Honorable Mentions
Dynasty Warriors 7 (360/PS3) -- There was a point this year when this was my Game of the Year. I didn't expect to find ten games that I liked more than this, but I did! For my money, this is 'best in the series' tier. That likely doesn't mean much for most, since people don't tend to associate "Dynasty Warriors" with quality, but it's a legitimately fun beat-'em-up. The new Story Mode is the highlight -- it's more fleshed out and interesting, the narrative is more in line with the novel its based on, and the characters are more memorable and lively. Conquest Mode is nice, too, but all I can think about when I hear "Conquest Mode" is grinding. I spent so much time in that mode, completed every hexagon, and still managed not to get every trophy (missing two!). After you've done everything in DW7, there's no real reason to go back to it, but it was all I played for about two months.
From Dust (XBLA/PSN) -- This was another game I thought would be a shoe in for the top 10, but it just missed the cut. I haven't played many "god games," but this one was a good time. Freezing oceans, building walls of earth to stop tidal waves, protecting my villagers as they braved the elements in an attempt set up camp in strangely dangerous areas -- it was fun to mess around with. I thought From Dust would have been more "open," in the sense of allowing you the freedom do handle things how you want and mess around with the world on your own terms, but it's more like a puzzle game where you have just a few ways to solve one big puzzle. That was a shame.
Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet (XBLA) -- ITSP is a game I had some reservations about. tran tried selling me on the game for months, but it never looked all that good to me. I tried the demo last week, loved it, and bought it right after. The only reason it isn't on the list proper is because I haven't put enough time into it yet. I thought about delaying the list just for this game, but then I'll want to play Zelda, and then next thing you know it's a GOTY list in February. Of all the "Metroid inspired" downloadable games I've seen in the past few years, none of them have lived up to the name as much as ITSP. It totally captures the atmosphere and the gameplay of Metroid -- it isn't just a map, it's everything about the way you move and search. tran tells me this changes later on, but as it is, this would be a top 10 game if put more than a couple of hours into it!
PixelJunk Sidescroller (PSN) -- This is the first PixelJunk game I've played. It's somewhat similar to the Shooter series, from what I understand, but instead of being a shooter / puzzle hybrid, it's a straight up 2D shooter. The nice thing about Sidescroller, since I'm not HARDCORE enough for the bullet hell ones people play, is that it's made for modern times. Running into walls won't hurt you, and there are usually 3-4 checkpoints littered throughout a level, so if you die you don't have to start the whole level over again. You can restart from a checkpoint on a Game Over, too, but you lose your weapon upgrades. To some, this might seem 'weak,' but it made the experience more enjoyable. Just a fun game to play, without having to put in much time to get good at. Also, soundtrack is nice.
my skillz -
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"When I was a young man, I had liberty, but I did not see it. I had time, but I did not know it."