2017 was a year of games releasing left, right, and centre. Opening with Nintendo releasing the groundbreaking Switch, home console and handheld hybrid that has kept me sane on train journeys throughout the year, whilst PlayStation had exclusives coming out the wazoo with either sequels, remasters or brand new IPs, Sony definitely showed that they have the games. Meanwhile, Microsoft focused on their most powerful console, the Xbox One X but didn’t really bring us anything exclusive that showed off the company’s new console… C’mon Microsoft, your E3 presentation you boasted about Minecraft in 4K… Plus, you cancelled Scalebound…

Anyway, time to reveal my list of games I consider the top five of 2017. And remember, this is my list, so if you don’t see your favourite game on here, that’s because I most likely didn’t play it or I just didn’t care enough for it… PUBG isn’t on this list because I didn’t play it, let’s just get that out of the way.

5: Super Mario Odyssey

Well, I was totally blown away by this game, like, totally… I’ve never been a huge fan of Mario as I grew up as a Sega kid until the Nintendo 64 but even then I didn’t experience Mario until my late teens so I never understood the hype even after playing the games. But Super Mario Odyssey was incredible; each Kingdom was a massive playground for you to experience and it felt so rewarding when you got that moon that eluded you. Mario Odyssey would probably be higher on this list but a few other games were a little bit more special to me including another Nintendo icon.

4: NieR: Automata

I loved the underrated original NieR that launched on the PS3 back in 2010 but with Platinum Games working on this sequel, NieR Automata took a massive step over the original with breathtaking combat, music and a story that makes you feel all sorts of feels and such. I heard Yoko Taro is interested in making another game and oh boy, I sure hope he does because this game was the tits… and ass… sorry.

3: Persona 5
Persona 5
Holy shit! Look at those gorgeous character designs! I’m finally a Japanese high school student! I’m entering a world of sinners and making them atone for their misdeeds, this game is everything I want and more! Plus, they’re making a dancing game including remixes of the kickass soundtrack which is super ultra kick-ass! Did I use too many exclamation points? Well, tough shit because this game gets me so hyped with the music alone. Haven’t played Persona 5? Well, stop playing Destiny 2 or PUBG and start playing Persona 5!

2: Nioh

I was never really into getting my ass kicked by a video game and then I played Bloodborne and loved the feeling that every step is my last, so I visited Dark Souls and loved that fear of death lingering over me too. Then, Team Ninja announced Nioh which blended the lingering death from Dark Souls with my favourite point in history, Feudal Japan. Initially, I sucked at Nioh but after failing the first boss multiple times, I got a knack for the speed of the game compared to Dark Souls and carved my way through Osaka, slaying all Oni standing in my path.

1: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda is by far one of my favourite franchises in gaming and Breath of the Wild gave me what I wanted, a massive world to explore and not to be hindered by story barriers, I explored about 75% of Hyrule before starting a majority of the story. I loved open worlds to explore as a kid, I lived in the middle of nowhere so myself and a group of friends used to spend our summers exploring and camping, searching places that were probably prohibited but the sense of adventure was there and this game took me back to those days. Although Breath of the Wild didn’t have the most complex dungeons compared to previous Zelda titles, it had the exploration to keep me entertained for over 150 hours and with the latest DLC, I got to ride a bike around Hyrule and it is bitchin’!

Honorable Mentions: A Hat in Time, Stormblood: Final Fantasy XIV, Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy, Tales of Berseria, Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age, Uncharted The Lost Legacy, Yakuza Kiwami, Resident Evil 7, Horizon Zero Dawn, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and Sonic Mania.