Weekend Gamer - Best XBox GotY?

[Jetherik]

It is time to figure out what the best Xbox game is for the year. Post up your thoughts, we will then put them in a poll.

[Heretic Machine]

I don't know what the GOTY is, as I haven't been motivated to buy NEW games for either my PS2 or XBOX this year... But the first person who says the re-release of Ninja Gaiden gets a kick in the head.

[thecrazyd]

Psychonauts. The only XBox game I own, even though I don't have an XBox.

[Evil Dude]

Unreal Championship 2, if it wasn't the lag.

[player66]

That's easy, Burnout Revenge. No other "current-gen" title looks and plays as "next-gen" as BO:R. It's the only thing keeping me sane while I wait to get my hands on a 360.

[MaiXu]

A couple of contenders spring to mind:

SC: Chaos Theory: Fun, but the single player, albeit pretty, was too familiar, and I never did get into the online as much as I did for Pandora Tomorrow.

FarCry: Enjoyed it, but never played it to the end, or for it to be really great. Should I re-invest time with this one?

Conker: Pretty, fun single player (not as good as it was on N64, IMO), but the online was horrible.

Stubbs the Zombie: Too short, but a great ride while it lasted. If I had more people willing to play co-op, it may have won out.

But I'm gonna have to go with Psychonauts for Xbox GotY. It was just that damn good.

[fushi]

50 Cent: Bulletproof takes the top spot easily.

[Metal Jesus]

Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
or
Burnout Revenge

[Mister Pie]

I don't know what the GOTY is, as I haven't been motivated to buy NEW games for either my PS2 or XBOX this year... But the first person who says the re-release of Ninja Gaiden gets a kick in the head.


I was just about to say the same thing.

[Paranoia]

Ninja Gaiden Black

[bean19]

Burnout: Revenge should be on there.

But I'm voting for Psychonauts

[fitbabits]

Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction
Burnout Revenge
Far Cry Instincts
Psychonauts

[NGage]

Does Half Life 2 count? I know it was a PC port and it dident run as smoothly as its PC counterpart, but man was that a good game. I think more games need to adopt such a deep physics engine.

[ianagain]

another vote for Psychonauts, the only game my Xbox came out for this year.

[chloroformcologne]

im going to have to go with burnout revenge. i didn't actually play many xbox titles this year, but this one i really enjoyed. runners up - mortal kombat shaolin monks and indigo prophecy.

[i aint yer pa]

I'd say either Forza or Far Cry Instincts. As others have said, Xbox releases where rather weak this year.

[Dirty Harry]

50 Cent: Bulletproof takes the top spot easily.
Yeah another vote for 50 cent, its for the children dont you know.

[holycrapper]

Do it for the shorties!! 50 cent, yo.

[Deadend]

Wow, most of the games for potential Xbox GOTY exist on other consoles as well. That being said, Psychonauts was a good ride.

[TDiddy]

The Bible Game.

[thFOOL]

Far Cry: Instincts and Psychonauts get my vote

[mister_slim]

I'll vote for Psychonauts and Indigo Prophecy for ambition. They may have lacked polish but they didn't lack heart.

[JediSanf]

Psychonauts or Stubbs. Both were awesome.

[Blade]

Nobody's mentioned IGN's 9.9 wonder yet.. :)

[RandomViolence]

Psychonauts, Instincts

[*Legion*]

Indigo Prophesy, SC: Chaos Theory, Far Cry, and the only deserving winner, Psychonauts

[derjester]

Psychonauts or Stubbs.

[EternalGamer]

Oddworld: Stranger's Wraith. It was and Xbox exclusive and the best game that nobody played. Great setting, with a plot that actually revealed some political relevance, and the game heavily on the concepts gradually added throughout. By the end of the game, there were impressive battles of a size and scope that rivaled anything in HALO and looked every bit as good.

[H.Bogard]

Ninja gaiden: black. I havent played it myself, but ive seen it and unless the controls are TERRIBLY awful (which i doubt) it seems like the best treat for xboxers this year so far.

[Heretic Machine]

Wow, most of the games for potential Xbox GOTY exist on other consoles as well

Well... I have a hard time coming up with any GOTY this year. It's been a year of mediocrity with the exceptoin of RE4, some Nintendo DS games, and Kameo (IMO). I mean the one NEW XBOX game that I bought this year (Ultimate Spider-man) turned out to be shit and I had to return it the next week. Then there was Stubbs, one of the biggest let-downs in years.

Wait... ok, my previous statements were incorrect, I did buy another NEW game this year for the XBOX. Destroy All Humans, which although short, was also quite awesome. Probably not good enough to be GOTY, but it's easily in the top 5. Really most of the games I've bought this year have been from last year, or were used and from previous years. Disgaea for example, this was the highlight of my year and it's from like three years past.

My DS has gotten a lot of attention though: Kirby's Canvas Curse, Mario Kart DS, Advanced Wars DS, and soon I'll be getting Lost in Blue and Animal Crossing DS.

Ninja gaiden: black. I havent played it myself, but ive seen it and unless the controls are TERRIBLY awful (which i doubt) it seems like the best treat for xboxers this year so far.

...Ok, I know you kids like teh n1nj4s, but you can't have the GOTY Edition of a game from last year, be the GOTY for this year. That doesn't work, sorry.

[TrackZero]

Psychonauts. Hands down. Everyone should own this title who has a Xbox/PC.

SC: Chaos Theory would take 2nd place on my list, if only because it's a sequel, not original content like the above.

[WastelandDan]

Psychonauts gets my vote

[EternalGamer]

I actually never finished Psychonaughts. I got stuck on the part where you have to do something to get the security guard to let you into the island and never felt compelled to pick it up again. I liked the style and there were some inventive levels, but it didn't really blow me away.

Dan

[hideouslywrinkled]

...Ok, I know you kids like teh n1nj4s, but you can't have the GOTY Edition of a game from last year, be the GOTY for this year. That doesn't work, sorry.

Sez you... I vote for:

Fable: The Lost Chapters, Ninja Gaiden Black, and The Halo 2 Map Pack

;)

[NELS]

'nauts gets my vote too.

Also, Burnout Revenge and Far Cry need to be up there.

Edit: Also, The Warriors and Indigo Prophecy (minus last 20 minutes or so).

[ldi222]

Id have to vote for Half Life 2. Runner up might be gun or indigo prophecy or GTA SA.

[Dark Hamlet]

I think Phantom Dust needs to be up there. Not the most popular game, but a great one nonetheless. It would certainly get my vote if Psychonaughts were not on the list...

[edgar]

Oh yeah, definitely Phantom Dust. I love that game.

[Heretic Machine]

I bought Phantom Dust... traded it for something else on here, I think maybe Phantom Brave. Phantom Dust just wasn't my thing...

[Ka_Feosh]

I think Phantom Dust needs to be up there. Not the most popular game, but a great one nonetheless. It would certainly get my vote if Psychonaughts were not on the list...

I agree. Phantom Dust was awesome and the online was great while I had the time for it. The online play lends itself too much to the hardcore crowd and after a while there weren't many people playing it on Live and everyone who still did was far out of my league. I really wish they'd put more effort into promoting the game. I tried to sell a copy to everyone who asked my opinion at work but noone wanted it because it was "a cheapie game" thanks to the $20 price tag.

Stranger's Wrath rocked too.

[TrackZero]

I bought Phantom Dust... traded it for something else on here, I think maybe Phantom Brave. Phantom Dust just wasn't my thing...

Heh yeah. I've had some fun with your copy of Phantom Dust, but I certainly wouldn't call it game of the year. Inventive though, but it has some problems that I would have thought could have been easily fixed.

[regular mo]

Op Flashpoint Elite, Far Cry, Half Life 2 & Indigo Prophecy would all have to be contenders. This year has been great for releases on the XBox IMO... don't know why anyone would be complaining.

[SnappyCrunch]

It'll already appear on the poll, but just for the record, my vote is for psychonauts

[rjcc]

Forza Motorsport, Jade empire

[Zeal]

I'd say Jade Empire.

[TheKeck]

Ninja Gaiden Black!!!!!

[danhoo]

I actually never finished Psychonaughts. I got stuck on the part where you have to do something to get the security guard to let you into the island and never felt compelled to pick it up again. I liked the style and there were some inventive levels, but it didn't really blow me away.

Dan

Dan, you should take some time to get past that point, since some of the best levels are after that. Also, sadly, one of the worst. But still worth it.

Yeah, I guess I'd have to agree with the Psychonauts votes...

[Wombat]

Another vote for Psychonauts from me. I just finished PoP: the Two Thrones and that was damn good too.

[Mason]

This really depends on if we're talking XBox-exclusives, or multiplatform titles that everyone bought on the XBox.

Psychonauts and Burnout:Revenge are probably the best of the multiplatform. Plenty of others though.

If you want XBox exclusives for 2005, it gets tricky. Ninja Gaiden Black, Jade Empire, Oddworld Stranger's Wrath, and Unreal Championship 2 are the top-rated exclusive titles, and that's not a very compelling list.

[Kelegacy]

Jesus, I don't know. Psychonauts I guess. But it's not just a Xbox game. Can multiplatform games be GOTY material?

The game I played most was MVP Baseball 2005. I didn't really use my Xbox much this year I guess, or there were just not many games that made the experience memorable.

And Jade Empire can go to hell.

[Mason]

I actually never finished Psychonaughts. I got stuck on the part where you have to do something to get the security guard to let you into the island and never felt compelled to pick it up again. I liked the style and there were some inventive levels, but it didn't really blow me away.

Dan

I agree with danhoo, you're missing out on the game's best levels by stopping there. Use the brain-doorway-thingy on the guard to enter his mind, and prepare for a paranoid good time.

The earlier parts of Psychonauts are quite good, but the series of mind worlds near the end are where it really shines.

Damnit, now I want to go play it again.

[Mason]

And Jade Empire can go to hell.

Fuck yeah. Ridiculously overrated by game critics who should've known better.

[NELS]

And Jade Empire can go to hell.

I agree, I hated that game.

[Xaerin]

Burnout Revenge. Fun Fun Fun.

Can't believe all the votes for Psychonauts, all that mindless item collection, seemed pretty weak to me.

[antoniogaud]

I have to say 'Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory' followed by 'Brothers in Arms' and 'The Warriors'. Prince of Persia 3 is a real gem, although I just started playing it.

Am I the only one who thought that Psychonauts was boring after a while?

[wudi]

Of the games that I played this year, I'd have to say that Stubbs and The Warriors belong on the list.

Now, as to whether I'd vote for Stubbs (waaaaayyyyy too short) or The Warriors (revived the beat 'em up genre in my opinion) remains to be seen.

Jade Empire could be up there, but I found the combat system to be a real let down, especially for how they really focused on it. You could dominate the whole game with Storm Dragon style...

[agentgray]

Far Cry
Ninja Gaiden Black

They look better (and play) than most 360 games.

[Kelegacy]

I agree with danhoo, you're missing out on the game's best levels by stopping there. Use the brain-doorway-thingy on the guard to enter his mind, and prepare for a paranoid good time.

The earlier parts of Psychonauts are quite good, but the series of mind worlds near the end are where it really shines.

Damnit, now I want to go play it again.

Yeah, the Milkman episode was excellent. Just excellent.

Also, the others that are in the insane asylum are great, too. I enjoyed the Black Velvet painting one. The art was amazing in that game, and that level was spot-on.

[Ridlin]

Put me in for Far Cry: Instincts.

[nesmercal]

There are three for me. I played each of the following through to the end and enjoyed each one very much. My choices are: Psychonauts, Far Cry Instincts and Fahrenheit (Indigo Prophecy).

[EternalGamer]

Actually now that I remember it, I played the Milkman level, and I agree it was one of, it not the best level that far in. But I believe that is the last level I played. I might have to go hook up my original Xbox again and continue onward.

Dan

[Pigeon]

Phantom Dust
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat

[H.Bogard]

...Ok, I know you kids like teh n1nj4s, but you can't have the GOTY Edition of a game from last year, be the GOTY for this year. That doesn't work, sorry.

wtf? Isnt it an expansion pack?

[MaiXu]

I actually never finished Psychonaughts. I got stuck on the part where you have to do something to get the security guard to let you into the island and never felt compelled to pick it up again. I liked the style and there were some inventive levels, but it didn't really blow me away.

Dan

You stopped right before the best level! Pick it up again, The Milkman Conspiracy is one of the best levels I've played in a game in a long while.

[tai.mei.shu]

SC: Chaos Theory

[Frogleg Special]

Same as above :)

Best PS2 GotY please? That will have more varieties. Xbox life is certainly cut short by its younger brother.

[Heretic Machine]

wtf? Isnt it an expansion pack?

It's Ninja Gaiden, with the free Live content, and some other minor content... Voting it for GOTY only shows how stupid some people are. I mean honestly, we didn't vote UT: GOTY as the next years GOTY, even though it had a shit-ton of more new content than Ninja Gaiden Black has. You just don't vote for GOTY editions to be the next year's GOTY, that's stupid, and yes Black is just Ninja Gaiden: GOTY Edition, that's all it is.

[saneman]

People don't think Burnout Revenge was just a rehash of Takedown with minor added content and a really annoying bloom feature?

Don't get me wrong, I still love the game to bits. But that's all it was for me.

[grammatoncleric]

It wasn't until five seconds ago when I read "xbox goty" that I realized there weren't any games for xbox that I was engrossed with this year for my xbox.

2005 was easily the weakest year for xbox games, which is sad because I was really impressed with their previous years of quality gaming. Hopefully the 360 will start picking up the slack next year.

[The Iron Weasel]

SC: Chaos Theory hands down.

[Pnorcio]

I played the original SC, and LOVED it. Pandora Tomorrow seemed to have too many Sneaky, Dont hurt anyobdy, ZOMG YOU WERE TEH SPOTTED missions. Is Chaos Theory more lenient?

[Spigot]

Otogi 2, Phantom Dust and Psychonauts with Stranger's Wrath being up there too.

I'm sticking with exclusives (the PS2 port of Psychonauts doesn't count) here. Multiplatform games should have their own category.

[HALO 32]

Otogi 2? that didnt come out this year, that was 2004...but it was still a good game...and hard to find

Phantom Dust
Burnout Revenge
Far Cry Instincts
Project: Snowblind...what???..it kicked ass!...and no one picked it up!!!DO IT NOW!!!even the PS2 version looks good!

[Heretic Machine]

2005 was easily the weakest year for xbox games, which is sad because I was really impressed with their previous years of quality gaming. Hopefully the 360 will start picking up the slack next year.

Wasn't just a weak year for the XBOX... It was a weak year for everything except handhelds, and that's only because we have two new ones...

[Mason]

Wasn't just a weak year for the XBOX... It was a weak year for everything except handhelds, and that's only because we have two new ones...

True, and at least XBox has an excuse, with the 360 on the way it was understandable that most studios didn't plan many XBox exclusive titles for this year.

PS2 will actually have pretty good exclusives next year, but most of them simply had way too many delays. Same with Zelda. The Japanese are definitely running down the clock on the current gen.

[Frogleg Special]

Wasn't just a weak year for the XBOX... It was a weak year for everything except handhelds, and that's only because we have two new ones...

Nah, PS2 and PC have greater 2005 lineups than Xbox. At least it's not as weak as Xbox.

[Heretic Machine]

Nah, PS2 and PC have greater 2005 lineups than Xbox. At least it's not as weak as Xbox.

...Ok, name a dozen titles that came out this year for the PS2 that are worth owning. Can't? Ok, then it's been a weak year. I didn't say which console had a weaker year, just that the entire 2005 line-up as a whole has sucked.

[Frogleg Special]

Do you think in 2002, 2004 and 2003, Xbox or PS2 has a dozen titles worth owning? They each had 2-3 giants in those years, and the rest is filling. Based on the thread so far, Xbox in 2005 has Psychonauts as the primadonna. While PS2 has God of War, RE4, Shadows of the Colossus and 1-2 Japanese Titles that I won't bother playing, aside from Psychonauts.

Half dozen titles, now that's more like it.

[mightbe]

Just got my xbox this year so my favorite that I picked up this year was steel batallion. GotY for the rest of you punks should be phantom dust or psychonauts.

I say we give PD the "Budget Game of the Year" sattuette already. God knows those poor devs aren't getting anything from anyone else.

Proposed Budget GotY stattuette: Black plastic base with a silver EA "eye" bust on top. It's budget after all.

Strangely enough, two of our most heavily mentioned GotY prospects (psychonauts + phantom dust) are Majesco games.

What no love for Advent Rising? :D *cough* I'm mean.

[Kelegacy]

...Ok, name a dozen titles that came out this year for the PS2 that are worth owning. Can't? Ok, then it's been a weak year. I didn't say which console had a weaker year, just that the entire 2005 line-up as a whole has sucked.
How quickly we forget:

Shadow of the Colossus
Dragon Quest VIII
Resident Evil 4 (GC, also)
God of War
Guitar Hero
We Love Katamari
Soul Calibur 3
Gran Turismo 4
Tekken 5
Devil May Cry 3
Killer 7 (GC also)
Sly 3
Ratchet: Deadlocked



And that's not including all of the Multiplatform titles like Xmen Legends, Mercenaries and Psychonauts, etc. Plus all of the good RPGs and SRPGs released this year like Digital Devil Saga that I wont mention.

[screwtape]

I didn't view Ninja Gaiden Black as a GOTY edition - it felt like a combat-specific expansion pack. In my mind, a GOTY re-release (a la Half-Life 2) still carries a high price tag.

I bought Psychonauts on PC, and regretted not getting it on XBox. So even though I didn't play it on XBox, it gets my vote for XBox GOTY.

[gamer4life]

Splinter cell cheos theory
Mercenaries playground of destruction

[alienchild]

Stubbs, Far Cry, Fahrenheit/Indigo Prophecy (same game, different titles)

[H.Bogard]

It's Ninja Gaiden, with the free Live content, and some other minor content... Voting it for GOTY only shows how stupid some people are. I mean honestly, we didn't vote UT: GOTY as the next years GOTY, even though it had a shit-ton of more new content than Ninja Gaiden Black has. You just don't vote for GOTY editions to be the next year's GOTY, that's stupid, and yes Black is just Ninja Gaiden: GOTY Edition, that's all it is.
.

whoa....calm down there sandy sally...I already mentioned earlier i had'nt PLAYED the game, just seen it.
Anyway , if this is really a re-release, then my vote would have to go for Half Life 2. Now dont start bitching again that it was a 2004 release, its a console-first goddamnit!



Nah, PS2 and PC have greater 2005 lineups than Xbox. At least it's not as weak as Xbox

Indeed , in just a few months i got to know and love RE4 , FEAR, AoE3,CoD2, SoTC, NFS:MW and pop t2t ....which i`m playing right now by the way.

[S1n1star]

Mercenaries: PoD
X-men Legends 2: RoA
Splinter Cell: CT
Hulk: UD

It was a year of good multiplatforms and colons for the Xbox.

[Dirty Harry]

So nobody here thinks 50 cents bulletproof is game of the year, man what is wrong with you guys. The game obviously is the best, it has M&M the hardshelled rapper with a candy white ass core and 50 cent, common FITTY CENT!!!!. 50 cent got shot 9 times, so this game better be game of the year, because its teaches our children important life lessons. Man 50 cent bulletproof should be put into schools all over america.

[GodFather]

Jade Empire

[ldi222]

Bulletproof might have been a good game if the controls were better but the controls are horrible so Ill never know how the rest of it is. As far as coming out of the woodwork to talk smack on hip hop / rap influenced games. Pretty ignorant really since I would imagine most of the haters wouldnt know the least bit about the genre to make an intelligent criticism.

[mister_slim]

Otogi 2, Phantom Dust and Psychonauts with Stranger's Wrath being up there too.
It's sad that, besides Otogi, those games were all dropped by MS.

Strangely enough, two of our most heavily mentioned GotY prospects (psychonauts + phantom dust) are Majesco games.
Yeah, props to Majesco. It's too bad Advent Rising didn't get a bit more polish.

[Murmillo]

By GameRankings, here are the top 30 games for 2005

1. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory 93.8%
2. Ninja Gaiden Black 92.8%
3. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas 92.6%
4. Forza Motorsport 92.4%
5. Psychonauts 90.7%
6. Jade Empire 89.4%
7. Burnout Revenge 89.2%
8. Half-Life 2 89.0%
9. World Soccer Winning Eleven 8 International 88.7%
10. NBA Street V3 88.4%
11. Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack 88.3%
12. Fight Night Round 2 88.2%
13. Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 88.1%
14. NCAA Football 06 87.6%
15. Doom 3 87.4%
16. Oddworld Stranger's Wrath 87.3%
17. Unreal Championship 2: The Liandri Conflict 87.1%
18. MVP Baseball 2005 87.0%
19. Far Cry Instincts 86.7%
20. NBA 2K6 86.5%
21. Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones 86.3%
22. The Warriors 86.0%
23. Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition85.1%
24. Indigo Prophecy 84.9%
25. Mercenaries 84.9%
26. Need for Speed Most Wanted 84.6%
27. TimeSplitters: Future Perfect 84.5%
28. Star Wars: Battlefront II 84.4%
29. MotoGP 3: Ultimate Racing Technology 84.3%
30. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction 84.2%

[Kelegacy]

Fucking Jade Empire. Some of those asshole reviewers really fucked up the review curve with their much too high scorings. No way that game gets a 9.9, not in a million years.

[Murmillo]

My picks are SplinterCell: CT, Jade Empire (despite the Arena...) and Mercenaries.

[Badgun]

I would definitely say Forza Motorsports. It's got great atmosphere, great online play, stunning graphics, and it's just a blast to play.

[fahrvergnugen]

Psychonauts. It's not even close.

[fix]

Psychonauts. Googalor rocks.