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If 2016 will go down in gaming history for anything , it will be as the year of VR . Between the release of the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift , it became possible - if pricey - to have virtual reality in your own home , at a stroke widening the availability ofThey said it would never happen , but it was this month that The Last Guardian - a game some people pre-ordered a PS3 for - was finally released for PS4 . The spiritual sequel to Ico and Shadow of the Colossus was warmly received , though with an undertone of wonder that it took so long .
After several years of speculation , it was in December 2016 that Mario finally made the jump from Nintendo exclusivity to smartphones , with the new title Super Mario Run .
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OctoberDecember experiences available to the gaming public .
In October it was Sony ' s turn with the Play- Station VR , a lower cost headset compatible with the PS4 .
Criticisms of the device including a relatively small launch library and less graphical capability compared to its rivals . However , these criticisms seem akin to
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Initially dismissed by many as an overpriced ( at $ 10 ) endless runner game , it ' s actually a pretty polished and entertaining platformer , and has reached similar download heights to Pokémon Go earlier in the year .
Whether Mario will make further appearances on mobile is uncertain , but there are already plans for more Nintendo properties to appear on iOS and Android .
Purists might sneer , but the facts of business are that Nintendo
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criticising the fashion choices of the Apollo astronauts .
The PSVR still looks great , and the chance to bring low-cost VR to PS4-owning homes across the world is one not to be missed .
This was also the month in which Civilization VI hit
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needs to go where the players are , and increasingly they ' re on mobile .
The row over Super Mario Run encapsulates the state of the industry - caught between its noble past and an uncertain future , forced into changes it might not like , and
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shelves - but because everyone is still clicking the Next Turn button , we can ' t ask their opinion .
The schedules were dominated by a new Final Fantasy , a new Dishonored and a new Watch Dogs , but it wasn ' t just broody dark protagonists on the menu in November . The month brought us Owlboy , a thoroughly charming side-scrolling platformer put together with exquisite skill and packed with brilliant gameplay touches .
Final Fantasy XV arrived , a decade and a name change late , and earned strong scores ( see later in this issue for our verdict ) but with some criticism of its story .
The mid-generation series of upgraded consoles came to life with the PlayStation 4 Pro , a smaller and more powerful version
clinging on to see what happens .
Whatever the future holds , it ' s been a fascinating year in gaming .
November of Sony ' s flagship machine .
The existence of this device was broken by games journalist Laura Dale , who then proceeded to be accused of all sorts of fantastic trickery by fanboys until Sony confirmed she ' d been right all along .
This has led to all fans of consoles becoming rational pursuers of truth and hard facts , with no propensity to overreaction . Just kidding .
The release of the feature-packed Planet Coaster had Nineties kids excited , bringing back long evenings spent in front of Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 . That was my New Years Eve 2014 , anyway .
Happy New Year .
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