soviet prince
Member
could not have picked a better 1 and 2m the last of us and bioshock are great well designed games
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NeoGAF Games of the Year 2013 Awards
- Thread starter timetokill
- Start date
SuperSonic1305
Member
Only 23 points for state of decay? Shame on you GAF.
GillianSeed79
Member
It's OK, you're cool in my book. I read your list. I like the cut of your gib. Also, internet high five for liking Sleeping Dogs.
My people:
Top 10 recommendations with my comments:
fuck yea friend
I was wondering about this. May not be the best thread to ask this, but still. I want to buy just one, because Bayonetta is also coming, then should I get MGR or TW101? According to the list MGR, but I can imagine just a lot less people actually played TW101.
theprodigy
Member
what are these lies
Path of Radiance isn't even the best game set in Tellius
Path of Radiance isn't even the best game set in Tellius
Yuck. Yuck Yuck Yuck.
I could rant awhile about why that is wrong, but this isn't the place.
CrimsonCrescendo
Banned
lol
What movie is that from?
theprodigy
Member
Path of Radiance is a Paladinfest and far too easy, at least in the non-Japanese versions without Maniac Mode
I'll give it credit for having a not-boring Ike though
Megatron
Member
What if that gets people even more excited? Disney Game of Thrones.
Tyrant Rave
Banned
If you like action games, both are definitely worth playing. They aren't very similar to one another and no other action game really plays like them.
Wonderful 101 is a pretty meaty game in general. It's lengthy for an action game, there are a lot of unlockables, and the combat system in general is much deeper than Rising. There is a bit of a learning curve though, since the whole drawing mechanic can take some time to get used to. The game also has several shmup sections like the one in Bayonetta, but they are executed much better overall.
Metal Gear Rising was developed in a shorter timeframe so there's less to do and see overall. Despite that, the game still feels pretty fresh thanks to the parry mechanic and how offensive the game is overall. You're supposed to be attacking pretty much all of the time. The boss fights are all great and the soundtrack is awesome as well. It's a very lean game in general so it's easier to just pop in for a replay or something. The DLC is free now as well so that's nice too.
SkoomaSuckinSwit
Member
Yea, SoD was definitely in my top 10 for 2013.
On GAF maybe, but my personal feeling and experience is that GAF represents an increasing minority, that is, the "core" gamer. Most of the games sold this year were not those GAF loved, and in some cases are those GAF probably despises or more likely, is simply unaware of. GAF is very much a bubble and much like any bubble subject to its own biases, pressures and blind spots.
Popularity means a lot actually, and regardless of intent, does reflect society on some level. I see it as generally negative when sites critical of games follow the patterns of society at large due to the fact that they are intended to be a critical force against the interests of the consumer and the developer. They are intended to be critical when most will not, taking heat when others will back down or stay silent. They are the literal definition of a vocal minority, and when they become the majority... well, you end up with DoritosPope. It is the Tevis Thompson argument that while there will be some agreement amongst critics about videogames naturally, it is strange to see as much agreement as there is within the critical media.
Except this is my point. Having Joel and Ellie and Tess and Joel having conversations while playing through the game was interesting and unto itself far more dynamic and captivating than the cutscenes ever were. Aside from the AI being buggy as hell and the distances at which characters could be heard being awkward, the game itself is not bad. It's serviceable enough and the character discussions through the gameplay were interesting and could have been elaborated upon to be more than they were. But the issue is that they were always subordinate to the cutscenes, not nearly as developed and full as they surely would have been.
It would have been interesting to be able to walk around in the shoes of Joel as he gets nervous, pacing with difficulty around rooms or functioning differently as if in a rage when the characters he cares about go missing. But the design never reflects what you watch, and more than that, the design never reflects what Joel feels. Becoming weaker still has the same effect it always does, putting a red "danger" circle around your HUD, but never actually making Joel less able to do all the insane things he constantly does. Joel's sadness, anger, worry, doubt, never come across in the gameplay. He doesn't try to stay behind characters he's worried about betraying him, he doesn't aggressively attempt to find food when they claim they're hungry or cold or seem to be affected by missing out on these things when they're given to other characters for the good of his somewhat sketchy ability to identify with others and escape his cynicism.
I see cutscenes as a generally lazy excuse for not being able to figure out how to handle a situation well in design. In the case of The Last of Us, the central problem was things like Ellie and Tess's AI, and Naughty Dog very clearly knew this, given that these characters are untouchable throughout the entirety of the game. They're invisible at all times except as voices in Joel's head during the gameplay sequences and only become particularly relevant when you're playing as them or watching them do things that largely would have been more interesting outside of a cutscene. It's extraordinarily deflationary to see characters preparing for an attack or getting nervous over enemies yet never really feeling this is something that has to do with you, but characters you are watching, because cutscenes are pivotal points at which these events occur.
Cutscenes are generally being processed as content, when they are almost always better as context. The use of a cutscene for the purpose of intimidating you in Dark Souls is interesting because it provides context, the use of a cutscene in The Last of Us is not because it provides content. While I do not think that cutscenes cannot provide content, the content they provide must be relevant to the gameplay. Needing a cutscene to open a door, using them to analyze and make decisions with regards to a character's intent, are potential uses of cutscenes with content. But the cutscenes-as-content only works if they have some level of relevance to the gameplay, otherwise they are simply repeating the same mistake videogames have been repeating for decades now. I'm going to take a note from Christopher Franklin here and state that if a movie or book's central idea is "show, don't tell," then a videogame's central idea is "do, don't show." The Last of Us is an excellent example of the former rather than the latter.
Engagement is great, effective engagement is better, and cutscenes are generally not effective engagement. In fact most of the time they're not a part of engagement at all, but separation. "These are the bits you have control over, we'll just be over here telling a story you have no power or ability to engage in." Engagement requires participation, and the player is rarely allowed to intrude upon the realm of the developer god. It's understandable as to why, it's difficult to code sequences which attempt to take the player into account and it's far less difficult to simply present a story outside the player's domain. But it takes away from the concept of player agency and its meta-narrative is the same as The Stanley Parable without the self-awareness or conceit.
I really enjoyed Journey, but its decision post-mountain really killed my ability to feel engaged in it. The idea about the game being a metaphor about reincarnation felt really ham-fisted and forced, rather than it being an effective metaphor for where the road ends. I find Flower to be a more interesting, if similarly ham-fisted attempt to engage in environmental politics. The games' primary flaw however was not their cutscenes but their understanding of the effectiveness of beats and when a scene is complete and any addition becomes unnecessary and causes a natural reaction of "missing the point" of a given scene's effectiveness.
The only thing I remember about Journey is thinking,
"Man, it really would have been more effective if they simply rolled credits after dying in the snow up on the mountain."
Again, Chrono Trigger is one example of what my point is. You, and probably a lot of others, remember a great deal about Chrono Trigger because it is an exceptionally memorable game. But that's not an accident; its ability to contextualize and use beats in-game is extraordinary. The game itself may have a typical plot, but its ability to turn those typified realities into memorable moments, "The Trial," "The Masamune," "The Black Omen," "The Green Dream," plays out in a way that is episodic in nature and impossible to forget as a result. It takes advantage of the natural pauses we frequently experience through play. It uses our ability and desire to process in chapters of information extraordinarily effectively, much as each "Dream" in LSD or each "Stage" in Jet Grind Radio. The Last of Us and most modern cinematic games don't do this though, they instead attempt to string together many moments to create a long, uninterrupted sequence, and this frankly doesn't work over the course of fifteen hours or more. It's why there aren't many movies even approaching that length (and while I guess ten hours of nyan-cat might be a counter to this, as it is something people watch, I wouldn't really consider those movies... effective).
tl;dr I'm not big on using cutscenes as content rather than context. Rabble Rabble Rabble.
dragonbane
Member
Hard to say. Overall definitely Heavy Rain, but more people have played it. I would say the voice acting and writing is a lot better in Beyond, but the gameplay and choice implementation is worse. Many people who loved Heavy Rain missed those things in Beyond and therefore didn't like it very much. On the other hand a lot of people who had many issues with Heavy Rain really liked Beyond. Then some (like me) love both and a lot hate both.
So, as you can see it's almost impossible to predict in which category you would fall into. Better play them both (Heavy Rain first) and see what you think.
Krusenstern
Banned
Happy to see that Metal Gear Rising made it so far.
Can't argue with the list itself. It's decent.
Can't argue with the list itself. It's decent.
theprodigy
Member
toastyToast
Member
I had the option and Bravely Default didn't make my list while Fire Emblem did. I feel like the game is going to be quite divisive
Sapphire Dreams
Member
I recognize some of you !
theprodigy
Member
Marc
Member
Didn't think the gap between #1 and #2 would be that large. Surprised and happy to see Tearaway break the top ten.
My new friends:
1. JustAnotherOtaku (99) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=95257669&postcount=1063
2. Marc (98) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=96080950&postcount=1359
3. somesayyea (96) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=96337220&postcount=1402
4. libregkd (92) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=94417885&postcount=668
5. Jonboy (87) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=94127176&postcount=350
6. consoul (84) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=94510666&postcount=693
6. jakeellis01 (84) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=95357485&postcount=1088
8. polyh3dron (82) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=97629200&postcount=2014
8. shem935 (82) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=94709803&postcount=795
10. Carlisle (80) http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=96625121&postcount=1449
alr1ght's gif is lovely
Net_Wrecker
Member
DA HOMIES
Next time I need money, shelter, and/or a getaway vehicle, I know who to call.
Top 10 Recommendations
I'd love to play all the games on 3DS + Tearaway, but I just don't have the time to add portable gaming to my schedule. I'm sure I'd enjoy them, but I have a hard enough time keeping up with home consoles + PC. Chill, parser.
___________________________________________________________
TLOU wins, Rising and The Wonderful 101 are top 15. I'm happy.
Next time I need money, shelter, and/or a getaway vehicle, I know who to call.
Top 10 Recommendations
I'd love to play all the games on 3DS + Tearaway, but I just don't have the time to add portable gaming to my schedule. I'm sure I'd enjoy them, but I have a hard enough time keeping up with home consoles + PC. Chill, parser.
___________________________________________________________
TLOU wins, Rising and The Wonderful 101 are top 15. I'm happy.
And_Gignac
Member
The top 5 is exactly what I expected. Nice surprise at Fire Emblem and Tearaway over Pokemon.
And Gone Home in the top 20 makes me sad.
And Gone Home in the top 20 makes me sad.
JehutyRunner
Banned
The Last of Us winning, my top top three is also NeoGAF's top three (though Infinite ahead of GTA did surprise me). Yup, super duper happy.
Here's my affinity list:
And my recommendations list:
Brofist to those in my affinity list. Y'all rad. And my recs list, I already have most of them! XD
Here's my affinity list:
And my recommendations list:
Brofist to those in my affinity list. Y'all rad. And my recs list, I already have most of them! XD
dragonbane
Member
4 familiar faces. Good enough
toastyToast
Member
you mean you're saving the Bravely Default vote for next year
right?
....no?
I could, I think. The game went into a direction I didn't like but before that it was awesome. Some people either won't mind or will continue to think it's great. I need to get around to finishing it. I was pretty close to the end before I decided to take a break.
Dark Schala
Eloquent Princess
Yeah, Bravely Default is a game with great systems and a brilliant point to make, but it's also structurally-flawed. I tried to expand on that in my GotY writeup this year.
I feel like it might be divisive, but maybe people might look past that. Who knows. It'll be interesting to see what NA players think of it.
I feel like it might be divisive, but maybe people might look past that. Who knows. It'll be interesting to see what NA players think of it.
Slamtastic
Member
I recognize a few people.
phoenix296
Member
dragonbane
Member
No problem. We can stay casual friends. I didn't beat many games last year, otherwise I might have appearedMy new best friends! (sorry dragonbane
GiantEnemyGoomba
Member
Congrats guys, y'all have the best video game taste on the internet.
theprodigy
Member
hey man, time to break into the traditional FF challenge runs
because FFXIII and co are just zzzzzzz
Frustrated_Grunt
Member
You guys got my back. Also looking at the recommendation list, I missed a ton of games this year thanks to college and work.
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