Incredible games and excellent moments were all around us in what was the best year for gaming in quite some time. Beloved franchises took exciting new turns, brilliant games delivered unique moments, and surprise hits caught us off guard in the best ways possible!
As a terrific year in gaming closes, join us in remembering the epic moments that made 2017 an awesome year for everyone. But be warned, there are major spoilers ahead for the biggest games of the year, so come back later if you’re not ready, and for everyone else, let’s go down the list of the most epic gaming moments of 2017!
Horizon Zero Dawn – Fighting a Huge Robot
Horizon Zero Dawn does a lot of things well, but its combination of stealth and excellent action is where it really shines. The beginning of the game has you fighting smaller robot-dinos that are just barely bigger than Aloy, but it’s not long before she’s forced to fight foes two-to-three times her height. Yet the true accomplishment comes from her slowly chipping away on enemies that are as tall as a house. It’s gratifying to watch these robot fiends slowly come undone from her precise attacks. You almost start to feel bad for them. And when that huge creature finally has no more fight to give and comes comes crashing down to the ground, it’s a satisfying sense of accomplishment that you can’t wait to feel over and over again. – Mark Medina, Associate Features Producer
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Leaving the Great Plateau
Since it became playable at E3, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s Great Plateau cemented itself as the perfect tutorial and playground, and had us hungry to look beyond its borders. It seemed impossible to believe that we’d only experienced just one percent of the game and freedom was waiting just down those steep cliffs. Finally getting off the Great Plateau was a momentous occasion and smartly encompasses what this new Zelda has to offer. By the time we got the Paraglider, we already had every tool we would ever need to explore Hyrule to the fullest. That feeling of floating down into the Kingdom of Hyrule would be the first of many occasions we would ask “Can I go there? Can I really do that?” and be rewarded with a simple “Yes.” – Brendan Graeber, Editor
NieR: Automata – The Genre-Changing Opening
Nier: Automata is a brilliantly bonkers game, and it wants you to know that right from the beginning. In the opening 20 minutes alone it goes from a frantic top-down shooter, to a fast-paced platformer, to a thrilling action game where you battle an enormous killer buzzsaw with nothing more than a sword and a laser-shooting robot. It’s enough to leave you breathless. But, remarkably, Nier introduces all of its wildly different gameplay mechanics in a way that feels natural. In short, we’ll always remember Nier Automata for having one of the most exciting and unique tutorials. – Meghan Sullivan, Database Editor
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds – Earning Your First Chicken Dinner
Your hands are likely shaking a little by the time you enter into the top ten of a PUBG match. But actually pulling off a solo win is a gaming experience that’s exhilarating. When you start playing you probably have no idea what you’re doing, yet after hours and hours of experience, your first solo win – or chicken dinner – is a feeling second to none. As the circle inches closer and closer to you and your remaining targets, you’ll likely stop thinking about what it means to win, and just focus on your moment-to-moment actions. Every move has a purpose, and every shot has to count. It’s unlike anything else, and it’s all yours for the taking. – Destin Legarie, Senior Features Producer
Persona 5 – Changing Kamoshida’s Heart
Persona 5 gets you invested early, introducing a first villain with a very personal connection to your party members. Ann and Ryuji both have history with Kamoshida, a man who serves as a perfect first example of the kind of target the Phantom Thieves are going after. By the time you complete his Palace and have the earliest version of your party together, your final showdown is a surreal, action-packed taste of what’s ahead, and his change of heart is one of the most profound moments in the game. Kamoshida may be just the beginning of the Phantom Thieves, but he’s a target none of them will soon forget. – Andrew Goldfarb, Executive Editor, IGN News
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice – The Beast in the Dark
Within its mostly somber, thought-provoking journey of confusion and self discovery, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice manages to create one of the most franticly tense moments of the year through its use of light and sound. Pushing ever further toward the answers she’s convinced lie just ahead, Senua must outrun her demons, literally, as she’s pursued through the darkness by a lethal beast that’s only held at bay by the light. There are terrifying moments of white-knuckle panic as you’re forced to sprint through snaking, claustrophobic tunnels to the dim safety of the next torch or ray of moonlight. The panic-inducing maze finally comes to a head in a battle to the death with the beast, where evading its deadly lunges from the darkness means listening intently to the blackness that surrounds you. – Brandin Tyrrel, Editor
Uncharted: The Lost Legacy – Elephant Scene
The Elephant scene in Uncharted: The Lost Legacy is a beautifully crafted moment that is special for several different reasons. Most importantly, it comes at a time where Chloi and Nadine’s relationship was strained, when Nadine discovers that Chloi is friends with both Sam and Nathan Drake. Secondly, the moment comes out of almost nowhere. After non-stop action sequences, it’s weird but amazing that all of a sudden the girls are riding on top of a massive elephant. The tranquil moment then leads to some welcome character development from Chloi, and you really start to feel the ladies come closer together. – Mark Medina, Associate Features Producer
Destiny 2 – Defeating Calus, the Emperor of the Cabal
The final encounter of Destiny 2’s inaugural raid: The Leviathan doesn’t disappoint. Where most final raid bosses in Destiny have fairly obvious mechanics – grab a shield, use a sword, collect or throw orbs – this encounter was different. The most challenging part to this raid is the fact there are little-to-no visual indicators or cues to understand the objective. Throughout the raid, communication and team cooperation are essential, but facing Calus, the Emperor of the Cabal, takes it to a completely new level. The fact that not only do you have two separate teams – one in the Shadow Realm, and one in the Throne Room – but the fact each player sees something completely different on their screen is the defining X-factor that sets this challenge apart from every other. Where the slightest hiccup or miscommunication spells disaster for everyone, finally putting all the many pieces together – especially if you discovered them organically – and sinking that final shot into the golden, hedonistic god-king is a feeling of triumph. – CJ Gibson, Senior Producer
Doki Doki Literature Club – The Deletion
We’ve failed visual novels for being indecisive on a partner before, but we’ve never been so rejected by a game that it deleted itself entirely. Doki Doki Literature Club is filled (both in its files and in-game) with horrifying and touching moments that went far beyond our expectations. Monika’s awareness of the game and ultimate takeover is one of the most impressive things we’ve seen in gaming. After witnessing what appeared to be a cheerful but tense literature club turn into a cult-like hell, Monika slowly deleting every major moment in the game while singing her goodbye left us even more stunned. This is for the best, for both of us. – Miranda Sanchez, Editor
Middle-earth: Shadow of War – Assaulting Your First Fortress
Middle-earth: Shadow of War finally delivered what its predecessor, Shadow of Mordor, hinted at so many years ago – a sense of incredible scale. While a ton of improvements were introduced through the Nemesis 2.0 system in Shadow of War – more personalized orcs, a deeper strategic layer in their revamped strengths and weaknesses, and a more fluid, option-heavy combat style – it all really comes together the first time you assault a fortress. When your army presents itself outside a fort, and the Overlord steps out on his balcony to hurl threats, taunts, and insults your way, there’s a kind of awe at the grandness of it all. Moments later, Talion pulls his sword and yells charge as chaos and carnage suddenly erupt in every direction. There are a million epic ways to assault a fortress in Mordor, but nothing beats your very first time. – Brandin Tyrrel, Editor
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus – B.J. Blazkowicz Loses His Head
Longtime Wolfenstein protagonist BJ Blazkowicz is in bad shape at the outset of Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus. In the opening half of the game, he’s clinging to life, supported by power-armor and the hope that he’ll live long enough to carry out his final mission. Things get continually worse and he eventually ends up in the captivity of the sadistic super-villain, Frau Engel, sentenced to death. Video games have a history of saving our heros from situations just like this at the last possible second, which is why we audibly gasped as Engel publicly beheads Blazkowicz – from a first person perspective, no less – in one of the most shocking displays of power seen in gaming in the last decade. This sets off a chain of events, each more mind-blowing than the last. Wolfenstein II could easily have five or six moments on this list, but watching the head of BJ Blazkowicz clumsily tumble into an open furnace certainly takes the cake. – Zachary Ryan, Senior Features Producer
Super Mario Odyssey – New Donk City Ending
Super Mario Odyssey is full of grin-inducing moments of joy, but no single sequence – not even the glorious ending we won’t spoil here – matches the sheer happiness and enthusiasm that beams out of the climactic finale of the Metro Kingdom in New Donk City. It’s an homage to Mario’s roots, in addition to being a celebration of the series as a whole. You won’t smile as wide with any game this year as you will in this moment, and the best news of all is that even after it’s over, you’ve got many hours of Odyssey left to enjoy. – Ryan McCaffrey, Executive Editor, IGN Previews
Call of Duty: WWII – The Train Wreck Scene
Not a single mission in Call of Duty: WWII goes by without something blowing up or some sort of car chase. So believe us when we say that when the German train derails in the mission S.O.E., it’s intense – even by Call of Duty’s standards. It starts off pretty slow, with the train starting to lose traction. The next thing you know, your buddy totally abandons you and bails out, which is pretty funny. Then, once the actual derailment starts, it never lets up. Just when you think it’s over, more train cars and debris flies in from off-screen. It’s ridiculous, unrealistic, and completely over-the-top, and it’s also completely jaw-dropping, in the way that only Call of Duty can pull off. – Justin Davis, Editorial Manager
Those are the gaming moments that took our breath away in 2017. What are you favorite moments of the year? Let us know in the comments!
