2015 Community Game of the Year - Results posted! Check the front page!

Localgod54 wrote:
MilkmanDanimal wrote:


8. You Must Build A Boat (Android)

It’s 10000000, except with more stuff.

Oh, man! Is it too late to add a sixth game to mine? I really liked 10000000, and YMBaB is as good or better. I'm also tempted to add XCOM: Long War to my list, even though I don't play it myself. I really enjoy watching top level youtube/twich streamers play it, though. That might be its own category: games we love to watch.

You can add things to your list and change things up until the deadline of the 31st. Just pretty pretty pretty please let me know that you made changes so that I know to update the tally!

Things I've learned so far:

  • People who liked Rocket League really liked Rocket League.
  • King's Quest sounds like it's actually pretty good.
  • Disliking the first two Witcher games doesn't have anything to do with how much you'd like the new one.
  • There's a lot less enthusiasm than I would have expected for Batman: Arkham Knight and Fallout 4.

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.
Could Rocket League actually win this :O

We only have to erase The Witcher 3 from reality.

RamblinRob wrote:

it fills us with determination to keep going.

I see what you did there, and approve.

Shadout wrote:

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.

I get why people really like it, but I find it to be kinda okay fun.

So there!

ClockworkHouse wrote:

Things I've learned so far:

  • There's a lot less enthusiasm than I would have expected for Batman: Arkham Knight and Fallout 4.

Hating on Fallout 4 is the new killing a major character on a critically acclaimed dramatic series.

garion333 wrote:
Shadout wrote:

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.

I get why people really like it, but I find it to be kinda okay fun.

So there!

Me too, so there twice!

It is fun but it can't top Big Bumpin' for me.

EvilDead wrote:
garion333 wrote:
Shadout wrote:

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.

I get why people really like it, but I find it to be kinda okay fun.

So there!

Me too, so there twice!

It is fun but it can't top Big Bumpin' for me.

Yeah, I already like sports games, so this is just another in a long line of sports games I like.

EvilDead wrote:
garion333 wrote:
Shadout wrote:

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.

I get why people really like it, but I find it to be kinda okay fun.

So there!

Me too, so there twice!

It is fun but it can't top Big Bumpin' for me.

Big Bumpin' is the OG. Well, besides Uniball...and Excitebike 64.

garion333 wrote:
Shadout wrote:

People who didn't like Rocket League must be those who sadly haven't played it yet.

I get why people really like it, but I find it to be kinda okay fun.

So there!

I was having a conversation about Rocket League and GOTY mentions these past few days. I can see it as a multiplayer of the year candidate. I can see it as a sports title of the year candidate. But as an overall GOTY? No. It cannot, in my opinion, be compared to the likes of a Bloodborne, a Witcher 3, or a Fallout 4.

This is more so in media circles. Here, we can choose whatever we want, for whatever reasons we want. That's not my interjection. That stemmed from one host or another on IGN interrupting, more than once, to say "... but, guys, Rocket League!" during a mention of this years games. If it's the GWJ GOTY 2015 that's awesome.

So, what irks me about it then? It doesn't score in areas such as atmosphere, musical score, world building, writing, character development, voice acting, and so on, and so forth. That's not a fault of Rocket League anymore than it is FIFA or Madden. Yet they are generally considered exempt from GOTY conversations. They share in gameplay, community, and replayability. It's certainly enough to be a favourite game of the year, but I'd be surprised if it takes an overall award in the media. It's akin to a comedy performance always being overlooked in favour of a dramatic role in film.

I've had folks throw out comparisons to Splatoon or Mario Kart. Even my beloved Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze! For me, they score in more areas with musical scores, level/track creation, weapon progression/power up abilities. That's why I compare Rocket League to FIFA or Madden, or even NBA or NHL, or Baseball Game.

Unless the goal posts are shifting for GOTY candidates. In which case it came too late for Resogun, a game that was overlooked perhaps because it was just a shoot 'em up.

Rocket League is in my top ten.

I'm not being snippy: That's their problem. We pick what we want and I love it! Game sites can do their own thing and that's cool too.

Is it a game? Is it my favorite? Of the year?

Arrange those three in any order you want.

Yes.

RnRClown wrote:

It doesn't score in areas such as atmosphere, musical score, world building, writing, character development, voice acting, and so on, and so forth.

So what?

RnRClown wrote:

It doesn't score in areas such as atmosphere, musical score, world building, writing, character development, voice acting, and so on, and so forth.

I've never played Rocket League and don't see why this matters. Some of the greatest games of all time -- ones that are extremely popular, critically praised, and universally considered important to gaming lack in most of these areas. Super Mario Bros. doesn't have world building, writing, character development or voice acting, and the atmosphere and musical score are good but primitive. Ocarina of Time has no voice acting, little character development and minimal writing. And so on.

A whole lot of video game criticism attempts to critique games like movies, and I feel like your post is kind of the same thing. I won't say it's wrong if that's what appeals to you in games, but I don't think it should be a universal standard.

The inclusion of voice acting as a criteria is particularly baffling to me, since so many of my favorite games, even recent ones, don't have it.

How I determined my list.

1:Funnest
2:Funner
3:Super Fun
4:Really Fun
5:Fun
6:Fun
7:Fun
8:Fun
9:Pretty Fun
10:Kinda Fun

Nothing compares to Zork's soundtrack and beautiful graphics.

Tanglebones wrote:

Nothing compares to Zork's soundtrack and beautiful graphics.

There was just a bit too much CGI in it for my tastes.

Demyx wrote:
RnRClown wrote:

It doesn't score in areas such as atmosphere, musical score, world building, writing, character development, voice acting, and so on, and so forth.

I've never played Rocket League and don't see why this matters. Some of the greatest games of all time -- ones that are extremely popular, critically praised, and universally considered important to gaming lack in most of these areas. Super Mario Bros. doesn't have world building, writing, character development or voice acting, and the atmosphere and musical score are good but primitive. Ocarina of Time has no voice acting, little character development and minimal writing. And so on.

A whole lot of video game criticism attempts to critique games like movies, and I feel like your post is kind of the same thing. I won't say it's wrong if that's what appeals to you in games, but I don't think it should be a universal standard.

The inclusion of voice acting as a criteria is particularly baffling to me, since so many of my favorite games, even recent ones, don't have it.

Whoa! Someone's forgotten all about Navi!

In all seriousness, that. I was writing a post making the very same comparison to Mario before I decided to refresh, and of course someone else had already done it.

Hyetal wrote:
Demyx wrote:
RnRClown wrote:

It doesn't score in areas such as atmosphere, musical score, world building, writing, character development, voice acting, and so on, and so forth.

I've never played Rocket League and don't see why this matters. Some of the greatest games of all time -- ones that are extremely popular, critically praised, and universally considered important to gaming lack in most of these areas. Super Mario Bros. doesn't have world building, writing, character development or voice acting, and the atmosphere and musical score are good but primitive. Ocarina of Time has no voice acting, little character development and minimal writing. And so on.

A whole lot of video game criticism attempts to critique games like movies, and I feel like your post is kind of the same thing. I won't say it's wrong if that's what appeals to you in games, but I don't think it should be a universal standard.

The inclusion of voice acting as a criteria is particularly baffling to me, since so many of my favorite games, even recent ones, don't have it.

Whoa! Someone's forgotten all about Navi!

In all seriousness, that. I was writing a post making the very same comparison to Mario before I decided to refresh, and of course someone else had already done it.

Navi doesn't annoy me that much compared to the hate she gets on the internet, so I forgot about her :p

Oh, me neither. She did have a voice, though, and bless her for it.

RnRClown wrote:

I was having a conversation about Rocket League and GOTY mentions these past few days. I can see it as a multiplayer of the year candidate. I can see it as a sports title of the year candidate. But as an overall GOTY? No. It cannot, in my opinion, be compared to the likes of a Bloodborne, a Witcher 3, or a Fallout 4.

Just in case; my "if you didn't like it, you didn't play it" was not meant too seriously.

But yeah I somewhat agree, I placed both Bloodborne and Witcher 3 above Rocket League. Havent played Fallout 4 (yet).

Not merely because it didn't have enough story, music, graphics etc. While those things might all add to an experience, an experience can still be so great in one particular area, that lacking in other areas is unimportant. Such as Walking Dead's "choose a story"-experience was so well designed that its many shortcomings as a "game" did not matter imo.

Rocket League is distiled gameplay fun for me, and GOTY spot would not be undeserved .- I had a tough time sorting my top 5 games this year. But in the end, it is "only" an extremely fun, but repetitive multiplayer game. A few other games still beat it as a single enclosed experience, even if Rocket League might easily beat them in longevity or "just another turn"-replayability.

TheHarpoMarxist wrote:
ClockworkHouse wrote:

Things I've learned so far:

  • There's a lot less enthusiasm than I would have expected for Batman: Arkham Knight and Fallout 4.

Hating on Fallout 4 is the new killing a major character on a critically acclaimed dramatic series.

Give this man the Emmy.

It's a good thing we have until Dec 31st, because I'm kinda struggling this year... Very tough.

Other than actual dislike of Fallout 4 (which does seem somewhat common around the internet), I bet a lot simply haven't played it yet. It is this years Dragon Age Inquisition, a long game arriving very late in the year. And considering it is from Bethesda, a reasonable choice is to wait for a bunch of bug fixes before jumping in.

plavonica wrote:

I love this thread, it lets me know what to look out for during the winter steam gifting sales.

Agreed sir, agreed.

As to all this Rocket League talk, it was my most unexpected game of 2015. That may not be fair to big AAA titles that have months of lead up and publicity that inherently removes some novelty from the game, but I find the games that surprised me to be the most memorable for any given year. That's my criteria at least.

Gravey wrote:

I'd smuggle a carrier pigeon with you.

And there I was thinking you were just pleased to see me.

Okay, I'm caught up on tallying votes. A huge thank you to Panda Eskimo for the help!

The results are interesting so far, to say the least.

Thanks for doing this again Clock. I always love reading through people's lists.

1) Pillars of Eternity (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/VpYJ87m.jpg)
It evoked the Infinity Engine games of old, while still feeling fresh and unique. And the lofty thematic goals were built on top of a solid foundation of design decisions.

2) Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/WEyyi7s.jpg)
The tools at your disposal and how they worked in concert with the game mechanics and open world was incredibly well executed and fun to experiment with. And how KojiPro implemented the meta game aspect to both string the player along and convey the thrust of the story was well thought out.

But as a long time fan of the series, I was crushed by the overall narrative and second half. MGSV is both an utter disappointment and one of my favorite games of the year. In the end, I’m left with a phantom pain.

3) Rocket League (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/4yg7DDy.jpg)
Wow!
Wow!
Nice shot!

4) StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/c6TQsB4.png)
The co-op mode, archon mode and bombastic campaign were all fantastic. And I’m looking forward to Blizzard slowly molding the multiplayer into Brood War perfection.

5) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/8QuW1MN.jpg)
The quests were especially well done, often leading you down a dark and twisted rabbit hole that would be both gripping and reactive. “The Bloody Baron” was a highlight of the year.

It’s also the best Gwent simulator of 2015.

6) Cities: Skylines (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/TwsYkMU.jpg)
Huge cities. Mod support. Actual simulation. Whodathunk people would like that stuff?

7) Ori and the Blind Forest (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/bPhMwMi.jpg)
Both challenging and beautiful.

8) Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/k3TClez.jpg)
A true sequel in terms of upping the ante and taking you out of your comfort zone. The split second thrills, hair pulling frustration, hypnotic music and uncomfortable violence were all cranked up to 11.

9) Assault Android Cactus (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/mqB8KTR.jpg)
Feels like something SEGA would have developed during the Dreamcast era.

10) Invisible Inc. (PC)
IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/wxIM7lY.jpg)
XCOM: Heist Edition

*******************************************
Games I didn’t play but would have probably enjoyed: Bloodborne, Xenoblade Chronicles X, Mario Maker, Splatoon, Underrail, Undertale, Nuclear Throne, Warhammer: Vermintide, Fallout 4.

plavonica wrote:
Demyx wrote:

Navi doesn't annoy me that much compared to the hate she gets on the internet, so I forgot about her :p

The sound my phone plays when I get a text is Navi's "Hey, Listen!"

It's my ringtone (can't listen to a text!). The "secret found" clip is my text/notification sound.

1. Fallout 4 PS4
Haven't made it terribly far in the story because I keep getting distracted just walking around. I don't have a lot of time right now, so, when I do explore much, it's the end of my game time. I just enjoy the feel of the game.

2. Dungeon of the Endless PC
Really enjoyed getting through the dungeons and trying to tackle the different styles of the game based on what ship you begin with.

3. Kingdom PC
Another game that just hit the right note with simplicity vs depth for me in a more casual setting. One of those games that I didn't realize several hours had evaporated.

4. Thea The Awakening PC
I enjoy the different styles smashed together in this game. Card game and technology trees while balancing companies in order to effectively farm resources and quest at the same time. Lots of choices on how to tackle things and I'm really interested to make it further into the game.

5. Big Pharma PC
Puzzle and supply chain optimization that hits a nice balance for me.

6. Destiny The Taken King PS4
Played this with some friends when I started up again and get to do that seldom enough, that it was a treat. The game has enough different ways to do things, you can take up as much or little time as you like and still feel as if you got something done.

7. Rebel Galaxy PC
I really enjoyed how this game played and am interested to get more into it, just had a lot of things at the end of the year above on this list that distracted me. I will make it back sometime as I did enjoy my time in the universe. The music and more simplistic space combat were a welcome blend.

8. This War of Mine PC
War survival game that takes on a very interesting aesthetic with just regular folks trying to find a way to make it through war time.

9. Diablo III PC
Enjoyed the new patches and running up the seasonal ladders with a few new characters.

10. Heroes of the Storm PC
I really enjoy the thought of MOBA's, but then realize I'm not very good at them. This game is mostly spent playing computer bots and light interaction with team members. A much more pleasant experience for me that way and the gameplay is much easier to get into than LoL.

I have Shadows of Mordor and Witcher 3 that I have not been able to spend much time with but will get to sometime, hopefully, next year. When I got them, I just didn't end up with the time I needed to learn the new systems as I haven't had any experience with that style yet.

Overall, it's been a great year of gaming for me with some really fun gems that I know I would have missed except for all of you folks. So, thank you!