2) DOOM
The fact that Bethesda held back review codes of DOOM until the last minute made some people very nervous, and yet here we are, with the 2016 revival of this legendary franchise sitting at the penultimate spot on our list. Taking the inherent silliness of the demon-splattering gameplay and going way over-the-top with it, DOOM is hilariously visceral entertainment — leading every writer at but one on WGTC’s gaming team to nominate it for Game of the Year.
Okay, this might not be “hilarious” in the standard sense of the word, but I’m not sure what else to call it — DOOM made me laugh out loud on way more than one occasion. Some of those laughs were whoops of joy at the pure action spectacle (try to contain your excitement the first time you pull off a glory kill), and some were thanks to the game’s screwy, self-referential sense of humor (if you don’t laugh when you see the Marine fist-bump a statue of himself, I can’t help you).
This game isn’t all blood, guts and chugging guitar riffs, though; the revival also offers some surprisingly effective takes on old-school gameplay, like platforming and addictive collectibles. If you know a lapsed gamer who hasn’t played since the good old days of Wolfenstein 3D and the original DOOM, this is the perfect way to reintroduce them to the medium.