10.0
GotY Awards 2010 – Best Game No One Played
Vanquish – Now, giving this award to this game may seem a little odd considering I only got my hands on it Christmas Day, and am only on the last chapter of the first act. Regardless, Vanquish is one kick ass game. No one game sends you jetting about the battlefield on your knees with your rocket legs, shooting big hunks o’ metal with a gun that transforms into other guns. Sure, the voice acting is pretty cheesy and bad, and the story doesn’t seem like there is much there, but just think of Resident Evil 5 from last year. That game looks really nice, plays well, has a pretty poor story, and the voice acting is a bit crappy in places. It’s also the most replayable game I’ve played in sometime, considering I’m still playing it today. Vanquish seems like one of those games, to me. This game looks crazy, it plays crazy, it is crazy. Go buy Vanquish, I’m sure you’ll find it real cheap just because no one has bought it – because people are stupid.
And in Close Second…
ArmA 2: Operation Arrowhead – No one played this game probably because they either don’t really know what it is, or someone told them and they said “Err…that sounds too involved and time consuming”. That person would be right, but they’re saying it negatively. The reason I love ArmA 2 so much is for that exact reason, as well as a few others. More complicated than your average shooter, and bigger than your average shooter, ArmA 2 rewards teamwork, as well as you having they money for a kick ass computer, and the player taking their time with each action. I love Arrowhead, and can’t wait to sink my teeth into it some more. But, damn, it sure is time consuming!
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West – Enslaved was doomed from the start. An action platformer with a heavy focus on narrative set in a post-apocalyptic jungle is very enticing to me, but not the majority of people playing games these days. First, this is a full retail game with no multiplayer, which instantly makes it garbage, right? And it only lasts eight hours? Does it come with a pair of night vision goggles? Ninja Theory had a difficult product to sell to an increasingly shooter-driven and multiplayer focused market. Enslaved is an emotional game that is a joy to experience from start to finish, and who knows if that would be the case if ten more hours of content were shoveled in. Contrary to popular EA belief, not every game needs multiplayer, and titles such as Enslaved would most likely have suffered from having any development attention taken away from the single player experience. I love Enslaved, and really see it as one of the best games of the year. It not only deserves your attention, it deserves a sequel to continue the surprise ending. But since sales make sequels, it is not looking too likely. To anyone who still appreciates a great, single player only game; go out and buy Enslaved.
And in Close Second…
3D Dot Game Heroes – So let’s break this down for a moment. 3D Dot Game Heroes is homage to classic, 2D Zelda. It is almost identical in design, but adds a unique style and a large amount of customization. Everyone loves old Zelda, and that can be proven by its sales over the years. So, why does a game that is so closely linked not reach nearly enough PS3s? The boss battles were some of the best seen this year, and the dungeons were enough of a challenge to constantly keep you thinking. This game did not tank, but should and could be appreciated by a much larger audience. Plus, your sword gets enormous. Like, takes up the entire screen big. Reason enough to play this game.
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