Year of the Games, not Game of the Year

I've realized that this year, I've mostly stopped caring about game of the year and I'm curious if anyone is in the same boat. It's allowed me to enjoy games without any pressure, and without putting weird expectations on them, too. Hell, I haven't even put a list together.

I'll listen to all the GB stuff and watch all the crazy videos because it's such a cool thing to see the whole process. They put in a ton of work and it's always a lot of fun. Then again, I've watched them do far dumber things for the discussion value. And the personal lists are interesting because I spend so much god damn time listening to these guys each year.

But I no longer crave reading these game of the year lists everywhere, or the highly produced videos at other outlets. In previous years, I NEEDED to see and read everything about the year. Maybe to validate my opinions, or to see what sort of games I should be playing.

Now, I thought 2014 was a solid year with a ton of cool (not mind-blowing) games. Am I just old? Or is the whole concept of game of the year just becoming an old concept? It feels like there are so many games available that narrowing it down seems kind of crazy. Jeff mentioned that you end up saying really horrible shit about the second best game to rationalize another game being marginally better. Remember when Brad was willing to sacrifice Brothers for DOTA??

Giant Bomb is still so over-the-top at year end, and even they'll admit that the site-wide discussions are just a game everyone can agree on. I like their approach because it's not super regal, but fun. But I fear GOTY, internet-wide, has lost its luster. How are you feeling about year-end awards nowadays? Do you just stick to a site or two that you're deep into, or do you watch every video and follow every list for reasons you can't explain?

EDIT: And Day 1 of 2014 is already a reminder of why GB is top-class in this regard. Not much manpower but the most ambition and heart. Hurrah (again!)

I've found that I don't necessarily care about what gets what award or whatever from official outlets, but I'm still interested in reading people's lists anywhoo. I also enjoy writing one up myself as a means for me to then reflect on the year overall.

This year I've been trying (unsuccessfully) to avoid it because seeing the blandest game I played this year be praised as this incredibly innovative thing and winning literally all the awards is super depressing.

I still enjoy it. It's nice to look back on the year and try to piece together why certain games are better than others. It can get a little silly when deciding why something is in position 9 vs 8, but I still feel it's worthwhile exercise.

Who has ever cared about game of the year?

The GOTY deliberation process makes for interesting viewing/listening but ultimately individual lists and recommendations are more useful. I respect all the GB crew's opinions but I tend to listen to Brad and Drew the most because they've often expressed similar responses to games as me on the bombcast/qls/UPF etc. ( at least, this happens more often than is the case with the other editors/contributors). Their lists will be most interesting for me to see because I might get a heads up on something I've missed that'd likely be worth my time.

Presumably the people who waste loads of time writing lists and recording podcasts, but I could be wrong

I'm in the same boat. I don't think it has anything to do with necessarily being old. I genuinely think it has to do with being in the "right" mindset. Compared to some of the past years, yeah, 2014 wasn't particularly phenomenal, but it's not the borderline Holocaust some people make it out to be. On it's own, I think it was just a nice, solid year of video gamin'

Anywho, I do make my own list every year and I do genuinely enjoy seeing what others think and whatnot so i'll check out a few big publications and maybe a few Youtubers, but that's about it. Even though I mainly visit GB, their GOTY list doesn't mean any more to me than a list from IGN, Gamespot, TB, or anyone else regardless of what games they do or do not include. It's just the time of year to sit back, reflect, and enjoy what we all played. I just find the whole thing...fun. That's the best way I can describe it.

The integrity of GOTY was obviously irreparably damaged in the Great Skyrim Farce of 2011.

"Enjoy games without any pressure"... eh?? I cannot fathom where you're coming from. I just... yeah. How?

Just buy games that you like or think will be worthwhile? I mean who really gives a shit about press reaction and so on. As far as Giant Bomb's stuff I go in expecting an entertaining argument, I don't care what their final decision is as long as the journey there was painful; when it isn't (last several GoTY podcasts) then it's a downer. This year it seems like the argument(s) will be more interesting.

I eat this shit up. In fact, I love it so much that I'm going to shamelessly promote my game of the year list because I'm that jacked about the whole thing.

I really don't care about this game of the year stuff, especially after it became apparent that with the praise Shadows of Mordor received, my tastes and the tastes of the gaming media are not exactly in line. Still looking forward to whatever dumb stuff GB does for the videos.

@brendan: By pressure, I mean having such high expectations for a game that it needs to be list-worthy or else I'll get disappointed.

It's a bad way to live.

@csl316: Don't write a list if that's an issue. Or just say "Is this game worse or better than Vagrant Story" if the answer is "worse" then don't worry about it. That would be every game ever thank you very much.

@damodar: Honestly, I could not agree more. Brad filibustering for 4 hours just so Saints the Third wouldn't win ruined me on anything but the videos.

@fredchuckdave: Jeff's "Mario World every year" rule means we can do that sort of thing now.

@damodar said:

A-fuckin'-men.

I didn't care for Destiny or Shadows of Mordor so I'm pretty much disinterested in GOTY discussions simply because I've heard from others that those are winning a lot of them. Which is great. But I had fun with GTA V (PS4), my year old copy of NCAA 14, Wolfenstein, Forza Horizon 2, COD: Advanced Warfare, and Hyrule Warriors. In fact, I'm starting to notice that I'm leaning heavier into first person shooters, Nintendo, sports, and fighting games, the exception being GTA. Those being usually undervalued categories come GOTY time, I just don't care to read dozens of different GOTY opinions.

@adequatelyprepared: Shadow of Mordor wasn't universally adored but hindsight and discussion with friends leads me to conclude that it got way more positive press than it warranted. To me it says more about 2014 as being a generally 'thin' year in video games when SoM got all that attention for essentially what was one new (and overrated) feature to distinguish it from otherwise being a competant batman / ubisoft hybrid.

There are really so many people playing games; My friend loves playing games so much that sometimes I am worry about her. She did nothing else on weekends but playing a game.

Most GOTY lists revolve around the author regurgitating why the games on the list are good, reasons I've heard ad nauseam for every major game over the year. Rare are the cases where arguments put forth for why certain games are actually ranked higher than others on the list. This goes for all the personal lists for Giant Bomb as well, and why I'm really only interested in the deliberation podcast itself.

@turambar: Come to think of it, that might be why I lost interest. You're right, how many times can I hear that the orcs in Mordor say "I'll remember you" and get a scar? Or that Shovel Knight is like a Mega Man game with cool music? Or that South Park nails the humor of the show?

I suppose GOTY is there to close out a year and review it, but hearing the same things over and over from different outlets sort of makes you sick of games in that year. And that's probably more detrimental unless you're looking to see which games you missed. The GB podcasts, however, are just hilarious to listen to because they're straight up arguments about placement that doesn't necessarily matter in the grand scheme of things. It's a fun discussion, but also brings out the raw passion that the guys have for certain games. And that's also nice to hear.

Ranking art and fun? Wait... in the same medium? HA HA. "HA HA," I say!

I mostly anticipate GOTY for Giant Bomb's GOTY content, and to read what people think are the best games they played in a year. I don't actually care who wins- never have. The only list that matters to me is my list anyway. Hearing what other people think of games is just a fun past time, and it's interesting to see how people think.

Giant Bomb makes GOTY fun.

I think it's a nice way to remember the year as a whole.

Game of the Year is a surprisingly broad category if you really think about it. And I like more of its elements than I dislike honestly.

It's good filler for a time of year when there are consistently fewer games released and content might otherwise be thin. GOTY is a good opportunity for creative editors like the GB crew to do fun, different coverage compared to the more routine stuff. It often manages to steer my attention towards excellent games I might've otherwise missed (especially here on GB where so many perspectives are covered by editors, crew, guests, moderators, users etc.). It's good to introduce some accountability and transparency into critic's views in the same way reviews work for me (analyzing archived GOTY/ review stuff can be at least as fun as following the hot shit). And, yes, I'm also an idiot and like to root for my favorites to then get irrationally happy or mad about critic's perspectives on things.

GOTY is really only bad when you consider the results to be some sort of canon of definitely worthwhile games, or really anything else than a fun opportunity for the gaming community to look back on some awesome stuff instead of constantly chasing the newest hotness. Other than that I like GOTY stuff of sites I enjoy, like GB and RPS, dislike it on sites I don't enjoy in the first place and sometimes use it as an opprtunity to check out sites I've ignored for a while, like Gamespot.

But yeah, way too many critics just show me the same bullshit that already bored me during the initial hype again and again. Way too many of these lists and awards are pretty boring, predictable and lack any new input for me. It's easy to ignore though.

It's fun to do my own personal lists--a way to reflect on what I've played and the things I enjoyed the most. It's also fun to listen to the GB podcasts and hear them argue out the points and come to some kind of consensus in the end. Some of the fights in past years have been hilarious to listen to, even if I don't really care about the results.

As for caring about what other people think about games of the year? I've never really cared about that. It's fun to hear about other people's tastes, particularly when they can explain why they made those choices eloquently, but I don't feel any need for validation. Enjoying it without any amount of debate or frustration that your picks aren't your favored website's picks is the key.

What I like best about GotY time is that people actually talk about the games themselves instead of various news events or rage new item of the day.

That being said I've never cared what game "wins", I find the lists interesting from a "try this new thing out you've never heard of before" perspective.

Personally I don't think the idea of ranking games is that useful given how varied people's tastes are, but I do think it would be nice to be able to say these groups of fantastic games are worth remembering in future years.

I like hearing the crew's opinions 'bout their favourite games, but I'm also not a crazy person who'll start to argue if they dislike a game I liked, or only place it as the second best game, when it CLEARLY SHOULD'VE BEEN THE FIRST ONE!!!

Best/worst example out of this that I can recall, was about Uncharted 3 getting 8/10 over at Eurogamer and someone saying something along the lines of "When a sequel to Uncharted 2 gets a lower score than somethingsomething, we a problem on our hands..." I remember actually laughing out loud at that. Like it's some fucking global, life or death issue. Get a grip, people.

Well, I guess we'll agree to disagree on that one. That was one of my favorite podcasts of all time. Just the heated debate between two sides of the room fighting for games they truly seemed passionate about. I feel like we haven't had a game of the year debate as tense as that one in years since... It's just been the guys going "Well, I guess this could be the game of the year, yeah, sure. Why not?"

(And for the record, I thought Skyrim was deserving of every bit of the awards it got.)

I like Game of the Year lists and end of year lists in general, because they give me a chance to remember some of the things I skipped, or missed out on throughout the year and maybe pick them up in a sale. Plus I like seeing the lists of people I like and whose views I trust and respect.

Seems like a lot of people come for the discussion, but not necessarily to see the winners. Probably why I default to Giant Bomb. The discussion takes such a higher priority than the winners themselves.

Actually, we don't disagree! I was really just making a joke about the infamy of the whole thing. You're totally right that it was great that they got so passionate about it. It spilled over into the community and it's certainly the GOTY that everyone remembers. I revisited some of the previous GOTY stuff a few weeks back and I couldn't initially remember whether XCOM or The Walking Dead won in 2012 and I couldn't remember last year's winner either, I had to check up on that one. I don't have that problem with the 2011 deliberations! Brad try to filibuster his way to victory, Patrick being the deciding vote. It was great! Most sites just seem to post their lists, but GB goes way further to actually generate worthwhile content. The actual discussion is the best part. We generally already know what is and isn't going to be on the list, but even if you don't have a horse in the race, the podcasts can make the whole thing way more interesting.

I'm team Saints Row all day, they had me hook, line and sinker by SR2, even with the most creatively busted PC port ever. Skyrim is faaantastic, it really is, but Morrowind is still my favourite TES game and Saints Row: The Third has a bigger place in my heart. Buuuut I don't come here to have my opinions validated, I want GB's opinions. Maybe not Dan's though... He's untrustworthy.

There's been a lot of talk about the overall quality of this year being a bit lacklustre, but I think this GOTY season might actually be another pretty good one in terms of getting some great discussion. Seems like the stage might be set for a battle between Shadow Of Mordor and Bayonetta 2 and since it seems like they might have had eight or nine people involved in the podcasts, which I think Brad said total nearly 12 hours, it's going to be nuts! Go Bayonetta!

Also, if we ever get that Game Of The Generation discussion? Total bloodbath.

I didn't care for Mordor either. 2014 really was lackluster.

I don't usually get emotionally invested in these awards, it's just a bit of stuff to watch to pass time for me. Especially since games like Risen 3 (this year) or Deadly premonition are usually my goty- Games that I don't expect to win much. (Risen 3 won't win anything, actually. Probably won't even be nominated)

Are you talking about Shadow of Mordor? I found that to be a boring, uninspiring experience too

@damodar: I'm sooooooo glad that you see it that way. Your post pretty much sums one of the primary reasons I come to this site: to see a bunch of experienced dudes sit around a table and talk and argue about games for an unnecessary amount of time.

Also, Game of the Generation debate would probably be the best piece of content ever created by this website. Probably. Please.

@damodar said:

I get that you're mostly joking, but that's honestly when I stopped listening. I never care which game wins GOTY, but if they aren't going to have integrity when making their own list, what is even the point?

Yep, one video in and they nailed it again.

Agreed on all counts. I like them because they're part of the rare times the crew marks out over video games they love other than the continued Dotafication of Brad Shoemaker. And I like it as a useful historical convention.