Aidan's Favorite Games of 2015

by Byte's Editorial Board It's the end of 2015,  which means it's time to select the best games of the year. To celebrate, members of Byte's editorial board picked their favorite games to highlight. The games below are the favorites of Aidan Hall (@AidanHallByte), Byte's Podcasts Editor.

5. I Am Bread

"Toasting the competition, one slice at a time."

I never thought that such a beautiful piece of majesty could exist in this plane of mortal men. You play as a slice of bread, trying to get toasted. That’s it. It’s almost a lot like life. No matter what type of bread we have inside us, we’re all on a journey that we must complete. I Am Bread helps us achieve our goals in life, simply by sliding inside a toaster and living out our destiny.

4. Batman: Arkham Knight

“Fear is contagious.”

While I’d probably put Arkham City or even Asylum higher on my top five, Arkham Knight still deserves to be on my list. While the game set up some pretty weak reveals, the mechanics were great. It was always engaging and I found myself satisfied with the ending. With the release of new challenge maps, I keep going back to it and it just always manages to deliver when I’m looking to don the batmantle.

3. Yo-Kai Watch

“Don’t expect another bailout, I’m not the government.”

Yo-Kai Watch is the game that made me feel like a kid again. Hailed as the Pokemon killer, Yo-Kai Watch isn’t a serious game. It’s got the same witty writing as LBX but with interesting mechanics and a unique capture system. I found myself sitting back and realizing that this is one of the best games to encapsulate what it’s like for a kid on summer vacation. You could be helping your friend get his mom’s ring back from a river god one day and saving the entirety of the Yo-Kai world the next. This isn’t a hard game, but certainly a fun one.

2. Fallout 4

“Sometimes the truth isn’t what people want to hear.”

When Fallout 4 was announced earlier this year, I didn’t know what to think. Was the hype to be expected? Would I have a good time? As I sat bored with Fallout Shelter about a week in, I didn’t even know if I wanted the game. But then it came out. Since picking it up on Black Friday, I’ve easily clocked in over 100 hours into the game and finding new stuff every day. While glitchy, the game is always engaging and just walking from Point A to Point B is an adventure all its own. I found myself dodging Super Mutants just to run into a raider camp and have to deal with them instead. Fallout 4 is packed full of adventure and I’m glad I waited for it.

1. Little Battlers Experience

“You must find the great hacker Master Otaku!”

Little Battlers Experience isn’t on many people’s minds let alone their top games list, but for me it just felt right to include it in the number one spot. It’s like if Medabots were real in a world where the invention of super durable cardboard was a life changing affair. The game never takes itself seriously and it just has a good time. I found myself actually laughing at the dialogue and just seeing how they made peace with the game they had made. I won’t tell you this game should be your game of the year, but it should at least be on your radar. This is one of Level 5’s greatest achievements and left me having the time of my life with a mini mech.