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2014 Game of the Year Media Picks Thread

thelastword

thelastword

Banned
Nothing1016 said:
What's funny to me is the contrast between review score and game of the year. For example:

Super Smash Bros Wii U - 93 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Bayonetta 2 - 91 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Mario Kart 8 - 88 metacritic - 1 GOTY
DA: Inquisition - 89 metacritic - 7 GOTY
Shadows of Mordor - 84 metacritic - 2 GOTY
Donkey Kong Tropical Freese - 83 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Destiny - 76 metacritic - 2 GOTY

Would this be the lowest scoring metacritic game, DA:I, to win the most GOTY awards?

Edit: Google links directly to the PC version which sits at an 86. Changed the score to an 89 which is the PS4 version.
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Apparently you have to play the games before naming GOTY. It would appear that more persons played DA.I or maybe they did and preferred Inquisition. These are all opinions anyway.
 
N

nacimento

Member
CerebralTiger said:
PC goty = Divinity (Shadow of Mordor is nominated)
Overall goty = Shadow of Mordor

Isn't it odd that Divinity isn't the overall goty?
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I think it's quite common for sites or publications to give exclusives a little bonus over multiplatform games in their platform category. I guess it's to not have one game win almost everything.

Not that I would have anyrhing against Larian getting GOTY, they deserve it.
 
T

Tripon

Member
CerebralTiger said:
PC goty = Divinity (Shadow of Mordor is nominated)
Overall goty = Shadow of Mordor

Isn't it odd that Divinity isn't the overall goty?
Click to expand...

Shadow of Mordor won the PS4 and XB1 GOTY as well.

Reno Gazette Journal gives it to Smash Bros and the Wii U as the console as the year.
1. Super Smash Bros: Nintendo's crazy fighting game returns with its Wii U debut, bringing laughs, screams and bonding moments to living rooms everywhere. There really is quite nothing like assembling a group of friends and family to smack each other around with classic Nintendo characters and guests. Add excellent polish, solid mechanics and addicting gameplay to its near universal appeal and Super Smash Bros. gets my nod for best game this year.

CONSOLE OF THE YEAR | Wii U: The Wii U might not get as many cross-platform games as Sony and Microsoft's systems. As far as exclusive games go, however, the Wii U's selection trumps the the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One for the second year in a row. Things could very well change next year but as far as 2014, Nintendo's plucky console is the champ.
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http://www.rgj.com/story/life/2014/12/18/top-best-video-games-year-technobubble/20597029/

Watchmojo.com gives 2014 GOTY award to Dark Souls II

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x420O4d8VCE
 
S

spekkeh

Banned
Gonzo The Great said:
So are all of these outlets latching onto Dragon Age: Inquisition because it won GOTY at the Game Awards, or is Bayonetta 2 getting snubbed?



>Watchdogs
>Destiny
>Titanfall
>no Bayonetta 2

Welp, that answers that.
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Most of these outlets are bunk. Simon Parkin (New Yorker) and Edge are the only ones that have any legitimacy, and you'll see they don't go after the safe big American games.
 
A

Arion

Member
Bayo 2 getting ignored is understandable. Goty deliberations are done with the entire staff in the room. Bayo2 is a niche game so not everyone on staff is going to rally behind it. Which is why we see a lot of mainstream choices winning from the big sites. Expect Bayo2 to show up on individual lists because a game like that appeals to a rare few. Edge is the obvious exception here.

So despite bayo2 getting the only 10/10 from gamestop and not winning Goty is also understandable. The review was the opinion of a single person while mordor was chosen by discussion between ~75 people.
 
A

AniHawk

Member
BeatResetsTheWorld said:
Because Western reviewers like western games

But more seriously, I think it's because reviewers, while having trouble finding many fault in Nintendo's games, just don't like them. Like, they can acknowledge that they're highly polished and extremely well crafted, but those games just don't appeal to them

Let's take Smash Bros for instance. You can't really fault it for it's graphics, because at 1080p/60fps it's a beautiful looking game. You can't fault it for it's gameplay, because it's solid and polished and accomodating everyone from beginners to seasoned players of the franchise. You can't fault it for it's online because, aside from communication options, it works really well and you have a good number of options. It really then just comes down to whether it's their kind of game or not, hence the high review scores but lack of GOTY picks
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i think it's a little different than that. i think when people vote game of the year, they vote what they think best represents the industry at the end of the year. will that be the game with plenty of character interaction and time for a story to unfold, or are you going to give it to the one with a controversial female main character in a year that has been steeped in controversy over the portrayal of women in video games and the video game industry? do you give it to the game with new ways to interacting with your enemies in a very high profile license, or is it going to go to the fourth game in a series that adds a lot of new stuff but is mostly a refinement on a previous process (which is not to say the others aren't, but the coat of paint sure helps play tricks on the eye)?

it's not really about the games. it's about the representation. to show the industry, those outside, and even themselves that they're making good, informed decisions about adult things. unfortunately, this view of thinking is very narrow and extremely predictable. here's me calling it over two months before this thread was made. in years where there isn't a lot of great choices to match these criteria, say in 2010 or 2012, you'll see reviewers throwing up their hands and giving it to stuff like mass effect 2 or telltale's the walking dead instead. design isn't important. presentation is.
 
T

Tripon

Member
http://www.cityam.com/205898/our-end-year-games-awards

City A.M. GOTY is Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 is the game that proves there is life in Nintendo yet. Whether you’re a new player or a long-standing fan of the franchise, you can pick up a control pad and be racing to victory in no time. That I reviewed the game in May and I’m still playing it in December shows it has staying power – I have no doubt it’ll still be eating away at my social life long into 2015.
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http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/dec/15/the-best-video-games-of-2014

The Guardian also picks Mario Kart 8

What we said: “Regardless of the Wii U’s troubles Nintendo remains one of (if not the) greatest developers on the planet in terms of making games that are a pure joy to play, and Mario Kart 8 is one of its finest. The question with Mario Kart 8 was never really “is this going to be good”, because with Nintendo that much can be taken for granted. The question is whether it’s the best yet. And, among one hell of a field, it takes first place.”
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http://www.post-gazette.com/ae/tv-r...eo-Game-Shadow-of-Mordor/stories/201412180108

Pittsburg Post Gazette GOTY is Shadow of Mordor

1. "Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor": "Shadow of Mordor" took notes from successful open-world action games and added its novel nemesis system to the recipe. Every orc enemy has its own name, strengths, weaknesses, fears and goals. Personifying each enemy brings purpose to every battle. Plus, a combat system similar to the "Batman: Arkham" franchise makes the fights fun and satisfying. Liking or knowing the "Lord of the Rings" universe isn't a prerequisite. Anyone who likes games is in for a treat in "Shadow of Mordor."
Click to expand...
 
S

sn00zer

Member
Nothing1016 said:
What's funny to me is the contrast between review score and game of the year. For example:

Super Smash Bros Wii U - 93 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Bayonetta 2 - 91 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Mario Kart 8 - 88 metacritic - 1 GOTY
DA: Inquisition - 89 metacritic - 7 GOTY
Shadows of Mordor - 84 metacritic - 2 GOTY
Donkey Kong Tropical Freese - 83 metacritic - 0 GOTY
Destiny - 76 metacritic - 2 GOTY

Would this be the lowest scoring metacritic game, DA:I, to win the most GOTY awards?

Edit: Google links directly to the PC version which sits at an 86. Changed the score to an 89 which is the PS4 version.
Click to expand...

I think the difference is pubs would rather give GOTY to games that did something different, but slightly flawed (Shadow of Mordor, DA:I) rather than something old done incredibly well (Smash).
 
CerebralTiger

CerebralTiger

Member
Lazygamer gives it to Shadow of Mordor.

It’s the fact that Shadow Of Mordor was a game that managed to encapsulate all that and the very best that the gaming year had to offer, with none of the setbacks that plagued far too many big-name games this year. Shadow Of Mordor is a detailed romp that worked straight out of the box, a game that remembered that players want to have fun, not faff around with DLC offers or wait for constant updates.

It’s also the kind of game where you truly do shape your own story, with the aforementioned Nemesis System working perfectly. Because of that, and various other rewarding reasons, Shadow Of Mordor is our official Game Of The Year.
Click to expand...
 
A

AniHawk

Member
sn00zer said:
I think the difference is pubs would rather give GOTY to games that did something different, but slightly flawed (Shadow of Mordor, DA:I) rather than something old done incredibly well (Smash).
Click to expand...

nah. the media picks are incredibly predictable and go to one or two kinds of games and have for basically a decade.
 
T

Tripon

Member
BGR gives it to Forza Horizon 2

http://bgr.com/2014/12/19/best-games-of-2014/

This should have been a difficult choice, but no game provided me with as many highs and as few lows as Forza Horizon 2. I’ve been enamored with open-world racing games since Burnout Paradise, but no other world drew me in quite like the world of Horizon 2.

There’s something about southern Europe that gives Horizon 2 it’s own personality. It’s often difficult to distinguish between racing games, but Horizon 2 is unmistakably unique. The road trips, the barn finds, the championships, the way that everything you do brings you closer to a new car or reward; it’s a joy to play from start to finish… if you ever finish it, that is.

I didn’t think I needed another open-world racer after Need for Speed: Most Wanted climbed into my top 10 list in 2012. Forza Horizon 2 proved me wrong.
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Fresno Bee gives it to Banner Saga.

http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/12/19/4293922/best-video-game-of-2014-is-the.html

n a year overrun by great role-playing games like “South Park: The Stick of Truth” and “Dragon Age Inquisition,” it’s only fitting that my favorite game of 2014 was the beautiful and striking “The Banner Saga.”

“The Banner Saga” is the first-born son of Stoic Studio, an independent game development company created by three former BioWare employees who had worked on “Star Wars: The Old Republic.”

The trio followed the increasingly common trend of abandoning steady work at a large studio to start their own company, and they raised nearly $750,000 in a crowd-funding campaign to get them on their way.

When I reviewed the Viking-inspired sword-and-sorcery title back in January, I was struck by its four main strengths: a dazzling art style rooted in a familiar place, a harsh storyline fit for times of war, the resurrection of “Final Fantasy Tactics” combat and the best musical score in video game history.

Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2014/12/19/4293922/best-video-game-of-2014-is-the.html#storylink=cpy
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S

shingonation

Member
Meristation: Dragon Age Inquisition
http://www.meristation.com/pc/reportaje/juego-del-ano-2014/2029997

Softonic: Dark Souls II
http://artykuly.softonic.pl/najlepsze-gry-2014-roku

Entertainment Buddha : Dragon Age: Inquisition
http://www.entertainmentbuddha.com/2014-golden-buddha-video-game-awards/7/

UOL: Bayonetta 2
http://jogos.uol.com.br/videos/assi...o-de-2014-pelo-uol-jogos-04028C1C386CC4995326

Z-Giochi: Dragon Age: Inquisition
http://www.z-giochi.com/speciali/z-giochi-awards-2014-i-vincitori-136127
 
T

Tripon

Member
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/12/19/bleeding-cools-game-year-2014/

Bleeding Cool's GOTY is Dragon Age: Inquisition

I know judging by the comments I got on the review, this selection might anger a few older fans of the franchise, but I draw a blank when I try to think of a more complete experience this year than Dragon Age: Inquisition. It’s a 50-100 hour adventure that still has a finger on detail in a year where AAA titles have stumbled in that department on substantially smaller games. That’s refreshing. Dragon Age: Inquisition has a compelling story and a living world where you are more or less given free reign to explore. The game is huge, polished, compelling and really well written, exploring issues deeper than its station would suggest. I am happy to give Inquisition this years Game of the Year award, because honestly, it deserves it.
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http://o.canada.com/technology/gaming/the-top-7-video-games-of-2014
Canada.com gives it to Shadow of Mordor

For me, Shadow of Mordor came out of no where. I didn’t expect to enjoy the game and I’m not even particularly enamored with the Lord of the Rings universe, but my gaming experience with Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor is by far my favourite of the year.

Shadow of Mordor’s Nemesis system allows players to create their own story. Do you feel like helping a low-ranking Orc catapult through his societies’ complicated social structure? You can make that happen, and then also use him for intel in the process.

A game that was once made fun of for being an Assassin’s Creed knock-off surpassed the latest Assassin’s Creed title, Assassin’s Creed Unity, in almost every possible way. It also helped that Shadow of Mordor is one of the best looking games on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Stabbing orcs is an immense amount of fun.
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http://za.ign.com/dragon-age-iii/87545/feature/and-ign-africas-game-of-the-year-results-and-compe
IGN Africa GOTY is Dragon Age: Inquisition as well.
 
Yoshi

Yoshi

Headmaster of Console Warrior Jugendstrafanstalt
sn00zer said:
I think the difference is pubs would rather give GOTY to games that did something different, but slightly flawed (Shadow of Mordor, DA:I) rather than something old done incredibly well (Smash).
Click to expand...

While I don't want to argue that Smash is worthy of a GotY award (it is one of the few candidates I haven't played), Shadow of Mordor is really superficial (the change in the gameworld is miniscule) in what it does new and it acts mechanically illogical in that regard (making the game more difficult if you fail more). The whole base gameplay is stolen from Assassin's Creed and Batman and it does the fighting worse than the source-material and it also has a way more uninteresting overworld for traversal than the second source-material. I'm actually kind of shocked that such a derivative game gets so many GotY awards without trumping the source material.
 
T

Tripon

Member
http://www.theskinny.co.uk/latest/309787-games_2014

The Skinny gives it to MGS: Ground Zeroes

Love them or hate them, Metal Gear Solid games are renowned for their lengthy cut scenes and occasionally laboured exposition. Those traits couldn’t be further from the reality when it comes to Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes. Set up as the prologue to upcoming main event The Phantom Pain, Ground Zeroes makes it into our top ten for being the epitome of quality over quantity. The setting is, for all intents and purposes, based around Guantanamo Bay and the subtext of what black sites stand for. Whilst its main campaign lasts for only a couple of hours, if you take your time you can expect that to lengthen to ten.

For the first time in Metal Gear history you’ll find yourself in a non-linear sandbox experience, which essentially changes everything. You can infiltrate areas in any which way you choose and the insanely well-crafted AI responds accordingly. You can tell that painstaking care was taken in every facet of the game and nothing feels supplementary; everything is there for a well-defined reason. Whilst stealth is still Ground Zeroes’ bread and butter, the difference is you’re now given the freedom to approach missions in any way you wish and there are many different ways of completing objectives. Whilst it might not be as lengthy as other titles, Ground Zeroes is about as pure a gameplay experience as you can get. [Tom Hillman]
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S

SykoTech

Member
Tripon said:
http://gamecity.org/prize/

Gamecity gives it to Papers Please.

Celebrity Cafe gives it to Smash Brothers Wii U.

http://thecelebritycafe.com/feature/2014/11/top-10-retail-video-games-2014?page=11


Complex gives it to Mario Kart 8.

http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2014/12/best-video-games-2014/mario-kart-8
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I have personally never heard of these sites, therefore their votes shouldn't count. What they have to say obviously isn't as important as GameSpot or IGN.

People were really desperate last year, lol.
 
J

JNA

Banned
Glad DA:I is getting nice recognition. It deserves it. Bioware is finally back! :D

Can't wait to see these kind of results in Mass Effect 4. :)
 
J

JNA

Banned
jschreier said:
The concept of "GOTY" has become increasingly stupid and useless, given the breadth of games released every year -- how do you compare Threes to Hearthstone to Dragon Age etc. -- so I think Kotaku's approach will look a bit different this year, but I'll definitely be fighting for Danganronpa in whatever we do.
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You are a good person.

You have my sword.
 
U

USC-fan

Banned
Love a list of the scores these gamse got at the sites they won GOTY.

Find it just weird like gamespot giving GOTY to a game they gave a 8 to... wonder if this happens a lot.
 
T

Tripon

Member
http://www.pockettactics.com/features/awards/editors-choice-game-year-2014-80-days/

Pocket Tactics chooses 80 days as their Game of the Year

http://www.torontosun.com/2014/12/23/the-best-video-games-of-2014

Toronto Sun gives it to Dragon Age Inquisition.

http://www.denofgeek.com/games/top-10-games-of-2014/33287/top-10-videogames-of-2014

Den of Geek also gives it to Dragon Age Inquisition.

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/daily-news-top-50-video-games-2014-article-1.2054543

NYDaily News picks Shadow of Mordor as their Game of the year.

http://www.battlecreekenquirer.com/.../game-guide-jackbox-party-game-year/20818005/

Battle Creek Enquirer gives Game of the Year to the Jackbox Party Pack.
 
M

Matriox

Member
weekev said:
Also games that arent particularly good always get forgotten. Titanfall nowhere to be seen so far.
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Titanfall not particularly good? You crazy. Sure it wasn't as fleshed out as it should have been but I'd throw it up there on my favorite games of 2014 list no questions.
 
N

neogaffer1

Banned
Matriox said:
Games that come out early in the year always get forgotten. Titanfall nowhere to be seen so far.
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weekev said:
Also games that arent particularly good always get forgotten. Titanfall nowhere to be seen so far.
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Matriox said:
Titanfall not particularly good? You crazy. Sure it wasn't as fleshed out as it should have been but I'd throw it up there on my favorite games of 2014 list no questions.
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Titanfall was pretty damn great, it's getting snubbed because it released so early in the year. A very large amount of people on GAF really want to hate it and act like it bombed for some reason, but it's still a very fun game. Had more fun in it than I've had in any multiplayer for a very long time. In CoD or BF, if you're not the best in the game you start to get bored of the game and just feel like you're not doing well compared to the players who are really good at the game. Titanfall never had that problem, a lack of content was its only problem.
 
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