Game of the Year 2017: Neranjan’s Picks

Neranjan’s Game of the Year: #2 Ruiner

Developer: Reikon
Publisher: Devolver Digital

Violence! Pure, unrelenting, finger-hurting violence. That is what Ruiner brings you. Yet another amazing piece of indie game punishment published by Devolver, this one speaks to the Hotline Miami fanboy in me. I describe Ruiner to people as the Akira game I always wanted since I first saw the anime. Ruiner shares many elements with Akira and it was obviously an inspiration to the dev team. In fact, many things that were inspirations to me growing up were inspirations for this game. The name Ruiner was recently confirmed by the dev team as a reference to the NIN song of the same name. I don’t know if we will get a Hotline Miami 3 but for now, Ruiner has filled that void. I literally played this game until my hands hurt due to how fast the gameplay is.

The game is a super addictive thrill ride that combines many cyberpunk anime tropes into a pure blitz of adrenaline. The skill tree and weapon types vary enough that you easily create your own unique vision of visceral carnage. The only issue I have with Ruiner is that it ends too soon, but that just left me wanting more. Fortunately, the dev team has been providing updates since the game’s launch to make second and third playthroughs a slightly different experience.