Each month, Critically Sane will select, from the releases in that month, a game that is worthy of our prestigious game of the month award, and a few runners up that are worthy of recognition. These games will form the basis of our GOTY discussion later on in the year. On to January!
Game of the Month: Europa Universalis 4: Conquest of Paradise
Europa Universalis IV was the best nation simulator ever created. What better way to honor it than to select its stellar Conquest of Paradise expansion as Critically Sane’s inaugural game of the month. Conquest of Paradise fixes the essential difficult of exploring a historical new world: the fact that we already know where everything is. Randomizing the continents provides a huge element of mystery to the proceedings, allowing actual honest-to-God exploration to take place. Additionally, the expansion adds a myriad of gameplay options to the myriad nations of the New World, adding depth and events to the portofolio of the Aztecs, Huron and other nations of the Western hemisphere. Finally, the expansion adds the element of colonial nations to the mix, as European powers will not simply create provinces in the New World, but will watch as those provinces take on a life all their own, an ocean away from their owners. Conquest of Paradise is a fantastic expansion, dramatically broadening the colonial gameplay, and was easily the best game release of January.
Runner-Up: OlliOlli (Playstation Vita)
The premise to OlliOlli is simple: get a high score. As simple as the game is, OlliOlli does a wonderful job at making you come back for more. Some levels, I played dozens of times. Dozens, plural. For such a simple game, OlliOlli forces players to harness old-school gaming skills that are sometimes lost and forgotten. Precision and “getting in the rhythm” are requirements for this Vita gem, and OlliOlli is a must-own for anyone who has a Vita.
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