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[Pikma]

My list will seem totally crazy to some of you but whatever

1. Rhythm Thief and the Emperor's Treasure ; It's original, it's charming, the gameplay is fun, it's varied, it's very good looking, it has some issues with the way the game rates your performance but aside of that it's the best Sega game since Valkyria Chronicles. I'm gonna put it this way, it's as if a Sega dev team made this game in 2000 or even earlier, and instead of releasing it at that time, they decided to use a time machine to send it to year 2012, it's awesome, and it came out of nowhere, which makes it doubly awesome.

2. Hotline Miami ; The gameplay, the music, the style, I loved all of it.

3. ZombiU ; It's the best launch game I've ever played, and it's a great Survival Horror game, has some really good ideas, it just needed a little bit more of polish.

2011 GOTY: Dark Souls

 

[Firestorm]

1. Mass Effect 3 ; was the first game I completed this year and what a game. Wonderful final game of the franchise with a good amount of memorable scenes that served as very satisfying payoff for actions in previous games. Even some of the choices mattered. I enjoyed listening to a friend's story of how he screwed something up so badly that an outcome I didn't even know was possible occurred regarding the Geth and Quarians... It's a shame that the final 1% was such trash but everything before it cements this as my GOTY - mostly due to how few games I played this year. I surprisingly enjoyed the multiplayer too.

2. Borderlands 2 ; was a bit of a surprise hit for me. I wasn't even planning on getting it but a few friends did and I could grab it cheap so I did. Loved it. Great co-op game that I found considerably more enjoyable than the first. Good class variety, maps, and some of the dialog was pretty funny. <3 Tannis

3. Pokémon Trading Card Game Online ; may still be in beta but I have played oh so many matches and it's very fun. Well worth the money I invested in those booster pack codes. I don't have the largest card collection in real life so this helps me test out other decks and techs for my deck as well!

4. Bastion ; is a game I first tried at PAX '10 after being bribed by their staff with cookies and because their booth was set up directly beside my friends' booth. I'm glad I did! The visuals, narration, and music are perfect and the gameplay itself is very satisfying for what is essentially a beat 'em up. It's a game I've actually considered 100%ing as I just need to do New Game Plus which I think I'd enjoy (I'm not the type to beat games more than once).

5. Fruit Ninja ; gave me my proudest gaming moment this year when I got 200/200 gamerpoints. Boo-yeah. This game is so addictively fun. Deserves the praise.

 

[Square Triangle]

1. Far Cry 3- This game came at me by surprise. I enjoyed the first FC and hated the second so much so that I ignored all marketing and previews of FC3. However, once reviews rolled in- I had to see what the big deal was. The game is breathtakingly huge with so much to do and explore, I immediately fell in love. Before I knew it, 27 hrs deep, I had it platinum'd and I'm still salivating for more.

2. The Walking Dead- I never really got into the books nor had I sat down to watch an episode before I played this. I bought this purely because I love the genre and what TTG does. After finishing the first episode back in April, I knew I was in for a treat. The game takes my heart and rips it out. The choices I made, I always second guessed myself and the ending had me in tears.

3. Dishonored- The was one game I had been following since it's official reveal on the Game Informer cover. Dishonored is beautiful and addictive. The gameplay reminded me so much of Thief and Bioshock that I felt right at home. It will be hard for any game to top the swarm of rats power.

4. Journey- This game was the one game that changed my view on what could be possible with games. It caught the attention of everyone of my senses, including taste- I wanted more but it was just too short. Therefore it couldn't be higher on my list.

5. Gravity Rush- My must have Vita game. Given its art-style and origin of creation- I usually pass over these games. However something told me ignore the mediocre reviews and give it a go. Thank god I listened, I sunk hours upon hours into this game. The wife hated me for it.

6. Sound Shapes
7. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
8. Sleeping Dogs
9. Borderlands 2
10. Darksiders II

 

[mik]

1. LittleBigPlanet Vita ; The best version of the best game of all-time. It doesn't get better than that. I would not necessarily have guessed that the Vita would be the perfect fit for LBP, but perhaps I should have. The touchscreen makes everything--both playing and creating--better. And portability is a huge plus for this game. User-created levels are already terrific, and about to get even better with the cross-play functionality.

2. Far Cry 3 ; Creates the sense of being alone in the wilderness better than any other game--including anything Bethesda ever dreamed up. The fact that you can also do so much more in that wilderness than in any other game is a huge bonus. The chaos and random happenstances in this game are pure magic as far as I'm concerned.

3. Journey ; Walk walk walk... pause--omg look at that. Gorgeous. Walk walk walk... sliiiiiiiiiiiiiiide. Whoa. That was awesome. Walk walk walk... is that another--it is! Hey! Over here, buddy! Walk jump float spin chirp... Where did he go? Shit. Poor bastard.

4. The Walking Dead ; The fact that I hate zombies, comic books, The Walking Dead TV show, and Telltale's other games should speak volumes about how much this game hit me this year. A real surprise and one that holds many lessons for other developers, should they choose to heed them.

5. Dear Esther ; Creepy, somber, enigmatic, inscrutable--but probably the game whose story/feelings/visuals stuck with me the most this year. I recognize that it isn't for everyone, as it isn't a game. But man, it is an experience.

6. DrawSomething ; In terms of pure fun, this one rivals Far Cry 3 for me. So many laughs. So much time spent (and so little money: $0). This is just pure and simple in both concept and execution--and it nails both beautifully.

7. Sleeping Dogs ; I think this game is the new best-in-class for GTA-style open-world games, narrowly edging out Red Dead Redemption (though I still like RDR more for its story, setting, and themes). This game is always a riot to play, and the hand-to-hand combat + environmental kills are just perpetually entertaining.

8. Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack ; One of the best platformers I've played in ages and beautifully suited for the Vita. I couldn't wait to start playing it again as soon as I finished it.

9. Syndicate ; I really dig the way Starbreeze makes you feel like you are inhabiting a physical body in their games. The feeling of inertia, weight--everything--just makes you feel in the moment. The "magic" powers in the game are interesting and unique, and the co-op is one of the best such experiences this year, easily.

10. Spec Ops: The Line ; This was a real surprise. I thought everything about this game was excellent and well-crafted--the shooting, the graphics, the soundtrack. Then it goes ahead and layers on a story that's truly unexpected and fresh in a military shooter. Personally, I think this game makes Medal of Honor and Call of Duty kind of an embarrassment.



2011. To the Moon. ; Fantastic little old-school 16-bit action-RPG with a truly out-of-the-ordinary story.

 

[firehawk12]

1. Journey ; just a fabulous experience, both in terms of the world created and in terms of how multiplayer was designed.

2. Persona 4 Golden ; not just a remake, but an enhancement... or more of a director's cut. It makes an already great game that much better, including enhancements from other games that makes playing it more convenient while adding tons of story content that would make any fan happy. It's a Vita system seller.

3. Spec Ops: The Line ; a war game that actually uses the medium to try to say something about war beyond "AMERICA FUCK YEAH"

4. Gravity Rush ; exploring this open world is probably one of the most fun experiences I've had this year. I can forgive the combat because of that.

5. XCOM ; I fell in so hard with this strategy game. The only knock against it is that you can't just play skirmishes with the CPU.

6. Final Fantasy XIII-2 ; Yeah, the 13 franchise makes no sense any more, but it's still my favourite combat system of recent years. Too bad they have no idea how to tell a story any more.

7. The Walking Dead ; a lot of its seams showed in the last episode, but it was still a nice experience. Whether or not this signals a trend toward telling more interesting stories in video games, I can only hope.

8. Faster Than Light ; a combination of setting and science fiction nerdery makes this game just amazing to play and replay and replay.

9. Binary Domain ; What a great third person shooter. It's how I wished Yakuza Dead Souls played.

10. Sleeping Dogs ; More of an emotional pick than anything else. It's nice to see a game be nearly unapologetic about the race of its character and the ethnicity of its setting. I never thought I'd hear that much Cantonese in a video game ever.

2011. Real Lives 2010 ; this game was brought up on Idle Thumbs a few weeks ago and is one of the most interesting experiences I've played in a while. It randomly generates a character born in one of the poorer countries in the world and you essentially have to live the life of this person. A poor girl in the middle of New Delhi or a middle class boy in Sao Paolo, each character's experiences is different and gives a glimpse of life outside of North America.

 

[Fewr]

1. Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed ; I bought this just because it was cheap and because I got a free keychain. I was not expecting to get my game of the year at all. I love this game because the world tour mode is hard enough that you want to give the events another go all the time, and eventually you get to complete them. I also like the courses (Nights especially), how different the characters feel, how most game modes support local multiplayer, and the overall skill needed to get those last S rank stars. This is the best kart game I have played in years. You must play this game, it is fantastic.

2. Nintendo Land ; Fun, but not enough 5 player simultaneous games.

3. Mass Effect 3 ; Haven't finished it yet so I can't comment on the story, but from what I have played it seems to be nothing exceptional, just a good enough game in the series.

4. Just Dance 4 ; My first game in the series. Friends and family keep asking to play it everytime they get a chance, and we all have hours of fun with it.

5. Karaoke Channel (Xbox) ; Song selection is good, background boring. Again, family and friends like it. Some like choosing songs for the queue using smart glass, others like singing, most do both.

6. Pokemon Black & White 2 ; I still play it every day. I'm still trying to complete the pokédex.

 

[Somnia]

1. Mass Effect 3

2. The Walking Dead

3. XCom

4. Journey

5. Far Cry 3

6. FTL

7. Sleeping Dogs

8. Dishonored

9. Hotline Miami

10. Guild Wars 2

 

[Joe Lee]

1. Xenoblade Chronicles ; Gonna go on record as saying it's not just my favorite game this year, but also one of my favorites of all time. I could go into length of how great I thought Xenoblade was but I'll just keep it at that.

2. The Walking Dead ; While, sure, it's more of an interactive story than a game, it was one of the best experiences of the year. The relationship between Lee and Clementine made for one of the most worthwhile experiences in any game I've played.

3. Mass Effect 3 ; Regardless of my opinion of the ending (it sucked), Mass Effect 3 was still a tremendous game. Great gameplay, really cool setpieces, a tremendous score by Clint Mansell, and addicting multiplayer.

4. Max Payne 3 ; After all of these years, there's still no game that does bullet time better than Max Payne. The game's chock full of cool moments and Max's monologues are still as entertaining as ever.

5. Kid Icarus: Uprising ; I was really surprised at how much I loved this game. With some of the best writing ever in a Nintendo game, plus surprisingly deep customization options and really good online play, I'd go so far as to say that this is the best game on the 3DS right now.

6. Borderlands 2 ; Probably the most fun I've had in an open-world game since Skyrim, and that's without really touching co-op. The game stays constantly entertaining and fun.

7. Pokemon Black Version 2 ; Basically improves upon everything from Black 1. Makes past-gen Pokemon available from the beginning, makes worthwhile additions like a challenge mode, Pokestar Studios, and the Pokemon World Tournament, and continues with the surprisingly good narrative of the first game.

8. XCOM: Enemy Unknown ; It's been quite some time since I've had as much fun with a strategy game as I did with XCOM. Combining grid- and turn-based strategy gameplay in the vein of Final Fantasy Tactics (one of my favorite games) with permadeath mechanics from games like Fire Emblem, this is definitely a wonderfully crafted game. Really challenging and addicting.

9. Dishonored ; Interesting take on the stealth genre. While the stealth can get a little frustrating at times, it makes up for it with the interesting wealth of supernatural powers. Sending hordes of carnivorous rats at dudes never got old.

10. Dust: An Elysian Tail ; Great combination of Metroidvania exploration and a DMC-style combo system. Made all the more impressive by the fact that it was developed by ONE guy.

x - Soulcalibur V ; Best overall gameplay in the series since Soul Calibur II.
x - Mark of the Ninja ; Best pure stealth game of the year.

 

[lazybones18]

After just three hours (!) of playtime, Lumines Electronic Symphony is gonna make its way on to my list. Just gotta try a few more Vita games (SFxT, All-Stars, Liberation, LBP)

 

[TwiztidElf]

1. Torchlight 2 ; The game I flat out had the most fun with last year.
2. Lollipop Chainsaw
3. Fez
4. Asura's Wrath
5. Journey

2011. Uncharted 3

No disrespect to the great games I've listed above, but 2012 = Worst year in gaming ever.
Didn't play Forza Horizons or Sleeping Dogs. Maybe those games might have helped. Maybe.

 

[A Human Becoming]

1. Torchlight 2 - The game I flat out had the most fun with last year.
2. Lollipop Chainsaw
3. Fez
4. Asura's Wrath
5. Journey

2011. Uncharted 3

No disrespect to the great games I've listed above, but 2012 = Worst year in gaming ever.
Didn't play Forza Horizons or Sleeping Dogs. Maybe those games might have helped. Maybe.

1. Xenoblade Chronicles - Gonna go on record as saying it's not just my favorite game this year, but also one of my favorites of all time. I could go into length of how great I thought Xenoblade was but I'll just keep it at that.

2. The Walking Dead - While, sure, it's more of an interactive story than a game, it was one of the best experiences of the year. The relationship between Lee and Clementine made for one of the most worthwhile experiences in any game I've played.

3. Mass Effect 3 - Regardless of my opinion of the ending (it sucked), Mass Effect 3 was still a tremendous game. Great gameplay, really cool setpieces, a tremendous score by Clint Mansell, and addicting multiplayer.

4. Max Payne 3 - After all of these years, there's still no game that does bullet time better than Max Payne. The game's chock full of cool moments and Max's monologues are still as entertaining as ever.

5. Kid Icarus: Uprising - I was really surprised at how much I loved this game. With some of the best writing ever in a Nintendo game, plus surprisingly deep customization options and really good online play, I'd go so far as to say that this is the best game on the 3DS right now.

6. Borderlands 2 - Probably the most fun I've had in an open-world game since Skyrim, and that's without really touching co-op. The game stays constantly entertaining and fun.

7. Pokemon Black Version 2 - Basically improves upon everything from Black 1. Makes past-gen Pokemon available from the beginning, makes worthwhile additions like a challenge mode, Pokestar Studios, and the Pokemon World Tournament, and continues with the surprisingly good narrative of the first game.

8. XCOM: Enemy Unknown - It's been quite some time since I've had as much fun with a strategy game as I did with XCOM. Combining grid- and turn-based strategy gameplay in the vein of Final Fantasy Tactics (one of my favorite games) with permadeath mechanics from games like Fire Emblem, this is definitely a wonderfully crafted game. Really challenging and addicting.

9. Dishonored - Interesting take on the stealth genre. While the stealth can get a little frustrating at times, it makes up for it with the interesting wealth of supernatural powers. Sending hordes of carnivorous rats at dudes never got old.

10. Dust: An Elysian Tail - Great combination of Metroidvania exploration and a DMC-style combo system. Made all the more impressive by the fact that it was developed by ONE guy.

x - Soulcalibur V
x - Mark of the Ninja

1. Journey - just a fabulous experience, both in terms of the world created and in terms of how multiplayer was designed.

2. Persona 4 Golden - not just a remake, but an enhancement... or more of a director's cut. It makes an already great game that much better, including enhancements from other games that makes playing it more convenient while adding tons of story content that would make any fan happy. It's a Vita system seller.

3. Spec Ops: The Line - a war game that actually uses the medium to try to say something about war beyond "AMERICA FUCK YEAH"

4. Gravity Rush - exploring this open world is probably one of the most fun experiences I've had this year. I can forgive the combat because of that.

5. XCOM - I fell in so hard with this strategy game. The only knock against it is that you can't just play skirmishes with the CPU.

6. Final Fantasy XIII-2 - Yeah, the 13 franchise makes no sense any more, but it's still my favourite combat system of recent years. Too bad they have no idea how to tell a story any more.

7. The Walking Dead - a lot of its seams showed in the last episode, but it was still a nice experience. Whether or not this signals a trend toward telling more interesting stories in video games, I can only hope.

8. Faster Than Light - a combination of setting and science fiction nerdery makes this game just amazing to play and replay and replay.

9. Binary Domain - What a great third person shooter. It's how I wished Yakuza Dead Souls played.

10. Sleeping Dogs - More of an emotional pick than anything else. It's nice to see a game be nearly unapologetic about the race of its character and the ethnicity of its setting. I never thought I'd hear that much Cantonese in a video game ever.

"LTTP": Real Lives 2010 - this game was brought up on Idle Thumbs a few weeks ago and is one of the most interesting experiences I've played in a while. It randomly generates a character born in one of the poorer countries in the world and you essentially have to live the life of this person. A poor girl in the middle of New Delhi or a middle class boy in Sao Paolo, each character's experiences is different and gives a glimpse of life outside of North America.

1. Far Cry 3- This game came at me by surprise. I enjoyed the first FC and hated the second so much so that I ignored all marketing and previews of FC3. However, once reviews rolled in- I had to see what the big deal was. The game is breathtakingly huge with so much to do and explore, I immediately fell in love. Before I knew it, 27 hrs deep, I had it platinum'd and I'm still salivating for more.

2. The Walking Dead- I never really got into the books nor had I sat down to watch an episode before I played this. I bought this purely because I love the genre and what TTG does. After finishing the first episode back in April, I knew I was in for a treat. The game takes my heart and rips it out. The choices I made, I always second guessed myself and the ending had me in tears.

3. Dishonored- The was one game I had been following since it's official reveal on the Game Informer cover. Dishonored is beautiful and addictive. The gameplay reminded me so much of Thief and Bioshock that I felt right at home. It will be hard for any game to top the swarm of rats power.

4. Journey- This game was the one game that changed my view on what could be possible with games. It caught the attention of everyone of my senses, including taste- I wanted more but it was just too short. Therefore it couldn't be higher on my list.

5. Gravity Rush- My must have Vita game. Given its art-style and origin of creation- I usually pass over these games. However something told me ignore the mediocre reviews and give it a go. Thank god I listened, I sunk hours upon hours into this game. The wife hated me for it.

6. Sound Shapes
7. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
8. Sleeping Dogs
9. Borderlands 2
10. Darksiders II

My list will seem totally crazy to some of you but whatever

1. Rhythm Thief and the Emperor's Treasure: It's original, it's charming, the gameplay is fun, it's varied, it's very good looking, it has some issues with the way the game rates your performance but aside of that it's the best Sega game since Valkyria Chronicles. I'm gonna put it this way, it's as if a Sega dev team made this game in 2000 or even earlier, and instead of releasing it at that time, they decided to use a time machine to send it to year 2012, it's awesome, and it came out of nowhere, which makes it doubly awesome.

2. Hotline Miami: The gameplay, the music, the style, I loved all of it.

3. ZombiU: It's the best launch game I've ever played, and it's a great Survival Horror game, has some really good ideas, it just needed a little bit more of polish.

That's it for now, I'll update the post with the other 7 games in a few hours

2012 could be one of the best years for me gaming related ( have a very good PC, iPhone a Ds and $$$) but I had very little time. The result: played a huge amount of games through portables but most of my HD backlog grew. So most of the games I played this year were old Classics and some nice indie games.

That being said, I am actually surprised mu GOTY would be a phone game instead of a high value DS or PC game.

1- Super Hexagon : The premisse is simple; survive for at least 60 seconds. never expected that I would finish a game that first killed me in 3 seconds on the easiest stage... And love every single tenth of second of it. Simplistic yet pretty, insanely hard but never unfair. Amazing and addictive soundtrack. It was a game made for the phone, considering how quick is to retry or beat the stage. Can't wait for Terry's next game...And i though that VVVVVV would be his masterpiece.

2- Kid Icarus Uprising : The best 3DS game bar none. I feel so bad when people only mention its controls, but few say that after you master it, the story ,music and graphics are stellar enough to make Pit's return a Nintendo's classic.

3- Walking Dead: After so much praise by, well, everyone, I had to check it and yeah its as good as an interative story can get. Very good and sad history. Too sad sometimes actually.

4- Zero Escape: VLS - I loved 999 and never expected a proper sequel, so this is quite q surprise. Not as good or shocking as 999, but a very nice game

And that's it
I still have to plow through, Dark Souls (20hrs in), Binary Domain, Crimson Shroud, Far Cry 3 Max Payne 3 Sleeping Dogs (10hr in) not to mention a lot of games from the past years.

Besides Dark Sould I doubt my list would change so much, so well there's that.

2011- xenoblade

Worst of 2012- Diablo III

1. Final Fantasy XIII-2 - People will call me biased but whatever... I defintely loved the game. It had a very compelling plot, with two lead characters who were actually pretty good even if people hated both Noel and Serah when they were first announced, an improved version of the already good battle system from XIII, fixed the things people complained about in the first game and had one od the best OST's from the last 5 years or so.

2. Warriors Orochi 3 - I'm a huge fan of Dynasty Warriors and having never played a Orochi game I have to say I was surprised. It is addicting as hell! A great game with hundreds of characters (literally) with their own weapons and moves (some very creatives move sets there, I have to say). Graphics and OST are surprisinly great as well.

3. Persona 4: The Golden - Managed to play it for a week or so after borrowing my friend's Vita. I couldn't actually finish it, but I did play it on PS2 back in the day, so at least I played enough to notice the upgrades and everything else they included. It looks great, the new intro is very good and based on what I played Marie seemed like a very interesting character.

4. Atelier Meruru: The Apprentice of Arland - I'm a big fan of the series and Meruru did not disappoint, in fact it improved on everything based on what I played of Totori. Also props to Gust for delivering so many good games these last years. Can't wait for Ayesha.

5. Mass Effect 3 - I love this series too. Despite the hate the ending gets I really think it was not that bad. It was not amazing but it was decent enough. Had lots of fun with the actual game, even if it was not better overall than ME 2 or 1 I still think it was good enough to be in my top 5.

6. Guild Wars 2 - One of the only online games that managed to entertain me for more the one month. The lore and story are great, the cities and characters are amazingly done. A great game imo.

7. Theathrythm Final Fantasy - Music from final fantasy + rythm game = awesome. Nothing more to say.

8. The Walking Dead - Great story, very touching and charming game overall. Nice to see the adaptations are getting better and better.

9. Hyperdimension Neptunia Mk2 - MUCH improved battle system made the game much better than the first one. The story is still funny, and the gamindustry plot is pretty clever imo. I like it a lot.

10. Sound Shapes - Its all about the music. And its great at that. The platforming really was secondary to me, but it was still very responsive overall, despite some really irritating/annoying repetitive sections. I really like this create and share games though.

1. Diablo III - I wasn't a big fan of the auction house, and the game initially had some balance problems, but the actual combat was fantastic. A real joy to play.

2. Borderlands 2 - I never played the first one, so franchise fatigue didn't really affect me.

3. XCOM: Enemy Unknown - Loved the game, but was disappointed in the the number of bugs, and how long it took firaxis to fix them.

2011. Rocksmith - Very well executed, apart from the horrendous menu system.

A SEMICOLON before a comment.

1. Mass Effect 3

2. The Walking Dead

3. XCom

4. Journey

5. Far Cry 3

6. FTL

7. Sleeping Dogs

8. Dishonored

9. Hotline Miami

10. Guild Wars 2

1. LittleBigPlanet Vita
2. Far Cry 3
3. Journey
4. The Walking Dead
5. Dear Esther
6. DrawSomething
7. Sleeping Dogs
8. Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack
9. Syndicate
10. Spec Ops: The Line

Make sure you edit in one comment!

Spoiler

New P1P episode spoiled.

 

[A Link to the Past]

I'm hoping to get some more game playing going on. I'll probably play through Hotline Miami, FTL, and Torchlight II.

 

[Tricky I Shadow]

Well it looks like The Walking Dead is pretty much locked in for GAF&#8217;s GOTY.......meh.

Of the 14 posts before this post on this page only 3 of them are gonna be counted! :/

 

[Gartikker]

A SEMICOLON before a comment.




Make sure you edit in one comment!

Spoiler

New P1P episode spoiled.

Amazing how many format errors in the last page, it would be a shame if none of them counted.

Edit.. Beaten.

 

[AniHawk]

Well it looks like The Walking Dead is pretty much locked in for GAF&#8217;s GOTY.......meh.

Of the 14 posts before this post on this page only 3 of them are gonna be counted! :/

i just beat the game and i have to agree. the writing is generally pretty good, if a bit cliche. it doesn't do too much in the design department either. and it doesn't need to do something fantastic like become a platformer that controls well or something, but if it just did something that could differentiate it from mass effect or any other game where you've had to make a choice, like vlr did or alpha protocol apparently does, that would be reason enough to make it stand above other games in the genre or other games released this year.

and that's nothing to say of the technical issues, especially later in the game where it wasn't loading the decision thing fast enough and chose the ellipses for me.

games aren't art. they're products of design. if it was a platformer, it'd be one of the ds sonic games in terms of design- good enough to get the job done, and fans will enjoy it, but not best-of-the-year material.

that said, it still might make my list as an honorable mention. i am going to play journey next, and maybe squeeze in the last story too.

 

[Lighting Gels]

1. Mark of the Ninja ; GOTY without any doubt, terrific game. Hope it sells well enough to help Klei bring more like this.
2. Forza Horizon ; Incredible overall experience, the meaning of enjoying a videogame is here.
3. Dust: An Elysian Tail ; Lots of magic and love here, being developed mostly by one guy makes it even more impressive.
4. Binary Domain ; Not being a FPS or TPS lover I've enjoyed this one so much, sadly it didn't sell like it deserved.

 

[pslayer666]

1. Journey ; A trully amazing experience. No other game felt like Journey ever before in my life.
2. Far Cry 3 ; Crazy insane fun. So many things to do, so many places to go, so many animals to kill. Love it!!
3. Tokyo Jungle ; A rroguelike with animals in a desolte Tokyo? Yes please!!!
4. LittleBigPlanet - Vita ; This franchise never really clicked with me before, but this Vita release of the game blew me away. Less floaty and super fun!!!
5. Tales from Space: Mutant Blobs Attack ; Such a fun little platformer. For that price, everyone (with a Vita) should give it a go. Can't wait for Guacamelee!
6. Wipeout 2048 ; Best racer out there on the Vita! By far! R.I.P. Psygnosis/Studio Liverpool
7. Gravity Rush ; Never thought manipulating gravity would be so much fun (albeit a little disorientating at times ).
8. Rayman: Origins (Vita) ; Simply beautiful! Also a bitch to get all the speed-runs and crazy singing thingies. Best game to have poped my Vita's cherry with!
9. Uncharted: Golden Abyss ; the complete demo of most of what the Vita has to offer in a pretty much fun game.


2011. Vanquish ; Is this even from 2011? I don't remember. anyways, hadn't played it until recently and it's fucking amazing!!! got the challenges left for the plat, hopefully I'll find the time to get them done sometime.

That's about it, pretty sad I don't even have a top 10 I suppose but so little time for me to game lately. Looking at my list makes me realise i've been playing quite a bit of Vita over the last year or so too!!

 

[Lighting Gels]

nvm

 

[uncleniccius]

1: The Walking Dead; the most thought provoking story ever.
2: Journey; a wonderful experience
3: Far Cry 3; the best open world FPS ever created
4ishonored; the only asassin game to meet its potential this year
5) Lego Lord of the Rings; Lord of the Rings, in lego! Need I say more?
6) Playstation All Stars; combine my favourite series with Playstation, wonderful.
7) The Unfinished Swan; Artistic, creative, magical.
8)Motorstorm RC; addictive, fun and the best handheld Game this year
9) Mass Effect 3; a great story. A good end to a great trilogy.
10) Wipeout 2048; the best "proper" racer this year.A fantastic Wipeout game.

 

[Overdoziz]

Well it looks like The Walking Dead is pretty much locked in for GAF&#8217;s GOTY.......meh.

Of the 14 posts before this post on this page only 3 of them are gonna be counted! :/

Follow the format below (you don&#8217;t have to be absolutely perfect, but you do need to follow the general rules: you must number your entries, must have comments follow your game nomination on the same line, etc.)

I really doubt it matters whether someone uses a semicolon or a dash, as long as there's at least one comment.

 

[Wolfgunblood Garopa]

Well it looks like The Walking Dead is pretty much locked in for GAF’s GOTY.......meh.

Of the 14 posts before this post on this page only 3 of them are gonna be counted! :/

TWD as GOTY is pretty lame. Especially considering it's technical issues.

 

[SillyEskimo]

TWD as GOTY is pretty lame. Especially considering it's technical issues.

What are you playing it on? It runs flawlessly on my iPad.

 

[depward]

1. Journey ; Incredible how it has stuck with me. The soundtrack is perfect, the visuals are flawless, and the co-op mechanic is truly unique.
2. Dear Esther ; The world of this game was incredibly fleshed out and hauntingly beautiful. One of those games that you finish and then just sit there and take time to really think about it. Great music, too.
3. Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational ; This was the reason why I purchased a Playstation Vita and it did not disappoint. Was thoroughly addicted to it for months playing the daily tournament rounds.
4. Halo 4 ; Halo co-op campaigns are always fun and this was no exception. The music in this entry was super strong (then again, all Halo games always have a really great soundtrack).
5. Hotline Miami ; I enjoyed this way too much. The soundtrack was great and the gameplay can only be described as a top-down Metal Gear + GTA + craziness.
6. The Unfinished Swan ; I enjoyed the latter part than the beginning, but this is a prime example of something really NEW in gaming that just worked for me.
7. Sound Shapes ; I honestly expected more from this title, for as much as it was hyped, but it was good fun. Like many others, the Beck levels were the highlight for me.
8. Ragnarok Odyssey ; Not quite the "Monster Hunter of the Vita" but it definitely is a super fun hunting genre game with a very competent online feature to it.
9. Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale ; This is a great beat-em-up game. Not quite Smash level but close.
10. Gravity Rush ; A nice beautiful world and a fairly fun gravity mechanic, I'd love for this to get a sequel that really fleshes everything out.

 

[lucius]

1. Journey ; May change your life, poop will smell better
2. Mass Effect 3 ; I hate the majority of online multiplayer but played this online
3. Borderlands 2 ; Will likely replay this game more than any other on list
4. Assasin's Creed 3 ; Soo good!
5. Dishonored ; Big suprise for me thought it would stink
6. Sleeping Dogs ; Game is fun
7. The Unfinished Swan ; Video game art!
8. Halo 4 ; Amazing graphics, campaign not better than 1 & 3 but better than rest
9. Mass Effect PSN ; Priced right, still holds up great, no double tearing when panning camera
10. The Walking Dead ; By far the best writing, controls still feel like could have been slightly more polished on the 3 versions I played.

 

[Neuromancer]

1. SSX; I had a great time with this game, bombing down the slopes, geocache hunting, tricking and flying with the wingsuit.
2. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning; An awesome action RPG. Very satisfying combat and exploration.
3. XCOM; It's amazing we got this game at all, but even better, it turned out very well.
4. Call of Duty: Black Ops 2; Carrying the torch for games like Unreal Tournament and Timesplitters 2, 99% of my time in this game is spent playing bot matches. It never gets old because BO2 has way more bot match options than BO1 did.
5. Far Cry 3; Exploring the island, hunting, attacking outposts, searching for treasure and getting surprise attacked by sharks and crocodiles is so much fun.
6. Minecraft Xbox 360 Edition; With so many games focused on destroying, it's a great change of pace to be able to create for a change. Truly wonderful game.
7. Forza Horizon; Best open world racing game this generation, hands down.
8. Sleeping Dogs; A man without a pork bun in his hand is never a whole man.
9. The Walking Dead Season 1; I cried manly tears at the end.
10. FTL; Hard as fuck and yet for weeks I couldn't stop playing. I may beat it someday (but probably not.)

x. Dishonorable mention to Halo 4 for wiping out my campaign data when I was halfway through the game on Legendary Solo.

 

[MasterDjin]

I'm more of a lurker but I wanted to throw out my picks for GOTY so here goes:

1. Walking Dead ; Wasn't even on my radar till my brother told me he saw a stream of it and it looked solid. Downloaded the first episode and was blown away. The wait for each episode was painful but Telltale delivered every single time. Definitely wasn't expecting to pick my GOTY in the summer.

2. Spec Ops: The Line ; The game I bought cause of GAF hype. While the combat does nothing special, its story gripped me and definitely deserves praise. It is bit on the short but I don't mind since it delivers its message and leaves without overstaying its welcome.

3. Sleeping Dogs ; I'm still going through it but really enjoying the experience its providing. The game does a good job of making you feel like a badass with its melee combat and carjacking.

4. Borderlands 2 ; More Borderlands!

5. Mass Effect 3 ; By erasing my memory and forgetting two things: the last 10% of the game and the dreams of the little boy,I can easily put this on my list as I loved the build up to the end. On a side note I want to give Bioware a special fuck you for making me pay for Javik who was one of my favorite characters and crucial to the story.

6. Playstation All Stars Battle Royale ; Aside from small matchmaking issues, the annoying Kratos and Raiden I play against, I enjoy playing online with all stars.

7. Assassin's Creed 3 ; The only reason this is on my list is because I enjoy playing online with its copy+paste online mode from Revelations(or was it from Brotherhood?). I'm still trying to bring myself to continue the story. Conner is just so boring.

 

[Baconsammy]

1. Minecraft 360 - listed as my number one since it got the most play from me this year and also is so damn good that once my daughter had it she hasn't asked for another non-iOS game since.

2. Halo 4 - simply the best looking console game this generation. Also shitloads of fun single and multi

3. Mark of the Ninja - best downloadable game of the year

4. Sleeping Dogs - best multi-plat retail title I played all year. Short but very awesome. Best open world game of the generation imo

5. Lumines Electronic Symphony - best puzzle game of the year despite being one of the absolute worst versions of the series.

6. Mass Effect 3 - loved it

7. Angry Birds Star Wars - the addiction continues

8. Wordament iOS - best word game of the year

9. Forza Horizon - best racing game this gen

10. Rayman Jungle Run - proving again you dont need a dedicated handheld to have the best handheld games.

 

[Beefwheat]

1. Journey ; Will Wright has said that video games used to feel like minor miracles, each new one showing us things we never thought possible. It seemed to happen regularly when I was a kid, but every so often a game comes along and brings that feeling right back.
2. Borderlands 2 ; Although the memes and EVERYTHING PITCHED UP TO 11 tone of the game can get tiresome, it also improves on the original in a ton of ways and in no way disappointed me.
3. Mass Effect 3 ; Don’t let the ending haters get you down, it’s still a fun game!
4. Minecraft
5. Xenoblade Chronicles
6. Torchlight 2
7. Halo 4 ; I don’t know which GAFfer was saying that there needs to be a Metroid Prime game with this engine and art direction but they were absolutely right
8. Gotham City Impostors ; Ridiculous fun, especially with pals. Never touched anything besides Team Deathmatch.
9. Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP
10. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

2011. Pushmo ; I only just got a 3DS and it’s already a satisfying purchase thanks to this game.

 

[KingKong]

1. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive ; A great remake of the original that has one of the best implementations of matchmaking I've played

2. XCOM ; Very good and exciting strategy game where things can go wrong in seconds

3. Hotline Miami ; pure score attack gameplay, fantastic music and art style

4. Mark of the Ninja ; some of the best stealth game design I've seen

5. Max Payne 3 ; the best third person shooter I've played in a long time and the physics and graphics were out of this world

6. Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition ; Dark Souls was my GOTY of 2011 and the DLC was fantastic, not to mention playing it in high res with no framerate issues on PC

7. Dishonored ; Fun stealth action gameplay, I really enjoyed the blink power

8. Far Cry 3 ; Really enjoyable open world game that tried to streamline the experience a little too much

9. Trials: Evolution ; Tuned to perfection racing platformer

10. FTL ; Very clever game design and gameplay that leads to as many frantic moments and close victories as XCOM

 

[Duffyside]

Well it looks like The Walking Dead is pretty much locked in for GAF’s GOTY.......meh.

Of the 14 posts before this post on this page only 3 of them are gonna be counted! :/

I actually think Journey is ahead. It's close, and I'm not tallying precisely, but that'd be my bet.

 

[Snuggles]

I actually think Journey is ahead. It's close, and I'm not tallying precisely, but that'd be my bet.

Yeah, I'd bet on Journey. It makes me feel like I should play through it again and see if it clicks this time.

 

[televator]

I'm not sure how some folks think it's in the bag for TWD...

Maybe I have extreme selective reading, but I'm still seeing a ton of Journey -- which is fantastic!

C'mon, GAF! To the peak of the mountain we go!

 

[bitoriginal]

1. Sleeping Dogs ; I didn't expect much from this game, but it scratched an itch for a GTA style sandbox game. I'd felt let down at other offerings such as SR3 and this restored my faith. Criminally short though unfortunately.

2. Walking Dead. ; Just a great game to get wrapped up in. I cared about Clem and Lee. I was craving more at the end of every episode.

3. Dishonored ; I like stealth games. I understand the criticisms levied towards it, but I dont care. I felt like a badass and enjoyed using my super powers.

4. Far Cry 3 ; Best intro to a game in 2012. Overall the game feels shallow but I enjoyed the time I spent prowling and stalking my way around the jungle.

5. Zero Escape: Virtues Last Reward ; Great sequel to 999.

6. Journey ; I connected with Journey and applaud it for deviating from the norm. It's an emotional experience and the co-op aspect was fantastic. I'd rate it higher if it was longer.

7. Dragons Dogma ; Just a great hack and slash game, enjoyed the darkness element and the feeling of danger that it created. Had it been a bit more story driven and contained a co-op element it would be amazing.

8. Borderlands 2 ; Best co-op game I've played all year. Hated Borderlands 1 but this provided me and my friend a good couple of weeks of play. Great gunplay, and they achieved atmosphere within the world with a story that just gave you enough to carry on.

9.Paper Mario: Sticker Star ; Totally charming and a great game. I haven't had previous experience with Paper Mario so I didnt go in with any particular expectations. Really enjoyed my time with the game.

10. Halo 4 ; Halo 4 is my favourite Halo since Halo 2. I think all the refinements and changes made really brought Halo back into the arena to challenge BF/COD. While I recognise this, I'm just fatigued with multiplayer FPS games.

2011: Catherine ; What a game. Probably the most unique game I've played in a long time. Fell in love with the story and actually found myself going back for more with the puzzle gameplay. I actually rushed it through so I could play another game. I couldn't stop thinking about it and had to see some of the alternative endings.

 

[hank_tree]

1. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy ; My most played game this year by a country mile.

2. The Walking Dead ; More interactive story than game. But what a story.

3. Journey ; I didn't care much for flOw or Flower but this got everything right. Also I really want one of those scarves.

4. Fez ; This game was so worth the wait. The experience I had both in game and online trying to piece things together is unmatched.

5. Wipeout 2048 ; If this was a list of my most played games this year this would be number two on the list. I've sunk over 100 hours into this in short bursts when using public transport.

6. Asura's Wrath ; This game made me love QTEs and reignited my love for anime temporarily. I didn't think either of those were possible.

7. Halo 4 ; It's no Reach but a very impressive effort from 343 Industries.

8. Mass Effect 3 ; I loved the final act of this trilogy from beginning to end.

9. Zero Escape Virtue's Last Reward ;Before I played it I expected this would be higher on my list but the puzzles started to drag and the story got a little too convoluted near the end.

10. Dragon's Dogma ; Really great combat let down by it's story and world (at least until the very last moments of the game). If only we could get Skyrim X Dragon's Dogma. Now that would be something.

 

[chickdigger802]

Haven't finished many games but ill throw some ones I've invested in a lot as well I guess.

1. Sleeping Dogs ; surprise game, love shooting, melee, and driving. Could use some improvements, but overall probably my favorite crime open world game ever, and them night street reflections.

2. Zero Escape: Virtue Last Reward ; great sequel, shame the 3ds version is busted and laggy, and I still think the puzzles are mediocre.

3. XCOM ; haven't finished yet, but a game that can hook me for hours is a rare thing these days.

4. Mark of the ninja ; fantastic feel and mechanics, kinda wish there were a few more kill animations though.

5. Persona 4 Golden ; Wish I've put more time into this, but it is quite a smart updated version with some cool additions (and some not so cool ones).

6. Puzzle & Dragon ; Super addicting game for mobile that everyone should dabble in for a bit.

7. Katawa Shoujo ; a pretty damn good VN made by weirdo internet people.

 

[juicyb]

tagging this for later

 

[Raziel]

1. Journey ; Giantbomb review said it best "Journey stands as a prime example of the truly remarkable things that can be done via this medium." Speaking of Giantbomb, I remember Jonathan Blow (creator of Braid) on one of their video podcast things, I think it was during an e3? He said sort of off the cuff that one day he would like to make a game that was completely wordless with little to no exposition or instruction, only relying on clever iconography and symbolism. I have no idea what Blow thinks of Journey, and while it doesn't have the heavy puzzle focus he so clearly favors, I can't help but think Journey is basically that game he described. In that way I think Journey is pure game; it just starts and you just go. The premise of a "journey" is a perfectly simple one for a game, and the developer really does it justice.

2. Sound Shapes ; While everyone is on a downloadable games and/or small indie games kick, more people should play this, as I think it belongs side by side with the best of them. Jonathan Mak's/Queasy Games last game Everyday Shooter was still, five years later, the only game on my PS3 hard drive (I own disc versions of WipEout and Journey); Sound Shapes is the second. Everyday Shooter to this is basically the kind of leap thatgamecompany made from flow/flower to Journey. It's a much more complete, fully realized product of Queasy's "music making with games" concept. The Jim Guthrie/Superbrothers levels comprise one of the best level themes I've ever seen. The deadmau5 levels paired with the retro games theme/aesthetic is perfect. The Beck levels are wonderfully surreal and psychedelic. GREAT music game.

3. Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP ; Great pixel art, great music by Jim Guthrie, great quirky style. The Superbrothers/Guthrie levels in Sound Shapes serve as a great companion piece (or vice versa) and contrast.

 

[biocat]

1. Persona 4 Golden ; The reason I bought my Vita and totally justified.

2. Journey ; Beautiful and unique experience.

 

[I-hate-u]

GOTY = Walking Dead

Not even a competition how this game is superior to anything else released this year. This game did what Heavy Rain and all its budget could not do and I do not know how Naughty Dog's The Last of Us story will be received because this game took its thunder.

Awesome awesome stuff TellTale.

 

[Fare Godmace]

1.Mass Effect 3 ; Best gameplay in the series and I was satisfied with the ending (probably because I was expecting something MUCH worse due to all the hate it gets).
2. Alan Wake (PC version) ; The plot hooked me like no other non-RPG has ever done. I've always thought that stories should be just an excuse and that gameplay is the only thing that matters (unless it's an RPG or an PnC adventure game) , but Alan Wake has made me reconsider my stance.
3. Kid Icarus: Uprising ; Sakurai keeps his stellar track record, the game is just so much fun and the plot captures flawlessly the essence of a Saturday morning cartoon. However, I don't like playing games online, so I haven't enjoyed its multiplayer as much as I'd like (I still play Kirby Air Ride and SSBB regularly, they're so much fun). God, I'd kill for a Wii U version so I could play it locally :/
4. Paper Mario: Sticker Star ; This game alone validates Nintendo's decision to add 3D to the 3DS. It's just so beautiful.
5. New Super Mario Bros. 2 ; Yeah, the asthetics are bland, but it's actually my favourite single player NSMB game so far (haven't bought a Wii U yet). Shame about the DLC being so expensive, though.
6. Resident Evil: Revelations ; Pretty good action game with some horror touches here and there, I really wish to see more RE titles like this one.
7. Rhythm Heaven Fever ; Tiki Tiki Tiki Desu Ka?
8. Dillon's Rolling Western ; I'm not gonna lie, I don't even like the gameplay that much and I didn't finish the game. But unless many other games I've played this year, I still remember it thanks to the fantastic character design. Seriously, I'll be pretty dissapointed if they don't add Dillon to the new Smash Bros' roster. Let's just hope they release a game in the same world but with faster gameplay or a diferent genre altogether.
9. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy ; Even if I've only played FF III and IV, music games are my favorite genre and this one didn't dissapoint.
10. Penny Arcade Adventures - Episode 3 ; Zeboyd did a really good job turning this series into a 16-bit RPG game. The writing is better than ever, the multiple classes are cool and hilarious, and they've released three free DLC packs so far (although only one is actually good, to be honest). They just deserved a spot on my list for their hard work

x. Analogue: A Hate Story ; I actually downloaded the demo before getting it on a Indie Royale, and I remember not liking it at all. I don't know why, but then something clicked and I loved the game. It was my first Visual Novel, I'd like to check out more but it looks like there are none on Steam :/
x. Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance ; I'm still at world two, and I think it'd probably been on my top 10 if I had played it before. The drop system and the Nintendogs-like aspect of the Dream Eaters rustle my jimmies to no end, but Flowmotion is brilliant and it doesn't feel like a lesser title like 358/2 days did.
x. Dishonored ; I'm at Mission 3, got it thanks to the Gamersgate-gate. To be honest, I'm not enjoying it as much as I hoped, but I can see it's a good game. Doing my stealth playthrough first, btw.

2011. The Binding of Isaac ; GAME OF THE FUCKING FOREVER. It's a shame Steam offline mode sucks and it hasn't tracked my time at all, because I've probably put more than 100 hours on it, and I just got the DLC thanks to HIB7... Damn.

 

[Island]

 
1. Sleeping Dogs ; Great game out of nowhere. Love the look, the feel, and the protagonist. (Do you hear me Rockstar?)

 
2. Diablo 3; Say what you will about this game. Yes, the RMAH and always on DRM suck. The lack of loot and change to boss runs. There is still a good game here. It’s just not Diablo. Sunk 80+ hours in at launch, and another 20 or so with the most recent patch. The combat is good, the art is good, and some of the Blizzard polish is here.

 
3. XCOM: Enemy Unknown ; Turn based strategy in 2012? Yes please. A good return to form for PC gamers who loved Fallout Tactics, and the original XCOM. (Can we get a Fallout game with a similar combat engine?)

 
4. FTL: Faster Than Light; YES! The game I have always wanted. Managing your crew, your power levels, and your decisions. I thought it would come with better graphics, but this game works partially because of the graphics; leaving room for your imagination to roam. (Don't send crew members one by one to fix the O2 sensor!)

 
5. Mark of the Ninja ; Another game that wasn't on my radar until the Steam Sale. What a refreshing, concise, stealth game. It knows what it wants to be and does it. (Dropping down a shaft full of criss-crossing laser beams, only to slow down time and ninja attack the electrical panels and drop effortlessly through has stuck with me.)

 
6. Torchlight 2 ; the other half of Diablo 3. It has loot, and good music. If only Diablo 3 and Torchlight had a baby. (Diablight? Torchlo?)

 
7. Hotline Miami ; oh that soundtrack. So visceral, once again a less is more game. The way the soundtrack cuts on the final kill and you have to walk amongst the level you just decimated. Will be debated for years to come on its "meaning"

 
8. The Secret World ; I want this game to be better. A modern times MMO, with guns and Lovecraft horror? Yes please! Janky around the edges, but some good storytelling, good voice acting and the move to B2P have made this a game that I will keep coming back to.

 
9. WoW: Mists of Pandaria ; I thought WoW had lost its hold on me. I was wrong. Refined into a crystallized perfection; Blizzard knows good quest design, their art team is performing miracles out of an almost decade old engine, and some of the charm lost from late Wrath and Cata is restored. Stopped playing to play other things but will go back again occasionally. I think we all want something else at this point, and a lot of WoW players are spinning their wheels for the next "thing".

 

10. Legend of Grimrock ; Like Dungeon Master that I used to play on my Atari 1040St, I once again delved into a dungeon with traps and secret walls. Love this style, and I will get around to beating it one day.

 
 
x; Honorable Mention 1: Mass Effect 3 ; haven't beat it yet so no ending speculation for me. But about 10 hours in, I am enjoying coming back to these characters that I have been with for the past few years.
x; Honorable Mention 2: EVE Online: Retribution ; there is a reason sand-box MMO's are trending now. The space game that I wish I could play more instead of looking at spreadsheets.

Honorable (beta) Mention: Path of Exile ; another Diablo heir, crossing FFX grid with FFVII materia was a stroke of genius. I am interested in seeing where this one goes.
 
2011: Deus Ex: HR ; I didn't vote last year. But this would have won. Give me a sequel DAMNIT!
 
Would have been my number one but does not count sadly: DOTA 2 ; There is a reason why League of Legends is the most played game in the world right now. The MOBA (ARTS) genre is a fascinating one. One that takes aspects of other games (RTS, Fighting, RPG) and combines it into a seductive mix. The matches are an entire RPG packed in an hour, leveling up never loses its appeal, and the counter, reverse counter matchups make every game different. Some of the highest highs and lowest lows playing this game, and I keep coming back for more. The reason DOTA 2 is here and not LoL is a matter of refinement. DOTA 2 feels more solid, early game decisions have late game consequences, and the meta is always changing.

 

 

[JohnnySasaki86]

1. Mass Effect 3 ; The conclusion to my favorite trilogy of the generation, and one of the best trilogies ever made across all mediums! I had no problem with the ending, and loved every minute of the game. The Mass Effect universe is one of the most well developed out there and deserves to be mentioned a long Star Wars and LOTR. ME3 had the best gameplay of the series, but ME2 had better side quests and was the overall better game IMO.

2. Gravity Rush ; One of the best original games of this generation IMO. Loved Kat and the art style. Great story. Perfectly suited for the Vita. Still the best game on the Vita hands down.

3. Far Cry 3 ; Gorgeous game with so much to do! Everything is fun. The map is huge and so fun to explore. Loving the mature story.

4. Journey ; Best downloadable release of the year and in the top 3 of the generation.

5. Assassin Creed 3 ; Loved the setting. Running through the frontier in the trees was awesome. Frontier was beautiful. Combat was greatly improved; very visceral. Best part of the game was the Naval Battles though, simply amazing! I felt like some of the main missions were the weakest in the series though.

6. Dishonored ; Amazing game and level design! Love the art style! Characters and story could do a better job of keeping you engaged in the story and to keep you playing.
I still haven't beat the game, and about only 1/3rd of the way through. This could move up as I beat the game later this week(if the story gets better).

7. Max Payne 3 ; Loved every minute of this! Loved the story all the way through.

8. Sleeping Dogs ; Great open world game with a great story! One of the best surprises of the year

9. Playstation All-Stars: Battle Royal ; I really feel Superbot has done an admirable job for the first game in which I expect to be a great franchise. The combat system is extremely solid and has a lot of depth. Every character is different and represents their particular franchise very well. A few big names are missing from the roster that I feel hurt the overall game.

10. Uncharted: Golden Abyss ; Amazing visuals for handheld game, it still surprises me. Plays just like the console versions.

x. Twisted Metal ; So much fun! The multiplayer was a breath of fresh air, but unfortunately it launched with a lot online issues. The online had a ton of potential, but the issues at launch killed the community. If they had fixed this before launch, it would of easily been in my top 10.

2011. Batman: Arkham City ; I would of originally listed Uncharted 3 here, but after playing this throughout the year, it continued to impress me the more I played it. It's replay value brought it a notch above UC3 IMO.

 

[Hofmann]

1. Thirty Flights of Loving ; This one took me by surprise. The most interesting element of the game is jump cuting technique used in movies, but entirely in gameplay. I haven't seen anything like this in a 3d game before, maybe because of some technical difficulties involved, but I think it's well worth exploring, because all those cuts - just a small feature - make the experience really fresh and dynamic.

2. Journey ; The best thing about being with someone are those insignificant gestures, and words actually kill the mood most of the time. That's the reason I like Journey so much - stripped to the bones mechanics allows you to comunicate without one word being said. If your playing it offline, you're doing it wrong.

3. Dear Esther ; It's like taking a mystery tour through the hunted outdoor museum.

4. Sleeping Dogs ; The best modern sandbox since GTA:VC.


Only four, but noting else comes to my mind.

 

[paul187]

1. The Walking Dead ; Never been a fan of Adventure games. Still am not. The Walking Dead is just an experience like no other.
2. Crashmo
3. Journey
4. Halo 4
5. Nintendoland
6. Frog Fractions
7. Sleeping Dogs
8. Hitman Absolution

2011 ; Saints Row: The Third

 

[Firestorm]

I really doubt it matters whether someone uses a semicolon or a dash, as long as there's at least one comment.

A script is used to count votes. Its not done by hand. A good chance that your vote won't be counted without the semicolon.

 

[Parallacs]

1. Nintendoland ; Beyond expectations for a launch title. Not only did it bring balanced asymmetric gameplay for multiplayer, but also hardcore arcade for single player. It's all I want to play when my friends are over and it makes me actually want my wife to use the TV so I can play DK Crash or Pikmin by myself. So fun and so polished. I will put countless more hours into this.
2. Xenoblade Chronicles ; Shame it wasn't released all at once. A great game forgotten this year. The true greatness of this game is certainly in the second half when you realize just how deep the mechanics and gameplay are. Challenging yourself to do everything can keep you entertained for years.
3. FTL: Faster Than Light ; I think only about 10 games have ever "hooked" me: games that I start playing and then don't stop playing until 4 AM, ON A WORK-NIGHT. It always feels like no time has gone by. There is so much depth to the game. Every time I insult kickstarter, this game punches me in the face. It is always fun to do a run before going to bed but be careful.
4. Rhythm Heaven Fever ; So much fun, especially since I don't like rhythm games in general. The music gets in your head and stays there for days. I really need to finish this one.
5. Dark Souls PTDE ; A game genre I don't like and am bad at. I couldn't kill Taurus Demon for the first 12 hours. The game grew on me slowly and I started to steamroll it, until the archers in Anor Londo. Never before has a game frustrated me so much but been so brilliant.
6. Kid Ikarus ; Hate the controls (being a Leftie). The game is undeniably fun though. The constant chatter and beautiful graphics keep me coming back.
7. New Super Mario Bros WiiU ; No one asked for this game, but it is amazing. I love playing off TV. I love how fun the levels are. The graphics are great. Such an improvement over the Wii entry (which I stopped playing in world 5).
8. Paper Mario Sticker Star ; Beautiful game. Trial and error boss fights are NOT fun though. This would have been great with a little rework.
9. ZombieU ; The game frustrates me because I am bad at it. But I love the atmosphere and the graphics (I don't think they are bad). Any game that stresses me about playing it is powerful. I will someday beat it.
10. Hotline Miami ; Music was great. I liked going melee and being sneaky. There are inconsistencies with the gameplay though that kept annoying me. Also, the game is way too short.

 

[Najaf]

1. Far Cry 3 ; Easily the most fun I have had in a single player shooter. Taking down the outposts from any direction, in any style is so much fun.
2. Trials Evolution ; Would have banked on this being number one, but FC3 swept me away. Still an awesome game, and one I will be playing until its successor drops.
3. XCOM ; Solid all around. I had hoped for more of Frozen Synapse level of control though.
4.Syndicate ; A surprising, yet short experience. I did not have the pleasure of jumping on the co-op train, but the mechanics were refreshing.
5. Mark of the Ninja ; I only sit half way through this one. I got pulled away by other titles, but I enjoyed what I have played.
6. Black Ops 2 ; The lag compensation has ruined core mode. I only play in HC now. Such a shame. Levels are too much like swiss cheese. Fix it. Still has its moments.
7. Halo 4 ; Single player is passable. The new enemies are a bit boring and I am having trouble finishing this one. Multiplayer is tighter than ever though, but I still end up defaulting to Blops for some strange reason when I get the itch.

 

[mujun]

I wonder how Journey and Walking Dead will be considered in a few years from now.

They seem to be highly praised because of what they do as stories (how they affect you emotionally) rather than what they do as games.

I enjoyed both but at the same time find both lacking as games.

 

[Parallax Scroll]

1. The Walking Dead ; Probably the best story I've experienced yet in a game.
2. FTL: Faster Than Light ; A really fun, unique way to do a space game.
3. XCOM: Enemy Unknown ; Does just about everything right.
4. Dust: An Elysian Tail ; Looks amazing and was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me.
5. Spelunky ; Already played the hell out of the PC version but the XBLA version is great too.

 

[JordanLMiller]

1. The Last Story ; Warning! This won&#8217;t be a post about the game so much as some ramblings by me, so if you want a synopsis you&#8217;d be better off going to Wikipedia or YouTube. Anyway... I started off 2012 by playing through Final Fantasy V for the first time. It was a really great game where you travel around with the same couple of party members for the entire game trying to save the world from the evil Exdeath. The story never really takes itself too seriously, but I like that about the game. It&#8217;s the characters that end up making the game such a joy to play - both through their dialogue and by the amount of customization you can bring to them using the job system. Final Fantasy V was unfortunately one of those titles that was skipped over (for a while at least) when it came to getting released overseas. But that was way back in 1992, so you could assume that by 2012 we&#8217;d have localization problems like that taken care of, right? Well, it just so happens that twenty years later, we&#8217;re dealing with the same issue with a game that thrives in the same way - adventuring around though a fantasy world with a fun, likeable cast of characters. It was only through the amazing dedication and hard work of the company XSEED that American gamers were able to end up playing The Last Story, another game by Final Fantasy V&#8217;s Hironobu Sakaguchi, at all (and I&#8217;m so incredibly grateful, you guys are the best!). What&#8217;s more amazing is that XSEED is made up of only nine people! I mean, I always knew they were a small company, but this makes everything they do seem even more impressive. Kotaku recently did an interview with some of the members of XSEED, and there was one part of that article that stuck out to me: &#8220;Before Xseed approached Nintendo about possible localization rights, Berry had to convince their own marketing team that selling a $50 Wii game in 2012 was somehow viable. "It was a constant fight even within our own organization," Berry said. "To our external sales reps, we'd be saying, &#8216;No, like you guys don't understand. There's tons of fans out there that are asking for this. There's a huge fan movement.&#8217; I mean, so yeah. In the end, I think we were right.&#8221;&#8221; I think throughout the transition to and maturation of this generation we&#8217;ve seen games come a long way. They are now more polished and a more mainstream hobby than ever. The audience to which videogames can appeal to is constantly widening. But at the same time I get the feeling that seemingly every publisher's insistence on trying to chase down the Call of Duty/Wii Sports audience is blinding them to the fact that there were a lot of people who began playing games before those games ever became a big deal. And who&#8217;s to say a JRPG can&#8217;t be the game that ends up making someone a gamer? I started gaming because a friend showed me their copy of Zelda one day, and the sense of adventure I experienced when playing it was unlike anything I&#8217;d ever felt before - and I&#8217;m still playing games today. There&#8217;s a message from Sakaguchi included in the mini art book that came with The Last Story titled &#8220;Design with Soul&#8221; in which he talks about how much The Last Story means to him as a creator. No, I don&#8217;t think it&#8217;s a perfect game by any means, but I definitely felt something special while playing this game, and that&#8217;s why it&#8217;s my game of the year for 2012. I can&#8217;t wait to see what&#8217;s next!