Neon Notables 2021
Devil May Cry 5: Special Edition (Capcom; PS/XB 2020)
by Claytone
In August, I kept a years-old promise to a friend by finally playing Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne in the form of its new HD Remaster. I enjoyed it well enough, but I am most grateful for its noteworthy inclusion of Dante from Devil May Cry. His appearance caused to me to return to his origin series, which I had neglected to continue with after beating its first entry years ago. After slogging through the dismal Devil May Cry 2, I fell in love with Devil May Cry 3, where the series truly came into its own mechanically, aesthetically, and tonally. I thought there was no way a subsequent entry could be better, but I was wrong.
Devil May Cry 5 is the perfect culmination of all the good parts of the series that led to it. The combat mechanics of its returning protagonists feel better than ever, and its new protagonist has a unique and exciting play style of his own. Each character has so many tools that no two players will play exactly alike, but it’s also not so complicated that new players will feel lost or overwhelmed. Although I maintained many of my skills from previous games, I constantly felt like I was learning new things and getting even better. In fact, I was able to carry some skills back to DMC3 when I played it for a bit after finishing DMC5—a testament to the solid foundation established by the 2005 game.
The story shares virtues with the gameplay. It does a great job of continuing the plot of the now 20-year-old franchise while making an effort to be reasonably comprehensible to people who are trying the series for the first time. It ties up enough loose ends that it could be a great, satisfying conclusion to the series, but it also leaves room for the DMC crew to return for a sixth game.
If you have never played Devil May Cry, you may not always understand what’s going on in Devil May Cry 5, but I guarantee you’ll have fun with it. I would still recommend that you play everything that came before it. Few series I’ve played have paid off quite like this one.
Hades (Supergiant Games; PC/Switch 2020, PS/XB 2021)
by Kong Wen
Hades initially seems like a relatively straightforward action-roguelike. Zagreus combos his way through random dungeons until he dies, changes his loadout, and tries again. After only a handful of cycles, Hades begins to hint at its true expansive nature.
First, it’s the random upgrades from the Olympians. Then it’s new weapons. Then customized versions of those weapons. As dungeons increase in difficulty, Zagreus’s options for how to tackle them multiply in number and complexity, an elegant solution to the problem of engagement in a game (and genre) that is fundamentally repetitious by design. The discovery of a serendipitous combination of abilities and upgrades that feels over-powered is a thrilling and joyous moment.
What truly sets Hades apart is that the sense of persistence is not limited to Zagreus’s weapons and abilities, but extends to the narrative and world-building as well. The story is designed to unfold over numerous escape attempts (dozens? hundreds?!) and each death and subsequent return to the house of Hades advances the plot beat by beat. The result is that each session feels connected, death doesn’t feel like failure, and the player is always progressing towards a larger goal that actually feels attainable—maybe on the next run. Every element of the game, from the art to the writing to the acting, is of a consistently polished quality, and this overall cohesion is the game’s greatest strength.
Mario Party Superstars (Nintendo; Switch 2021)
by Kreegs
Let’s get this out of the way. A game in the long-running Mario Party series is never going to be—and should never be—the best overall game to be released in a given year. If this were to happen, that would mean the selection of other games was abysmally mediocre. However, my favorite game of 2021 was Mario Party Superstars on the Nintendo Switch.
Easily the best game in the series since some of the Gamecube releases, this semi-remake is a healthy dose of freshly-baked nostalgia served up on a platter for players to enjoy, either in the same room or over the internet. The five boards are all from the original trilogy on the Nintendo 64 and the mini games are all standouts from any Mario Party game that used button controls. The game looks great with some new polish, and some bonus content is thrown in for players to spend their in-game coins on after each game concludes.
The biggest strength of Mario Party Superstars is that it doesn’t try to do anything outlandish. After stepping away from what made the original games so fun to play with friends, Nintendo and NDcube deliver the game that Mario Party fans had been waiting for. Sure, the game could use some more boards, and maybe a couple more characters, but those would just be nice extras. The interface is clean and the gameplay is what everyone expects from classic Mario Party. My wife and I have spent many evenings playing online matches with friends and family both near and far, and every experience has been seamless and fun. At its core, Mario Party Superstars is Mario Party. Bumper Balls? Check. 20 coins for a star? Check. Chance Time?! You betcha! Do you have what it takes to be a Superstar? Obviously. So grab some friends and have a good time.
Disco Elysium: The Final Cut (ZA/UM; PC/PS/Switch/XB 2021)
by Kiwi the Tortoise
You are Harry, a Lieutenant Double-Yefreitor of the Revachol Citizens Militia send to investigate a murder. But Disco Elysium is more than a simple murder mystery, as the city of Revachol and its past and present are relevant to the case. While Harry will always be Harry, a cop, what kind of person he is can be very different: his ideology and political views are defined by the player through talking with people, body parts, aspects of personality, clothes and other objects. The game isn’t shy about calling you out on possible antithetical stances you may hold, either. But no matter who your Harry may turn out to be, it will always lead to a conclusion, even if you may fail to get all pieces of the puzzle.
What makes Disco Elysium my game of the year is the amount of detail and density. Throughout the game, the history of the city and its people is treated with such detail that the scenario, despite being fantastical in nature, starts to feel very real. By going into themes and topics that others wouldn’t dare to touch, Disco Elysium feels much more realistic than most video games can ever hope to get. I highly recommend everyone to enter this world of murder, cryptids, unions, and anodic dance music.
The world has changed, and so will we.
We’re taking some time to develop a new Neon.
See you soon.