Yes

You are correct, and yes, that is the reason I used the phrase 'the adventures of' in the second clue. Good catch.

OMORI is correct, it was kinda on purpose that the first hint (O_O_I) looked a little like an emoticon.

DMC3 is not right, I will say it's a game that you will think is rather obvious if you hear it at this point. The last hint I'll add is it's traditionally a mostly PC series.

Ah... My head's not good at thinking up ARPGs, so I looked up a list of some and yeah, it's rather obvious now that you mention it. Feels a bit like cheating to guess it like this, though.

That's fair I'll probably just chop it up as unguessed if nobody gets it soon

Guessed by @drbunnig

The plastic instrument games were a constant in my life during my teenage years, and though I've mostly moved on from them since then, they have remained a mainstay whenever I invite friends to a party - I've settled on Rock Band 3 indefinitely because, well, it's the best one.

This game gave me one of my absolute favourite memories from this year... Playing it and singing it all night long with my closest friends and my first IRL partner on my 30th birthday. Back then, it felt like I'd finally found happiness. Things didn't pan out that way, sadly, depressingly, but I'm still thankful to have lived those good times, however brief they were.

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Guessed by @UnderwaterFunktown

How many years will pass with this being the only Mass Effect entry on this ranking? It's almost a joke at this point how I've never managed to get myself to continue and finish its sequels. Anyway, this game is amazing. Has maybe a bit of a slow start but when it gets going, the second half is so incredibly climactic and exciting to play through - hence why I'm using that picture of Virmire, as that's the mission when the game really elevates itself in my opinion.

Memorable characters, an amazingly deep universe full of wonder, a thrilling story... and I can't lie, every time I hear that galaxy map theme, it's just magical. Hopefully one day I'll finish the trilogy, who knows.

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Guessed by @UnderwaterFunktown

Rivals gets a big drop on the list this year, but it's still here because it's still the best platform fighter I've ever played, and it still gives me some fun times with friends sometimes (like earlier today). I had a lot of hype for this game last year, thought it'd bring me back into this genre for good, but it's all but faded away for me somewhere between frustrations with balancing, it being a clearly unfinished game in glorified early access, and well, just generally the playerbase declining to the point where you can barely find games anymore.

Hopefully they can make it big again once they reach a more finished state and make the console release. This game deserves to be remembered, not forgotten.

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Guessed by @drbunnig

This should be everyone's first Metroid game really. It wasn't my first, but I wish it had been. It's easier than most, it feels a bit more colourful and light-hearted, like dipping your toes into the franchise before it gets really dark. But most importantly, it's the first one - and I for one really love that the Metroid series, unlike most Nintendo things, actually has a continuous story that progresses with each game. Zero Mission is a great introduction to my favourite gaming franchise.

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Guessed by @drbunnig

Tunic was the first "campaign" game (as in, it has a beginning and an ending) I played this year, having only just finished it in September. I've really been cramming all the games in at the very end of the year! It wasn't helpful in terms of getting this list done in time.

Anyhow, I really enjoyed this, even if it felt a little too brainy for me at times. Some puzzles were extremely cryptic and demanded so much from the player it was bordering on insane, but I mean, that's what the game's all about! This was clearly meant to replicate the kind of experience kids had with cryptic adventure games in the 1980s, and it does so rather well. I prefer my games more to-the-point I suppose, but I respect Tunic for being so creative with its 'manual' and for having a genuinely heartwarming ending.

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