Full of quality releases, 2008 marked a great year for gaming. A number of big-name franchises like Metal Gear Solid, Fable and Fallout made their highly anticipated current generation debuts, while a host of innovative and accomplished new IPs attempted to overthrow the old guard. There was certainly plenty on offer to choose from and it's been a tough choice narrowing down this list to just five titles.
The Runners-Up It says something about the quality on offer in 2008 that the likes of Mass Effect, Fallout 3, Gears of War 2 and Fable II failed to make our top five.
Dead Space birthed a series that has the potential to rival the mighty Resident Evil, while Grand Theft Auto IV is the best sandbox shooter to date and a worthy current generation franchise update. Valve's infectious zombie shooter Left 4 Dead took co-operative gaming to new heights, while PSM3 labelled Metal Gear Solid 4 a masterpiece and arguably the best in the series.
The Winner: LittleBigPlanet
Sackboy, the new face of PlayStation
However there can be only one winner and it's... LittleBigPlanet. Going into 2008 PS3 was in need of a platform-defining game. Few expected Media Molecule's physics-based platformer to emerge as the console's killer app and one of the year's most critically acclaimed titles but that's exactly what happened.
Comprising of over 40 beautifully crafted levels, LittleBigPlanet's story mode was a good enough reason alone to purchase the title. Unlockables and the ability to play co-operatively with up to three others - which is a joy with the right partner/s - also offered plenty of replay value. Mike went as far as to hail it 'Mario for the 21st century'.
But LittleBigPlanet was so much more than just a charming, inventive and visually accomplished platform experience. It also provided players with a deep yet accessible level editor that was unrivalled on consoles, a platform in itself that allowed users to realise their creative ambitions, whether making a level they'd always pictured in their head or a homage to their favourite game - tributes to all of the other contenders in this list can no doubt be found among LittleBigPlanet's one million-plus user generated levels, many of which surpass those the developer shipped with the game. Best of all, they're all available to play online for free, meaning there's potentially an endless stream of content to explore.
LittleBigPlanet managed to achieve the rare feat of captivating the full spectrum of gamers, whether old or young, casual or core, and offered them the ability to 'play, create and share', as Sony says, as they saw fit with almost unlimited scope. That's why it was our star of 2008.
Your Shout Do you agree with our picks, or do you think we've overlooked something? Pick your top five games of 2008, overall winner and why and let us know in the comments section below.
I get that these sort of articles are all about opinion but sometimes opinions need to be run through some sort of filter to make sure you're not MAKING SOME SORT OF HUGE MISTAKE
All five are decent games but some of them fall down on a comparative basis to those even you've admitted are surprising you've left out
L4D a better all round game than GoW2? On what basis? It just about beats the game on the co-op front, but put that against a superior single player experience and an excellent online component and L4D's over reliance on co-op looks lightweight when it comes to longevity
Dead Space was one of my favourite storylines / gameplay experiences of all time, but even this is beaten into oblivion by one game and while I appreciate the quality of both facets mentioned Dead Space lacked the depth, DLC support, innovation and all around bad assery of one of the greatest games of all time, Fallout 3!
I can't comment on the quality of MGS4 or LBP and have only heard great things about them, but there is a strange about the final game - GTAIV
When this game was launched 90% of my friends list was playing it - two weeks later 50% and two weeks after that no one was playing it! Speaking to people they love the storyline and the freedom the game offers but I know of only three or four people dedicated enough to see it through to the end - a strange phenomenon for a £40 game but one not uncommon to GTA games! Again, put this up against the superior Fallout 3 and you have a much higher commitment rate with people (myself included) often dedicating 70+ hours completing every sub plot and side quest, and that was before the DLC! Surely a sign of a better game?
I've enjoyed all of these 'best of the year' articles - this one included - but feel you're waaaay wide of the mark with this one
i think fallout 3 should have been included in the list instead of dead space. grand theft auto 4 is the best rated game of this generation and i can see y. mgs4 was an awesome game but i have to agree with littlebigplanet winning. its just endless and every1 i kno liked playing it and even watching others playing it.
Inferno - appreciate that GTAIV is the 'best rated' game of this generation but is it in your top 5 for 2008 let alone this generation? I don't of many (if any) people who'd put it in theirs
Enjoyment is a hard thing to quantify but I get the impression that not many of those who entered GTAIV got much from it - of course I appreciate the 60 odd people on my friends list hardly represent a large proportion of gamers!
I do disagree with the list of runners up, Gears 2 should have been there. However I do agree with the winner. It may be a mashup of some more original physics-based puzzles (Trespasser is the grandaddy, HL2 following) but the result is fantastic and the start of something great, LBP will be with us for a long time.
To those who are bitching about these "results"...it's not as if these really mean anything. It's an opinion-based article and it's CVG's prerogative to choose what they like.
I disagree with LBP being the best game, I was pretty disappointed with it overall. Out of those games Dead Space was my favourite, but a lot have been overlooked.
I think Fallout 3 would have been the right choice, even though LBP is a revelation of sorts. Dead Space shouldn't be there really, it's a good game but not in the running at all for game of the decade. GTA4 is great to play, don't care what anyone else says, you're wrong for disagreeing. MGS4 was a good choice too, but not enough action for my liking. GOW2 deserves a mention. The list should be Fallout 3 first, GTA4 second, MGS4 third, LBP fourth, and GOW2 fifth.
I get the feeling this list is purposefully controversial, designed to elicit enraged comments and page hits. Here's my angry rant:
"WTF! Fallout 3 should be number one, hands down. What the dickens were you thinking? Also, why is Mass Effect mentioned in the 2007 list and here? PC release? WAH. GRWAWAAA.NYYYYUUURGGHH."
I would say my top 5 would be MGS4, Dead space, GoW2, FO3, LBP. gta and left for dead were quite over rated but variations in opinions are a good thing no need to bash it.
I do disagree with the list of runners up, Gears 2 should have been there. However I do agree with the winner. It may be a mashup of some more original physics-based puzzles (Trespasser is the grandaddy, HL2 following) but the result is fantastic and the start of something great, LBP will be with us for a long time.
To those who are bitching about these "results"...it's not as if these really mean anything. It's an opinion-based article and it's CVG's prerogative to choose what they like.
True; it's just one person or group of people's opinion(s). However, since they essentially make their livelihood on their professional reputation, which will invariably include their taste in games and how they sort the "better ones" from the "poorer ones", should they make too many gaffes in the eyes of their reader base they could very well end up hurting their reputation and thus their credibility. It doesn't have the power to change my personal opinion regarding which games I find interesting and which ones I don't unless I allow it to. That said something does seem more than just a little bit suspect about this list of Top Five games for 2008, IMO.
Poorly done CVG. Your New Year's prize is a few minus points in my book.
Personally I think MGS4 is one of the greatest console games ever made and its only real challengers that year were fallout/gta. While F3 never really did grab me I still think it was very well made but there were a few things that in my opinion kind of lowered the game a few notches, one of them is how buggy it is. I know it's huge and all but some of them are just ridiculous. Another thing is those stupid enemies which level up with you. It's an rpg, 1 of the biggest things I think an rpg should do is make you feel like you are progressing. How satisfying is it to walk back to an older section of the game and annihilate all those enemies which caused you so much trouble b4 with 1 or 2 hits? I just love that.
Gears 2 was never going to win it with those p**s poor on rail sections, useless worm level, annoying as f*** dom and his anorexic wife , weird level design choices, end boss which could literally be beaten by a blind person, AI probs (I had to restart tht crane section twice b4 it worked!), halo syndrome with the story and the mp which was effectively broken.
Dead space was and still is a great game with some of the best sound design out there but it literally ripoffs everything (like the soon to b released dantes inferno) and has a lead character as hollow as can be.
Oh yh gt4; Awesome game but still has the stupid gta logic and had only a handful of really good missions for my liking. Don't get me wrong I loved the game, I still have the disc (smthg I dont tend to do with most) and believe it could have won if it wasnt for MGS.
Man how the F did lbp win? Was this was a collective agreement or was every winner selected by a single person? The latter makes more sense when considering the previous winners.
I completely Disagree with the fact that Fallout 3 was excluded from this list as I and many others I am sure would probably have it in our games of the decade. Although LBP was very enjoyable i'm not quite sure if it should have won, as compared to the other games it didnt have as much lasting appeal, despite the user created levels. Rant over.
I raised an eyebrow in another year's article when mario galaxy was dismiseed due to the writer being "no nintendo gamer" I don't think it should have won that year, but that reason is ridiculous.
But thats another article, in this one a re-emergence of a classic IP is ignored in favour of a one mans over self indulgence in cutscenes and and the latest in the series that made gaming popular for chavs. Whether or not MGS4 and GTA4 should be on the list? possibly, probably, but at the expense of left 4 dead (i love that game but its not a top 5 of 2008 title) and not Fallout 3.
I think a more fair list, in finishing order, should look:-
1&2) Little Big Planet or Fallout 3 (either deserves this, whichever you like less is 2nd, for me LBP is the runner up)
3,4&5)In no particular order MGS4, Fable2, Mirrors Edge (for innovation and the balls to try something different).
As much as I enjoy LBP, the actual platforming involved in the game is weak at best when compared to SMG, which is apparently the 5th best game of the previous year...
This one would be LBP for me all the way, with Dead Space a close second. MGS4 was really just fanporn. If a new franchise had that ratio of gameplay to cut-scenes it would've been slated. I want to play my games, not watch them playing themselves.
they finally chose one i agree with! one of the most original, great games of the decade, such a gem, a must have for ps3, MGS4 was just as great but LBP has to win with its orginality
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, weird level design choices, end boss which could literally be beaten by a blind person, AI probs (I had to restart tht crane section twice b4 it worked!), halo syndrome with the story and the mp which was effectively broken.
