Gift giving can be a terrible road to walk down. For every friend and family member in your life is a different personality, one that has its own set of wishes and desires. Trying to find the perfect gift is a Sisyphean task, a grind we put upon ourselves each and every December. We're here to walk down that road with you and, in the process, make you a Christmas legend.
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There are as many games as there are players, and everyone has their own preferences. There are more factors to consider when deciding what to get someone a gift: their playstyle, their time, their expectations and so on. Some like to pick up and go, playing for five minutes then stopping. Others want a full adventure that requires multiple sessions to complete. Decisions, decisions.
This is my completely subjective, totally biased list of potential games you can gift to your friends and family. I’m not including free-to-play (or Get) games because if you gift that to your friends, you’re a really bad friend. I will also not include the mobile titles listed in my Top 10 List, (because you should have those already.) Also not listed are iPad-only titles.
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The first chapters of both Game of Thrones ($4.99; App Store / Google Play) and Tales From The Borderlands ($4.99; App Store) are now available. Impatient GoT fans who have already devoured the books and rewatched the past 4 seasons will find something to love with this brand new adventure with a new set of characters. All the fun, sex and violence...now on your phone! Telltale's Tales From the Borderlands (review) continues the irreverent humor and thrilling action of the FPS RPG series, and features some stunning voice acting.
For fans of a more traditional RPG experience, you need not look any further than Final Fantasy VI ($15.99; App Store / Google Play), often cited as the best entry in the long running series. The game has seen many mobile releases on past Game Boy handhelds, but now you never have to part with it. Reoptimized for phone and featuring the same great characters and music, this is one worth revisiting time and time again. Or you can fall into the dark and amazing hole that is Wayward Souls ($6.99; App Store / Google Play) for a touch of modern appeal, and quicker play sessions.
Board games are simply great these days, but you need other people. In the modern world, getting together with friends is a near impossible task. Why not remove the whole ‘needing a board’ thing from the equation and pick up Lords of Waterdeep ($6.99; App Store), Stone Age ($2.99; App Store), fan favorite Ticket To Ride Pocket ($1.99 App Store) or the wildly complicated Agricola ($6.99 App Store? To save time, find everything Playdek has done and just download that. Your friends and family will be glad you did.
Perhaps your friend really likes both classic literature, steampunk and video games. In that case, give him or her 80 Days ($4.99; App Store / Google Play), a retelling of Jules Verne’s classic Around the World in 80 Days. An endless number of possibilities await you as you attempt to circumnavigate the globe in less than three months.
If there is a little nephew that you don’t particularly like because your sister refuses to discipline him, then scare the little punk straight with Five Nights At Freddys ($2.99; App Store / Google Play) and its sequel, Five Nights At Freddy's 2 ($2.99; App Store / Google Play). Your goal is to stay alive using only security cameras, but the animatronic creatures at a Chuck-E-Cheeses-esque restaurant have much different plans. Hey, you love your family members, but you don't have to like them all the time, either.
Puzzle games appeal to nearly every cross section of gamer, young old, male and female. But not all puzzle titles are created equally. For instance, you should give both The Room ($.99; App Store / Google Play) and The Room Two ($2.99; App Store / Google Play) to your slightly strange, goth cousin, which combines intriguing and ingenious head-scratchers with a little touch of Lovecraft. Meanwhile, you should definitely give your mom and grandmother Threes! ($1.99; App Store / Google Play), also known as that 'puzzle game everyone is playing on the subway'. The number matcher was just awarded best game of the year by Apple. I don’t know. It just seems like a game your mom, who loves Sudoku, would really get into.
For young kids who are really into Zelda, I offer two options: Sneaky Sneaky ($2.99; App Store) shares a lot of visual and gameplay mechanics to the original top down Zelda games on the NES and SNES, with a stealthy twist. It’s fun, intuitive but suffers from being a bit too short. Full review HERE. For the more mature kid, the 13 year old niece whom your brother is raising correctly, you should try out Oceanhorn: Monster of the Uncharted Sea ($4.99, sale price; App Store) which may be the closest thing we get to a Wind Waker sequel we ever get.
Not all games need to be seen to be enjoyed. There are a lot of great audio adventures out there for people who maybe can’t see or want to challenge themselves to something new. British developer Somethin’ Else has been churning out a great many titles, like Papa Sangre II ($4.99; App Store), The Nightjar ($3.99; App Store) and their latest, Audio Defence: Zombie Arena ($4.99; App Store) in which you have to use your ears to survive the horde of undead. Read the full review HERE.
This list can go on and on and on. I can get weird and esoteric (Year Walk, $3.99; App Store), to the expansive and exciting (Sorcery! $4.99; App Store) all day long. The mobile games' market has the chance to be the most influential niche on the industry. Everyone already has the necessary hardware; they just need the titles. This holiday season, make sure you get your friends and family the best ones.