your favorite GB year?

I've been here since 2008 and I think if they had the quick look system they have now then I'd go with 08 cuz just QLS of MGS4, GTAIV ect ect it was a very strong year in terms of game releases.

2011 though holds a huge soft spot for me, I was experiencing the best year of my life but with out coloring it again it was an extremely strong year for games, 2011 and 2012 had the best game of the year content! (I still still want the skits and personal top 10 videos back!) but 2011 tops it just because I loved the GOTY characters, Jeff as the evil sorcerer was incredible.

I will say that it was hard not to give it to 2014 just because of the start of MGS or even last years Shenmue endurance run basically I do think we have some of the best content coming out of the staff right now!

P.S Best of luck to drew!!

2014. Mainly for the Patrick content.

When it was just Jeff, Ryan, Brad and Vinny.

2011. There was a different energy when it was still a whiskey media joint and they seemed to be hitting on all cylinders when they added Patrick. The bombcasts were great, they all seemed so passionately into games that they were going for s ranks achievements, the site had a ton of features like achievements and quests, Ryan Davis was at the top of his gam, 2011 had some banger releases like saints row and dark souls. Good times man.

2010 was great too. I tend to think of 2010-2011 as part of the same run.

I've been around since giant bomb started and honestly i cant remember half the stuff they've done. of the top of my head i would have to say 2011, but its hard to nail it down.

I can remember a couple moments through each year that really shine like the ER's or GOTY stuff, phantasmagoria, fortune street, most e3's etc, its a short enough list but no matter where you look there was some real banger stuff happening each year that depending on where and when i was asked i could give any year as my answer.

I wasn't around back then but I voted for 2011, simply because that was a great year for gaming. Revisiting old Quick Looks from then and other videos, Bombcasts, etc - some damn fine content.

My favourite year is every Wednesday and Friday when I can listen to a new podcast.

Seriously, having the podcast be great every single week for years is an amazing level of consistency.

There should be a 'right now' or 2017 option.

Voted 2011. January of 2011 was when I joined, created this account and started to watch every GB video. I knew of the site before but never really gave it a shot. Boy was I wrong on that. Glad I eventually did.

I hate to say 2013 because of Ryan but damn if it didn't give us one of my favourite GB series and reignited my love for Dark Souls. To be honest, much of the early GB days are a blur to me, the most memorable parts of GB have been the video series like Load Our Last Souls, the ERs and newer features like Metal Gear Scanlon.

I voted for 2014 because it was the year I started listening to the Bombcast and subsequently coming to the site. But I ended up going back through all the podcasts, UPF's, TNT's, etc. Basically everything pre 2014 became one giant chunk to me and I loved it. So I would pick that pre 2014 chunk if I could.

It turns out the quickest way to get into a site with such rich history and lore is to be depressed and spend all your free time with it and video games. Thanks GB and Drew.

I picked 2012 because for me the site kept getting better and better until 2013, and the first half of 2013 was fantastic but then...well...on balance 2013 was a horrible year and I don't see how anyone could pick it.

IMO the site has never fully recovered from Ryan's death. Not only did it lose his tremendous talent, creativity, and hosting abilities but it changed the tenor of the other guys' work as well. There's definitely a pre-2013 vs post-2013 split for Jeff, for example, with the pre-2013 version being a lot goofier and more carefree.

I've been listening to a lot of old Bombcasts from around the Wii U launch and after recently and it's just a different beast. I love the current Bombcast and the Beastcast is great too, but for me it just can't be the same without Ryan. And while the site has a lot of great features now, it also had Ryan content in the form of This Ain't no Game and the fighting game tournaments that was, in some ways, even better because it was very different. Basically everything they do these days is the same format, a group of guys talking over gameplay, or gameplay footage, or just talking. They don't do the highly edited produced video (like TANG) or the wild live shows with lots of guests (outside E3 and a few other exceptions) anymore.

I understand that things change and that Ryan had a specific hard to replicate skillset, but I still miss what he brought to the site and I still get really sad thinking about what happened.

A Golden Age, if you will.

Preach

2008! That MGSIV vs GTA IV GOTY discussion is still *chef kiss*.

I'm on this one. But failing that I might go 2015, the year of Metal Gear Scanlon. It's tough though, but I don't think there's been a bad year by any stretch.

@y2ken: I wasn't going to add a year that isn't done yet, that's just silly.

I liked both last year & 2015 so good it made me actually create an account and go premium.

Voted for 2011, but 2008-2012 was pretty legit. From a distance 2014-2016 looked pretty good too.

I will always have fondness for the Whiskey Media era.

2009, when the website really took off. I was here from the beginning, and seeing it evolve was just a fantastic experience. The year of some of the best Quick Looks (Dragon Ball EVOLUTIONNNNN) and the ER.

2010, for the Deadly Premonition Endurance Run. Plus that was back during the Whiskey Media days. By 2010 they'd mostly figured things out from a content standpoint but still had the guerrilla-style feel.

Not sure. But as far as podcasts go I thought 2011 was the best GOTY deliberations. Heated arguments were had. By comparison 2016 was easily the weakest. The primary argument used was 'you know why, this game is great I don't have to tell you why'.

@paulmako: I agree with you.

GB has always been consistently great. From the P4 Endurance Run from E³ conferences to many great quicklooks and other special features. I think that they have proven sufficiently that they're consistent in quality. 2011 - 2012 probably was the year where they created content that made them more publically known, after all, content from that time is some of the most watched ones on YouTube. Personally I liked 2013 - 2014 but I also enjoyed lots of their 2009 - 2010 content. Besides those years 2015 - 2016 were great year also, with 2016 having the best GOTY content.

Since I can't decide what year was their "prime" I think its more than fair saying I prefer most of their content regardless of release date.

IMHO they're too underrated but thats what made them great, thats also probably partially the appeal for many.

Yeah, 2011 felt like the year where everything was just rolling, plus it was the first year I listened to the entirety of. I like bits and pieces of 09 and 10 but 2011 put it all together. Every year since has been a little bit underwhelming for one reason or another.

picked 2011 but for me it was mostly just whenever ryan, jeff and vinny were on the same podcast or quick look. i do find myself going back and listening/watching stuff from like 2010-12 the most. when i go back and listen to that stuff i still find it funnier than a lot of podcasts i listen to these days with actual comedians. they had such good chemistry and played off each other so well.

i still think the site is better than the other video game sites out there but to me it's nowhere near what it was back then. obviously that's not really anyone's fault with what happened to ryan and vinny moving back east to be near family.

2009, and from 2014 to now I would say were, and are, the best years. 2009 Is when the site really came into its own, and we got the Persona 4 ER, TANG, some fantastic Quick Looks and Bombcasts. 2014 felt like a resurgence after 2013. With Dan and Jason, we got a lot of great new content like Mario Party Party, Metal Gear Scanlon and Demo Derby that breathed new life into the site. It sucks to see Drew go, but if I've learned anything, it's that Giant Bomb can adapt.

There's never been a better time to be a Giant Bomb fan. (for the most part, I'm reallyreallyreally gonna miss Drew!)

I followed Patrick over when he joined in 2011, so that being my first year it may color my opinion, but man. That was just a great year all-around. The perfect blend of Whiskey Media magic. The Bombcast had a great energy. Awesome games were coming out left and right. STILL the best GotY content the site has had. Fun stuff like the Mortal Kombat Scrub League. Ryan was on top of the world. It just all clicked in such a magical way.

Not to say the other years have been bad. I've gone back and watched a bunch of the stuff from 2008-2010 and it's all great. And I think that the recent years have all been fantastic (2013 has an obvious black spot on it's record, but what can you do)! Dan, Jason, and Austin all brought and continue to bring great stuff to the site, and even with people like Patrick, Austin, and now Drew, departing as hard as it is I know the ship will continue to ride on.

But yeah, if I'm putting it to a vote 2011 is Giant Bomb at it's peak.

i like to think it hasn't happened yet, but let's continue being negative.

2009

Can't vote, because I'd say the run from '10 to '11. The Whiskey Years were fucking incredible.

I gotta agree with just Jeff, Ryan, Brad and Vinny. I've enjoyed all the other personalities, but those four always knew how to play off one another in such a tight way.

I also miss the Jeff's dramatic readings of game announcements.

2011 was my favourite year, Whiskey Media and Giant Bomb were amazing.

2011. And shit, now I'm depressed.

2016 - Project BEAST and Metal Gear Scanlon going on at the same time. I also watched the Persona 4 ER in 2016.

As weird as it is to say, 2013. The first few months of UPF contain (IMO) many of the best segments that GB's ever had. And then FMVinny in the later part of that year.

It wasn't the strongest year overall of course, but it was a year of extremes. The highs were extremely high.

It's hard for me to say. Dan and Jason feel totally essential to the site now, but I can't bring myself to say any year without Ryan is the best. The site is still and probably always will be great, but you just can't beat a time when Jeff, Ryan, Brad and Vinny could interact and bounce off each other.

Before 2013 I didn't spend much time on giantbomb or watch much besides QLs. 2013 was the year I branched out to their other content (from endurance runs to podcasts and everything inbetween). So I guess 2013 was my favorite.

On the flip side, the only content I really consume now is the beastcast. I loved it with Austin and I love it with Dan. I think I mostly love it for Jeff Bakalar. So any year with the beastcast might be my fav. Giantbomb makes mario and the mario party parties are pretty amazing as well. So the year(s) that have those are also in my running.

I mean...

2015 in terms of video content for me. I've been following the site since Arrow Pointing Down and have been Premium for years, but I never really got into the ER's or really, all that much of the video content. Metal Gear Scanlon is probably my favourite series on the site and I really like most of the stuff Dan is involved in.

BUT

Fuck, Ryan Davis.

I'll never forget the heady days of 08/09 when GB was new and up and coming.

@bigsocrates:

I always judge the year of Bombcasts by the first one back from winter break. I think it was 2012 one where they went over disaster scenarios that takes the cake. Just Ryan ending the segment with "Ok, your entire family is dead..."

So that's my pick.

Tough to say, they all kinda blend together...I definitely liked the smaller independent era when they were in a basement, then they moved to another basement which was also cool. I honestly haven't been able to follow them like I used to, but I'm excited for whatever the future holds.

As a self proclaimed GB historian, 09-11 are the golden years. 2010 strikes the best balance of video content and bombcast moments.

I honestly couldn't pick one. They have gone through so many different phases. The only "bad" times they really had were when they first moved to CBS - they just took a long time to get their shit together. Outside of that, I've enjoyed everything they have done.

I picked 2010..definitely a fan of 2009-2010-2011 era....my favorite was when it was just Vinny, Ryan, Jeff and Brad. Love the energy drink era, and will never forget moments like "durgers". When Patrick came I actually didn't listen as much, not because I didn't like Patrick but because I knew him SOOO well from the other podcasts I had listened to (listened to ton of 1UP stuff) that I was a little burned out on him. Still good times with him though.