Hello? This is Hailun!
Member
My SO already doesn't like videogames. Both The Witness and Firewatch made her think I had lost my mind. She thought both were incredibly boring.
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Giant Bomb GoTY 2016- Agent 47, take out that Doom Marine
- Thread starter BreezyLimbo
- Start date
My SO already doesn't like videogames. Both The Witness and Firewatch made her think I had lost my mind. She thought both were incredibly boring.
I like that Alex and Dan were able to get their personal favorites onto the list, despite not having much support from the overall staff. Underdogs are great, even if they only wind up in the #8-10 slots.
That said, I can't wait for the year when there are 4-5 games that only 1-2 staffers love, and everyone is forced to debate it out. Can you imagine how cut-throat 2016 would have been if it was Stardew Valley vs Thumper vs Destiny vs Invisible Inc vs Mario Kart 8 vs DOTA2?
That said, I can't wait for the year when there are 4-5 games that only 1-2 staffers love, and everyone is forced to debate it out. Can you imagine how cut-throat 2016 would have been if it was Stardew Valley vs Thumper vs Destiny vs Invisible Inc vs Mario Kart 8 vs DOTA2?
Basileus777
Member
It's kind of infuriating how the video games pushing narrative to the forefront are those with some of the clumsiest writing. Indie games should be pushing the envelope when it comes to this but for the most part they are actually responsible for a lot of the worst writing in the industry. It's sad when you can't trust walking sims devoted entirely to narrative to deliver at all on their premise because most of them fail there.
Death Metalist
Member
Titanfall 2, Inside, Overwatch, Hitman, Superhot, God Eater 2, DOOM, Uncharted 4, Abzu, Mafia 3, Thumper, Firewatch, Stardew Valley, Gears of War 4, Superhot VR, The Witness & Oxenfree.
Jeff is just pulling out nitpicky stuff to rile them up, imo
BreezyLimbo
Banned
to be fair that dva/lucio interaction is cringey
Dangansona
Member
Yeah its cool that Game Informer makes an effort to do that. I'll be interested to see their list.
As I near the end, the Uncharted is stale comments are killing me. Four games that are fairly unconventional in their genre and have killer stories and characters. And they didn't like the pirate ship yard battle? Hate to resort to this, but they were probably playing it wrong (stuck to cover in one spot).
Hello? This is Hailun!
Member
It's just Twitteraction.
"Oh this guy is famous and I'm famous so I need to say nice things to them publicly."
ffejeromdiks
Banned
Lol, the game pretty much rewards you for lazily sticking to cover, any attempt to do something flashy or creative is quickly met with death so of course your gonna just camp in cover when you've been bored with the half baked combat system for most of the game. The combat encounters were total slogs by halfway through the game so I cant blame them for accelerating the final encounter so that it would finally end, coming off of that dull ass final climbing section I know I just wanted to be done with the game, and the series.
bigdaddygamebot
Member
Everyone giving everyone else's top 10 lists a chance would make for some great discussions and pretty entertaining to boot.
Finished listening to these yesterday. I think I agree with Brad at the end when he said that he felt like they don't really discuss the actual games when it comes to the top 10. It all becomes very conceptual and game-y in it's own right just trying to presage and preempt what strategies other staff members are going to try to oppose or go along with rather than just talking about the games' merits. First and second place get a lot of in depth discussion though, and that took a while, so I can see why it turns out that way.
I think almost everyone could have called which game would win best soundtrack. Anything with a John Carpenter/Carpenter Brut sound to it is at least going to make top 3.
Also—and I'm not sure if I'm just now noticing it—the staff (mostly Alex and Jeff) say "that thing" all the time when referring to a game. I've noticed over the years that each GOTY's discussions tend to have a pet phrase used by the group.
I think almost everyone could have called which game would win best soundtrack. Anything with a John Carpenter/Carpenter Brut sound to it is at least going to make top 3.
Also—and I'm not sure if I'm just now noticing it—the staff (mostly Alex and Jeff) say "that thing" all the time when referring to a game. I've noticed over the years that each GOTY's discussions tend to have a pet phrase used by the group.
I think if people had fought Jeff on Titanfall 2 or Superhot being a lock for Top 10 it pretty much would have been that this year. After the whole situation with Best Moment things probably would have gotten ugly.
cr_blah_blah
Member
The only problem with that is that those top 10 lists are mostly created the week they are put up, which is after deliberations. They could do top 10 lists earlier but considering they usually record game of the year stuff in early December they would have to create them in November and somehow find time to play all of that stuff during one of the busiest times of the year. The only way they could make it work is if they pushed GOTY back into January.
opticalmace
Member
I think part of it is because the games inevitably get a lot of discussion on the previous days and in previous categories (well, usually). Maybe?
i would love if Jeff posted in GAF more but he only posts too put people in their place if they go too far. Monsterdunk'd
Awesome, thank you.
ThanksVision
Member
MonsterDunk
Vincent Grayson
Member
I finally finished up all this stuff a day or so ago, and it was a pretty great year this year.
That said, if I never have to hear Alex get all shrill and upset about people not liking a thing he likes, that'd be awesome. I don't always disagree with him, but he somehow protests in the most obnoxious way (Dan too, to some extent).
Also, Jeff's whole "we can't give it to Doom because part of it is bad" thing bugged the shit out of me, because it really felt like he'd have happily championed it if the game was just the SP campaign, which was clearly (based on the rest of their discussion) good enough to win GOTY on its own.
That said, if I never have to hear Alex get all shrill and upset about people not liking a thing he likes, that'd be awesome. I don't always disagree with him, but he somehow protests in the most obnoxious way (Dan too, to some extent).
Also, Jeff's whole "we can't give it to Doom because part of it is bad" thing bugged the shit out of me, because it really felt like he'd have happily championed it if the game was just the SP campaign, which was clearly (based on the rest of their discussion) good enough to win GOTY on its own.
I get that too. They don't want to be there for an entire day discussing ranking.
Somebody mentioned doing secret votes for the first round of top 10 contenders which I think could be an interesting way to get some unfiltered voting into the mix. At least initially.
Ya the way Jeff was going on and on about the multiplayer....who cares? I guess I can see where is coming from that Doom multiplayer was a big part of the series, but that was a long ass time ago.
No one gives a shit when a battlefield comes out and the singleplayer sucks. If Doom is GOTY due to the single player alone, then it should be GOTY. No one is forcing anyone to play the multiplayer portion.
The multiplayer wasn't the reason Doom lost to Hitman, it was Jeff's initial reason but most of the rest of the guys made pretty strong arguments for why Hitman deserved to be GOTY that had nothing to do with Doom's multiplayer.
AwakenedCloud
Member
I always assumed
. It's nice when they don't beat you over the head with what they were going for.
Also, the funniest moment to me that nobody noticed was when Brad argued that Trico shouldn't be nominated for Best New Character as it doesn't speak and then, less than 5 minutes later, says that if the Doom Slayer wasn't an old character he would easily walk away with the category.
that's where the subtitle "Drake's Deception" came from
Also, the funniest moment to me that nobody noticed was when Brad argued that Trico shouldn't be nominated for Best New Character as it doesn't speak and then, less than 5 minutes later, says that if the Doom Slayer wasn't an old character he would easily walk away with the category.
firehawk12
Subete no aware
I thought it was well known that "Drake" was just something he picked up to try to give himself some legitimacy and self-esteem. At least I must have picked that up somewhere, despite having not finished UC4.
D
Deleted member 10571
Unconfirmed Member
Tsk. If Alex had more say, all lists would only end up better :/ He gives up way too early, I can't even count all the "I just wanted to say this piece" comments anymore.
ratcliffja
Member
He played a lot of games into which nobody else put any serious time, so it's good that he mentioned a lot of extra stuff. Otherwise, it would be just a celebration of a few great games but without much variety.
ffejeromdiks
Banned
It doesn't matter that he doesn't speak, he expresses so much character with just subtle (or blunt) arm and leg movements that it should be applauded, Trico is impressive but I think it's MUCH more impressive to convey personality and character from a mute in the first person perspective with the absolute bare minimum of interaction.
I also disagree completely with Brad that it's an "old character" I know a lot of people, Brad included are trying to headcanon their way into making Doom 1 and 2's doomguy being the same character, but the data logs in Doom 2016 make it abundantly clear that the Doom Slayer is an ancient alien of some kind of precursor civilization, not the human marine of games past.
Fantastapotamus
Wrong about commas, wrong about everything
If everybody did that they would discuss like 15 games total
People listening to these for tight, expedited experiences are coming to Giant Bomb GOTY casts for the wroooooooong reason.
There's a reason we're all excited to see days with 3+ hour discussions.
I'm pretty sure it's been said before but Alex's tear down of the Palmer Luckey alt right nazism fiasco should get him a damn medal. Im glad he had the balls to state the fact that you cannot seperate the politics from the games past a certain point.
It's telling that even Jeff was 100% on his side by the end and did a total 180. That's good discourse and is an awesome example of how great Giant Bomb is.
It's telling that even Jeff was 100% on his side by the end and did a total 180. That's good discourse and is an awesome example of how great Giant Bomb is.
Alex plays the greatest variety of games out of the entire team. If he didn't bring up those games, none of them would be getting props when they damn well ought to.
Alex doesn't get near the respect he deserves tbh. He's a great writer and often speaks to the aspects of games (narrative, artistic intent) that get dismissed by the majority of the rest of the crew, barring Vinny and (sometimes) Brad. He was the only one fighting fucking Doom getting a place in best story over Firewatch, and I appreciate the hell out of him for it.
Zomba13
Member
15 is a bit optimistic.
firehawk12
Subete no aware
He's the only one who still cares about the reviews on the site, so it makes sense. lol
orthodoxy1095
Banned
Regarding the whole DOOM thing, I actually think I'm on Jeff's side (although it did end up on his Top Ten lol).
A) Doom's multiplayer is an incredibly important part of its legacy. It's fine to say that you only played the single-player stuff when the first game was released, but you can't dismiss what multiplayer meant for Doom in '93. We're talking about a game that became so popular that it notoriously would clog computer networks because so many people were playing deathmatch. Hell, the term deathmatch comes from Doom.
B) The comparison to games like Battlefield is disingenuous at best. The entire legacy of Battlefield, outside of recent spinoffs like Bad Company, is found in its multiplayer. Particularly its large-scale vehicular combat focus. It seems a bit ludicrous to complain that Battlefield isn't held to the same standard when the standard is obviously different for a clearcut historical reasons.
C) With that said, games are packages. If your game has a major component (especially one that is historically important to your franchise) that is mediocre or plain bad, I think that's a significant mark against it. I'm just a no-name schmuck on the internet, but that's precisely why I left both Doom and Battlefield 1 off of my list, because I have serious reservations about the MP and SP of those games respectively. I think ignoring a major component of a game like that gets us into weird questions of when and why we can ignore poor parts of other games.
Note:
A) Doom's multiplayer is an incredibly important part of its legacy. It's fine to say that you only played the single-player stuff when the first game was released, but you can't dismiss what multiplayer meant for Doom in '93. We're talking about a game that became so popular that it notoriously would clog computer networks because so many people were playing deathmatch. Hell, the term deathmatch comes from Doom.
B) The comparison to games like Battlefield is disingenuous at best. The entire legacy of Battlefield, outside of recent spinoffs like Bad Company, is found in its multiplayer. Particularly its large-scale vehicular combat focus. It seems a bit ludicrous to complain that Battlefield isn't held to the same standard when the standard is obviously different for a clearcut historical reasons.
C) With that said, games are packages. If your game has a major component (especially one that is historically important to your franchise) that is mediocre or plain bad, I think that's a significant mark against it. I'm just a no-name schmuck on the internet, but that's precisely why I left both Doom and Battlefield 1 off of my list, because I have serious reservations about the MP and SP of those games respectively. I think ignoring a major component of a game like that gets us into weird questions of when and why we can ignore poor parts of other games.
Note:
I am a gigantic hypocrite that put Hitman on my list even though it has the always-online thing which only very recently has begun to be repaired.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
this was funny
Vinny losing it when Mass Effect 2 got cut was also amazing. poor guy.
2016: The Year Alex Became Best Bomb Duder
But almost always ht e'best games' have huge knocks like that, throwaway modes that aren't actually GOTY material. It's not truly important that Doom's multiplayer is bad because the game is a complete package without it.
Like, does Overwatch lose points for not having a campaign, moreso than if it had one and it was pure trash? It should basically play out the same because you're getting the same way either way.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
I think not having a campaign is a mark agains Overwatch, sure. Especially with the well-loved characters they crafted. I think there is an important difference to me though between not having an aspect of a game and putting in a shitty aspect. So Overwatch gets a small mark for not having a campaign, but I would have marked it much more heavily if it had a shoddy campaign.
Same with Doom, would I have been annoyed with no multiplayer? Sure. And yet I would have much preferred for them to not waste a single iota of work on that shitty multiplayer at all.
But to be honest, like I said, Doom is also in a unique spot. You could easily make the claim that a Doom without a well-crafted multiplayer and campaign is not and could never be a full package.
Sleeping Lesson
Member
Alex was the MVP of the game of the year, except for his bizarre love Fire watch. He has come a long way on his podcast skills. He brought up so many games that needed to be talked about and his Palmer Lucky speech was brilliant.
My favorite moment was Drew actually being angry talking about that plane sim and Vinny being right about Mass Effect 2.
Biggest disappoint was Press X to time travel not winning best moment. It was so good.
My favorite moment was Drew actually being angry talking about that plane sim and Vinny being right about Mass Effect 2.
Biggest disappoint was Press X to time travel not winning best moment. It was so good.
Personally, I'm getting really tired of hearing "We can remove this, I just wanted to say something positive about it," and Alex is the worst of the entire team at that. I don't want to spend 75% of the discussion time listening to the "games that Alex likes and wants to tell you about" show. I'd prefer more depth in the discussions for the top games rather than hours of random shoutouts.
The end of the year talks are to celebrate the things that games did throughout the year. Limiting that to the obvious winners of a category not only tightens the breadth of games, but also they'd have spent nearly a third of the whole runtime fellating Doom, instead of a quarter of it.
Hearing bits of the Virginia OST is what convinced me to finally play it, and considering how prominent that fantastic OST is, I'm glad Vinny(?) brought it up.
bodyofanamerican
Member
I love Vinny's weird/off the beaten path recommendations. I'm still thankful that GOTY 2014 got me to try The Fall. I was so psyched about Virginia, bought it, and it immediately made me physically ill, and that bummed me out so much. Something about the framerate or FOV just didn't sit right with me, and could only play for 15 mins at a time before I started feeling super super nauseated.