10. Rise of the Tomb Raider Crystal Dynamic's second entry to their Tomb
Raider reboot.
It's packed with so much more tombs, as Hardcore Gamer's Adam Beck points out. But aside from
numbers, it was the scope of the entire experience. Its areas are brimming with secrets and fresh
"flexible" combat that all add up to an adventure that's faithful to the Indiana Jones inspiration.
For some reviewers though, like Polygon's Philip Kollar and Games Radar's Justin Towell,
it didn't exactly reinvent the wheel. The changes weren't massive and it followed closely
in the path of its predecessor.
Rise's story is one thing that lets it rise up above these flaws. There's a focus on the
theme of growth. We see a more fleshed out Lara Croft. A woman with empowering new courage,
who is as ready to solve puzzles as she is to exchange bullets.
Rise of the Tomb Raider was a point of growth in the series, and the effects of this growth
are felt on the Xbox One to this day with a playscore of 8.78.
9. Divinity: Original Sin 2 - Definitive Edition Larian Studios' critically acclaimed sequel
to their renowned RPG series was already winning on the PC. But, when it made its entrance
on the consoles in this definitive form, Original Sin 2 evolved in ways we didn't even expect.
On top of revamping the arena mode with new challenges and first-time playable characters,
it also dived deeper into characters and storylines.
In fact, GameSpace.com appreciated that it was more than a simple port. It added a new
Story Mode to better the experience for casual gamers, offered one of the very few split-screen
multiplayers out there, and considered its layared and strategic combat one of its most
compelling aspects.
While there might be some framerate drops on the console as jeuxvideo and gameblog point
out, it's still one of the most beautiful out there and it has a playscore of 8.79.
8. Resident Evil 2 Just like the zombies of the franchise, CAPCOM
revived their 1998 horror classic and gave it its much needed modern makeover.
However much we've enjoyed the company of Claire and Leon in their original polygonal
form, it's also a breath of fresh air to see them shiny, new, and with their own differing
perspectives.
For GameSpot, the Second Scenarios allows you to see the larger campaign story with
new eyes. The impact may be subtle, the tiny details and encounters make it all worth the
second look.
Gamezone may differ, pointing out the disappointment of identical stories and inconsequential changes.
However, they both went on to give the game a rating of 9. For them, the Resident Evil
2 remake doesn't just spice up the original, it takes on a life of its own, with consistent
scares and smooth controls.
It has a playscore of 8.79.
7. INSIDE Our dive into the darkness doesn't end with
CAPCOM's remake. There's plenty more of that in PlayDead's puzzle platformer about a boy
navigating his Orwellian dystopia.
Released in the wake of Playdead's equally significant title LIMBO, INSIDE seems to have
inherited all of the game's darkly charming qualities while adding even more to the mix.
Out of the forty reviews on the Xbox One, INSIDE received 10 perfect scores, and whole
lot more upper 9s--all of them praising the game for its world-building, narrative, atmosphere,
and overall artistic sensibility.
Getting the lowest scores from AusGamers and Kanobu who both gave the game a 7.50, the
criticisms were mostly leveled against the games' short runtime and their puzzles, which
they found either too simple or too hard set for replayability. PlayDead's second step
into perfecting the haunting singleplayer puzzler, it has a playscore of 8.84.
6. Ori and the Blind Forest Microsoft's most prized exclusives, Ori's
adventures through an ethereal forest has enchanted most everyone that guided him through
all of it.
The charm of Moon Studio' metroidvania platformer comes first and foremost from its presentation.
It shows off the beauty of their magical forest through stages that look like tapestries of
a fantastical nature--filled with glowing lights and meticulously designed obstacles.
But apart from the superficial, Ori's challenges are also tougher than they seem. TSA's Matt
Wingle calls it a masterpiece citing the delicate balancing act of difficult platforming and
a sense of achievement that stirs you to see the story through.
A one two punch combo of art and technical cleverness, it earns almost equal scores from
both gamers and critics.
With Ori and the Will of the Wisps coming to the consoles soon, this might be the perfect
time to check it out, if you haven't already. It has a playscore of 8.91.
5. NieR: Automata - BECOME AS GODS Edition When its weird existentialism in anime aesthetics
that you want, you can’t go wrong with Yoko Taro's spinoff to his Drakengard series.
He was already known for his calculated strangeness and that's the direction he went for NieR:
Automata. He hams it up, adjusting his signature with touches of genius in narrative and gameplay.
Although they never quite perfected the PC port, at least the Xbox One users got acquainted
to the android 2B in this enhanced Become as Gods edition.
As exciting as DLCs and awesome outfits are, getting to experience the story and its myriad
of endings is enough for most.
Of course, NieR doesn't claim to be perfect. There may be some debate over the game's designs--minimalist
for some, drab and barren for others--and, technical issues may have been carried over.
But what remains, is the mastery of Yoko Taro's storytelling that makes it rise above all
that. It has a playscore of 8.96.
4. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt The third installment to CD Projekt Red's
has been most everywhere, topping list after list since its release on the Xbox One on
2015.
To answer what makes it an awesome singleplayer game, it's hard to point out just one aspect
of its vast, colorful, medieval magic whole. At the time of its release, the scale of Witcher
3's world was unparalleled.
In their review, IGN points out the game's the fetch-heavy questing. But, set against
the backdrop of Witcher's rich and expansive universe, there's always something to fall
back on, whether it's exploration or their many interesting characters.
This grand scope may have led to some shortcomings in combat and leveling though, at least for
Game Revolution who gave it a 7.
There might small glitches, bugs, and annoyances, according to COGconnected, its triple A RPG
storytelling is enough to outweigh all of them. Plus, with all the packed DLCs, it deserves
the excellent praise with a playscore of 9.05.
3. Forza Motorsport 7 You could say this beloved Microsoft classic
got home turf advantage, but that wouldn't do justice to Turn10's breathtaking racing
game.
With every title in this franchise, they sought to create the ultimate racing experience.
Forza Motorsport 7 is the closest they've ever gotten. Yet. It locks down the racing
genre on the Xbox One (and especially the Xbox One X, with its 4K support.) It's not
just all beauty though, it's also content.
Hardcore Gamer's Adam Beck weighs in again, talkiing about the variety that Motorsport
7 offers, from cars and tracks, to customizations and effects. And, for singleplayers, cogconnected
delivers good news, commenting on the game's career mode that feels more streamlined than
ever before.
For hardcore fans of the series, refinements are all the game needs, and Turn10 continues
to deliver, with a playscore of 9.06
2. Red Dead Redemption 2 Rockstar's long waited second entry to their
wild west RPG might be an outstanding achievement on its own, it still remains at number two
on both the PlayStation 4 lists, and now even on the Xbox One. Not like there's anything
wrong with number two.
RDR2 has been praised left and right, especially for its enveloping open-world adventures.
Video Gamer gave it a 9, for its well-realized setting made alive by its "wonderful scripting"
and "stellar performances."
As far as open-world role-playing games go, RDR2 sets a whole new bar. With such a diverse
and living world, GameSpew went so far as saying it's less a videogame, and more of
a thing in itself that you can visit and experience on your own time.
The hype and expectations were on an all time high for this rockstar creation and it was
all worth it in the end. It has a playscore of 9.2.
1. Forza Horizon 4 Was there ever any doubt? As much as Motorsport
7 delivers one of the best serious racing experiences, Forza Horizon 4 seems better,
if only for that all-around experience.
With its absorbing free-roaming open world of Great Britain, it's less about racing than
it is about driving. If its best-looking you want, Horizon 4 doesn't fall short. This might
only be a few tweaks away from the beauty that was Forza Horizon 3, it still manages
to one-up the previous game with more than a few interesting additions and an overhaul
in graphics.
But, in addition to the thing they've been nailing year after year, its the freedom that
this installment offers. Videogamer says it best: "There are no tests to take, no licences
to earn; you just drive."
Its fun. It's straightforward, it knows exactly what you want in a driving simulator, and
it has a playscore of 9.24