Last Chance to Nominate: Best Video Games of 2008

Hopefully after we clear all this up we can do an old-fashioned ballot poll? Please let me know if you have any additions or if you see anything on the list that was not released on 08 (release dates are primarily for US, unless the game is a UK exclusive).

Here's the list:

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS)
Animal Crossing City Folk (Wii)
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney (DS)
Army of Two (PS3/X360)
Art Style: ORBIENT (Wii)
AudioSurf (PC)
Bangai-O Spirits (DS)
Battlefield: Bad Company (PS3/X360)
Bionic Commando Rearmed (PS3/PC/X360)
BioShock (PS3)
Bleach: Dark Souls (DS)
Bomberman Blast (Wii)
Boom Blox (Wii)
Braid (X360)
Bully: Scholarship Edition (Wii/X360)
Burnout Paradise (PS3/X360)
Buzz! Quiz TV (PS3)
Call of Duty: World at War (X360/PS3/PC/Wii/DS)
Castle Crashers (X360)
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS)
Chrono Trigger (DS)
Civilization IV: Colonization (PC)
Civilization Revolution (PS3/X360/DS)
Condemned 2: Bloodshot (PS3/X360)
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (PSP)
CrossworDS (DS)
Crysis Warhead (PC)
Culdcept Saga (X360)
Dangerous High School Girls in Trouble (PC)
De Blob (Wii)
Dead Space (X360/PS3/PC)
Deadly Rooms of Death RPG (PC)
Devil May Cry 4 (X360/PS3/PC)
Disgaea (DS)
Dokapon Kingdom (Wii/PS2)
Drone Tactics (DS)
El Emigrante (PC)
Eternal Sonata (PS3)
Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard (DS)
Fable II (X360)
Fairway Solitaire (PC)
Fallout 3 (X360/PC/PS3)
Far Cry 2 (PC/X360/PS3)
Fieldrunners (Iphone)
FIFA Soccer 09 (X360/PS3/PC/DS/PSP)
Final Fantasy IV (DS)
Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (DS)
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (DS)
Football Manager 09 (PS/PSP)
Football Manager 2009 (PC)
Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor (PC)
Gears of War 2 (X360)
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2 (X360)
God of War: Chains of Olympus (PSP)
Grand Theft Auto IV (X360/PS3/PC)
GRID (PC/X360/PS3/DS)
GTR Evolution (PC)
Guitar Hero (DS)
Guitar Hero World Tour (Wii/X360/PS3)
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith (Wii/X360/PS3)
Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 (PSP)
Ikaruga (X360)
King's Bounty: The Legend (PC)
KORG DS-10 Synthesizer (DS)
Left 4 Dead (PC/X360)
Lego Batman (PC/X360/Wii/PS3)
Linger in Shadows (PS3)
LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
LocoRoco 2 (PSP)
Lost Winds (Wii)
Luminous Arc 2 (DS)
MaBoShi: The Three Shape Arcade (Wii)
Madden NFL 09 (PS3/X360)
Madden NFL 09 All-Play (Wii)
Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
Mass Effect (PC)
Mega Man 9 (Wii/X360/PS3)
Metal Gear Online (PS3)
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3)
Midnight Club: Los Angeles (PS3/X360/PSP)
Mirror's Edge (PS3/X360)
MLB 08: The Show (PS3/PSP)
Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe (PS3/X360)
Mother 3 (English Translation) (GBA)
N+ (X360/DS/PSP)
Nancy Drew: The Haunting of Castle Malloy (PC)
NBA 2K9 (X360/PS3)
NBA Live 09 (X360/PS3)
NCAA Football 09 (X360/PS3)
NHL 09 (X360/PS3)
Ninja Gaiden II (X360)
Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword (DS)
Ninjatown (DS)
No More Heroes (Wii)
Okami (Wii)
Out of the Park Baseball 9 (PC)
Patapon (PSP)
Penny Arcade: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 1 and 2 (X360/PS3)
Persona 4 (PS2)
Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection (Wii)
PixelJunk Eden (PS3)
PixelJunk Monsters (PS3)
Pokemon Platinum (DS)
Portal: Still Alive (X360)
Prince of Persia (PS3/PC/X360)
Pro Evolution Soccer 09 (X360/Wii/PC/PS3)
Professor Layton and the Curious Village (DS)
Pure (X360/PC/PS3)
Resistance 2 (PS3)
Rez HD (X360)
Rock Band 2 (X360/PS3)
Saints Row 2 (X360/PC/PS3)
Sam & Max Season Two (PC)
Sensible World of Soccer 2009 (PC)
Silent Hill Origins (PS2)
SingStar (PS3)
Sins of a Solar Empire (PC)
Sonny (Online)
Soulcalibur IV (X360/PS3)
Space Invaders Extreme (DS/PSP)
Spore (PC)
Spore Creature Creator (PC)
Star Wars: Force Unleashed (X360/Wii/PC/PS3)
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (PC/Wii)
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix (X360/PS3)
Tetris Party (Wii)
The Last Remnant (x360)
The Witcher: Extended Edition (PC)
The World Ends with You (DS)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 (X360/PS3)
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (X360)
Tomb Raider Underworld (PS3/Wii/DS/X360/PC)
TrackMania United Forever (PC)
Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 (DS)
Trials 2: Second Edition (PC)
Unreal Tournament 3 (X360)
Valkyria Chronicles (PS3)
Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise (DS)
Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise (X360)
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (PC)
Wii Fit (Wii)
Wii Music (Wii)
WipEout HD (PS3)
WipEout Pulse (PSP)
World of Goo (Wii/PC)
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (PC)

This list is VERY light on free/flash games; that's the ones I'm especially looking on help for a final ballot roster.

I'd also add that all the bellyaching about this not being a great year since no one has a consensus GAME OF THE YEAR in sparkling lights is horseshit; there's at least thirty games on this list that I've played and really loved and at least thirty more that I wish I could play. I'd say that this list alone could keep the average player busy and happy for the rest of their life... and these are just the best known releases!

I actually thought there should probably be a separate thread just for DS and flash games too, just because there were so many good ones this year. Hell, even a best remake thread! It does feel like it's been a really good year.

Top 10 Games of 2008

2008 - year of the remake.

yah i cant consider DS reiusses like chrono trigger and FFIV to be 2--8 games. and eternal sonata, bully, bioshock all had -7 releases on other platforms. and are you counting japanese games/release dates? becuz fire emblem DS is an -9 NA release. also a remake lol.

maybe instead of worrying too much about drafting a nomination list you/we could just sort out some groundrules (i.e. yes remakes or no remakes, first major release date or first NA release date) and then let ppl vote however they want. here's a link for most 08 releases as a reference:

http://en.wikipedia.or/wiki/Category:2008_video_games

i think a whole new board is in order

Violet: A Distraction
Pandemic 2
ForumWarz
PackRat
Peggle Nights
Too Human
Fairway Solitaire
Heartwild Solitaire
Skyrates
Auditorium
Mirror's Edge 2D

Oh, of course, Governor of Poker.

I think Fairway Solitaire was released in 2007? Also missing, the best missing indie: YOU HAVE TO BURN THE ROPE. And Iji and You Found the Grappling Hook! I think commerical indie/shareware/DLC against freeware/flash games should be separated, they're on a different scale. Not as much as say Fallout 3 vs. ForumWarz, but it's still substantial.

As far as remakes go... I think something like Final Fantasy IV, which was redeveloped into 3D, would count as different enough to be a new title, but Chrono Trigger DS, not so much. Same for Bully and Bioshock. I don't know how different Fire Emblem DS was from the original title, but I guess.. probably should count? But with no English language release this year I'm loathe to count it for '08, especially since it'll probably come here like Rhythm Tengoku will.

I'll start the DS thread next week if nobody else does. What do you think were the best non-games this year? (i.e. Wii Fit, Korg DS-10) (probably not enough for a poll, but I figured I'd put it out there)

I just started playing Fallout 3 and I predict a winner

My picks from the old thread are unchanged, so that's my ballot.

You sure are a cranky cuss, s1ockster.
Anyways, the top 10 of 08 list and the wiki are where I got most of these.

I think a release this year, whether remake/re-release/new system release, is worth discussing as best game of the year; the only standards I think that matter are that you played it this year and it was released this year. 70% of this stuff was released in Japan last year; a foolish inconsistency will make for easier thinkin'.

And Burn the Rope and all of mordy's suggestions are good.

maybe instead of worrying too much about drafting a nomination list you/we could just sort out some groundrules (i.e. yes remakes or no remakes, first major release date or first NA release date) and then let ppl vote however they want.

...works for me?

There should be more Interactive Fiction, but I'm very behind on playing the IF Comp. Is there anyone more up to date who can nominate stuff?

I vote yes remakes, first major release date

GRID - The is the BEST - my vote
Grand Theft Auto IV
PixelJunk Eden
LittleBigPlanet
Dead Space
NBA 2K9
Civilization Revolution
Fallout 3
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
Buzz! Quiz TV - P.S. - you do not have the Playstation Networks 'Jeopardy' listed - which, while it kinda sucks, gave the wife and I trivia battle fun until Buzz! came out.

im just teasing ya forks

I know dude. We have a relationship.

can we put these ones in the ballot; I'm not saying this is the way I'll vote but I'd like the option to

ketsui death label
pic pic
siren: blood curse
theresia...
rhythm tengoku

fire emblem DS had an english language release this year btw

So when does voting on this start?

I think we should allow remakes and we can use our discretion as to whether we'd vote for it (ie. I'd vote for Fire Emblem DS because it's the first release in English, and it's such an upgrade, while I'd not vote for Chrono TRigger despite it being one of my fave games of all time simply because there's just not enough 'new'ness).

nominating "Virtual Silence"

nominating yakuza 2

nominating Crash Commando

nominate charles barkley: shut up and jam

haha, oh god I loved that game.

do you mean "charles barkley shut up and jam: gaiden", because if so, fuk yah