Lewis – Brutal Legend

2009 was a pretty weird year for games, mostly because we are now playing the remnants of what-should-have-been now, thanks to the monolithic bore that is Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. I hated CoD MW2 before it even came out, and yes, I have since played it and given it a try and I still despise it. 2009 was a much lesser year because of that game, as great titles like Mass Effect 2, Bioshock 2, Final Fantasy 13 and Bayonetta all got pushed back to avoid competition.

But one game, thankfully, didn’t. And that game comes from the mind of the marvellous Tim Schafer. Brutal Legend is an action game like no other, because it is also a RTS. It’s based around a world of metal where humans are enslaved by demons (voiced by Tim Curry). It is truly an awe-inspiring and epic effort from Double Fine to do something original and clever with rock mythos, and boy does it perform. From landscapes filled with shattered rock monuments of electric guitars and devil horns to creatures who have half-metallic body’s and shoot flames from their mouths, every nook and cranny is crammed with inspired visuals and genius touches. But the rock doesn’t stop with just the world, an epic tale about a roadie transported to the land of metal unfolds as you play, with a killer voice cast including amazing performances from Jack Black, Tim Curry, Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy Killminster, Rob Halford and even Lita Ford. Coupled with a mythical back-story and an amazing soundtrack to boot, Brutal Legend was an adventure in 2009 that I think every rock fan should take, even if some clumsy RTS elements and a surprisingly short campaign threaten to spoil the ride.

Brutal Legend, you truly are a legend.

Jonathan – Borderlands

Ever since playing classic games like Contra or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the arcades, co-op games have been my favorite type. I love teaming up with other humans to take on digital foes. I’m happy that more and more developers are making co-op games, and one of the best in 2009 was Borderlands.

Borderlands wasn’t perfect. I felt the story was sometimes lacking and the way split-screen is handled was a bit odd. Parts of the game felt uninspired. But overall, it’s a great experience, especially when teaming up with friends for great co-op action. If you like shooters and games like Diablo, then combine them both and play some Borderlands.

Joe – New Super Mario Bros. Wii

2009 was the year of co-op games. Capcom gave us Resident Evil 5, which was just amazing. Resident Evil 5 is a lot like RE4 when it comes to gameplay. But it added something new, co-op play. If you want to get the most out of Resident Evil 5, you’ll want a partner. The worst part of the game is having the computer as your partner; it’s just not that bright. But if you are playing with a friend who knows what they’re doing, it’s one hell of an experience. I loved the way they reinvented the series with Resident Evil 4. And the fifth chapter is just as great, if not better.

But there is one game that was released in 2009 that really holds a special place in my heart. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the much antisipated sequel to the class Mario games that we’ve all been waiting for. The DS title was subpar at best, but it was just a small taste of what was to come. New Super Mario Bros. Wii has it all, genius level design, cool new items, Yoshi and even the return of the Koopalings! It’s a 2D Mario fan’s dream. One of the most notable things about New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the co-op mode, which allows up to four players to play at one time!   It’s an awesome Mario adventure and a fun multiplayer game.  New Super Mario Bros. Wii is like playing  all of the classic Mario games rolled into one amazing platformer. And that is why it’s my pick for the best game of 2009.

Honorable Mentions: Resident Evil 5, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, Contra: ReBirth, Street Fighter IV

Liam – Tales of Monkey Island

2009 was a disappointing year for me. We did have Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, but I wasn’t too impressed with the original Modern Warfare, so Modern Warfare 2 didn’t do much for me.

However a few games did peak my interest, and the main one being Tales of Monkey Island. I’m a big Monkey Island and point-and-click fan, so I was overjoyed when I heard about Tales of Monkey Island.

The game just brought back so many happy times of playing as Guybrush, and reminded me why the point-and- click genre needs to be saved. The humour was still there, so was the puzzles, and the piracy still remained.

Honorable Mentions: Madworld (Wii), Left 4 Dead 2 (Xbox 360, PC), Prototype (PS3,Xbox 360, PC)

Rich – Gran Turismo (PSP)

2009 may not have been quite as major a year for new games on the PSP as 2008, but still, it had its moments, partially due to the up-scaling of the PSN Store.

While it didn’t meet rave reviews, Gran Turismo (which was delayed several times over the past four years) certainly was a favorite for me. The game didn’t give us flashy special effects like motion-blur at higher speeds, or cars that moved so fast they could easily tear a hole in the space-time continuum. It also didn’t offer any type of upgrading for cars like the Midnight Club games, or the Need for Speed street-racing games. However, what it did deliver was a genuine, smooth, and intricate racing experience.

The graphics are sharp, detailed, and run at a steady 60 FPS while the game itself offers up a large roster of vehicles, and a slew of courses including real-life tracks such as Mazda Raceway – Leguna SECA to original GT courses like Apricot Raceway plus dirt and snow tracks. As for the roster of vehicles, the selection is mind-boggling. Plenty of real life manufacturer’s cars are included plus some very slick concept cars.

The game is also streamlined for the portable system, allowing full access to every track from the start. No unlockables only attainable through tedious license tests; just pure, honest racing. Of course, you still have to earn money (known in the game as “credits”) to buy whatever vehicles you want, and as a little bonus incentive to make you think strategically, only four manufacturer dealerships are available a day, and those manufacturers will only offer their cars for two [game] days at a time. This, of course, means for…say Days 229 and 230, Chevy, Ford, Mercedes, and Nissan will be available, and for Days 231 and 232, Mazda, BMW, Jaguar, and Citroën will be available. In addition to that, not every car will be available every time. This adds a sense of urgency to the game, as you will need to decide whether you should by that Jaguar XJ220 LM car now, or nab the GT by Citroën now.

So, beautiful graphics, solid gameplay, and an extremely large list of vehicles await anyone who wants to give this game a shot. And that is why Gran Turismo for PSP is my 2009 game of the year.

Kelsey – And Yet It Moves

Last year is an odd year for me. I feel it was very disappointing, from the gaming front. However, I also feel this year could also be the showcase of a very interesting shift in how games are produced for the computer – I fully expect PC gaming to move in a direction that supports independent developers and digital distribution over the traditional business model. Thus, the game that stood out the most to me was And Yet It Moves, and indie puzzle-platformer released this past year for the computer over Steam, Greenhouse games, and various other digital distribution services. The object of the game is to traverse various levels, getting from point A to point B. You can run and jump, just not very fast or very high. To aid your movement and puzzle solving abilities is the ability to rotate the game world 90 degrees at a time. The game is fun, cheap, has an interesting art style, a lot of achievements for the achievement whore, and is even coming to the Wii soon. The game’s length is a bit lacking and, I must confess, a level editor would be nice. However, at the same time, the length also helps to ensure the idea never feels gimmicky.

I feel I also must point out another game, unlike the rest this one is a freeware/flash game. It’s developed with a retro art-style in mind, and is an experiment in storytelling. The experiment is rather simple: to tell a story entirely through what transpires on-screen (more or less). The game’s title, Don’t Look Back (link: http://distractionware.com/blog/?p=672), is the only piece of text to express what the game is about. It’s a short and easy game; it’s a good idea that is also well-executed.

Lewis – Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts

Bravery comes in many forms. Resident Evil 4 was brave to re-invent itself. Warioware was brave to take a whole new approach to gameplay. But Banjo did the unthinkable. It took the opportunity to make a straight-forward, highly anticipated sequel and ditched it. RARE threw it to the wayside, ignored the possibility of a huge 3D platformer on 360 (something the console is actually quite lacking in) and it did something entirely new.

Cars aren’t exactly new, and neither are planes or boats. But a car-plane-boat-blimp is something you won’t see anywhere else. Now that’s pretty unusual. Or perhaps a rocket powered laser dreadnaught appeals more. In Banjo, you can make pretty much anything you want. And it’ll work every time. From the absurd to the ridiculous, you have to complete a set of amusing and occasionally imaginative challenges in order to get Jiggies and special new parts to complete your quest of stopping Grunty from taking over Spiral Mountain! Filled with self-referential humour and an extremely funny opening, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts is chock-a-block with fresh, fun ideas. At first it’s tempting to stick with the familiar, but when confronted with some truly difficult tasks, your creativity kicks on, and it’s not long before you have a plane with a built in eject-a-copter.

And to think it could have just been “another platformer”.

Kelsey – Grand Theft Auto IV

Grand Theft Auto IV seems to be a relatively unpopular game in the series. It’s not as tongue-in-cheek as the previous three entries into the series, but the humour is still there. It doesn’t have the humour Grand Theft Auto III had, nor the setting of Vice City, or the scope of San Andreas, but all of that is still there. GTAIV sought to retain the over-the-top nature of the previous games while being more constrained. The city is huge, and feels like an actual city, while the cities of San Andreas all felt too small. At night you can see the bright neon lights that made Vice City’s setting stand out. The humour of the radio stations is not as envelope pushing as GTAIII’s radio was at the time; however, the humour is still there and feels the same. GTAIV, to me, was the natural next step for the series. You can see San Andreas moving in this direction, but IV took the plunge. The game feels much more cinematic, the characters are much more fun (and for all you complainers, the game has an option to turn-off the in-game cellphone for anything not story related!).

Space Invaders Extreme is worth a quick sentence or two. It was also in this year that gamers were treated with a refreshing take on a classic series. The gameplay feels more like a modern shm’up, while still being a Space Invaders game, and the use of music and sound make the game feel like a forum for the creation of techno music.

Jonathan – Grand Theft Auto IV

Like all of the games in the series, Mario Kart Wii was another great hit for Nintendo, with over 21 million titles sold to date. The game introduced 8-player online, 24 characters, 32 tracks, and a new way to steer. The steering wheel helped newcomers get into the game by offering a very familiar control style to non-gamers. Mario Kart Wii didn’t offer an extreme amount of revolution, as it’s the same classic gameplay we recognize from Mario Kart Double Dash, but the extra modes and polish make it a lot of fun to play.

My pick of the year goes to Grand Theft Auto IV, which holds a special place in my heart. Playing GTA IV together is what my girlfriend and I chose to do on our first date. I showed up at her place, pretending I forgot the game at home. Just when I saw the look of disgust on her face I pulled it from behind my back. She laughed. Cheesy, I know, but that’s what I do.

Okay, enough with the personal anecdotes. Although I was a fan of the series before, GTA IV is my favorite of them all and is what really got me into the series. I love the stories and the characters and of course the classic GTA sandbox gameplay. Online gameplay allowed my friends and I to run around online and terrorize each other. When your friend asks you to “stand still for a second”, you know something funny is about to happen. 2008 was a great year for gaming and GTA IV still stands as one of the best games for the Xbox 360.

Honorable mentions: Fallout 3, Left 4 Dead, LittleBigPlanet

Liam – Lost Winds

This is the year the almighty Super Smash Bros. Brawl was released, along with a revival of a certain bear and bird, in Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts N Bolts, overall, this year was a solid one, apart from the tide of Guitar Hero & Rock Band games that came out and set a new popular trend.

I had a hard time with this year, mainly Fable II or LostWinds. In the end, I went with LostWinds; a Wiiware release.  It’s a game that could be completed in less than 3 hours. But what’s so special about LostWinds is how unique it was. By using the Wiimote, you create gusts of winds to move your character over ledges or to solve puzzles. It had a remarkable presentation and the style of the graphics was a nice change, which I really enjoyed. LostWinds is a mini-masterpiece, and most will question my choice for best game of 2008. But there’s just something so special and beautiful about LostWinds that despite its short gameplay, makes it my favourite game of ‘08.

Honorable Mentions: Fable II (Xbox 360), Left 4 Dead (Xbox 360, PC) No More Heroes (Wii), Lost Odyssey (Xbox 360)

Joe – Super Smash Bros. Brawl

I can’t say that I’ve played to many games from 2008. But there is one game that I have played plenty. Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the one single game made for all of Nintendo’s fans.  It took everything that made the past two games great and made them even better! The Subspace Emissary is a vast improvement over Melee’s Adventure Mode. Before and after each stage, you are treated with a cutscene that helps tell the game’s story. That’s right; Super Smash Bros. Brawl actually has a story. It’s not the most epic of tales, but it is a nice addition to the series. The story is told entirely by visuals; none of the characters speak in the cutscenes. But it is pretty cool seeing your favorite characters interact with one another.

Even though it is more story-driven then its predecessors, Brawl is still all about the fighting! The veteran characters have new and improved moves and most have 3 different taunts each. The game also introduces a nice roster of new characters too; although some past contenders are MIA. Characters like Pit, Metaknight and Wario are long overdue for their appearances.  But that’s not all; Super Smash Bros. Brawl is the first game in the series to feature non-Nintendo characters. Sonic and Snake are two very nice additions to the fight. Hopefully they’ll stick around for the next title.

One of the new addictions that makes Brawl so great is the Smash Attacks! Smash attacks are powerful moves that you can only do after obtaining a Smash Ball. Each character has a smash attack related to the games they are from; although some are much better than others. Samus’s smash attack has her shooting a giant energy blast causing her suit to fall off into pieces. Then you can play as Zero Suit Samus, which plays like a totally different character. Getting another smash ball will cause Samus to put her armor back on. If anyone is close to her while doing so, they’ll be knocked flying. Sonic transforms into Super Sonic and flies around the stage at high speed knocking anyone out that’s in his way. And one of my favorite smash attacks belongs to Snake. He jumps into the air and then comes down in the foreground on a rope latter with a grenade launcher. Then you can shoot whoever stands in your way.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is even online compatible for those of you who want to play against some of the best and worst players in the world. This game has a variety of different play modes that will keep you playing for a very long time.  As you can see, I can talk about Brawl all day. And that right there is why it’s my pick for the best game of 2008.

Honorable Mentions: Mario Kart Wii, Grand Theft Auto IV

Jonathan – Halo 3

No 2007 list is complete without mentioning Rock Band. Harmonix took Guitar Hero’s idea and made it 10x better by adding vocals, drums, and an emphasis on playing with friends. It brought multiplayer to a brand new level. Gamers and non-gamers alike started to get together for Rock Band parties. Although the genre is starting to get a little too full with all the spinoffs, it’s still a great time to get together and play.

Anyone who knows me understands that Halo is one of my all-time favorite series and so it is no surprise that my 2007 pick is Halo 3. This game is the reason I bought a Xbox 360 and I wasn’t disappointed. Many are quick to complain about the campaign mode, but listen, you don’t buy Halo for the campaign. You buy it for the multiplayer.

Halo 3 has been a major success. Its release even affected movie ticket sales and many gamers called in sick on the day of release. Many popular games come and go on Xbox Live, but Halo 3 is still very active and isn’t going anywhere. The next big Halo game is Halo: Reach, expected to be released late this year. Let’s hope you’re not needed at work that day…

Joe – Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

To be perfectly honest, I haven’t really played many games made in 2007. I would probably choose Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. But since I have yet to play it, I can’t guarantee that I would even like it. And I refuse to choose any game I haven’t played.  So that leaves me with Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80’s, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Sonic Rush Adventure, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, and depending on your country and console, Rock Band. That’s literally all the 2007 games I’ve played. So I will make my pick for the best game of 2007 from that list.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass was the first Zelda title on the Nintendo DS. When I heard that the game was played entirely with the stylus, I was a bit skeptical. Surprisingly, the touch-screen controls worked tremendously well. It just felt natural. Drag the stylus to a side of the screen and Link will run towards that direction. Draw a quick line and Link will swing his sword. And shooting an arrow was easier than ever. Just pull out your bow and “touch” your target with the stylus. The boomerang was also more fun than ever! Now you can draw a path and the boomerang will follow it. This was incorporated into some nice new puzzles as well. Phantom Hourglass also featured a multiplayer mode which was a lot like capture the flag. One player would control Link and try to collect as many triforce shards as possible and bring them to their base. The other player had control of three knights that would follow a path you drew on the screen. After every round, each player would switch roles. With these new elements of gameplay, Phantom Hourglass was a nice breath of fresh air for The Legend of Zelda franchise.

Kelsey – Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2

When people think cover systems in third-person shooters, they tend to think of Gears of War. I actually think of Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 – which came out the same year. I feel GRAW did the cover system in a better way – it controls well and there is a sense of satisfaction in getting your kills as you peek out of cover. Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 didn’t change the gameplay too much, it fixed things that needed fixing, finished the storyline that GRAW left wide open, and looked a lot better. To me, that’s all that matters. Between this and Assassin’s Creed, my 360 got quite a bit of love this year.

Liam – The Orange Box

A great year for gaming, 2007 bought us one of the best-selling games of all time; Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. We had the grand JRPG Lost Odyssey, the brilliant Sci-fi RPG Mass Effect, and one of the best Party games to grace the land, Guitar Hero III.

However my choice goes to The Orange Box, more specifically, the PC version of The Orange Box.

You get Half Life 2, Half Life 2 Episode 1 & 2, Portal and Team Fortress 2. It’s an amazing deal. To this very day I still play Team Fortress 2, it’s constant free updates to the game, is a refreshing change of paying for DLC, and its nice to see a company care so much about their own product. Portal will have you scratching your head at the well designed puzzles, and Half Life 2 is just has such a great story line you might even start coming up with your own theories.

Honorable mentions: Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii), No More Heroes (Wii), Lost Odyssey (Xbox 360), Mass Effect (Xbox 360)

Lewis – No More Heroes

Seriously, you want me to pick ONE game? How the hell am I supposed to do that? 2007 was amazing; too amazing in fact. This year saw the most releases of high quality titles to date, most of which are now seeing full blown sequels that improve on their originators already fantastic layout. Where do I even begin? Bioshock is released, questioning the philosophy of objectivism and pushing video games into their pre-adult years, dragging with it some of the most atmospheric gameplay, setting, characters and some stupidly inventive ideas into the mix. From the terrifying Big Daddies to the creepy Little Sisters, to one of the most interesting characters in a game ever, Andrew Ryan, Bioshock is a master class in atmosphere. And the recently released sequel promises to continue this.

But there’s no way I could give this to Bioshock, because Super Mario Galaxy was released! A fantastic game of joyful innocence and exploration, filled to the brim with clever ideas, beautiful locals, amusing and creative gameplay, what more could you want! How about some great use of the Wii Remote? Perfect! Surely nothing could rival this GEM of a game!

And yet something does, and it comes in a lovely Box, an Orange one. Sure, Portal and the Half Life 2 episode were great fun, but the killer here is a game I am still playing today. Team Fortress 2 has gone to prove itself beyond worthy of any praise. It’s initially a great team-based multiplayer, now a Micro-MMO with FPS gameplay. It’s filled with 9 hysterical characters, fantastic voice-acting and balanced gameplay. Team Fortress 2 has meaningful events that happen fairly regularly and an increasing list of achievements. And I haven’t even mentioned how cool it is to land a backstab as a spy! The game is INSANE in terms of content, with nearly 20 official maps, 6 weapons per class, 9 classes, a ton of hats and YET MORE TO COME! How on earth did valve pull this masterpiece off? And how can I dare not give this an award? Because something else came out that is even better.

Something that wasn’t as atmospheric as Bisohock, as playful as Mario, as deep as TF2. No. But it was different. So different in fact, that despite being a hugely flawed game, it almost steals this prize. No More Heroes is devastatingly cool. The main character is a sexually hyperactive otaku who buys a Beam Kanata off eBay one day and decides to become an assassin because a hot chick said she’d do him if he became the number 1. Holy crap, I am interested! No More Heroes is a masterpiece in character creation. Travis Touchdown is a perfect reflection of the gamer, a vengeful, over the top dramatist who loves the vulgar things in life. Every ranked fight against a boss is a brief insight into an even madder, sadder, funnier or crazier character than Travis, and this insane collection of characters is matched with a gleeful disregard for the conventions of gaming. Not supposed to have a long grey corridor level? Tough. Suda’s going to make you play it. Every level has a boss? Nope. Every bit of the game should be action packed? Actually, go clean up graffiti before the next match. Suda51 plays with his gamers, and an awareness of his sadistic attitude towards his player leads to moments of sheer laughter as you do some bizarre task because Suda wanted you to. It can also be annoying as hell but the rough sure as hell makes the smooth as frictionless as scotch.

But I have only one award to distribute, and if it was a physical one I’d break it into tiny pieces and hand it to each developer. But it isn’t. So I can’t. So I have to choose… and as far as games that have had a real impact on me, it has to go to the flawed underdog No More Heroes. It’s simply been too much of an inspiration to the way I think and write. I love it, but don’t think it was the best game of the decade for everyone. In fact, a lot of people will hate this game. But I don’t. And it’s my award. And it goes to No More Heroes.

Kelsey – Okami

Before I get into my pick for 2006, I feel I must also mention DEFCON and Dead Rising. DEFCON is a real-time strategy game developed by the people who made Darwinia and Uplink. This RTS is influenced by the classic Cold War movie Wargames. In the game you pick a continent and your goal is to kill as many innocents as you can with the use of nuclear weapons. The games pacing is slow and the alliances are bound to be made and broken. It’s a simple game to learn and getting a hang of, while it will take a while to get used to the pace of the game since it’s a lot slower moving than most strategy games.

Dead Rising was a fun take on the Dawn of the Dead idea. The open-ended gameplay can feel too linear, but at the same time each playthrough will feel different. The development team took some gambles and gamers didn’t like some of them – the save system and levelling system are the main targets of criticism. However, I feel these make the game stand out. Each time you die and restart, you will play through differently, you will save different people and go through objectives differently (or just complete more of them), and visit different parts of the mall. Having only one save per profile was unpopular, but I feel this is a non-issue made by people who were hoping for a game they could fly through really quickly.

I played Okami for the first time last year. I never thought a Zelda-clone where you play a wolf would be so fun, but it is. The game, while looking like a Zelda-clone at a glance, is actually more than that. While you have the dungeons, overworld, and towns you would expect from Zelda, the emphasis does not lie in the dungeons. The dungeons are typically pretty short and a lot of the game is your interactions, as a god, with the population of Japan. Seemingly insignificant interactions with the various citizens prove to be important – this works well to highlight the fact you are controlling a divine being. Nothing is too insignificant for this god and that which seems unimportant or minor ends up being a major help.

Liam – Okami

This was the year of the new consoles, which meant a lot of launch games, back then we was all excited for them, and majority of them was average at best, in my humble opinion, I had a hard time picking games for these year, for that reason alone.

Okami is a game I was always interested in, being a huge fan of Japanese culture, the story, artwork and graphics got me hooked from the start. This game captivated me so much I even bought the 5 disc OST and official artwork book. The dungeons, although small was greatly designed, the story was well done, to be honest, there’s not much I can’t say that Kelsey hasn’t already gone over. Overall the best game of 2006 if not, one of the best ever made.

Honorable Mentions: Metroid Prime Hunters (DS), Red Steel (Wii), Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Justice For All (DS)

Jonathan – Big Bumpin’

2006 wasn’t an exciting year of gaming for me, but I did enjoy two specific releases.

One of the most fun games of the year is Gears of War. Although the game lacked an amazing story, it more than made up for it with action and gameplay. This was the first game that truly made me realize what next-gen graphics were all about and I loved playing through the co-op campaign with friends. Gears of War was the fastest selling game of 2006 and one of the most played games over Xbox Live.

My pick of the year comes from an unlikely source; Burger King. Yes, the same restaurant that is indirectly responsible for heart attacks is also the reason we have Big Bumpin’, a fun little game based on bumper cars.

For only $3.99 brand new, this game is an absolute steal and is more enjoyable than some $50 games I have played. Up to 4 players (including online play over Xbox Live) can hop in a bumper car and compete in various mini games, like a variation of tag or (my favorite) a 2-on-2 soccer type of game.

Riddle me this, gamers. Why can a cheapass Burger King game have online play, yet it took Nintendo how long to get online? Oh man! I love Nintendo as much as I love my kidneys but they sure missed the boat. Anyway…

The game was simple but it was fun, led to a lot of laughing and it had a decent amount of skill and physics to master. Sure, it’s not technically the “best” game of the year, but for only $3.99 this is one of the best values in gaming history, so it gets my 2006 award.

Joe – The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

2006 was the first year of our current generation of consoles. With the Wii, 360, and PS3 all released that year, many games were launched alongside those systems.  At that time, I only owned a Nintendo DS. I usually found myself playing a lot of Metroid Prime: Hunters online. While the single-player mode was pretty weak, the online mode alone is what made Hunters so great. But enough about Metroid; it’s not even my pick.

For 2006, I choose The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I played the Gamecube version, so I can’t really go into the Wii’s features. For everyone that hated Wind Waker, Twilight Princess is for you. Nintendo clearly created the game to please their fans. It had the mature play style, Link was more grown up, Epona was back, and we finally got to fight Ganondorf sword-to-sword. Although Twilight Princess was a great game, many people still weren’t happy with it. Personally, I thought it was very decent. It had everything we have come to expect from a Zelda game. With giant bosses, puzzle solving, and a variety of weapons, Twilight Princess is a worthy addition to the Zelda franchise. ­­­­

There are a lot of Zelda fans who weren’t too impressed with Twilight Princess. Other than the mediocre story, I loved this game. What can I say? It’s Zelda…and it’s not on the CD-i.

Lewis – Elite Beat Agents

You have no idea how torn this decision is. The thing is, see, that 2006 was they year the Wii launched, and that was a HUGE part of my gaming life, I was so hyped, I kept going into the shop I had pre-ordered it begging for my Wii (it was delayed by a week.. which was painful to endure). But I can;t give a Wii game this title. Simply cannot. Nope, not even the marvellous Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess can steal this title. It’s not allowed. Because in 2006 the best rhythm game on ANY console (and also, consequently, the best game on DS) was released. Elite Beat GODDAMN Agents. Quite simply, a masterpiece in design and in execution. On my bio I said how i love it when style and substance mix to create something magical. This is it.

Some of you might be taken aback by my sudden passion, but here are 5 reasons why EBA is perhaps the best game of the whole goddamn decade.

1. It is PERFECT for the DS. Quick, easy to put away gameplay linked with great songs make it the game for the go, on a bus ride you can complete a level and leave the bus fully satisfied. Not only that, but it doubles as an interactive MP3 player.

2. It has some of the best music of the past century. OK, so it’s not exactly the creme de la creme, but songs are damn fun, and utterly suited to their role. The covers are written with a faster pace in mind, some even surpassing the original in enjoyability factor. The cover of Chicago’s “You’re the Inspiration”. Sheer bliss. Not to mention the explosive finale’s cover of “Jumping Jack Flash” being the highlight of the show. Other classics from Bowie and more modern hots like “Without a fight” make up a stella soundtrack, one I have on my MP3 at all times.

3. The story in each “episode” is subtle but powerful. Sure, most of them are nothing more than quick, funny ideas, but they’re executed through hilarious action-comic cutscenes and also react to how you play. And The Christmas Wish one is heartbreaking, throwing a curve-ball of sadness into a mixture of absurd comedy. It feels like a series if your favourite Saturday morning cartoon, climaxing with probably the most epic  finale to any game I have ever played.

4.The gameplay is so refreshingly different yet familiar. Games like Guitar Hero made you play the specific part of a song, Dance Dance makes you dance to the rhythm, Elite Beat Agents makes you play a hyper paced puzzle game in time to the music. A quick combination of hand-eye coordination and being able to feel the rhythm of the song in general is the ONLY way you will beat the later stages, and let me tell you, this becomes a killer of a game. The only game I have played where I needed to feel the music to win.

5. it is hard. It is so damn hard and that gives it the feeling of a challenge. Every completed challenge is a victory, a triumphant proof of your skill and as the game goes on it unlocks harder and harder modes, giving more incentive to play, as the difficulty goes up it might as well be a new level. The game has MASSIVE replay value, to the point where i am still playing it four years later! Truly a marvel for any game.

Agents. Are. GO!

Honorable Mentions: Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Warioware Smooth Moves

Lewis – Resident Evil 4

Hell. Yes. OK, I’m going to be honest here, I haven’t actually played the GameCube original, but I did play (beat, love, cherished) the Wii remake. So really, this should be a 2007 game, but I honestly had difficulty finding another game from this year to put here. No doubt I’ll find it later, but for now, we’re going to talk about the most startling reboot in video game history. Now, back in the day, Resident Evil was a respected but generally difficult to play and slow franchise renowned for its amazingly cheesy but engrossing plot. Then along came Resident Evil 4… and it not only re-invented the series, it redefined it’s genre. Suddenly, survival horror was allowed to be fast paced, tense and full of guns. Great guns. With lots of firepower. From the now iconic village opening to the final boss fight, Resident Evil 4 delivers set-piece after set-piece of beautifully crafted action. While Resident Evil 4 was great on GameCube, I found that the Wii-make was astounding, giving the player fast aiming and greater immersion in the (now industry standard) quick time events. If you’re going out to play in Eastern Europe, bring a shotgun with you, because Leon ain’t coming to save your ass too.

Kelsey – Resident Evil 4

I’m not a big fan of the Resident Evil series. Despite my love of horror movies and zombies, I never could get past the annoying save system and the awkward camera angles. Resident Evil 4 was an impulse buy, I had heard a lot of good things about it and how it was radically different from the other games in the series. I expected a “scary” game with shooting; what I got was just a fun action game. This is definitely my favourite game of the past generation. The “horror” of the series is gone, but, in RE4’s defence, the series was never scary to begin with. The game still looks good, when familiar areas are revisited they never feel the same, and there is a lot of satisfaction is seeing the heads of the evil Spanish monsters explode!

Liam – Mario Kart DS

This was another hard year to decide a favourite on. We had the awesome Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga 2, the pretty slick, Timesplitters: Future Perfect and the underrated Yakuza. But which game did I have the most fun with? Mario Kart DS.

This game stayed in my DS for about 2 – 3 years, I mastered snaking, learnt the maps, and was ready for online. I had a great win – lose ratio, and I enjoyed playing against the other members of Zippy Gamer, Apart from Jon, who is a Mario Kart god.

This is and most likely will forever be my favourite Mario Kart game. It gets a lot of hate due to snaking. But it’s a great game if we push that debate aside, and look at how great the course’s were, and the music was just superb. It included the best of the last Mario Kart’s course’s and I couldn’t have agreed more with the choices Nintendo chose.

Honorable Mentions: Fahrenheit / Indigo Prophecy (PC, Xbox, PS2), Chibi – Robo (Gamecube) Yakuza (PS2)

Joe – Guitar Hero

Back in 2004 I took a year off from gaming. The only game I even played between late 2004 and late 2005 was The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. Even though I no longer considered myself a gamer, I couldn’t ignore a new Zelda game. Anyway, 2005 was the year that got me back into gaming. The Nintendo DS was busting out some very impressive titles like Mario Kart DS, Animal Crossing: Wild World, Sonic Rush, and so many more that I just had to get one. For the first time, I stepped into the world of online gaming with the DS. Playing a video game against a friend you met online was such an immersive experience. It really brings people closer together. After being left in the dust by Jon, Liam, and many other e-buddies in Mario Kart DS and visiting their towns in Animal Crossing, I found myself being pushed right back into hardcore gamer status. Because of my year-long gaming hiatus, I missed out on a lot of great titles. One of those titles was Resident Evil 4.

I almost chose RE4 as my pick for 2005 but then I remembered another game that was released that year, Guitar Hero.

Guitar Hero gave birth to a new era of gaming; the era of the casual gamer. Men, women and children of all ages found themselves rockin’ out to their favorite songs on a plastic toy guitar. With a controller that resembles an actual guitar, players felt like they were actually performing on stage. This is what made the game so popular. People who never had any interest in video games before were buying Playstation 2s just for Guitar Hero. I think that seeing how Guitar Hero captured the casual market helped inspire Nintendo to create the Wii.

This series has been great for music as well. Young kids are now appreciating classic rock and even discovering new bands they’ve never heard of before. I think Guitar Hero has also motivated some bands to make new music as well. Death Magnetic was Metallica’s most guitar-driven album to date. This was no doubt inspired by the success of the Guitar Hero franchise.

Five years and countless rhythm games later, the Guitar Hero fad is beginning to fizzle out. But as a fan of music and video games, I still enjoy playing Guitar Hero and its many sequels.

Honorable Mentions: Resident Evil 4 (GCN), Mario Kart DS, Animal Crossing: Wild World (NDS)

Jonathan – Mario Kart DS

I have a sad story to tell. Back in 2005 I was somewhat serious about weightlifting and I became really consistent with my good eating and exercise habits. Within months I was growing stronger than I’ve ever been. And then what happened? Mario Kart DS came out.

Suddenly the spare time that I devoted to my health is eaten up by playing Mario Kart DS online instead. My real muscles faded, but hey, I was dominating online. When I finally ended my online career, I had an impressive 310-11 win/loss record. My most challenging match was against Azen, who is one of the best Super Smash Bros. Melee players in the world. Well, he was damn good at Mario Kart too, let me tell you. I lost. Azen knew about a tactic known as “snaking” before most Mario Kart players did, including me.

Mario Kart DS became Nintendo’s most successful title with online play on Nintendo’s WFC network. It had very strong sales when it released and now continues to sell with over 3 million sales. The game featured over 30 courses, 8-player offline play and some of the best Mario Kart gameplay we could hope for.

Honorable mentions: God of War (PS2), Jade Empire (Xbox), Shadow of the Colossus (PS2)

Joe – Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

There are just so many great games to choose from for 2004.  We saw the return of a classic NES series known for being difficult, Ninja Gaiden. And this sequel continued its challenging tradition. Those of you in the Eastern Hemisphere got The Legend of Zelda: The Minsh Cap in 2004. We got our forth Mario RPG game, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. And the Nintendo DS was released this year along with Super Mario 64 DS. This was also the year Nintendo gave us Metroid: Zero Mission and World of Warcraft took over many lives.

But as far as 2004 games go, I am going to have to say that Metroid Prime 2: Echoes is my choice for the best. It might not have been as memorable as the first Metroid Prime, but it incorporates some nice new features that make it rank right up there with its predecessor. Echoes brought us the very first multiplayer Metroid experience. It might not have been the best FPS multiplayer mode, but it was fun and eventually paved the way for Metroid Prime Hunters‘s online battles.

The single-player mode also shined with its duel worlds which we’re “echoes” of one another. This added for some nice puzzle elements. You may have to hit a switch in the dark world to open a path in the light world. Echoes was also the first 3D Metroid to feature Samus’s trademark Screw Attack move. Metroid Prime 2: Echoes may not have been the best Metroid game ever made, but it no doubt paved the way for the features of its successors.

Honorable Mentions: World of Warcraft (PC), Metroid: Zero Mission (GBA), Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (GCN), Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (PS2)

Kelsey – Half-Life 2

Half-Life 2 is one of the best shooters ever made. A worthy successor to Half-Life, the game is made up of fun set-pieces. The technology behind the game is impressive, Valve’s emphasis on textures over polygons sounded pretty silly at the time, but they proved they knew what they were doing once the game was in action. Half-Life 2’s Source engine stands up well to ID’s Doom 3 engine – which is more demanding but just looked inferior due to mediocre texture work. The set-pieces themselves are memorable. One minute you’re running across rooftops and through sewers to escape the Combine, then before you know it you’re running through a zombie infested town, attacking a prison, before leading an armed rebellion in the middle of a city.

Lewis – Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

As a kid, I grew up with a PS1, and I loved playing games like Crash and Spyro, but my brother, who was 2 years older, loved a game called Metal Gear Solid, and I never understood why. Now I’m older and wiser, but when I decided to borrow MGS3 off a friend to see if I could love the series, I had no idea the sheer joy that awaited me. A nail-bitingly tense plot, a fantastic cold war setting, interesting gameplay, a incredibly immersive stealth system and a sense of humour to boot, Metal Gear Solid 3 stands as an example to all others seeking to be a cinematic game: This is how you do it. At the start of MGS3, I was skeptical; by the end, I was in love. Interesting boss battles mixed with a self-aware bizarreness (though never enough to distract from the plot) make this game appeal to the side of me that likes to know that beneath the half hour cutscenes there is a man genuinely enjoying his creations. His name is Hideo Kojima. And I love him.

Honorable Mentions: Paper Mario and the Thousand Year Door (GCN), Half-Life 2 (PC)

Liam – Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

To be honest, for me, 2004 was a bit stale in the video game department. Only a handful of great games came out, in my opinion of course.

The pick for me, had to be Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. If any of you have played the original Paper Mario game, You’ll know that Nintendo really know how to work the magic in the series; borrowing the elements that made the original so good and improved on them. The cast was great, and really bought the Mario universe to life. The story had some good strong comedy moments, and the Bowser gameplay parts were a great notch to old school Mario.

Honorable Mentions: Half-Life 2 (PC), Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes (GCN), Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (PS2)

Jonathan – Halo 2

I’ll just go ahead and say it: 2004 was the best year in gaming since 2000 and hell, I’d argue it could be the best year of all time. Now where do I start…

World of Warcraft was released this year and brought in a new era of MMOs. As we’ve discussed on the site before, WoW has over 11 million monthly subscribers which we estimate is over 1 billion dollars in annual fees. Who knew a single game could be so profitable? The game has a great storyline and is easy to get into, but it’s also deep enough to keep players around for years.

Another huge release was Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Considered by many to be the best game in the GTA series, it is also the highest selling game of all time on the Sony Playstation 2. The map of GTA: SA is huge, covering 13.9 square miles. With the ability to drive over 200 vehicles, added RPG elements, funny story, and Hot Coffee controversies, this game was and still is one of the best games ever.

My pick of the year is the only game I’ve ever stood in line at midnight to buy: Halo 2. This game is the reason I bought a Xbox, and not surprisingly its sequel (Halo 3) is the reason I bought a Xbox 360. I don’t even remember being a huge fan of the original Halo but something about Halo 2 and playing online really grabbed me. The only bad thing I can say about the game has nothing to do with the game itself: the players.

Cheating eventually became widespread and it was often very frustrating to join a game and have an opponent who could kill you with one pistol bullet from across the map. It made the game unplayable and finding a good match was much more treasured than it should have been. Shame on you, Halo 2 cheaters. You suck.

My brother and I played online together for years and we rarely got tired of it. There’s just something about Halo 2 that “clicks” better than any other shooter I’ve played, including PC shooters, and considering it was the most played Xbox Live game… I know I’m not alone.

I can’t talk about them in depth, but each of the following deserve a HUGE honorable mention: The Sims 2 (PC), Half-Life 2 (PC), Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II The Sith Lords (Xbox)

Kelsey - Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

If there’s one year that was a challenge to pick a game for, it was this one. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Beyond Good and Evil, Freedom Fighters, and Mega Man Network Transmission all came out this year. I’ve played through Sands of Time and Beyond Good and Evil several times, Freedom Fighters is actually getting another playthrough at the moment, and Mega Man Network Transmission is an interesting (and in my opinion, well done) attempt to meld two different styles of gameplay into a cohesive experience. For me, Sands of Time is above this tough competition. The voice acting of the Prince is probably one of the larger selling points. The character is strangely enduring, watching him run across walls and vault over enemies never lost its appeal to me, and exploring the castle environments with him was always awe-inspiring. The use of colour both makes environments seem real and fantastic. Sands of Time is not only the best game of 2003, but one of the best games of the past generation.

Jonathan - Viewtiful Joe

Many great games were released in 2003 that I never got around to playing. And apparently this was the case for other gamers as well, because despite the fact so many great games were released, many of them suffered from lackluster sales. I’ll mention a few of them here.

The most obvious in my mind is Beyond Good & Evil, which (from what I hear) is a fantastic game. This action-adventure received great reviews from the press but just didn’t sell very much, partly due to the bad timing of the release among such other Ubisoft hits like Prince of Persia.

Gladius is a game you probably haven’t heard of, but it’s a good one. I always thought of Gladius as a cross between chess and a RPG. There’s a story to follow and you grow stronger like any other RPG, but there’s also the turn-based tactical and strategic battles where most of the time is spent. The game is quite deep and my friends and I used to play against each other for hours.

We also enjoyed the release of Mario Kart: Double Dash for the Nintendo Gamecube. Many were disappointed by the lack of online play, but the bright graphics and new 2-person to a kart concept was a hit and lots of fun.

But in the end, my pick for the game of the year goes to Viewtiful Joe, which revamped and changed how we thought about 2D platformers. The game had an amazing visual style and slowing down time to kill your enemies just never gets old. The game required you to use your special powers and move at extreme speeds or slow everything down to solve puzzles. Another awesome ability was to “zoom in” to the screen and have Viewtiful Joe attack many enemies at once. This game really made you feel like a cartoon bad-ass, and that’s why it gets my #1 pick.

Honorable mentions: WWE WrestleMania XIX (Gamecube), XIII (multi-platform)

Liam – Beyond Good & Evil

Another strong year for video games, we had the unique release of XIII, the FPS game played out in a comic book style, One of the best bargains in video game history; The Legend Of Zelda:Collector’s Edition, which featured the 2 NES games and 2 n64 Zelda games. We even had the highly controversial Postal 2.

However my choice for 2003 would have to be, Beyond Good And Evil. An action-adventure game, many refer to as a Zelda Clone, however Beyond Good And Evil is more than just a clone, it’s a Zelda Beater.

Beyond Good And Evil combines The action elements of a Zelda game along with Stealth elements,The game also gave the player a camera, in which the player had to take photo’s of Key items or point throughout the game, which added a Pokemon Snap kind of gameplay into the mix. Bought to us by the man who made Rayman, Beyond Good And Evil deserves to be played and loved by all, There really isn’t a reason why no one can not fall in love with such a perfect product. The music was intense and it all fitted well, the world whilst small, gave a great feeling of entrapment and impending doom upon it.

Honorable Mentions: F-Zero GX (Gamecube), Tales Of Symphonia (Gamecube), Postal 2 (PC)

Joe – The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

2003 was an easy year for me. There were a lot of great games, but only one really stood out and caused a huge uproar from gamers all over the world. This game still gets talked about today. Some praise it while others curse it. I was very skeptical myself, until I actually played it. Okay, Lewis already mentioned it for 2002, but since it was released in North America in 2003, I’m still going with it.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was a bold new approach for Nintendo. The Zelda games for the N64 were very mature for Nintendo games and that’s what a lot of people loved about them. Everyone was expecting a graphical enhancement of a dark Zelda game featuring an adult protagonist on horseback galloping through a graphically enhanced Hyrule. But instead, we got just the opposite.

At first, it really felt like Nintendo had hocked a giant loogie right in my face. The Zelda I had been waiting for was a cartoon-style game with a goofy-looking, big-eyed Link. Instead of Hyrule, the game took place on a giant sea. And we had a talking boat in place of Epona. Was this some kind of joke?  Nope, this was the future of Zelda. After playing The Wind Waker, I soon forgot all about how different it was and completely related it to its predecessors. I still consider this game’s story to be better than any other Zelda story to date. It was deep, interesting, and connected with the previous games. The gameplay was also improved over the N64 games. You could actually rotate the camera with the C-Stick and even perform special moves by pressing the A button at the right time. If you skipped The Wind Waker because of how it looked, you really missed out on one of the greatest adventures in The Legend of Zelda series.

Honorable mentions: Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (GBA) Metal Gear Soild 2: Substance, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Lewis - Wario Ware Inc.: Mega Microgame$

Insane. The only true way to describe Wario Ware. The ultimate game for the short attention span, warioware consists of nothing but 5 second “micro-games” that challenge a player to… well figure out what the hell they have to do. Fast, frantic and full of laughs, the surreal humour mixed with simple yet challenging gameplay makes this game a must, and it also spawned a new franchise that has brought us many great games. Despite rebooting Wario in a rather… unpreferable way, taking him away from the treasure hunting games I enjoyed as a kid and into an entrpenuer, Wario Ware still holds a dear place in my heart, and a firm place in my GBA. Also, nose-picking, what a fantastic idea.

Honorable Mentions: War of the Monsters “Damn that was fun.”

Jonathan – Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem

It took me a moment to realize what we had to work with in 2002, but once I did, I felt surprised I forgot about many of the great games released. Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos was a huge hit, winning many “Game of the Year” awards. It added two new races and had a compelling story, which is now carried on by the World of Warcraft MMORPG.

We also had the release of TimeSplitters 2, which was one of my most-played Gamecube games. I had a blast (pun) with this game and I played many multiplayer matches with friends and the artificial intelligent bots. With the exception of online play and a little deeper story, this game had all you could ask for out of a first person shooter.

My personal favorite of the year was the Gamecube’s psychological horror, Eternal Darkness. It’s rare that I finish single player games, but I finished this one multiple times. It has a fantastic story and truly freaky moments. The sanity effects were revolutionary and literally made you feel like a part of the game. There were talks of a possible sequel for years, but the trademark for the game was recently canceled, which isn’t a good sign. If you’ve never played this game, pick it up for your old Gamecube or the Nintendo Wii and give it a try.

Honorable mentions: Soul Calibur II, Splinter Cell

Lewis – The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

I’m flying on a giant leaf, planning to land next to my magical talking boat where I will then conduct the wind east and head for the great fairy fountain. Ah, Zelda, you can do no wrong in my eyes… Despite controversy over the new graphical art style, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker blew my mind with its size and new ideas on exploration. Filled to the brim with charm, the exhilarating fights and treacherous dungeons made this Zelda feel familiar and yet somehow so very different. Despite an awful Triforce hunt towards the end, when Wind Waker was in full swing it was swinging like jazz monkey. Oh, and the graphics were nice too.

Honorable mentions: Warcraft 3, Metal Gear Soild 2: Substance

Joe – Kingdom Hearts

2002 gave us so many spectacular games. We had three consoles competing for our affection, and the gaming companies were pulling out all stops. After an eight-year hiatus’, the Metroid series returned with two new games in 2002. We also saw the birth of the Mega Man Zero series, which took place centuries after the Mega Man X titles. But even though I loved all of those games, there’s one title that was released in 2002 that I didn’t even get to experience until, 2008.

Kingdom Hearts had taken the story depth and some characters from the Final Fantasy RPG series and put them into one hell of an action game. Not only did Kingdom Hearts feature some of Final Fantasy’s most memorable faces, but it features a huge cast of Disney characters as well. The game still had its share of RPG elements that Square-Enix is known for such as leveling up and learning magic spells. But it did away with the turn-based fighting style of Final Fantasy and gave it much more of a Zelda-like feel. Kingdom Hearts is the perfect game if you love the epic stories of Final Fantasy but prefer hand-to-hand action over turn-based combat. And even if you love Final Fantasy, you’re probably going to love Kingdom Hearts too. It’s just one of those games that you can’t help but love. And if you don’t, you are just heartless.

Liam – Soldier Of Fortune II: Double Helix

2002 was the year of Dance Dance Revolution and Dave Mirra BMX games, which is where my choice comes in, BMX XXX what more could I ask for? The option to play as a topless girl on a BMX doing backflips? Check. Unlockable Stripper videos? Check. Awesome radical gameplay? …umm wait..nope. Not there. Guess BMX XXX won’t be my choice for this year. But luckily Soldier Of Fortune II: Double Helix is on hand.

Whilst it doesn’t contain topless girls on bikes, it does contain a solid story, and some very nice FPS gameplay. The game, aside from its solid story and believable character’s was also known for its gore. Heads will be rolling and it was graphic for its time, some times it was perhaps a bit over the top in the human body dismemberment department, but regardless it was still fun to blow arms and legs off your enemies.

Honorable mentions: The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (PC), Metroid Fusion (GBA), Resident Evil:Remake (Gamecube)

Kelsey- Metroid Prime

As a child, I remember renting Super Metroid pretty often. I was never good at the game but I still loved exploring that little chunk of the world that I could explore and I thought the game was absolutely beautiful. Metroid Prime managed to recreate that feeling to me. I remember when I first played it at a little demo-station Nintendo of Canada had set-up in West Edmonton Mall. The only playable section was the space station which starts the game and that was enough to get me excited for it. The game looked nice, controlled nice, and when I finally got it I saw that it was well-worth the wait. The world is still fun to explore.

Kelsey – Silent Hill 2

In 2001, Silent Hill’s sequel came out. Silent Hill 2 got a lot of praise, and deserved it all. The game is still creepy, the story is still compelling, the visuals are still effective, and the puzzles are still fun. To me, this is the archetypal survival horror game. It’s dark and creepy; it’s essentially an old-school point-and-click adventure game. While the point-and-click gameplay isn’t there, the puzzles and the exploration would feel at home with this almost-forgotten genre.

Grand Theft Auto III also came out this year. I remember the wonder of playing it for the first time on my computer, and it’s hard to not have it at the top. However, to me, the game lacks something to set it above SH2.

Liam – Animal Crossing

2001 was also a great year of games. I spent it learning how to wave dash in Smash bros, regretting buying The Simpson’s: Road Rage and Hit N Run, face palming upon seeing Shadow the Hedgehog in Sonic Adventure 2 and being all nostalgic over Golden Sun because of how much it reminded me of my old SNES RPG playing days. I wish I could say I had a blast playing Ico, but sadly this was one of the games I missed this year, and still need to play it. Shocking I know. But what did I spend most of my time on, in 2001? The one and only, Animal Crossing.

When I first heard of this game, something about it hooked me. I got sucked into the hype of Animal Crossing, and ended up importing it. I was just totally fascinated with a game being able to take place in real time and reflecting the current time of day and season. Fellow neighbors coming round to your virtual house, which you could expand upon, catching bugs, fishing for those rare fish doesn’t sound like a fun game on paper. I mean after all, you are basically just playing a fake life in a fake village with a bunch of animals…

However this game was addicting..perhaps too addicting. I remember skipping school to play Animal Crossing all day, trying to raise enough bells to buy that rare piece of gardening equipment, from that crook, Tom Nook. The game had a very charming atmosphere and some catchy upbeat music to go with it. In some cases I even cared about some of the village citizens, where as the rest I would hate. I’d pay weekly visits to hear K K, Slider play one of his crazy songs. Overall Animal Crossing is a game that never stops playing, even if you do. I’m sure by now my village is most likely a jungle of weeds and some angry animals.

Honorable Mentions: Evil Twin (Dreamcast, Playstation 2, Pc), Golden Sun (GBA), Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons Of Liberty (Playstation 2), Shenmue II (Dreamcast, XBox), Super Smash Bros: Melee (Gamecube)

Lewis – Pikmin

Genocide is a generally frowned upon topic for video games, which is why in 2001 I found myself nearly in tears after I accidentally wiped out my entire platoon of Pikmin. Despite having some rather annoying time mechanics, Pikmin was adorable, lovable, challenging and heart breaking all at the same time, trying to direct your squadron of Pikmin around a dangerous world to collect parts of your ship has never been more fun! Although, it’s also probably the only game to do it. Pikmin is a stellar title and is well worth checking out, especially with the Wii remake.

Honorable Mentions: Super Smash Bros Melee (GCN), Spider-Man 2 (PS1)

Jonathan – Grand Theft Auto III

2001 was awesome. The Xbox had the release of Halo: Combat Evolved, which some argued (at that time) was the only game worth playing on the Xbox. Many people may dislike Halo, but it’s hard to deny the importance it had for the Xbox’s success. Halo was also used to push machinima into the mainstream with the popularity of the Red vs. Blue series.

Another hit was Max Payne, released for the PC. This game’s story and mood immersed me in a way that no other game had done before. My most memorable moment was hearing the sounds of a train and not knowing where it was coming from. I turned Max around just in time to see a train come flying at me and I literally jumped hard back in my seat. No game had ever caused such a reaction in me. And let’s not forget the Bullet Time element of the game, which is just hilarious and awesome at the same time.

Runescape, the world’s most popular free MMORPG, also got its start in 2001. Since then the game has consistently grown and now has over 10 million active users. Although it doesn’t have the story or production values of a game like World of Warcraft, it definitely holds its own and the price couldn’t be better.

And finally, my pick for the best game of 2001 is Grand Theft Auto III, the king of sandbox games. Borrowing design elements from the the Nintendo 64 classic Body Harvest, Grand Theft Auto III created a new sense of freedom never before seen. It also brought along a lot of controversy for its display of violence and sexuality. But along with that, the story and gameplay made it a fun world to spend countless hours in. Grand Theft Auto III not only created a new type of game, but it has influenced many others and the way video games are made in general.

Joe – Super Smash Bros. Melee

I thought it was hard thinking of the best game of 2000. But 2001 is even worse. It was the first year of a new generation of consoles. With the releases of the Playstation 2, Gamecube, and Xbox, 2001 saw a lot of great new games.

Super Smash Bros. Melee was great for many reasons. When you had friends over, it was a great party game. And if you grew up in the early days of Nintendo games, it was chock-full of nostalgia. One of the main reasons I loved this game was the fact that it featured characters from so many of my favorite games. Melee had something for everyone.  It had all of the greatness of the N64 game and added so much more! The fighting was more advanced and the roster was twice as big. (Many were clones of others.) Super Smash Bros. Melee was the best-selling game for the Nintendo Gamecube, and that really says something about its greatness.

Honorable Mentions: Sonic Adventure 2 (Dreamcast), Ico (PS2)

Kelsey – Risk II

Risk II certainly is an odd choice at a glance. This wasn’t a year in gaming where there was a “drought” of games. The PC also saw the releases of Diablo II and Deus Ex – both considered classics. I definitely spent a lot of time playing both those titles, but Risk II is the ultimate party game (in my mind). Get a few friends, have a computer player or two, and sit around a laptop. The game has two modes – Classic and Same Time – that change up this classic board game. New territories have been added, you can change the value of continents, and there are new access points into continents to balance the game out. This is all in addition to providing friends a chance to vie for world conquest!

Liam – Skies of Arcadia

2000 was a tough choice for me, many of my favorite games were released this fine year, but after a grueling battle I had to pick the game that I’ve completed so many times and had the most fun with.

I first played Skies of Arcadia on a demo disc from Official Dreamcast Magazine UK, The demo was an hour’s long worth of game play. As soon as I saw the opening I fell in love. The music was grand and the character’s all had their own charm. It felt like they had been created with loving care. The Skies of Arcadia world was just amazing as well. Each town and capital city felt like it was alive, and I had even picked my own favorite town. The story revolves around pirates; you’re one of the good pirates. Think of Robin Hood and you’re on the right track. I think my favorite thing about Skies of Arcadia was the ship battles. I just loved blasting down enemy black pirate ships, or the evil Vaula Armada.

Overall, if you love J-RPG’s and Pirates, then do try to hunt down a copy of this game, you won’t regret it.

Honorable Mentions: Shenmue (Dreamcast), Final Fantasy IX (PS1), Grandia II (Dreamcast), Legend Of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (N64)

Lewis – Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon

What if I told you that in 2000 I spent my childhood running around burning the face off rhinos and desperately trying to save some eggs? Those of you who had a PS1 at the time would probably declare “Spyro 3: Year of the Dragon! Man that game was awesome!” And it was. A huge sprawling game, Spyro 3 took everything anyone could love about the series and turned up all the features to 11. Massive over-worlds, bigger levels, so many side-quests and mini-games you could often leave the main game well behind and even 4 new playable characters! A mix of RARE style collect ‘em up and Super Mario 64 exploration, Spyro dominated my childhood, and stands as one of the few games I beat 112%.

Honorable Mention: Banjo Tooie (N64), Spiderman (PS1.N64)

Jonathan – WWF No Mercy

2000 was a good year in gaming, especially for me. PC gamers saw such classics like the dark American McGee’s Alice and the dungeon-roaming perfection known as Diablo II. On the console side, the Nintendo 64 had the release of Rare’s Perfect Dark, which was highly anticipated because of the huge success Rare had with Goldeneye 007, a game many proclaim as the father of console first-person shooters. 2000 also had the release of Spiderman for the PS1 and N64, which was arguably the greatest superhero game ever made up until that point.

But best of all, 2000 gave me one of my favorite video games of all time: WWF No Mercy. This was the 4th and final N64 wrestling game created by THQ. With each wrestling game they made, they got a little better, and finally hit their peak with No Mercy, which many gamers still consider to have the best grappling-engine to be seen in video games. There were plans of a sequel titled WWF Backlash, but the Nintendo 64 era had passed before it was released. My heart wonders what could have been…

Joe – Shenmue

The year 2000 brought us some of the greatest games ever created; making this a very tough choice for me.  The year brought us so many classics, such as The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, Marvel  vs. Capcom 2, Perfect Dark, the list just goes on. I was very close to choosing Majora’s Mask for this one. But then I realized that although it was released in Japan in 1999, Shenmue was released everywhere else in 2000. I haven’t played the game in at least 9 years, but it still sticks with me.