スネクのテレビゲームの賞へようこそ。
Welcome to suneku's video game awards of 2008! And boy oh boy has this been a year filled with great games or what? Unfortunately, there can be only one winner (because that's how the world works), and there will be some game's still left off. I went with categories that really meant something to me. I also tried really hard to not give MGS4 for a bunch of awards just to give some love to other games. If you don't like what I chose, then sucks for you, go make your own list so I can hate on it. I also was going to do a top 10 list also, but then realized most of my top 10 is already mentioned in one of the awards so I scrapped that idea. Anyways, hope you all enjoy!Best Graphical Art
Winner: Prince of Persia
I personally thought cell shading was going to die out since it seemed most developers were going for more of realism now. But with Tales of Vesperia, and now Prince of Persia, these games showed how beautiful cell shading can be when done right. So I went with Prince of Persia because the colors were awesome. I really like the character designs also. More specifically, I like Elika's design. And so, Prince of Persia wins this award for creating such a colorful and beautiful world to swing around in.
Best Technical Graphics
Winner: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
From the pre-rendered scenes all the way to the in game graphics, everything looked so smooth and realistic. I'd find myself just sitting out in the snow and watching ice build up on Snake's Octocamo, it looks absolutely amazing. There were some awesome pre-rendered scenes too, more specificially this one part where Drebin drives through the fence, I still can't get over how real it looked. Just playing the game at some parts looked like they were pre-rendered, it was just amazing.
Best Sound Design
Winner: Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
The sound in this game was just flat out amazing. Hearing gunfire off in the distance, and be able to pinpoint that location just based on hearing the sound just amazes me. The gunfire, the vehicles, the weather, they all have amazingly realistic sound. And just turning the camera around and faintly hearing a sound on one side really makes you feel like you're in the game.
Best Storyline
Winner: Grand Theft Auto IV
This was a toughie, I could have easily just given it to MGS4 due to my fanboyism, but the thing GTA4 has over MGS4 is that you don't need to play the previous games and research the hell out of it to pick up, play, and understand. But I really enjoyed GTA4's story. It really made you care for Niko and what he's been through. Choices during the main story is the trend nowadays, but GTA4 doesn't go overboard with making you choose sides, and thus, doesn't complicate the story. Niko's supporting cast was pretty strong too, adding to the depth of the story. You eventually feel for his friends as if they were your own, and those are signs of great story telling.
Best Gameplay
Winner: Fallout 3
Despite me knocking on its real time shooting mechanics, it's still decent enough to get by. But it was the V.A.T.s system that made me choose Fallout 3 for this category. Being able to choose between different gameplays, by using either an RPG style gameplay to real time shooting was refreshing. Plus, V.A.T.s+bloody mess perk=pure awesomeness. I love how you can blow a guy's entire body with a swift head shot, it's just so beautiful.
Best Soundtrack
Winner: Lost Odyssey
I chose Lost Odyssey for best soundtrack because, being a JRPG, it's heavily dependent on its music throughout the game. Wherever you are in Lost Odyssey, you'll hear soothing music that makes you understand that world. Not to mention, it was composed by the great Nobuo Uematsu, so you know it's definitely great quality of music.
Best Voice Acting
Winner: Final Fantasy IV DS
When it comes to their Final Fantasy games, they handle production very well and always seems to get the best voice acting talent for their storied franchise. These voice actors do a magnificent job giving you the feel for those characters without breaking the tension. The actors also sounded how you'd think that character would sound like, which is what makes it the best.
Best New Character
Winner: The Dog (Fable 2)
I just absolutely loved this dog. Unlike Dogmeat, he can't die! Which is magnificent because there were so many opportunities for my dog to die. But he just doesn't and continues to find you treasures. I loved how he evolves as your character evolves. It gave you a great connection to your K-9 companion and makes you really care for him.
Best Multiplayer Game
Winner: Left 4 Dead
You and three other people are stranded in city filled with zombies. And when you start feeling the pressure of the massive amounts of zombies coming, or you get yoinked and strangled by a random tongue, you'll love the fact that you have teammates backing you up. Left 4 Dead really forces you to use team work if you want to survive. And when you and other people are panicking, it can open up to some really interesting conversation/screaming/bitching.
Best Downloable Game
Winner: Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
One of the best fighting games that ever existed, gets remade into high definition, brand new redrawn sprites, balancing, and great online play. This game brings back so many memories. How can you go wrong with the game with the long acronym?
Best Nintendo DS Game
Winner: The World Ends with You
I would've given this award to Final Fantasy IV DS, but I already gave it something so I chose The World Ends with You. It was between this and Chrono Trigger, but I just went with this one because it's an original IP and just flat out fun. It's definitely refreshing.
Best PSP Game
Winner: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7
Crisis Core shows off how powerful the PSP can be. Being a direct prequel of one of the best games of all time, arguably, you can expect the story to be solid. The gameplay was fun, I liked how Square implemented the missions for easily playing and going. I hadn't played Final Fantasy 7 in a while, so when I hopped on Crisis Core, it was so great seeing familiar areas. They went for a more action oriented battle system similar to Kingdom Hearts, and I thought they did this battle system well. It got repetitive at times, but it was still fun to play.
Best Nintendo Wii Game
Winner: Super Smash Bros. Brawl
This is the Wii game I spent most of my time playing this year, mainly with my friends of course. But there's nothing better then beating the crap out of your friends with famed video game mascots.
Best Xbox 360 Exclusive
Winner: Fable 2
Fable 2's world was just so beautiful. I can find myself just running around checking out the environment as the seasons change. The gameplay, even though it was simple, was just flat out fun. Being able to slash your sword for some nice looking combos, and switching to your gun just like that to blast someone in the face, coupled with some magic spells, it felt so gratifying.
Best Playstation 3 Exclusive
Winner: Valkyria Chronicles
You're probably wondering "whoa whoa whoa, why didn't you just pick MGS4?" Well, Valkryia Chronicles does so many things right for a stale genre. The cell shading, like I said earlier for Prince of Persia, was amazing and definitely changed my perception of it in this day and age. The story was great, and the gameplay was definitely different. But in a good way, it's refreshing to see JRPGs trying to do new things with their battle systems.
Most Original Game
Winner: Mirror's Edge
When we think of a first person perspective game, it usually involves shooting. But Mirror's Edge tries something new. Putting you in the shoes of Faith, you jump around rooftops and fight enemies hand to hand. Rarely utilizing any of the firearms in the game, and sure there are some issues with the game. But it's definitely a great stepping stone for future games.
Most Disappointing Game
Winner: Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
With the hype leading up the game and the developers praising their game mechanic so much, it felt like the next great Star Wars game. Being a Star Wars fan and with it being taking place between Episodes III and IV, it was definitely something to get excited about. However on release day, it failed to delivery. The gameplay was buggy and stiff, a combo that dreads any gamer. The story, though decent, was still a let down with plot holes and a rushed ending.
GAME OF THE YEAR
WINNER: METAL GEAR SOLID 4: GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS
Well if you were wondering why I didn't give MGS4 best PS3 game, here's your answer. I was already giving it game of the year so it was a great opportunity to give some love to Valkyria Chronicles. But on to MGS4, as a long time fan, there were so many things that in my opinion, was done right in this game. Firstly, it was that all the plot holes got closed up. Then, these are some of the best graphics (pre-rendered and real time) I've ever seen. The gameplay, though now more oriented towards a third person action adventure, had so much depth to it. There were so many different CQC moves, the possiblities were endless. I loved how different it was to CQC with a two handed weapon vs a one handed weapon, definitely made it less repetitive. Kojima also made Raiden cool, I even went back and played MGS2 again because of how cool Raiden was in this game. I just loved everything about this game. I played through this game like thirteen times this summer, and I'll most likely play it some more later on.
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