GOTY 2017
Friends, this has been an insane year for video games. I've been an avid gamer since the 90s - I was actively playing games when 1998 came around (often described as "the best year in gaming" thanks to games like Half Life, Starcraft, MGS, Zelda: OOT, etc) - and I feel comfortable saying that 2017 is the best year in gaming to date. Where previous years certainly saw innovation and polish, 2017 has shown that refinement can produce results which extend beyond just "amazing," but that there is also still plenty of room for innovation on top of these already wonderful, established frameworks.
Before I get to my games of the year, there are a huge number of shoutouts to my "tied for #11s" of the year. Chief among these games are Nidhogg 2, What Remains of Edith Finch, Resident Evil 7, Cuphead and PUBG.
Beyond that, there are also a bunch of games I either didn't have time or the console for, and I know I would have adored if I'd had the opportunity to play them. Horizon: Zero Dawn, Super Mario Odyssey, Assassin's Creed: Origins, Nioh, Golf Story, and many more.
My list this year took a really long time to compile, and though I started it a few months ago, it has been in a constant state of flux (even today, as I post this). Now, it is locked in, and since we have finished the Unofficially Unofficial Giant Bomb Facebook Group GOTY 2017 Deliberations, I am happy to share this list with you!!
Again... What a dang year, folks.