Editor’s Choice: Jake's Top 10 Games of 2015

Arthas and Nova should never really end up in a battle together as far as Blizzard lore is concerned, but Heroes of the Storm allows players to live out that "who would win in a fight?" fantasy over and over in an addicting MOBA game items format. This trailer does a stellar job of showing just how fun things can get when you relax and don't think too m

In the last twelve years, the powerhouse studio has developed a reputation of announcing games by revealing breathtaking cinematic trailers that appeal to both long-time fans of the company's IPs and potential new customers. Although the last few games and their expansions have been announced with trailers that focus more on in-game footage ( like World of Warcraft: Legion ), the company still releases a top of the line cinematic trailer when each new product hits shel

The same goes for League of Legends, bringing it back into the discussion, and they have shown no sign of ever stopping this practice. They release a new champion every week, some of which cost money to play, and many of which are "worth," leaving the players who don't have the money behind. I was this close to trying out Orcs Must Die: Unchained before I found out that it uses the League-of-Legends-style system for hero purchasing. These games are no better than the cable company. In fact, they may be worse. Imagine if every week, Comcast started a new channel with new and amazing shows, but made you pay a new fee if you wanted to experience it.

"Time is money, friend." You've played Monopoly before but never like this. Monopoly: World of Warcraft Collector's Edition features a custom game board designed by Blizzard, and all of your favorite zones from Azeroth are here for the taking. Faction capitals Stormwind and Orgrimmar take the traditional spots of Boardwalk and Park Place, and the player tokens were voted on by fans. Try to stay out of jail as you move around the board as the Corehound Pup, Murky, Doomhammer, Hearthstone, Mechagnome, or Flight Path B

Shovel Knight was released back in 2014 but it just wasn’t enough. Luckily, Yacht Club Games came out with a whole new storyline and adventure centered around Plague Knight with Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows. In it we’re playing as one of the bad guys as we go off to do bad guy things, but is Plague Knight really all that bad? He’s definitely one of the most interesting characters in the game and ditching the shovel in favor of potions and explosives is a great change of pace. Altering the story to fit Plague Knight is a great addition to the classic NES-style platformer. Playing through all the same levels we’re used to but as a different character bring a new perspective to the world. We can only hope every knight will get their chance in the spotlight.

Combining characters across all of Blizzard’s properties made Storm of Heroes feel like the Smash Bros. of MMO games. It’s a clever move on their part and one that I felt drew fans of yesteryear back to the good fight. Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo and more combine heroes and villains to bring a full-on war between factions. The amazing promotional trailers made wanting to play Storm of Heroes even more enticing. Even if you’re terrible at MMO games, you can still enjoy the sights and sounds of nostalgia in a new world.

The Heroes of the Storm trailer is potentially a controversial inclusion on this list. The trailer doesn't include any logical story, but in that sense, it is a perfect representation of the game that it is selling. Heroes is all about action and fun,and the trailer runs with both of those concepts and pumps the volume up to 11. Viewers have the chance to see six of Blizzard's most iconic heroes and villains square off in a high-powered battle and it is incredibly reward

And yeah, I know these $60, AAA titles still have some greed to work through (like $10 DLC for Titanfall that's just three maps), but it's all manageable, and Dota 2 is still the only game to do free to play right. Beyond Dota 2, The Last of Us just had a completely free multiplayer map pack released for it. It can be done. All gamers want is a model that fosters mutually and equally beneficial purchasing. Give it to them.

Dota 2 is free to play with no exceptions. The only items you can purchase are purely cosmetic. This makes it so everyone can have an equal experience with the entire game without paying one dime. If you want, however, you can purchase things such as outfits, environmental effects, announcer packs, HUD skins, loadings screens and couriers (an animal in Dota 2 that will bring you your items after purchasing them). You can purchase a battlepoint booster, which will increase the rate at which you level up for a certain amount of time. However, your level has no effect on the game. Dota 2 isn't stingy with these either, as it gives you a random cosmetic item every time you level up.

As someone who plays Dota 2, I thought "'worth'? What do you mean 'worth'?" It hit me pretty quickly that they meant worth money. The concept of paying real money for a hero eludes me, as a Dota 2 player, with a game that has more than 100 heroes available to everyone, free of charge. While League of Legends is technically free to play, players can get a better experience by buying access to better champions - champions that have "worth." Dota 2, not so. There's not a single item in the game that can be purchased in any way to give players an advantage. This got me thinking how Dota 2 really is the only game that does Free to Play right, that is, in a way that benefits the player as much or more than the company.