It's notable enough that Sucker Punch came out swinging on the PlayStation 3 with a game that was... not Sly Cooper. Not that there's anything wrong with Sly Cooper--and InFamous does retain some of that series' most notable mechanics--but it was a treat to see this talented studio come up with a new, darker setting and wrap it around some of the best open-world gameplay of the year.
An intriguing story with twists and momentum, a slew of side missions that tied into the game world and the fiction, a moral-choice system without much contrivance but with real effects on the gameplay... and all of it swaddled in a rough, sinister comic book world full of larger-than-life heroes and villains that will certainly lend itself well to the game's inevitable sequels. InFamous is a textbook example of how to roll out a great new franchise and give it legs that will carry it into the future.
The quality and breadth of the competitive multiplayer in the sequel to Call of Duty 4 was always a given. But Modern Warfare 2 might have shipped without a single-player campaign at all, with only its Special Operations cooperative mode to supplement the multiplayer, and still felt like a complete, satisfying package. It's got to say something that your two-player co-op mode is more varied and intense and satisfying than modes that support, three, four, or more players in other games.
Spec Ops succeeds through its sheer number and variety of missions that have you doing everything from working tag-team with one player in the air and another on the ground, to working stealthily in tandem, counting down over your voice chat to pull off synchronized headshots. Every one of the 23 missions feels different and satisfying in its own way, and they're all completely new, punishing, insane experiences on Veteran difficulty. Spec Ops simply sets a new standard for cooperative online play.
If 2009 was the year of the zombie, let's all hope that 2010 is the year of games (and movies and TV and every other conceivable form of media) giving the undead a well-deserved break. We get it, zombies are scary/funny/ironic/insert-superlative-here. But Valve is still doing a fantastic job of using the undead tastefully that's easy to still feel good about. Left 4 Dead 2 amped up the action with a greater range of common infected enemies--zombies in HAZMAT suits, zombie riot cops, zombie clowns (!)--and a wonderfully visceral new dismemberment system that let you take those guys out by blowing their arms, legs, and heads off with glee.
And it must be said that the "special" infected enemies transcend the form of the zombie altogether. The new additions like the spitter, charger, and jockey act and attack in unique ways you'd never expect out of the docile, shambling mall-dwellers originally envisioned by George Romero. As long as Valve keeps expanding on the zombie milieu in such imaginative ways, we'd be happy to receive a third Left 4 Dead game any time.
All three of our nominees in this category aim to achieve very different things with their graphical presentation, and while each is stunning in its own way, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves takes it to another level. From the awesome scope of its exotic, international locales to the detailed character design and the incredibly fluid, naturalistic animation, the visuals consistently impress during both quiet dialog scenes and crazy explosive set-pieces. Even the way the camera moves can be impressive, and it says a lot when something so seemingly mundane has an appreciable positive impact on your experience. The graphics are a huge part of what makes Uncharted 2 such an effective thrill ride, and ultimately, this game is just a pure pleasure to look at.
A good ending to a story can serve a lot of purposes, not the least of which is tying the various threads of the plot together. But a great ending is one that also makes you stop and reflect on all the events that led up to it, and that's what the conclusion does in Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.
...You know, this is a really tough award to write about; the way Shattered Memories' story wraps up is such an important piece of the puzzle, giving away too much about it would diminish the effect of each individual preceding event, as it happens. The game gets stranger and more confusing as it goes, sort of like what David Lynch would probably make if he ever got into video game development. It's that last pivotal convergence of story vectors, the way the disparate parts of the mystery come together in the game's final moments that give all of it meaning and make you want to start right over, playing through again to view the game's scenes again in a different light. That those scenes can change dramatically and lead up to a new ending that's different in its particulars but consistent emotional impact is key to the game's success.
" Gotta disagree with inFamous taking best debut over Borderlands or even Dragon Age: Origins. Borderlands may not have gotten the same high reviews, but the 360 version alone in two months has almost outsold inFamous in five months (and crushed it cross-platform). The 360 version of Dragon Age is also on pace to outsell it dramatically (and has outsold it cross-platform). Maybe that's just the weak sony platform, but I would put both of those games as being better debuts. "
they dont mean sales wise obviously... and dragon age hasnt sold more than infamous, since infamous has at least 1mill sold, and dragon age is nowhere near that
I do hate the I'm-not-even-gonna-bother defeatist attitude of Ryan and co. sometimes, with games like Demon's Souls in particular. Anyone that actually took time to play that game found it incredibly difficult yes, but also FAR FAR more rewarding than arcadey throwaway bullshit like MW2.
@Rhaknar: Sales aside, they have had better debuts. Both titles are cranking out DLC which you wouldn't do unless there is demand for it. Even if vgchartz does have flawed gathering mechanisms for their numbers, they put InFamous at 1.1 mil, with DAO on the 360 and PS3 at 900,000 and 400,000 respectively. The PC numbers aren't even required to top InFamous.
I'm honestly surprised brutal legened wasn't nominated for best graphics, even if it didn't win. It has more aesthetic than batman and just as many polygons. It's certainly one of the best looking games released this year.
" @Rhaknar: Sales aside, they have had better debuts. Both titles are cranking out DLC which you wouldn't do unless there is demand for it. Even if vgchartz does have flawed gathering mechanisms for their numbers, they put InFamous at 1.1 mil, with DAO on the 360 and PS3 at 900,000 and 400,000 respectively. The PC numbers aren't even required to top InFamous. "
you say sales aside, and then proceed to talk about sales dude, dlc or not. I think they meant game wise only. and again, most of them didnt play dragon age, how many times must this be said :D
" Were was Killzone 2 in graphics nomination?! That one should be nominated! Fix this Giantbomb! It is inane not to even nominated that game.. "
Killzone's framerate isn't very steady. "
uhhh where do people pull this stuff out of? Killzone 2 never has any noticeable dip in framerate. hell I think even one of the reviews from IGN or Gamespot or something applauds Killzone for having such a good framerate while all the explosions are going off nonstop during some scenes. Bridge scene comes in mind.
" I do hate the I'm-not-even-gonna-bother defeatist attitude of Ryan and co. sometimes, with games like Demon's Souls in particular. Anyone that actually took time to play that game found it incredibly difficult yes, but also FAR FAR more rewarding than arcadey throwaway bullshit like MW2. "
so you want them not to dismiss the game you like, and then you dismiss the game you don't. that's a persuasive argument right there!
I gotta think that AC 2 and Splosion man's endings were better than Silent Hills. I mean the (SPOILER) "WHAT THE FUCK!!" from AC2 was pretty damn epic.
@Teirdome: I have a hunch they've already picked all the awards, and they're trying to spread them around a bit so the lists aren't repetitive. Dragon Age most likely is already lined up for a more important award.
Only thing I am confused about Borderlands was not even in the running for Co-op. So I must assume that it is being considered for a totally different category all in its own. Because it seriously is one of the best coop games I've ever played.
" I do hate the I'm-not-even-gonna-bother defeatist attitude of Ryan and co. sometimes, with games like Demon's Souls in particular. Anyone that actually took time to play that game found it incredibly difficult yes, but also FAR FAR more rewarding than arcadey throwaway bullshit like MW2. "
so you want them not to dismiss the game you like, and then you dismiss the game you don't. that's a persuasive argument right there! "
Yeah, except that's obviously not at all what I meant. It was clearly about the depth of those two games; MW2 should be in a fucking arcade cabinet, but they should still cover it.
Just reading about Silent Hill makes me think it is the game of the year when held in a light with David Lynch. It seems so totally different from everything, and accessable. Personally, from a full bodied game that offers almost everything and what it wanted to achieve, did it in spades, was Borderlands. Even still, Silent Hill: cudos to who ever decided to change the formula. Major cudos.
I'm sort of shocked why Left 4 Dead and Borderlands did not make the best co-op game list. Not to mention the omission of Killzone 2 from best graphics, even though Uncharted 2 should have this department nailed to the wall.
No borderlands love or KZ2 love. Infamous was good but borderlands was better. and the co-op is way better than mw2's imo. But it's their opinion, not mine. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. I mean this is America...i think.
I am rather surprised that Killzone 2 was not nominated in the "Best Graphics" award. For my money that is the only game to come out this year that really rivals Uncharted 2.
Shattered Memories really deserved Best Ending. Maybe I'm just burnt by all the cliffhangery endings in so many games now, but Shattered Memories ended in a way that made everything make a surprisingly large amount of sense. That and it was pretty darn powerful.
"Hahaha, your "Holiday Themed" Bombcast music sounds so much like a track from Silent Hill. It's very eerie, but I love that series. I cannot put my finger on which track exactly... I'll find it.
I get a Dark Chronicle, (Dark Cloud 2, if thats what its called in your region), vibe from the violin part.
Borderlands for best debut, co-op and graphics! Hell, might as well give it the Brad Shoemaker award while we're at it. Also, the ending of Borderlands had Claptrap - Interplanetary Ninja Assassin, I think that deserves and award too.
" Best Debut? What is the criteria for this? I think that this award should have gone to Dragon Age. Seriously, with how good that game is, there is no reason it should go to some bald retard shooting lightning out his ass. Just saying. I don't like bald video game characters. "
I don't know what criteria they are using, but Dragon Age doesn't seem like that much of a debut to me personally, since it is such a close spiritual successor to Baldur's Gate. It definitely has is own original fiction though, which is more than we can say for Batman, which is another game someone here touted as a best debut candidate.
I get the feeling that Dragon Age might be the GB crews best '09 game of next year, since nobody really got around to playing it this year.
" @Teirdome: I have a hunch they've already picked all the awards, and they're trying to spread them around a bit so the lists aren't repetitive. Dragon Age most likely is already lined up for a more important award. "
you have a feeling? they aren't in the office since last week, this is all already done, jeff himself said this was just so they had content to put up every day while they were on holiday break :P
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