Ladies and Gentlemen of the academy, this is your first (probably not) annual Games of the Year awards as voted on by you, the lovely people of Halforums. The method of voting, probably imperfect. The game that won was a surprise for me but nearly everyone voted for it. Here are your top 5 games of the year Hal!
NUMBER 1!
With a whopping 18 points, we all decided that this nearly perfect adaptation of the incredibly long running cartoon was our favorite game of 2014. Who could blame us? It was the funniest game ever made without a shadow of a doubt and it is your Game of the Year.
Number 2!
With 15 points, Shovel Knight was the runner up. This new age classic was definitely one of the first of the current absolute glut of pixel art wannabe old school games that actually understood what made a lot of the games in the 8 and 16 bit eras so magical. Super tight and precise controls with challenging gameplay and just enough character to be perfectly charming. Shovel Knight is your number 2 Game of the Year.
Number 3 (and 4)!
We have a tie!
Number 3.5!
and
Both games tying with 12 points a piece we have Nintendo's seminal racing series and the remarkably excellent copycat licensed game. Mario Kart, as ever and despite the fucking blue shell, is an excellent and most importantly fun racer and is, for once, a game with an excellent DLC setup that's worth every dime.
Shadow of Mordor looked at first like a game that would come from the Peter Molyneux school of presentation. Nobody thought the Nemesis system would live up to it's promises. It did, and more, and created it's own narrative for each player. What people thought was going to be a rote knockoff of the Arkham games and Assassin's Creed ended up being (in my opinion) more fun than either series. Also, it pairs Nolan North and Troy Baker as the main character and his possessor, creating some sort of singularity.
Finally, Number 5!
With 9 points we have more proof that Blizzard can take pretty much any genre (in this case the collectible card game), zazz it up in presentation and make it plainly more fun than it's competition. Easy to learn, hard to master and a good time for anyone who is into the style of gameplay, Hearthstone is Halforums number 5 game of the year.
RUNNERS UP!
Dragon Age Inquisition with 7 points.
Alien Isolation and Octodad Dadliest Catch with 6.
And finally, Blackwell Epiphany, Goat Simulator and This War is Mine with 5 points a piece.
NUMBER 1!
With a whopping 18 points, we all decided that this nearly perfect adaptation of the incredibly long running cartoon was our favorite game of 2014. Who could blame us? It was the funniest game ever made without a shadow of a doubt and it is your Game of the Year.
Number 2!
With 15 points, Shovel Knight was the runner up. This new age classic was definitely one of the first of the current absolute glut of pixel art wannabe old school games that actually understood what made a lot of the games in the 8 and 16 bit eras so magical. Super tight and precise controls with challenging gameplay and just enough character to be perfectly charming. Shovel Knight is your number 2 Game of the Year.
Number 3 (and 4)!
We have a tie!
Number 3.5!
and
Both games tying with 12 points a piece we have Nintendo's seminal racing series and the remarkably excellent copycat licensed game. Mario Kart, as ever and despite the fucking blue shell, is an excellent and most importantly fun racer and is, for once, a game with an excellent DLC setup that's worth every dime.
Shadow of Mordor looked at first like a game that would come from the Peter Molyneux school of presentation. Nobody thought the Nemesis system would live up to it's promises. It did, and more, and created it's own narrative for each player. What people thought was going to be a rote knockoff of the Arkham games and Assassin's Creed ended up being (in my opinion) more fun than either series. Also, it pairs Nolan North and Troy Baker as the main character and his possessor, creating some sort of singularity.
Finally, Number 5!
With 9 points we have more proof that Blizzard can take pretty much any genre (in this case the collectible card game), zazz it up in presentation and make it plainly more fun than it's competition. Easy to learn, hard to master and a good time for anyone who is into the style of gameplay, Hearthstone is Halforums number 5 game of the year.
RUNNERS UP!
Dragon Age Inquisition with 7 points.
Alien Isolation and Octodad Dadliest Catch with 6.
And finally, Blackwell Epiphany, Goat Simulator and This War is Mine with 5 points a piece.