Zero Punctuation: Top 5 of 2012

[Jacked Assassin]

I'm glad Yahtzee knows how to clarify The Difference between The Real Steel Battalion on The Original Xbox & The Fake Steel Battalion on The 360.

Unlike That Other Critic who just bashed the name of Steel Battalion without clarifying the difference.

But then again that was the same critic who bad mouthed DNF for the same reasons as to why I would bad mouth GTA4. It only took him a year to emphasis he hated DNF for its Homophobia. In which case I would've agreed with him instead of being offended by his hypocrisy.

 

[gardian06]

why is Steel Battalion number 3 in the worst list. at least Amy was playable, and didn't make you want a refund for the Kinnect and the game in one go.

 

[JoaoJatoba]

I'm playing The Walking Dead, and don't get me wrong, the character developing and story are great, but I feel cheated: the game promises me that the game changes to fit my gameplay and that the my choices change the story, and both just don't happen.

My choice seems only to change the relations between the characters and the gameplay just don't seem to change at all.

What I expected was that my choices would change completely the story, but I'm bound to a linear path, at least on the big picture. Sure, the choices can change the characters relations, but it's not up to the promised features.

Bottom line: great game, unfulfilled promises.

The second line is the important part. The game isn't about point A to point B, its what happens between point A and point B. The interactions between the characters, how they see you, and how you see your own character are what the game is about.

It seemed to have gone over a lot of peoples heads if the amount of people who use that argument are any indication.

I know that, but why can't we have both? There space for both kind of decisions: decisions that changes the path we take, and decisions about other characters that develop relations.

For example, early in the first episode you can choose to stay in one location or to leave. Whatever the choice we end up in the same place... Why cant we have different outcomes for a decision that is purely about "where to go now"?

 

[Crazycat690]

The man makes good points, I've had such a hard time making up my mind about which was the GOTY for me but now I know... It should've been obvious, Spec Ops: The Line. it was between that and Journey and Telltale's The Walkind Dead to me, but lets face it, Journey... Wasn't enough, it was a fantastic experience, but maybe not GOTY, same with The Walking Dead, to me the glitches, stuttering and the not so big impact of choices is kinda what held it from the number 1 spot.

I think my point is unclear, what's important is that I completely agree with Yahtzee this time.

 

[Xman490]

I'm playing The Walking Dead, and don't get me wrong, the character developing and story are great, but I feel cheated: the game promises me that the game changes to fit my gameplay and that the my choices change the story, and both just don't happen.

My choice seems only to change the relations between the characters and the gameplay just don't seem to change at all.

The second line is the important part. The game isn't about point A to point B, its what happens between point A and point B. The interactions between the characters, how they see you, and how you see your own character are what the game is about.

It seemed to have gone over a lot of peoples heads if the amount of people who use that argument are any indication.

It's like... *gasp* an actual good TV series! Who would have thought?

Anyways, it's funny how Yatzee's Top 2 are games I would rather not play. Strategy games bore me when they don't irritate me, and Spec Ops: The Line would bore me when it doesn't depress me to the point of wasting my sleeping time, which is already being wasted by a half-hour on average per night.

Even Far Cry 3, as good as I might guess it is from the opinions of a banana and other fruity folk, makes me shudder at the thought of signing in to Ubisoft's DRM BS every time I want to play. And it's an open-world shooter (like Just Cause 2) with plenty of guns (fullfilled by Valve games and Killing Floor).

 

[rayen020]

When did he do a review of steel battalion?

 

[Bindal]

Surprised about Spec-Ops and FC3. FC3 less because that it is on the list but more WHERE. Thought of it to be 5.
XCOM however... I would say "Called it!" if I would actually HAVE said it. Didn't. Damn it, should have made a bet. Still, I knew that it would be either 2 or 3 on the list. And it is.

Everything else... not that surprising. Well, okay, Amy was. Mostly for the reason "it was forgotten". And for NeverDead, I am more surprised about the justification, which is basically "it was a failed experiement. Failed part put it here, still remember it for taking risks."

 

[JoaoJatoba]

When did he do a review of steel battalion?

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/5998-Quantum-Conundrum

 

[Astro]

I'm playing The Walking Dead, and don't get me wrong, the character developing and story are great, but I feel cheated: the game promises me that the game changes to fit my gameplay and that the my choices change the story, and both just don't happen.

My choice seems only to change the relations between the characters and the gameplay just don't seem to change at all.

What I expected was that my choices would change completely the story, but I'm bound to a linear path, at least on the big picture. Sure, the choices can change the characters relations, but it's not up to the promised features.

Bottom line: great game, unfulfilled promises.

The second line is the important part. The game isn't about point A to point B, its what happens between point A and point B. The interactions between the characters, how they see you, and how you see your own character are what the game is about.

It seemed to have gone over a lot of peoples heads if the amount of people who use that argument are any indication.

I know that, but why can't we have both? There space for both kind of decisions: decisions that changes the path we take, and decisions about other characters that develop relations.

For example, early in the first episode you can choose to stay in one location or to leave. Whatever the choice we end up in the same place...

Because it's unnecessary, time consuming, money consuming, and stupidly difficult to implement. Do you want a videogame story with carefully put together pacing, structure, and coherent arcs, or do you want one which lets you nihilistically drive a probably shitty story on your own? It's unrealistic to expect both, no game has ever pulled it off and from a business standpoint it's unlikely to be funded in a manner more extreme than Mass Effect. It's one or the other, and the ability to make meaningful choices doesn't trump enjoying a good story just because choice is integrated into the method of delivery in videogames.

 

[Phil Petersen-Green]

Awww no Honourable Mention for DayZ? to my knowledge thats the only mod you've ever wanted to review. it's ashame it went to hacked crap after it got popular, but hopefully the Standalone with fix that aspect

 

[DarkhoIlow]

Loved your list Yahtzee,especially #1 since that game really gave me a sense of "plot twist inception" at the end and followed through with the epilogue.

Really enjoyed the outro with "3" killing "2" and placing itself as the new year,simply brilliant.

Have a Happy New Year!

 

[charliesbass]

why is Steel Battalion number 3 in the worst list. at least Amy was playable, and didn't make you want a refund for the Kinnect and the game in one go.

'At least Amy was playable' pffff yeah right.

 

[JoaoJatoba]

Because it's unnecessary, time consuming, money consuming, and stupidly difficult to implement. Do you want a videogame story with carefully put together pacing, structure, and coherent arcs, or do you want one which lets you nihilistically drive a probably shitty story on your own?

I don't see how having multiple storylines in a episodic game that can get enough funds solely by the name in the cover a impossible task. Look at Katawa Shoujo.

 

[gridsleep]

Couple of sequels in there. Yeh, all right. Do you think your job would be both easier and more rewarding, oh, and more meaningful, if you just did not review sequels? No 2s or 3s or 4s, just original titles and to hell with the rest? Or would that leave you with too few games to review for an entire year?

 

[Epyc Wynn]

Kind of disappointed you didn't list Rayman Origins.

 

[josemlopes]

Genuinely surprised Black Ops 2 didn't make his 'Worst' list for how much vitriol he spewed about it.

Well, that one at least tried, the actual gameplay of the singleplayer is as linear and Michael Bay-ish as it can be but the multiple endings and choices are actually kind of cool. The story could have been a lot better though if it wasnt so over the top (it gets really retarded at points). The choices are like the ones on Witcher 2, you know what you are choosing but you have no idea how it will change the outcome later on.

And it has bots so you can play with 4 players in splitscreen and fill the rest with them for some nice local fun.

 

[DataSnake]

Even Far Cry 3, as good as I might guess it is from the opinions of a banana and other fruity folk, makes me shudder at the thought of signing in to Ubisoft's DRM BS every time I want to play. And it's an open-world shooter (like Just Cause 2) with plenty of guns (fullfilled by Valve games and Killing Floor).

Actually, I'd say it's more of a stealth-em-up than a shooter. Sure, there are boomsticks aplenty, but I spent most of the game hiding in the brush waiting for an enemy to wander too close so I could jump out, stab him, pull the pin on the grenade in his belt, and throw his body into a group of his friends.

 

[KDR_11k]

I'm kinda wary of heaping too much praise on Spec Ops because I fear we may end up overhyping it. It is good and apparently they went to an insane level of detail with it (e.g. the degrading state of the title screen that most people wouldn't even see) but it seems like the whole internet is buzzing with praise for it and if you pile all of that up you could end up with unreachable expectations. Though I do think that some people are being overly critical with the central scene of Spec Ops, yes it's a trick but like a magician's tricks it works on most people and I'd guess that the majority who tried to break that scene did so because they've had the outcome spoiled to them.

I wish Steel Battalion hadn't been crap, that could have been so much fun but noooooooo.....