Game of the Year
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civvver
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That's way too much counting on my end.
I wasn't intended to stop until we reach 2012!
I updated with 1998 nominees and current vote tallies. Again a very split year so the leaders are ocarina of time and half life with 2 votes a piece.
de Maistre
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vote=Fallout 2
Loppan Torkel
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I'll start nominating games of '99 if no one disapproves.
Planescape: Torment
Unreal Tournament
Age of Empire II: The Age of Kings
Hidden & Dangerous
Vote - Planescape: Torment
Probably my vote for best game of all time.
Link to video.
Planescape: Torment
Unreal Tournament
Age of Empire II: The Age of Kings
Hidden & Dangerous
Vote - Planescape: Torment
Probably my vote for best game of all time.
Link to video.
Thorgalaeg
Deity
Coming from 1998, 1999 seems rather unremarkable. I will nominate some games i played the most, but none of them are particularly notable or are only expansion of previous great releases:
Civilization II: Test of Time
Civilization: Call to Power
Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
MechWarrior 3
But my vote goes too to Planescape: Torment which was the only great thing of 1999 IMO.
Civilization II: Test of Time
Civilization: Call to Power
Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
MechWarrior 3
But my vote goes too to Planescape: Torment which was the only great thing of 1999 IMO.
Hard to give GotY award to an expansion, although there were definitely some good ones.
Heroes of Might and Magic 3 was '99. I played this a fair amount when it came out, and enjoyed it. The artwork was wonderful, the audio was first-rate, the different towns all had distinct personalities and play-styles, the campaigns were entertaining.
Then a few years later, I started playing again - this time multiplayer with some friends. And discovered that I'd been playing it wrong the whole time. The stuff that a skilled player can do in that game made my head spin at the time, but I kept learning and improving until I could play that way myself. Lots of Turn-Based Strategy games, both before and after, either overcomplicated (so you practically needed a spreadsheet and equations just to figure out what's going on), or they didn't have much depth for skillful play to distinguish itself. Part of the reason Heroes 3's multiplayer community lasted so long is that, like classic board games, you had emergent complexity from a pretty simple set of rules and relatively restricted number of "pieces" to work with.
I'm going to be honest though - half of the stuff good players did regularly were things the game developers never even considered / intended to be possible. In part, this is why I felt like the later games were let-downs - by "fixing the bugs" that made it what it was, they transformed the later ones into lightweight popcorn that had limited replayability.
Homeworld was a '99 game. I don't think it's GotY contender, but as long as we're talking about the year it's probably worth mentioning. This was the first RTS game to make really good use of a 3D engine. It's kind of disappointing to look back on though - at the time, I (and many others) were excited, thinking we were seeing the predecessor to what would surely be a whole series of great 3D space RTS games. In practice, the number of good games in that subgenre since then can probably be counted on one hand.
System Shock 2 was '99. I've never played it, but it's one of the games I plan on getting around to... one of these days. It's supposedly a game that helped shape the whole FPS genre ever since, and a pretty good game in itself; maybe someone who's actually played it can comment more.
Age of Empires 2 had a great soundtrack, good voicework for the time, and one of the best RTS AIs of the decade (which... was still pretty pitiful even compared to modern RTS AIs, much less human opponents, but at least you could have a decent deathmatch game against it while learning to play). Games tended to run longer than it's primary competitor (Starcraft); the networking was more buggy (I swear any attempt to play multiplayer AoE2 with a new group started with "first, spend an hour getting everyone in the lobby"), the UI was somewhat kinder to players (e.g., you weren't limited to control groups of just 12 units). The economy was simultaneously more sophisticated and more significant - while there still was room for tactical micro in AoE2, macro and strategic decision-making were relatively more important.
I have a serious soft spot for Infinity Engine RPGs, so it's possible I'm biased about Planescape: Torment. But I think it has to be, hands-down, the best of the year. They picked a good base engine, a good ruleset, a good setting... then they added masterful writing on top of it for plot and dialogue. It's also one of the games that I think helped popularize the idea of player choice and consequences in games - before that, the "choice" (when a game bothered to give you one at all) was generally "do you want to be an evil, cruel, heartless villain, or do the right thing"?
All told, hands-down no question I'm going to
vote=Planescape: Torment
Heroes of Might and Magic 3 was '99. I played this a fair amount when it came out, and enjoyed it. The artwork was wonderful, the audio was first-rate, the different towns all had distinct personalities and play-styles, the campaigns were entertaining.
Then a few years later, I started playing again - this time multiplayer with some friends. And discovered that I'd been playing it wrong the whole time. The stuff that a skilled player can do in that game made my head spin at the time, but I kept learning and improving until I could play that way myself. Lots of Turn-Based Strategy games, both before and after, either overcomplicated (so you practically needed a spreadsheet and equations just to figure out what's going on), or they didn't have much depth for skillful play to distinguish itself. Part of the reason Heroes 3's multiplayer community lasted so long is that, like classic board games, you had emergent complexity from a pretty simple set of rules and relatively restricted number of "pieces" to work with.
I'm going to be honest though - half of the stuff good players did regularly were things the game developers never even considered / intended to be possible. In part, this is why I felt like the later games were let-downs - by "fixing the bugs" that made it what it was, they transformed the later ones into lightweight popcorn that had limited replayability.
Homeworld was a '99 game. I don't think it's GotY contender, but as long as we're talking about the year it's probably worth mentioning. This was the first RTS game to make really good use of a 3D engine. It's kind of disappointing to look back on though - at the time, I (and many others) were excited, thinking we were seeing the predecessor to what would surely be a whole series of great 3D space RTS games. In practice, the number of good games in that subgenre since then can probably be counted on one hand.
System Shock 2 was '99. I've never played it, but it's one of the games I plan on getting around to... one of these days. It's supposedly a game that helped shape the whole FPS genre ever since, and a pretty good game in itself; maybe someone who's actually played it can comment more.
Age of Empires 2 had a great soundtrack, good voicework for the time, and one of the best RTS AIs of the decade (which... was still pretty pitiful even compared to modern RTS AIs, much less human opponents, but at least you could have a decent deathmatch game against it while learning to play). Games tended to run longer than it's primary competitor (Starcraft); the networking was more buggy (I swear any attempt to play multiplayer AoE2 with a new group started with "first, spend an hour getting everyone in the lobby"), the UI was somewhat kinder to players (e.g., you weren't limited to control groups of just 12 units). The economy was simultaneously more sophisticated and more significant - while there still was room for tactical micro in AoE2, macro and strategic decision-making were relatively more important.
I have a serious soft spot for Infinity Engine RPGs, so it's possible I'm biased about Planescape: Torment. But I think it has to be, hands-down, the best of the year. They picked a good base engine, a good ruleset, a good setting... then they added masterful writing on top of it for plot and dialogue. It's also one of the games that I think helped popularize the idea of player choice and consequences in games - before that, the "choice" (when a game bothered to give you one at all) was generally "do you want to be an evil, cruel, heartless villain, or do the right thing"?
All told, hands-down no question I'm going to
vote=Planescape: Torment
Akka
Moody old mage.
Sooo, 1999 we're here !
Let's go for the nominations...
Silent Hill : one of the hallmark in horror games, and one of the few with a really disturbing atmosphere. No sure it aged well, but it definitely left its mark.
X-Wing Alliance : not as good as Tie-Fighter, but then I'm partial to the Empire so it may explain that. One of the few last good space simulator though, with a decent single-player campaign.
Freespace 2 : the other good space simulator or the twilight era.
Unreal Tournament : I never liked Quake 3, which was pretty bland in my taste. UT, though, managed somehow to take a MP game and make it interesting both in solo and multi, largely thanks to an excellent bot-system with very "lifelike" IA. I still kick it from time to time in to get some action fun.
Final Fantasy VIII : one of the most polarizing FF, half of the FF fanbase consider it the worse, the other consider it the best. I'm from the latter part, and am particularly attached to the characters, despite some flaws in the story and gameplay.
EverQuest : not really my cup of tea, but it can't be denied that the game had an enormous amount of influence, especially on its even-more influencial successor WoW. Defined the genre for more than half a decade, most other MMORPG being mere copycat.
System Shock 2 : immersive, deep and intelligent, a great game sadly often underrated (or downright unknown).
Homeworld : one of the most beautiful, immersive game, and one of the very few (only ?) space strategy game allowing to see the thrill of huge battleship decking it out. Very contemplative and pleasantly slow-paced, allowing to sink in your chair and enjoy the atmosphere. A singular, original and one-of-a-kind game.
Alpha Centauri : can't believe nobody nominated it. HELLO are we in Civfanatics forums or what ? Decidedly far in advance of its time, this is one of the best game in the Civ serie, with many groundbreaking advances that would influence heavily the subsequent Civ3 and 4. Complex and detailed, with an amazingly creative and still realistic take on the future, it's one of the very best game in the entire genre.
Planescape Torment : Looking for an incredibly well-written, deep, profound, immersive and twisted game throwing all the clichés out of the window and putting the fantasy world on its head ? Look no further. Underrated at its release, but became a legendary cult game in the following years (most asked for game on GOG, and sold out the promotional copies in a mere four minutes), the masterpiece which gave Chris Avellone his worship-like statut.
And my vote is easily :
PLANESCAPE : TORMENT
Let's be clear, Torment is not just exceptionnal, it's simply the BEST GAME EVER, bar none, and I'm not using it for emphasis but simply as a firmly-held opinion I've had since I played it. Half-novel, half-game, 100 % awesome, the only downside I could find is just how any game you play after it seems crude, dumb and superficial in comparison.
Let's go for the nominations...
Silent Hill : one of the hallmark in horror games, and one of the few with a really disturbing atmosphere. No sure it aged well, but it definitely left its mark.
X-Wing Alliance : not as good as Tie-Fighter, but then I'm partial to the Empire so it may explain that. One of the few last good space simulator though, with a decent single-player campaign.
Freespace 2 : the other good space simulator or the twilight era.
Unreal Tournament : I never liked Quake 3, which was pretty bland in my taste. UT, though, managed somehow to take a MP game and make it interesting both in solo and multi, largely thanks to an excellent bot-system with very "lifelike" IA. I still kick it from time to time in to get some action fun.
Final Fantasy VIII : one of the most polarizing FF, half of the FF fanbase consider it the worse, the other consider it the best. I'm from the latter part, and am particularly attached to the characters, despite some flaws in the story and gameplay.
EverQuest : not really my cup of tea, but it can't be denied that the game had an enormous amount of influence, especially on its even-more influencial successor WoW. Defined the genre for more than half a decade, most other MMORPG being mere copycat.
System Shock 2 : immersive, deep and intelligent, a great game sadly often underrated (or downright unknown).
Homeworld : one of the most beautiful, immersive game, and one of the very few (only ?) space strategy game allowing to see the thrill of huge battleship decking it out. Very contemplative and pleasantly slow-paced, allowing to sink in your chair and enjoy the atmosphere. A singular, original and one-of-a-kind game.
Alpha Centauri : can't believe nobody nominated it. HELLO are we in Civfanatics forums or what ? Decidedly far in advance of its time, this is one of the best game in the Civ serie, with many groundbreaking advances that would influence heavily the subsequent Civ3 and 4. Complex and detailed, with an amazingly creative and still realistic take on the future, it's one of the very best game in the entire genre.
Planescape Torment : Looking for an incredibly well-written, deep, profound, immersive and twisted game throwing all the clichés out of the window and putting the fantasy world on its head ? Look no further. Underrated at its release, but became a legendary cult game in the following years (most asked for game on GOG, and sold out the promotional copies in a mere four minutes), the masterpiece which gave Chris Avellone his worship-like statut.
And my vote is easily :
PLANESCAPE : TORMENT
Let's be clear, Torment is not just exceptionnal, it's simply the BEST GAME EVER, bar none, and I'm not using it for emphasis but simply as a firmly-held opinion I've had since I played it. Half-novel, half-game, 100 % awesome, the only downside I could find is just how any game you play after it seems crude, dumb and superficial in comparison.
I appreciate that you've moved on to 1999 but heres another game worth mentioning from 1998:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardwar_(video_game)
Had an interesting story to follow and a fun chase element to the ending.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardwar_(video_game)
Had an interesting story to follow and a fun chase element to the ending.
1999 Nominations (in addition to those already given):
Jagged Alliance 2 - I haven't played it but it is highly rated on the site I'm checking and have heard it is similar to XCOM.
Worms Armageddon - Hailed by many as the best worms game still to this day. I was very happy to pick it up in a recent weekly Humble Bundle.
Super Smash Bros. - This first in a series that I consider to be the best crossover/mash-up of multiple franchises into one game.
RollerCoaster Tycoon - I got more enjoyment out of this than any of the SimCity games I played as a kid/teen.
Age of Wonders - I have been waiting for this one! One of the greatest fantasy TBS games but not as well known, perhaps because it came out the same year as HOMM3 which was already an established series. Later AoW games expanded and refined the game mechanics but the original is still very enjoyable and most agree that it has the best single player campaign. The tactical battles in this game are fought on a much grander scale than HOMM (in terms of map size and number of stacks/players that can be in one battle).
Vote= Age of Wonders! Of course. My avatar comes from it.
Jagged Alliance 2 - I haven't played it but it is highly rated on the site I'm checking and have heard it is similar to XCOM.
Worms Armageddon - Hailed by many as the best worms game still to this day. I was very happy to pick it up in a recent weekly Humble Bundle.
Super Smash Bros. - This first in a series that I consider to be the best crossover/mash-up of multiple franchises into one game.
RollerCoaster Tycoon - I got more enjoyment out of this than any of the SimCity games I played as a kid/teen.
Age of Wonders - I have been waiting for this one! One of the greatest fantasy TBS games but not as well known, perhaps because it came out the same year as HOMM3 which was already an established series. Later AoW games expanded and refined the game mechanics but the original is still very enjoyable and most agree that it has the best single player campaign. The tactical battles in this game are fought on a much grander scale than HOMM (in terms of map size and number of stacks/players that can be in one battle).
Vote= Age of Wonders! Of course. My avatar comes from it.
de Maistre
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vote=Planescape: Torment
I didn't have to think very hard about this one.
I didn't have to think very hard about this one.
KMRblue1027
Deity
Vote = SimCity 3000
Nominate:
Counter-Strike - At least, the official release, I think I was playing before 1999 as far as I remember?
The Longest Journey - One of the most highly regarded point and click
Gnnnn... I have to decide between...
Planescape.... Age of Empires II.... Heroes of Might and Magic III.... Alpha Centauri... Gawd.
Vote=Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
Counter-Strike - At least, the official release, I think I was playing before 1999 as far as I remember?
The Longest Journey - One of the most highly regarded point and click
Gnnnn... I have to decide between...
Planescape.... Age of Empires II.... Heroes of Might and Magic III.... Alpha Centauri... Gawd.
Vote=Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
Thorgalaeg
Deity
Simcity 3000 and Alpha Centauri are from 1999? I overlooked them it seems, otherwise i had add them to my nominations. So ´99 was not a so unremarkable year after all.
vote: Worms Armageddon
okay , i feel bad for not voting alpha centauri on a civ board but i've never played it. it sounds like a 4X game i could into like MOO. *shrug* oh and silent hill is ground-breaking yes, but ack i'm terrible at these "survival" games. frustrates me too much.
okay , i feel bad for not voting alpha centauri on a civ board but i've never played it. it sounds like a 4X game i could into like MOO. *shrug* oh and silent hill is ground-breaking yes, but ack i'm terrible at these "survival" games. frustrates me too much.
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