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[Theslammer]

Previous Threads:

What was your favorite game that year? 1993 edition.
What was your favorite game that year? 1997 edition.
What was your favorite game that year? 2007 edition.
What was your favorite game that year? 2011 edition.
What was your favorite game that year? 2015 edition. (LOCKED)


PS2, Xbox, GC, DC, PS1, GBA, and PC as usual. Here's a wiki list just in case something notable has been missed.

Good luck to all picking their favorites because I expect blood to fly out many of your noses trying to narrow it down. I think many games have come out that were better than many of these, but for that time period, and on the aggregate, I consider this the best year for gaming ever. Granted, much of what I hold to the highest regard came out in the second half of the year, so the initial months were slow for me, but even back then, I remember being amazed at the amount of quality that came out. I don't think any other year of that generation came close (again, on the aggregate, since plenty of years delivered a lot of quality games).

Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies (PS2)
Advance Wars (GBA)
Alien versus Predator II (PC)
Anachronox (PC)
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura (PC)
ATV Offroad Fury (PS2)
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance (PS2)
Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal (PC)
Battle Realms (PC)

Black & White (PC)
Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (GBA)
Clive Barker's Undying (PC)
Commandos 2 (PC)

Conker's Bad Fur Day (N64)
Crazy Taxi (PS2, GC, Xbox)

Dark Cloud (PS2)
Daytona USA (DC)
Dead or Alive 3 (Xbox)
Desperados (PC)

Devil May Cry (PS2)
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction (PC)
Dragon Warrior VII (PS1)
Dynasty Warriors 3 (PS2)
Empire Earth (PC)
Escape from Monkey Island (PS2)
Fallout Tactics (PC)
Final Fantasy Chronicles (PS1)

Final Fantasy X (PS2)
FreQuency (PS2)
Gauntlet: Dark Legacy (PS2)
Giants: Citizen Kabuto (PS2)

Golden Sun (GBA)
Gothic (PC)
Grand Theft Auto 3 (PS2)
Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (PS2)
Guilty Gear X (PS2)

Halo: Combat Evolved (Xbox)
ICO (PS2)
IL Sturmovik (PC)
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (PS2)
Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil (PS2)
Kohan (PC)
Le Mans 24 Hours (PS2)
Luigi's Mansion (GC)
Madden NFL 2002 (PS2, Xbox, GC)

Max Payne (PS2, Xbox, PC)
Metal Gear Solid 2 (PS2)
Monster Rancher 3 (PS2)
Myst III: Exile (PC)
Myth 3 The Wolf Age (PC)
NBA 2k2 (DC)
NBA Street (bunch of stuff)
NFL 2k2 (PS2)
Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee (Xbox)
Okage: Shadow King (PS2)

Onimusha: Warlords (PS2)
Operation Flashpoint (PC)
Paper Mario (N64)
Phantasy Star Online (DC)
Pikmin (GC)
Project Gotham Racing (Xbox)
Red Alert 2 Yuri's Revenge (PC)
Red Faction (PC, PS2)
Resident Evil Code: Veronica X (PS2)
Return to Castle Wolfenstein (PC)
Serious Sam The First Encounter (PC)
Severance Blade of Darkness (PC)
Shadow Hearts (PS2)

Sid Meier's Civilization III (PC)
Silent Hill 2 (PS2, Xbox)
Sonic Adventure 2 (DC)
Soul Reaver 2 (PS2)
Spy Hunter (PS2)
SSX Tricky (PS2, Xbox, GC)

Star Wars Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II (GC)
Super Monkey Ball (GC)
Super Smash Brothers: Melee (GC)
Syphon Filter 3 (PS1)
The Settlers 4 (PC)
Time Crisis II (PS2)

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 (PS2, Xbox)
Tropico (PC)
Twisted Metal: Black (PS2)
The Typing of the Dead (DC)
Wizardry 8 (PC)
WWF Smackdown! Just Bring It (PS2)
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages (GB)
Zone of the Enders (PS2)

 

[ChaosSmurf]

Advance Wars vs. Golden Sun, the impossible choice. Meanwhile: Halo.

It's Advance Wars, but I'm disgusted with myself.

 

[Possumowner]

Advance Wars & Diablo II

 

[Theslammer]

Advance Wars vs. Golden Sun, the impossible choice. Meanwhile: Halo.

It's Advance Wars, but I'm disgusted with myself.

It's flippin' hard.

If I had to decide, it's really what has aged the best. But many of them have! GTA3 was likely my favorite at the time, but I think TMB, FFX, MGS2 and FreQuency have aged better.

 

[eso76]

Advance Wars.

Played the shit out of it and i still would, but touch controls have spoiled me.
Even the Advance Wars for DS isn't as responsive and quick as recent mobile turn based strategy games.

 

[Laieon]

Was going to say Age of Mythology, but I guess that launched a year later.

Golden Sun or Zelda: Oracle of Ages I guess.

 

[Jimnymebob]

Jak and Daxter, MGS2, and GGX are my favourites from that year.

I'll throw some love towards Giants Citizen Kabuto though, because it probably won't get too many mentions, and it deserves one at least.

 

[Novocaine]

I played so much Diablo 2. I didn't play until a couple of years later though. During that year probably Halo.

 

[Strike]

Grand Theft Auto III and Metal Gear Solid 2. What a year.

 

[Triggerhappytel]

Halo: Combat Evolved (Xbox)
ICO (PS2)
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (PS2)
Devil May Cry (PS2)
Silent Hill 2 (PS2)

Damn, these might be my favourite games in their respective genres.

If I had to choose just one it would have to be Halo, but all five of these are probably in my top 15 games ever.

 

[Klart]

All Dreamcast

Shenmue II
Virtua Tennis 2
Outtrigger

 

[Shion]

Shenmue II

Honorable Mentions:
Silent Hill 2
Project Gotham Racing
ICO

 

[Rob2K19]

GOLDEN SUN!!!!!

 

[WITHE1982]

Easy one again.

Silent Hill 2

Not only the best game of 2001 but probably the best game I've ever played. Completed it >30 times across multiple platforms and still play it once per year.

What I wouldn't give for a decent HD port on consoles instead of the abominable HD collection version.

 

[Godcannon]

Wow, tough choices...


Devil May Cry*
Metal Gear Solid 2*
Twisted Metal Black*
Dynasty warriors 3
Crazy Taxi
Gauntlet Dark Legacy
SSX Tricky

 

[Fularu]

A toss up between Golden Sun and Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance.

As for Diablo 2, the game came out in 2000 so I didn't list it (even if LoD came out in 2001)

 

[venom473]

Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance and MGS2

Also I really liked the game adaptation for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone that came out that year...

 

[Joey Ravn]

Diablo II, no contest.

 

[the_batman]

definitely Metal Gear Solid 2

 

[AudioEppa]

Easy. GTA 3.

 

[Vincent Grayson]

2001 is a fucking banner year. I couldn't possibly pick just one between Ico, GTA, FFX, THPS3, DMC, MGS2, PSO, Max Payne, DQ7, and Dark Alliance.

 

[TommyTosser]

definitely Metal Gear Solid 2

Easy choice

 

[MrToughPants]

Diablo 2 easily..

 

[Bishop89]

What a monster of a year.

Advance wars
Gta 3
Gran turismo 3
Final Fantasy x
metal gear solid 2



Can't pick

 

[The_Endgamer]

So many classics.

I'll have to say Halo: Combat Evolved, Paper Mario, Golden Sun + FFX in that order.

Didn't play MGS2 until recently so doesn't hold much nostalgia for me whereas everything in shooters now is because of Halo. The only 2 games that precede it are Goldeneye + Doom.

 

[Castef]

Halo: Combat Evolved by a long mile.

 

[-hadouken]

Gran Turismo 3. Mind blowing.

 

[ULTROS!]

FINAL FANTASY X BABY
Also Silent Hill 2

 

[Barry Burton]

Amazing year.

Grand Theft Auto III. Was a mind-blowing experience at the time, and one that revolutionized gaming.

Runners-up:
Super Smash Bros. Melee
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Silent Hill 2
ICO

 

[Zach]

2001. The year my son was born. The name of the greatest movie of all time. The year that the greatest game of all time was released.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty!

 

[Lux R7]

Diablo II Lod

 

[ChackanKun]

Lot of amazing games that year. Freaking amazing year.

But nothing comes even close to what I felt playing motherfucking:

Silent Hill 2

Edit: Just look at thiiisssss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnZTExUIag4

 

[somecrazymember]

FREQUENCY

 

[D.Lo]

Pikmin easily.

 

[nailbombxx]

My favorite game during 2001 would have been Halo: Combat Evolved for sure

 

[NumberThree]

Max Payne. I played that game so much.

We didn't have internet back then, so I went to the library to download mods for it (Kung Fu mod was amazing). I had a stack of floppy discs that I had to split the files on, because USB memory sticks weren't really a thing back then (and the library computers had Windows NT with no USB support).

 

[aygomyownroad]

Seriously can't pick!

Silent Hill 2
GTA3
Halo

 

[tioslash]

Max Payne. Love that game.

 

[GrayDock]

Metal Gear Solid 2, Ace Combat 4, Silent Hill 2, Devil May Cry, Zone of Enders, Onimusha, Diablo II, Rogue Squadron, Max Payne, Civilization III and Final Fantasy X in the same year....

MGS2 for me, but it's a tough call.

 

[Theslammer]

Metal Gear Solid 2, Ace Combat 4, Silent Hill 2, Devil May Cry, Zone of Enders, Onimusha, Diablo II, Rogue Squadron, Max Payne, Civilization III and Final Fantasy X in the same year....

MGS2 for me, but it's a tough call.

I'm surprised with your icon that you didn't mention ICO! :-O

 

[Sapiens]

Shenmue 2 was my goty that year when i still kept my personal goty list.

 

[kionedrik]

Your list is missing some notable PC releases of that year:
- Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
- Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal
- Operation Flashpoint
- Alien versus Predator II

These and Max Payne would be my picks.

 

[Octavianus]

Paper Mario

 

[Theslammer]

Your list is missing some notable PC releases of that year:
- Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
- Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal
- Operation Flashpoint
- Alien versus Predator II

These and Max Payne would be my picks.

Thanks. I'm much greener on PC releases in 01, so I appreciate it when people point out what's been overlooked!

 

[Melchiah]

Silent Hill 2 without a doubt. Even today, it sits on the top of my all-time favorites.

The absence of Shadow of Memories in the OP is disappointing. Such an underrated gem, that's the 2nd best game of 2001 for me.

 

[ClosingADoor]

GTA 3 or Halo: CE. Got to pick GTA 3 then I think.

 

[Gurish]

Legendary year, one of the best ever if not THE.

Loved MGS2&SH2&ICO the most

 

[sixteen-bit]

y'all can't fuck with THPS3

 

[Spaghetti]

I only had a Dreamcast at the time, but I think even if I had other consoles or a decent PC I would still be awarding my choice to:

Shenmue II.

Still my personal GOAT too.

 

[Sajko]

Max Payne. I probably replay this thing every 2 years. Which is rare for me since I am drowning in backlog.