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It's the middle of July twenty-twelve, which means we're already past the halftime mark for this year — and we are most likely gushing over The Dark Knight Rises also at this point, but that's a different story so anyway — and I thought like: "Hey, wouldn't be nice to list down the best games I've played over the last 6 months?"
 
Sure, why not? After all, I've been posting game-related news and trailers that generally interest me for weeks in my blog, and hardly any impressions of this title and that particular game… at all!
 
So without further ado and in no particular order — here are my favorite video games of 2012, so far of course:
 
 
Lumines Electronic Symphony
 
You know you've played too much LES when you're dreaming (and daydreaming) colored blocks for no apparent reason. This is has happened to me occasionally days and weeks after the Vita launch, seriously.
 
 
Asura's Wrath
 
Granted, I've only played an hour or so of CyberConnect2's Dragon Ball x Heavy Rain (ish) mashup. But that doesn't stop me for saying the game is bananas.
 
 
Mass Effect 3
 
I found it virtually as good as part 2, and the ending wasn't that abysmal. It was bad, yes, though I've seen worse.
 
 
The Last Story
 
Speaking of Mass Effects 2 & 3: This is, more or less, the closest J-RPG alternative I can think of that matches Bioware's sci-fi franchise — in terms of combat, at least. It's almost as good as ME, in my opinion. Almost.
 
 
Tales of Graces ƒ
 
And speaking of J-RPGs: Tales of Graces ƒ is probably the best one I've played this year. See? I'm not that biased *coughXIII-2cough*.
 
 
Street Fighter X Tekken
 
It was either this or Soulcalibur V, and I decided to pick the Capcom one instead because it felt "new" to say the least. Sure, it's not as meaty as SSIVAE. But hey — I'm just a regular guy anyway who plays fighting games just to have… you know, fun, and this game did its job fine.
 
 
Dragon's Dogma
 
One of my strong contenders for GOTY, despite the sloppy facial expressions and a messy narrative. It's really good guys, and forget everything you know about about the demo. Super pleased that a sequel is underway and I expect major improvements.
 
 
Gravity Rush
 
Sony's best new Japanese IP in years featuring gorgeous visuals, amazing (AMA-ZING) art design, a soaring soundtrack, and a very likable protagonist.
 
 
Lollipop Chainsaw
 
Hilarious. So hilarious — I could easily forgive the game's super-short length.
 
 
Binary Domain
 
Not going to lie and be a fanboy of Team Yakuza here, but I truly had more fun with BD than any of the Gears of War games because (a) the shooting mechanic itself was pretty tight and polished, and (b) the story's a lot more interesting. It's just unfortunate we'll never have a follow up because the game bombed in both continents, IIRC. Easily a sleeper of the year.
 
 
Well, that's it for my list. Expect some or most of these games to be mentioned again early next year in my, sort-of, yearly whatnot. I actually like making these entries, believe it or not. Speaking of that — I'm also considering of writing a "disappointing games of 2012" list of some sort. Titles that didn't make the cut for obvious reasons. Probably next week.
 
So, if it's OK dear reader: what are your favorite games of 2012 so far? I reckon Diablo III's one of them?