14 DAY TRIAL // As the end of 2008 draws ever near, most sites and magazines reporting on videogames are getting ready to present a host of awards, showing which titles impressed editors and players alike during the closing year. Our awards will be presented during the final days of December.
IGN, one of the leading sites reporting on the videogames industry, has already named the best games it reviewed in 2008 for a variety of platforms. And the picks are a pretty good indicator of the other awards.
World of Goo, from 2D Boy, is Game of the Year for the Nintendo Wii. The title, which is basically a physics puzzle with a lot of personality, was launched via the Wiiware digital download service from Nintendo and proved to be a great success. It's easy to get into, while requiring a certain level of mastery to be reached by the player as the levels progress.
Fallout 3 was named the best Xbox 360 Game of the Year, edging out titles like Dead Space and Gears of War 2. The Bethesda made role playing game, which I've reviewed for Softpedia, impresses with the depth and breadth of the Capital Wasteland it portrays and the move to first person will probably keep the Fallout series relevant for years to come.
As expected, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots was chosen as Game of the Year for the PlayStation 3. The epic created by Hideo Kojima was launched early in 2008 and impressed with the visual style, the varied gameplay and the lengthy cutscenes. It's a game some people loved, while others hated intensely.
Sins of a Solar Empire was seen as the Game of the Year for the PC. The Ironclad developed and Stardock published real time space strategy title was released early in 2008 and created a very deep and engaging experience, mixing planet management and fleet battles.