I love the Xbox Live Arcade and have played quite a few of the games released in 2007. Some of them have been great fun and some of them have been a complete waste, but since you get to try them for free, its hard to complain. XBLA has seen some multiplayer focused games, some great single player games, some remakes of classics, some new exclusives, some licenced titles, and even an advergame. So out of all of the titles this year, which one is best (according to my unbaised multicultural panel of one)?
The Winner is: Catan!
The board game Settlers of Catan, has been a favorite of many since its original release in 1995 in Germany. Since then it has been translated to 25 different languages and gathered international renown. The 2007 XBLA release flawlessly translate the beloved board game into a very fitting format. The games initial pace may seem slow to inexperienced players, but speeds up considerably as you increase your rank online and play against more skilled. The game is based a lot on skill but there is just the right ammount of luck involved. To win, players must take calculated risks at times and continually be aware of what other players are doing. The Xbox version even improves on the board game by keeping important game related information a button push away. Everything about the game is true to its board game counterpart and the online play is just perfect for this highly competitive, highly addictive, game.
Runners Up:
Bomberman Live- Bomberman live is a great adaptation of a ****c game, but it suffers from laggy connections. I've still spent a good ammount of time on this and there have been several expansions since release, so it try real hard. With 4 player local + live this should be a multiplayer dream, but I have had trouble almost every time I tried to play this game online. So it falls short.
Undertow- Undertow is a beautiful game and the only XBLA title using the Unreal Engine. The DeveloprsKnew how to build a cult ****c when they developed this game, with 16 player online, but from my experience it just isn't as fun as the competition. Very good game though.
What are your thoughts?