Top 5 Games of Fall 2013

Hey, Chris here. Benjamin reflected yesterday on things he's learned this semester, and in the same vein, I'd like to list the five video games I've spent the most time playing this past few months. These aren't necessarily the best games I've played, but there has to be some correlation, right? Right? I got the statistics from my Steam account, so they're precise, if not accurate (woo hoo for statistics).

5. Half-Life 2 (16 hours)
In some ways, I've been trying to catch up on video game history this semester. I had often seen Half-Life 2 as one of the best, if not the best, shooter ever made. From what I can tell, it certainly earns that title. I enjoyed an engaging story in a dystopian world with some of the scariest horror and most fast-paced action I've ever experienced in a video game.

4. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (20 hours)
Skyrim came out in 2011, but it still tops selling charts on steam whenever it goes on sale. It's not just a sandbox RPG, it's the sandbox RPG, providing the player with a world full of possibility and adventure. I actually only purchased Skyrim in late November, and while it's already one of my most-played games on Steam for this semester, I've barely scratched the surface of this great open world.

3. Team Fortress 2 (31 hours)
Half-Life 2 had great action, but to get that exciting shooty experience all the time, I've gotten into Valve's online multiplayer shooter Team Fortress 2. With nine classes that present nine different ways to play, Team Fortress 2 somehow manages to hold everything together to produce an experience that's over-the-top cartoon action and team-based strategy at the same time. Playing with people from all over the world just adds another level of interest and hilarity.

2. Crusader Kings 2 (41 hours)
Power, conflict, and intrigue-- Crusader Kings 2 is a game that lets you rule in medieval Europe in whichever way you see fit. While gameplay is largely based on different menus and statistics covering a map of the Western World, I began to care about individual members of my ruling dynasty, and it wasn't long before I was submerged in the major and minor struggles of individuals in a world full of danger and opportunity.

1. Dragon Age Origins (97 hours)
Well isn't that something. I enjoy, to some extent at least, most of the games I play. Dragon Age Origins is one of the few games I've not only enjoyed, but gotten into to an almost unhealthy extent. The main game took me approximately sixty hours to complete with my noble warrior character. When I got to the conclusion, I decided I didn't like the way the ending turned out in relation to my character. There was only one thing to do-- I played another sixty hours or so with a mage and made different choices (Steam didn't record some of my session times). In some ways, I regret having spent so many hours in one game, but the dark atmosphere, epic story, and difficult choices of Dragon Age Origins made my experience one I'll always remember, if not repeat. I often say that Dungeon Siege is my RPG, but Dragon Age Origins is what has really shaped my recent experience of role-playing.