2012 Game of the Year

It was a good year to be alive. We didn’t see the world end in 2012, but we did witness some apocalyptic forces of nature, one of the most explosive political climates in recent memory, economic failure on a global scale, and the Cowboys fail to make the playoffs. All this, and we’re still alive! Gamers like us have even more to be grateful for: we had a kick-fucking-ass year of gaming. 2012 started strong with great DLC for the best games of 2011 and peaked with a shit-ton of AAA titles to end the year with a bang. The 2Old2Play writing staff is proud to present the best, and worst, of what we played in 2012.

 
 
Game of the Year
The writing staff plays very different games on very different systems, which is the way it should be. Consequently, we had a very wide variation on what we thought the game of the year should be. Regardless of what system you play on, the GOTY should entertain, immerse, excite, and move players the way no other game did.
 
Here are your nominees:
Mass Effect 3
Minecraft 360
The Walking Dead
Dishonored
Resident Evil 6
Halo 4
Borderlands 2
 
And the winner is...
 
Borderlands 2
 
 
“50% RPG, 50% shooter, 100% fun!  Gearbox nailed it with this sequel.”-frizzlefry2
 
“The Borderlands franchise is amazing. The artwork, the plethora of weapons, the characters (I have been attempting to build my own CL4PT). I can't find any other game that draws my attention so well.”-Shadow26inc
 
“I also submit a vote for BL2 for GOTY. I'd explain why, but I need to go blow my nose.”-ElektraFi
 
The second trip to Pandora is a little bit better in every department than its predecessor, which makes it a lot better. More guns, more classes, more characters, and more pizza; Borderlands 2 is everything a sequel can be when a developer rethinks the game instead of retreading it. Congratulations, Gearbox, you made one hell of a game!
 
Worst Game of the Year
There is no bigger kick in the ass than shelling out sixty bones for a game only to get it home and discover what a steaming pile of shit it really is. Two weeks later that sixty dollar game is selling at half price. The sad part is that developers and publishers are still willing to sell us mediocre, or downright terrible and broken games year after year.
 
The nominees for Worst Game of the Year are:
Assassin’s Creed 3
Forza Horizon
AMY
MIB: Alien Crisis
Dust 514
Minecraft 360
Bloodforge
 
And the winner is:
 
Assassin’s Creed 3
 
                                                                Glitch vid stolen from findlestick’s youtube page
 
“Anything REAL that would have been controversial was left out. This was probably the most buggy Assassins Creed game to date and it was full of irrelevant tasks to keep the gamer occupied that made me feel like the developers have really lost their focus.” -TANK
 
Saying that a bad game is a disappointment is an understatement on a monumental scale; multiply that disappointment by 1000 when it involves a highly anticipated sequel in a beloved franchise. Ubisoft recreated the American Revolutionary War into something it wasn’t, tarnishing historical figures, wasting the promising start of the newest protagonist, Connor, and serving us an unidentifiable and glitchy shit sandwich where an Assassin’s Creed game should have been. Way to fail, Ubisoft.
 
DLC of the Year
Downloadable content can be either be good or bad. When you find that map pack, car pack, downloadable character, or extra content that makes the game click for you, it not only gives value to the new content, but it makes the entire game a better experience.
 
Nominees for DLC of the Year are:
Skyrim: Dawnguard
Forza 4: Porsche Expansion Pack
Rock Band 3: Maiden Epics
Dinobot: Destructor Pack
Mr. Torgue’s Campaign of Carnage
 
And the winner is:
 
Skyrim: Dawnguard
 
 
“This DLC has the components that make a great addition to an RPG game: Additional content, new story and areas, and new "mechanics". The opportunity to become a vampire took this one over the top for me.”-Pulsaris
 
“Dawnguard not only expands the Skyrim content, but it changes the way the game is played, adds some nifty new weapons and armor, adds a fair amount of new dungeons and real estate, and gives players a couple of new skill trees to explore and exploit.”-Sarcasmo Jones
 
Skyrim fans who downloaded Dawnguard were treated to some game-changing content. This DLC added a little bit in every area of the game that counted, and gave players a new reason to start their Skyrim campaign over with a new character. Bethesda, known for great downloadable content, gave XBox 360 players a ton of extra mileage for the pittance we paid.
 
HD Remake of the Year
What started off as a joke in the new releases articles went on all year long. It seemed, for a good while, that a new HD remake of a favorite classic dropped every week. The concept is simple: take a great, older game and make it better.
 
Here are the nominees:
X-COM: Enemy Unknown
Silent Hill: HD Collection
Doom 3: BFG Edition
Ratchet and Clank: HD Collection
 
And the winner is:
 
Ratchet and Clank: HD Collection
 
 
“It was easy to jump into the Ratchet & Clank HD Collection The collection is a mere 30 dollars and contains the original three Ratchet games: Ratchet & Clank, R&C: Going Commando and R&C: Up Your Arsenal on a single disc. The games have been upgraded from PS2 graphics to 720P HD.”-Anotherdae
 
“Cruising the Ratchet and Clank universe in HD!  PS3 trophy support? Yes please! These three platformers hold a special place in my heart. Games like these are the sole reason I keep my PS2 around, though if the current HD remake trend continues I suppose I’ll eventually be able to retire it”-frizzlefry2
 
Sony fans were treated to a triple-shot of classic platforming nirvana in the shape of a mechanically inclined Lombax and his tiny robot sidekick. Fully upgraded and priced to sell, the disc contained all three original games and a sneak peek at Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time. Almost makes the shame of being a PS3 owner bearable...almost.
 
Worst Gaming Trend of 2012
 
Gamer Gouging
“I look at it like this: maybe developers use DLC to recoup some of their money lost to the used games market. I would do it if I was in their shoes. Do I agree with it? Not really because I end up paying $90 for games like BL2. I want more bang for my buck too.”-frizzlefry2
 
“Yay you get to pay for some new(ish) maps..WHOOPEE! Yay you get to pay for a tacked on story line that we cut out because it sucked! Gee, that is so awesome of you big game company...please take more of my money"-ChunkySoup
 
“More and more gaming companies are adding content onto discs that they have no intention of giving to gamers until a later time. I have no problem paying for additional content, but when that content is placed on a finished game and not allowed to be accessed, there is something seriously wrong with that in my opinion. Either include it with the game or not include it, don't include it and hold it back. It just looks like price gouging to me.”-Pulsaris
 
“Having to pay 10 bucks to access content a publisher deems worthy, because you bought a game used, since you can't find it new anywhere? Maybe because it's a two year old title, for instance. These just always seems like a big "FU" to me.”-dogmatic1986
 
Punishing players for buying used games in a weak economy is a crime so heinous that there is not a suitable word in the English language strong enough to describe it. Shitfucktabulevil...maybe. LCE, DLC, online passes, multiplayer passes, season passes...where does it fucking end? Pay $60 for a game, and another $20 for the LCE in anticipation of it being epic (looking your way, Playground), and then asking for another FIFTY FUCKING DOLLARS for a season pass...you must be out of your mind! Charging to unlock content that is already on the disc is a special kind of predatory gamer rape..I already paid for the game once, you assholes! Until the game community is able to hit companies who make a policy out of gouging their customers, and hit them where it hurts, this trend of economic gamer vampirism will continue.

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