Game of the Year Overall: BioShock 2

Many people, including several members of the GameShark staff, were leery of BioShock 2. How would this game succeed without the guiding hand of Ken Levine? Turns out, quite well. Incredibly well, in fact.

BioShock 2 took Rapture, the marvelous backdrop of the original and made it feel fresh again – and placed you in the boots of a Big Daddy, which at first sounded silly but turned into one of the best design decisions the team made. No game connected you more with its surroundings, while adding sophisticated shooter mechanics and a brilliant story better than BioShock 2.

Metro 2033

A sleeper pick, no doubt, Metro 2033 was a gritty, hard, relentless shooter set in the underground of post apocalyptic Russia. Combining stealth gameplay, run and gun blast fests and an eerie, tense, dark atmosphere, the game’s linear design didn’t really matter – in fact it was a boon as each set piece was better than the last. It was easily one of the best gaming experiences of 2010, with one of the more poignant endings you’ll ever see in a videogame.

Mass Effect 2

Ok, so we hated the planet scanning too. But – and it’s an important but – Mass Effect 2 was simply a better game from top to bottom when compared to the original, and while not as good as BioShock 2, the trials of Commander Shepherd shouldn’t be missed and we can’t wait for part 3.

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood

The campaign in Brotherhood was great as the story of Ezio continues to unfold, but it’s the brilliant multiplayer that pushes this game into the realm of pure genius. This series just keeps getting better and better and Ubisoft better hurry up so we can get back to Italy.

R.U.S.E.

In a year full of very good real time strategy games R.U.S.E. stood out as the most forward thinking design to come along in some time. While Starcraft II got all the press, and taking nothing away from Blizzard’s juggernaut, R.U.S.E. was every bit its equal – and then some.