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Buckk's Tops 2024
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
This year 2024 got off to a particularly strong start with the arrival, at the end of January, of Yakuza 8. The continuation of the adventures of Ichiban Kasugamarked by the return of turn-based combat, a system which worked particularly well with the previous episode. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is yet another marvel to be credited to Japanese developers Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios, thanks to a generous adventure, endearing new characters and a storyline full of twists and turns. An episode continuing the saga, with humor and fighting as we like them, for an inevitably impactful result.
Metaphor Re:Fantazio
And to think that we almost missed the Metaphor: ReFantazio test. When we were offered to see Studio Zero's first game at Gamescom 2024, our schedule was already almost full and we were forced to decline the invitation. Then, faced with the large number of arrivals planned between September and November, we completely put it aside, and no one seemed to decide to test it. Finally, thanks to a key received three weeks before the game's release, I stuck with it and quickly regretted having imagined being able to skip on this title capable of stopping time. While the Persona franchise is considered by many to be the gold standard of turn-based JRPGs, Metaphor: ReFantazio manages to do even better, and once again demonstrates the immense talent of the teams directed by Katsura Hashino. If you still need to be convinced, our test can be read here.
Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle
By arriving late, Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle succeeded: surprise everyone by offering an adventure that will ultimately have never been so faithful to the universe imagined by George Lucas. We find absolutely everything that made the franchise successful in the cinema, with a thrilling and damn well staged journey around the world. The Swedish developers from MachineGames demonstrate all their expertise in staging, in a very well-paced game which has very appropriate side quests. Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle has the makings of a great gameand we are already looking forward to continuing the adventure with the additional content “The Order of the Giants” which should arrive in 2025.
Grandia HD Collection
The trend for remasters has not weakened in 2024, and certain studios have now become specialists in the field. If we generally think of the American developers of Digital Eclipse and/or Nightdive Studios, it is the Japanese of GungHo Online Entertainment who enter this very personal top 5 of my best titles of the year. Bringing the Grandia franchise out of the closet, these are two totally cult JRPGs which are now available to as many people as possiblewithout having to go through the retrogaming box, which is particularly painful financially when it comes to the first two episodes of the saga. It is also a source of great pride to have been the only French Xbox site to have been able to offer a test. An initiative that will not stop there since Lunar Collection Remastered will arrive in 2025and there's obviously no chance of us missing it.
Visions of Mana
Like Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth and Metaphor: ReFantazio, the first (and last) game imagined by Ouka Studios was on my waiting list for this year 2024. We didn't have to wait long to hear about it since Visions of Mana was the surprise guest at the Developer Direct 2024 organized last January by Microsoft. After having spent most of my teenage years perusing Secret of Mana, the expectations were high, and it is clear that the participation in the project of designer Koichi Ishii and composer Hiroki Kikuta was reassuring. In the end, the development team delivered a modern game capable of speaking to fans of the franchise, and following the adventure of Val and the offerings is a real pleasure from start to finish.
Les Tops 2024 de Hagalvanek
Final Fantasy XIV
Well, some would say! We had to wait many years, as Xbox players, before being able to discover one of the most popular MMORPGs of recent years. Final Fantasy XIV is finally here, with its gargantuan content and its gripping and intelligent story. Undeniably the most successful Final Fantasy of recent years, Square Enix's true love letter to its saga that can be played solo. We can only advise you to try it, if you are a lover of the license…
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
The Veilguard was one of those titles that we were impatiently awaiting a year ago and our journey into the gaming universe frankly did not disappoint us. BioWare is back in business after a short period of scarcity, offering us a solid game, both in terms of technique and through its history and its universe. We therefore find epic moments, rhythmic and nervous clashes and an accessible game system that offers an entry point to the saga for those who were unfamiliar with it. Let's now hope that BioWare works to offer us a new episode of Mass Effect as successful…
Life is Strange: Double Exposure
Bringing back an iconic character, regardless of the saga or license, is always a risk. However, this is the bet made by Deck Nine Games with Maxine Caulfield and Life is Strange: Double Exposure. A daring but successful bet which allowed us to experience a narrative adventure which takes place following the events of the original game and which turned out to be a real success. Without revolutionizing the game genre, Double Exposure has managed to transport us into a contemplative and human universe in which we share the feelings of the protagonists with intensity. Everything is carried by an exceptional soundtrack which we still listen to today, while writing these few lines. This means…
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Particularly anticipated this year, the new episode of Call of Duty was also and above all the first to make a foray into Microsoft's subscription, Xbox Game Passas soon as it is released. A most important marketing event for the American giant and for Activision. But beyond that, Black Ops 6 above all turned out to be one of the best episodes of the series. The campaign is rhythmic, creative and original. The story told is worthy of the most successful action filmswhile the multiplayer part – whether in Zombie or for PVP – is solid. Successful content for an episode that we will remember for a while longer and on which we may well spend a few hours over the coming year.
Gattuso's 2024 Tops
Persona 3 Reload
It is always appreciable to see a game that we have mentioned in our future expectations slip into the selection of the best games at the end of the year. Basically, we already knew that Persona 3 Reload could only convince. Remember, this is a remake of the RPG released on PS2 and PSP which, in its time, had already delighted players for the quality of its plot and its characters. Thanks to this “Reload” replay, Persona 3 is now a game which we also appreciate for its aesthetic. The whole thing is very successful, immensely gripping for those who are sensitive to the signature of the Persona games in terms atmosphere, music, quality of writing. Despite the fact that it compares poorly with Persona 5 in terms of vastness and features, Persona 3 Reload is one of the great adventures of this year 2024.
Dragon’s Dogma 2
When the sequel to a very atypical game arrives to us after more than a decade of waiting, we experience the first moments of discovery with a certain anxiety. Having really liked Dragon's Dogma when it was released on Xbox 360 and having not missed playing it again a few years later on Xbox One, the arrival of Dragon's Dogma 2 took on a very special character. Something which falls within the domain of the emotional. Well, it was with great pleasure once again that I explored the universe created by Capcom. We could certainly criticize Dragon's Dogma 2 for being a sort of “1.5” as much it takes the codes of the first episode to the letter and serves us more as a rereading than a real new chapter. But it is here for the good, because when we have learned to love a game for its very singular nature, we are precisely happy to find its main advantages twelve years later. A beautiful adventure, rich, dynamic, engaging for which we hope not to have to wait another decade before seeing the sequel.
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
A DLC that slips into the ranking of the best games of the year? Only Elden Ring is capable of this and without any hesitation I placed Shadow of the Erdtree among the most beautiful experiences of 2024. It must already be said that the content of this expansion is such that it could constitute a game in its own right. But beyond the immense generosity demonstrated by this extension, it also and above all brings many hours of high quality gameplay. Once back in the bath (and quite upset to feel so small and weak again), we find the salt of the Elden Ring experience: the exploration, the danger, the challenge and at the end of the road an incredible feeling of satisfaction. Anyone who loves Souls must experience this additional chapter of Elden Ring.
Call of Duty Black Ops 6
I never thought I would one day have the opportunity to place a Call of Duty game in my annual ranking of the best games. But I have the feeling that it would have been unfair to ignore Call of Duty Black Ops 6 this time. Note that I am referring here to the single-player campaign and leave it to multiplayer fans to deliver their verdict because I do not I didn't touch it. Playing the Call of Duty campaign is a little guilty pleasure that I like to treat myself to almost every year. However, for many years I have been struggling to find what I want and the recent Modern Warfare III, with its botched campaign, almost put it in my head that this personal tradition was coming to an end. But now Black Ops 6 arrives and shuffles the cards!
Except for the few science fiction-oriented passages which quite bored me, the campaign of this Black Ops brings everything we expect from a single-player Call of Duty : corridors, bang-pan boom-boom in every direction, explosive staging, arch-caricatural characters to whom we become attached. A game which leaves almost no respite from the action. And what's more, this time it offers a very decent lifespan for its type. In short, Black Ops 6 is exactly what we expect from Call of Duty, let's hope it inspires the next ones!
