Lurker > Lightning Strikes

I obviously never meant that GTA was on the same level as Mass Effect (Mass Effect is probably closer to GTA than Elder Scrolls though), but...

There are like five GTA games capable of winning matches. If thats your main criterion then maybe it is GTA!

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

LeonhartFour posted...

well we all know it isn't GTA

We also all know it isnt Mass Effect and yet!

Seriously, its The Elder Scrolls.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Fallout

I bet Witcher 2 would be at least alright. But it's either Fallout or Elder Scrolls most likely.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Isaac

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Sephiroth. Him not fitting also puts him here.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

The only contest Squall could even possibly claim would be 2004, and only because he got SFFd so badly we dont know how strong he was. I would say highly unlikely, more likely to be Ganondorf amusingly. Tifa and Mega Man X are both more consistently high too.

Seriously, its not Squall.

If we went contest by contest:

2002: Ryu
2003: Zero (accounting for Magus&Shadow shenanigans)
2004: No bloody clue
2005-2008: Vincent
2010&2013: Tifa and/or Pikachu
2018: Zelda

Edit: Upon reviewing the stars, while we will never know for sure, Zero has by far the most legitimate claim for 2004.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

TsunamiXXVIII posted...

First thing that came to mind was Pikachu.

But yeah, Zelda's stronger now. There's probably no one time at which Pikachu was the correct answer, though I would definitely say that no non-Noble Niner has been better over the course of the last five. Two top sixteens, a Top 32 that was still good for #6 in the X-Stats (he ran into Snake early), an actual 6th place, and a Top 12.

There is a solid argument that (obviously stripping away the 2013 shenanigans) it was Pikachu in 2013. That Pikachu/Crono/Magus result was nuts.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

MechanicalWall posted...

I'm aware that Michel Ancel is French, but thing is, France is NOT where Rayman overperformed. In fact, if you look at the map, the two games were dead even there. It was the UK that really gave it a substantial edge.

The two countries are right next to each other after all!

Ubisoft in general has a massive UK presence. French games will regularly do much better there. There is also something of a shared talent pool as well. Source: am British.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Zelda

I dont think it was ever Squall.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Everybody forgot that Rayman Legends is also an extremely beloved game (with a 92 on Metacritic.), with a similar response to Celeste, and it has been on everything, even the Vita!

And yes, Rayman is probably one of the first major European franchises, do of course it does well in Europe.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

If we are going by original release dates, Super Mario Bros. 3. I was also born after the NA release, but not the release in my region. I miss the original Super Mario World release by a few months.

If it has to be release in my region, no idea. The Legend of Zelda perhaps, or Super Mario Bros. European release delays used to be rough.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Witcher 3>Super Metroid

2015 OoT beats Super Metroid by significantly more than BotW was beating pre-rally Witcher. If BotW is even close to OoT (and in all likelihood it is as strong, perhaps indirectly stronger) then I can't see how Witcher drops this. I definitely can't see a path for FFX to beat it, what is up with that?

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Berseria of course launching in 2016 in Japan kind of makes it only 2017 on a technicality. Though I agree that I may have gone Splatoon 2 rather than Nier Automata.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

This just reinforces my earlier thinking that Homestuck is internet Harry Potter. The material that comes afterward is best just ignored.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

There are plenty of people who want the release of the Snyder Cut, a majority Id say, who arent a part of that toxic mess. And personally, Im tired of letting the toxic mob pretend they own things. This obviously isnt for them. Screw those people, but its great that this is coming out.

Anyway, BvS is not good, but its a very interesting and ambitious movie, which sounds really stupid but I swear is true. I would take a thousand interesting failures like that than the bland mediocrity of theatrical Justice League. As such, even though there is a reasonable chance that this isnt great, it will certainly be remarkable.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I should also add that while FFXV did manage to avoid true embarrassment against Hollow Knight, it still significantly underperformed its oracle prediction by a hair below 4.5%. So even in victory it looked terrible.

Funnily enough I think Hollow Knight does better against BotW because who the hell respect votes for FFXV over BotW? Even its own board had a poll where it got annihilated by BotW.

Uncharted 4 beats it for sure, Stardew Valley beats it for sure, DooM beats it very easily, Dark Souls III beats it very easily, Sun and Moon almost certainly beats it, which would put it in sixth for the year. That is almost the biggest fall for a GotY winner ever - FFXV is lucky that Modern Warfare 2 exists!

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Uncharted 4 went from losing badly to FFXV to looking outright stronger.

Also 2016 was a good year for games but it lacked the big headliners, ESPECIALLY in the realm of big RPGs and expansive action adventure games that GameFAQs likes. This is why FFXV effectively defaulted its way to GotY here (and it needed a rally). Bizarrely, now the actual strongest game of that year is Doom, an FPS. One of the only years you can say that about, definitely the only one of the last 15 years.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

As for my opinion:

What we have seen from next gen has been a colossal disappointment thus far. Sony have bungled almost everything they have shown so far - even accounting for the technical talk being intended for a GDC audience rather than a general audience, the content was somewhat underwhelming. The controller looks terrible and every announcement such as the initial reveal has been done in a very slapdash way. Microsoft had seemed on the ball, but then they really messed up with the "gameplay reveal" - though to be fair I suspect this is due to a lack of E3 interfering with their plans.

More than that, when I look at the potential lineup (the first year or two at least will be cross-gen) I struggle to find any titles that either make sense or have reliable rumours that make either platform an enticing proposition. If Sony come out and just say "here's Horizon 2 next year also we'll make new Spider-Man and God of War games eventually" that's nothing given how long in advance Sony announces games. To say nothing of Sony's increasing PC presence (you'd expect at least the next Horizon to get a PC version right?). Microsoft may well have a stronger lineup but all of that will definitely be on PC. So what's the point? Then there are the third party games - cross-gen Assassin's Creed and CoD aren't that enticing proposal, and then you have to account for the pandemic being expected to hit games launching next year. And if the rumoured prices are correct - $500 each and potentially $550 for the PS5, in the current climate you really have to wonder if a new console generation right now would be all the great an idea.

I wasn't super jazzed about the last gen going into it, but the presentation was much slicker and more effective, and you had that much greater demand than there is now. This time the announcements feel all over the place (even pre-pandemic) and the demand just doesn't feel like it's there in the same way. Maybe the best thing might actually be to delay the launch of these systems until next year after all. Of course I say this but the software showcases might end up wowing us all and turning it around! Maybe the lineups will be amazing! I certainly don't want to be negative, I'd love that. But right now it does need to be turned around.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but:

https://twitter.com/JeffGrubb/status/1262460911589052417

In short, it is moving to another date in early June, and will not be as big as planned or a full lineup. Sounds like it will now be a predominately first party-focused event, like Microsoft have planned for July.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Leonhart4 posted...

Mario Galaxy 2 dominates every day up till now and gets knocked out at the end

Sure

And was also dominating for at least a large part of the day

Very legit, very cool

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

That last result was not remotely legit

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Surprised only a B for 2015. Even its busts could blame SFF and antivoting like you say, and it had the number two game.

Im really not down on Fire Emblem at all. Mayyybe Three Houses due to bitter Smash fans but Awakening looked reasonable, and significantly stronger than 2015. People just severely underestimated Bloodborne.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

There was even going to be a party for you. A big party that all your friends were invited to. I even invited your best friend the companion cube. Of course he couldn't come because you murdered him. All your other friends couldn't come either because you don't have any other friends because of how unlikable you are. GLaDOS, Portal

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Watch the original series then read the manga. Besides the final battle seeming interminable it never gets car crash bad, but does go downhill.

The Shippuden anime on the other hand, is a car crash. Except slowed down 1000x.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I would not overestimate the N64. It has two giant games, two or three lesser but strong ones then the library falls off a cliff. It is also remembered (like the PlayStation) as a bit of a rough transition. It is mainly banking on nostalgia, and while GameFAQs loves it some nostalgia, that has proven possible to overcome.

Worst Nintendo console

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I didnt want to crowd the 2 seeds too much, I wanted a broad range. It sounds crazy but the 360 was the dominant system on this site for years, it was very much the exception. I could demote the Mega Drive/Genesis but it is up there with the SNES in terms of raw nostalgia for this site. Maybe the DS could get a demotion.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Its the other way around.

With BotW, Zelda passed Animal Crossing.

Also you forgot Super Mario

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

There has been some talk of a system battle soon, and wondering if there have been any mock brackets. So here goes!

Division 1:

(1) SNES
(8) Magnavox Odyssey

(4) PS3
(5) Dreamcast

(3) Playstation
(6) Game Boy

(2) Mega Drive/Genesis
(7) Vita
-

Division 2:

(1) PC
(8) Turbografx-16/PC Engine

(4) N64
(5) Game Boy Advance

(3) Gamecube
(6) PSP

(2) PS4
(7) Atari 2600


Division 3:

(1) Nintendo Switch
(8) Xbox One

(4) iOS
(5) Android

(3) Wii
(6) Wii U

(2) Xbox 360
(7) Neo Geo
-

Division 4:

(1) PS2
(8) Saturn

(4) NES
(5) Game Boy Color

(3) 3DS
(6) Xbox

(2) DS
(7) Master System

Let me know thoughts and/of predictions! The Odyssey is in there because it was first also.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Hey Yo, I dont know if youve seen it but The Witcher sctuslly has an option for a different movement style.

Im going to blame my account name differing from my display name (stupid lightning_guy) for not getting a leaderboard shoutout! Maybe next time I should make a contest alt.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Oops I missed it. Soz.

Imagine if the Wii U actually took off. The narrative around 2014 would be totally different! And 2012 was a good year it was just one in which the kind of games that were actually good changed a lot, which is reflected in contest strength here. It was a similar case in 2016 though there Doom seems to have broken through after the fact.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Was Borderlands 2 a bust? It was constantly getting called a fraud, the weakest GotY winner, a lot weaker than it was before, and so on. This turned out to not be true, it looked alright through Horizon (which was a tossup), and basically in line with its 2015 performance - especially when you consider that Horizon was benefitting from Bloodbornes rallies. Comparing it with the actual fraud and weakest GotY winner FFXV, Borderlands really only fell behind Xenoblade and P4G (and frankly, counting P4G is a little cheeky). You might even say its the strongest 2012 game to actually release in 2012!

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Minecraft looked alright. Disappointed in Terraria. Another major snub would be Super Mario 3D Land.

2011 had the fewest games but probably the second highest average strength, and perhaps the most major snubs.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

*Sees topic after missing the first day*

Boy I can't wait to vote for Red Dead Redemptio-

KCF0107 posted...

Well this has started off on the wrong foot

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

In retrospect, Bloodborne rallying for no reason against Awakening was great, because it rose the stakes of RE2 vs. Bloodborne significantly. The question not only became would RE2 win, but if it didn't Bloodborne would probably be able to rally its way past ME2. And that led to that phenomenal match.

I will say though, Xenoblade straight up tanking a pinned rally was fantastic. RE2 needed the biggest rally getting deleted, Shovel Knight needed a dev tweet to counter the pin, Xenoblade just blocked it straight up.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

If people want to contrast this with Colour Splash, here's the reveal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2175ZyWwCzw

And here's the first trailer (that Nintendo actually uploaded):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZTUYjNMACw

Yeah, pretty different! Even the theme music is closer to the first two lol.

Interestingly, this new trailer has almost 6x views already, and actually has a good like/dislike ratio, while the others had majority dislikes. So that actually suggests that by and large the response to this game is a lot more positive. But what really shocked me is that this has significantly more views than the Ghost of Tsushima gameplay from the same day.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

How do you miss RE2 vs. Bloodborne? That's my vote.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I really dont see how this style is significantly closer to SS than the first two games. Obviously SPM had its own out there style but I dont see how this is super different to the other older games.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Yeah that wasnt aimed at the healthy scepticism you describe, of which there has been plenty. I was more thinking...

Hbthebattle posted...

Skepticism is justified. Saying "it's 100% a SS clone and I can tell this with 3 minutes of footage" is not.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

INT. Intelligent Systems

Dev 1: We got the feedback from Colour Splash, it looks like a lot of fans werent happy with the direction we took. They say they want more story, original characters and villains, a battle system more like TTYD, non-consumable regular attacks, and partners.

Dev 2: Damn. Well, how about we make a battle system that gets rid of the stickers, and adds back in features people loved like the audience. And we can add this new system to make things deeper maybe. Well bring back partners and unique characters, and how about a more serious plot like the older games? Ive got this great idea for an original villain, we can evennput his name in the title.

Dev 1: Wow, that sounds great! I bet theyre gonna love it.

The reaction:

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Samus Returns is a great game. I also think there is a lot of Prime 4 hype.

But you know a pretty good game with Samus in it? Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

KamikazePotato posted...

Samus is stronger than Snake, but Snake did better than Mario against Zelda, then Mario beat Samus twice...then Samus got 56% on Snake.

That combined with Tifa>Sephiroth more or less confirms (or at least heavily implies) that Samus is stronger than Mario indirectly and is our true #2. She probably beats Cloud easily if they face that year.

I always thought Zelda bandwagoned against Mario. Snake was the shocker, Mario was how far can we go?.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

WarThaNemesis2 posted...

People talking up Cloud 2018 is really funny to me.

He got his biggest embarrassment in his history (even more than losing to Squirtle) at the hands of Link, and needed Smash Bros. and a contest gimmick to even have an argument for being #2.

This

He went from success to getting his face caved in. Granted a lot of that is to do with the apotheosis of Link, but still.

Samus is just stronger than Snake btw. She was stronger in 2006 too! Four of our top five are now Nintendo.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

I made many bad picks that year, but Im really proud of Simon>Ryu H., along with Crash>Cecil. My big mistake was trusting Final Fantasy.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Grimlyn posted...

there has never been a Mario Tennis game as good as Aces

And there has never been a Mario Party game as good as Super Mario Party. It is weird also since Aces and SMP's issues are the opposite: Aces had issues at launch that got patched, SMP did not get any support post-launch whatsoever, but launched well.

Anyway, this is clearly a turn-based RPG more in line with old Paper Mario games. We don't know if there's exp or fp yet and the exact nature of partners (though they are in there) but it's basically an expansion of that battle system from what little we've seen.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Just once, this time. Counting being both on the regular and Second Chance leaderboards as one time. As lightning_guy because I dum, I am #20 on the regular leaderboard and #35 on the Second Chance leaderboard. I got very close in 2008 and I think 2009 and Years to a lesser extent.

This is good because CBX was my worst bracket since 2007...

I'm also not eligible for prizes. It is still nice being on the leaderboard and competing for fun. However, I do hope that it will at least open up to a couple of other countries, I understand the challenges of different countries having different laws on stuff like this, but at least the UK and Ireland would be great!

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Also you can see original NPCs in the trailer! The question of course is how many and how big a role they will have, but they are back in at least some form too (well, Sticker Star and Colour Splash had original NPCs... a whopping one per game!).

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

On closer inspection of that clip, it looks like the audience is back from TTYD.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

There's also Bowser at one point. I do wonder if perhaps (just speculation) partners will also be situational rather than a party maybe.

But given that the best party was actually in Super Paper Mario, and there it was literally just Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Bowser, I'm not super bothered if the name is Bob-omb or Bobby-omb, as long as the writing is good (and there's more NPCs than just a million plain Toads, which was the actual NPC variety issue - this seems to not be the case).

paperwarior posted...

I honestly never played the last two, or most of Super.

Colour Splash is a good game, a bit of a shame it gets tarred with the same brush as Sticker Star but I do get it. Super Paper Mario is fantastic.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

That looks awesome. Clearly going back to the original tone and story style. Looks like they got rid of the consumable battle actions too. From what little we can tell, it's closer to the old system with the situational element added in.

Combat footage:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3XwDV6jF6M

That situational positioning could be really cool.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser

Also the 90's are top heavy. They rule the roost then drop off hard. But I'd love to see Game of the 90's, and I like the idea of taking the top 40 from each decade that got a contest, and the 8 80's games that made it to the second round in 2009, and doing an all-star Best Game Ever bracket.

---

I just decided to change this sig.
Blaaaaaaargh Advokaiser