GameSpot's GotY awards...what do you think?

[Ivory_Soul]

Well here are all the nominees and winners...I thought they were a bit unfair this year and were a bit biased but they weren't disappointing. Like I did last year the winners are in bold

Here's a quick round-up for people who don't want to read through.

BioShock = 1 for Best Story
The Orange Box = 4 for Funniest Game, Best Original Game Mechanic, Best Puzzle Game, Best New Character(s)
Crysis = 3 for Best Graphics, Technical, Best Shooter, Best PC Game
Super Mario Galaxy = 4 for Best Graphics, Artistic, Best Platformer, Best Wii Game, Game of the Year
Rock Band = 5 for Best Sound Design, Best Multiplayer Game, Best New Gaming Hardware, Best Downloadable Game, Best Rhythm/Music Game
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass = 2 for Best Use of Control Scheme, Best Nintendo DS Game,
World in Conflict = 2 for Most Innovative Game, Best Strategy Game
Medal of Honor Heroes 2 = 2 for Most Surprisingly Good Game, Most Improved Sequel
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock = 1 for Best Licensed Music
Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened = 1 for Best Use of Creative License
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade = 1 for Best Expansion Pack
Pac-Man Championship Edition = 1 for Best Downloadable Console Game
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl = 1 for Best Atmosphere
Need for Speed Pro Street = 1 for Most Dispicable Use of In-Game Advertising
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 = 1 for Most Disappointing Game
Spider-Man 3 = 1 for Worst Game Everyone Played
Hour of Victory = 1 for Flat Out Worst Game
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords = 2 for Best Game No One Played, Best PSP Game
Grand Theft Auto IV = 1 for Most Disappointing Delay
Assassin's Creed = 1 for Best Action Adventure
Virtua Fighter 5 Online = 1 for Best Fighting Game
Forza Motorsport 2 = 1 for Best Driving Game
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure = 1 for Best Adventure Game
NHL 08 = 1 for Best Sports Game
God of War II = 1 for Best PS2 Game
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare = 2 for Best Xbox 360 Game, Best PS3 Game
Mass Effect = 2 for Best Original Music, Best Voice Acting


Special Achievement Awards

Best Original Music

Assassin's Creed
BioShock
Mass Effect
Super Mario Galaxy
The Orange Box

Most Surprisingly Good Game

Dementuim: The Ward
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
GrimGrimoire
Medal of Honor Heroes 2
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

Best Licensed Music

BioShock
Def Jam: Icon
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
FIFA 08
Rock Band

Best Story

BioShock
Eternal Sonata
Mass Effect
The Orange Box
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3

Best Sound Design

BioShock
Def Jam: Icon
Rock Band
skate
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

Best Graphics, Technical

Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Crysis
Supreme Commander
World in Conflict

Best Voice Acting

BioShock
Heavenly Sword
Mass Effect
The Orange Box
World in Conflict

Best Graphics, Artistic

Assassin's Creed
BioShock
Eternal Sonata
Odin Sphere
Super Mario Galaxy

Best Use of Creative License

Conan
Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened
The Darkness
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar
The Simpsons Game

Best New Character(s)


BioShock
Heavenly Sword
Mass Effect
Team Fortress 2
Portal

Funniest Game

Chili Con Carnage
Super Paper Mario
The Orange Box
The Simpsons Game
WarioWare: Smooth Moves

Biggest News

December 13: NPD: November cooks up $2.63 billion in game sales
December 2: Vivendi merges with Activision in $18.9B deal
October 5: Bungie and Microsoft officially split
August 2: Grand Theft Auto IV delayed to 2008
July 5: Microsoft extending 360 warranty to three years
June 20: Sony, Nintendo forbid AO-rated Manhunt 2

Best Multiplayer Game

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Halo 3
Rock Band
The Orange Box
World in Conflict

Best Expansion Pack

Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword
Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar
Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance
The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade

Best Original Game Mechanic

Def Jam: Icon
Drawn to Life
Eternal Sonata
The Eye of Judgment
The Orange Box

Best Downloadable Console Game

Everyday Shooter
Pac-Man Championship Edition
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection
Warhawk

Most Improved Sequel

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Halo 3
Madden NFL 08
Medal of Honor Heroes 2
Super Mario Galaxy

Best New Gaming Hardware

HP Blackbird 002 Desktop PC
Rock Band Instrument Set
Nvidia GeForce 8800 GT Video Card
PSP Slim
Xbox 360 Elite

Most Innovative Game

Crush
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
The Orange Box
World in Conflict

Best Downloadable Game

Crackdown
Gears of War
Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Rock Band

Best Use of Control Scheme

Assassin's Creed
Medal of Honor Heroes 2
Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
WarioWare: Smooth Moves

Best Atmosphere

Assassin's Creed
BioShock
Crysis
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
The Orange Box

Dubious Honors

Most Despicable Use of In-Game Advertising

All-Pro Football 2008
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Need for Speed Pro Street
skate
Tabula Rasa

Worst Trend

Lousy Wii Ports
Lousy Cliffhanger Endings
God of War style button mashing
Frequent System Updates
DLC that should've been included

Most Disappointing Game

Blue Dragon
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
Lair
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08
WWE Smackdown! vs. RAW 2008

Flat-Out Worst Game

Anubis II
Deal or No Deal
Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Jenga World Tour
Hour of Victory

Worst Game Everyone Played

Mario & Sonic at the Olympics
NBA Live 08
Sonic the Hedgehog
Spider-Man 3
Transformers: The Game

Best Game No One Played

Crush
FlatOut: Ultimate Carnage
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
Picross DS
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords

Most Disappointing Delay

Grand Theft Auto IV
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Mercenaries 2: World in Flames
Spore
Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Genre Awards

Best Action Adventure Game

Assassin's Creed
God of War II
Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Tomb Raider Anniversary

Best Adventure Game

Destination: Treasure Island
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trials and Tribulations
Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure


Best Shooter

BioShock
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Crysis
Halo 3
The Orange Box

Best Fighting Game

Def Jam: Icon
Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection
The King of Fighters XI
Ultimate Mortal Kombat
Virtua Fighter 5 Online

Best Platformer

Drawn to Life
Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
Sonic Rush Adventure
Super Mario Galaxy

Best Driving Game

DiRT
Forza Motorsport 2
Project Gotham Racing 4
RACE 07 - The WTCC Game
TrackMania United

Best Puzzle Game

Crush
Picross DS
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
Switchball
The Orange Box

Best Rhythm/Music Game

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Guitar Hero Encore: Rock the 80's
Hannah Montana: Music Jam
Ontamarama
Rock Band

Best RPG

Eternal Sonata
Mass Effect
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Super Paper Mario
The Witcher

Best Sports Game

FIFA Soccer 08
Madden NFL 08
NBA 2K8
NHL 08
The BIGS

Best Strategy Game

Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars
Europa Universalis III
GimGrimoire
Supreme Commander
World in Conflict

Platform Awards


Nintendo DS

Contra
Hotel Dusk: Room 215
Picross DS
Pokemon Diamond
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

PSP

Crush
Jeanne D'Arc
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters
Sid Meier's Pirates!

PS2

God of War II
GrimGrimoire
Rock Band
Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3
Tomb Raider: Anniversary

Xbox 360

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
The Orange Box
Forza Motorsport 2
Halo 3
Rock Band

PS3

Assassin's Creed
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Rock Band
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Warhawk

Wii

Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition
Super Mario Galaxy
Super Paper Mario
WarioWare: Smooth Moves
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure

PC

BioShock
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Crysis
The Orange Box
World in Conflict

Game of the Year

BioShock
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Crysis
The Orange Box
World in Conflict
Halo 3
Forza Motorsport 2
God of War II
Super Mario Galaxy
Rock Band

Too be honest some of these were bullshit. SMG didn't deserve GotY. I think BioShock or even The Orange Box should have won because SMG is great and all (I'm not a hater I bought the game last week with the $30 strategy guide) but it's just like regular mario just wrapped in a ball and has no gravity.

[haunted leg]

mario galaxy does have varying gravity for whatever planet you're standing on, if you've played it. and bioshock is just a dumbed down system shock 2, even "original" games aren't original.

i have no problem with people thinking orange box (portal) is "original" or better though.

[Zer0-Sum]

I think Gamespot can lick me nutz. After that affair with the editor getting canned they can not be trusted. I don't like IGN or any of the others either so now I depend on peer reviews of games, as in mostly you guys and gals. So fuck em. They suck monkey choad.:whip:

We should have the E-mpire GOTY awards!!!!

[Ivory_Soul]

mario galaxy does have varying gravity for whatever planet you're standing on, if you've played it. and bioshock is just a dumbed down system shock 2, even "original" games aren't original.

i have no problem with people thinking orange box (portal) is "original" or better though.

I beg to differ. BioShock is ALOT different from SS2 and is much better all the way. SMG isn't GotY material except for Nintendo fanboys/gals which of course they'll always say "ZOMG!#!! MARIO FTW!!@3!!!" I think any of the other games but Mario and World in Conflict should have won. I also that WiC was a stupid choice for most original game...I think Zelda should have won that hands down.

[haunted leg]

I beg to differ. BioShock is ALOT different from SS2 and is much better all the way. SMG isn't GotY material except for Nintendo fanboys/gals which of course they'll always say "ZOMG!#!! MARIO FTW!!@3!!!" I think any of the other games but Mario and World in Conflict should have won. I also that WiC was a stupid choice for most original game...I think Zelda should have won that hands down.i think super mario galaxy is the best game of the year. and i'd rather you not try to troll me into an argument just because i don't agree with you.

[dork]

i kinda liked halo 3 more than bioshock. the online play is sooo addictive.

mario galaxy is a blast.

[TrueVCU]

Meh, I never give too much credence to rankings and adhere to the ideology that "I like what I like."

That said, this list underscores my need to acquire Persona 3

[Ivory_Soul]

i think super mario galaxy is the best game of the year. and i'd rather you not try to troll me into an argument just because i don't agree with you.

Troll you? What the hell...now you're just accusing me of things...anyways it all comes down to taste but as fact has it there are better games out there than SMG...enough said...I really think it COULD have been worthy if there was a bit more too the game. I'm not saying it was a bad choice it's just that people are giving it too much credit. Miyamota just taught an old dog new tricks really...I want a new breed of dog. Now while most of the games this year were really improved sequels you can't really say much about innovation really.

[haunted leg]

Troll you? What the hell...now you're just accusing me of things...anyways it all comes down to taste but as fact has it there are better games out there than SMG...enough said...I really think it COULD have been worthy if there was a bit more too the game. I'm not saying it was a bad choice it's just that people are giving it too much credit. Miyamota just taught an old dog new tricks really...I want a new breed of dog. Now while most of the games this year were really improved sequels you can't really say much about innovation really.you just called anyone that would pick mario galaxy as game of the year a fanboy. blanket statements and throwing around the word "fanboy" is almost the definition of trolling.

i find the design of super mario galaxy very innovative, the gameplay is the same old thing, but those are two very different things and anyway, the only game that had any innovative gameplay at all was portal, i really don't know what you're getting at with this "innovation" idea, just because bioshock was sold as something completely new and magical doesn't make it any less system shock 3. which doesn't make the game bad by any means it just wasn't really that "innovative." you just keep using that word. i do not think it means what you think it means.

[masteratt]

let it goooooo.

That's a pretty shitty list in 90% of the sense.
Kotaku won my Best Best Games of 2007 Awards (of the ones i've seen).

[haunted leg]

let it goooooo.

That's a pretty shitty list in 90% of the sense.
Kotaku won my Best Best Games of 2007 Awards (of the ones i've seen).kotaku and gamespot had the same overall game of the year.

[masteratt]

I meant category wise.

*Kotaku won my Best Best Game Awards in Various Categories 2007 Award.

[haunted leg]

i wonder if they put kane and lynch on their most disappointing list just to try to buy back some credibility. it just makes it look like they're pandering to me though.

[Zer0-Sum]

i wonder if they put kane and lynch on their most disappointing list just to try to buy back some credibility. it just makes it look like they're pandering to me though.

PANDERING? Gamespot? What? NEVER!

Fucking Gamespot. All they do is pander. All most as bad as PSM and other lame ass mags like that crap.

[HolyPaladin]

SMG didn't deserve GotY.

That's a matter of personal opinion, and many would and do disagree. This isn't the only place that picked Super Mario Galaxy for GotY, and it's always at least nominated for the award by every place I've seen so far save SpikeTV, but they're more than mildly retarded over at Spike.

Off the top of my head, I know Kotaku gave GotY to Galaxy.
http://kotaku.com/338725/kotakus-overall-game-of-the-year

If it's great enough that at least most places can nominate it for GotY, there's nothing wrong with it actually taking the award. I've seen several different games given the award, including Super Mario Galaxy, BioShock, and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. All great games, and I'm not upset if any one of these takes the award from any given source. There was stiff competition this year, and even being nominated for the award says alot, regardless of which game actually takes it.

IGN still has yet to announce theirs, but the one I'm most looking forward to is the GotY award from the Interactive Achievement Awards.

[IEatFriedPikmin]

My choice was between Bioshock and Mario Galaxy.... if I were to base my GotY more on innovation, I would choose Bioshock.

Orange Box is an amazing deal, and that is the only real reason it got rave reviews. I love team fortress and portal... but the core game has been out for years... and the 2 episodes are just more of the same thing.

[The Dude]

Mario Galaxy deserves every game of the year award it gets.

[Shadow19]

Mario Galaxy deserves every game of the year award it gets.

Agreed. Super Mario Galaxy is great.

[Shadow Voa]

Mario Galaxy is the best of the entire year no competition.

[Phoenix]

My choice was between Bioshock and Mario Galaxy.... if I were to base my GotY more on innovation, I would choose Bioshock.

Orange Box is an amazing deal, and that is the only real reason it got rave reviews. I love team fortress and portal... but the core game has been out for years... and the 2 episodes are just more of the same thing.I don't mean to be argumentative, but I'm not really sure you could call Bioshock that innovative. It was most certainly very, very creative, but it didn't have many gameplay features that weren't just clever modifications of things that have always been around.

[Blaksmoke]

Mass Effect must have some mindblowing music because Galaxy has one of the best soundtracks I've ever heard. And with the exception of the Companion Cube screaming in pain when you kill it, what's so funny about Orange Box?

I think it's a good list, though.