Vanquish
Release: 2010
Platforms: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Shinji Mikami’s Vanquish is Japan’s answer to the Western shooter, but far from being a soulless copycat, it does a great many things better than the competition. Take Providence, its home planet, which bends on itself like an enormous roller-coaster ride and offers up scenes reminiscent of something out of Christopher Nolan’s Inception.Â
Then there’s the action. Mikami dives into an all-you-can-eat buffet, picking and choosing his courses, then combining them like a master chef. There’s Max Payne bullet-time, Gears of War‘s cover mechanic and even a dash option that lets you slide in and out of oncoming gunfire. Firefights are a balletic dance as you twist, weave and evade a hail of bullets, your fingers mesmerized by the different options available to you on the battlefield.
It’s a short ride while it lasts, but every turn, spin and vertical loop is delivered with purpose. Six years on, Vanquish remains one of the most under-appreciated games I’ve ever played. More than any other entry on this list, you’re likely to have missed out on this one. This Christmas, right that wrong.
