Year of the Game 2: 2008
When I named 2007 the best year in gaming yet, I never expected the following year would have a chance to pummel it. How do you top a year that gave us new Halo, Mario, and Metroid games, the best Call of Duty game yet, the most successful action/rpg hybrid (Mass Effect), and the highest value disc in gaming history (The Orange Box)? Well, for starters, Microsoft's online distribution service, xbox live arcade, finally came into its own in 2008. I had planned several ways of attacking this year's list after my unread 2007 novel, and I think I've decide on just giving you the list, the ratings, and a few final notes at the end. So what are you waiting for, go purchase yourself a gaming system (that isn't the Wii) and dig in!
GOTY: GTA IV (Xbox 360, PS3): 10
2. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3): 10
3. LittleBigPlanet (PS3): 10
4. Braid (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.75
5. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360): 9.75
6. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii): 9.75
7. N+ (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.75
8. Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360): 9.5
9. Viva Pinata Trouble In Paradise (Xbox 360): 9.5
10. God of War Chains of Olympus (PSP): 9.5
11. Pure (Xbox 360, PS3): 9.5
12. Geometry Wars Evolved 2 (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.5
13. Fable II (Xbox 360): 9.25
14. Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts (Xbox 360): 9.25
15. Mirror's Edge (Xbox 360, PS3): 9.0
16. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3): 9.0
17. Boom Blox (Wii): 9.0
Onto the notes:
-Grand Theft Auto 4 and Fallout 3 have realized the two most succesful and rich open worlds in video games to date. Both of these games will have your jaw agape moment by moment with their creativity and detail. GTA only pulls through as the clear winner because of it's greater sense of polish and extensive online multiplayer options.
-I original had stamped a 10 on Braid until I got my hands on LittleBigPlanet, the first truly stand out title for the PS3. While these two games have a very different focus (LBP is a platformer, while Braid is a puzzle game), they both wow with a similar type of creativity and originality. It's just a shame you have to own 2 separate systems to enjoy them both.
-Left 4 Dead is simply the most polished and hectic co-op game to date. What blows me away about the game is that it's co-op 100% of the time. Even if your character gets taken down by the hordes of infected, you will be screaming out warnings to help your friends make it to the next safe room. Never a dull moment.
-Smash Bros. Brawl, VP Trouble In Paradise, Geometry Wars 2, and Fable 2 continue to build and improve upon previous titles in their respective series and definitely establish themselves as must-own titles.
- N+, Pure, Banjo Kazooie, Mirror's Edge, and Boom Blox all offered unique new gaming experiences this year. Mirror's Edge is a first person parkour (read: the running scene in Casino Royale) game that will hopefully redefine what we expect from platforming in first person games. Pure is a high octane trick based racer in the vein of SSX, and Boom Blox is easily the best Wii title to take full advantage of the system's unique control input to date. The other's you can look up yourself.
-Gears of War 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4 were a bit of disappointments from the predecessors, but still establish themselves as solid plays. Especially Gears, with it's newly added 5-player co-op horde mode.
-And the lone handheld game, God of War CoO, definitely took the PSP to new hights and fit right in with the other titles in the series.
-As an added bonus, LittleBigPlanet, N+, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Boom Blox all have editors that allow you to create your own levels, extending the game long past what is offered in the packaged product. This is hopefully only the first step in bringing over the type of open platforms that PC gamers get to experience.
Final Verict
The overall winner here, system wise, continues to be the Xbox 360. With it's amazing games, excellent online integration, and newly added Netflix support, it is definitely the system to own. However, it is important to note that there is a decent cross platform showing with the PS3, which is the only system to support Blu Ray (and the only way to experience it, in my opinion). The Wii's success continues to perplex me, and I've decided to dub it the "Tickle-Mii-Wii." Word of mouth can be amazingly misleading at times. And that concludes this years look back at...last...year. Until next time.
When I named 2007 the best year in gaming yet, I never expected the following year would have a chance to pummel it. How do you top a year that gave us new Halo, Mario, and Metroid games, the best Call of Duty game yet, the most successful action/rpg hybrid (Mass Effect), and the highest value disc in gaming history (The Orange Box)? Well, for starters, Microsoft's online distribution service, xbox live arcade, finally came into its own in 2008. I had planned several ways of attacking this year's list after my unread 2007 novel, and I think I've decide on just giving you the list, the ratings, and a few final notes at the end. So what are you waiting for, go purchase yourself a gaming system (that isn't the Wii) and dig in!
GOTY: GTA IV (Xbox 360, PS3): 10
2. Fallout 3 (Xbox 360, PS3): 10
3. LittleBigPlanet (PS3): 10
4. Braid (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.75
5. Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360): 9.75
6. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii): 9.75
7. N+ (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.75
8. Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360): 9.5
9. Viva Pinata Trouble In Paradise (Xbox 360): 9.5
10. God of War Chains of Olympus (PSP): 9.5
11. Pure (Xbox 360, PS3): 9.5
12. Geometry Wars Evolved 2 (Xbox Live Arcade): 9.5
13. Fable II (Xbox 360): 9.25
14. Banjo Kazooie Nuts & Bolts (Xbox 360): 9.25
15. Mirror's Edge (Xbox 360, PS3): 9.0
16. Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3): 9.0
17. Boom Blox (Wii): 9.0
Onto the notes:
-Grand Theft Auto 4 and Fallout 3 have realized the two most succesful and rich open worlds in video games to date. Both of these games will have your jaw agape moment by moment with their creativity and detail. GTA only pulls through as the clear winner because of it's greater sense of polish and extensive online multiplayer options.
-I original had stamped a 10 on Braid until I got my hands on LittleBigPlanet, the first truly stand out title for the PS3. While these two games have a very different focus (LBP is a platformer, while Braid is a puzzle game), they both wow with a similar type of creativity and originality. It's just a shame you have to own 2 separate systems to enjoy them both.
-Left 4 Dead is simply the most polished and hectic co-op game to date. What blows me away about the game is that it's co-op 100% of the time. Even if your character gets taken down by the hordes of infected, you will be screaming out warnings to help your friends make it to the next safe room. Never a dull moment.
-Smash Bros. Brawl, VP Trouble In Paradise, Geometry Wars 2, and Fable 2 continue to build and improve upon previous titles in their respective series and definitely establish themselves as must-own titles.
- N+, Pure, Banjo Kazooie, Mirror's Edge, and Boom Blox all offered unique new gaming experiences this year. Mirror's Edge is a first person parkour (read: the running scene in Casino Royale) game that will hopefully redefine what we expect from platforming in first person games. Pure is a high octane trick based racer in the vein of SSX, and Boom Blox is easily the best Wii title to take full advantage of the system's unique control input to date. The other's you can look up yourself.
-Gears of War 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4 were a bit of disappointments from the predecessors, but still establish themselves as solid plays. Especially Gears, with it's newly added 5-player co-op horde mode.
-And the lone handheld game, God of War CoO, definitely took the PSP to new hights and fit right in with the other titles in the series.
-As an added bonus, LittleBigPlanet, N+, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Boom Blox all have editors that allow you to create your own levels, extending the game long past what is offered in the packaged product. This is hopefully only the first step in bringing over the type of open platforms that PC gamers get to experience.
Final Verict
The overall winner here, system wise, continues to be the Xbox 360. With it's amazing games, excellent online integration, and newly added Netflix support, it is definitely the system to own. However, it is important to note that there is a decent cross platform showing with the PS3, which is the only system to support Blu Ray (and the only way to experience it, in my opinion). The Wii's success continues to perplex me, and I've decided to dub it the "Tickle-Mii-Wii." Word of mouth can be amazingly misleading at times. And that concludes this years look back at...last...year. Until next time.
milloux:
Your "About Me" is very captivating! ANywho, GTA4 is soooo fun! I love it, it look and plays so well! Mirror's Edge is so fun, but hard for me! Little Big Planet is the best...that's all! Woohoo for games! And Thanks for checking out my set.
king_:
i heart you for real