These awards represent the best of the best--on their respective platforms, anyway. For those who aren't fortunate to have access to multiple gaming platforms, our platform awards are in many ways the most meaningful. Here's where we select five finalists on each major platform that we cover, and from them, settle on just one game as the best of the year.

2004 was an incredible year in games, so you'd better believe the choices weren't easy to make--but, then again, with so many great games to choose from, we were more than happy to revisit so many of our favorites before settling on the winners.

A Special Note About Mobile Game of the Year:
Instead of deciding this award by way of extended conclave, as we did all the others, GameSpot will be holding a separate event for mobile games: The 2nd Annual Wireless Gaming Awards! We'll be evaluating a passel of games from all over the world, and we'll be announcing this year's winners in March at CTIA New Orleans--so stay tuned! For more information about the Wireless Gaming Awards--informally known as the Mobies--go to www.gamespot.com/2004/mobies/.