First off, round of applause to
@Infidel for hosting this thing and providing the results.
So every year since 2004
@MCC has been doing a Game of the Year poll on this forum. And here are the results for 2014:
VIEW HERE Overall
1. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
2. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
3. Transistor (PC, PS4)
4. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
5. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
6. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
7. Bravely Default (3DS)
8. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS)
9. Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC)
10. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
11. Divinity: Original Sin (PC)
12. Endless Legend (PC)
13. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
14. Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360)
15. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
16. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
17. Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
18. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
19. Shadowrun: Dragonfall - Director's Cut (PC)
20. The Banner Saga (PC, iOS)
NOTEWORTHY LOSERSBest game of 2014 which somehow nobody considered to be their #1 pick: #23. Infamous: Second Son (PS4)
Worst game of 2014 that at least one person considered their #1 pick: #192. Toukiden: The Age of Demons (PSVita, PSP)
Worst game of 2014: Five-way tie: #285. Secret Habitat (PC), #286. The Witch and the Hundred Knight (PS3), #287. WWE 2K15 (PS3, X360, PS4, XBO) , #288. Neverending Nightmares (PC, Ouya), #289. Counter-Strike Nexon: Zombies (PC), #290. Journal (PC)
PLATFORM EXCLUSIVESTop-ranked PC Exclusive:
11. Divinity: Original Sin (PC)
Top-ranked PS4 Exclusive:
23. Infamous: Second Son (PS4)
Top-ranked WiiU Exclusive:
5. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
Top-ranked XBO Exclusive:
53. Sunset Overdrive (XBO)
ALTERNATIVE RANKING
The rankings listed above are based on a version of the Borda count voting method. Each vote cast for a game gives that game a certain number of points. If someone ranks a game #1, that game gets 20 points. If they rank it #2, the game gets 19 points. If they rank it #3 the game gets 18 points... and so on. MCC/Infidel has a script that checks a couple of alternate ways of ranking the same data, though.
For example, if we rank games only by the number of first place votes they got, the winner and second place remains the same but almost the entire rest of the list changes. I bolded entries that are different in the first-place-votes count:
First Past the Post
1) Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (34)
2) Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360) (15)
3) Bayonetta 2 (WiiU) (14)
4) Bravely Default (3DS) (11)
5) Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC) (11)
6) Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU) (10)
7) Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS) (9)
8) South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360) (8)
9) Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360) (7)
10) Divinity: Original Sin (PC) (7)
11) Endless Legend (PC) (6)
12) The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita) (6)
13) Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (6)
14) Mario Kart 8 (WiiU) (5)
15) Alien: Isolation (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (5)
16) Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (5)
17) Transistor (PC, PS4) (5)
18) Shadowrun: Dragonfall - Director's Cut (PC) (5)
19) Dungeon of the Endless (PC) (4)
20) Elite: Dangerous (PC) (4)
MCC also did two more ways of sorting the rankings: an "approval" vote, where nothing is counted except the number of votes a game received (i.e. a first-place and a twentieth-place ranking count the same-- all the matters is if the game was on someone's list); and an instant runoff vote.
Approval
1) Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (93)
2) Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360) (84)
3) Transistor (PC, PS4) (72)
4) South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360) (69)
5) Bravely Default (3DS) (65)
6) The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360) (63)
7) Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU) (58)
8) Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS) (58)
9) Mario Kart 8 (WiiU) (57)
10) Divinity: Original Sin (PC) (53)
11) Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC) (52)
12) Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360) (51)
13) Endless Legend (PC) (49)
14) Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC) (47)
15) Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (46)
16) Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (45)
17) Bayonetta 2 (WiiU) (43)
18) The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita) (43)
19) The Banner Saga (PC, iOS) (40)
20) Civilization: Beyond Earth (PC) (38)IRV
1) Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (93)
2) Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360) (84)
3) Transistor (PC, PS4) (72)
4) Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU) (58)
5) South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360) (69)
6) Bravely Default (3DS) (65)
7) The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360) (63)
8) Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS) (58)
9) Mario Kart 8 (WiiU) (57)
10) Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC) (52)
11) Divinity: Original Sin (PC) (53)
12) Bayonetta 2 (WiiU) (43)
13) Endless Legend (PC) (49)
14) Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (46)
15) Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC) (47)
16) Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360) (51)
17) Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO) (45)
18) The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita) (43)
19) Shadowrun: Dragonfall - Director's Cut (PC) (38)
20) Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS) (38)Smash Bros Biased Ranking
Finally, for those wanting Smash Bros NOT to be split in to different platforms (which I did mean to do on the original list, but forgot to change it), I THINK these are the right results. My recalculated Borda count order seems to have mixed some of the other titles around a bit, so maybe I messed it up (I've had to do it within Excel based on the results page). Regardless, it ranks a lot higher and this is for fun, so don't complain!:
1. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
2. Super Smash Bros (WiiU, 3DS)
3. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
4. Transistor (PC, PS4)
5. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
6. Bravely Default (3DS)
7. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
8. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS)
9. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
10. Divinity: Original Sin (PC)
11. Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC)
12. Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360)
13. Endless Legend (PC)
14. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
15. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
16. Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
17. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
18. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
19. The Banner Saga (PC, iOS)
20. Shadowrun: Dragonfall - Director's Cut (PC)
And here are the results broken down by platform.
PC
1. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
2. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
3. Transistor (PC, PS4)
4. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
5. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
6. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS)
7. Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC)
8. Divinity: Original Sin (PC)
9. Endless Legend (PC)
10. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
PS3/4
1. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
2. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
3. Transistor (PC, PS4)
4. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
5. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
6. Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC)
7. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
8. Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
9. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
10. Alien: Isolation (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
XBOX
1. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
2. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
3. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
4. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
5. Dark Souls II (PS3, X360, PC)
6. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
7. Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360)
8. Destiny (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
9. Alien: Isolation (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
10. Far Cry 4 (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
WiiU
1. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
2. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
3. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
4. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
5. Hyrule Warriors (WiiU)
6. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (WiiU)
7. Watch Dogs (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO, WiiU)
8. Child of Light (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, PSVita)
9. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (WiiU)
10. Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, 3DS, PSVita)
3DS
1. Bravely Default (3DS)
2. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
3. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS)
4. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (3DS)
5. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth (3DS)
6. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call (3DS)
7. Fantasy Life (3DS)
8. Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (3DS)
9. Kirby: Triple Deluxe (3DS)
10. Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, 3DS, PSVita)
Vita
1. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
2. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
3. Luftrausers (PC, PS3, PSVita)
4. The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC, PS3, X360, iOS, PS4, XBO, PSVita)
5. Nidhogg (PC, PS4, PSVita)
6. Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (PSVita)
7. Child of Light (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, PSVita)
8. Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (PSVita)
9. Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, 3DS, PSVita)
10. Freedom Wars (PSVita)
iOS
1. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (PC, iOS)
2. The Banner Saga (PC, iOS)
3. The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC, PS3, X360, iOS, PS4, XBO, PSVita)
4. Broken Age Act 1 (PC, Ouya, iOS)
5. Threes (iOS, Droid, XBO)
6. Valiant Hearts: The Great War (iOS, PS3, PS4, PC, X360, XBO)
7. 80 Days (iOS, Android)
8. Desert Golfing (Android, iOS)
9. Hitman Go (iOS, Droid)
10. Monument Valley (iOS, Android)
Android
1. Threes (iOS, Droid, XBO)
2. 80 Days (iOS, Android)
3. Desert Golfing (Android, iOS)
4. Hitman Go (iOS, Droid)
5. Monument Valley (iOS, Android)
6. Terra Battle (iOS, Droid)
7. FIFA 15 (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO, Wii, PSVita, 3DS, Droid, XBO)
8. Five Nights at Freddy's (PC, Droid, iOS)
9. 2048 (3DS, Droid, iOS, PC)
10. Flappy Bird (Droid, iOS)
About the poll:
This is the eleventh time we have done this! There's a simple verification system in place this year via pm.
There are a lot of Game of the Year polls out there, but the thing that makes this one interesting is that although most GOTY polls just give you a list of maybe five of the best-selling games from the last year, and ask you to choose your favorite; THIS poll gives you a list of EVERY game that came out in the last year (more or less) and asks you to vote for [up to] your top 20, ranked by how much you liked them.
Here's last year's poll results if you want to see how this works. We actually wind up with a serviceable ranking of the top hundred or so games from the last year, with blockbusters, obscurities and cult hits mixed in side by side.
The poll is going to run till the end of January to give everyone time to vote, and then the results will be posted.
Thanks everyone for the help with this poll!
@Infidel is doing all the funky technical script and hosting business.
@Mcc set all this up originally and kindly passed it on for us to use this year, and
@Undead Scottsman has done loads of work sanitising the original games list I pulled from Wikipedia. Not to mention countless others who contributed game nominations and debated what should/shouldn't be on it.
(By the way, if you feel like using this thread to post how you voted, the last page of the poll script spits out what you voted for.)
Posts
mcc always just used the referral link to track it - it's a pretty basic thing, I imagine Infidel's hosting might have that, but I don't think it's being actively posted elsewhere this time around.
Since there is now verifying your votes through PMing an account on this forum, it's "just PA" but really that's anyone who has a free PA forum account.
Don't think we'll have any community based info but we'll actually know who voted. Is a fun thought to check each posters history by subforum and give a breakdown by subforum based on highest post %.
Thanks to the dudes organizing this, and mcc for doing it in the past.
i'd prefer we didn't do that.
Let me know if there are any issues with your voting or claims.
1) Driveclub (PS4)
2) South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
3) Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
4) Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
5) Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (WiiU)
6) Drawful (PC, PS4, PS3)
7) Fibbage (PC, PS4, PS3)
8) Broken Age Act 1 (PC, Ouya, iOS)
9) The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC, PS3, X360, iOS, PS4, XBO, PSVita)
10) Octodad: Dadliest Catch (PC, PS4)
11) Far Cry 4 (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
12) Child of Light (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO, PSVita)
13) Nidhogg (PC, PS4, PSVita)
14) Sportsfriends (PC, PS3, PS4)
15) Towerfall Ascension (PC, PS4)
16) Murasaki Baby (PSVita)
17) Trials Fusion (X360, XBO, PS4, PC)
18) PT (PS4)
19) You Dont Know Jack 2015 (PC, PS4, PS3)
20) Valiant Hearts: The Great War (iOS, PS3, PS4, PC, X360, XBO)
Don't forget to follow the instructions AFTER voting to verify your vote.
I never would have thought Driveclub would take my number 1 spot, maybe it's just because I've picked it up fairly recently but I am enjoying it SO much. I'm pretty terrible at it, but it's addictive.
Stick of Truth was brilliant, I love South Park and it was pretty much exactly what I wanted from a South park game.
Drawful, Fibbage and YDKJ2015 were all late editions for me. I'd never even heard of them up until someone suggested adding them to the poll. I was a big YDKJ fan back in the day so I bought some American PSN vouchers and 'digitally imported' the game. It's absolutely amazing. On reflection it may have been better to just have all the game under one banner as "Jackbox" because I had to sacrifice some other games to fit these in!
WiiU is fairly well represented in my votes, it's definitely been my favourite system of the year.
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
As is often the case, there were games I'm sure I'd like a lot that I haven't played yet. Mostly Pokémon ORAS and Shadow of Mordor.
I wasn't really expecting Joylancer to be on the poll. It is early access and nowhere near being done. I still voted for it because what I've played of it is really cool.
Toukiden scratched my Monster Hunter itch just enough, so ende dup playing a whole lot of it. Now here's the list of stuff i actually want to play from this year but haven't because of time/money/other stuff.
Abyss Odyssey
Alien: Isolation
Consortium
Divinity: Original Sin
Elite: Dangerous
Hyrule Warriors
Kentucky Route Zero
Legend of Grimrock 2
Lords of the Fallen
Shadow of Mordor
NEO Scavenger
Shadowgate
Shadowrun: Dragonfall
Shovel Knight
The Banner Saga
The Fall
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call
Transistor
Valiant Hearts: The Great War
Wasteland 2
Wolfenstein: The New Order
A good year for Kickstarters although I felt bad I couldn't give Dreamfall a higher vote but with only one episode so far I can't really judge it fairly. Shovel Knight was the stand out of the Kickstarters (And the only one on my list I didn't back. My judgement is apparently not that great) That said Dragonfall and the Banner saga were both great and I think Broken age should wrap up nicely.
Transistor was my favourite indie title, I'm still not sure how I would rate it against Bastion but it's impressive that they pulled off a game that was both unique while still sharing a lot of stylistic elements with Bastion.
For the rest of it Smash is pretty self explanatory, Retro did a great job at improving on the Donkey Kong returns formula (I still miss the days of Rare but Tropical Freeze is a worthy successor) and Bravely default was a great take on traditional JRPG gameplay and a welcome break from Square's last few years of RPG boredom (Looking back through Square's catalogue the last JRPG to interest me from them that wasn't a re-release/make was The World Ends With You, and that was 2007, Though admittedly I never got into Dragon Quest which I've been told are still good).
- Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
- Transistor (PC, PS4)
- Fract OSC (PC)
- Super Time Force (PC, X360, XBO)
- Luftrausers (PC, PS3, PSVita)
- Broken Age Act 1 (PC, Ouya, iOS)
- Banished (PC)
- One Way Heroics (PC)
- Nidhogg (PC, PS4, PSVita)
- The Uncle Who Works For Nintendo (PC)
- Team Indie (PC)
- Hack 'n' Slash (PC)
- Space Base DF-9 (PC)
I have not played a lot of games from 2014 in 2014.I am just so late in games.
Still, my top 5 this year? Really solid games i'm really happy i played.
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
In a few years, I plan on having a life. I can't wait.
1. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU) 2. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (WiiU) 3. Bravely Default (3DS) 4. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU) 5. Hyrule Warriors (WiiU) 6. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (3DS) 7. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS) 8. Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (3DS) 9. Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy (3DS) 10. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PS3) 11. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth (3DS) 12. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (WiiU) 13. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PS3) 14. NES Remix 2 (WiiU) 15. Fantasy Life (3DS) 16. Yoshi's New Island (3DS) 17. The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC) 18. Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL World Duel Carnival (3DS)
1. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
It's fucking Smash, what more needs to be said? And it's the best game in the series to boot. What's especially outstanding about this one (other than the soundtrack, which is amazing as always) is the roster. Kinda important for a fighting game, right? You'd be hard-pressed to find a fighting game with a roster this big, this varied and this balanced. I mean, you can battle it out with Mario, Sonic, Mega Man and Pac-Man. It's fucking crazy. I'm really happy that many of the characters I wanted to see in the game actually made it, especially Shulk and Mega Man. Another thing I want to mention is the lead-up to the game's release. Nintendo did a fantastic job of hyping up this game, especially with the new character trailers. Every time a video started with that fiery Smash logo, you knew you were in for a treat. Virtually all of them are great, but my favorites are Little Mac's, Greninja's and Charizard's, Lucina's and Robin's and Duck Hunt Duo's.
Praise Sakurai.
2. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (WiiU)
Simply the best 2D platformer since Super Mario World. It's that good. Every single level has some kind of new gameplay element and the soundtrack by David Wise is just outstanding and easily the best this year. Just listen to this fucking shit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss421nbCAJE
3. Bravely Default (3DS)
I'm really glad that this game was such a huge success that even Square noticed that what people actually want is simply a good JRPG and not the one-thousandth entry in a franchise that has been shit for years. It also did something with the title screen that blew my mind. Those who've played it know what I mean.
4. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
The best Mario Kart yet. Shame about the battle mode, otherwise this would've been a strong contender for #1. I mean, I'm still playing it more than half a year after it's come out, that says it all, really. Although that is partly due to our weekly tournament here; shoutouts to all the regulars!
Also, this and the next game on the list prove that no one does DLC better than Nintendo. The amount of content you get for what you pay is insane.
5. Hyrule Warriors (WiiU)
Definitely the game that surprised me the most this year. I'm a huge Zelda fan, but I had never played a Dynasty Warriors game before, and before the game's release I heard that the DW games weren't all that great and repetitive and whatnot. Well, I don't know about other DW games, but Hyrule Warriors is utterly fantastic. The game is just outright fun. Smashing through hordes of enemies with a variety of Zelda characters and weapons is just a blast. I'm also baffled by the complaints that this game is mindless or easy - maybe merely completing the levels is, but getting A ranks and thus unlocking more content? Extremely challenging. Oh, and the DLC more than triples the content in this game for a fraction of the price. So there's that.
6. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (3DS)
It's Pokemon, what more is there to say? Gen 3 is actually one of my least favorite ones, but this is such a good remake that I still had tons of fun playing it.
7. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS)
Normally this would be much higher on my list because it's essentially the same as the Wii U version, but I figured some of the other games needed my votes more :P Imo both versions should've been rolled into one entry for this poll, but oh well.
8. Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (3DS)
A great crossover between the two franchises, although it feels more like a Layton game which happens to feature some Ace Attorney characters. Great voice acting too, even though I'm not a fan of the voice actress they chose for Maya.
9. Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy (3DS)
Sadly the last ever Layton game I'm not gonna lie, I cried at the end. Not much to say about this one otherwise, it's another great entry in the franchise.
10. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PS3)
Had I played the PC version this likely would've been much higher on the list, but unfortunately I was only able to play the PS3 version, which is an absolute pile of garbage. It was extremely scummy from Bioware not to show a single piece of footage from the PS3 and 360 versions before the game's release. The game crashed over 30 times in my 80 hour playthrough, on top of running at a crappy framerate and a host of other technical problems. The game itself is great (although the final boss battle is extremely disappointing), but the PS3 version is just utter shit.
11. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth (3DS)
I'm actually not finished with this one yet (although I'm quite close, probably gonna finish this weekend), so it's quite possible that it deserves to be higher on the list in case the ending absolutely blows me away. It's pure Persona fanservice, and that's exactly what I wanted from it.
12. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (WiiU)
Just finished this two days. Fun little game and a nice evolution of the Captain Toad levels from Mario 3D World, but nothing too special or outstanding.
13. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PS3)
I had a lot of fun with this one, but it did have some issues. For one, it was way too easy and not exactly deep in terms of gameplay and tactics. Two, it was way too short - it was pretty obvious that there was quite a bit of content that was missing that they didn't include for whatever reason. Three, the censorship job in the German version is just horrendous and outright lazy.
14. NES Remix 2 (WiiU)
Not much to say about this one - better selection of games than the first one and still tons of fun. I really hope they're making a SNES remix.
15. Fantasy Life (3DS)
Unfortunately this came out a week after Hyrule Warriors and a week before Smash Bros 3DS so I wasn't able to spend nearly as much time with it as I wanted to. Extremely charming and fun from what I've played so far though and I'm definitely gonna finish it at some point.
16. Yoshi's New Island (3DS)
Not a bad game, but not exactly a great one either. I really hope that Nintendo themselves are gonna make the next Yoshi's Island game instead of outsourcing it again. Well, we've got Yoshi's Woolly World to look forward to next year.
17. The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC)
This was a huge disappointment after season one. I just didn't care about most of the characters, which is not exactly a compliment for a character-driven game like this.
18. Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL World Duel Carnival (3DS)
I love Yu-Gi-Oh games and this one had a solid selection of cards, but unfortunately it doesn't have online multiplayer and for some reason they cut out a lot of the singleplayer content for the western release.
Also, while I was writing this I remembered that I forgot to vote for Tomodachi Life. Welp
I thought I did this. Sorry guys, must've slipped through the cracks!
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
If you claim a new vote, your old one will go unclaimed, so you only vote once and you just need to say which should count.
2. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
3. Wolfenstein: The New Order (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
4. Alien: Isolation (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
5. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS)
6. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
7. Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire (3DS)
8. NES Remix 2 (WiiU)
9. LittleBigPlanet 3 (PS3, PS4)
10. The Walking Dead: Season Two (PC, PS3, X360, iOS, PS4, XBO, PSVita)
11. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel! (PC, PS3, X360)
12. Thief (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
13. Goat Simulator (PC)
14. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
15. The Evil Within (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
16. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
17. Titanfall (PC, XBO, X360)
Didn't expect my top picks to be so Nintendo heavy given my Steam obsession. Apparently I play older games on Steam more than I thought. Hardest choice was Wolfenstein or Alien in order. Alien is fantastic, but Wolfenstein won by being more "fun".
3DS: 1521-4165-5907
PS3: KayleSolo
Live: Kayle Solo
WiiU: KayleSolo
Don't worry too much, there were a few people who opposed merging them after all.
1. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
2. Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (PC, PS4, XBO, PS3, X360)
3. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
4. Transistor (PC, PS4)
5. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
6. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU)
7. Infamous: First Light (PS4)
8. Assassin's Creed Unity (PC, PS4, XBO)
9. Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes (PS3, PS4, X360, XBO, PC)
10. Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus (PSVita)
11. Luftrausers (PC, PS3, PSVita)
12. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
13. Assassin’s Creed Freedom Cry (PS4, PC, XBO, PS3, X360)
14. Freedom Planet (PC)
15. Desert Golfing (Android, iOS)
16. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (WiiU)
17. Freedom Wars (PSVita)
18. Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed (PSVita, PS3, PS4)
19. CounterSpy (PS3, PS4, PSVita, iOS)
20. Bravely Default (3DS)
I loved Shovel Knight from beginning to end. I don't go back and re-play NES-era games, though I do have some nostalgia for them. This is how I remember NES games looking and playing, though it looks and plays better than any NES game I can remember.
Shadow of Mordor is at its best when you ignore the story and just tinker with the Nemesis system. The combat, while unoriginal, plays pretty much perfectly. And the rune system combined with earning new looks for your weapons made me feel a real sense of progression and growth in power. It has a bunch of flaws, but the core of the game is absolutely wonderful.
Action games don't get better than Bayonetta 2. There's not much more to say. I'd knock it for any time I'm not in combat, but that's just because the combat is THAT GOOD.
Transistor makes my top five because of the music, visuals, and voice acting. Mostly. The gameplay is fun too, with its take on the Parasite Eve/Vagrant Story blend of realtime and turn-based strategy. But that art...wow.
Do I have to talk about Dragon Age: Inquisition? I spent 100 hours on it. That's not a measure of quality, but I could talk about those 100 hours for a long time. I do think that the game has a weak story, and that it's too easy to get lost doing fetch quests and just running about clearing out the map, and the UI has a bunch of problems, but it's also just plain fun, and the characters are a joy to get to know. I don't know if I should give this slot to the game or to the forumers here who are still debating over almost every character in the game.
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Infamous: First Light was fun enough to push me to Platinum it, and I rarely do that. It's also gorgeous.
Assassin's Creed Unity (warts and all) is the first in the series to make me feel like an assassin.
MGSV Ground Zeroes has a rep for being short and filled with some rather icky subject matter. Still, it's more Metal Gear, and I always have a MGS itch that needs scratching.
Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus - I'm still playing through this. Yeah, I know it's about boob ninjas. It's also a fun action/fighting game with with 22 different characters. Looks great, plays great, does its best to write interesting characters, to varying degrees of success.
Look, just play Luftrausers if you get a chance. Even if it's only for 5 minutes.
I haven't played enough of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth. I think I could play it for 500 hours and still not see everything.
Assassin's Creed: Freedom Cry has some guts to tell the story it did, and I commend it for that. It's also a microcosm of Black Flag, so if you want a "from concentrate" version of ACIV, this is your ticket.
I'm still going through Freedom Planet, a shockingly good time-warp that looks like a long-lost Genesis game. I have a feeling that I'll want to place it higher once I'm done with it.
Like The Binding of Isaac, I need to spend more time with Desert Golfing. I hear I can spend forever with it?
I've literally played a friend's copy of Captain Toad for 15 minutes, and it was adorable and wonderful and I kind of want to buy it for myself, my goodness.
Freedom Wars loses points for its needlessly complex weapon crafting system. But the Shadow of the Colossus/Attack on Titan-style grappling hook combat is just too much fun.
Counter-Spy is kind of like playing a Pixar short. It doesn't have a lot of longevity, but what's there is super stylish and silly fun.
Bravely Default makes it on here because I liked the few hours I've played of it and I need to get back into it. Not a great reason, but hey, that demo was amazing.
Games that disappointed me and did not make it on the list:
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call - It's nice enough of a game, I just felt like I could have listened to the soundtracks and got the same result.
Drakengard 3 - Big disappointment. I couldn't stomach the gameplay.
Shantae and the Pirate's Curse - After Shovel Knight, this doesn't even come close.
1. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (WiiU) - I love this game. As I've said in lots of other places, this game was the reason I picked up Wii U and it totally made it worth it. Great level design, great music, snowmads are the best, the new sidekicks were amazing, controls well, tough but fair secrets and so on and so on.
2. Smite (PC) - I put more hours in this game than any other game this year, except for maybe civ 5.
3. Hyrule Warriors (WiiU) - Yay Dynasty Warriors! Yay Zelda! I am still amazed this game exists.
4. Mario Kart 8 (WiiU) - Surprising no one, mario kart 8 is really, really fun
5. Shovel Knight (WiiU, 3DS, PC)
6. South Park: The Stick of Truth (PC, PS3, X360)
7. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (3DS)
8. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU) - 3DS gets the slight nod since Smash Run is surprisingly fun.
9. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU) - This is probably lower than it deserves since I haven't been able to play it through completion, but I don't know how much it climbs because every game is great above this list.
10. Endless Legend (PC) - This came out really late in the year and I haven't had a lot of time with it yet. Everything is great so far so I posted it up here to show it some love.
Edit: Played Phoenix Wright vs. Layton, and it turned out to be amazing. It got inserted in at #4 and the list shifted accordingly.
Nintendo ID: Pastalonius
Smite\LoL:Gremlidin \ WoW & Overwatch & Hots: Gremlidin#1734
3ds: 3282-2248-0453
I'll repost in a bit
Distant Worlds - Universe was my #1 with a bullet. It has such a grand sense of scope and progression, and added so many great features to the 4x genre.
This is a clickable link to my Steam Profile.
Not yet. I will at some point, though.
1. Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc (PSVita)
2. Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (PSVita)
I'm a sucker for murder mysteries and visual novels.
3. Persona 4 Arena Ultimax (PS3, X360)
4. Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth (3DS)
Fanservice, yes, but also probably what I most anticipated in 2014 before I even knew Danganronpa existed.
5. Dragon Age: Inquisition (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
I only played this for a few days out of the year because it was a Christmas present, but it has its hooks in me deep.
6. Nidhogg (PC, PS4, PSVita)
This is the go-to couch multiplayer game around my house.
7. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
I'm going to get Real Platinum God someday soon.
8. Towerfall Ascension (PC, PS4)
Another amazing couch multiplayer game with basically unlimited replayability.
9. Infamous: Second Son (PS4)
The game that made me fall in love with my PS4.
10. Octodad: Dadliest Catch (PC, PS4)
The best sense of humor in a game since Monkey Island.
11. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
After the disappointing Season 2 of TWD, this was just what the doctor ordered.
12. Watch Dogs (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO, WiiU)
After you get over the disappointment that it's not the game you imagined it would be, you have fun with the game that it is.
13. Luftrausers (PC, PS3, PSVita)
14. Broken Age Act 1 (PC, Ouya, iOS)
Beautiful story and one of my favorite game genres.
15. Alien: Isolation (PC, PS3, PS4, X360, XBO)
I never did finish it because I was too busy crapping my pants.
16. Bayonetta 2 (WiiU)
I had never played a Bayonetta game before 2014, and I realize now what a mistake that was.
17. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (WiiU)
The go-to game for when my kids want to play with me.
2. Dragon Age: Inquisition
3. Dark Souls II
4. Far Cry 4
5. South Park: The Stick of Truth
6. Endless Legend
7. Mercenary Kings
8. Roundabout
9. Luftrausers
10. Wasteland 2
11. The Sims 4
12. The Fall
13. Divinity: Original Sin
14. Bound by Flame
Was going to take off the platforms that I didn't play the multiplatform games on, but then I realized that would just leave everything as PC. Going into a new console generation and not having the new consoles makes things pretty easy I guess.
Slightly different from my GOTY list I posted in the Giant Bomb thread last month, but mostly just because I played Luftrausers and The Fall between then and now. Luftrausers is pretty amazing, just for the music alone. The upper half of the list stayed exactly the same though.
It's hard to express just how much of a surprise Shadow of Mordor was. It took gameplay i'm familiar with and have gotten slightly bored of (Arkham, Assassins Creed), a main character who is the epitome of boring grizzled angry white dude, and a setting that is potentially interesting but then had the game take place in the most bland post-apocalyptic location in that setting. And then it pulled it all off flawlessly, making those aspects shine like they haven't in years, ending up in one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences i've ever had.
Now hurry up, games industry, and steal the nemesis system for everything. I want a new Mercenaries game on my desk by tomorrow.
Time to finish Walking Dead Season 2, try Luftrausers, and buy Geometry Wars 3
PSN/Steam/NNID: SyphonBlue | BNet: SyphonBlue#1126
Not a standalone expansion, so I don't believe it's eligible.
Couple quick things I noticed: Crimsonland also came out on PC, Lifeless Planet is listed twice. Doesn't really matter, but yeah.
Figure I'll get my initial list in, but this time of year is one of those I get a lot of game time, so I'll probably be submitting a revision. On the awesome end of the spectrum, this is the first year that I'll actually have to leave a game off the list, since I played more than 20 games from last year! Whee turtle gaming.
Damn, that made me miss my old signature. Maybe I'll reinstate it.
Oh cool, that's good to know. Guess I'll go do that.
PSN/Steam/NNID: SyphonBlue | BNet: SyphonBlue#1126
1. Hexcells Infinite (PC)
2. Endless Legend (PC)
3. The Wolf Among Us (PS4, PSVita, XBO, PC, PS3, X360)
4. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (PC, PS4, Vita)
5. Cloudbuilt (PC)
6. Space Run (PC)
7. Transistor (PC, PS4)
8. Civilization: Beyond Earth (PC)
9. Dungeon of the Endless (PC)
10. Goat Simulator (PC)
11. One Way Heroics (PC)
12. Costume Quest 2 (PC, PS3, PS4, WiiU, X360, XBO)
13. Threes (iOS, Droid, XBO)
14. Terra Battle (iOS, Droid)
15. CHIP (PC)
16. A Story About My Uncle (PC)
17. A Bird Story (PC)
18. They Breathe (PC)
19. 2048 (3DS, Droid, iOS, PC)
20. The Domovoi (PC)
This is not at all like what I thought it'd end up. Stuff can still shift as I reflect.
But FUCK YEAH HEXCELLS.
You voted for:
Everything else that I played was "meh" or games I didn't really even get around to playing yet.
I've put 200+ hours into Hyrule Warriors though. That has to mean it's my game of the year.
It'd be my #2 but I'm guessing it won't need help ranking on the final counts.
1. Shadowrun: Dragonfall - The best cyperpunk RPG since Deus Ex. The initial Returns/Dead Man's Switch campaign was a big old meh to me, and I can't blame people for being skeptical of this after that, but this is the real deal. Stands on the top of the pack of the recent classic WRPG resurgence.
2. Dragon Age Inquisition-Gorgeous, fun, playful, and powerful at times with some character discussions and side stories...though the show-stopping conversation freezing bug kept this from the top spot. It's kind of like watching the best written/produced play of the year, but the actors keep forgetting their lines.
3. The Banner Saga
4. Wolfenstein: The New Order
5. Binding of Isaac
6. 80 Days - I know visual novels are hardly novel (hah), but I've never seen one with anything close to this level of execution before. I was hooked enough to play it all day the day I bought it, and I can't say that about any other game on this list.
7. Bayonetta 2 - Rock solid gameplay, but the story and writing really drag things down, in quality and pacing. Why on earth a game about spanking angels to death has those "walk down a corridor slowly while the characters talk" scenes is beyond me. I have nothing against sexuality and sensuality in games and media, but when they have scenes with her bouncing up and down on with those bouncy sounds, as the camera focuses entirely on her ass, for no reason but "check out dis ass", and plenty of other scenes like it, I can't help but get more of a "giggling fratboy wearing a wife beater and Budwiser cap zooming in and out on 'boobies'" vibe instead of the more classy "hey, no apologies for enjoying sexiness, we're all adults" message people incorrectly give the game credit for. Sorry, an English accent and glasses doesn't automatically make it tasteful. And that kid is the worst, and he is there THE WHOLE DAMN GAME. Ugh. Still, all manner of fun to be had otherwise. I know it's weird to be complaining about a number 7 spot game, it's good, I just hear nothing but "it's the best" all the time from people who would otherwise call this kind of stuff out.
8. Dark Souls 2
9. Divinity Original Sin - Everything but the story is absolutely top notch. Would be the top spot if the story wasn't so cookie cutter and throwaway.
10. Transistor
11. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare - I haven't really enjoyed a CoD since Blops 1, but this one's actually pretty good. The multiplayer is still a little too samey for me, but the campaign has stunning visuals, great pacing, and halfway decent writing, and the PMC-future theme keeps the awkwardly flat nationalism and revisionist history out.
12. Shadow of Mordor - My guess for the overall winner. The Nemesis system is cool and the gameplay is fun, which is why it's on the list where it is, but literally everything else about this seems so bland. Strikes me as a Gears of War situation where I respect the core design and influence it will (likely) have over the industry, but will never really consider it one of the true greats.
13. NEO Scavenger
14. Wolf Among Us
15. The Walking Dead: Season 2 - The overwhelming word on this is "disappointing," and it's true that it's not nearly as good or impactful as Season 1, but don't forget there's plenty of room for quality in the list of games not as good as Walking Dead Season 1. Don't let that keep you from checking it out if you're still game for the Telltale formula.
16. Titanfall - Really fun, just petered out in like a week, and Advanced Warfare really stole its thunder.
17. Monument Valley
18. D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Die - *Rubs fork and knife together, nods*
19. Infamous: Second Son - Great execution and visuals. Think Shadow of Mordor quality of execution with better visuals and a more interesting scenario, but no Nemesis system or anything original going on.
Haven’t played yet, but think these could’ve potentially placed well in my list: Dreamfall Chapters, This War of Mine, Wasteland 2, Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, Lords of the Fallen, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, Geometry Wars III, Far Cry 4, Alien Isolation, Captain Toad, Shovel Knight, South Park, probably others. All the same, looking at this list makes me reinforce the idea that I really need to spend less money on games in 2015.
Also played Evil Within and Destiny, and found them to be staggeringly god awful.
PSN: SirGrinchX
Oculus Rift: Sir_Grinch
You can update your vote as a new feature this year. So long as you link it to your forum account again at the end, it will replace your old vote.
Last Light? What?