enjoyed Dark Souls III a lot, although, out of DS games, it is my least favourite.

No Man's Sky blew my mind when it was announced, with all the references to great Sci-fi book covers from the past - unfortunately, it took years after the launch and a lot of free expansions to actually get to the point where it was supposed to be at launch.

As a fan of ICO and Shadow of Colossus, I was looking forward to The Last Guardian, but I still haven't played it, so I can't comment on that one, unfortunately.

INSIDE was a mixed bag for me - I liked that it's longer than LIMBO, but I found both puzzles and setting to be more engaging for me in LIMBO.

DOOM was so-so. I hoped for the structure of Doom 1/2, but this reboot was more of an arena shooter. Somewhat fun, but nowhere near as I hoped for.

Dishonored 2 was good, just not as good as the first one, IMO.

I liked Firewatch quite a bit, it was giving off X-Files vibes throughout most of the game...until it turned out that story was just a red herring, turning the end into a completely mundane affair.

Hitman started its reboot in 2016. As a fan of the original (and then dropping it with Hitman 2 for allowing you to go in guns blazing), it turned out to be very good and faithful to its core gameplay principles. Really underappreciated game.

CRPGs had another really good release - Tyranny. It is quite unique game, where it is degrees of evil you do, not whether you do it.

Another very good year for indies - Hyper Light Drifter, Darkest Dungeon, The Banner Saga 2, Salt and Sanctuary (one of the best 2D Souls-alikes).

Then there's Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun, for all the fans of Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines, set in medieval Japan and bringing some fresh ideas to the genre.

My favourite game from this year is (sorry DS III) Overcooked, a local coop kitchen "simulation" game. And I'm saying "simulation" because this is pure frantic arcade fun for up to 4 players.

But my vote for GotY goes to Superhot (and one of my favourite games of that year), FPS where time flows only when you move. I like it in VR as well, but I actually prefer the standard version, which gives you more freedom of movement. This is one of those games that you're suspicious about, until you try it, and then you're instantly hooked.

Honourable mention for this year goes to VR title Arizona Sunshine, one of the first big VR sellers. Beside being quite fun to play (zombies and all), it is my go-to game when I test the feel, precision and tracking of new VR systems (since I have experience on 4 different systems with it).

2016 was a great year - the best in a long time. My favourite release was Dark Souls III, which is also my favourite Soulslike to-date.

Runner-up for me is Mirror's Edge Catalyst. Superfluous elements were added to the sequel, which puts some fans of the original off, but elsewhere the graphics were upgraded, the art style refined, and the world expanded, so it's still visually spectacular and has that awesomely rewarding first person platforming gameplay. 

Some other great releases: The Last Guardian, Inside, Superhot, Planet Coaster, Dishonored 2, Salt and Sanctuary, and Ratchet & Clank.

Damn, I completely forgot about that one. I guess Dying Light a year before did a number on me with its parkour experience, so, honesty, I completely forgot what I even think about Catalyst, though I'm a fan of the first Mirror's Edge.

XCOM 2, with Darkest Dungeon and The Division next.

other > DOOM (2016)

INSIDE, SUPERHOT, Uncharted 4, Persona 5, DOOM... all of them amazing games. I would vote Persona 5, but unfortunately the vanilla release is quite lacking compared to the Royal version (still a great game though).

My vote goes to INSIDE. It was short, but I just couldn't put it down for the time it lasted. The setting. The puzzles. Everything was perfect.

Lot of great games to choose from once again. Uncharted 4, Dishonored 2, Inside, Stardew Valley, The Last Guardian, Doom, Final Fantasy XV, and more. All games I very much enjoyed, but the one that stands above the rest is Dark Souls III. A worthy finale to the series, featuring the best boss battles and some of the most memorable locations in the entire series among other great elements.

Feeling like a total casual I voted Pokémon Go.

That thing was like the second coming of Christ...Pokémon. My old aunt played and walked right down in a swamp and dropped her phone chasing a Snorlax.
Events gathered massive crowds just playing the game. The first time since LAN-parties in the late 90s early 00s that I was around that many other people playing a game, and in the outside of all places, the mortal enemy of gamers.

The game might not be that special, but the experience it brought was unique.

The next few years and this have an amazing array of games. From the list, Uncharted 4 sticks out to me as just a great game and story, even if it lacked the mystical elements of the entries before. I played a lot of Overwatch as a casual game and really enjoyed it, shame how that ended up.

For me though, the best game isn't even on the list or mentioned in extras.

Furi

Loved it, killer gameplay, amazing soundtrack.

Already in 2016 I had a huge problem with Overwatch winning all these Game of the Year awards, because I thought it was bizarre to award that to a game that would eventually disappear. I had not expected how fast it would go away though.

My choice for 2016 is Inside, which also happens to be one of my favorite games of all time. It is the perfect example of using game mechanics to explore political and philosophical topics. The atmosphere and the puzzles are spot on.

DOOM is another great contender, it did a great job modernizing the classics gameplay. I love the combat and the visuals. It is not perfect though, it has an unwelcome weapons and stats upgrade system and too many of its challenges are focussed on clearing arenas. Only one of its level maintains that classic DOOM open-ended, branched level design, with back-tracking. The other stages are totally linear, but at least they are mostly well designed for what they are. It is just a pity that DOOM Eternal completely ruined the gameplay loop with way too many weird mechanics and even more RPG-stuff. Sometimes simplicity is just better.
Also honorable mention to Titanfall 2, which is the other great modern FPS, it really takes the best from Mirror's Edge and COD4 and puts in its own unique mechanics. A really stellar campaign, without any filler.