For the older gamers (10+ years of gaming), what is your GOTD (game of the decade)?
- Thread starter King of the Sandbox
- Start date
I know everyone loves to hate it, and I myself stopped playing it over a year ago but WoW gets my vote. I've been gaming since 1989 and I never spent as much time playing a game as WoW.
I wasn't enjoying it for the last 4-5 months of my time with it, but the years before it were genuinely fun.
I wasn't enjoying it for the last 4-5 months of my time with it, but the years before it were genuinely fun.
Portal. 'nuff said.
Going from 2000-2010, Bit too soon to start talking about the best games of 2011, IMO. You can only really tell these things in hindsight. (Personally, I wouldn't even consider something to be GOTY unless you could easily come back and play it year after release, and still enjoy it!)
EDIT
Honourable mentions:
-Fallout 3
-Red Alert 2
-Operation Flashpoint
-Serious Sam
-Dawn of War
-Half Life 2
Honourable Honourable mention:
-Minecraft (Technically still hasn't been released yet! But it was available as Alpha since '10, so it deserves a mention)
Going from 2000-2010, Bit too soon to start talking about the best games of 2011, IMO. You can only really tell these things in hindsight. (Personally, I wouldn't even consider something to be GOTY unless you could easily come back and play it year after release, and still enjoy it!)
EDIT
Honourable mentions:
-Fallout 3
-Red Alert 2
-Operation Flashpoint
-Serious Sam
-Dawn of War
-Half Life 2
Honourable Honourable mention:
-Minecraft (Technically still hasn't been released yet! But it was available as Alpha since '10, so it deserves a mention)
I would have to say Mass Effect. It did so many things right and pushed game mechanics further while everyone else was sticking to what made money. It felt right in every way from the dialogue to the characters to the intensity of the missions. It felt like a classic right away from the look to the plot to the themes. It is the epitome of a sci-fi epic and I treat it as such.
I would have said Heavy Rain, but I haven't played it yet. Because I haven't played it at the moment, I love it for what it is, which is a AAA interactive story (every other AAA game is either a competitive shooter, a racer, or an action game of some kind). I love it for what it represents, which is maturity. It is bringing game making to the same level of respect as movie making. Also, most importantly, it is bringing gaming to a more serious and dramatic light instead of poking at the "super space marine single handedly kills alien/demon/opposing space marine army" cliche.
Both of these games represent mature progress. That is something that this medium needs.
I would have said Heavy Rain, but I haven't played it yet. Because I haven't played it at the moment, I love it for what it is, which is a AAA interactive story (every other AAA game is either a competitive shooter, a racer, or an action game of some kind). I love it for what it represents, which is maturity. It is bringing game making to the same level of respect as movie making. Also, most importantly, it is bringing gaming to a more serious and dramatic light instead of poking at the "super space marine single handedly kills alien/demon/opposing space marine army" cliche.
Both of these games represent mature progress. That is something that this medium needs.
To me, that slot goes to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. I absolutely love that game, and I'd be replying it now if it wasn't glitchy on the 360. Everything in that game was great, it had the Star Wars theme, a good story, good, memorable characters (HK-47), Jedi/sith customization, lots of dialog, the combat wasn't great, but it was something. I finished the game about 12 times and still want to play it.
I would have said Morrowind, but I can't really play it anymore. I spent over 600 hours on it, and made a load of characters, though.
I would have said Morrowind, but I can't really play it anymore. I spent over 600 hours on it, and made a load of characters, though.
Damn, tough one. Talk about spoiled for choice. If I have to pick one, just one... I don't know... Grand Theft Auto IV I guess.
Hmmm... 2001-2011?
I'm kinda stuck between Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and Red Dead RedemptionI've played both through to completion (including DLC) multiple times. The stories are engaging, the gameplay is tight and responsive, and I can get lost in just exploring. My first playthroughs included extended periods of just wandering around and taking in the scenery. RDR's grand vistas are gorgeous and extremely varied, while AC:B's crowded streets are perfect to just wander through while looking for the random loot chest, Borgia flag, or elusive feather.
Now, if I were to have more choices to slap into a list, I'd add Uncharted 2, inFamous (still haven't had a chance to play number two, yet), and certainly Minecraft.
I'm kinda stuck between Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and Red Dead RedemptionI've played both through to completion (including DLC) multiple times. The stories are engaging, the gameplay is tight and responsive, and I can get lost in just exploring. My first playthroughs included extended periods of just wandering around and taking in the scenery. RDR's grand vistas are gorgeous and extremely varied, while AC:B's crowded streets are perfect to just wander through while looking for the random loot chest, Borgia flag, or elusive feather.
Now, if I were to have more choices to slap into a list, I'd add Uncharted 2, inFamous (still haven't had a chance to play number two, yet), and certainly Minecraft.
Let's see...
This decade I made the shift from my favorite game company being Blizzard to Valve, but I would still have to say my favorite game of the last decade was Warcraft III and its expansion.
The RTS part itself was fun and all, but I really, really, really, really, really enjoyed the mapping community! I know, without even looking at any hard data, that I spent more time playing custom games than I did the actual game itself! Granted I also probably spent just as much time looking for and loading games, but that came with the territory back then.
Playing those custom games and making my own (shoddy) maps really helped me to identify what I enjoyed in a game. I give WC3 a lot of credit for shaping me as a gamer.
This decade I made the shift from my favorite game company being Blizzard to Valve, but I would still have to say my favorite game of the last decade was Warcraft III and its expansion.
The RTS part itself was fun and all, but I really, really, really, really, really enjoyed the mapping community! I know, without even looking at any hard data, that I spent more time playing custom games than I did the actual game itself! Granted I also probably spent just as much time looking for and loading games, but that came with the territory back then.
Playing those custom games and making my own (shoddy) maps really helped me to identify what I enjoyed in a game. I give WC3 a lot of credit for shaping me as a gamer.
That's a tough one to call there....hmm.....I think I'll go with KoTOR. Mainly because this is the game that shaped me into the kind of gamer I am today, and was my first real introduction to the RPG. KoTOR 2, Jade Empire, the Mass Effect and Dragon Age franchises were also incredible games, but KoTOR is where it all began. Red Dead Redemption and the Assassin's Creed series are very close runners up.
Half Life 2. Ground breaking visuals, realistic physics, great storytelling, cool weapons and horrifying enemies. This game was great in 2004 and is still one of my most beloved games I played over the last couple of years.
Objectively speaking, it's WoW.
Seriously. Like it or not, it's irrelevant. Every genre, every console, everything has, in some way, shape, or form, influenced by the decisions made in WoW design. Not only that, but entire criminal industries have formed, to create computer intrusion techniques just in case you might have a WoW password.
Seriously. Like it or not, it's irrelevant. Every genre, every console, everything has, in some way, shape, or form, influenced by the decisions made in WoW design. Not only that, but entire criminal industries have formed, to create computer intrusion techniques just in case you might have a WoW password.
I noticed the first page did not even mention Half-Life 2. It really was the last game I remember playing that not only lived up to the hype, but surpassed everything I was expecting.
I remember, being such a Half-Life 1 fanboy, that I knew whatever I played would be a disappointment, even if it was coded on the sunkissed thighs of virgins, and delivered by a Dwarf mariachi band wielding golden instruments. My fears were proved untrue, however, as it turned out to be the best freakin' game I've ever played!
The only contender, and the Arty-Farty choice I would have made, would have been Braid. That was sublime and scintillating.
I remember, being such a Half-Life 1 fanboy, that I knew whatever I played would be a disappointment, even if it was coded on the sunkissed thighs of virgins, and delivered by a Dwarf mariachi band wielding golden instruments. My fears were proved untrue, however, as it turned out to be the best freakin' game I've ever played!
The only contender, and the Arty-Farty choice I would have made, would have been Braid. That was sublime and scintillating.
That's 11 years.King of the Sandbox said:
Unless you meant 1 January 2001 to 1 January 2011. But that's still 10 years and one day. How about 00:00 UTC 1 January 2001 to 23:59 UTC 31 December 2010? For clarification.
OT: If it was from 2000, it would obviously be Deus Ex. As it's from 2001, my GOTD is S.T.A.L.K.E.R., but if this was a vote for an actual a community award I'd vote tactically for Portal. Proportional representation would have little effect in this case.