What is the best next generation game of 2014?

Out of these games SoM but i wouldnt call them next gen games.

Bayonetta 2

WiiU could totally be considered "Next Gen" just as the Wii stood by the PS3 and 360.

Technically, the new consoles are current gen now.

Infamous: Second Son.

Wolfenstein The New Order, the only game which didn't disappoint me and exceeded my expectations.

D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die.

Bayonetta 2 not being on the poll seems like a massive oversight. Haven't played it yet obviously, but the demo seems to suggest that it'll take the crown quite easily. But then again, I'm confused as to why BF4 and Killzone: Shadow Fall are on a 2014 list.

100% this. It may not look next-generation but it's written and paced better than anything released this year. Wolfenstein got me with its characters in a way that I haven't experienced since the original Uncharted.

I know, right? Such a colorful set of character! Plus I totally got a "Inglorious Basterds" vibe from the tone and atmosphere t'll probably even take the first spot on "Best game of 2014 list" for me.

Pretty much this.

No Alien Isolation love?

Wolfenstein: The New Order is by far the best game 2014.

I'd go for Wolfenstein, too. It's refreshing to see a fully developed single-player story that has not been diluted by the need to put multiplayer in everything.

had more fun with that than any fps in years.

I'll get back to you once Dragon Age: Inquisition comes out. Love me some RPGs.

It's both a bit early yet with so many games releasing soon and also a vague definition for "next gen". Also, I haven't had the time, the money, or interest to play all of those games. Therefore, Shadow of Mordor wins pretty handily by being one of the most fun games I've ever played in any year, while clearly being hampered technologically in being shoehorned on to last gen consoles to the point where I wouldn't consider those releases to be the same game at all.

So far it has to be Wolfenstein: The New Order. Such a great surprise.

Exactly how I feel

I voted other just so I could say Alien, I'm a big Alien fan so you know, bias and stuff, but probably my favorite game this year so far. Then again haven't played all of them.

Titanfall but I haven't played Dragon Age or Bayonetta 2 yet so I can't answer this properly.

It's not time for this yet, but so far I'd say Alien Isolation.

until Ac: Unity, FC4 and DA:I are out, I don't think we can really say.

Right now I'd say it's between Mordor, Wolfenstein and Bayonetta 2.

I'd say Shadows of Morder simply because of how innovative it seems to be.

Though, if we're gonna sit here and actually call Bayonetta 2 "next-gen" then i guess I might have to go with that instead.

Battlefield and Killzone both sucked, but, more importantly than that, they came out last year.

So, Wofenstein, since Diablo 3 UEE can't win.

Given how much of a surprise SoM was (to be fair, mostly because I knew where its influences lay outside of the added nemesis system), I should really give that game a play before the year ends. I've heard a surprising level of praise and I really meant to at the time, but there was too much going on...

That said, I should also mention that Civilization: Beyond Earth hasn't quite released yet, and given my playtime with Civ V balanced with my skepticism for it being much more than a glorified expansion pack, I've mixed enough signals but am still inclined to believe it will steal away my soul and my life (lovelife inclusive there).

Bayonetta 2

Battlefield 4 and Killzone came out last year, why are they even in the poll?

Shadow of Mordor or Wolfenstein: The New Order would be my picks for best of this year. Since Wolfenstein isn't on this poll, I'm going to vote SoM.

Man what a sad state of affairs this poll demonstrates the 2014 AAA game industry to be.

SoM on it's AI alone.

I'm not convinced there is anything "next gen" demonstrated in any of the other games listed here.

Mordor out of those but i really hope theirs something better left in 2014, Mordor is great but damn if thats GOTY it will have been a weak year in games, at least in AAA big budget games anyways, theirs been lots of great indie and small releases this year though. I hope Far Cry 4 and Beyond Earth can live up to my expectations.

Well, other than shiny graphics, none of the other games pushed our next-gen consoles in a 'next-gen' way. The AI in Shadow of Mordor, though, easily wins hands down. They were able to do some pretty cool stuff with the new headroom for the PS4/X1, and that is a step in the right direction.

To the people who are commenting on Bayonetta 2: Of course its a great game, but I think we're all mature enough to make the differentiation between what the majority of people call "next gen." The Wii U is a console that is only slightly better than the Xbox 360/PS3 in terms of power, and should be considered a part of the last generation. Not a slight on Bayonetta 2, of course, as that game is pretty great. I just think that, with the lack of any Wii U titles in the original post isn't a sign of ignorance, but of a different argument altogether that encompasses the two giants.

If I'm ashamed to say Infamous:SS does that make it invalid? :p

Though if Destiny had a second raid I would easily give it to that. I think I'm "done" with it until first expansion though because of the limited content.

Bayonetta 2.

Wolfenstein, although I did play it on last gen consoles, which wasn't exactly an optimal experience. Hyrule Warriors, Mario Kart 8 and Bayonetta 2 seem like games for cool people who like cool games on a cool platform. Haven't bought the sucker yet, but will hopefully do that soon. Also can we please start calling it current gen? The Wii U came out in 2012, PS4 and XBOX ONE in 2013.

Sure if you love turds i guess, i personally find that gross though. So needless to say, no turd love from me.

I'm going to be very disappointed if shadow of mordor ends up winning game of the year... AC Unity, Advanced Warfare, Far Cry 4, and Dragon Age are some of the few big games left. 2014 has been disappointing.

That's a bit reductive don't you think? PS4 and XBONE already sorely lacks behind the PC-ports, so really if you want to talk about graphical horsepower, none of the current consoles are that great. Also unlike PS4 and XBONE, Wii U doesn't seem to have any problem getting games to that mystical 1080p resulotion. Or at least, that's what I've heard. Then again talking about the importance of "next-gen" is a bit childish all around, so nevermind any of the above :P

A few things:

1. PS4 and Xbox One are now current gen, let's not refer to the current consoles as next gen for 5 years like people were last gen.
2. Killzone and Battlefield came out last year
3. Where is Infamous Second Son?

This thing is silly. It's a semantic debate, and the worst kind because "next-gen" isn't defined at all. The only people who I hear say Xbox One and PS4 are "current-gen" are games journalists and the folks on their forums. Everybody I talk to on the game design side of things (I work at a studio, so I'm not pulling this out of my ass) confidently refer to them as "next-gen" and so would anybody into games enough to know the term and casual enough to not be on forums. It's all really pointless because the entire idea behind terms like this is for them to be used as shorthand for explaining what systems you're talking about, but inevitably there's always the guy two posts down that has to point out "that's not what 'next-gen' means" despite that they know exactly what is meant, and now I have to write this up instead of having just said "Xbox One and PlayStation 4" from the start. Not exactly shorthand.

more importantly, if Bayonetta is the best it's the best. Why should it be discounted for being on less powerful hardware? Is there some special award to be given for doing less with more? People designing for the PS4 and 'BONE have more RAM and chip speed to work with, so if they can't match the quality of Bayonetta 2 that just makes the accomplishment of Platinum all the stronger.

Dark souls II deserves a shot for the same reason.

Shadow of Mordor is the first game that has actually made me excited for the new generation. As far as I can see, it's the first major game to say "Hey, we can do more with this massive expansion in hardware power than just make things look prettier". In fairness, Destiny was also that, but it just fell short in so many areas that it didn't hit as hard in that way.

Although I will say it's also a deeply flawed game with a pretty bland story, bad difficulty-scaling and a ghastly last act. This year has definitely been a bit of a disappointment so far, considering this time last year we already had most of the big GOTY contenders out.

Shadow of Mordor is probably the only big, multiplatform next-gen game I've enjoyed all year. It's been a pretty dire year for games to be honest. Here's hoping Dragon Age Inquisition is more like Origins, less like II.

Also, whoever voted for Battlefield 4, please seek help.

What did Destiny do with the massive expansion in power other than make things look prettier?

My understanding is that the only difference between the old console versions of Destiny and the PS4/Bone version was...the newer console versions look prettier.

This is a really tough question to answer. I have to say I liked Watch Dogs. I expected less of it than other people. I thought Wolfenstein was really good. Disappointed in Shadow of Mordor.

However, also disappointed in Destiny. Yet... I can't stop playing it. I really love that game. That disappointing, drag of a game is the most fun I had this year. I think I'd still pick it. The opposition just isn't good enough.

Bayonetta 2

And a console generation isn't measured by the hardware under the hood, but by the time frame in which a console in launched. It makes no sense differenciating based on hardware. For example, as the PS1 and Sega Saturn had 32 bit processors and N64 had a 64 bit processor, should we consider the three consoles in two different generations?

Here is an article that expands upon the issue: http://gaming.wikia.com/wiki/Video_game_console_generations

The list seems biased towards PS4 and X1... Where's Bayonetta 2 for the Wii U?

@hatking: I was just being difficult/funny. I say next-gen just as much as the next person.

inFamous Second Son. But I have not played Shadow of Mordor which might change my mind.

Shadows of Morder for me but it could change in the coming months , we still have a lot of games coming this year that might be good too.

Mario Kart 8