Coming a fashionably late —with roughly 12% of the year past, already—, but happy New Year, y’all!
courtesy of year-progress-bar page.
In my continuous (barely successful) effort of posting stuff online, I’m coming back with a second issue of the Media Of The Year awards.
In this list I thought about naming The Lyles Awards, after USA athlete Noah Lyles —a short explanation on last year’s issue—, I’m presenting a ranking of the titles I enjoyed the most from all the entertainment content that was released during 2024. Without further ado:
The MOTY OF THE WORLD AWARDS 2024.
Some titles might be from late 2023, but don’t mind me. Just go with the flow.
🎮 GOTY OF THE WORLD 2024
The best video games I’ve played in 2024.
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🥇 Balatro. This game is straight up perfection. A masterclass on minimalistic game design, and a flawless example on how to juice every last drop of fun from a single mechanic. Its game feel is top tier, the music is nice and catchy, sound effects and visuals are great, and any possible kind of feedback from the game shines with unthinkable levels of polish. I got Balatro recommended by a bunch of friends shortly after its release; I looked for some game-play video online, and it took me just 15 (fifteen!!!) seconds of video to open up Steam and buy the game right away. And oh boy if it was worth it.
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🥈 Persona 3 Reload. Persona 3 is my favourite game of the series. By far, the most mature one; also the darkest —for hell’s sake, you have to commit suicide to invoke your “true nature”—. And it’s with this Reloaded version that guys at ATLUS bring us a modern approach to this title, that makes the whole experience, in my opinion, much more enjoyable. Apart from the world-class art direction and user interface, the banger soundtrack and the charisma of the Persona series, this game —being the only AAA release I’ve played this year— has given me a sense of coziness, calm and routine like no other title I’ve ever played.
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🥉 Tiny Glade. I mean, just find any random screenshot of this toy and tell me it’s not offensively beautiful. Even though I’m a bit biased on this one —I feel nothing but complete and utter love for games that are just a digital toy—, Tiny Glade is one of the most impressive, astonishing, outstanding (I could go on) technical crafts our industry has seen this year —excellent rendering talk included in the package—. Go try it, thank me later. I promise you’ll find nothing other than pure, sheer joy.
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💐 Honorable mentions: Chants of Sennaar; SUMMER HOUSE; Caravan Sandwitch.
An extra-special mention needs to go to every single game developed for 2024’s Sant Jordi Jam. I’m so proud and glad the jam’s organization —including yours truly!— could pull out such an enourmous effort and come up with this amazing event, which the Spanish gamedev community has received with an overwhelming amount of love and enthusiasm.
Huge shout out to the Sant Jordi Jam team. We’ll be coming back this year with the second edition. Love y’all.
art for 💽 AOTY OF THE WORLD 2024
The best music albums I’ve listened to in 2024.
- 🥇 Shinova - El Presente.
My favourite album of the year is a perfect encapsulation of the feeling
that obsesses me the most: nostalgia. Nostalgia for a past that lies far
behind; nostalgia for a present that we better enjoy and capture as vividly
as we can; nostalgia for all the “what ifs” hiding behind doors our decisions
shut closed; and nostalgia for a future that’s only gonna make us grow.
Just to put a cherry on top, not only the group is from Bizkaia —a small
region I’m deeply attached to emotionally—; it also turns out the music
video for my favourite song of El Presente starts with a plane taking off
from there and landing in my hometown, in Ibiza. Funny how life pulls these
kind of random tricks sometimes.
- favourite song: Berlín.
- 🥈 Gracie Abrams - The Secret of Us.
In Summer 2024, the whole world was busy going crazy about Taylor’s Eras Tour
—and anything Taylor-related, really—, and the best thing all that fuzz brought
me was discovering The Secret of Us (getting even better with a deluxe edition
later in October). The best possible way I can describe this album is as an
explosion; caused by every crush, every heartbreak, every emotion, ever. All
cranked up to its max exponent. Even though it may seem the most intense teenager
shit one can listen to —which, don’t get me wrong, it is—, it’s pretty neat that,
if you sit and read the lyrics, big part of the lines can translate and apply to
many other situation in life; not only edgy teenage behind-the-bleachers moments.
Also, just to close with a technical note… girl, that breath control. Damn.
- favourite song: Let It Happen.
- 🥉 Shoda Monkas - LO QUE NOS QUEDA DE GUAPOS.
Things don’t always connect as soon as you press play;
you have to step away and let them find you back when the moment is right.
While this was the case for the album I’ve been listening to the most this year
(Me Muevo con Dios,
by Cruz Cafuné), it has not been the case at all for LO QUE NOS QUEDA DE GUAPOS,
which I’ve had on repeat since its release last December. Precisely because its
vibe is so similar to MMcD’s, just with some new extra flavour: failure.
Every single track on this record makes an effor to remind yout hat a failure and
an error are not the same thing; that you might act the best way you possibly can,
and still fail… and that’s alright. May things go south, as long as you’re giving
your best, you can keep your head high, learn from that experience; put one foot in
front of the other, and keep going.
- favourite song: conmigo a la 1era.
- 💐 Honorable mentions: Rels B - new star (1 9 9 3); FLETCHER - In Search of the Antidote; Last Dinner Party - Prelude to Ecstasy; Israel B, Ergo Pro & Ill Pekeño - Galerias Deva.
this road featured in the Shinova's Berlín leads to my best friend's house.
🎞️ FOTY OF THE WORLD 2024
The best films and series I’ve watched in 2024.
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🥇 Volveréis (The Other Way Around). This film is just so fun to watch. Following a couple that just broke up and wants to throw a party to celebrate the split, Volveréis opens with the thought: “That’s not how real life works. That’s more of a movie idea”. And indeed, this film is a “making-of” itself. With an outstanding editing and photography; and excellent pacing and flow; with abrupt shot changes, “imperfections” and more paraphernalia present in the final cut, that are used to represent the indecision and insecurities of the characters… Volveréis is an ode to routine and repetition, that submerges into the depths of any inter-personal relationships, and shows how love is a beast in constant evolution, that doesn’t always need to be romantic.
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🥈 Perfect Days. I watched this movie in a small theater in Barcelona, around January —if I recall—; and spent a handful of weeks processing what the hell I had seen. It took me, in fact, almost a year to find words to explain why this film managed to hit me so hard; and it was with the help of a scene in Volveréis, when the main characters quote Søren Kierkegaard. Because, for him, “the Love of Repetition is in truth the only happy love”, since, even though it doesn’t have the rush of discovery and adventure, “it has instead the blissful security of the moment”. Perfect Days is a love —in the purest form possible— letter without any really intended receiver, that takes your hand and invites you to an almost silly moment of contemplation; ‘cause the only thing you can ever be certain of, is that you have this moment. So do your best to enjoy it.
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🥉 Baby Reindeer. This mini series is a hard watch, not gonna lie. It can get so tough —specially if you’re familiar with a situation similar to its plot—; and the main reason for this roughness is the overwhelming sincerity with which this (real life) story is told. Baby Reindeer presents extremely complex topics, such as dependency, pride, obsession, selfishness, pity… in a fabulously human and respectful way. The voice of the protagonist trying to navigate the shit-show —this is, his mind— makes it hard for you to say who’s the bad guy in the story… even forces you to question whether there’s really anyone in there to blame, at the end of the day.
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💐 Honorable mentions: Alien Romulus; Arcane (season 2); The Bear (season 3); Past Lives.
it's so enjoyable watching how Volveréis gets playful with its meta-cinema approach.
