So, what will be YOUR game of the year by the looks of things?

ftr

First off: hi.

I'm not much for introductions so I'm just going to jump right in, if it's all the same to you :P

We're approaching the last few months of the year, and most of the major releases are out. There's a few left I'm interested in that we'll come to in a minute.

So, in 2008 so far, what would you say is lining up to be your GotY? Please, no nominations where the release date in your region (or the region you acquired it from if you imported it) was before 1st January 2008. For me, that would be Europe (UK).

It's been an alright year for me in games. Not overly spectacular so far unfortunately. A mid-summer purchase of a PS3 (hooray for generous grandparents giving gratuitous uhh.... damn I can't think of a synonym for "amounts" or suchlike beginning with g... oh well... amounts of cash as a graduition gift, or else I still wouldn't have one) spiced things up a bit, with MGS4, GT5: P, GTA4 and Assassin's Creed providing some entertainment. Although I quickly tired of GTA and AC, and they shall be traded in post-haste when some more titles I want make an appearance. Burnout Paradise is mostly great but it causes my blood pressure to rise sooooo much.

Anyway I'm kinda drifting off topic while still managing to stay on-topic. My point is I don't think my GotY is out yet. Maybe I'm buying into hype too much, but I'm so massively stoked about Mirror's Edge it's unbelievable. Sonic Unleashed also looks effing sweet, as does LittleBigPlanet and Valkyria Chronicles. In fact the only game thats out so far that I would consider in the running is MGS4, and for all its retconning story pitfalls I feel it maybe doesn't truly deserve it.

Anyway, thats my $.02, as the Americans among us would put it.

Oh, also, while I'm here I may as well save topic space by asking this here. I've noticed a lot of "Let's Plays" about (in fact it was joshofalltrades' IWBTG one that led me from FullyRamblomatic.com to here), and I've been considering doing one or two myself. I have a program called Cam Studio, which seems to be an alright bit of software for recording, though I'm open to suggestions to better things. My main problem is one of what game to play. I no longer have a TV card in my PC so PS3/PS2/Wii games are out, leaving me pretty much with PC games. And my rig isn't all that impressive. It can handle HL2 but it struggles on much higher. I'm just wondering if there's any LPs that you haven't seen yet that you would like to see?

Captain K

Before anybody cries "poll thread", let's see if we can get some decent discussion out of this topic. There have been a lot of great games released already this year.


Personally, I don't know that I could even begin to choose, with three months of (what look to be) great games still to come, but I'm pretty sure that we'll see a few of the games already released this year rank high in all the GOTY lists come January. In particular, I don't envy any games journalist who has to pick the best downloadable game of 2008--you could make convincing arguments for PixelJunk Eden, Braid, Geometry Wars 2, and a large handful of others.

Dehumanized

I don't think I could announce my GOTY without playing what the next three months to offer. There's still a ton of time for a late entry to sweep the contest between Fallout 3, Dead Space, Mirror's Edge, Fable 2, GH:WT, Gears of War 2, and the tons of other potentially awesome stuff coming up around the corner. If half of them are as awesome as some of the stuff we've already gotten this year, I'll have a hard time narrowing it down below 4-5 titles, much less picking one specific GOTY.

RainbowDespair

From games I've already played so far, these 3 are definitely in the running:

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 - It took all of my complaints with the first game, fixed them all, and added a ton more content on top. I have no hesitation in saying that this is currently the best shmup in existence. This is the Pac-Man:CE of the year for me.

Professor Layton & the Curious Village - Gorgeous graphics (some of the best on any system this year despite the low tech of the DS thanks to the art design) combined with a good variety of fun puzzles. Great in both short doses (essentially for a portable game) or longer sessions. Appeals to both casual gamers & hardcore gamers. One of the few DS games that really make me glad I own the system (I'm not a big portable fan).

Civilization Revolution - They took my favorite game series and made it faster paced. Between this game and Netflix Watch Instantly capabilities, I think I, a hardcore singleplayer fanatic, really need to rethink my lack of a Gold Live membership.

EDIT: I just remembered that N+ came out this year. That definitely is up in the running as well. Pure 2D platforming bliss.

MarioG

I agree there are still a couple of games that look fantastic so it might be to soon to say. Although, at this point I would go ahead and say GTAIV. Its just so dynamic.

Marth

I haven't played every good game released or to be released this year, but among the ones I have played, The World Ends With You takes my GOTY in a cakewalk.

says the guy with a The World Ends With You sig

Masked_Mullet

fallout 3, even though i haven't played it, and it's not even out yet. I just love the Fallout series, an what people are saying about this game just makes me want it even more. the art direction seems superb and how Bethesda is taking care of this game, just seems like it's going to be one hell of an event.

NHL 09: one of the best sports games i have played in a while. I think it will give madden 09 a run for it's money, even though they are made by the same company. I would just like to see a change in the scenery for the top dog of sports games.

ftr

I gotta disagree with you on GTA4 there MarioG. I found the car handling so poor I actually wanted to run everywhere, until I realised that Niko has the turning circle of an articulated truck when doing so >_<

The combat wasn't up to scratch IMO either. I hate Liberty City. I hate being called up all the time to go bowling or drinking or playing darts or whatever... I got so bored with it so quickly.

Captain K

Everybody fell in love with GTAIV, and then everybody fell out of love with it. I wonder where it will end up in the lists.

It's a great game, but people turned around on it after about a month and a half and suddenly we were all just talking about its flaws.

chasm

This has been one of the best years gaming has had in well...years. GTA IV and MGS4 will likely top most of the critics' GOTY lists. For me, it's been GTA IV. The gameplay is vastly improved from previous GTA games, along with an incredibly compelling story (when I find myself making decisions not based on what I would do, but what Niko would do, it speaks to how well-done the story and voice acting are), and it's topped off by some fun online modes that have led to some really crazy moments with friends. I even liked the car physics, but then again, I'm a racing sim fan.

Dr.Funkenstein

I don't know a lot of people still play the multiplayer regularly. It's still tons of fun.

ftr

The thing is with GTA4 was that it promised so much and delivered such mediocrity. Personally I haven't been keen on a GTA since Vice City. Though admittedly I never played the stories games.

Guek

for me....Brawl...? I haven't played too many new games this year

I've probably spent most of my time with GW:2 but it gets points docked for sucking away my soul. My roommate and I had an ongoing high score battle that nearly killed us both. So many nights spent going from a half daze to audibly cursing the screen....

Marth

Captain K wrote: »

Everybody fell in love with GTAIV, and then everybody fell out of love with it. I wonder where it will end up in the lists.

It's a great game, but people turned around on it after about a month and a half and suddenly we were all just talking about its flaws.

It still deserves to be in the bottom half of a top ten list. The crazy shit you can do can't be lessened by a few small problems.

Captain K

Marth wrote: »

Captain K wrote: »

Everybody fell in love with GTAIV, and then everybody fell out of love with it. I wonder where it will end up in the lists.

It's a great game, but people turned around on it after about a month and a half and suddenly we were all just talking about its flaws.

It still deserves to be in the bottom half of a top ten list. The crazy shit you can do can't be lessened by a few small problems.

I'm with you on this. I think it only attracted so much negative discussion because it was by far the best game on the market at the time it released. Everybody needed something to talk about while they were waiting for MGS4. :P

MarioG

I still play GTAIV regularly. I absolutely love that game. Every time I have a different experience.

ftr

Maybe I'll pick it up again and try properly to get back into it... and be a little less harsh...

zeppelin

I'd go with Mercenaries 2: World in Flames.

ftr

The demo of Merc 2 I found to be very fun. Hard, but fun. Especially when I failed to hijack a flying helicopter...

main problem with the demo was I had no context, and I find it very hard to get into things without context. All I knew was "plant this here blow this up". Although I know the backstory thanks to a very witty advertising song ^^

Chance

Captain K wrote: »

Everybody fell in love with GTAIV, and then everybody fell out of love with it. I wonder where it will end up in the lists.

It's a great game, but people turned around on it after about a month and a half and suddenly we were all just talking about its flaws.

I dunno, when I saw this thread and gave it some thought the answer was "so far, GTA IV." Now I loved Metal Gear Solid 4 - it was fucking incredible - but nothing out so far this year compares to GTA IV. Like everyone else, I'll put it down for a few weeks or a month - but unlike any of the other triple-A titles on my PS3, whenever I come back to GTA IV it's always accompanied by a few moments of "wow, I'd forgotten how incredible this game is."

And I can't disagree more about the driving, ftr. It's way more engaging than the earlier GTAs, and it ties in perfectly with the new aim-your-gun-while-you're-driving mechanic. You may notice that a lot of cars in GTA IV actually move a helluva lot slower than their III/VC/SA counterparts. This is necessary to make the shooting-from-cars work, now that there's no more flat drive-by mechanic - and it really, really works.

GTA IV is incredible. Everything about it is polished to a mirror shine. The gameplay is tight, the writing and performances set the bar, the cutscenes are rivaled only by Uncharted's, the multiplayer is great, and the technology is astounding. I have to agree with MarioG - so far GTA IV is my GOTY.

*

That said, I just put my preorder in for a Kratos Sackboy at EBstop, and it wouldn't surprise me if that ends up eating up the rest of 2008. 'Course, there's also Fallout 3.

And Bioshock PS3.

And Dead Space.

And Mirror's Edge.

And Prince of Persia.

And Gears of War 2.

And Resistance 2.

....we got a ways to go.

UnbrokenEva

From the preview first chapter alone, World of Goo is going to be a strong contender. I'm having a hard time coming up with decent hyperbole, so I'll just say that I am in love with the charm, humour, inventiveness, everything. Even the music and the goo voices are great.

Beyond that, my heart is Fallout 3s to break. I let myself get my hopes up, now I just wait and hope Bethesda does it right.

DeathPrawn

Game of the year? I can't even decide on XBLA game of the year. N+, Braid, Castle Crashers, Megaman 9, and Geometry Wars 2, and that's not even counting remakes like Rez and Bionic Commando: Rearmed.

I'd probably give GOTY to Braid, but I'll admit I'm a pretentious artsy-fartsy type.

WhiteZinfandel

To be honest, I haven't bought any modern games this year. I have an aging computer, I just recently picked up a 360, and the combination of steam + GOG.com makes it so very, very easy to go for the years old games that cost half as much, are guaranteed to work well on my computer, and have way more reviews and mod content than anything current. Wait, scratch that, I bought Space Siege. I guess it gets the award by default, but if we were going for what my favorite game I've been playing this year was, it'd be Mass Effect by far. Ten playthroughs and counting.

zeppelin

ftr wrote: »

The demo of Merc 2 I found to be very fun. Hard, but fun. Especially when I failed to hijack a flying helicopter...

main problem with the demo was I had no context, and I find it very hard to get into things without context. All I knew was "plant this here blow this up". Although I know the backstory thanks to a very witty advertising song ^^

I was mostly kidding about Mercs 2, although I enjoyed Mercs 2 a lot more than GTA for whatever reason. It's mindless fun.

But ya a bit too early, I'm sure Fallout 3 will grab me but a safe bet is that I will be playing Rock Band 2 a lot longer than any game released this year.

Rakai

At the moment it's The World Ends With You. There is simply nothing like it and was one of the RPGs I've played in a while. However, given the fall lineup, this is open to change. Mirror's edge, Dead Space, Prince of Persia, etc. all are candidates.

cj iwakura

Persona 4 hasn't come out yet, but I'm pretty sure that'll take the gold for me, if it takes up half as much of my time as P3/FES did(does that count for '08?).

darleysam

I think a lot of GTA IV's criticism came from the fact that it was so popular. People do have to hate on the popular thing.
I maintain that it must've done something right for being the only GTA game I've played from start to finish and then more afterwards. The rest I don't think I got more than 5 hours total combined.

As for potential GOTY, I think Mirror's Edge looks good and I should love it, but I don't know it'll take it for me. Gears of War 2 also looks good, but I'd be surprised if it's the best thing this year.

Personally, I'm backing either Dead Space or Far Cry 2 to take it, or be right up there.

edit: Fallout 3 or Fable 2 could also come in and steal the party. I would be surprised if any of these four are out of the top 10, though.

Zombiemambo

I've been really behind this year in gaming. Other things are becoming more important and taking up more time. Money is really tight right now, so I haven't bothered keeping up with the gaming scene when I can't buy more than one or two new titles until next year.

However, Dead Space is shaping up to be a spiritual sequel to RE4, which if it delivers will put it on top. GoW2 is bound to be fun but not groundbreaking, and Fallout 3 is a hard one to judge right now.

chasm

Captain K wrote: »

I'm with you on this. I think it only attracted so much negative discussion because it was by far the best game on the market at the time it released. Everybody needed something to talk about while they were waiting for MGS4. :P

I liked MGS4, but accessibility was a bit of an issue. It's a great game, with some incredible (and increibly convoluted) storytelling, but I don't find myself coming back to it like I have been with GTA IV.

cj iwakura

It's a shame F.E.A.R. 2 / Project Origin won't be out until '09, because that's my most anticipated game of the year next to P4 by far.

ftr

chasm wrote: »

Captain K wrote: »

I'm with you on this. I think it only attracted so much negative discussion because it was by far the best game on the market at the time it released. Everybody needed something to talk about while they were waiting for MGS4. :P

I liked MGS4, but accessibility was a bit of an issue. It's a great game, with some incredible (and increibly convoluted) storytelling, but I don't find myself coming back to it like I have been with GTA IV.

I find myself picking up MGS4 again and again, just to get more emblems >_<

Dr.Funkenstein

Left4Dead will probably be my game of the year when it comes out(Since RE5 is coming out next year) but for now its definitely GTA IV

fogberto

Probably Brawl, The World Ends With You, or hopefully LittleBigPlanet.

I was enslaved to my DS from the moment I started playing TWEWY, which hadn't happened in a long time. Brawl is responsible for bringing me out of my gaming slump at the start of the year, when I seemed to lose my passion for gaming. It's been a consistently fun game to play with my house mate, and for those two reasons I hold it in high regard.

The last on my list, I haven't actually played yet, but I can't remember being this hyped for a game release in a long time. LittleBigPlanet was the first game to really spark my interest in a PS3, and after I saw it's announcement video, I was determined to save up and get the PS3 in preparation. Hopefully it will meet my expectations, and set itself up to be my own personal GOTY.

Santa Claustrophobia

For me, of games I've played, it would be GTAIV. And I can't really articulate it much better than 'I just liked it'. The overall experience was so much better than any of the flaws. I still wouldn't have given it a 10 out of 10...

Second would be the Bully: SE release. One of the few games I'll ever regularly replay.


But, I expect Mirror's Edge to beat them both.

Renzo

I wouldn't call MGS4 a game you "come back to" like you would an open-world game or an arcade game. It's like coming back to a movie or a book. You either play through it again or you don't.

Thetheroo

I loved Braid, but it's hard to say what the best game this year has been for me.

I've been playing a lot of old games, so there's that. However, as was previously stated, many awesome games have yet to come out like Fallout, Fable, and Mirror's Edge.

chasm

ftr wrote: »

I find myself picking up MGS4 again and again, just to get more emblems >_<

I got the Big Boss emblem on my second playthrough and haven't touched it since. The biggest thrill was beating it the first time.

And I wouldn't have given GTA IV a 10/10, either. I'd rate it and MGS4 at about 9/10.

Chance

Renzo wrote: »

I wouldn't call MGS4 a game you "come back to" like you would an open-world game or an arcade game. It's like coming back to a movie or a book. You either play through it again or you don't.

Truth.

Captain K

C'mon Renzo, you're supposed to be froting at the mouth for MGS4 to be GOTY on everybody's list!

If you don't do it, who will?!

TyrantCow

The World Ends With You

Hands down.
The story, the music, the art, the music, the FUCKING AWESOME GAMEPLAY, and the music.

oh man, such an easy choice.

Captain K

Looking back on what I've played this year that actually released this year, I think I probably put more hours into TWEWY than any other game, by at least a factor of two.

I don't know if that makes it my GOTY, but I sure loved the hell out of every minute I spent playing it.