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Xbox 360 Game of the Year
Xbox 360 Game of the Year: BioShock 2
Sequels are tough to pull off – sequels to instant classics such as BioShock are incredibly hard to pull off. BioShock 2 is, arguably, better than the original with a tighter story and better gameplay. It’s a remarkable achievement in game design.
From our review "What makes BioShock 2 truly special, however, has little to do with the individual elements I’ve praised here. What elevates it above the sum of its parts is the genuinely impactful narrative, something that parents, in particular, will appreciate. Both the first and second title offer scathing indictments of political extremism (capitalism/individualism in the first, communism/collectivism in the second), and the first game ultimately comments on the lack of free will."
Runner Ups
NHL 11
It’s hard for a sports game to crack the elusive “game of the year” barrier for several reasons – these games come out in some form every year and they are also highly specialized. For a hockey game to crack this list is even more impressive and it says a lot about just how special this game truly is.
From our review: "…NHL 11 plays a remarkable brand of hockey. This is the best hockey game ever made, and is a real feather in the cap for EA Sports in a year where the company literally doesn’t have any competition on the Xbox 360 or PS3."
Bayonetta
Platinum Games continues to make some of the best action games of this generation and Bayonetta is the developer’s crowning achievement. Full of mayhem, carnage and a wicked vixen heroine, it’s been forgotten since it came out in January of 2010, but it’s still one of the best games of the year.
From our review: "Bayonetta is a sensual ballet of hyper-kinetic violence that makes no pretense to be wholesome entertainment. Discontent with simply shooting her angelic adversaries, the self-titled protagonist whips into a frenzy of pin-up poses amid a vortex of brass casings."
Call of Duty: Black Ops
Is Black Ops the best Call of Duty ever? The fact that you can even make that argument means it deserves a spot on this list. The surprise is that Treyarch, a company that has repeatedly delivered less than stellar additions to this series, stepped up and knocked it out of the park.
From our review: "Instead of fixing what wasn’t broken, the oft-maligned developer gave it a needed polishing and sent it on its way. With everything that this game has to offer, both on and offline, it will be a resident of console drives for a long time to come."
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood
UbiSoft could have slapped on the Creed title and cashed it in and called it a day – but the company didn’t do that. It created another stellar edition of this wonderful series. Taking the baton from the classic Assassin’s Creed II, Brotherhood adds another chapter to the mix and a slick multiplayer suite.
From our review “…it’s better in almost every way.”