AAA? Really?

[Glockstar]

2007 saw an inordinate amount of games score 90% and above with "pro" reviewers. As you'll see below, 19 games can boast to having the AAA tag. That's way more than any other year! Why, Super Mario Galaxy is on the verge of being called the greatest game of all-time (according to GameRankings)! A title which as been securely held (by Zelda: Ocarina of Time) for almost 10 years. Peculiarly(?), almost all of the major releases - especially those timed for the hot selling months - got excellent reviews and scores of at least 90% almost across the board.

The grades of 2007:

2007 GAME RANKINGS (second number is overall GameRanking)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) 2. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)....release date:11/12/07....97.303%
2) 4. The Orange Box (360)....10/10/07....96.261%
3) 6. The Orange Box (PC)....10/10/07....96.183%
4) 14. BioShock (360)....08/21/07....95.299%
5) 16. BioShock (PC)....08/21/07....94.964%
6) 28. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (360)....11/05/07....94.359%
7) 40. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3)....11/05/07....93.659%
8) 47. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PC)....11/05/07....93.364%
9) 48. Halo 3 (360)....09/25/07....93.313%
10) 50. Rock Band (360)....11/20/07....93.243%
11) 54. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PS3)....03/20/07....93.154%
12) 65. Galactic Civilizations II: Dark Avatar (PC)....02/14/07....92.917%
13) 73. God of War II (PS2)....03/13/07....92.551%
14) 92. Guitar Hero II (360)....04/03/07....92.064%
15) 139. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC)....01/16/07....91.011%
16) 140. Mass Effect (360)....11/20/07....91.003%
17) 143. Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition (Wii)....06/19/07....90.995%
18) 150. Crysis (PC)....11/13/07....90.795%
19) 176. Half-Life 2: Episode Two (PC)....10/09/07....90.238%


For comparisons sake, here's the list of AAA titles from 2006:
1) 33. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (360)....94.012%
2) 34. Company of Heroes (PC)....93.949%
3) 35. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii)....93.944%
4) 38. Gears of War (360)....93.789%
5) 52. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC)....93.187%
6) 61. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2)....92.975%
7) 65. Okami (PS2)....92.881%
8) 92. Guitar Hero II (PS2)....91.946%
9) 149. Final Fantasy XII (PS2)....90.870%
10) 157. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter....90.540%


There were LOTS of other games that reviewers and editors scored 90% and above(!)... but these games do not have that composite 90% score as calculated by GameRankings. A sampling:

IGN 2007
-------------
World in Conflict (PC)....9.3
Unreal Tournament III (PC)....9.0
Supreme Commander (PC)....9.0

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS3/PSN)....9.5
Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction (PS3)....9.4
Ninja Gaiden Sigma (PS3)....9.3
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (PS3)....9.1
Folklore (PS3)....9.0

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PSP/PSN)....9.5
Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow (PSP)....9.5
Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness (PSP)....9.0
Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of The Lions (PSP)....9.0
Jeanne d'Arc (PSP)....9.0
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (PSP)....9.0
Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters (PSP)....9.0
Sid Meier's Pirates! (PSP)....9.0

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (360)....9.1
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (360)....9.0
Skate (360)....9.0
Virtua Fighter 5 Online (360)....9.0
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (360/XBLA)....9.0

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Wii/VC)....10
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)....9.5
Super Mario Bros. 3 (Wii/VC)....9.5
Super Metroid (Wii/VC)....9.5
Kirby's Adventure (Wii/VC)....9.5
Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Wii/VC)....9.5
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure (Wii)....9.0
Sin & Punishment (Wii/VC)....9.0
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Wii/VC)....9.0
Wave Race 64 (Wii/VC)....9.0
Paper Mario (Wii/VC)....9.0
Ninja Gaiden (Wii/VC)....9.0
Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream (Wii/VC)....9.0
Super Mario Bros. (Wii/VC)....9.0
Legend of Zelda (Wii/VC)....9.0
Super Mario 64 (Wii/VC)....9.0

Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (NDS)....9.0
Picross DS (NDS)....9.0
Planet Puzzle League (NDS)....9.0


GAMESPOT 2007
--------------------------
3 of Top 4 all-time PC games scored in last three months
World in Conflict (PC)....9.5
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC)....9.2
Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars (PC)....9.0

Assassin's Creed (PS3)....9.0
Ninja Gaiden Sigma (PS3)....9.0
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas (PS3)....9.0

Forza Motorsport 2 (360)....9.2
Assassin's Creed (360)....9.0
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (360/XBLA)....9.0

WarioWare: Smooth Moves (Wii)....9.1
Paper Mario (Wii/VC)....9.0

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (NDS)....9.0


GAMEINFORMER 2007
-----------------------------------
World in Conflict (PC)....9.25
Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword (PC)....9.5
Supreme Commander (PC)....9.0
World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade Expansion Pack (PC)....9.75
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Shivering Isles (PC)....9.5
Medieval II: Total War (PC)....9.25

Rogue Galaxy (PS2)....9.0

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 (PS3)....9.0
Ninja Gaiden Sigma (PS3)....9.0

Final Fantasy Tactics: The War Of The Lions (PSP)....9.5
Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness (PSP)....9.0
Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters (PSP)....9.0
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (PSP)....9.0

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 (360)....9.0
Blue Dragon (360)....9.0
Virtua Fighter 5 Online (360)....9.0

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)....9.5

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (NDS)....9.5
Picross DS (NDS)....9.5


1UP 2007 - Editors Take
------------------------------------
World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC)....10.0
IL2 Sturmovik 1946 (PC)....10.0

Fire Pro Wrestling Returns (PS2)....10.0
Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007 (PS2)....9.5

The Darkness (PS3)....9.0
Ninja Gaiden Sigma (PS3)....9.0
Skate (PS3)....9.0
Super Stardust HD (PS3/PSN)....9.0
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (PS3)....9.0
FIFA 08 (PS3)....9.0
Everyday Shooter (PS3/PSN)....9.0

Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007 (PSP)....9.0
Brave Story: New Traveler (PSP)....9.0
Worms: Open Warfare 2 (PSP)....9.0

Virtua Fighter 5 Online (360)....10.0
NHL 08 (360)....9.5
The Darkness (360)....9.0
Crackdown (360)....9.0
NBA Street Homecourt (360)....9.0
Skate (360)....9.0
FlatOut Ultimate Carnage (360)....9.0
Madden NFL 08 (360)....9.0
Bomberman Live (360/XBLA)....9.0
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (360)....9.0
FIFA 08 (360)....9.0
Pac-Man Championship Edition (360/XBLA)....9.0

Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure (Wii)....9.0
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Wii)....9.0
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)....9.0

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trials and Tribulations (NDS)....9.0
Worms: Open Warfare 2 (NDS)....9.0
Planet Puzzle League (NDS)....9.0


Is this right? Can this really be? Was 2007 really that great? Or is this another example of marketing/publishers affecting reviews? Or is this a "dumbing down of America"-type thing... where leniency and sugarcoating rule our grading system? Where 80% is the new "okay", and any grade less then that is like... a slap in the face.

At first I strongly felt like that was the case. But then I started looking at user reviews. And in almost all cases you all seem to agree with the "pros"! On almost every website, Call Of Duty 4 is the popular choice for GOTY; it seems like everybody that's played Super Mario Galaxy has raved about it; likewise, God of War II; and while BioShock, Mass Effect, and Halo 3 have the occasional detractor, they are vastly outnumbered by those who say they enjoyed the game(s) immensely. So maybe these games really do deserve their AAA status.(?)

Or, maybe, they are overrated? Because you can still love a game, and call it "Game of the Year", but that doesn't mean that you have to give it a 90%+ grade. I don't know anymore.

What do you think? I ask, because I feel like I'm not alone in thinking that 2007 was... underwhelming. A feeling that belies the GameRankings and pro reviews and user opinions... don't you think?

[Dancer O_o]

2007 was a year I played a crapload of games of the next-gen variety.

Bioshock
Orange Box
Mass Effect
Gears of War
Fear
RFOM
Warhawk
Metroid Prime Corruption
Prey
Halo 3
Just Cause
Kameo
Nights
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Tomb Raider: Legend
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Motorstorm

These are off the top of my head, I think I played a few more than that but my memory sucks today from last nights binge. You're not a man until vomit comes out your nose, well that's what I was told...I have my doubts.

Out of these games only Kameo and Corruption haven't been quite beaten just yet. The rest I either beat or beat twice. I think most of the pro reviews were right on with these games mainly, and most of the reason I bought those games was because of pro reviews. Gamespot is the only site I can think of that re-edited their own "pro-review" on a weak game, and then fired the original reviewer that had 10 years into the company because he wouldn't kiss the paying publishers ass...basically buying a favorably review for Kane and Lynch Mob

http://www.destructoid.com/destructoid-review-kane-and-lynch-dead-men-54787.phtml

[Mochan]

At first I strongly felt like that was the case. But then I started looking at user reviews. And in almost all cases you all seem to agree with the "pros"! On almost every website, Call Of Duty 4 is the popular choice for GOTY; it seems like everybody that's played Super Mario Galaxy has raved about it; likewise, God of War II; and while BioShock, Mass Effect, and Halo 3 have the occasional detractor, they are vastly outnumbered by those who say they enjoyed the game(s) immensely. So maybe these games really do deserve their AAA status.(?)

Or maybe there's a rash of sheep sickness that results from reading website reviews.


Seriously, it's hard to make this kind of judgement because most people (the you that you empathically mentioned up there) rely on these said gaming websites for reviews. It's all too easy to get influenced by something you read on the net. Most people don't have the time and/or disposable income to dedicate to trying out all these games, that's why they let review/magazines sites do it and listen to their recommendation.

So is this the case? Well I don't really know what to say I don't read pro-reviews all that much nowadays but I think they manage to point out important points on the games they review for the most part, however they seem to give a score that doesn't tally properly with what they said. This feels like an indication of that review-buying crap you were talking about and with the Kane and Lynch fiasco I think this is a justified theory.


I feel it was a good year overall but it was lacking in some areas -- in the other thread I call a lack of variety for 2007 for the most part, or perhaps I should say the gaming market is a bit polarized towards one genre and neglecting some others.

[slade]

Last year was a Capcom smorgasboard of goodness. I started the year with DMC3SE, then picked up Onimusha 4 and ended the year with Okami and God Hand. All four games were terrific and I didn't mind replaying the hell out of them. Then, I picked up the 360 and played a bit of Dead Rising and completed Gears for the console. All of those games minus Dead Rising were very good and all of them made me want to play more.

Conversely, I picked up more games in 2007 and was much less happy with the quality of those titles. All of them were too short and had less replay value.

[Dancer O_o]

Last year was a Capcom smorgasboard of goodness. I started the year with DMC3SE, then picked up Onimusha 4 and ended the year with Okami and God Hand. All four games were terrific and I didn't mind replaying the hell out of them. Then, I picked up the 360 and played a bit of Dead Rising and completed Gears for the console. All of those games minus Dead Rising were very good and all of them made me want to play more.

Conversely, I picked up more games in 2007 and was much less happy with the quality of those titles. All of them were too short and had less replay value.

Didn't Capcom also make Lost Planet? I forgot that gem in my list and a good game all around. Capcom went to town in 07 that's for sure.

[Mochan]

I personally hated Lost Planet after looking forward to it so much, but I digress.

[Cuddly Knife]

Is VGR the IOWA of gaming? It seems like our small pack of gamers here are usually on line with what the rest of the above average gamer thinks or does. Hell, we even create and discuss gaming topics befopre they make their way other places.

To get back on topic, I think that '07 was a great year for quality games. Now, that doesn't mean it was great for variety. I've never played so many shooters in my gaming life. But they all were pretty kick ass. Like Crackdown. I finally got my game to start working(turns out the disk was smudged to all hell), and the game is still a blast to play. Nothing can top the brain-racking goodness of Portal, and games like Halo3 , Bioshock, Warhawk, and more were polished to near-perfection. I'm a little burnt out though, on this genre. So much so that I haven't even bought a new game in months because all I see are shooters. I'm still on the fence for Uncharted, so this year, I might actually start renting more games. Shoulda put that part in the resolutions thread.

This coming year, looks to be more of my style of gaming, with the great action games coming out

[T.Tashi]

This is as good a place as any to address my comment in the resolutions thread about 2007 being disappointing (to me.)

There were a ton of great games. That's very evident. But I'm a self decsribed "niche" gamer. Yeah I play a lot of different games but my favorite genres are action (adventure) and rpgs and my taste tends to fall outside the realm of most popular games.

If you're a FPS fan, 2007 was a wet dream come true. If a gamer is like me and plays these games once in a while they probably would care less. So for FPS fans there were lots of games that defined next gen. I mean take your pick. But for the rpg genre, there's nothing that defines next gen on consoles or handhelds.

Most disappointing is the absolute funk Japanese devs seem to be in and the inability of western devs to think outside a certain box.

[slade]

Didn't Capcom also make Lost Planet? I forgot that gem in my list and a good game all around. Capcom went to town in 07 that's for sure.

I didn't like Lost Planet all that much. It was B grade Capcom as opposed to the A grade Capcom of yesteryear.

[thelastword]

2007 was a good year for games but 2001 is still the better year overall. The fact that the majority of the highest rated games were primarily fps lessened the impact of how great a year it really could of been of would have been, if only there was a little more variety among the crop of these 90%+ on the leading consoles.

Looking back at all of these highly rated games, and what has become a bit more transparent to many gamers, with the whole "Gertsmann and Halo gift giving fiascoes" is really an eye opener to the utmost lack of credibility of folk who gamers depend on for worthwhile and informed opinions. I have never read such contradictory and uninformed reviews, ever. I have never seen reviewers speak at length of flaws in a game and still give it a 9.8/10, I have never been witness to an infomercial when I was sure that I downloaded a video review for a said game.

Yeah, this year was twisted on the gaming media's part and the lack of consistency and bias was a bit baffling.


Games I thought was rated a bit over the top...


Bioshock: Great atmosphere, I do believe though, that System Shock sold Bioshock more than Bioshock sold itself. So all the 10/10 reviews was derived from fond memories of this SHOCk's predecessor.

Halo3: Read IGN's Video Review of HALO 3, there was a point when the reviewer mentioned so many issues, like short singleplayer campaign, a less than stellar ending to the trilogy etc.... Is furniture moving in an mp map really grounds for sticking the innovative card? I guess reviewers had to come up with some type of excuse for their scores. In halo's case, I think some of the marketting dollar was clearly sifted to the review houses.


Orange Box: Did not deserve these reviews, HL2=old, (wasn't this on the xbox1 at 30fps? hell it's still 30 fps with no aa on the 360, from VALVE even).

EP1=old, EP2 is simply another expansion pack you complete in 5hrs, Portal=Good but short, TF2= Lagtatstic affair on the XBOX 360 on P2P LIVE. Thing is, I know that this game was rated fairly based on the value of the package, question is, would the OB have been so highly reviewed if all it had was EP2, Portal and TF2? Another thing, how is the 360 version rated the same as the PC version when the only multiplayer component of the package lags so much on P2P LIVE?


MassEffect: No game with so many technical issues should be rated this high, Bioware has NEVER developed a polished game EVER. Oh...Why didn't pandemic help Bioware with the shooting aspects of M.E, I'm thinking they told them to fix the framerate first, I guess that was never going to happen....

[Gamer From '78]

First, the lack of fighters in 2007 really blew chunks. What actually came out besides Virtua Fighter 5? Though VF5 is the pinacle of fighters, did it really have to carry that torch alone?

My personal favorite game of 2007 was Catlevania-the Dracula X Chronicles. As a self-professed 'vania fanboy, the desire to play the original Rondo of Blood has been overwhelming since waaaay back when I played Syphony of the Night for the first time. Having a completely redesigned 2/3D version of Rondo was unprecedented. Throwing in the original Rondo made fanboys like me weak in the knees. Slamming Symphony complete with playable Maria Renard (not on the PSX version!) on the disc? Full KO. :eek:

For the Wii, Super Mario Galaxy is the best game yet. My desire to play a sequel to Nights into Dreams finally came true and the game (although short) is quite fun. Super Paper Mario, Metroid Prime 3 Corruption and Resident Evil Umbrella Chronicles were all excellent entries as well.

Though some loathe the game, Assassin's Creed is a blast to me. And hey, the Jade comic floating about the net was pretty funny too!

Bioshock kept me "immersed" so to speak until the very end. I VERY much like this game! Call of Duty 4 was a game I expected to be fun, but I found myself unable to put it down. Halo 3 was and still is a great game to me. I didn't have a problem with the ending, the length of the game or any of that. And regardless of the fanboy cries of "not HD, not HD!" because of a lame-o pixel count that some Sony geek came up with, the game kept me glued to my 360. The Orange Box aside from being the best value in gaming in 07 was a very solid package as well. Screw those who think the graphics suck, they look just fine to me. Not 'cutting edge" but just fine.

Racers that I enjoyed would be Forza Motorsport 2, DiRT and Project Gotham Racing 4.

RPG's would be Blue Dragon and Mass Effect which is quite excellent. Oblivion GOTY Edition is the #1 RPG for me. Though, RPG's for the year overall were pretty slip-pickings.

The music genre which I have avoided like the plague since the orignal Parappa the Rapper drug me in and didn't let go. Guitar Hero II and III on the 360 kept me glued to my fret buttons and Rock Band-despite my gimped Strat that I am awaiting a replacement on has me sneaking into the living room in the middle of the night out of a dead sleep to play Dani California and Gimme Shelter among others. And I've actually PAID for my first Xbox Live content: Jukebox Hero, Blackened, ...And Justice For All and Ride the Lightning for Rock Band.

Action/Adventure of the non-FPS variety that kept me gaming includes Lost Planet and Conan. So far, Conan is pretty cool. I just defeated the big elephant demon. God of War rip-off it may be, but it's not all that bad. And of course, not mentioning God of War II as a stellar title in this genre would be a death-sentence offense.

There are-of course-other games that I picked up throughout the year, but these stand out to me. Despite or is that IN-spite of the "pro reviewers," I found 2007 to be a stellar year for gaming. Nobody will ever agree on the the BEST year. Some people would base the first year of their favorite console as the best. It's up to the individual.

But yeah, I think 2007 was killer. I don't know how 2008 can top 2007, but there are so many games that have been kept under "lock & key" with little or no info getting out that it would be foolish to say 08 won't be as good/better than 07. Hell, Devil May Cry 4 will be great by itself! I just wish From Software would come out with a new Otogi! :mad:

[Glockstar]

Hrmph, it seems like most of you thought 2007 was a great year afterall.

Why didn't I? I don't know, but I can look at the GameRankings AAA list for a start:

-Super Mario Galaxy I would never play. Not in a million years.

-The Orange Box is mostly based off of Half-Life 2, a game which I didn't like in the first how, so why would I get this game? I wouldn't; and I didn't. However, after reading all of the accolades poured onto Portal, I feel like I have to give the game a rent and check this part of the compilation out - at least.

-BioShock...I ended up loving it, but there were moments there where I was not happy with it at all.

-Call of Duty 4 was one of the top 5 games that I was most looking forward to going into 2007... but it ended up being the most disappointing game of the year for me. Every facet of it underwhelmed me. I felt like the game was derivative at best; an unimproved mistake of a game from 2 years ago at worst.

-Halo 3, while most of it was quite fun, was ultimately disappointing to me. I didn't like the direction they took with the story, and thought the backtracking and resurrection of Halo 1 levels was pretty lame.

-Rock Band was way too expensive to try - especially for a game that I'd get full use out for, what, maybe 8 hours out of the whole year? So I passed this one up.

-God of War II... this could be where I goofed up; this could be why I wasn't that impressed with the year: I didn't play it. I never actually finished God of War (just as I've never finished a single one of my PS2 games), so you can understand why I wouldn't want to start up part two yet.

-Guitar Hero II is cool. Not exactly my cup of tea... but it has it's moments.

-Mass Effect... the experience was similar to the one I had with BioShock: where I ended up loving the game upon completion, but during my playtime there were periods of frustration, and periods where the imperfections and flaws not only stood out but they practically blinded me.

-Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition... I don't have a Wii, but even if I did I wouldn't buy this game. I already played and beat it, what, two years ago on the PS2. I'm not averse to buying or playing remakes, but I didn't like RE4 that much to begin with, so, no.


Every game I played had something about it that bugged me. I don't know, maybe I'm just becoming a jaded gamer. Because the flaws and frustrations I found and felt in 2007 were just as strong as the joy and fun I had. I know no game is perfect, but...

Actually I think there's one game that defines 2007 for me almost perfectly: my GOTY: Etrian Odyssey. I loved it; it's already an all-time favorite. But the game is far from perfect; it's forever long, and extremely difficult, and it requires the utmost patience... It's my GOTY, and I give the game about an 8.0.


Or I don't know, maybe my problem with the year lies with the games that I didn't play more than with the games I played? Puzzle Quest; DiRT; Forza 2; Pac-Man CE... I mean, I didn't get to play on Live once, and I didn't play one single racing game in 2007.(!) :eek:

[Glockstar]

Oh yeah, btw, 2003 was the best year in video gaming. By far and away! Xenosaga Ep.1; WarioWare Inc.; Return To Castle Wolfenstein; MotoGP 2; Brute Force; Outlaw Volleyball; KOTOR; Disgaea; I-Ninja; Time Crisis 3; Colin McRae Rally 3; Links 2004; Crimson Skies; Gladius; Voodoo Vince; PGR2; Need For Speed Underground; Metal Arms; Deus Ex: IW... and I wouldn't know this until later, but Culdcept also came out that year... #@$%!!!

Some of you others might have been interested in: Zelda: Wind Waker; GTA Double Pack; Prince of Persia; Soul Calibur II; Viewtiful Joe; Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution; Panzer Dragoon Orta; NBA Street Vol.2; F-Zero GX; Beyond Good & Evil; Dark Cloud 2; Fire Emblem; Jak II; Final Fantasy X-2; The Sims; Ikaruga; Metal Gear Caca 2: Substance; Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow; Mario Kart Double Ass; Max Payne 2; Amplitude; Armed & Dangerous; XIII; Advance Wars 2; Final Fantasy Tactics Advance; Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg (joking!)...

[Mochan]

I don't think you're jaded Glockie just being realistic and critical. I felt more or less the same: great year with great games, but just about every game had some sort of issue that bugged me. But then, I've been like that for a long time.

It's been a while since I got a whole swoop of games that totally pleased me. But there were lots of games this year that just got me addicted like no tomorrow, like Persona 3, FFT:WotL, and Jericho. Twas a great year overall.

[Fivespot]

Glock, COD4 is best played online with friends. If you haven't done so you're probably doing the game an injustice scoring it based solely on the single player campaign.

COD4 is one of the better console FPS games I've played online in quite a few years. And it continues to grow on me.

[joquito]

Let's not forget how many games have been pushed back, solely, due to the amount of AAA games released in 2007. A crap load of games were sold in 2007 by less than 40 million console owners, so that too says a lot about 2007. Clearly, AAA titles were lacking in genres other than FPSs, but if there were 12 AAA platformers or RPGs and only 2 FPSs, then many would still feel justified in calling 2007 the best year for gaming.

[thelastword]

I personally hated Lost Planet after looking forward to it so much, but I digress.Well, I liked the tech in LP, running it at supreme detail with the DX10 patches from capcom, really props up the effects and detail. The fur shaders are massively improved, motion blur is in full force, the snow, particle and smoke/fire effects are all enhanced. It looks really nice at 1900*1200 with 8CxQ/CSAA in DX10.


Gameplaywise, it's really repetitive, bugs after bugs after bugs and pirates and of course huge hulking bugs (bosses). I think it controls slightly better than Gears with a M&K though, but ultimately Gears is a better game.

[Glockstar]

Glock, COD4 is best played online with friends. If you haven't done so you're probably doing the game an injustice scoring it based solely on the single player campaign.

COD4 is one of the better console FPS games I've played online in quite a few years. And it continues to grow on me.

Really? What's so great about it? Even when it was amongst the games that I was most looking forward to the multiplayer portion was not a factor in that. If I remember correctly, everybody said COD2's mp was just ho-hum.

Anyhow, the point is moot: I got rid of that game awhile ago. When I get back online, Halo 3 is the game that I'm going to play. That is, after I check back in with the Rainbow Six Vegas community and see how that game's still doing.

But you're right on one thing: I do think I missed out on a lot last year when I missed out on all of the multiplayer aspects - especially the online ones - of every game I played. And I missed out on all of the downloadable content, and so many XBLA games... :(

-

I do have a correction to make: I said I never finished a PS2 game; that was wrong. As I said a little bit later in that same post I finished RE4. And I also finished Champions of Norrath and Ico. That's not much, I know, but it's not nothing.

[Fivespot]

COD4 is a great multiplayer experience in my opinion as it's a nice combination of a fast-paced Halo 3 type game and a more slower paced experience similar to Ghost Recon.

You progress your character via a ranking process and you earn additional weapons, gadgets, etc.. as you progress through the ranks. Somehow it manages to stay fair for newbies in the process. Sure it's hard for newbs to compete against the higher ranks and their better weapons but it's not impossible or unfair in my opinion.

The overall gameplay is more tactical in nature and includes UAV's, Air attacks, helicoptors, stationary guns, and much more. It reminds me more of GRAW than it does any other FPS I've played. These added elements bring much more strategy to the mix in addition to slowing things down (not frantic like Halo3).

[Glockstar]

Hmmm... sounds like Vegas.

[Gadfly2317]

(just as I've never finished a single one of my PS2 games), so you can understand why I wouldn't want to start up part two yet.

.......
-Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition... I don't have a Wii, but even if I did I wouldn't buy this game. I already played and beat it, what, two years ago on the PS2.


Weird.

[Fivespot]

Didn't play enough of Vegas to compare the two otherwise I would.

[silversparrow]

Glockstar, I think you've come down with a case of gaming exhaustion. When you're in this state of mind, everything you play seems overrated and dull.

This has happened to me before and the panacea has always been to take a break from gaming for one or two months.

[Mochan]

Well, I liked the tech in LP, running it at supreme detail with the DX10 patches from capcom, really props up the effects and detail. The fur shaders are massively improved, motion blur is in full force, the snow, particle and smoke/fire effects are all enhanced. It looks really nice at 1900*1200 with 8CxQ/CSAA in DX10.


Gameplaywise, it's really repetitive, bugs after bugs after bugs and pirates and of course huge hulking bugs (bosses). I think it controls slightly better than Gears with a M&K though, but ultimately Gears is a better game.

Oh, no argument from me. Lost Planet looked fantastic. But it played like crap. My graphics whoring can only take me so far. Gears is infinitely a better game, and you guys know I'm not even that hot over Gears so that tells you a lot about how I feel on Lost Planet.


Fiveski, the way you describe COD4 multiplayer it sounds like Battlefield 2 but with faster-paced COD-speed gameplay (I always wanted a Battlefield game that was a bit more frantic and faster in pace). Now I understand why everyone is raving about COD4. Glockie, it's not exactly like Vegas. Vegas multiplayer had no UAVs, nor where there vehicles.

[Glockstar]

RSV was sweet... like a gargantuan, loaded ice cream dish... with three kinds of ice cream and hot fudge and caramel and peanut butter and bananas and a brownie and candy sprinkles and more candy sprinkles...

And the cherry on top of it all was the guns. Every gun felt different. And behaved different. And sounded different. Every gun. From pistol to pistol to pistol to pistol, to shotgun to shotgun to shotgun. And then, there were dozens of guns you could put a silencer on... and this distinguished them even more. It was amazing! I remember Black was supposed to be all about the guns like this, but I was unimpressed with that game - probably because I played it after I played Vegas. Vegas still blows me away with it's guns; it still tickles me pink.

I bring this up because COD4 did not have this. Every gun felt the same. And not just from pistol to pistol, from smg to smg... the pistols, the sub-guns, the shotguns, the sniper rifles... they all felt the exact same. There was no differentiation between weapons.

Infinity Ward sucks. #@$% COD4. I wanna play Vegas!

[Mochan]

And the cherry on top of it all was the guns. Every gun felt different. And behaved different. And sounded different. Every gun. From pistol to pistol to pistol to pistol, to shotgun to shotgun to shotgun. And then, there were dozens of guns you could put a silencer on... and this distinguished them even more. It was amazing!

Well that's how R6 has always been, I wasn't as amazed as you because the PC versions of R6 were the same, PLUS we had the Harntrox and Lloyds and other crapolla of gunmods that just gave a HUGE mindboggling plethora of guns (in the hundreds), and as you said each behaving differently and could be silenced or scoped or blah blah. After getting spoilt on weapon mods the vanilla weapons of the base game just don't have any kick. I remember on one of Lloyd's WM incarnations there were something like 10 different kinds of MP5s alone. We're not even getting into the M4s and we got all sorts of really esoteric guns from all around the world (unlike R6 vanilla which usually just has US and British spec op weapons plus a smattering of Eastern block ones) like the Vintorez, Galil, Jatimatic, etc. A lot of what I know about guns today, I actually owe to LWM, how pathetic is that?

I wonder if Vegas has a definitive weapon mod already? I haven't touched Vegas in ages. I should reinstall it and check out the modding scene to see what's hot. Might as well since Bane is already getting ready to get Vegas, it's about that time when VGR's PC Gamers go partying again.


I bring this up because COD4 did not have this. Every gun felt the same. And not just from pistol to pistol, from smg to smg... the pistols, the sub-guns, the shotguns, the sniper rifles... they all felt the exact same.

Now that's where you're just bull----ing, if you couldn't tell the difference between an MP5, a Dragunov, and a Desert Eagle in COD4, then you have no business playing military shooters, period. While the differentiation in the guns in COD4 is nowhere near what they are in the R6 games (especially with the mods), this is clearly hyperbole or else you'd be a freaking ignoramus. I prefer to think it's the former.

[Glockstar]

Glockstar, I think you've come down with a case of gaming exhaustion. When you're in this state of mind, everything you play seems overrated and dull.

This has happened to me before and the panacea has always been to take a break from gaming for one or two months.

Yeah? I don't know. I've always found fault with the games I play - no game will ever score a perfect 10 from me. And that's not really the point, as I've loved games that I've graded a 5/10. I think my thing is here is that I expect games to continue to get better; that I expect developers to improve upon yesterdays games, and not make the same mistakes that they made several years ago, or put out the same busted crap (*cough cough* Infinity Ward; BioWare; Ubisoft Montreal). If something was disappointing two years ago, and here it is again in a, supposedly, new game then, well, wtf is that?! You know?

2007 was the year of the hybrid. First-person shooter meets RPG; RPG meets third-person tactical shooter; Adventure game meets stealth-action... And Puzzle Quest was the poster child for 2007.

But all of this "innovation" was really no more than a bucket of fresh paint splashed over a decrepit wall.

I'm not necessarily looking for new, innovative games - I like what I like and I want more of it - I just want the stuff that was broken before to be fixed! Just like I expect what was great before to be continued over.

I played a lot of great games in 2007, I have to be honest with myself about that, but they all had... these kinds of old flaws. GameRankings, and all the various pro reviewers - and my fellow gamer, it seems - says there were all these AAA titles in 2007. I don't think there were any. They were great - in a matter of speaking - but even the best of the best were like 8.0 - 8.5 games in my book. Every year I seem to give out a couple of 9's... but not this year.

[Mochan]

I know what you mean Glockie. Some people think that if you loved a game, it automatically has to be a 9 or a 10. But personally I'm like you: there are games where I mark points down for issues which just shouldn't be there... yet I love the game to death and play it more than a game which had no issues, managed to do a lot right, but wasn't quite as gratifying or pulse-pounding. We all know how I spammed Jericho to anyone who would listen, I truly loved the game even though it had some issues and from those issues I wouldn't rank it more than an 8. But I still loved it more than almost any other shooter that came out this year.

I too am way too critical for my tastes I find faults in all the games I play, even the ones I utterly love. Fallout 2 got like a 3/5 composite score from me when I reviewed it on this site like a decade ago (I had to be honest, the graphics were crud and there were bugs galore) but I still count it as one of the best games of all time, far outstripping games I gave a 5/5 rating in terms of how much I loved it.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

You guys are crazy too much internet. Message Boards could ruin a game.

First all a few months ago I made a thread called "FPS Heaven". FPS are by far my favorite genre and there were so many good ones even the bad ones were pretty good. Jericho and Call of Juarez then you had the middle of the road games like the Darkness was solid. And for my money the big hitters all hit the mark Halo 3 this game has the best shooting gameplay period. From the actual different strategies needed to use the multiple weapons to the vehicles to the best set pieces in a FPS come on where else can you use a Tank or a flying craft and dog fight then end up in corridors with awesome Doom stlye gameplay to levels that are damn near like battlefield??? The haters are retarded nothing Touches Halo 3 gameplay wise NOTHING!!! I just finished my second play through loved it just the same and the END?? My god it was awesome how the FVCK would you have ended it! And the multiplayer from Forge (TLW truly you are a idiot) to co-op is awesome

CoD4 was cool but they didn't elevate the gameplay at all had all kinds of flaws totally on rails and the respawing trick. But even with that the experience was great. The multiplayer was cool but I honestly never really got into.

The orange box with just the inclusion of EP.2 and Portal deserves it's scores.

Bioshock the best FPA game yet. MP3 a game I stop playing was also great for the 50% of the game I actually played.

This year so the best action game ever released imo God of War 2 and maybe my favorite game ever and it looks even better playing on the PS3 upscaled and in Wide screen.

SMG simply the best platform game ever released. Crackdown stole Mercenaries crown for best Open world game (gameplay wise) Not to mention one of the best sim racers ever Forza 2.

Madden finally steped it's game up and if it wasn't for the ridicuolous amount of fumbles this could have been the best Football game ever surpassing Espn 2k5 and Super Tecmo Bowl.

I've finally got some PS3 exlusives the wife is currently playing Heavenly Sword which looks decent (no GoW 2) and I've just started up uncharted which seems to be cool.

And I've still yet to play Mass Effect Assasins Creed, Ace Combat and NBA 2k8.

Great games best year ever. I guess you guys need a videogame to make you bust a nut or something!

[Dancer O_o]

I know what you mean Glockie. Some people think that if you loved a game, it automatically has to be a 9 or a 10. But personally I'm like you: there are games where I mark points down for issues which just shouldn't be there... yet I love the game to death and play it more than a game which had no issues, managed to do a lot right, but wasn't quite as gratifying or pulse-pounding. We all know how I spammed Jericho to anyone who would listen, I truly loved the game even though it had some issues and from those issues I wouldn't rank it more than an 8. But I still loved it more than almost any other shooter that came out this year.

I too am way too critical for my tastes I find faults in all the games I play, even the ones I utterly love. Fallout 2 got like a 3/5 composite score from me when I reviewed it on this site like a decade ago (I had to be honest, the graphics were crud and there were bugs galore) but I still count it as one of the best games of all time, far outstripping games I gave a 5/5 rating in terms of how much I loved it.


Hmm, reading this I can't help but think of Mass Effect, the game was so freak'n broken but held my attention like mad right to the end...and then I started playing it all over again and can't wait until ME2 comes out.

I also remember Oblivion having breakdancing corpses, floating boulders (something to do with the random terrain generator I think), swords that kept falling downhill even though it should have stopped rolling ages ago as you chase it. Riding on the horse, but seeing the shadow of the horse only, no shadow of the rider. Weak draw distance on the 360 and muddy as hell textures on the mountains with no trees. Stuttering framrates, frequent lockups...still, that game held my attention quite well.

I, like Glock, expected a bit more from this generation of games instead of the same errors, boo boos, and laziness. I think that since games cost a boatload to develop anymore that a good cost cutting measure to developers is the testing cycle. They must figure that "Hey, we can patch it later, get it out the door and making money now, errors and all....screw it"