First off 2008 was the best year for gaming ever and I've been doing this for a long time. Never have I seen so many triple A titles released in such a short period, and they were all great games. Looking ahead, 2009 won't even compare, but that's okay because I'll still be playing all these great games into 2010 and beyond.
Best Games
The three things I love in video games are graphics, story and opened ended gameplay (in a linear environment). I'll just say a word about all three. Graphics, enough said. Story, I play video games for the story more than anything else and I believe there is a potential to tell stories through video games better than movies or books. You become a part of the action, struggling along with the protagonist literally. Also the shear amount of time you'll spend playing with them as opposed to a simple two hours movie. Traditionally it was done JRPG style with cutscenes and then gameplay, then cutscene then gameplay. But this year I've seen some amazing games combine story and gameplay seamlessly so that you're always engaged with the story and the world. This is the future of story telling and it's incredible. Gameplay, what I mean by this is games like Bioshock and MGS4 where you have a relatively linear path to follow through the game but multiple ways to go about completing the task or defeating each enemy. If the game is too open ended my OCD kicks in and I start getting overwhelmed trying to do everything (like Fallout). A game needs some structure but so long as the gameplay itself is complex, engaging and varied otherwise the game is boring.
3) GTA 4 - I originally gave the game a 9 out of 10 due to the god awful third person controls. A game reviewer once said that Niko controlled like a stoke victim and that's an understatement. I passed it to 100% after putting in a couple solid months over the summer. Then once trophies were released I picked it back up and I switched my score to a 9.5. I had forgotten just how incredible Liberty City was. Never has there been such a magnificent, living, breathing city created in a video game. The level of detail and depth, size and personality is outstanding. Niko is one of the best developed and sympathetic video game characters ever.
I feel like I have to justify not having Fallout on my list. Fallout may be better than GTA in many aspects but for me the story breaks the tie. In Fallout you travel in complete silence through desert (I realize that's part of the lore of the game but bear with me) with no feedback or interaction. Then you reach a "person" who pops up like a menu, gives you an impersonal description then pops away. The gameplay then continues devoid of any story until the next "person" pops up. Etc. In GTA the story never stops and you never stop caring about the world or the character it's created. You'll constantly getting phone calls, the radio feedback, the dialogue of Niko to himself and the dialogue and reaction the public that's constantly present. That's why I like GTA 4 more than any of the previous installments. Take your jet packs and silly customizable faceless figures and give me a living character like Niko any day.
Also the graphics and driving aspects are so damn good. The multiplayer is unique and such a blast.
2) Bioshock - I've been waiting for it's PS3 release since it first came out. What a game. I've never played a game that so seamlessly intregrated story and game play. You simply couldn't break the two apart. There is so much variety and strategy in how you can approach each situation. The environment they've created in Rapture is so engrossing you can't pull yourself away. There isn't one thing you can put your finger on specifically but so many elements come together in just such a way to create magic, like a film that moves and deeply effects you. There are so many great moments that still feel spontaneous, the best being Sander Cohen's bunny rush scene after he feels you've insulted his masterpiece. I don't know how Bioshock 2 will live up to or recreate these ethereal elements that made it so good.
1) Metal Gear Solid 4 - The best game I've ever played. Graphics are jaw dropping. The first time it went from cutscene to gameplay without losing any detail I pooped a little. I realize that it had some stop and go elements to the story that I just praised Bioshock and GTA for avoiding. However the story is just so powerful (not as good as MGS2 but I don't think many people understood 2 properly). The level of detail and work Kojima put into this game is astounding. The gameplay is as good as it gets, so much so that it's ruined all other games for me. The options you're given to tackle a single situation are endless. BBE was extremely difficult but the most rewarding video game challenge I've completed yet. Everything in this game is just so perfect, I can't say enough good things.
Worst Games
3) Soul Caliber 4 - I rarely trade games but Soul Caliber became only the third game I've ever sold after less than a week. Take this with a grain of salt because I'm not a fan of fighting games. For me to enjoy them they need to have relatively simple controls (or at least levels of complexity where it can still be rewarding if you haven't learned all the moves yet), characters I recognize and over the top craziness moves. Soul Caliber lacked all of these elements although making your own character was neat. And wtf was with the weird "story" mode. Actually I probably should have put Novastrike in this spot, that game is horrible.
2) Pixel Junk Eden - I've calmed down since I got my PS3 and my 50 inch TV but I still get pretty enraged when playing video games. I once bare knuckle punched the family computer screen off the desk out of shear frustration at a Raymond game. I think I had smashed six controllers by the time my PS2 was retired.
Eden is one of the most frustrating games you'll ever play but the visuals and music are so chill you don't realize how angry you're getting until you explode. It's like every element is perfectly designed to be as frustrating as possible. "Oh look it took me literally 12 minutes to climb this vine and then I double pressed x instead of holding it down (why the hell couldn't they map silk jump and normal jump to two buttons!!!) and down I go. Now I have to slowly and methodically move my way back up with the annoying timer constantly pressing me. But it's all good because the music is awesome." Repeat, repeat, repeat until the last sentence is changed to sobbing uncontrollably on the floor smashing your controller into your skull. And then there's garden 8... oh garden 8.
1) The Wii - I know it's not a game but I had to put it in. I realized that I did not buy a single Wii game this year. Not even rented or borrowed one. Now I didn't do this on purpose to prove a point or hate on the Wii. It just happened that a year passed with me spending hundreds and hundreds on video games but absolutely nothing on the Wii. Not a single game interested me or was worth the price tag. Frankly I'm a little embarrassed I bought into the hype and grabbed one on the first day they were released. I'm still happy to see Nitendo winning the generation and most of the people who are buying Wiis are not gamers so it's success is independent of the PS3. I've said before that it's a category onto it's own now, there is PC gaming, handheld gaming, console gaming and then the Wii.
The only thing that bother me is all these half assed games that are being mass produced for the Wii. When games are evolving and there is so much artistry, effort and creativity put into titles, the Wii's entire library is a huge step backwards.