GotG Final: Dark Souls vs. Mass Effect 2

@jimbo: Will it be the good one? Or will it be the one with the same story as Halo and Assassins Creed?

Both at 51% right this instant... wait, what?

EDIT: JESUS FUCK ME2 JUST CAME AHEAD.

@branwulf: I'm trying to cooperate with others to vote against Dark Souls, but since it hasn't been working I would suggest that its everyone else that hates jolly cooperation :D

@dixego said:

The percentages in this poll have been a little.. weird.

Can't fathom why people love Mass Effect 2 or Dark Souls? All that means is you were not able to enjoy something that a lot of people were capable of enjoying, and for some your natural reaction may be to find fault with the game and even those who were able to greatly enjoy it. Before you open the gates of hate, just remember: not everything is for you.

And that's the memo.

Mass Effect 2. Both would be on my short list as games I enjoyed the most this generation, but Mass Effect 2 was one of the greatest gaming experiences this generation for me.

The Vinny Effect in full swing pushing Dark Souls into the finals!

I voted ME2 because I think it is the superior game.

hey everyone! take a stand against me2!

Anything but Dark Souls.

Oh man, tied at 51% each, how does that even work?

Seriously...this is such a dismissive and lame copout. I'm honestly surprised how much I've seen it. People legitimately love this game and don't need Vinny's permission.

@branwulf: Dark Souls has the same story as Halo and AC??

@davidwitten22: so you hate a game that you haven't played?

that's just what i expect from opinions on the internet.

Mass Effect 2 - 51%
Dark Souls - 51%

This poll is breaking reality.

Ohhh, a close one. Gotta give my vote to ME2. BUT WHO WILL WIN? The tension...

If you're voting against Dark Souls without having played it (or even worse, without having played either DkS or ME2) you're basically scum.

You can't beat 102%.

Sorry Dark Souls but... Mass Effect 2 is THE game.

Mass Effect? More like Boring Effect, am I right?

oh for christ sakes, stop being snide.

People like Dark Souls. This is true whether Vinny is doing a segment for the game or not. Besides, I'm pretty sure Vinny was in the ME2 camp during the GOTY discussions that year. They're both good games, one of them is more unique than the other, which is probably why people gravitated towards it.

Honestly? If it were Witcher 2, I would vote for that over DS in a heartbeat. Or SR3. or CK2. but I can only pick from these two, so I have to pick my favorite.

Easy decision: Mass Effect 2.

It's the perfect title to summarize this generation. Dark Souls is neat oddity, nothing more.

@tonimckernt: I hate the game that came out before it which, from what I hear, is pretty damn similar to it. I mostly hate the game that beat three of my favorite games in a dumb internet poll all in a row. I don't actively go out and tell people that Dark Souls sucks or anything, I'm just campaigning for ME2 to win. Lighten up buddy.

I think I'm going to install Demon's Souls again and give it another shot.

Haha. But wait, dawg. You're being dismissive.

I can't take this...

Loved both games, but Mass Effect 2 was a transcendent experience for me, all the while making me care more for characters in a video game than I ever had before.

Meanwhile the atmosphere and tension that DS creates is just amazing. I voted for ME2 but both games are deserving and both are two of my all-time favs anyway.

Funny how many people are in denial of the fact people actually like Dark Souls and need to point out Vinny is playing it as the sole reason why the game got this far.

Of course it couldn't be that for 2 years now people have been screaming at the staff to play more Dark Souls.

Sure you can

I voted for Dark Souls, though both games are completely deserving of the title.

I know a lot of people legit love dark souls. This thread is evidence of that with all the people posting images/videos of their favorite moments, quotes, etc. Dark Souls arguably has one of the most enthusiastic fan bases of any recent game. It is all the other people that have not played it and are voting for it because Vinny has been playing it that have been really pushing it over the edge in a lot of the polls. At least it seems that way to me.

OOOH! COLLUSION!!!!!

I really like ME2. I've voted against Dark Souls in every round because I did not find it fun & feel bad that I wasted £20 on it. I still expect the rapid Dark Souls fanbase to secure the victory for them though.

Both completely worthy of being in the finals, but it's an easy win for ME2 for me.

@davidwitten22: hating something implies, at least for me, that there is some deeper knowledge about the matter. i just think that "hate" is maybe a too strong of a word in your case. i don't mind you or anyone voting for their favorite game of course.

i might sound like a D, but i'd just hope that people only participate in polls when they actually played both games. though i know that this is too much to ask for in a poll like this.

I love the Mass Effect series. But I had to choose Dark Souls.

This is getting obnoxious.

Praise the goddamn sun. \o/

Dark Souls isn't going to win but I'm proud it made it this far.

@strangestories: Getting?

Mass Effect is everything I love about Star Wars and Star Trek mashed into one. Beautiful worlds, amazing, lovable characters, and it has a soul-stirring score. Mass Effect 2 improves upon that world so greatly, and it introduced us to Mordin and Thane, we got to see Wrex become the rightful ruler of his people, we got to take out an alien invasion in a no-hold barred suicide mission. It was the game that proves that you don't need to rely on massive setpeices (looking at you, ME3), but it has great RPG action and dialogue.

Also you can renegade interrupt a dude off a building and set some krogans on fire, so you know, that's cool.

I beat Mass Effect 2 like 5 times so....

Lets go mass effect! End the terrible run of Dark Souls!

@tonimckernt: I was doing that for the longest time, but I got frustrated after the Heavy Rain/Ghost Trick poll and a couple others because no one else was doing that. Anyways, I really strongly disliked my first attempts with Demon's Souls and I'm not sure what the sequel did to fix any of that, and I'm currently frustrated because I want to try this game that is apparently good enough to be (at worst) the 2nd greatest "game of the generation" (according to these forums), but there is no way for me to do as such without doing something illegal. So at worst this whole GOTG thing has encouraged me to try Demon's Souls again and give it a few more attempts. Maybe I'll fall in love with it and buy Dark Souls during the next Steam sale and I'll be converted, and maybe I'll still strongly dislike it and never want to touch it again.

At the end of the day though its just a mostly meaningless fun little forum battle, and I have to admit it wouldn't have been as fun without Dark Souls bringing out so many... strong emotions in people.

I personally haven't seen any evidence or posts of that happening at all. Are you just assuming it because you don't think Dark Souls could really be that well liked?

One thing we do know and have evidence for, however, are people that have not played Dark Souls and are still determined to vote against it whenever they can. We have people in this very thread saying as much.

I am intrigued by Dark Souls, but I love Mass Effect 2.

@dixego: Only like ~4 people *have* played it. That seems kinda relevant considering what we're voting for. We're talking about Game of the Generation, not Slightly-Obscure-Cult-Hit-Which-Vinny-Happens-To-Like of the Generation.

Sorry, but I don't like the Mass Effect universe, It's boring to me and if I explain why even more people will freak out at me, Dark Souls is the clear winner here in my opinion. And no, not because of Vinny's series, stop assuming that game only made it here because of Vinny. Feel free to flame me or whatever I probably won't even read your replies.

Dark Souls offers just too much more in the gameplay department than Mass Effect 2 for it to be any other answer.

Not only that but the simplification of Mass Effect 2 from ME1 is still a bummer.

@jimbo: You severely underestimate the number of people that have played Dark Souls.

Here is my illustrious list of favorite games ever:

The Secret of Monkey Island

Jagged Alliance 2

Silent Hill 2

Shadow of the Colossus

Red Dead Redemption

Dark Souls

... Mass Effect 2 is not in there. It was an alright game but ultimately shallow. The gameplay devolved into a boring corridor shooter that would give away its enemy encounters from miles away through the cover blocks everywhere. The story was pretty pathetic as well. It's only redeeming qualities were the aesthetics and some of the characters. Overall I enjoyed ME1 way more.

Dark Souls it is.