super mario galaxy; goty for all the wrong reasons

i own smg and recently sold my ps3 for a 360. hearing about smg receiving gamespots goty, i rejected it at first, but then i succumbed to the 'nintendo fever'.

what i mean is that its pretty plain to see how much smg pales in comparison to the atmosphere of bioshock and assassin's creed. it has no multiplayer capability which even if it did, would be obliterated by halo 3 and cod4. its on a console that prohibits high resolution detail.

so why did smg get goty on gamespot..

several reasons, actually.

1. nintendo puts out quality products. rarely do you see technical issues with any nintendo 1st party game. while most other games are on their 3rd or 4th patch, most nintendo games never even see a patch. part of this is due to nintendo's excellent quality assurance team. but probably moreso, this is a result of not pushing the technical enevelope of hardware/software innovation.

verdict; keeping things simple beats technically pushing the envelope.

2. nintendo is nostalgia. everybody grew up with one nintendo system or another, or at least was touched by a nintendo game. hearing the familiar music of smg brings back fond memories of gaming and whether or not the game itself exudes those feelings, you get them by association anyway. rarely do new ip's, soundtracks, characters, etc. inspire such feelings... they have to grow on you over time.

verdict; familiarity beats out originality

3. warm and fuzzy cuteness vs harsh, gritty reality. when a game makes you feel good or silly or like a child, you feel good about yourself, and this translates to feeling good about a game. much like a feel-good movie or comedy leaves you with a more upbeat feeling than say, a more intellectual suspense, drama or thriller.

verdict; easy happy games beats deep story, atmosphere, and gritty content.

to sum it up;

simple, familiar and cute beats out cutting edge, original and deep.

if you're still reading this instead of hitting the reply button to bash me, i just want to say that SMG is a great game. this isn't a bash at the game, because its a fun game and i love it. this is merely an observation that the game industry needs to recognize. the ps3 and 360 have all this power, and if a developer could harness it and produce something with similar characteristics to SMG, just imagine how satisfying such a game could be...

i'd rather developers not aim to create warm and fuzzy games for the ps3 and 360.

more of a realizm person.

I got SMG yesterday, and am thoroughly enjoying it. I think it is pretty original with the whole galaxy/planet idea, and think it deserves GOTY.

Oh yeah, and I've played Assassin's, Bioshock, Halo 3, etc.

i own smg and recently sold my ps3 for a 360. hearing about smg receiving gamespots goty, i rejected it at first, but then i succumbed to the 'nintendo fever'.

what i mean is that its pretty plain to see how much smg pales in comparison to the atmosphere of bioshock and assassin's creed. it has no multiplayer capability which even if it did, would be obliterated by halo 3 and cod4. its on a console that prohibits high resolution detail.

so why did smg get goty on gamespot..

several reasons, actually.

1. nintendo puts out quality products. rarely do you see technical issues with any nintendo 1st party game. while most other games are on their 3rd or 4th patch, most nintendo games never even see a patch. part of this is due to nintendo's excellent quality assurance team. but probably moreso, this is a result of not pushing the technical enevelope of hardware/software innovation.

verdict; keeping things simple beats technically pushing the envelope.

2. nintendo is nostalgia. everybody grew up with one nintendo system or another, or at least was touched by a nintendo game. hearing the familiar music of smg brings back fond memories of gaming and whether or not the game itself exudes those feelings, you get them by association anyway. rarely do new ip's, soundtracks, characters, etc. inspire such feelings... they have to grow on you over time.

verdict; familiarity beats out originality

3. warm and fuzzy cuteness vs harsh, gritty reality. when a game makes you feel good or silly or like a child, you feel good about yourself, and this translates to feeling good about a game. much like a feel-good movie or comedy leaves you with a more upbeat feeling than say, a more intellectual suspense, drama or thriller.

verdict; easy happy games beats deep story, atmosphere, and gritty content.

to sum it up;

simple, familiar and cute beats out cutting edge, original and deep.

if you're still reading this instead of hitting the reply button to bash me, i just want to say that SMG is a great game. this isn't a bash at the game, because its a fun game and i love it. this is merely an observation that the game industry needs to recognize. the ps3 and 360 have all this power, and if a developer could harness it and produce something with similar characteristics to SMG, just imagine how satisfying such a game could be...

JohnGerstmann

The first part of the video actually gave me the feel they choose it because it was the last good game to come by lol.

i'd rather developers not aim to create warm and fuzzy games for the ps3 and 360.

more of a realizm person.

humber_matus

i think there are two or more major game directions you can go in. nintendo wants to stay with simple, fun games. this is why the wii hardware caters to that crowd. i also enjoy more cutting-edge and gritty gaming. i think these are two different markets. unfortunately there can be only one goty, and most sites go with the more cutting-edge games. gamespot i think is more of a traditionalist gaming site, and i can see why they chose smg. this exemplafies the dichotomy in gaming we have these days.

i think it won because it is a great game. i dont think it is of the caliber of COD4 or bioshock but it deserves the GOTY on the Wii. for sure. im actually enjoying orange box and ratchet more then galaxy right now but that is just personal prefferance.

in my opinion the reason why nintendo's main games (galaxy and zelda) are so good is because they have done the same thing with them for 15 years. we get 1 true mario platformer and 1 true zelda games every 4 years for a reason. it takes that long for nintendo to get them just right.

why insomniac can fart a ratchet game every year with the same quality as mario and zelda and be more technically impressive is beyond me. perhaps nintendo is to careful with their main properties or not as good as people think. i honestly dont know. i do know i dont wanna play warioware, mario party or strikers when i can play a new starfox or zelda game.

im a lemming and i have to disagree with you, smg was a REALLY fun game, that why it won. not because it was cute or familiar.Big_player

you and i are in agreement, but 'fun' doesn't happen on its own. fun comes from specific things, like graphics, gameplay mechanics, and sound. none of these are technically innovative or original, so why is it still fun.. that's my point.. because its cute and familiar, and brings good feelings.

[QUOTE="humber_matus"]

i'd rather developers not aim to create warm and fuzzy games for the ps3 and 360.

more of a realizm person.

JohnGerstmann

i think there are two or more major game directions you can go in. nintendo wants to stay with simple, fun games. this is why the wii hardware caters to that crowd. i also enjoy more cutting-edge and gritty gaming. i think these are two different markets. unfortunately there can be only one goty, and most sites go with the more cutting-edge games. gamespot i think is more of a traditionalist gaming site, and i can see why they chose smg. this exemplafies the dichotomy in gaming we have these days.

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

i'd like to see how SMG is unoriginal and shallow: have you ever long-jumped off a small planet on to another one and generally flown and tossed about the place-by-gravity-that-sort-of-thing? there's endless things to try with the gravity and all your different jumps.crunchUK

yeah the game was called prey..

and i never called the game shallow.. take a deep breath and re-read what i wrote. i wasn't insulting the game.

[QUOTE="Big_player"]im a lemming and i have to disagree with you, smg was a REALLY fun game, that why it won. not because it was cute or familiar.JohnGerstmann

you and i are in agreement, but 'fun' doesn't happen on its own. fun comes from specific things, like graphics, gameplay mechanics, and sound. none of these are technically innovative or original, so why is it still fun.. that's my point.. because its cute and familiar, and brings good feelings.

Lets see the competition.

Crysis 9.5 - Technical problems, optmization problems, AI problems

Halo 3 9.5 - Overated, Graphics underwhelming, poor multiplayer maps, "familiar ( which debunks your point completely)

World In Conflict - .... I cant say anything bad about this, other than its unique and less build heavy ( I like building in RTS ).

Orange Box - Not everything is new , this would of been 2nd for GOTY in my eyes.

SMG - Great Sound, great graphics , great music, great animations, great level designs, great feeling of ALL mario games, music from previous sinstallements Ochestrated, the great return of the Koopa airships ..

The only bad thing i could find so far about MArio Galaxy is too easy, which isnt a problem.

It won because it was the best, end of!

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

JuarN18

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

JuarN18

you really need to re-read what i wrote.. and in the future, it would be best that you do the same for all threads, lest you waste people's time.

[QUOTE="JuarN18"]

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

Vandalvideo

yo, you say consoles yo, then you use the pc as an example, yo.. which is it, yo..

and yo, i'd say games like bioshock, call of duty 4, gears of war, assassin's creed, uncharted, and gt5 are most definately pushing the technical envelope, yo. 720p or not, yo, they make wii games look like they belong on handhelds, yo.

i own smg and recently sold my ps3 for a 360. hearing about smg receiving gamespots goty, i rejected it at first, but then i succumbed to the 'nintendo fever'.

what i mean is that its pretty plain to see how much smg pales in comparison to the atmosphere of bioshock and assassin's creed. it has no multiplayer capability which even if it did, would be obliterated by halo 3 and cod4. its on a console that prohibits high resolution detail.

so why did smg get goty on gamespot..

several reasons, actually.

1. nintendo puts out quality products. rarely do you see technical issues with any nintendo 1st party game. while most other games are on their 3rd or 4th patch, most nintendo games never even see a patch. part of this is due to nintendo's excellent quality assurance team. but probably moreso, this is a result of not pushing the technical enevelope of hardware/software innovation.

verdict; keeping things simple beats technically pushing the envelope.

2. nintendo is nostalgia. everybody grew up with one nintendo system or another, or at least was touched by a nintendo game. hearing the familiar music of smg brings back fond memories of gaming and whether or not the game itself exudes those feelings, you get them by association anyway. rarely do new ip's, soundtracks, characters, etc. inspire such feelings... they have to grow on you over time.

verdict; familiarity beats out originality

3. warm and fuzzy cuteness vs harsh, gritty reality. when a game makes you feel good or silly or like a child, you feel good about yourself, and this translates to feeling good about a game. much like a feel-good movie or comedy leaves you with a more upbeat feeling than say, a more intellectual suspense, drama or thriller.

verdict; easy happy games beats deep story, atmosphere, and gritty content.

to sum it up;

simple, familiar and cute beats out cutting edge, original and deep.

if you're still reading this instead of hitting the reply button to bash me, i just want to say that SMG is a great game. this isn't a bash at the game, because its a fun game and i love it. this is merely an observation that the game industry needs to recognize. the ps3 and 360 have all this power, and if a developer could harness it and produce something with similar characteristics to SMG, just imagine how satisfying such a game could be...

JohnGerstmann

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all. All that matters is the level of enjoyment you get by playing the game, no matter how the developers achieve it.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters and franchises which have been done to death. The only games on GameSpot's GOTY nominee list that can possibly match up to SMG in originality are the two PC games, WiC and Crysis.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!). Make a game that doesn't sound like a cheap, mass-manufactured franchise novel, THEN come back and b**** about story.

SMG is GOTY end of story.

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

mjarantilla

i couldn't disagree more. but thanks for your opinion.

[QUOTE="Vandalvideo"][QUOTE="JuarN18"]

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

JohnGerstmann

yo, you say consoles yo, then you use the pc as an example, yo.. which is it, yo..

and yo, i'd say games like bioshock, call of duty 4, gears of war, assassin's creed, uncharted, and gt5 are most definately pushing the technical envelope, yo. 720p or not, yo, they make wii games look like they belong on handhelds, yo.

Pffft have you played MArio Galaxy? Its on par with most 360/PC/PS3 games for eye candy, due to its art stule, smoothness and lack of jaggies, Halo 3 had bloody jaggies everywhere and wasnt even that good looking!

The difference between 1200p and 720p is huge difference on tax on hardware, you may think gears 360 loosk nice, but then you got Gears PC with 1200p which is so much more technological advanced it may not make the 360 version look like a handheld game but it surely speaks alot more of the "envelope".

[QUOTE="Vandalvideo"][QUOTE="JuarN18"]

so you call halo 3 and COD4 original :lol:, and "pushing the envelop" when neither runs in 720p

JohnGerstmann

yo, you say consoles yo, then you use the pc as an example, yo.. which is it, yo..

and yo, i'd say games like bioshock, call of duty 4, gears of war, assassin's creed, uncharted, and gt5 are most definately pushing the technical envelope, yo. 720p or not, yo, they make wii games look like they belong on handhelds, yo.

[QUOTE="crunchUK"]i'd like to see how SMG is unoriginal and shallow: have you ever long-jumped off a small planet on to another one and generally flown and tossed about the place-by-gravity-that-sort-of-thing? there's endless things to try with the gravity and all your different jumps.JohnGerstmann

yeah the game was called prey..

and i never called the game shallow.. take a deep breath and re-read what i wrote. i wasn't insulting the game.

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

JohnGerstmann

i couldn't disagree more. but thanks for your opinion.

Translation: "I don't have a solid platform to stand on, so I choose to ignore posts that actually tell it like it is rather than rebut them."

[QUOTE="JohnGerstmann"]

[QUOTE="crunchUK"]i'd like to see how SMG is unoriginal and shallow: have you ever long-jumped off a small planet on to another one and generally flown and tossed about the place-by-gravity-that-sort-of-thing? there's endless things to try with the gravity and all your different jumps.legend26

yeah the game was called prey..

and i never called the game shallow.. take a deep breath and re-read what i wrote. i wasn't insulting the game.

funny, i never said it didn't deserve goty. it really makes system wars an ugly place to be when people ignore 95 percent of what someone writes because they immediately saw 5 percent they disagreed with or misinterpreted.

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

JohnGerstmann

i couldn't disagree more. but thanks for your opinion.

This year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.

[QUOTE="JohnGerstmann"][QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

mjarantilla

i couldn't disagree more. but thanks for your opinion.

Translation: "I don't have a solid platform to stand on, so I choose to ignore posts that actually tell it like it is rather than rebut them."

[QUOTE="JohnGerstmann"][QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

mjarantilla

i couldn't disagree more. but thanks for your opinion.

Translation: "I don't have a solid platform to stand on, so I choose to ignore posts that actually tell it like it is rather than rebut them."

look, i diagree with your opinion, which is all it is. i thanked you for your input. is it really necessary for you to act like a child and add meaninless posts to my thread..

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

mjarantilla

Aren't we passed that already? Crysis has taken graphics to an all new level, in which the enviroment actually reacts to the player and the surroundings. Beideds SMG isn't original. Seriously, how can you say that SMG is original? Portal is original, Spore is original, Super Mario Galaxy is not.

Super Mario galaxy is an amazing game, but it reminds me way to much of Super Mario 64. Sure the level design is stunning and the game has a unique feeling to it. But it's still the same old Mario, which honestly I've grown very tired off...

SMg is the most original game out this year name one other game that did what mario galaxy did but better ?his year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.Gh0st_Of_0nyx

Or maybe it's better than all the other games released this year.SuperMario_46

[QUOTE="legend26"][QUOTE="JohnGerstmann"]

[QUOTE="crunchUK"]i'd like to see how SMG is unoriginal and shallow: have you ever long-jumped off a small planet on to another one and generally flown and tossed about the place-by-gravity-that-sort-of-thing? there's endless things to try with the gravity and all your different jumps.JohnGerstmann

yeah the game was called prey..

and i never called the game shallow.. take a deep breath and re-read what i wrote. i wasn't insulting the game.

funny, i never said it didn't deserve goty. it really makes system wars an ugly place to be when people ignore 95 percent of what someone writes because they immediately saw 5 percent they disagreed with or misinterpreted.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters and franchises which have been done to death. The only games on GameSpot's GOTY nominee list that can possibly match up to SMG in originality are the two PC games, WiC and Crysis.

mjarantilla

You know, the reason that Orange Box gets high ratings and is considered original has little to do with Half-Life 2 being in the package. Portal alone won a ton of the Gamespot special achievement awards, and is the reason that Orange Box is going to win Most Innovative Game in the reader's choice awards.

Super Mario Galaxy is a wonderful game, but the most original? Especially when you compare it to titles like World in Conflict and Portal that rewrite the rules for their respective genres, it isn't the most original title ever. The level design is completely brilliant, though, and that goes an enormous way towards making the game feel exciting and fresh all the way through.

While I don't know if I personally would give Galaxy GOTY, it definitely deserves it, but not because it's original.

[QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"] SMg is the most original game out this year name one other game that did what mario galaxy did but better ?his year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.Vandalvideo

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

1. Technology should never be a criteria in determining a game's quality. Technology is the means to an end, that's all.

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters.

3. "Happy" IS an atmosphere. And gritty content doesn't make a game good, it only makes a game fashionable. As for story, yeah right. I wouldn't give ANY game an award for "story," not even BioShock (HAH!).

_Pedro_

Aren't we passed that already? Crysis has taken graphics to an all new level, in which the enviroment actually reacts to the player and the surroundings. Beideds SMG isn't original. Seriously, how can you say that SMG is original? Portal is original, Spore is original, Super Mario Galaxy is not.

Super Mario galaxy is an amazing game, but it reminds me way to much of Super Mario 64. Sure the level design is stunning and the game has a unique feeling to it. But it's still the same old Mario, which honestly I've grown very tired off...

First, no, we're not past it. Technology should never, ever, ever be considered when judging a game's quality. Are Best Picture movies selected for their special effects? Are books awarded literary prizes for advanced printing techniques? Are composers awarded for having the most advanced recording studios? No, no, and no. The same should be true for games.

Second, I said that Super Mario Galaxy is the MOST original of the games nominated for GOTY. Portal is original, but it's only a pack-in. Spore is original, but it's UNRELEASED.

Oh, and the level design is the originality. Just like how the story is the originality in an RPG, and the action setpieces are the originality in an action or FPS game.

[QUOTE="Vandalvideo"][QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"] SMg is the most original game out this year name one other game that did what mario galaxy did but better ?his year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.Gh0st_Of_0nyx

So, in a nutshell, it doesn't deserve GOTY because:

It's on a console that isn't technically powerful

It's a sequel

It's not all dark

I'm sorry, but something's just wrong with this reasoning. >_>

mario won GOTY partly because it is a gamer's game without compromise. It seems like this new generation is becoming all about games that are trying to be movies. My god halo 3's terrible story and characters really showed video games in a NEGATIVE light. I just finished uncharted, which has many elements of a movie in it but ultimately flops compared to movies for many reasons. It just seems like video games trying to be movies are full of cliches and just awful scripts, and this even applies to more competantlyexecuted stories like metroid prime 3, mass effect, or bioshock. Assassin's creed just stumbles awkwardly all over the place.

Mario's whole rosaline plot is pushed to the side in those storybook sessions. The plot struggles as well, but also backs off before it can take focus away from the gameplay. I would bring up uncharted, which also has great gameplay, but the focus of the game is firmly in the cinematic sequences, which immediately puts it in a disadvantage because it is a video game and not a movie.

[QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"][QUOTE="Vandalvideo"][QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"] SMg is the most original game out this year name one other game that did what mario galaxy did but better ?his year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.Vandalvideo

Havnt you already admitted you hate Mario? doesnt that lean a byast from you? :P

[QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"][QUOTE="Vandalvideo"][QUOTE="Gh0st_Of_0nyx"] SMg is the most original game out this year name one other game that did what mario galaxy did but better ?his year was the year of the shooter with MP3,halo 3,COD4,Bioshock,crysis,UT3, Haze (but got delyaed) SMG did something different and original which is why it won.Vandalvideo

Havnt you already admitted you hate Mario? doesnt that lean a byast from you? :PPC360Wii

actually none of the games this year are original. i think ratchet (a platformer) is as good as mario galaxy. its better in some ways and is not in some ways. say what you will about bioshock but it wasnt a rehash of system shock. it took alot of elements from it but no more then galaxy took from the hundreds of mario games before that.

if this is based off of a completely original game then why not give GOTY to zach and wiki? who cares if only 44 people played it. most movie awards go to movies nobody sees or likes. why should games be different.

i think a GOTY should have legs. a long game. with technical advances. reasons to come back and play again. multiplayer is a big plus. bioshock doesnt have multiplayer but it done the most for the industry this year. all halo has is multiplayer and galaxy is just another platformer with gravity as the lead new "thing". i think the GOTY should be orange box or COD4. the only flaw these games have is COD4'S length. but i bet you will play it more then once. and as for the tech issues with PS3'S orange box or the lag in teaamm fortress on all system's.....it still is far supirior with tech and advancements then mario.

I played both and SMG takes the cake I mean dosent it get boring to you to shoot people now ? I played almost every shooter to come out this year (except crysis and UT3) and I can say its getting very stale :? But hey differnt strokes for differnent folks :P Gh0st_Of_0nyx

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

2. Sorry, but no. SMG was the most original game to be released this year. BioShock? HAH! Rehash of System Shock. Orange Box? HAH! Re-release of Half-Life 2. Halo 3, COD4? HAH! Linear corridor shooters and franchises which have been done to death. The only games on GameSpot's GOTY nominee list that can possibly match up to SMG in originality are the two PC games, WiC and Crysis.

sonicmj1

You know, the reason that Orange Box gets high ratings and is considered original has little to do with Half-Life 2 being in the package. Portal alone won a ton of the Gamespot special achievement awards, and is the reason that Orange Box is going to win Most Innovative Game in the reader's choice awards.

Super Mario Galaxy is a wonderful game, but the most original? Especially when you compare it to titles like World in Conflict and Portal that rewrite the rules for their respective genres, it isn't the most original title ever. The level design is completely brilliant, though, and that goes an enormous way towards making the game feel exciting and fresh all the way through.

While I don't know if I personally would give Galaxy GOTY, it definitely deserves it, but not because it's original.

The problem is that Portal is a two-hour-long pack-in. Its originality doesn't count for much of the overall package you get in Orange Box. If Portal had been released as a stand-alone, sure, it would be the most original game, but it also would not have been nominated for GOTY because it's just too short.

And you'll see that I mentioned WiC as one of the only games that would be called as original or more original than SMG.

BTW, the reason Orange Box would receive that award is because "most innovative game" measures innovation as an overall effort, but GotY measures it as a component. If you ask me, though, Galaxy's use of gravity and the arrangement of its planets to facilitate use of gravity is every bit as original as Portal's use of portals. I spent an hour in Galaxy just trying to launch myself into orbit around various stars and spaceships.