Second Runner Up: Quantum Break
It’s award season here at Twinfinite! Starting with a few runner ups, let’s look back at the best Xbox One games from this year and our 2016 winner!
When Quantum Break released back in April on the Xbox One, it tried to do something a little different to anything that came before it. On the disc players had the game, as well as a ‘series’ of live-action shows that filled in the gaps in between each chapter of the game. While many expected it to be a disappointing result, Quantum Break was actually pretty damn good.
Quantum Break tells the story of Jack Joyce, a man who discovers he has time-controlling abilities after emerging from an accident that leaves time fractured. As Joyce begins to master his abilities, he must track down and defeat Paul Serene, his former friend who is now hell-bent on controlling this newfound power. It’s certainly a complex story, but the TV episodes and narration in the game do a good job of guiding you through it.
On top of its blockbuster story and stunning visuals, Quantum Break’s time-traveling escapades are great fun. Freezing time so you can get a better angle on an enemy, or time jumping and disarming them never gets tiresome. Combining a number of these together to eliminate the field makes you feel like you are the time-controlling hero, not Jack. That’s not the main pull of the action, however, and it’s worth noting that Quantum Break’s main focus is on its narrative. As such, these moments can feel a bit sparse in the grander picture, but there’s still plenty to enjoy of Quantum Break all the same.
First Runner Up: Gears of War 4
The gap between Gears of War 4 and our best Xbox One exclusive for 2016 is tiny. Gears of War 4 was one of my favorite games this year when I reviewed it back in October. Telling the story of JD Fenix, Kait, and Oscar, Gears of War 4 is the start of a new saga in the series with an equally fresh-faced cast. After having their loved ones taken away from them, the team goes on the hunt to save them, discovering and pushing back a new threat to humanity along the way.
While previous Gears titles’ Delta Squad were a bunch of burly war-hardened sarcastic pals, slicing their way through countless Locusts, JD and his team are the complete opposite. They’re more emotionally available, they joke with one another, engaging in small talk when there are no enemies about. These are characters you can relate to as the player, and it gives Gears of War 4 a fresh feeling, despite its fundamental mechanics feeling very familiar.
Throw on top of this a multiplayer mode with compelling new game modes such as Dodgeball – if you kill an enemy, you’ll revive a fallen ally – with its tendency for rapid comebacks and turnarounds, and you’ve got plenty to keep yourself occupied once the story is over and done with. Plus, the ever-popular Horde mode returned with Horde 3.0, a revised version of the classic mode that puts defense building as the focus. What you’re left with is a comprehensive, gritty package of blood, guts, and gore that’ll reward you with countless hours of fun. If you own an Xbox One and are yet to pick up this exclusive, you owe it to yourself to give it a try.
Winner: Forza Horizon 3
There’s nothing quite like hitting the open road and putting your foot down. Except for when it’s not illegal, you’re sat on your sofa comfy, and you’re speeding through the Australian outback in Lamborghini’s latest masterpiece. That’s how Forza Horizon 3 opens up to you, and from that point, you’re sucked into a world teeming with activities, collectibles, tuning options, and an endless collection of cars.
Rather than having you just compete in the festival, Forza Horizon 3 makes you the boss. It’ll be up to you what events take place where, what cars are allowed, and where you expand your festival. Most importantly, however, you’ll need to attract fans to join the party. All of this leaves you with an extensive docket of tasks to complete and in a short time, your map will be filled with markers and waypoints for you to venture out to.
Of course, none of this would be important if Forza Horizon 3 didn’t nail the driving. Fortunately, it does exquisitely. Sitting behind the wheel of a Nissan GT-R is a drastically different experience to hopping into a dirt buggy, or even just a Ford Focus ST. Every car has its traits and quirks which make them wholly enjoyable and unique to drive. The cars really come into their own when you take them for a spin on the varied terrain of the Australian outback. That Ferrari may stick to the road’s surface like glue, but offroad you’ll have serious problems driving in a straight line. This makes you experiment with your car choices in Forza Horizon 3, providing a more varied and interesting journey to making the biggest driving festival in the world.
Forza Horizon 3 isn’t just the best Xbox One exclusive of 2016, it’s one of the best games of the year. It trumps the efforts of previous open-world racers by a mile thanks to its engaging and stunning world, and, as expected from the Forza franchise, the driving is nothing short of perfect. If you’ve been looking for a racing game to whittle away a couple hundred hours, this is most definitely it. An Xbox One title for the ages.
Congratulations to Forza Horizon 3, the winner of our Best Xbox One Game category for 2016! Be sure to visit back this week more award announcements including the big one, our game of the year for 2016! For the full list of award categories for 2016, visit our nomination page here.
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