So, it's that time of year again. Yes, the time when we all gather 'round with our friends and loved ones and count our blessings. We reflect on the wonder of the previous year, and look forward to what we hope will be a year to come full of joy and love.

With that out of the way, who wants some end-'o-the-year gaming award goodness by your friendly neighborhood Raditz? If you said "Oh, oh, me, I want that!" then you've come to the right place, my friend! Alright, so without further ado, here's my picks for the best (and whatever else) of the year of our Lord 2011.

The "Oh yeah, that came out this year" Award

Sometimes, it's easy to forget what came out early in the year when it comes to games; (hell, when it comes to most anything, actually) so it's no surprise that we forget about a few gems. We get so inundated with releases in the last two months of the year, that all those games just take over our memories. What games did you forget about this year? I know there are some I did! But, the one that takes the cake in this category is:

LittleBigPlanet 2

Yep, this came out way back in January. Hell, I finished the damn game, and I barely remember that it was a 2011 release! A fun game, but I won't fault anyone for forgetting that the little Sack and his pals had their adventures earlier this year. But, if you've got a PS3, maybe you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy, and give Sackboy the lovin' he so deserves.

Runners Up: Dead Space 2, Pokemon Black/White

The "Best Use of a Licensed Property" Award

Now, I know what you're thinking, "This is obviously the category that Batman will win!" and I won't kid you, The Bat came awfully close, but he was edged out ever so slightly by:

Back to the Future: The Game

Yeah, that's right! I waited too long on this, until they compiled all five of the episodes on a disc, got it for PS3, and enjoyed the hell out of myself. I loved this way more than I think I should have, but when Back to the Future is your favorite movie ever, when something like this hits all the right notes, and does it so well, then the only answer is "give that game a (fake and meaningless) award!" Seriously, I even had tears in my eyes when the credits ended, and there was a surprise that I couldn't have been happier about. Even if that thing doesn't mean what I want it to, the other meaning that it could have makes it just as awesome. Ah, screw it, BttF: The Game was amazing to me, and a great use of the name!

Runners Up: Batman: Arkham City, LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean

The "Arnold Schwarzenegger" Award for Best Use of Stupid Guns

Sometimes, you just need to shoot the crap out of someone/something, and what better way to do it than with some overwrought weapon that does far more damage than you need to do?! Yeah, guns are cool, but ridiculous guns are even better! That's why this here award goes to:

Bulletstorm

Seriously, the weapons in Bulletstorm start out mildly normal. Assault rifle, pistol, etc. But then -- HOLY CRAP! Hey, this gun launches grenade bolos! I can upgrade my assault rifle to fire 100 rounds at once! A cannon ball launcher? Rocket propelled drill gun?! A four-barreled shotgun?! A sniper rifle that fires manually controlled shots?! Add in the skill shot system, and Bulletstorm did everything it could to make you appreciate the over-the-top-ness of its arsenal. Also, ENERGY-LEASH! Hey, not a gun, but still damn cool.

Runners Up: Duke Nukem Forever, Shadows of the Damned

The "How the F*** Do You Say the Name of This Game?!" Award

Sure, with translations/localization become more and more better (...more gooder?...) we don't have to hardly put up with the old "A Winnar Is You" any more, but darn it, if there aren't still those tongue-twisters that eek through to end up on shelves anyway. I can speak fairly well (I keep telling myself), but even this game's title made me wonder if I'd had some sort of brain damage when I tried to read it:

Ar tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel

Seriously, the only words I know how to say in that title is "of", maybe "Knell"? Good golly, I know you want to give us games that we don't usually get over here, NIS, but dammit, if I can say the name of the damned game, how do I get it?! Good thing there's Amazon, I'd hate to try and say this to some clerk at Best Buy! Oh well.

Runners Up: Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron

The "I Should Have Played This Game, But..." Award

Okay, so, I'll admit it, I'm not much of a portable gamer. DS, PSP, hell, even my phone. I know they can kill some time when there's just a little time to kill, but I just have too many big games on my big systems that I play on my big TV that I have shunned the handhelds for too long. Fortunately, I look to remedy that soon. Anyway here's the award for I should have played this game but I didn't have a DS:

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

Please don't hurt me! I would've loved to have played this game! Unfortunately, it was released at the beginning of the year (strike one!) when I didn't have a DS (strike two!) and there was some stuff going on that I don't want to talk about right now (strike three! I'm outta there!). Well, luckily, I'll have the ability to try it out soon, and I hope it's as good as everyone has said. Yeah yeah, excuses excuses! I'll get right on it, just don't say you told me so, I already know!

Runners Up: WWE All-Stars, Yakuza 4

The "If I Played MMOs, I'd Totally Play This" Award

Look, I've heard some of you out there like these Massovely Multiplayer Online games. It's cool. They sound like fun; ganging up with friends and going to beat up giant monsters and delve deep into dangerous dungeons. That's alright, go for it. As for me, I just don't see the appeal. I'm more of a "play this on my own" type of gamer. But, I think if I played an MMO, this would be the one:

DC Universe Online

Yessir, with a year that saw the release of The Old Republic, and the continuing popularity of World of Warcraft, among others, DCUO would be the game that I think I'd enjoy the most out of all the MMOs around. I love superheroes, and the offer to mess around in the DC universe just seems so neat and appealing to me, that were I to pick up an online game, this'd be the one! I may even try it, since it's gone Free to Play. Maybe... Hmmm... *strokes chin*

Runner Up: Star Wars: The Old Republic

The "Shoot that Dude!" Award for Most Shooting of Dudes in a Game

It never fails, each and every year, trillions of bullets are shot at billions of dudes, and those dudes eventually fall over from being hit by said bullets. And, it seems that, no matter what, people don't get tired of shootin' dudes. Hey, it seems fun, even. I'm not immune to the thrill of doing the shooting, either. I shoot my fair share of dudes, and I did so a bunch in this game:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

There were a lot of dudes to shoot in this game. I mean, a whole lot. They just keep coming. And what's a highly skilled, expertly trained dude shooter to do? That's right, shoot them dudes! Thankfully, it's actually fun to shoot the dudes in this game! I had a blast trying to make my way to higher and higher waves in Spec Ops mode, the story came to a satisfying close, and although I hate the people that play multiplayer all day long and are about 8679% better than I am, at least the new support class stuff makes up for me dying a whole shitload! So, go shoot some dudes, it still pays off.

Runners Up: Killzone 3, Gears of War 3

The "Beat the Crap Out of Everyone" Award for Best Beatdowns

You know, there are times when I just want to up and whip someone's ass. You know, just to feel the rush and let them know that I'm boss. Also, dumb people need to be kept in line. Barring that, there's a few games that I can use to get my aggression out, and nothing does that better than a goof fighter! This one was the one that I felt help me relieve tension, if even just for an hour or so:

Mortal Kombat

Nothing beats the bloody joy of smacking around a foe quite like MK did this year. Impressive, considering that Mortal Kombat really wasn't on the best footing recently. But, NetherRealm Studios brought the franchise back from the brink (no, not that Brink, the other one. Like the edge of a cliff. Geez...) and did it with all the brutality and finesse that made this a joy to pick up. And man, those X-ray moves, Fatalities, and even some just special attack were some bone-crunchingly good that I wish I knew how to do them! ...You know, for, um, self-defense... yeah, that's it...

Runners Up: Marvel vs. Capcom 3, WWE All-Stars

The "OH GOD MY EYES!" Award for Most Prettiest Game

Graphics. You'll almost always run into that one guy who says, "Graphics aren't important, it's [insert other element of game here] that makes a game good." And you know what, he's WRONG! Now, I'll be that last to say that a game with just good graphics will be good, but without it's graphics prowess, this game would not have been anywhere near as awesome as it could've been:

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Seriously, I don't know how Naughty Dog does it, but they must have some sort of magical unicorns working there, because I don't know that there's any other developer that can make anything look as good as they make Uncharted look on PS3. I can't count the times that I just went "wow" when playing this game. There were times I just had to stop and pan the camera around. If this is what they can do with this generation of hardware, I think I'll have to get new eyes when they put anything out on the PS4, because my retinas will probably melt when I see it.

Runners Up: Battlefield 3 (PC), Gears of War 3

The "I Played Entirely Too Much of This Game" Award for Game I Played the Most

Okay, full disclosure, I broke the big toe on my right foot the week before Thanksgiving this year (that's U.S. Thanksgiving, my Canadian friends) and it was bad enough that I had to have surgery to get it fixed. Meaning I was laid-up for six weeks. And that meant I had time to play a whole lot of games. But, there was only one game that captured my attention and that I played more than anything else this year. That game is:

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Oh man. Oh man, oh man. Like I said, I broke that toe the Tuesday after this came out. Learning that I would have to stay home from work (and, well, most everything else) I reveled in the fact that I would get to delve into the world of Skyrim for huge lengths of time during any given day. And I did. At last count, I'd sunk over 200 hours across three characters into this game. And I don't regret a single second of it. Even after hours and hours of play, there would still be things I would run across, people I'd meet and places I'd go that I'd never seen or heard of before. SKYRIM! Man, now I just need to wait for the DLC...

Runners Up: Batman: Arkham City, Saints Row: The Third

The "This Made Me Feel Smart" Award for Best-est Puzzle-y/Adventure-y Game

I'm not so smart. Sometimes, I can be downright dumb. I have a hard time doing crossword puzzles in pen, and sudoku gives me a headache. That's why I general avoid games that make me have to use too much brain power. And yet, when there comes a game that makes me think "wow, I actually did that!" I really appreciate it. Thanks for making me feel smart:

Portal 2

Seriously, there were times where I'd get through a test chamber, or any part of this game, and I would feel such satisfaction. And then, I'd get through the next part. And the next. Sure, there were a couple of times I got hung up, but then I'd figure out what to do. And that would just make me feel like a genius. Thanks for that, Portal 2, now I've got some calculus classes to study for, or else I won't be able to finish my real-life portal gun...

Nah! Just kidding, I'm still the dummy you know and love.

Runners Up: L.A. Noire, Deus Ex: Human Revolution

The "This is Sweet Music to My Ears" Award for Awesome Use of a Song

Very often, the music in games is just in the background. Sure, you'll notice it occasionally; but when it swells, or something significant happens, that's when it can have the biggest impact. And when a song just hits you, you know that there's something special happening at that moment. That's why this song gets this award:

Zia's Theme from Bastion

Just listen to that. Now, that's a song. But, just hearing it here might not give you the impact that it's meant to. If you've yet to play Bastion, please do. You'll know when you get to the part that this song plays why I like it some much. It just hit perfectly. Not much else to say than I love it.

Runner Up: "Holding Out for a Hero" by Bonnie Tyler from Saints Row: The Third

The "These Are All Great Games So They Deserve Recognition" Award(s) for The Other Great Games

Otherwise know as "I couldn't think of a clever title for this" section. Right now, I just want to list the other games I think were fun and/or awesome this year. So, here's the games I think were the best of the rest (regardless of whether or not they've already been runners up in other categories):

• Okamiden
• inFamous 2
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution
• L.A. Noire
• Shadows of the Damned
• El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron
• Gears of War 3
• Batman: Arkham City
• Saints Row: The Third

That's it, folks!

Thanks for reading, I hope you gleaned some amount of enjoyment from this here list of games. This year was another great year to be a gamer, with offerings for everyone all around. Here's looking forward to 2012 and even more copious amounts of goodness in this here hobby of ours!