My Games Of The Year 2009 - Part 1

I’ve decided to get my thoughts in order early on my games of the year. Over the next month I’ll be recollecting the games I’ve enjoyed the most.

WHAT IT IS

Skate 2, developed by EA Black Box, was released in January. Set in the fictional town of San Vanelona, it’s a open-world skating simulator where success is measured by your status among the world of skating magazines and community events. It’s a 84 on Metacritic. I wrote about it before here.

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT IT

Not a natural choice for many game of the year polls, I would guess. At its heart it is simply a very good skating game. But I think it’s more than that.

I don’t think the complexity of the controls in this game is given quite enough credit – it puts most other games to shame, sports or non-sports. Unusually for a game, all of your skills are unlocked when the game starts – what you are taught is the ability to implement all the subtle controls you already have. It’s not a question of simply pressing the right button at the right moment, you need all sorts of elaborate flicks of the sticks and co-ordinated keypresses. Easy to start, almost unbelievably hard to master. It’s one of the hardest games I have ever played, and I love it for that.

In many ways it does for an individual sports game what Burnout: Paradise did for racing. A huge sandbox in which to play, with gradually more difficult unlockable events and career paths. An achievement system for the best tricks and also a Hall Of Meat for the best wipeouts. Different skate-parks, different zones encouraging different styles of skating. But the career mode isn’t the fun part of the game – it’s simply being in the place and manipulating your character. You find one spot and you find a couple of hours pass while you try and master it.

The online ‘freeskate’ play is an absolute standout, which while a long way from perfect, is still one of the best online modes I’ve ever played. At the press of a button you are connected to whoever else is skating in your area of the city, and you can simply hang out then if you choose. You can try to wow each other with your party tricks. Or you can do one of a bewildering bunch of group events. What I love about it is that there’s no difference between a top-level player and a newbie – you’re all essentially in the same boat, and you trade on your skills and not on your status.

THE GAME’S LEGACY?

I think the online play is the eureka moment here. I see the next generation of sports games taking place in the equivalent of an MMO space – a persistent world for all players to hang out. And it’s a creative space where the usual rules of competitive gaming don’t have to matter at all – you don’t need a career here, or a set of achievements, you just need a skateboard and an avatar.

I’ve decided to get my thoughts in order early on my games of the year. Over the next month I’ll be recollecting the games I’ve enjoyed the most.

WHAT IT IS

Skate 2, developed by EA Black Box, was released in January. Set in the fictional town of San Vanelona, it’s a open-world skating simulator where success is measured by your status among the world of skating magazines and community events. It’s a 84 on Metacritic. I wrote about it before here.

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT IT

Not a natural choice for many game of the year polls, I would guess. At its heart it is simply a very good skating game. But I think it’s more than that.

I don’t think the complexity of the controls in this game is given quite enough credit – it puts most other games to shame, sports or non-sports. Unusually for a game, all of your skills are unlocked when the game starts – what you are taught is the ability to implement all the subtle controls you already have. It’s not a question of simply pressing the right button at the right moment, you need all sorts of elaborate flicks of the sticks and co-ordinated keypresses. Easy to start, almost unbelievably hard to master. It’s one of the hardest games I have ever played, and I love it for that.

In many ways it does for an individual sports game what Burnout: Paradise did for racing. A huge sandbox in which to play, with gradually more difficult unlockable events and career paths. An achievement system for the best tricks and also a Hall Of Meat for the best wipeouts. Different skate-parks, different zones encouraging different styles of skating. But the career mode isn’t the fun part of the game – it’s simply being in the place and manipulating your character. You find one spot and you find a couple of hours pass while you try and master it.

The online ‘freeskate’ play is an absolute standout, which while a long way from perfect, is still one of the best online modes I’ve ever played. At the press of a button you are connected to whoever else is skating in your area of the city, and you can simply hang out then if you choose. You can try to wow each other with your party tricks. Or you can do one of a bewildering bunch of group events. What I love about it is that there’s no difference between a top-level player and a newbie – you’re all essentially in the same boat, and you trade on your skills and not on your status.

THE GAME’S LEGACY?

I think the online play is the eureka moment here. I see the next generation of sports games taking place in the equivalent of an MMO space – a persistent world for all players to hang out. And it’s a creative space where the usual rules of competitive gaming don’t have to matter at all – you don’t need a career here, or a set of achievements, you just need a skateboard and an avatar.