Games Critics Awards pick Best of E3 nominees
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Jun 16th 2009 at 6:10PM } 
Therefore, as you glance through the list below, try to keep in mind that we're not solely responsible for its composition. The lack of Scribblenauts in the "Best of Show" category, for instance, is almost as preposterous as a robotic dinosaur traveling back through time to fight robotic zombies. Almost.
Best of Show
- Brütal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Mass Effect 2 (BioWare/Electronic Arts for Xbox 360, PC)
- Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Splinter Cell Conviction (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)
Best Original Game
- Alan Wake (Remedy/MGS for Xbox 360)
- Bayonetta (Platinum Games/Sega for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Brütal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Heavy Rain (Quantic Dream/SCEE for PS3)
- Scribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)
Best Console Game
- Brütal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- God of War 3 (Sony Santa Monica/SCEA for PS3)
- Mass Effect 2 (BioWare/Electronic Arts for Xbox 360)
- Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)
Best Handheld Game
- Gran Turismo (Polyphony Digital/SCEJ for PSP)
- LittleBigPlanet (SCE Studio Cambridge/Media Molecule/SCEE for PSP)
- Mario and Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (Alphadream/Nintendo for Nintendo DS)
- Scribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)
- The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (Nintendo for Nintendo DS)
Best PC Game
- DC Universe Online (Sony Online Austin/SOE)
- Dragon Age: Origins (BioWare/EA)
- Left 4 Dead 2 (Valve/EAP)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts)
- Supreme Commander 2 (Gas Powered Games/Square Enix)
Best Hardware
- DJ Hero Controller (Freestyle Games/Red Octane/Activision)
- "Project Natal" (Microsoft)
- PSP Go (Sony Computer Entertainment)
- Tony Hawk Ride Skateboard (Robomodo/Activision)
- Wii MotionPlus (Nintendo)
Best Action Game
- BioShock 2 (2K Marin/2K Games for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Halo 3 ODST (Bungie/MGS for Xbox 360)
- Left 4 Dead 2 (Valve/EAP for Xbox 360, PC)
- Modern Warfare 2 (Infinity Ward/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Singularity (Raven/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Best Action/Adventure Game
- Bayonetta (Platinum Games/Sega for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Brütal Legend (Double Fine Productions/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360)
- God of War 3 (Sony Santa Monica/SCEA for PS3)
- Splinter Cell Conviction (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft for Xbox 360)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)
Best Role Playing Game
- Alpha Protocol (Obsidian/Sega for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Dragon Age: Origins (BioWare/EA for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story (Alphadream/Nintendo for Nintendo DS)
- Mass Effect 2 (BioWare/EA for Xbox 360, PC)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts for PC)
Best Racing Game
- Blur (Bizzare Creations/Activision for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Forza Motorsport 3 (Turn 10/MGS for Xbox 360)
- ModNation Racers (United Front/SCEA for PS3)
- Need for Speed Shift (Slightly Mad/EA Games for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Split/Second (Black Rock/Disney Interactive for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Best Fighting Game
- Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes (Foundation 9/Capcom for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny (Project Soul/Namco-Bandai Games for PSP)
- Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars (Eighting/Capcom for Wii)
- Tekken 6 (Namco Bandai for PS3, Xbox 360)
- The King of Fighters XII (SNK Playmore for PS3, Xbox 360)
Best Sports Game
- Fight Night Round 4 (EA Canada/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Madden NFL 10 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
- NHL 10 (EA Canada/EA Sports for PS3, Xbox 360)
- Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 (EA Tiburon/EA Sports for Wii)
- Tony Hawk Ride (Robomodo/Activision for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
Best Strategy Game
- League of Legends: Clash of Fates (Riot Games for PC)
- Order of War (Wargaming.net/Square Enix for PC)
- R.U.S.E. (Eugen Systems/Ubisoft for PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
- Supreme Commander 2 (Gas Powered Games/Square Enix for Xbox 360, PC)
Best Social/Casual Game
- DJ Hero (Freestyle Games/Red Octane for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360)
- Guitar Hero 5 (Neversoft/Red Octane/Activision for All Systems)
- Scribblenauts (5TH Cell/WBIE for Nintendo DS)
- The Beatles Rock Band (Harmonix/MTV Games/EAP for PS3, Xbox 360, Wii)
- Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo for Wii)
Best Online Multiplayer Game
- Halo 3 ODST (Bungie/MGS for Xbox 360)
- Left 4 Dead 2 (Valve/EAP for Xbox 360, PC)
- MAG (Zipper Interactive/SCEA for PS3)
- Star Wars: The Old Republic (BioWare Austin/LucasArts for PC)
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (Naughty Dog/SCEA for PS3)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Joe Smith @ Jun 16th 2009 6:16PM
NEEDS MORE SCRIBBLENAUTS.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:18PM
No...no it doesn't. Be sensible.
Longhorn of Myon [PSN: MariusElijah] @ Jun 16th 2009 6:18PM
umm no go be casual somewhere else
Joe Smith @ Jun 16th 2009 6:21PM
Oh yeah, I forgot games can only be good unless they involved blowing things up.
Who wants a fun and innovative game anyway.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:24PM
There's a reason why handheld games don't win best of show. You're taking away from people who put a LOT more hard work into their games.
Like every other casual "innovative" game ever, once the novelty of its idea wears off everyone will get bored with it. I'll stick with people who are making fun games.
Mr Khan @ Jun 16th 2009 6:29PM
But you don't play fun games. You play serious games.
Joe Smith @ Jun 16th 2009 6:29PM
Except this is a 'casual' game in the nutshell of a very interesting puzzle game with a lot of depth.. It's not just 'waggle your hand around!', it's a genuine puzzle game with a lot of depth and what seems like a long single player game added with the challenge of uploading your own puzzles or downloading new puzzles.
Playing games like Dead Space which was meant to be 'AMAAAZZZIIINNNGGG' I thought it got very repetitive, following the same structure level after level, not doing anything out of the ordinary.
So, instead I'll think I'll look at games across the board and judge them on their own merits.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:33PM
"But you don't play fun games. You play serious games"
So you're saying only kids games can be fun?
Joe Smith @ Jun 16th 2009 6:38PM
"There's a reason why handheld games don't win best of show. You're taking away from people who put a LOT more hard work into their games."
Hard work doesn't necessarily result in a good game... Games that have been developed for years by a huge team of people might not be better than a game with a small team in production for not long at all.
Advance Wars didn't take a lot to make, but if you ask me it was one of the best games I've ever played. As was Pokémon Red/Blue.
"I'll stick with people who are making fun games."
The point of a 'novelty' game is it's fun. So, yeah.
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:40PM
well, according to your definition of kid games, yes
Markez @ Jun 16th 2009 6:41PM
Stop trying to win the 'biggest douche on Joystiq award', you can have it already. It's clear to everyone you can't get away with pulling off this obviously undeserved ego in real life, but doing it here over and over is really starting to get silly. Seriously, you, the other sprinkles, and killjebus should maybe just hit a Sandals resort for awhile and relax.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:42PM
Since we're starting to slowly amass all the nintendo fanboys in one place, can we take them out all at once?
Mr Khan @ Jun 16th 2009 6:44PM
I've tried it with the insufferable Nintendo haters. Fanboy genocide doesn't work
Markez @ Jun 16th 2009 6:44PM
Shocker, the only cop-out you have at your disposal.
bm @ Jun 16th 2009 6:46PM
"There's a reason why handheld games don't win best of show. You're taking away from people who put a LOT more hard work into their games."
lol oh jesus. Now it's not about which game is actually the best, but which game people put the most effort in creating? Give me a fucking break, the games industry isn't kindergarten. You're really taking the piss now, you "hardcore gamer".
And btw, that thing they're doing with Scribblenauts, you know, giving appearance and life to, oh, every fucking thing in existence? There's a little hard work involved there, too.
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:46PM
tmac, have you even played Peggle? Or would the fact that you and something fun in the same area causes a black hole the likes the LHC could only dream of making?
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:50PM
yes i have played the pc demo of peggle, and it's boring. I don't like casual games and I have an extremely hard time having fun with them, so of course Peggle was going to be boring to me. I need more depth and substance to my games.
And it's not a cop out Markez. You're all blatant and un-apologetically nintendo fanboys, so of course you all get your panties twisted when I say something bad about a game on the wii or ds.
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:51PM
" I need more depth and substance to my games."
then you obviously didnt really play Peggle
mr_maroon @ Jun 16th 2009 6:53PM
For one, I fucking hate Nintendo. Like, really. (At least since the launch of the Wii)
However, Scribblenauts is the only game to get me to fever-pitch for a long, long time. You know why? Because it's just so different. Don't get me wrong, blowing arms off Nazi zombies is my idea of a good night in, but really, I think the platform's irrelevant; if it was on XBLA or PSN, you wouldn't have half the trouble seeing it for what it is; a genuine, bona fide, fucking great game. I would happily claw through my own shit to play this. No joke.
Markez @ Jun 16th 2009 6:53PM
It's the only cop-out you use, people disagree with you, they're Nintendo fanboys. Feel free to check my post history, I've been plenty critical of Nintendo and what they're doing. If yours weren't set to private, it'd be beyond easy to make this obvious, which you're well aware of, but oh well!
Joe Smith @ Jun 16th 2009 6:54PM
Damn, I MUST be a fanboy if I enjoy a game on a particular platform!
Despite the fact I don't own a Wii and only own a first gen DS which hasn't seen use in over a year...
Kodros @ Jun 16th 2009 6:55PM
"There's a reason why handheld games don't win best of show. You're taking away from people who put a LOT more hard work into their games."
That's a retarded statement.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:57PM
I di dplay peggle. It has no depth to it at all, none.
Please stop being such a casual/nintendo fanboy.
bm @ Jun 16th 2009 6:58PM
Yes, it is a retarded statement, but tmac isn't one to own up to his own stupid bullshit, so don't expect any reply beyond "you're all fanboys omg~!"
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 7:03PM
and i would love to keep arguing with all the nintendo fanboys this site can throw at me, but i have a burnout paradise game to get to with some friends, later.
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 16th 2009 7:04PM
Okay tmac, Load up a random level and try to hit every peg. Go on, we'll wait
Jason Statham (Aka Vegeta) @ Jun 16th 2009 7:05PM
"I di dplay peggle. It has no depth to it at all, none."
So? That's not the reason why people play those games in the first place. People like it for it's easy to pick up and play gameplay. That and the fact that even though it's simple, it's also fun and addicting.
ben @ Jun 16th 2009 7:09PM
"There's a reason why handheld games don't win best of show. You're taking away from people who put a LOT more hard work into their games."
this is my major gripe with handhelds. they basically have a library full of casual shovelware like pokemon, golden sun, zelda games, final fantasy games, and innovative crap like patapon. this is just another example of studios taking advantage of casual gamers that will buy anything
Markez @ Jun 16th 2009 7:14PM
Innovative crap like Patapon...
¬_¬
Longhorn of Myon [PSN: MariusElijah] @ Jun 16th 2009 7:15PM
Innovative crap like Pokemon...
¬_¬
ben @ Jun 16th 2009 7:17PM
there may have been a little sarcasm in that comment
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 16th 2009 7:17PM
@Markez, Longhorn
Sarcastic post was sarcastic
Markez @ Jun 16th 2009 7:18PM
DAMMIT!!!
Markez's sarcasm meter...
¬_¬
bm @ Jun 16th 2009 7:25PM
Haha, that's what tmac (and any person like him) does when he makes a douche out of himself with something he said. Completely ignores it and continue to pretend he's still the shit. With all his arrogant bullcrap, he can't possibly afford to even acknowledge any of his own stupidity. So he just goes "you're all dumb anyway, I'm going, bye!"
redjack @ Jun 16th 2009 7:32PM
"and i would love to keep arguing with all the nintendo fanboys this site can throw at me, but i have a burnout paradise game to get to with some friends, later."
I call BS on having friends. Must be bath time and mom's waiting with a sponge.
manaman @ Jun 16th 2009 7:38PM
Just to mention,
It seems to me that this game we're talking about here has had considerable amounts of work put into it thus far. I'd say that all said in done, you'd have a hard time convincing me that it was easier or less time consuming to create Scribblenauts than any of the other standard run and gun affairs that are listed--even/especially those for consoles.
I think the industry has shown time and time again that games produced within the confines of system specifics often succeed because in those less than ideal situations the ideal creators think creatively to go beyond expectations and--especially--limitations.
Peace,
manaman
DBuck_Eye @ Jun 16th 2009 10:51PM
If the 5 guys who read dictionaries for 6 months aren't people who put a LOT more hard work into their games, I don't know who are.
Professor Lario @ Jun 16th 2009 6:17PM
Wait a minute...
So Bioshock is an action game, while Bayonetta is action/adventure? Wow.
ZaxCG2 @ Jun 16th 2009 10:55PM
Couldn't most all games requiring you to move a character around use the adjective, ACTION? I've always been lost in that categorizing of gaming genres myself.
Warlord @ Jun 17th 2009 9:36AM
they didn't even put MGS:peace walker in best handheld game wtf
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 16th 2009 6:17PM
So glad they didn't splooge all over the latest "cool" casual game and put scribblenauts in best of show like some....other places.
Although I do have one question. Why is splinter cell nominated for best of show when it's not nominated for best console game? That makes zero sense to me.
Cesaria (seh-sare-ee-ah) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:49PM
You're a giant flaming douche.
Cesaria (seh-sare-ee-ah) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:53PM
*ahem* You're a giant, flaming douche!
TheJerk @ Jun 16th 2009 7:27PM
you make zero sense to me you cock monger
OnToGloryReturns @ Jun 16th 2009 8:17PM
Yeah, I don't get that either.
On the casual game topic I think you're being a little cynical. I read this site all the time and I know you take all kinds of flak but I find you generally pretty sensible - or at least you articulate your points well. I am huge fan of Peggle for example - I play the ranked multiplayer all the time and trust me - there's a huge amount of strategy and depth, plus a lot of luck too but those elements are blended so well and I think that is what makes it such a great multiplayer game.
Not all casual or innovative games are gimmicky - games like Tetris for example are still played today and keep finding new audiences.
I find it's so easy to fall into a rut, so to speak, with game types. For a while I was playing almost exclusively multiplayer, shooters, sports, racing etc., and really got away from single player gaming. I went back into my library and finished Fallout 3, Uncharted (again) and am finally playing Bioshock (excellent).
My point is that it's good to step out of the box and get into something completely different once in a while - I did that w/ Civ Rev last year - a genre I'd never played - and it turned out to be one of my all time faves. Same thing w/Elite Beat Agents and Peggle. It's fun discovering something new and really enjoying it or revisiting a genre (hadn't been into platformers for a long time then LBP came along and I'd forgotten how much fun platformers could be).
Anyway - peace out. Going to play some Ghostbusters since XBLive is down for the day.
skyzbig @ Jun 16th 2009 6:17PM
Bets Of Show has to go to Uncharted 2.
It'll be a travesty if it doesn't. My jaw hit the floor and then some watching the trailer.
Ashkental @ Jun 16th 2009 6:24PM
my jaw hits the floor while playing the beta ;D
Thx to Joystiq for the Code :P
Cesaria (seh-sare-ee-ah) @ Jun 16th 2009 6:51PM
That was for tmac. No hard feelings?
TheJerk @ Jun 16th 2009 7:32PM
same as mine, totally meant for tmac
PedoJokerBear (aka Deeznuts) @ Jun 16th 2009 8:19PM
youre an asshole.
who's tmac?