There's a few lists and games I'd like to comment on, positively so, but first.
RnR, I don't think you realize how dry your reply was. It can easily be construed as sarcasm or negative, especially the bit. About. Mass Effect. Singular.
I think that's why you got the response you did.
Thanks for the feedback, Garion. Honestly. And you are correct, I did not realize just how dry it could be considered.
This is my reading of it. I didn't see him being an ass, but instead just having a very dry way of writing. I think his response was misconstrued when he was agreeing that his list was invalidated.
Similarly, thank you, Vrikk. I thought I was being agreeable whilst tongue in cheek. Clearly it was too dry.
It's good to see where my response most likely went south. I had Spikeout say as much to me in private. I apologise for my lack of tact, Eleima, and everyone else.
(I snoozed the thread, so to speak, thus the delayed response. I couldn't stomach what I thought may possibly be awaiting me. I am, of course, happily surprised!)
(Also. Games. Unpleasant sidetrack be gone.)
2. Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
The game also has in my opinion the best narration I've heard (even better than Bastion's) in a videogame. Timothy Watson makes the compelling writing/dialogue come alive in a way that few could. Meve voiced by Lucy Black is one of the strongest female protagonists I've ever played, she has strength, intelligence, an unwavering will to do what's best for her people & as like everyone else is exquisitely written. Gascon is one of my favourite characters since The Witcher 3, flawlessly acted by Liam Garrigan.
The music for battles, story encounters & travelling throughout the various lands is all glorious. The best of the year along with Tropical Freeze.
I'd say my favourite gaming moments of the year are contained within Thronebreaker. Its filled me with wonder, surprise, angst, sadness, made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up & it harbours a story & characters that are up there with the all time greats.
This may just have became my most looked forward to game. That's a lot of bests. Much praise indeed!
I'm wondering if I could play it alongside The Witcher 3 without the two getting confuddled in my mind, if there's much crossover in timeframes and characters?
Spikeout wrote:2. Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
The game also has in my opinion the best narration I've heard (even better than Bastion's) in a videogame. Timothy Watson makes the compelling writing/dialogue come alive in a way that few could. Meve voiced by Lucy Black is one of the strongest female protagonists I've ever played, she has strength, intelligence, an unwavering will to do what's best for her people & as like everyone else is exquisitely written. Gascon is one of my favourite characters since The Witcher 3, flawlessly acted by Liam Garrigan.
The music for battles, story encounters & travelling throughout the various lands is all glorious. The best of the year along with Tropical Freeze.
I'd say my favourite gaming moments of the year are contained within Thronebreaker. Its filled me with wonder, surprise, angst, sadness, made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up & it harbours a story & characters that are up there with the all time greats.
This may just have became my most looked forward to game. That's a lot of bests. Much praise indeed!
I'm wondering if I could play it alongside The Witcher 3 without the two getting confuddled in my mind, if there's much crossover in timeframes and characters?
Yeah I honestly adore the game. It hits such a high bar across story, narration, dialogue, performances, multifaceted characters, tough choices & its battle system just gets deeper & more fleshed out as your army grows.
There's not a lot of crossover past the shared theme (with The Witcher 3) of a Nilfgaard invasion. There are tidbits here & there but it's mostly a contained story about Queen Meve trying to take back her land & get help where possible to fend off Nilfgaard.
Your safe enough that way but Thronebreaker is a meaty experience. If I remembering correctly it took me around 56 hours to complete so might be tricky enough going between both. If you do you'll be in a rich story gold mine 
You should keep an eye out in the next load of PS Store sales, I definitely think it's right up your alley.
edit: well, this bit of light-heartedness...
Is Persona 5 Royal different enough from Persona 5 to qualify as a new game for next years poll?
Asking for a friend... ; D
That's a tough one, but here's Eleima's rule:
I played a game before, but this year I played the remastered Director's Cut with new content on a new platform. Can I vote for it? Nope. Again, the spirit of this thread is to vote for things that were new to you this year, and replaying a game you love with spiffier graphics runs somewhat contrary to that. On the other hand, some remasters and re-releases significantly change the original game, and sometimes replaying something can feel more revelatory than playing something brand new. In the end, it's up to you (see the above, "but how do you know..." question).
So I guess the answer will be, do you think enough changed for it to qualify as a new game?
X-Com 2: War of the Chosen was definitely a high contender one year, because it changed so much about the base game.
Personally, I'd say no. They're adding a new character, but it's not like P3P where they added a new main protagonist.
I'm certainly not trying to relitigate the rules, but I do sometimes wish I was allowed to add those games that I played for 30 minutes, bounced off entirely, then return to 2 years later and binge on.
Case in point, Ori & The Blind Forest, which I'm mid-binge on after bouncing off on launch.
Again, not relitigating, but being able to vote for games you finish with in the year instead of start would suit the way i approach games better.
The original spirit of the rule was games you discovered in the course of the year.
If you tried a game a couple years ago, played a half-hour, bounced, but then really connected with it and feel like you discovered it later on... Why not?
By the same token, a game you've already played and mastered and loved and talked about at great length that gets a new chapter or bit of content isn't really a new discovery. It's less about "were there enough new lines of dialogue to count as a new game" than did the new content meaningfully change your relationship to the game. If you go from love to love, then no, not really.
But again: that was the original spirit of the thing. It's been rules-lawyered to f*cking death over the years. What Eleima says is the final word on it and not even God could undo it. If God wants to put Creation at the top of His list for another year because some new shit got patched in but Eleima says no? God can go f*ck Himself.
...Escalated Quickly.
nothing to see here.
I'm certainly not trying to relitigate the rules, but I do sometimes wish I was allowed to add those games that I played for 30 minutes, bounced off entirely, then return to 2 years later and binge on.
I played Subnautica for 30 minutes in early access in 2017, then remembered I never play my early access purchases, then played it for real and voted for it in 2018. Every night I wake up in terror that this will be the night Eleima sends the cops to kick down my door.
It's fine, it's not like she reads this thread.....oh crap....
You’re all a bunch of unruly little boys, but that’s okay, I’m used to it. 
I’ll have you know I actually *did* allow a “bounced off this game years ago and came back to it and binged til the end” game, fwiw.
Not that it really matters at this point in time, really.
After two nearly all nighters, the write up is complete (thank you Clocky for your help!!) and should be posted on the front page soon.
After two nearly all nighters, the write up is complete (thank you Clocky for your help!!) and should be posted on the front page soon. :)
itshappening.gif
You’re all a bunch of unruly little boys, but that’s okay, I’m used to it. :)
It's more that it would be subjective instead of objective. Like, what if you're a completely different person when you play a 'directors cut'? What if instead of using it to waste time while things are going from bad to worse, it's because things are going from bad to better but you can't speed that up either? What is Mass Effect isn't just a sci-fi term anymore, but a, um, sci-sci term?
Just a silly joke that got out of hand. Given the history of the 'new to you' debate, I should have known better. My bad.
I can't wait to add last years games to my wishlist for this year. Thanks Eleima!
And everyone else too.
I can't wait to add last years games to my wishlist for this year. Thanks Eleima!
And everyone else too.
Same. I've put in several hours on Slay the Spire this past week. It will probably go on my 2020 list.
And I'm finally getting into the Witcher 3 for the CRPG club.
The nice thing about waiting for these lists is the games are much cheaper.
This thread is good for finding games to play.
It's also interesting to go back and review the games you've voted in years past.
I started voting in 2016. From what I can see, my votes skew heavily to tactical games, RPGs, city builders, and a slow creep of mobile titles. Is it a wake-up call to go and try new things or is this FOMO? Or do I buckle down and keep playing what I enjoy out of fear of the unknown?
Not that it really matters at this point in time, really.
Recount! Revote!
This thread is good for finding games to play.
That is really the main purpose of these threads.
Everyone forgets who won anyway. Except when Bioshock won. That was just awful.
Everyone forgets who won anyway. Except when Bioshock won. That was just awful.
Y'all always give me grief about my taste in games and say that I hate fun, but then you voted that your game of the year.
I started voting in 2016. From what I can see, my votes skew heavily to tactical games, RPGs, city builders, and a slow creep of mobile titles. Is it a wake-up call to go and try new things or is this FOMO? Or do I buckle down and keep playing what I enjoy out of fear of the unknown?
I tried a horizons broadening experiment a few years ago, and while there were definitely a few successes in terms of broadening those horizons, it largely confirmed what I already knew.
Eleima wrote:Not that it really matters at this point in time, really.
Recount! Revote!
Waaaaaaaaay ahead of you. 
Everyone forgets who won anyway. Except when Bioshock won. That was just awful.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
*checks special arrogance*
*gauges audience reception to dry delivery*
If God wants to put Creation at the top of His list for another year because some new shit got patched in but Eleima says no? God can go f*ck Himself.
Poor God. He just wanted to share his joy found with Creation. Well, if decreed, he'd best be reaching for some holy lotion.
I’ll have you know I actually *did* allow a “bounced off this game years ago and came back to it and binged til the end” game, fwiw.
Cool! May I have the number of the legal representation that brought about this minor miracle?
(Too soon? Not in the right circles? I'll get my coat.)
Joking aside. Congratulations on another successful GOTY! The write-up was fantastic and it was formatted wonderfully. What a close finish as well!
The results are now live on the front page!
The write-up was fantastic and it was formatted wonderfully. What a close finish as well!
Thanks, it's kind of you to notice! I actually put all the BBCode in by hand in a word document, that's how ingrained it is now.
Tnx for all the hard work and of course it keeps getting better to read this write up every year
I can 100% promise there will be no Persona 5 Royal controversy next GOTY thread from me.
Same. Actually, after investing 150-160 hours total into Persona 5, I can’t see playing Royal (or—much as she likes the game—subjecting my wife to another P5 run).
Yeah, it's hard, but it's time to say goodbye.
I'll probably grab Royal somewhere down the line, when it's its own GOTY edition, and dirt cheap, or when it's on the Switch, but 2018 and two playthroughs ending up in a Platinum is definitely enough of P5 for me for the immediate future
With everything I've heard about Persona 5, maybe I'll get it on the Switch some day and it'll be on my GOTY list next year.
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