The lights are on
As is usually the case, many of the year's biggest titles were first-person shooters. Despite this, 2012 also saw the release of several fantastic games that fit more snugly under the action umbrella. Read on to discover Game Informer's picks for our favorite action experiences of the year.
Best Story: Dishonored
Dishonored begins with a bang, with the protagonist being framed for the assassination of an empress and tossed into prison. Stepping into the shoes of the nimble Corvo Attano, gamers were tasked with taking out several high-ranking officials of Dunwall with the help of an underground resistance group. It's a classic revenge story, and each kill on your way to those responsible had an impact on the player and Corvo's quest for justice.
Best Graphics: Journey
In a year filled with the ultra-realistic visual style of Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Assassin's Creed III, and Far Cry 3, it's a breath of fresh air to see Journey's gorgeous world. Its sand-filled world may be sparsely populated, but every inch of it is vivid and beautiful. If you've played the game, you no doubt remember the breathtaking visual of the sun reflecting off the sand as you slide down a massive hill.
Best Multiplayer: Assassin's Creed III
Ever since multiplayer was introduced to the series in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, fans have loved the ability to sneak up on unsuspecting opponents. With Ubisoft's newest blockbuster, a new cooperative Wolfpack mode was introduced, as well as the team-based Domination mode. Third-person action games aren't usually the source of many great multiplayer experiences, but the Assassin's Creed series has bucked the trend once again.
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True true true
Action GOTY: AC3!
Looks like I need to check out Dishonored. I figured AC III would take the cake.
It really could have gone to AC3 but i agree Dishonored deserved this award.;)
i still need to play dishonored
Gonna have to play Dishonored.
Asura's Wrath the most ridiculous action game of this year? I second that!
Picked up Dishonored on Steam sale for $30 and finished my first play through earlier today.
Already one of my favorite games of all-time.
Everything just works together so well, with enough new and satisfying gameplay to keep me coming back for quite sometime.
I greatly disliked Dishonored. Way to easy and way to short. I beat the game on the hardest difficulty, and I beat the game using none of powers, except for the teleportation. I did all of that while remaining stealthy. I was highly unimpressed with the game.
The action genre was one of the most disappointing for me this year. I felt Dishonored was good but not great but IMO that will be one of those games that has the potential to serve up a stellar sequel. AC3 was my biggest disappointment. At the end of the day it just wasn't very fun for me. I found the pacing absolutely horrendous and the mission design ranged from decent to dreadful. The Assassination missions sucked. I think my favorite action adventure game this year has been Mark of the Ninja.
I kind of regret returning dishonored, i don't think i gave it a real look at.
AC 3 for me as well to me Dishonored got really boring really fast.