Eurogamer's Top 50 Games of 2008: 20-11 Comments by Eurogamer staff

(dont agree with mirrors edge being so high up though.. i was highly anticipating that title - and imho it turned out to be arse)

Boom Blox was this year's Boxing Day party hit. An under-appreciated gem.

Not much wrong with this section except for Spore.

It was utter shit. Tacking a few boring minigames together does not make for a good game.

Once again, i'm saying Braid is going to be #1 because of the way EG has gone recently.

Surprised at all the Layton hate. That game was outstanding.

On Burnout Paradise: "I just wish (x1,000,000) I could restart my failed races without having to drive across the flaming map. Love, Kristan."

Anyone else aware that restarts are being added in February as part of the BP Party Pack? The number of times I've read this distraction that people want righted - when the feature was announced at least two months ago, now, lol!

/Wonders where (not if!) Valkyria placed on this list

My guess for top 10, in whatever order...

Dead space, Braid, GoW2, Fable 2, Fallout 3, Geometry wars 2, LBP, GTA4, World of Goo, L4D

FIFA 09 omitted because it's such a long running series (otherwise PES2009 would probably still be in top 50?)

Surprised SF2HD Turbo Diesel Hybrid something or other isn't in the top 50 though

@Omega[FR] : If L4D is anywhere in the list.. i'll start spouting my hate as much as a mgs fanboy.

.. Although gta4 is BOUND to be in the top ten - even though it's shite.

@smelly
Pretty sure you can start now then as it's bound to be in the top 10!

It says more about the quality of design in Rez than the superfluous "next gen" upgrade that 6 years on it still can compete with today's gaming elite. Still have the Dreamcast original. :o)

My guess:

1. Fallout 3
2. GTA IV
3. Braid
4. World of Goo
5. Gears of War 2
6. Left 4 Dead
7. Fable 2
8. Geometry Wars 2
9. LittleBigPlanet
10. Dead Space

Will Valkyria make it in? :o

To save you clicking on the "How it's all worked out" link, EG have put the "infinite number of monkeys" saying into practice and this is the result.

Deserved no.1: LittleBigPlanet (oh the bias)

Likely no.1: Fallout 3

Shock no.1: Fable 2 (oh the bias)

Most hated no.1: GTA4

That is all.

Rez: "Not as good as Panzer Dragoon"

Pretty much how I felt when I played it. I was dead chuffed to find a PS2 copy of this sitting in a bargain bin for a fiver a few years back. Bar the novelty of the interactive soundtrack, the only time the game got vaguely interesting was when you hit the final Adam Freeland level. People often like to lay into Ico (which is amazing) but if you want to hit a target for trading on reputation, this is the game.

Oh, many of you have seen me rant away about Bethesda on here... but even I can't deny Fallout 3 is just wonderful.

Been trying to get hold of Professor Layton for a while, but seems to have disappeared everywhere, despite only being out last month. Anybody got any recommendations?

Mattb90, considering how well it was marketed, I doubt you'll have too much trouble getting hold of a copy. It's UPS for the mainstream is that it's a Studio Ghibli style narrative with puzzle gameplay to task the mind like Brain Training. It's a more commercially friendly game than say Bangai-O, which incidently is a far superior game according to EG...

Burnout paradise - good like the old burnouts, but more annoying wandering about, getting lost and crashing due to having to look at the map rather than just driving...... /sigh

@Rash': Indeed, I thought so too, but as far as I can see, it's not available anywhere online in the UK without paying some ridiculous price (e.g. £60 from one Amazon Marketplace seller). Should have bought it when it came out, instead of waiting until Christmas and finding out noone else could get it for me either. Mind you, a housemate who was in the US in the summer couldn't track it down either.

Mattb90:

http://www.play.com/Games/DS/4-/6362848/...

Happy Shopping.

:o)

Condemned 2 was a bunch of crap, so is ME. The latter has some nice ideas, just not very well executed.

@Rash': £35.99 for a DS game from an unknown source (that's not actually Play.com I'd be buying from) was still considered a "ridiculous price" when I saw that previously. However, on further investigation it might be the best offer out there...

Mattb90, I just think if you really want it it's not too late. It took me two days to track down The World Ends With You and that was released much earlier in the year. I'm sure you can find it for a better price if you have a good look. My search took two minutes.

Alternatively you could order it direct from a store. I don't think it's been discontinued.

Ahhh Rez ...

It's like one of those paintings where we all look at it , secretly knowing its not all that but no one dare be the first one to speak up. Journo's proclaim it to be the best thing ever and if you 'don't get it' then you're just stupid and thick , when what it actually is , is Panzer Dragoon with slightly stranger graphics. Compare this with Geometry Wars 2 and I know which I'd take to a desert island.

^ You could also tear Outrun 2(006) apart in that way if you wanted to, but it's all about the fun and the experience.

Some games just aren't directly comparable.

'Condemned 2 was a bunch of crap'

It was hardly a bunch of crap. It certainly wasn't as good as the first one and it definitely doesn't deserve to be on this or any other end of year list thingy and it most certainly was not better than MGS4 (i'm not letting that go :P).

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE -

DO NOT PUT GEARS OF WAR 2 IN THE TOP 5!!!!!!

Hahahahahaaaaaaa! Condemned 2 as high as 20?

O_o

o_O

Just unbelievable.

I haven't played it, mind.


hehe

^ I'm not tearing it apart , just voicing my opinion, and this is from a Sega fan who bought a Saturn , Dreamcast and Rez ...

Sorry for me it is a pretentious game with ideas it's gameplay never delivers , the actual game is not so far removed from Space Harrier !

I can't wait for the new Outrun due to appear on XBLA , Rez .. love the art direction , the style and the music but as a game ...no thanks. I would love someone who truly does like the game to explain to me what I'm missing , what it is that I don't get ...


How ... the .. hell ... is .. Spore in this list ? Oh yep and my nomination for most criminally underrated game of the year, Pure.

yeah Tomb Raider in the top 20 and deserves it, reviewers slagging it off just because the game has been around for so long. Hats off to Ellie for eating a little humble pie. Professor Layton, really expected this in the top 10. Burnout Paradise bang on with that.

I like the fact that some of my faves haven't got a mention yet! It would be nice to receive verification that the games I like really are gooood!

I am also anxiously anticipating this, if my favorite games do not make the top 10, I shall be truly devastated, and I will let everyone on this forum know what utter cunts the EG staff are for not sharing my views!

^ Yep - it is just like Space Harrier.

It offers and delivers much more however.

I know what you mean about the simplicity, but it's just one of those chillout / zoneout games for me, like Outrun 2, Burnout 3 and even SFII at times. I like to just chill and play it.

I'm sure there are loads of other games that I play just to relax. It's way different to Geometry Wars, which is way better - in completely different ways. Mario Kart and Gran Turismo are both driving games.

SexySquirrel, I'm curious what is it about Rez that doesn't sit well with you? You say you like the visuals and sound, so then what in it's design isn't appealing? What is so pretentious?

Personally, I could never break the game up to it's constitute parts. It is to me a game greater than the sum of those parts. Saying the game plays like SH is missing the point, which brings us back to you original annoyance with reviewers, that maybe you don't get it... or maybe don't want to, but please explain.

@ Rash

It's not that I even dislike it , it's obviously better than average , just not one of the best games of the year to me anyway , the actual game ... I see no difference to Panzer Dragoon that I played on the Saturn ten years ago and you don't hear many people asking for a Panzer Dragoon sequel now do you ? I guess it's just one of those niche games , I'm just curious why some people feel so strongly about it ? What do you get out of it that I'm not getting ?

^ I think the design is timeless. It's a music game in a shooter. It's a score attack game in a shooter. The graphics and sound are as good today as they were when the original was released. The level design is excellently considered. It is a game that rewards play making it a lasting game. It is one of the great games of the past decade in my view, but I confess that's partly because no one has tried to better it. But that's because of its other beauty, it goes against commercial trends and trys to create it's own, and arguably does. It's why I consider it one of gamings greatest artistic works. It's a product of creative desire rather than capitalist drive. If that's pretentious, then I'm glad we have such minds pushing creative boundaries.

The game was clearly ahead of it's time when it was released on DC and PS2, and yet I was able to savour it's brilliance then so I have to wonder whether the game being on this list is a good thing or a bad thing. I still have the issue of Edge where Halo (deservedly) piped it to best game of the year.

/rant over. Nostalgia sends him off for a session on said game.

Braid is like a chillout / headfuck game.

I reckon that this is more of a:

'GAMES YOU MUST AT LEAST TRY, IF NOT FINISH'

list.

or a 'money well spent' list(, where they didn't have to pay - lucky bastards).

/off to play SSFIITHDR

By the way, I'd like a new Panzer Dragoon.

Or the old Panzers on XBLA.

@SexySquirrel - I find it odd how gamers today can associate a game with Space Harrier and Panzer Dragoon and mean it as a putdown, I'd call it the finest complement you could give to a game. Oh and I'd like a Panzer Dragoon sequel, on Live and PSN, better still a new Panzer Dragoon RPG or even just the previous ones ported (edit Ryze said iti first, so I'll concur).

Mirror's Edge - possibly my best and worst game of the year, I really hope DICE are given the chance to make amends for all that wrong (combat, trial and error, annoying Run Lola Run trendy chic etc) and build on all that is right about the running, jumping and climbing core gameplay of the original. I suspect they will have to do it on a smaller budget, why not do it as an online medium scale game with a price to match, won't need to worry about mass market appeal, a 'gamers' game that doesn't put off the gamers.

@ Vertical Stand

It wasn't meant as a put down but Space Harrier was released in 1985 ? Panzer Dragoon 1995/1996 ? The argument I'm making is , would anyone be interested in playing space invaders now with souped up graphics and sound ? Not many people would , things have moved on , Rez .. as pretty as it is and as good as the music is ... didn't move things on as a game for me.. style over substance.

SexySquirrel, I really wish you would explain these damning claims against Rez. We all know why it's brilliant, but as you are being so vocal against it I do think it would be good if you could explain why you think it's pretentious and style over substance. You say things have moved on, and yet I don't see any game that offers an experience quite like Rez.

"Will Valkyria make it in? :o "

Jaypers but I hope it does. An unheralded classic like this deserves some heralding so that more people can realise what a classic it is. Seriously, a few accolades might just raise awareness of this gem of a game.

I would agree that it is style over substance but what style eh?

I haven't explained so far as I feel it's obvious to anyone who has played it , hold down shoot button, target enemies , release shoot button , move on. Panzer Dragoon 1995 ! No doubting the beauty of the graphics or soundtrack, but I feel its pretentious as it trades on these without there being decent gameplay beneath all the glitz , its a triumph of style over substance , where something like Geometry Wars reuses old ideas but is better than any of the retro games it is influenced by.

Baffled that Condemned 2 is so high. IMO it was okay but the original was far better, and the endgame for 2 was utter shit. Again, I liked it, but I really don't understand how it got so high?

"No doubting the beauty of the graphics or soundtrack, but I feel its pretentious as it trades on these without there being decent gameplay beneath all the glitz , its a triumph of style over substance"

So still a triumph then? :D

Thing is, if I hadn't played Rez I'd agree with you 100%. And yet... when I actually got round to trying it out in a darkened room with no-one else around, it pulled me into the game world like very few games have. The gameplay is fun, and what more can you ask really, but it's really more about the experience than racking up huge scores. It doesn't have the BEST GAMEPLAY EVER but what it DOES have fits the game and is enough to keep you interested.

^REZ^
The graphics are nice, in a futuristic 80's kind of way. Call me picky but I was a bit disappointed with the transition between layer levels, be nice if the graphics morphed properly on the fly, seemed a bit of a cop out the way it was done.
I did enjoy the music but its hardly a music game, I mean the only interaction are some sound affects when enemies die, you hardly dictate the beat or tune.
SexySquirrel has already made valid comments about the gameplay.

I know some of the best games are based on simple ideas but REZ didn’t seem to leave much room for skill or improvement. Nice style though and a cool game to play & just been watching this video:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=A4EFNWe4mC...
Makes me want to play it again, and I probably will tomorrow but one go is all I ever need, doesn’t make me want to replay time and time again. Not bad 7/10 IMO

I'm beginning to think that EG are throwing in games in odd positions (MGS4) or games that should even be there (Condemned 2) just to get page hits and ad impressions up.

It worked with MGS4 but even people who liked Condemned 2 all pretty much agree it shouldn't be there at all, let alone at 20 0_o

not sure what will be in the final ten , but it will be a split in terms of formats so they keep the readership happy , 2 or 3 for each format , with Gears 2 and LittleBigPlanet as shoe ins ...

Nobody has mentioned Call of Duty yet, I think thats a cert for the top ten. Won't be top 5 I wouldn't have thought though.

So in Top 10 I think: GTAIV, LBP, GOW2, COD5, Fallout 3, Fable 2, Bioshock, Braid, Goo, Portal.

Loving the list so far, regardless of whats where its a really interesting read. Fallout 3 number one I reckon.

With mirrors edge on this list.. im wondering if the superior (imho) pop is in the top 10...

EDIT: Bioshock wont be.. that was 2007 (i think?)