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[Poimandres]

Hell yes. Speaking generally for this generation, I feel that Nintendo is at a creative zenith right now (hopefully not to end) while 10 years ago they were at one of their most uninteresting moments in my opinion.

Creative zenith? With this years games? They are quality releases no doubt (MK8 is best in series) but I don't know if I'd say they are at a "creative zenith" since this year is mostly solid sequels. Next year looks more interesting on that front for Nintendo, but I think you're right about 2004 odd being a bit of a dark time for them.

Everything else about 2004 though? blows 2014 away.

I don't think 2004 vs 2014 is a fair comparison though. Given where we are at with generation changes, I think a more apt comparison would be 2006. Next year is looking strong, but this year was a bit of a fizzer.

 

[Octavia]

Well, there's still a few more releases this year but on that list so far, 2014 sucked. Not a single game on there interests me beside Dark Souls 2 which I keep hearing is disappointing compared to the first anyways.

At least 2004 had Unreal and San Andreas. Snake Eater was pretty amazing too then.

Keep in mind, this is just personal preference. Not any kind of measurable game 'quality'.

 

[Theognosis]

I have to change my mind after checking that the ff games came out in 2004:

Astroboy: Omega Factor (GBA, the best handheld action game of all time)
Pokémon FireRed / LeafGreen (GBA)
Rome Total War (PC)
Outrun 2 (Xbox)
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War (PC)

2004 >>>>>>>>>>>> 2014

I stand corrected.

 

[Rockyrock]

I would say since my most anticipated 'game' this year is a remastering of games made 10+ years ago the answer is simply no.

 

[Strike]

Nope. It's not even close.

 

[Cassius]

2004 by a landslide.

Not even close.

 

[Dagobert Duck]

I read the thread title and thought...wait...I bet that originated in Wrestlegaf... and I guess it did?

On topic: I dont really think you can compare. I still like every Mario game although some of them are older than myself. If I game is fun I dont care which year it has been published. From time to time I still play SSX Tricky or Mario 64...

 

[Sephiroth_GR_]

Nope

 

[Paracelsus]

With the exception of racing games it's a complete total slaughter favoring 2004.

 

[Mr. RPG]

Nope, 2004 was better. Even with a new Smash in 2014.

Melee is gonna still be the best of the series anyway.

 

[Pyramid head]

I prefer some of the games on the 2014 list, but I played them before 2014, so 2004 wins.

 

[Crazyorloco]

Nintendo is on fire right now. And smash bros. Isn't even out. So yes.

 

[GravityMan]

Ninja Gaiden and Half-Life 2 alone smoke everything released in 2014, and I don't see that changing for the rest of the year. And then on top of that are outstanding games such as GTA San Andreas, Paper Mario TTYD, Far Cry, WoW, ...

2004 wins by a significant margin IMO, whether you're a console gamer, a PC gamer or both.

 

[Steel]

Kotor 2 came out in 2004, World of Warcraft came out in 2004, Halo fucking 2 came out in 2004. Fuck no.

 

[regenhuber88]

Shouldn't you wait until xmas to rate the '14 games?
GTA, SO, FH, DC, ACU.... a lot of stuff still coming out

 

[Triggerhappytel]

I don't think this is really a contest. 2004 had several releases which are timeless classics in general and in their genre, while 2014 has been the year of disappointments and delays.

Nintendo have had a good year so far, but nothing that compares to the likes of Ninja Gaiden, Half Life 2, Halo 2, San Andreas, Burnout 3, etc.

 

[gelf]

2004 wins and its not even close. Loved that era of gaming.

 

[Nemesis121]

Not by a long shot.

The industry was magical ten years ago.

Innovation was still fresh back then, today studio says we working on a new IP and it's just another fucking shooter with a new face, 10 years ago was awesome today the only evolving part of gaming is graphics, the indie scene is where all the fresh ideas is at, the major gaming scene is just thinking about the next DLC after they release their awesome new shooter..

 

[Ivory Samoan]

Great topic, brought back some memories!

These are my 2004 picks:

Battlefield Vietnam
UT 2004 (still the best).
Thief: Deadly Shadows
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay
Doom 3
Tales of Symphonia
Far Cry
Final Fantasy VI (so good)
Fable
Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War (so, so good).
Star Wars: Battlefront
Rome: Total War
Tribes: Vengeance
GTA: San Andreas
Half-Life 2 (confirmed)
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines (maybe the best RPG ever?)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
WoW (just wow.)
KotOR 2: The Sith Lords (so underrated, but quite broken)
Fallout BoS would have made the list because, Fallout...but yeah, it stinks.

vs 2014:

The Banner Saga
Bravely Default
Tales of Symphonia: Chronicles
South Park: The Stick of Truth (everyone should play this.)
The Walking Dead: Season 2
Dark Souls II
Hearthstone (so good..it hurts.)
Titanfall
MGS V: Ground Zeroes
Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea pt 2
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
Don Bradman Cricket (best cricket game, ever.)
The Elder Scrolls Online
Baldur's Gate EE on Android
XCOM EU on Android
Wolfenstein: The New Order (what a revelation this was!)
Watch_Dogs
Mario Kart 8
Valiant Hearts: The Great War
Shovel Knight
Divinity: Original Sin (maybe the best isometric RPG I've played)
TLoU Remastered
Ultra Street Fighter IV
Destiny (my current love.)
Wasteland 2 (backed.)
Hyrule Warriors
Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor (lore 101.)
Alien: Isolation
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
The Evil Within
The Legend of Korra
Lords of the Fallen
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
Halo: MCC (drool..)
WoW: Warlords of Draenor
Dragon Age: Inquisition (CE preordered.. so excited!)
Far Cry 4
GTA V: Revamped editions



Well, that's funny... I was sure I was going to say 2004 was better before writing out that list, but now... 2014 just seems utterly amazing.

So much win in the RPG and FPS departments.. I'm in overload.

I give the prize to the new kid in town, 2014 gets my vote.

 

[eso76]

Topping the year that gave us 3 of my top 5 games of all times (Ninja Gaiden. Half-Life 2, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ) isn't going to happen with today's industry, but we should wait 2014 to be over, since some of this year's most important releases are in the next few months.

Bayonetta 2
Alien Isolation
Driveclub
Horizon 2
Far Cry 4
GTAV Next Gen
Unity
COD AW
Evil Within
etc.

Not that anything from this list can top HL2 or MGS3, of course but there's still a lot of potentially good stuff.

Plus, the 2014 list is missing things like Infamous SS and it doesn't take a lot of minor releases into account. Valiant Hearts, Hohokum, Guacamelee and tons of others that can at least rival things like Metal Slug 3 from the 2004 list.


Then again, i just realized the 2004 list is missing Chronicles of Riddick and Psi Ops, both of which are at the very least in my top 10.

 

[Seanspeed]

Lets compare 2015 with 2005 in a year's time.

 

[Yasae]

Great topic, brought back some memories!

These are my 2004 picks:

Battlefield Vietnam
UT 2004 (still the best).
Thief: Deadly Shadows
The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay
Doom 3
Tales of Symphonia
Far Cry
Final Fantasy VI (so good)
Fable
Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War (so, so good).
Star Wars: Battlefront
Rome: Total War
Tribes: Vengeance
GTA: San Andreas
Half-Life 2 (confirmed)
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines (maybe the best RPG ever?)
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
WoW (just wow.)
KotOR 2: The Sith Lords (so underrated, but quite broken)
Fallout BoS would have made the list because, Fallout...but yeah, it stinks.

vs 2014:

The Banner Saga
Bravely Default
Tales of Symphonia: Chronicles
South Park: The Stick of Truth (everyone should play this.)
The Walking Dead: Season 2
Dark Souls II
Hearthstone (so good..it hurts.)
Titanfall
MGS V: Ground Zeroes
Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea pt 2
Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls
Don Bradman Cricket (best cricket game, ever.)
The Elder Scrolls Online
Baldur's Gate EE on Android
XCOM EU on Android
Wolfenstein: The New Order (what a revelation this was!)
Watch_Dogs
Mario Kart 8
Valiant Hearts: The Great War
Shovel Knight
Divinity: Original Sin (maybe the best isometric RPG I've played)
TLoU Remastered
Ultra Street Fighter IV
Destiny (my current love.)
Wasteland 2 (backed.)
Hyrule Warriors
Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor (lore 101.)
Alien: Isolation
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
The Evil Within
The Legend of Korra
Lords of the Fallen
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
Halo: MCC (drool..)
WoW: Warlords of Draenor
Dragon Age: Inquisition (CE preordered.. so excited!)
Far Cry 4
GTA V: Revamped editions



Well, that's funny... I was sure I was going to say 2004 was better before writing out that list, but now... 2014 just seems utterly amazing.

So much win in the RPG and FPS departments.. I'm in overload.

I give the prize to the new kid in town, 2014 gets my vote.

I struck the redundant or re-released/remastered, was generous and kept expansions/dlc. The list gets considerably weaker.

 

[Magic Mushroom]

Ask me again when the year is over and games like Bayo 2, Smash Bros and The Evil Within are out.

 

[UltraGunner]

2004 by a country mile. Compared to the first year of the 5th and 6th gen, this year's output is getting its lunch eaten.

 

[nogoodnamesleft]

14 barely beats any year, let alone 2004

 

[KungFucius]

The question is interesting, however the OP changed it's meaning to refer to only the top games. I thought this was going to be a discussion about overall game quality and not a pissing contest between 2 cherry picked lists of top AAA games. Most of the 2014 games have been delayed anyways.

 

[One4U]

No chance at all....

 

[Ivory Samoan]

I'm the only 2014 backer in here.... *shudders due to lack of hugs*

 

[Despera]

People should stop comparing 2001 to any other year because that's just unfair and cruel.

 

[Chainsawkitten]

By those games I don't care for either year. By my personal picks it's far too early to tell because I seldomly buy games at launch so I won't have played many 2014 games until in one-two years or so.

 

[HellofaMouse]

imo 2014 is one of the worst years in gaming, and you are comparing it to one of the best.

2013 on the other hand, has almost surpassed 04.

 

[sappyday]

I wasn't even into games back then and I haven't played most of them anyways and I would say it does not compare at all.

 

[ByakuyaEXT]

2004 for sure.

 

[RalchAC]

Why did you put Symphonia Hd on 2014 instead of Xillia 2?

Seeing at those game I will say no. I've had plenty of fun though. Toukiden, Tales of Xillia 2 and Destiny will probably be my most played games that have released this year. The latest is quite good if you've ignored the hype machine and jumped without knowing the promises and stuff Activision and Bungie made before release.

But I don't think there is anything as influential this year as WoW or HL2, to name some examples

 

[killatopak]

2004 - Best time to be a gamer.

 

[IcyEyes]

I don't know, probably 2004 reading that list, but the 2014 is a pretty good year (at least for me, since I play everything on every platform) and we still have to play:
Alien: Isolation
Driveclub
Super Smash Bros
The Evil Within (hidden gem ?)
Bayonetta 2
Civilization: Beyond Earth
Lords of the Fallen
Sunset Overdrive
The Crew
Dragon Age: Inquisition
LittleBigPlanet 3
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
Assassin's Creed Unity
etc

Anyway, you forgot to include Divinity second sin one of the best turn based RpG, also why did you skip games like Infamous SS ? Destiny ? etc (looks a pretty biased list!)

Hmm ... 2014 is a seriously good year.

 

[toddhunter]

2004 - Best time to be a gamer.

Maybe if you are very young. I give you 1994 for instance:

Sonic 3
SSF2 Turbo
Super Metroid
FF6
Tie Fighter
MK2
System Shock
Doom 2
UFO Enemy Unknown
Warcraft
Master of Orion
Donkey Kong Country
Kings Quest 7
Tekken
Wing Commander 3
Sensible world of soccer

Basically any year up until the "Halo effect" (as in, "want to be") kicked in.

 

[Benzychenz]

Anyway, you forgot to include Divinity second sin one of the best turn based RpG, also why did you skip games like Infamous SS ? Destiny ? etc (looks a pretty biased list!)

Neither list is comprehensive.

2004 is missing amazing stuff like Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

 

[Shion]

1998,2001,2004 were god-like.

You forgot 1994.

Super Metroid
Final Fantasy VI
Sonic & Knuckles
Donkey Kong Country
Mega Man X
Sega Rally
Virtua Cop
Virtua Fighter 2
Tekken
Killer Instinct
EarthBound
Breath of Fire II
Lunar: Eternal Blue
Doom II
Beneath a Steel Sky
System Shock
Contra: Hard Corps
Castlevania: Bloodlines
Demon's Crest
Dynamite Headdy
Earthworm Jim
Blackthorne
Ninja Warriors

 

[SmokedMeat]

Some real heavy hitters in 2004, but like 2014 it's a mix of stuff I care about and stuff I don't. I feel games have only gotten better over the years though, and 2014 deserves a Plants vs Zombies GW mention instead of Ninja Gaiden Yaibawhatever.

 

[killatopak]

Maybe if you are very young. I give you 1994 for instance:

Sonic 3
SSF2 Turbo
Super Metroid
FF6
Tie Fighter
MK2
System Shock
Doom 2
UFO Enemy Unknown
Warcraft
Master of Orion
Donkey Kong Country
Kings Quest 7
Tekken
Wing Commander 3
Sensible world of soccer

Basically any year up until the "Halo effect" (as in, "want to be") kicked in.

Well I was 1 year old in 1994.

 

[Laconic]

All I know is 1994 takes a colossal shit on BOTH 2014 and 2004.

EDIT:

Toddhunter knows what's up.

EDIT, EDIT:

As does Shion.

You both missed the debut of KoF, though.

 

[Carl]

To be honest there's not a lot from either year that interests me

 

[BeforeU]

Halo made 2004 special for lot of people, so I guess Halo collection coming this year is a fantastic deal. But other than that, just by looking at that list 2004 looks better.

 

[GeordieMark]

Ninja Gaiden
Unreal Tournament 2004
Burnout 3: Takedown
Mega Man Zero 3
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Counter-Strike: Source
Halo 2
Half-Life 2
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
World of Warcraft

All awesome games. 2014 has been barren by comparison.

There are some genuine all-time classics here. I can't think of any games released this year that will still be being played in 10 years time like WoW.

 

[Iva Demilcol]

imo 2014 is one of the worst years in gaming, and you are comparing it to one of the best.

2013 on the other hand, has almost surpassed 04.

This.

It's funny how many people keep posting lists of 2014 games that include remasters and ports, some of them HD re-releases of 2004 games.

And regarding 2013 I don't think it's as good as 2004 either.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Some are better, some are worse