What's new

It's Official!!! The Game of the Year is......... (1 Viewer)

Gary King

Second Unit
Joined
Apr 13, 1999
Messages
479
I think I've wracked up close to 1000 hours of multiplayer Halo so far, and I'm 1/2 way through the Legendary campaign (I've beaten it at all other difficulty levels)

If you haven't had the pleasure of playing Halo 4v4, 6v6, or 8v8, then you haven't fully experienced just how wonderful a game it is.

I personally find Halo's single player more enjoyable than GTA3, and multiplayer is just awesome.

I'd also give the nod to Halo for Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering. DoA3 looked great, and had some complicated effects (some cloth animation, somewhat deformable snow); however, it's hard to dicscount Halo's technical merits. Have you stopped to count the number of dynamic light sources in a single frame before? Add to that the exquisite textures and number of animated characters on a screen, and you've got a *very* impressive package.
 

ChrisV

Second Unit
Joined
Mar 25, 2001
Messages
484
I've played both games extensively, and can agree that Halo is a very good game, one of the best games of the year, IMO, definitely top five. I have a lot of trouble with it getting "game of the year" over GTA3, though. No way does that game, or any game come close to GTA3. Oh yeah, and don't forget MGS2.
 

Andy Sheets

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 6, 2000
Messages
2,377
Oh yeah, and don't forget MGS2.
Actually, I have to admit that I would be surprised if MGS2 had been seriously considered for GOTY because of the pointed criticism the game has received for its over-abundant cinematics. As acclaimed as MGS2 is, I don't think GTA3 and Halo have either had such consistent knocks against them.
 

Morgan Jolley

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 16, 2000
Messages
9,711
First of all, I found very little to be revolutionary about GTA3. MGS2 had a ton of useless realism, but GTA3 gets more press simply because it involves violence and sex. The game's core aspects are not revolutionary, the way in which you act them out is not revolutionary, but the fact that it allows you to do them in such a free environment with no restriction to a story or plot is revolutionary to a degree. I think people are giving it more credit than it deserves.

Now, back to the topic, I am really happy that ICO won for Art Direction and Character/Story Development. Excellent game.

Overall, I agree with some of the awards and not others. I'm not so sure HALO is the best game of the year or just the game that did something new for a stale genre. It's good, has great graphics, and is simply amazing to play, but I don't think its the best game of the year. If I had to give that award to a different game, it would have to be FFX. Why? Because FFX took not only a stale genre, but a stale series, and turned it into an amazing experience, both technically and aesthetically. The graphics were amazing, the gameplay was amazing, the customization elements were amazing, the characters were well developed, and it was overall a very satisfying experience, regardless of the lack of DD5.1 or 480p. FFX revitalized a genre in nearly every way. HALO just made a genre work the way its supposed to.

But, that's just my thoughts.
 

BrianB

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 29, 2000
Messages
5,205
I found very little to be revolutionary about GTA3.
Me neither, Morgan. That doesn't mean it can't be game of the year though. GTA3 built upon the ideas & gameplay of the previous games, wrapped it up in *superb* presentation & style, and gave the player a nice 3D city to play in. It's a brilliant toybox. Very few other games manage that accomplishment these days.
 

Trevor_J

Second Unit
Joined
Jan 8, 2001
Messages
277
I'm not so sure HALO is the best game of the year or just the game that did something new for a stale genre. It's good, has great graphics, and is simply amazing to play, but I don't think its the best game of the year. If I had to give that award to a different game, it would have to be FFX. Why? Because FFX took not only a stale genre, but a stale series, and turned it into an amazing experience, both technically and aesthetically. The graphics were amazing, the gameplay was amazing, the customization elements were amazing, the characters were well developed, and it was overall a very satisfying experience, regardless of the lack of DD5.1 or 480p. FFX revitalized a genre in nearly every way. HALO just made a genre work the way its supposed to.
Morgan, I have to disagree with you there. The same points you bring up about FFX revitalizing a genre can be said about Halo. Have you played Halo? By playing I mean from beginning to end. Sure, Halo is not the first FPS (not by a long shot) but it has definately raised the bar in the genre. You've stated that it has great graphics and it's amazing to play, but you forgot the one crucial element, the STORY. Bungie has done such an amazing job in this regard (besides the other aspects of the game) that I would say that the story is the real star of the game. Bungie has created an entire universe with the (hopefully) Halo franchise. Have you read the book? I have, and I think it's a must read for any Halo fan.
 

Mike_G

Screenwriter
Joined
Jun 1, 2000
Messages
1,477
Real Name
Mike
You know Brian, it's obvious that you can't tell the difference between what influences children and what's good entertainment for adults. That said, I really think that you should look at the bigger picture before even thinking about comparing a FICTIONAL storyline like UT/Duke Nuken, etc. to something more earth-bound and influential to children like GTA3.

I go to my local videostore all the time. I can't even begin to tell you the stories of these friggin' CHILDREN that are playing games like this. One kid said last month "I love kicking the shit out of cops". Go ahead and support that. Next time a cop gets shot, I'll think of you.

I guess that makes me a thoroughly bad person in your eyes?

Pretty much.

The difference between a movie about killing cops and a game about killing cops is that with the game, it's more personal. You're not sitting there like a bystander, you're actually DOING it. If you can't figure that out, then you shouldn't be designing videogames.

Mike
 

Dave F

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 15, 1999
Messages
2,885
Obviously there is some great parenting going on. I'm sure that has nothing to do with it though.

-Dave
 

MikeAlletto

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2000
Messages
2,369
The difference between a movie about killing cops and a game about killing cops is that with the game, it's more personal. You're not sitting there like a bystander, you're actually DOING it.
Actually your not "actually DOING it" in the game either. You aren't picking up a gun, putting it to the head of the person and pulling the trigger. You are hitting a button on a controller and watching a cartoon depiction of it. Hence the game title. It sounds like to me that Mike_G is having some problems figuring out the difference between a game and real life. Brian, you guys make beautiful work. Keep up the good work and I'll keep buying your stuff. Don't give in to people like this or countries that want to stop you. In the end its just censorship and you have a constitutional right to make whatever you want. What is bad taste to one person is just fine to millions of others.
 

Chris Bardon

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2000
Messages
2,059
Seems like a bit of a touchy subject. There are a lot of things that really make Halo worth the Game of the Year accolades. First, consider that they're one of the first teams to ever make a console FPS that gives the same range of control as its PC counterpart-an achievement in itself. Second, there's a story that is well paced and unfolds to reveal some great plot twists. Third, there was obviously a lot of thought put into the multiplayer game, since I've never seen that level of customization on a console before. And a fifth reason-it's one of the best demonstrations of the Xbox hardware to date. The use of Dolby Digital, network play, and the Hard drive make it clear that this is a born and bred Xbox game, and that no other console could even attempt it. Just the ability for each player to save their own customized profile WITH separate controls deserves an accolade, since the forethought into the design is unprecedented. I could go on, but this post is long enough already.

As for the content of GTA3-does this mean that an R rated movie should never win best picture?
 

Mike_G

Screenwriter
Joined
Jun 1, 2000
Messages
1,477
Real Name
Mike
Chris,

Nobody said that an 'R' rated movie shouldn't get an Academy Award. Wasn't Halo rated 'M'?

MikeA,

If you think that GTA3 is 'beautiful work', then I'm thinking that you don't have kids. I have 2 daughters and a 10 year old nephew I have to protect. Of course, you as a single person thinks 'protect' means 'shelter'. There's a difference. My nephew's friend plays rated M games and he's a mess. Not to say that ALL kids that play rated M games are a mess, but I don't like my nephew hanging around with him. I told him straight out that if I ever catch him playing GTA3 or any other rated M game at home that I don't allow him to, I'll personally take his PS2 away from him. I let him play Halo since it's rated 'M', but it's what I consider a 'Safe M', just like there are 'safe' rated 'R' movies. I do allow my nephew to watch CERTAIN rated R movies. It all depends on content and context. For example, I wouldn't allow him to watch "Starship Troopers" at his age, but he's old enough to enjoy something like "Escape From New York" or "The Fifth Element".

I'm guessing that those of you that enjoy games about killing cops would enjoy, say, a flight simulator that allows you to fly into the World Trade Center. I mean, why not? You advocate cop killing and prostitute raping, so since you've already crossed the line, why not go all the way? So many people were killed that day, and you have no respect for what police represent, so I'm assuming you'd be all for that. Am I wrong? I'd really like to know where people draw the line in videogames. I've been playing them since all you had in the arcade was Pong and Space War, there's a line that has to be drawn, even for adult games.

Mike
 

Gary King

Second Unit
Joined
Apr 13, 1999
Messages
479
If I had to give that award to a different game, it would have to be FFX.
FFX wasn't eligible for Game of the Year 2001 according to AIAS requirements. All games considered for awards were in wide release by December 15 or so (I forget the cut-off date, but FFX's "limited release" date didn't make it), which is also why it wasn't nominated for Console RPG of the year.

However, that said, I still wouldn't give GOTY to FFX. Some of the core complaints that can be levied against MGS2 can also be levied against FFX (however, to its credit, FFX's story is infinitely better than MGS2's, and the gameplay does open up toward the end). I don't think that FFX "revitalized" a stale genre -- it still had all of the cliche elements of console RPGs featured as prominently as ever, just wrapped up in some very nice presentation. If there are games that Square has in production that will "revitalize" the Final Fantasy series, they're FFXI (massively multiplayer on-line) and FFXII (Battle System designed by Final Fantasy Tactics/Vagrant Story guy, Sakaguchi sharing directing duties, etc.).

Of course, I'm of the opinion that no single player-only game deserves too much consideration for the 2001 award. 8v8 Halo is a thing of beauty.
 

Ike

Screenwriter
Joined
Jan 14, 2000
Messages
1,672
Mike,

The question stands-have you actually played GTA3? Just because it is more realistic in it's presentation than that of Halo doesn't mean it shouldn't be voted game of the year. That's awfully limited in scope, don't you think? If these aren't the children's awards, then content shouldn't enter into the picture. I don't know why you had to turn this into a moral discussion on the game.

Secondly, while not revolutionary in it's concepts, the success with which it implemented those concepts made it feel revolutionary. Sure, you could do a lot of the same stuff in the first 2 GTA's. But, with 3, it was made more "real". It felt like you were a criminal, and the floor was open to anything. (No offense, Brian, I still love the original GTA's.)
 

Masood Ali

Supporting Actor
Joined
Jan 31, 2002
Messages
921
Mike_G,

It's obvious that you have a problem with placing the blame for children playing GTA3. Just like every media source out there, scapegoating GTA3 for being a bad game is easier than blaming the parents who allow their children to play it.

Even though I don't support the media scapegoating of video games, don't you know that more children who've inflicted violent acts in real life (for example, school shootings) are said to having been influenced by FPS games (like Counterstrike, Quake, and...surprise, surprise, Halo is an FPS game too) more than any other genre of game?

Our country does not support censorship of entertainment. Instead, we choose to rate it, like a movie.

You seem eager to dimiss any person who has played GTA3 game as a bad and immoral person. IS that your intent? Because I'm sure there are a number of people on this board that would like to know.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Forum statistics

Threads
356,710
Messages
5,121,100
Members
144,146
Latest member
SaladinNagasawa
Recent bookmarks
1
Top