EWB GOTY 2013 - The Results

[Skummy]

I bloody loved Tomb Raider. Absolutely blew me away in a way that very few games did this year.

As for Bioshock Infinite...I kind of agree that the combat was repetitive. It always seemed to just get in the way, and quickly became more of a chore than anything else.

I'm still unsure about Bioshock...the ending, while interesting, felt a little bit of a cop-out, and I just don't think that it was the right genre to tell the story it was trying to tell. There's this idea that every action has reactions, and everything you do will influence the future in some way...well, what about the lives of all the nameless grunts you kill without a second thought? What about the decisions they made?

[Plubby]

#2

The Last of Us

First released: June 14 2013

On: PS3

Weighted Score:

896

14 Nominations, 8 Points per Vote.

One of the landmark gaming experiences of the year, The Last of Us was an emotional experience for anyone with opposable digits and a pulse. If you had a PS3 and didn't vote for this game, then either you are a fool or you didn't play it. (And thus are a fool.) Final word from me, this game is phenomenal. But don't just take my word for it, listen to your EWBrethren.

EWB TALKS:

Granted, I didn't play many games in 2013, but Naughty Dog delivered once again with The Last of Us. From the debut trailer, I was pumped about the game, being a big Uncharted fan, and it didn't disappoint. Everything from the story, to the fun gameplay, was top notch, and the relationship between Joel and Ellie was excellent.

I said at the time that the opening sequence of the game was the best I'd ever seen, and I still stand by that. Any game that can have you caring so much, and on the verge of tears within 15-20 minutes deserves my vote.

- Baddar

---

As games become more and more an accepted art form in pop culture, it's hardly surprising that the stories told within them start to comment on the nature of humanity. Indeed, many games well-received games as Mass Effect, Heavy Rain, The Walking Dead, Dragon Age, and others give you branching choices that not only show you how people react, but how you yourself would react, and force you to reflect upon those choices, creating an epic personal story to each player. The Last of Us does not offer you those choices. The Last of Us is linear, but that's because it has a story to tell, and it's one that you can't help but get caught up in. It's very difficult to describe without spoiling it, so I'll just say this - PLEASE play the game before reading the below.

Seriously, game ending spoilers within...

We've seen it before - a man finds himself as the protector of a young girl, and as the two journey onwards, they meet enemies and friends that bring them closer together. In most cases, this would mean that one of them has to die, one of them has to make the ultimate sacrifice (usually the father figure), but Last of Us turns that on it's head. It's ending - where Joel quite literally sacrifices the potential future of all of humanity for his own selfish reasons - is where the game turns from a fantastic game and into a masterpiece.

How could I possibly have done any different? Given the same choice, how could I possibly have given up my world for the greater good? It's selfish, and it's the choice that I think the majority of people would have made, and that's why it's good you don't get to choose it. Games you can re-play and change your choices on, they don't truly give you consequences, they rarely truly make you think on your actions, they're just another button press in a series of button presses that you can return to if you don't like the consequences.

There's moments within the game that will stay with me forever - the sadness felt at the deaths of Tess and Sarah, the relief as David met his end, the discovery of giraffes, Ellie's discussions about what life was like before the outbreak, Ellie's awful awful jokes, the desperation felt in the basement of the high school as the darkness and infected gathered, the fear as I snuck through the snow, the panic for Ellie as I took out the Fireflies (who were basically the good guys trying to save humanity), the disappointment in myself I felt as I shot the innocent doctor who was about to cut into Ellie, and of course, the uncertain future for Ellie and Joel as the game meets it's closing moments. Every single one I remember so vividly, and with feelings of bitterness and fondness.

Beyond the story, the game provides gameplay that has provided me with more online fun than any game I've played without an EWBer present. I've sunk around 30 hours into the game's online, in a community which is generally extremely friendly (something incredibly rare for a shooter). I completed the main story three times within about 3 months and looked through all the bonus content (something I never do with games), so desperate was I for more of this amazing game. To say it was my game of the year is a disservice to my opinion of the game.

It's the kind of piece of pop culture that isn't shaped by the gamers, but shapes the people who play it. Something that reminds you that even at it's best and most well intentioned, humanity can be selfish and destructive... and reminds you that that's not altogether a bad thing.

- Benji

---

The Last of Us is a slog. That may seem like an odd descriptor for what was my number one game of 2013 but the fact remains. The Last of Us is a slog. It beats you down and beats you down and then beats you down again. What's that? Ellie told a funny joke? Just wait. The game is about to beat you down again.

So why do I love this game that beats me down at nearly every turn? The simple answer is immersion. After the opening with Joel and his daughter I was Joel. His pain was my pain and his mission was my mission. After an especially tough battle I felt just as old and tired as he was. But I knew I had to keep going. This game provided me very little in the way of joy. There were hours at a time where I just stared straight forward and kept going. The Last of Us is pain. But it's a good pain. Don't go into this game expecting to be happy. However it's worth the journey. Very rarely does a game grip you like this and never let go. But go in prepared because...

The Last of Us is a slog.

- Srar

Next time: Our Winner!

[Skummy]

I haven't played The Last Of Us...I've heard mixed reviews, but nothing bad about the story, so I'd probably love it.

GTA Online being voted for separately still seems odd to me but, fine, whatever. I'm not an online gamer, so I probably just don't get it.

Assassins Creed IV is one I mostly just watched my girlfriend play, but I got far more interested in it than in any other game in the franchise. All the stuff outside of the Animus was great - the way they try and fit bits of cryptohistory and whatnot into the in-game universe, and the sheer volume of information you can find out really gives you a feel for the scope of whatever Abstergo is. Hell, even the fact that the game itself has an Abstergo Entertainment credit at the start is a nice little touch. As for the actual pirate-y side of things...I liked it, loved Kenway as a character, and adored the setting in general, though it got a bit samey in places. Boats were fun at first, but became tedious really rather quickly. If anything, there was probably not enough of actually being an Assassin, though that doesn't bother me as much as it does some people - obviously it's the name of the game and whatnot, but the wider story has a lot more scope than that, so doesn't need to focus on that side of things all the time, as far as I'm concerned.

Pokémon X & Y are the first game since Smash Bros on the Wii to actually sell a console to me. I wasn't fussed about getting a 3DS/2DS, but after ten minutes of watching my girlfriend play X, I rushed out and bought one, and don't regret it one bit. It probably helps that I've not played many of the other Pokémon games, but I absolutely loved it. It felt more complete, and more fun, than any of the other games in the series that I've played.

I've not played Civ V, because apparently my piece of shit laptop couldn't run it. I want to, though.

Fire Emblem is on my list of games I need to play, once I'm done with Bravely Default.

Have I talked about Ni No Kuni yet? Ni No Kuni is bloody lovely. It's childish and actually not as "Studio Ghibli" as I'd hoped, but it's a ton of fun, and the story has a lot more depth than it first appears. I don't think I got round to finishing it, but I really enjoyed it. It's been a good year for JRPGs, come to think of it. Also, The Cawtermaster is the best thing.

[gunnar hendershow]

The Last of Us was brilliant. Great storytelling, as much of a trip through suffering it was, and the gameplay while not reinventing anything felt a lot like what Uncharted should be. You're not clearing out thousands of nameless grunts, while there are times when you have large numbers of enemies on your tail there are times when just a handful are more than enough. By the time the inevitable sequel comes out I'll have had to upgrade to the PS4.

[Sam]

The last of us was amaze balls. The whole story had me so gripped and I really didn't believe it would end the way it did.

[EWB's Best Poster.]

It would have been my top pick. I just couldn't map the other 9 out. I'll feel bad if thats what kept it from top spot.

[Bobfoc]

I finished The Last of Us a few days ago, and while it wasn't my favourite game of the year, it still managed to engage me throughout its entire duration. I imagine it might disappoint those who decide to play it in the future on the back of so many "best game ever" claims, but if you go in without any particular expectations, it's a surprisingly refreshing experience in a medium inundated with zombie apocalypse settings.

[TKz]

I think I knocked Last of Us off my list. It's a good game with a tense story that fell apart a little in the end. I think I'd have loved it way more if I hadn't become completely disinterested in zombie games.

I liked the survival horror elements, but it felt like they could've expanded on it more and opened up the world a little. For a Naughty Dog game it was pretty open, but it was such a beautiful world. It felt a real shame that the only places we could go were kind of limited. And Survival Horror really opens itself up to exploration. Some of my favorite parts were crawling around the towns, where you actually had some choices as to how to proceed and where to explore.

Some of the AI problems I had really hurt my experience. Same thing happened with Arkham Origins.

It being a popular survival horror game makes me want to get around to Dead Space 3, so... there's that.

Ticklez hates everything, I know. >_>

[Baddar]

Boooo, Tkz, boooo.

[Benji]

Survival Horror really opens itself up to exploration.

Agreed, but it depends entirely on the game you're trying to make. As I said in my blurb, The Last of Us is very much a game with a specific story to tell. I know you're well aware of this, but games got by for a long time without being exploration, moral dilema, sandbox fests, and they did so fantastically, and I feel like The Last of Us justifiably had a linear path because of it's story.

Agreed that the AI was a bit dense (Ellie's lack of hiding ability combined with infected's apparent inability to find her), that's why the gameplay comes into it's own in the online. Swear to God, I've never had that much fun in an online game without EWBers present.

[Baddar]

I still haven't played LoU online. Maybe I should.

[Plubby]

Was meaning to do #1 last night but went to bed early feeling a bit off. Will hopefully get it up tonight.

[METALMAN]

I WONDER WHAT IT WILL BE

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

[TKz]

I'll say in advance that Grand Theft Auto 5 was just another GTA game in the end. If you're into them, I'm sure it was great, but it didn't even touch Red Dead. I don't think I even cared enough to finish it once I was banished from the town.

[METALMAN]

That's the end of it anyway. He gets banished from town, feels down for a bit and decides to start a new life somewhere else.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Whereas while I enjoyed Red Dead Revolver at the start I totally ran out of steam, firstly after crossing into Mexico and then again later after being driven into the town in the car. Then I decided that I'm not enough of a completionist to bother carrying on after losing interest.

[TKz]

That's the end of it anyway. He gets banished from town, feels down for a bit and decides to start a new life somewhere else.

I'm pretty happy to accept that as the official ending. I don't feel like I missed out on anything.

[TEOL]

I like how I thought Papers Please was going to be number one because I edited it already appearing at number twelve out of my memory because I couldn't believe EWB would be that awful.

[METALMAN]

I thought that because I voted for it with number one and if we me being a perfect barometer of EWB's tastes...