10.0
GotY Awards 2010 – Least Improved Sequel
Command & Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight - I fear that this may be the last time I see the legend that is Joe Kucan, the actor who has portrayed the legendary messiah of the Brotherhood of Nod, Kane, for so many years now. Also, that guy does not age. I swear it. Sadly, I’d actually forgotten about this game when writing my Most Disappointing Game award, and yes, Tiberian Twilight was really disappointing. Especially considering how much time I’d put into Tiberium Wars, Kane’s Wrath, and from the side series, Red Alert 3. Scorpion Tanks just aren’t the same, there is no base building, and perhaps the most disappointing – the ending of Kane’s story arc is plain terrible. Even for people that aren’t particular fans of Kane, if you saw how this game ends, even you would be disappointed to see such a gaming legend go out on such a flat. Just remember, everyone; Kane lives…even through death.
And in Close Second…
Call of Duty: Black Ops – Flame-proof shield activated. Anyway, Treyarch’s Black Ops. Bare in mind that I’m doing more of a comparison between Black Ops and World at War, not Black Ops and Modern Warfare 2. After playing World at War, and Call of Duty 3 before, I decided I didn’t really like what Treyarch did with Call of Duty. Even down to the tiny issues like poor weapon sounds, terrible looking textures, and really irritating voice acting, I just don’t like it. But looking at what they were doing to the multiplayer this time around, especially the Wager Match stuff, I had higher hopes. Disappointed. Weapons don’t seem to be balanced, they still sound lame, and map design is pretty poor too, the point of which I can only remember what some of them look like, never mind what they were called. I may as well uninstall this from my hard drive, because I don’t think I’ll be touching this any time soon, except maybe to play the odd game of Wager with my friends. Then again, I could just load up Counter-Strike to play some Gun Game.
BioShock 2 – Let me state this right from the start: I really enjoyed Bioshock 2. I picked this game up as soon as it was released, and found it to be one of the best shooters of the year. Yet, I didn’t like Bioshock 2 because it was innovative or fresh. Bioshock 2 was great because the original Bioshock was a masterpiece, and Rapture was still a fantastic setting. The combat was improved, with the availability of duel wielding plasmids and standards weapons, and being able to play as a Big Daddy was a fun twist. Besides a few alterations, Bioshock 2 is more of the modern day classic that was released in 2007. Was I satisfied with the game? Yes. Was I disappointed? Also, yes. No matter how good Bioshock 2 is, it did not blow me away as the first game did. Rapture is an amazing place to explore, but it is impossible to recreate the feeling of first witnessing the undersea city. The story, although solid, can’t hold a candle to Andrew Ryan and Jack’s tale. The multiplayer was a fun addition, yet it did not hold my interest a month after release. I am glad Bioshock 2 was made, but I feel I have explored everything Rapture has to offer. Bioshock Infinite, on the other hand, is exactly what I hoped to see in a sequel. I am ready to be astounded once more, and Ken Levine is the man to do it again.
And in Close Second…
Call of Duty: Black Ops – Black Ops got away with being a very similar game to last year’s Call of Duty while still feeling exciting and addictive. But how long will this last? There are two Call of Duty games slated for 2011, one developed by Sledgehammer to be an action game and the other by what is left of Infinity Ward. I will not be buying either game unless they bring something new to the table that I have not seen before. I love the action packed campaigns and multiplayer that is almost impossible to put down, but I’m ready for the next step forward. I fear we will only see incremental changes to the formula from year to year, and Call of Duty will become the FPS version of Madden. It is possible to have too much of a good thing, and I hope that Activision sees this.
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Personally, I would vote Blacks Ops as top on this one, but that’s just me. I really feel aggravated that the call of duty franchise is milking the game dry. Now all we have left are the “jocks” of the game that have prestiged 9 times and laugh at your puny 3rd prestige.