Best of the rest: James's picks

by James Ransom-Wiley { Jan 1st 2007 at 10:55AM }

Bully (PS2)
Bully is my current favorite and has renewed my faith in Rockstar as a forward-moving publisher. The familiar game mechanics don't feel stale in this decidedly more innocent universe. Bully relies more on mischief than shock value, a relief, as are the smaller scale and lower difficulty level (really, the missions are simply less frustrating than some of the tedious tasks that abound in the GTA series). Bully isn't deserving of 'Game of the Year' honors, but Rockstar Vancouver's effort is one of the most refreshing and outright fun titles of 2006. [See also: "Dissecting Rockstar's formula"]

Additional picks (listed alphabetically):

kawashima!
Brain Age (DS)
The doc convinced me to "train" my brain daily for three straight months instead of playing something that was actually fun -- which is ludicrous; and also why this title is noteworthy. By the way, still recovering from the latent OCD this game triggered; and still writings my '5's likes 'S's. (Don't sleep on the bonus Sudoku games.)

how many have you sealed?
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Xbox 360)
Repetitive and soulless. Yeah, it's game crack -- and just as addictive as the cocaine derivative. (My personal pick for Game of the Year.)

duck!
Fight Night Round 3 (Xbox 360)
Hipsters prefer Table Tennis, me and my people just box. Classic 1-on-1 gameplay. Perfect for a room full of jeering friends.

emorpg
Final Fantasy XII (PS2)
This is the one I wish I had more time to play. Love the new battle system, gambits and all.

loco? roco!
LocoRoco (PSP)
I avoided this for months -- didn't what to update the PSP firmware. Things changed when Portable Ops hit; and I decided to scoop LocoRoco too. Now I find myself sneaking a quick level on the regular. (Tip: mute the sound.)

amaterasu
Okami (PS2)
Clover's masterwork would have made 'Top 5' if it'd been on Wii -- DualShock 2 makes for a poor ink brush. This is the best action-adventure outside of the Zelda lineage.

shout-outs
Worthy of a shout out: Clubhouse Games (DS), DJ Max Portable (PSP), Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror (PSP)

dissapointments
Disappointing:

Dead Rising (Xbox 360) - Great concept, but clunky controls and moronic survivor AI spoiled the fun.
Elite Beat Agents (DS) - Have you played Ouendan?
GRAW (Xbox 360) - Poor teammate AI ruined this game; should be called Ghost Recon Advanced Babysitter.
Prey (Xbox 360) - A decade in the making, and the outcome is this forgettable?
Resistance (PS3) - Derivative presentation, slow start, and chaotic multiplayer were all turnoffs.
Splinter Cell Double Agent (Xbox 360) - Choice-making gimmick failed to keep me interested in the series, which might have peaked with Chaos Theory.

Related From Joystiq

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Steve @ Jan 1st 2007 11:03AM

I would have Gears of War as my GotY and Bully as 2nd. I was currently playing bully this morning and can't believe how charming this game was. STINK BOMB FTW!

Pedro @ Jan 1st 2007 11:38AM

Man, you are gonna get flamed into oblivion for this one.

Sony fanbots hate it when you diss resistance.
IN about 10 minutes this thread is gonna be swarmed with "but it has 40 player online! This proves ps3 is better!" and "Gears of War? More like sucks of ass!!!110n3 0n3!! Lol A

Zero_ @ Jan 1st 2007 11:48AM

WTF @ Okami? We're picking the best games of the year, not discuss whether it's viable on another platform. Nintendo-fanboy-ry?

James @ Jan 1st 2007 11:47AM

James' picks

not James's picks

LocoRoco? Really!?!

ZenGaijin @ Jan 3rd 2007 10:17PM

I still think the best PS2 game of the Year should have went to Okami. Mainly because it was something new that proved to be an amazing experience.

And I couldn't give GOTY to Oblivion because personally that game is so damn boring I have trouble forcing myself to play it. Gears is more accessable to everyone.

heretrix @ Jan 1st 2007 11:56AM

You bash dead Rising for clunky controls, yet praise Bully? Bully had shitty controls and the camera was so bad it made me want to vomit..Bully would be cool if it weren't for the Rockstar trademark shitty control syndrome.."Cool game concept, crappy ass controls and camera" They get away with that shit way too much.

nick @ Jan 1st 2007 12:35PM

Not sure I played the same Dead Rising you did. Clunky controls? First I've heard that one. In my opinion, the controls worked pretty well.

And the survivor AI is supposed to have you struggle. If all the survivors simply ran with you, it wouldn't be challenging. Instead you have some people that are frightened to run through hordes of zombies (imagine that). Some won't use weapons, while others become all Rambo. And some survivors run at their own speed (ie, some are slower than others). I thought it a great mix.

Dead Rising really doesn't get the credit it deserves for well thought out game design.

Mr. Khan @ Jan 1st 2007 12:37PM

@ heretrix

My guess is that, for James, the "clunky" controls on Dead Rising were a deal breaker, but were not a deal breaker for Bully

I'm surprised he didn't have Bomberman Act: Zero on that list, that game was dissappointing as hell...

Bearxor @ Jan 1st 2007 1:27PM

EBA was disappointing? I know Ouendan is supposed to be the bees knees but how many GotY awards has EBA won for DS? It is an excellent game and an excellent adaptation of Ouendan for NA audiences. I don't think of it as a replacement for Ouendan but rather a companion.

Sponge @ Jan 1st 2007 1:53PM

The problem with Resistance is it's not a great game, but since it's the best thing for the PS3, people seem to think it's better then it really is.

Samik @ Jan 1st 2007 2:04PM

Well, to reply to post 2: GoW may be somewhat better than resistance but Resistance is far better than any XBOX360 exclusive last year (especially Perfect dark Zero, remember that loser of a launch game). And after ONE full year, all you have is another alien shooting game? man, I hope Killzone sucks...cos if it rocks, the XBOX 360 will have no reason to exist!

john @ Jan 1st 2007 2:40PM

Post 10 what r u thiniking there was a great shooter for xbox360 at launch. COD2, Gun, Quake4. We had good racing titles PGR4, also we had a madden06 which looked beter on 360 than madden07 on PS3. We also had a lot of good games come out for 360 the months afterwards. Oblivion, Fight night round 3(looks better on 360), rockstar table tennis, GRAW, and condemmed. PS3 fans are only looking at MGS4 in the spring and a joint relase of GTA IV in october. Also microsoft updates its online and content all the time. Arcade is a hit. Marketplace up and running with thousands of pieces off content day 1. Playstation store was up with limited content. xbox 360 can play games in 1080i just like the PS3 and the shadowing is better. Movies can be playedat 1080p just like PS3. Also you can rent movies in hi def so you dont need a blu-ray or high-def dvd player for your console. Also some older LCD 720p TV's can't even upconvert or down convert with the PS3 making there tvs useless. Also microsoft you can use a componet cable to play high def content. The wire also comes right out of the box. PS3 charges $50 for the HDMI cable. It also doesnt include a componet cable. Micrsoft mades sure every game on the 360 had to have a high-def version or option.(720p-1080i) Even XBLA games needed to be in High-def to be approved from microsoft. In PS3's 2006 relase not one game yet was at 1080i, some where only running at 480i which is standard def. Finally the xbox360 is 200 bucks cheaper than the PS3 and reasons are,No hi-def movie player(optional),Wifi (optional),radio frequencies instead of pricey bluetooth for controllers and headsets. (Range up to 30ft) MS making money on each console now. If your going to get a PS3 get the 499 one because you will be disapointed and you might save 100 bucks in the process. Also u dont need wifi really unless you live in a mansion and the PS3 has usb ports so you dont need the SD and memory card slots either

Leggo @ Jan 1st 2007 2:52PM

Boy, that sucks. If you had held out a little longer on that firmware you'd have access to your entire PS1 library on PSP. Oh well! Enjoy that Portable Ops and Loco Roco.

flaakmonkey @ Jan 1st 2007 3:10PM

your disappointments were some of the better games, and some better than what you liked as "Best Games". You obviously have poor taste in games, and seem also to be a console gaming fanboy, so of course you will like oblivion....on your xbox 360.

Prey was g a really fun game, not the best, but defiantly worth a couple plays (MP was insane).

GRAW was a great multiplayer game, which is the point i think you missed when you said poor AI. Duh it only has a couple SP missions, it was built for MP, and the seqeul is coming soon, be sure to ask for more solo play.

And how can you come out dissing Dead Rising like that, you obviously dont know what fun is.

In closing know how not to be biased and rate on real feeling of game not "this game was disappointing cause I don't like the SP mode, or I felt there was clunky controls".

Shadow El @ Jan 1st 2007 3:24PM

You diss Resistance? Honestly?

And EBA? Yes, it's like Ouendan, because it's the ENGLISH VERSION of Ouendan. Idiot.

mo @ Jan 1st 2007 4:58PM

OH MY GOD

HOW DARE YOU DIS RESISTANCE!!!

dont be ridiculos your a __________, and every one knows PS3 is better than_________

_________is a gimmick

and ______________ is bad because its______________

and resistance is way better than______________and_______________because its so ___________________

i dont own a PS3 i just thought i would be helpful and create a template for the sony fanboys