We are around 3/4’s of the way through 2016 and there has been a ton of great video game and music releases. Today I’ll talk a little bit about both my favorite album and my favorite video game of 2016.
I’ll first start with Monster Hunter Generations. The game is a semi-sequel to last year’s Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate was probably my favorite game of 2015 along with Splatoon, so it’s no surprise that Generations is also a quality title. It incorporates many elements such as locations and bosses from the previous portable Monster Hunter titles while also bringing new things to the table as well. For example, there are now different Hunter Styles that allow you to customize your character even further by adding abilities like jumping into the mix. I personally have stuck with the traditional Guild Style. I have already poured countless hours into the title and it has only been out since July! The series may be a bit hard for newcomers to get into, but the difficulty curve is definitely worth it in the long run. I’d highly recommend this game and pretty much any other game in the series.
Deakin’s first solo album was definitely worth the wait. He had been working on it ever since he crowd funded for it’s completion way back in 2009. The album is only just over a half an hour, but I feel like that makes it even better. There is absolutely no filler on this release and it’s an album I can listen to several times in a row which is somewhat rare for me. Deakin is mostly known for his contributions to the group Animal Collective, and I would honestly say this release is better than any Animal Collective album. The album is a neo-psychedelic record with plenty of psychedelic folk influence. The majority of the songs are long with a few interlude-like tracks here and there. The longer tracks never overstay their welcome and the shorter tracks are also essential to the listening experience. Deakin really surprised me with this release and he is now my favorite member of Animal Collective because of it. He has a beautiful voice and should be featured more in the forefront on future group releases. As it is, the only physical version of Sleep Cycle is a cassette version only given to crowd funding backers. This is somewhat of a shame as I would love to own this on either CD or vinyl.
So there we have it. These are definitely the biggest highlights of the year for me. However, the year is not over yet. Will other new releases top these by the end year? Only time will tell. Thank you for reading and stay tuned for more!
ho7mes Tech & Tunes 