Top Games of 2015 (So Far): Steven Wong

The first half of 2015 has brought us an amazing selection of games to suit almost every taste. I'm especially impressed by some of the indie games that have released, which offer hours of challenging gameplay that rival those from big publishers. Here are my picks for 2015's Top 5 Games of the Mid-Year.

Invisible Inc

In Invisible Inc, you play as the last remnants of a high-tech spy organization set in a dystopian future. Short on manpower, money, and especially time, you need to sneak and hack your way across a series of procedurally generated levels while doing your best to steal everything in sight. The whirlwind speed campaign leaves little room for error, but that's part of the intensity and challenge. There are also some fantastic animated cut scenes, great voice acting, and an incredible plot. This is a game where one wrong can cascade can cause an entire mission to fall apart, so players need to be at their best, and hope that their decisions pan out, if they have a hope to survive.

Massive Chalice

While Invisible Inc is about saving an organization within a matter of weeks, Massive Chalice goes in the opposite direction by challenging you to make decisions that play out over the course of centuries. Chosen by a giant talking chalice, you are the immortal ruler of a kingdom that is under siege from all sides. You must raise an army to fend off the invasion, and that involves marrying heroes together to raise children. In the meantime, you'll have to send heroes out to do battle, and hopefully they'll have a chance to pass on their experience to the next generation before dying of old age. Your kingdom has to stand for 300 years, and in that time, you'll see families rise up in strength, along with any mistakes you made come back to haunt you.

Not a Hero

Bunnylord, an anthropomorphic bunny from the future, has the perfect plan to become mayor. It's to rid the streets of crime by shooting it in the face. As members of the Fan Club and campaign, it's your job to spread the word and shed some blood. Run headlong into battle and take down as many criminals as you can while campaigning on Bunnylord's behalf. Once the dust has settled a bit, head out to the corner diner for some breakfast. Breakfast and blowing up crime is what Bunnylord is all about.

Mortal Kombat X

When it comes to gruesome fighting games, few compare to the action of Mortal Kombat X. The game has a great roster of diverse fighters, each with three unique variations, and some amazingly gross fatalities. I love the fast-pacing fighting, the pre-match smack talk, and how well the new characters blend in with the old. With everything put together, MKX is just one satisfyingly brutal fighting game.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher trilogy saved the biggest and best for last in one epic sized role-playing game. The massive open world includes a ton of monsters and side-quests that could put your moral compass to the test. All of it is set in a dangerous, dark, and mature fantasy world where the main character, Geralt, isn't necessarily a nice guy. He can go around the world solving everyone's problems, or he can focus on lining his own pockets with gold. Either way, the legendary monster has a lot to do before the sun sets on his story.