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Best of 2008: 10 best DS games
With 2008 coming to an end, we figured we'd look back at the best games available on the DS. As you can imagine, that was an extremely hard thing to do, considering the DS constantly receives great games. So, join us for this look back at the best 2008 had to offer, and be sure to offer your own games in the comments below! Click here to continue >> #ninbutton { border-style: solid; border-color: #000; border-width: 2px; background-color: #BBB; color: #000; text-decoration: none; width: 100px; text-align: center; padding: 2px 2px 2px 2px; margin: 2px 2px 2px 2px; } .buttontext { color: #000; text-decoration: none; font: bold 14pt Helvetica; } #ninbutton:hover { text-decoration: none; color: #BBB; background-color: #000; }
PSP Fanboy Game of the Year 2008 nominations
Although PS3 Fanboy is featuring awards for multiple categories this year, PSP Fanboy is having just one award this year: Best PSP Game of 2008. We decided that there weren't enough games on the PSP this year to warrant having multiple categories. We're hopeful that 2009 will look a little bit different, though.These are our nominations for Best PSP Game of 2008. However, we'd love your input as well. Simply choose the game you want and leave a comment for your favorite game this year.Winners will be declared on December 29th. PSP Game of the Year 2008 And for fun, you may want to check out last year's winners.
PS Fanboy Best of 2008: Day 3
This is the big one, folks! Here are our final nominations for the best games of 2008. We're taking the holiday off to make our final decisions, and we'll return with the results soon. Winners will be declared on December 29th. Best Original Soundtrack Best RPG PS3 Game of the Year 2008 PSP Game of the Year 2008 And for fun, you may want to check out last year's winners.
Warhammer Online wins X-Play MMO of the Year
Just days after our own Best of 2008 were announced, G4 TV show X-Play has confirmed Warhammer Online as the best game release of the year. Their reasons mirror many voiced here including the RvR combat system, solo-able character classes, and public quests.Other contenders mentioned in the segment were World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King and Age of Conan. Each brought a new twist to the party, but ultimately could not top Warhammer in originality. So congratulations to Mythic for all that they've achieved in 2008. We can hardly wait for more improvements coming in 2009.
PS Fanboy Best of 2008: Day 2
Nominations for our various Game of the Year categories continue today. Check out the galleries below to see our nominations for best story, best action adventure, most difficult trophies, best strategy game and (gulp!) biggest disappointment. Don't forget to vote on your favorite and get your voice heard -- all of our categories will have a reader's choice award this year. Winners will be declared on December 29th. Best Story Best Action Adventure Best Strategy Biggest Disappointment Most Difficult Trophies Stay tuned! The last categories will be revealed tomorrow, including PS3 and PSP Game of the Year. To see yesterday's nominations, click here.
Miyamoto and Iwata top 'Persons of the Year' list
Sure, we know how amazingly awesome these two dudes are, but unless you're as obsessed with Nintendo as we are, there's a possibility you don't know who they are. Well, if we could sum these two up in a brief statement, it would be this: they're bad enough to save the president. Also, they make some products we enjoy on a regular basis.We're not the least bit surprised the Nintendo duo of Shigeru Miyamoto and Satoru Iwata topped GameDaily BIZ's "Persons of the Year 2008" list. They've managed to make a ridiculous amount of money on gaming during a very uncertain economic time, as well as expand the market and bring more players into gaming.Source - 2008 Persons of the Year: Part 1 (GameDaily)Source - 2008 Persons of the Year: Part 2 (GameDaily)
'The Economy' is GI.biz's top story of 2008
UK site GamesIndustry.biz has named "The Economy" as the top news story of 2008. The site recognizes that despite the current financial crisis only starting to "bite us in our corner" over the last couple of months, the story will continue to grow in the coming year.Though some are calling the industry "recession proof" -- it's projected to break its previous record with $50 billion in global sales this year -- all the layoffs and studio closures reported as of late remind us that it's not all good news. Hopefully, course corrections are being made now to prevent further doom and gloom in '09.Source - The Big News Countdown: 20-11Source - The Big News Countdown: 10-1
PS Fanboy Best of 2008: Day 1
Welcome to the second annual PS Fanboy year-end awards. We've changed the format a bit this year: this time you can vote in every single category. Yep! Reader's Choice is back, and better than ever. We're also spending a little less time on the awards this year, so as not to clutter the front page too much. (See? We listen to your feedback!) All the nominees will be presented over the week. Make sure you tune in every day and vote for your favorites! Winners will be declared on December 29th. Best Graphics Best Multiplayer Best Downloadable Game Best Shooter Best Racing Best Fighting Best DLC Stay tuned! More categories will be revealed tomorrow!
Iwata and Miyamoto top GameDaily 'Persons of the Year' list
Topping the list of GameDaily BIZ's "Persons of the Year 2008" were Nintendo power couple Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto. President Satoru Iwata received it for his vision in expanding to "non-traditional" audiences, while Miyamoto got the nod for continually innovating on whatever gets thrown his way. Nintendo has been on a money-making rampage the last couple years, and even during the recent economic crisis, has filled its coffers with bagiggles of cash. Taking the #2 spot were Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick and Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime, while Tim Sweeney and Mike Capps of Epic Games took the bronze. Kotick and Morhaime took their rightful place for being part of The Merger which eclipsed Electronic Arts. Sweeney and Capps received the honor for having the Unreal Engine 3, the little piece of tech that seems to be what makes this generation's games run. Check out the full list of winners by following the links below.Source - Persons of the Year 2008: Part 1 (GameDaily)Source - Persons of the Year 2008: Part 2 (GameDaily)
NY Times gives Game of the Year honors to GTA IV
The New York Times gaming correspondent Seth Schiesel recently defied the mold for year-in-review video game wrap-ups -- rather than handing out commonplace awards such as "Best Action Game" or "Best Indie Game Fueled by Dew", his honorable mentions were awarded based on "Best Zombies" (Left 4 Dead, natch) and the fairly inflammatory "Best Explanation of Why Nintendo Hardly Needs Big Games Anymore" (the Wii).However, at the bottom of his list of odds-and-ends, Schiesel follows the example of Time Magazine and the VGAs, ultimately choosing Grand Theft Auto IV as his Game of the Year. Schiesel was swooned by Rockstar's crime drama due to its mature writing, which makes GTA IV "one of the few games that even [tries] to take on the real world in any adult way." Obviously, he's never heard of a little game called 50 Cent: Blood in the Sand.
Rock Band 2 gets 2008 'best tech' nod from Yahoo
Yahoo's Christopher Null – who not only shares a first name with, but a striking resemblance to our own Chris Grant – has picked Rock Band 2 as the sole video game represented on the site's 2008 "best tech" list. Or, as Null says, "the products that really floated my boat in 2008."Null calls RB2 "arguably the best game of the year," and says that, "I find it humbling that I listen to more music while playing Rock Band than I do on my iPod. The ongoing addition of new – and good – music to the game makes it an ongoing favorite at Null HQ."On the worst tech list of '08 boat sinking offenders? Blu-ray. "There's a very loud and vocal minority that insists that Blu-ray will be a huge success," he writes. "The market would seem to indicate otherwise."[Thanks, Adam]
UK's Telegraph names Fable II best game of 2008
The Daily Telegraph has thrown two pence in with its own "best of" video game round up, naming its top 50 games of 2008. Like X-Play before it, the conservative UK newspaper named Lionhead's Fable 2 as the best game to come along in the last 12 months, romancing the crown out from under near-winners, Fallout 3 and LittleBigPlanet. Other games sitting atop the heap included Rock Band 2, Gears of War 2, Spore, Grand Theft Auto IV and No More Heroes, with Left 4 Dead and Professor Layton rounding the publication's top ten. Check out the rather comprehensive list and let us know if your favorites made the cut.
Massively's picks for the best of 2008
Massively doesn't hand out awards. We're not the Oscars, we're not the Emmys. What we are, though, is a bunch of opinionated MMO bloggers. Like it or hate it, 2008 was an enormous year for our favorite genre of games. We took a poll among the staff of the site, taking stock of an entire year in gaming. What follows are our picks for the best, the most surprising, the games that we just can't wait to play.Join us in celebrating an amazing year in massively multiplayer games, and make sure to let us know what you think in the comments! Massively's favorite new MMO in 2008 >>
Edge magazine GOTY '08: LittleBigPlanet
UK-based Edge magazine's latest issue contains the publication's "best of" picks for 2008, and LittleBigPlanet is at the top of the heap. Sony's über-platformer took game of the year honors, edging out runners-up Grand Theft Auto IV and Fable 2. (Fun fact: all three contenders were UK-developed.)LBP creator Media Molecule was recognized as 2008's best developer, while its creation also picked up the highest acclaim for innovation and visual design. (Yes, Halo 3's "best innovation" streak has finally been broken.) Edge also named winners for best audio design (Dead Space), best hardware (Xbox 360), best publisher (Microsoft Game Studios), and best online experience (Left 4 Dead).
Grand Theft Auto IV crowned Game of the Year at Spike VGAs
It seems like Spike Video Game Award judges and Time magazine now have something in common. The Spike VGA Game of the Year was just announced and it was ... wait for it ... drumroll please ... more drumroll, please ... that's better ... Grand Theft Auto IV. The announcement was preceded by the latest Brutal Legend trailer, so we almost missed it basking in the awesomeness of Tim freaking Schafer. Congratulations to Rockstar.Curious which games won – and, by proxy, which ones lost – in the rest of the categories? Find the full list of winners after the break.
Fable 2 wins top honors in X-Play's 'Best of 2008'
The moment you've all been anxiously anticipating is finally here! The winners of X-Play's "Best of 2008" awards have finally been announced -- though perhaps a bit prematurely, as Calvin Tucker's Redneck Jamboree won't be hitting store shelves 'til next week. Fable 2 took the gold in the "Game of the Year" category, beating out Gears of War 2, Fallout 3, Metal Gear Solid 4, Grand Theft Auto IV, Left 4 Dead and Resistance 2.X-Play made some solid choices for the winners of other categories -- The World Ends With You took home "Best Handheld Game", Rock Band 2 clinched the "Best Music/Rhythm Game" category, MGS4 won "Best Action/Adventure Game", and Fallout 3 beat out Fable 2 in the "Best RPG" category. So, for those playing along at home, Fable 2 is the best game that came out this year -- but not the best RPG. Can someone whip up a Venn diagram to try and explain this one to us?
Time Magazine lists 'Top 10 Video Games' of 2008
On a list of "The Top 10 Everything of 2008" – a list that includes everything from the to-be-expected "Top 10 Olympic Moments" all the way down to the grocery-checkout-glamour of the "Top 10 Fashion Faux Pas" – we find Time Magazine's list of the "Top 10 Video Games." First, a navigational tip to the folks at Time: Maybe it's just us, but we'd probably file this one under "Arts & Entertainment" (next to movies, book, plays, and TV) and not under "Business, Tech & Sports" (next to the "Top 10 Financial Crisis Collapses"). Moving on ...We don't mean to undermine Time games guy Lev Grossman's picks by saying that the mag isn't exactly known for its writing on video games (unlike that other weekly news mag), but we get the feeling that – while Grossman has some solid (and unexpected!) picks – it won't look anything like most of your top 10 lists. Mainstream news-gatherers like Grand Theft Auto IV, Gears of War 2, and Spore make an appearance, but so do indie treats like Braid, an iPhone tower-defense game, and the Flash-based Hunted Forever. Climb through the list and come back to discuss the placement. Grand Theft Auto IV in the top spot? Star Wars: The Force Unleashed in the Top 10? Isn't Braid just for "people who smoke and people who drink"? Discuss!
Spore tops list of most pirated PC games of 2008
Despite possessing "draconian DRM" meant to thwart an internet that's currently teeming with PC gaming pirates, Electronic Arts' controversial (in more ways than one) life-sim Spore recently topped a list compiled by TorrentFreak which charts the most pirated PC games of 2008. With 1.7 million illicit downloads (much more than 2nd place finisher Sims 2, which had 1.15 million), it would seem that EA's strict anti-piracy measures led to ... extra piracy. Here's the top ten most pirated PC titles for the year -- with only BitTorrent downloads present and accounted for, we suggest taking the list with a SecuROM-protected grain of salt. Spore -- 1,700,000 The Sims 2 -- 1,150,000 Assassins Creed -- 1,070,000 Crysis -- 940,000 Command & Conquer 3 -- 860,000 Call of Duty 4 -- 830,000 GTA San Andreas -- 740,000 Fallout 3 -- 645,000 Far Cry 2 -- 585,000 Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 -- 470,000 [Via Big Download]
iTunes shows off the best of 2008
Apple has created a "Best of 2008" [iTunes link] section in the iTunes Store. On this page, Apple lets everyone know what the top-downloaded TV Shows, Music, Movies, Apps, Podcasts, and Audiobooks are. Among the top paid iPhone applications are Koi Pond, Texas Hold'em, and Moto Chaser. Among the top free iPhone applications are Pandora, Facebook, and Tap Tap Revenge. There's also a top downloaded podcast list. We didn't quite make the top downloaded podcasts list, but hey, there's always next year. So, if you're looking to find some of the best online content for 2008, look no further than iTunes. You can click here to visit the iTunes Best of 2008 section.
Next Gen compiles best of 2008: GTAIV on top
Next Generation has put together its own list of the best upcoming games of 2008, a popular thing to do at this time of year. Their list has an interesting twist though: estimated sales numbers. Each game is given a three month sales projection derived by taking sales of previous entries in a franchise (or similar games in the case of new franchises) and tacking on expected sales increases for 2008. Most titles are nestled somewhere in the 300,000 - 900,000 sales range. Undoubtedly though, the one game predicted to blow the competition away is none other than Grand Theft Auto IV, projected to sell between 3.5 and 4 million copies. The only titles close to this number are Fable 2 which could go as high as 1.3 million and Fallout 3 and Halo Wars, both of which could break 1 million. Granted, these are all merely predictions, but we'd say it's a pretty safe bet that Grand Theft Auto IV will be the game to beat in 2008.[Via Evil Avatar]
