GameSpot's Best Games of 2012Editors' Choice
GameSpot's Editors' Choice Categories
Over the years, GameSpot's Best Games of the Year awards have seen almost as much change as the gaming industry itself. Unlike our 2011 feature, we're putting everything in one place to make viewing our choices as easy as possible this year, and so without further ado, we present to you our award categories for 2012.
Don't forget to participate in our Peoples' Choice Game of the Year voting!
Genre Awards
Fighting Game of the Year
Action/Adventure Game of the Year
Role-Playing Game of the Year
Shooter of the Year
Strategy Game of the Year
Racing Game of the Year
Sports Game
Platformer of the Year
Platform Awards
PC Game of the Year
PS3 Game of the Year
PSN Game of the Year
Xbox 360 Game of the Year
XBLA Game of the Year
Wii U Game of the Year
Handheld Game of the Year
Special Achievements
Special Achievements
Game of the Year
Overall Game of the Year
432 comments
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Someone give me a good reason why AC3 isn't on this list. How can Mario be better than AC3?
Its interesting how the editor's choice for game of the year was eliminated here in the first round.
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@games_are_fun71 That's probably because Journey faced The Walking Dead. That's an incredibly tough match up. Most of all the other games in the first bracket faced another game that clearly was not going to win.
So many game types to chose from, I dont see Android games listed.I think there should be an award for best android game Hmmm maybe not there are so many of them but then again there are only a few really good ones.
Dishonored > all of these games. These are all solid games but not game of the year material. Still, I'd go with FarCry 3 if I had to choose one of these.
Far Cry 3 is a very good game....just not the best game of the year. Nothing against the game, but I personally found at least five or six games I liked more.
@stholia Look editors choice. Far Cry 3 ? where, where I dont see ! ( HAHAHHAHHAHAHHAHAH )
Still can't believe how underrated Far Cry 3 is by the editors here. That silly scrolling Ninja game is on the GOTY list and not FC3... seriously?? FC3 is my personal GOTY because it's so much more ambitious than other (great) games like Halo 4, and yet succeeds so well at what it attempts, with no feeling of corners cut. Incredibly immersive, varied gameplay and the best example yet of a living, breathing simulated world that is actually FUN to visit and engaging at every moment. Sure, it's not as crisp as H3 visually, but to have that much flora and fauna on screen, with dynamic day/night cycles, brilliant AI and no frame rate problems or constant load screens is really a huge technical accomplishment. Plus, it messes with your head pretty effectively.
@DukeRay The PC version looks pretty insane on max. I'm sure it looks as good if not better than Halo 4.
@guitardude1243 @DukeRay On PC it looks WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYY better than Halo 4, that's for certain and it's no surprise since it has more power to use on PC.
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@DukeRay Immersive? Living, breathing simulated world? Ambitious.
The Walking Dead, my friend. Try it.
@Bayonetta2013 @DukeRay "Living, breathing simulated world" he means the world not th characters . TWD doesn't offer that infact it's very linear for a game that is about choice....
halo 4 must win we're counting on u gamespot ... plz remember that halo 4 have the best graphics , sound , story , multiplayer (war games, spec ops) . stop journey and the walking dead from wining (if you know what i mean ;) )
@sonson9999hasan best graphics -> any AAA game on PC
best story -> the walking dead
best multiplayer -> planet side 2 or natural selection 2
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Personnaly, I think it was a great year... My favorite? Hum, FarCry 3 probably, really close with Halo 4, Borderlands 2, DisHonored, Forza Horizon, Mass Effect 3 and about to start AC3. Darksiders II and Sleeping Dogs were fun, but not GOTY contenders to me... I started on some PS VIta titles as well, like Gravity Rush, which is really interesting... So, for all those games, I say, hell yeah to 2012 (and I'm surely missing a couple that I can't remember... like Spec Ops The Line ('12 or '11, not sure)).
Hey, Need more two genre awards: Eshop 3DS Game of The Year ( Crashmo ); Wii U Eshop Game of The Year ( Trine 2 ). - - '
I thought Assassins Creed 3 was awesome. Darksiders 2 was rad also. I'm also way to burnt out on FPS's so I didn't play Halo 4, Borderlands or Far Cry 3 but FC3 has peaked my interest as of late. FPS's need to start thinking of a different formula though. I'm surprised no one has tried to emulate the gameplay and exploration element of the Metroid Prime series yet.
It's not really a surprise though that this year turned out the way it did. E3 was kinda balls and all the awesome looking titles they did announce have been pushed back to 2013.
@Warfighter_971 @vin_ke Bad in the sense sales have fallen, but as for the quality of the games themselves? Maybe a bit, but I thought it was solid given how every platform had something exceptional on it.
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Dishonoured i way overrated...... pretty sad ME3 got nothing so far (and i'm not betting it's gonna get the overall GOTY)
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In terms of story and voice acting, ME3 was good. However, in my opinion, Dishonored offers a much more varied and sandbox options than the former. In the end, ME3 is prized due to the fact that it carries the strength of ME 1 and 2, but on its own it is an average game which degenereated its role playing potential into a more FPS style of game with "story". It seems to me that Dishonored is a much better game on its own right than ME3, offering a better replay value. Yes, it is shorter but it also depends on how you approach the game. Don't get me wrong, I played and liked ME3, but it was the journey from the first to the third that appeal me.
But, if you ask me, there is no game this year to beat Skyrim:)
@bayernfan @Kreol1q1q Peoples opinion of Mass Effect 3 is really being clouded by the whole shitstorm over the ending (the Extended Cut really cleared that up in my opinion) but in terms of Dishonored vs Mass Effect 3 it is too hard to compare them, and that is why gaming awards don't work. I personally love Mass Effect more than any other series on earth but, I stumbled across Dishonored and followed it all through its release and loved it immensely. Which game I like more really comes down to which genre I love more, third person shooter/RPG hybrid or stealth action with RPG elements. I personally believe that these awards are bad for the industry and just serve to promote fanboyism and discourage strong community.
@Kreol1q1q @bayernfan I agree, especially with the ending, at first people considered it terrible, myself included. Now, I consider it art
@SAS_Cpt_Soap @bayernfan Ah, well, these things are really just a matter of taste, since in my opinion ME3 has more qualities of an RPG than ME2(aside from those idiotic fetch-me-this sidequests). Dishonored was way too short, and became bland after some time, couldn't bring myself to finish it. And Skyrim, well, as beautiful and scenic the game is, with its vast open sandbox enviroment, I just cannot get over the fact that after playing for thirty hours(which isn't bad at all), everything and everyone seemed dead, boring and shallow, a beautiful world filled with boring and stupid robot-people. But that's just my opinion, no need to go spreading it around :)
Concerning ME3's ending, I have found it to be an acquired taste, hating it and feeling gutwrenched at first, but then, especially after the Extended Cut, it just grew on me with time, to a point where I now like and appreciate it. I still find myself wishing for those blue babies from time to time, but i believe that just makes the ending even stronger, since it brings out just how large a sacrifice Shepard made, and forces you to think about whether you want to be selfish and say screw the geth and EDI, I've done enough for them already, or you decide that you care about them more than you care about your potential happy future.
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Dishonored didn't grab me and create the game magic that you all seem to bestow upon it. I found it to be lackluster, and one that won't stick with me as a memorable gaming experience. I'm surprised to see that Assassin's Creed 3 didn't even make it to the nominee list, for that is a game that I think deserves honors.
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@NateDaddy112278 It was the same for me in the begining, it's the kind of a game that needs some time and patience, in the end it grabs you like not many games would! And it demands thorough exploration of the levels.
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@se007 I also hear what you are saying Se007 and respect that you feel the way you do about Dishonored. I really wanted to love this game and started to play it a second time through to see if what you are saying might have been true for me, but found myself bored and pretty soon moved on. Skyrim was a world that drew me in over and over and begged me to explore and lavish in its virtual fantasy. Recently Far Cry 3 did the very same for me. I wanted that from Dishonored but sadly it wasn't the case!
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@NateDaddy112278 Dishonored is one of the most overhyped games in recent memory. Because it literally does what many "freedom of choice" games have been attempting over the years, but does it so well, they make it out to be like some revolution in gaming. It's nothing more than another take on the Thief and Deus Ex series. As much as I loved those games, Dishonored just put me to sleep after the first four levels.
@Isaac_Redfield I hear you, I felt like it was on the verge of being truly great and had really interesting ideas, but just wasn't put together that well to engage me how I wanted it to. It seemed almost too formulaic to me, as are many games I must admit.
assassins creed 3 is nowhere to be found except the crappy Wii U, that is game of the year overall and its not even nominated in its genre?!? these awards mean nothing now to me, completely illegitimate
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i really think that platform awards should be for exclusives to that platform just saying....
@killerjay13 lol, that creates a pretty limited selection and is really unfair to a lot of multiplatform games (which the majority of these are). Halo 4 and GW2 would probably sweep.
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