Associated Press' end of the year gaming list

Posted by Doug

4:30 PM, December 10, 2007

Matt Slagle, the AP tech writer, created his end of the year gaming list. I like the dissing of 'Halo 3' and the praise of 'Call of Duty 4.' Also, Matt's "worst trend" is spot-on...

BEST GAME: "BioShock." A first-person shooter turned morality
play, a thinking person's action game, a piece of electronic
fiction with a soul. There are many positive ways to describe this
gripping game and they're all true. There's just nothing else like
this eerie vision of an undersea social experiment gone horribly
wrong. Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows PC, $59.99, Rated M.

BEST DEAL: The Orange Box. For $59.99, the innovators at Valve
Corp. have provided one of the best bargains in 2007. You get five
games, and all of them are excellent. "Portal," in particular,
seems destined for legendary status, having spawned a cottage
industry for plush companion cubes. (If you don't know what that
means, you're really missing out). Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Windows
PC, $59.99, Rated T through M.

BEST GAME THAT INVOLVES GETTING OFF THE SOFA: "Rock Band."
Close the windows, lock the doors and warn the neighbors before you
blare the volume. "Rock Band" elevates music rhythm games to
arena-filling levels in a game that gets better the more people
there are. For a true rocking experience you'll at least need two
guitars -- lead and bass -- plus a drummer and a singer to belt out
the dozens of tunes. Groupies are optional.

WORST TREND: The annual holiday video game deluge. Please, video
game makers, you're only hurting your most loyal fans here. We
spend all year with hardly anything new to play, then October rolls
around and it's like an avalanche. Suddenly, we're faced with tough
decisions about which of the dozens of good games we can actually
afford to buy. Why not release more of these gems in the winter,
spring or summer doldrums, when we're really looking for -- and more
able to afford -- something new?

(MORE after the jump)

MOST TIRING CONTROVERSY. "Manhunt 2." OK people, it seems
pretty obvious that "Manhunt 2" is not a game for the kiddies. So
why all the uproar? Ratings issues aside, if a game that lets you
perform execution moves is a turnoff, change the channel. Parents
have a tough job keeping content like this away from their
children, but it's ultimately part of the responsibility. And this
game is no more graphic than any number of R-rated movies I've seen
-- except they aren't being altered to appeal to industry ratings
groups.

BEST (AND WORST) TREND: First person shooters were back in a big
way this year. From the sublime ("BioShock") to the visually
stunning ("Crysis"), there are more ways to wield weapons in
convincing three-dimensional worlds than ever before. That's the
good news, particularly for console owners. PC owners, however, are
going to need beefy systems costing many thousands of dollars to
make these gorgeous games playable.

MOST OVERRATED GAME: "Halo 3." Yes, I went there. And I'm not
saying "Halo 3" is bad. It's a decent game, with some good
fighting and excellent online modes, no doubt. But don't believe
Microsoft Corp.'s marketing and PR hype machine. Halo 3 changes
nothing about video games. "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" has a
more interesting multiplayer component. And "Halo 3's"
single-player story is baffling and leaves this supposedly epic
saga feeling somewhat incomplete.

BEST IDEA FOR A GAME GONE HORRIBLY WRONG. "Lair." Seriously,
this PlayStation 3 game looks so awesome yet plays so horribly,
it's like a sick joke from the developers. You're supposed to use
the PS3's motion-sensitive controller to pilot your very own
fire-breathing, butt-kicking dragon. Unfortunately, moving the
controller left to move your dragon left, for example, is fairly
impossible. Don't even get me started on 180-degree turns. I'm sure
with practice you'll gain some semblance of control, but most
people will give up in frustration long before they ever reach that
point.

MOST FRUSTRATING DELAYS: If I can't get my hands on blockbusters
like "Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots," "Spore" or
"Grand Theft Auto IV" soon, I think I'm going to lose it.
Production delays are common in the games industry, and they're
generally a good thing in the long run. The extra time only makes
for a better, hopefully bug-free, gaming experience. But we've been
hearing about these titles for like, ever, and I'm frankly getting
very impatient. Here's hoping all these games become a reality in 2008.