Playstation 3 owners have had one of the best years as far as exclusives are concerned, with 2011 looking even better we’ve tried to list down 10 of the Best PS3 Exclusives of 2010.
#10 Echochrome 2
Presenting a brand new take on the puzzle genre, echochrome ii introduces a unique twist on gameplay that lets players use pure imagination to solve puzzles by controlling light and shadows. A follow-up to the original PlayStation Network hit, echochrome, echochrome ii introduces the PlayStation Eye camera and PlayStation Move motion controller to the series, offering a brand new experience to fans of the action/puzzle genre.
#9 Joe Danger
A washed up daredevil looking to make a comeback, so does he make it? He sure does and does it in style. From the candy coated graphics to the crazy yet easy to use level editor, Joe Danger is a great game mostly for its single player solo carrier which is a blast to playthrough. You can't go wrong with Joe Danger, it's a fun colorful ride which will appeal to racing, platforming and modding fans.
#8 Yakuza 3
Under-appreciated by most of the gaming media, Yakuza 3 is Japan's answer to the Grand Theft Auto series. While parts of the game had to be stripped out due to time constraints, Yakuza 3 is nonetheless a worthy sequel to the series.
#7 MLB 10: The Show
Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, San Diego Studio, this year’s title delivered yet another immersive baseball gaming experience complete with a "Catcher Mode" option leading the new features in "Road to The Show," complete MLB All-Star Break activities including the always popular Home Run Derby, improved online multiplayer, and unmatched stadium realism and ambiance with incredibly detailed graphics and animations that helped bring the baseball experience to life.
#6 3D Dot Game Heroes
Resembling what looks like a cross between Zelda and Lego, 3D Dot Game Heroes is a unique and certainly unmissable game which cleverly blends the action of Zelda with the playfulness of Lego. Dripping with old school charm, classic gaming pizzazz, and pure retro sexy, 3D Dot Game Heroes is a fitting homage to the industry's golden era.
#5 MAG
It's hard to pass up on a game that offers 256-player action. Exclusive to the PlayStation 3, MAG is the console's answer to the Battlefield games. It's basically PlanetSide done right, or what Battlefield 2 would be like if you combined 8 servers together and had players (grouped into squads) team up to take objectives throughout the map. Territory is gained and bases are won and the battlefield remains dynamic as the game's three sides wage all out war against each other.
The graphics might not be much to look at, but for a game that offers this much action, I don't really mind.
#4 Modnation Racers
Often overlooked as one of the finer gaming experiences of the console, Modnation Racers delivers a good racing experience while allowing players to customize tracks to their hearts desire.
ModNation Racers is a thoroughly fresh take on classic kart racing that empowers the player to personalize their entire game. Players can express themselves by creating their own Mod character, styling their own racing kart and even building – in just minutes – an imaginative track that can be shared with the rest of the PlayStation community via PSN.
#3 Gran Turismo 5
This shiny, new edition of the classic racing simulator series brings a few notable improvements, but manages to keep a lot of the features that made previous versions popular. The most notable improvement, right off the bat is the inclusion of multiplayer online for 16 players. This brought an additional spark of excitement, knowing that I was facing off against 15 other actual human beings. I adore racing games, though I am largely terrible at them in comparison to people who focus on them to the exclusion of other genres. Most often, I play them to blow off a bit of steam, and I usually opt for the Burnout series, simply because it is really gratifying to see all that damage. Nothing like an aftertouch takedown after a particularly bad day.
However, the allure of Gran Turismo 5 is a strong competitor, what with the ridiculously wide array of 1,031 cars to choose from. In addition to some extremely fancy console debuts by Bugatti and Lamborghini, there's also a Tesla electric car.. Now I know that GT 4 had hybrids, too, and it really doesn't matter what you drive in a simulation because obviously your carbon footprint will be more affected by how long you leave your tv on as opposed to what kind of in-game choice you make, but for some reason it makes me happy to leave all the Subarus and Ferraris in the dust as I peel out around a hairpin turn in my Roadster. Or, more accurately, as I watch from last place and try to keep off the grass and avoid hitting the fence in my Roadster.
#2 Heavy Rain
This PS3 exclusive game is unique in that it is hard to categorize it into an exact genre. The overall narrative of the game is that of a film noir style mystery, centered around the missing child of an architect and a serial killer who specifically targets children. Typically, such a plot might be rendered in a point and click adventure style, with the focus of the game on deductive reasoning, and Heavy Rain does have aspects of this, certainly, particularly when characters are meant to be exploring environments. However, there are also quick time events, which involve fast paced, specific controller sequences as well. Both of these things can alter the ending in various ways. Gamers who prefer more consistent action may find the mechanisms of gameplay disconcerting, as there is a bit of a discrepancy between the investigative probing of the environment and the quick time sequences. However, the desire to get to the bottom of the mystery at hand is meant to override this, and largely succeeds, in that people do seem to be compelled to at least finish the game.
Heavy Rain has been praised by many critics (not all of whom are specifically game critics) for breaking from the standard video game fare of fantasy worlds, aliens, race cars, and the like. At best, this criticism seems a bit naive, given that the scope of video game subject matter has grown so broad and diverse, even in the past five years. That being said, games like Heavy Rain and Alan Wake (which might be considered the most similar current game to Heavy Rain, even though the two are completely different in many ways) are perhaps setting a precedent for more interactive mystery/noir games, or at least raising the bar a bit.
#1 God of War III
Kratos is back. Again. And this time, he is determined to kill some Greek Gods. Teaming up with the Titans, Kratos and the gang storm Mount Olympus, and succeed in killing Poseidon, which causes a ginormous flood. Kratos and Gaia, the Titan upon whose shoulders he was riding, fall off Olympus, and Gaia reveals that she does not give a rat's behind at Kratos or what happens to him. After Kratos lands in the underworld, he loses the Blade of Olympus, and is weakened by the souls who reside there. He then talks to ghosts, gods and blacksmiths only to learn that they key to his quest is tied up, once again, with Pandora's box.
GOWIII gameplay involves many different types of maneuvering and combat, both first and third person. Some may find this frustrating, particularly if one harbors and aversion to a particular type of game, but generally this variety is viewed as a positive by players, and in my opinion, keeps the game fresh where it could have felt a bit monotonous. There is a good balance of platforming skill and puzzle solving abilities that come in to play, and the dramatic, ambiguous finale will leave players wishing that this was not the purported last chapter of the series.
Honorable Mentions
Tumble, Atelier Rorona, White Knight Chronicles and Dead Nation.
