New years eve is just around the corner, so why not summarise the gaming that happened in 2018 :)!

In total I acquired about 50 games, of which I've played 15. Once again Humble bundle is responsible for the sheer numbers, with F2P-games (~10) coming in second. Most games have been launched at least, though I'm not counting them as "played". A prime example of that is Quake 4. I thought I'd play it, but really, there are better games nowadays. Feels good to have it on Steam, though.



Speaking of Steam, the year in gaming began as usually with the Steam winter sale. Here I picked up a DLC for Deus Ex; A Criminal Past. An OK story add-on, especially for the rebated price. I also got Cuphead, which I've given up on ever completing. That game is really difficult.

Next up is two of my favourite games this year: Slay the Spire and Subnautica.

Slay the Spire is _the_ highlight of the year, and a game I can highly recommend to everyone. It's a strategy card game where you fight your way to the top of the spire only to... well.. fall asleep. The story is nonexistent and I'm not sure there ever will be one (we'll see when it comes out of Early Access), though that isn't important. What is important is the really good gameplay. It really hooked me on card games again, but I can't say I'm going to play Hearthstone anytime soon. because that game IS SO SLOW. Tip to anyone who enjoy Slay the Spire - turn on fast animations and use hotkeys.

Right, maybe I should say something tangible about the game. It's a rouge-like game where you play one of three characters and build a unique deck of cards as you go along. On top of that you can upgrade cards as well as acquire relics with unique benefits (e.g. draw a new card if your hand is empty). I think it strikes a perfect balance of chaos and synergy.

Subnautica can be best summarised as "underwater exploration crafting simulator". Would also get a perfect 10 if it weren't for the horrible CPU optimisation dragging my framerate down quite a bit. Though I can highly recommend to anyone enjoying nonlinear story adventure games with technological progression.

I got Guild of Dungeoneering quite cheap after having had it on my with list for the longest time. Can't say I recommend it though. It's gimmicky and the awesomeness gets stale pretty quickly. I guess the game just doesn't agree with me.

A game that does really tickle my fancy is Pyre. Another game from the creators of Bastion and Transistor were sure to get my attention, and yet again we have a really fun, engaging, and polished title. I can't stress it enough - this game is REALLY well-made. I'd recommend it even if it didn't have any gameplay elements in it. It does, though. A head-on capture-the-flag-esque battle where each team control three characters. Customisation, gear, and levels, and skills included.

In case you thought Subnatica was nice, then what about Subnautica-on-land? Meet the horrific adventure game The Forest. I got it on sale and thought it could be a fun multiplayer game. While it is fun to play co-op I prefer to experience story-driven games on my own, as each will have their own pace and syncing up either means running and gunning or stopping to look at every patch of flowers along the road. I won't spoil the story. Go play the game!

Finding Paradise, or as I like to call it, "To the Moon 2"... is actually the second episode in the series. I did not find that out just now. Anyway, if you enjoyed To the Moon, then I'd highly suggest you go and play Finding Paradise. I wouldn't say it was better, but it is on par.

Breathedge wasn't really worth the price; too short. The goofiness and humour is a big plus, and I'm hoping they add more content later on, as it is in Early Access. Nevertheless, the stuff in there is well-polished and I can recommend it if you're looking for a few laughs and exploring the environment. Surprisingly good crafting system.

Mist Survival... really bad. I'd like to think it has potential, but it is really poorly implemented so I'm not sure the developer has what it takes really. It is a zombie survival game in an open (albeit limited) world. Sometimes a "mist"/fog event will trigger, causing zombies to randomly spawn and attack you.

Last one on the list is a DLC for The Talos Principle. I love the original game! The combination of story, environment, hidden secrets, and puzzle elements is just amazing; I was really baffled when I started playing. I'm still playing this DLC, but as far as I've been able to see it's more of the same good gameplay :).

# Honorable mentions

While not purchased this year, I'd like to give some honourable mentions to Stardew Valley and Starbound for being awesome games. And to Diablo 3 for giving me some mindless grinding, and to Factorio for giving me mindful grinding.