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Best of 2008: Preliminaries

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In a year when most businesses tried to figure out how to stay alive, the video game industry thrived thanks to two things: great games, and you. So give yourself a pat on the back; your thirst for single-handedly saving the world with magic, guns, and fast thumbs has kept the gaming industry going strong when all else seems to be going wrong.

Then again, maybe the studios that actually made the games deserve some credit. OK…maybe a lot of credit. With blockbuster sequels to legendary series, groundbreaking new concepts, and expertly wrought 0s and 1s, the game industry has produced an amazing array of outstanding games in all areas in a changing marketplace. Where in the past there were primarily first-person shooters and console role-playing games, there are now music and puzzle games aplenty, along with great games in many other genres for all major platforms. And soon it will be their time to shine. GameSpot's Best of 2008 awards, debuting later this month, will call out the brightest stars of the year (as well as some of the not-so-bright games and trends of the year).

But for now, get yourself ready with the 2008 preliminaries. Of all the games that GameSpot has reviewed so far this year, 10 games have a tremendous amount of momentum going into the awards. Which do you think will make the best showing? Cast your vote and come back on December 19, when our awards ceremony will kick off.

In your opinion, which of the following games has the most momentum going into the 2008 awards?

Best of 2008 Image Gallery

Sure, there were 10 huge games this year that may do well in the awards…but they aren't the only games out this year. Before GameSpot's awards ceremony begins, let's take a moment to reflect on 2008, an excellent year for the action adventure, platformer, music, first-person shooter, fighting, strategy, and role-playing genres (among others). Join us for a look back in pictorial form at some of the year's best games on all platforms: PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, Sony PSP, and Nintendo DS. And of course, please be sure to come back on December 19 for the kickoff of GameSpot's 2008 awards to find out which of 2008's bumper crop of fantastic games will win the best-in-show awards for their categories.

1805 Comments

  • caocca

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:09 pm PT

    Telling a great history is, I believe, as important as a implementing a great gameplay. MGS4 tells you a drama and the way they tell the history is perfect. it's not... like a slow game is just that it wants to go further an tell you the great story that's behind it and that's what makes a game great not just fighting pointlessly and shooting like a crazy old man.

  • Danz0

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:08 pm PT

    i swear bioshock came out augest 2007 :/ and if they mean console version its still the same game!!!!!

  • doraemon1987

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:07 pm PT

    i think thats a lot of peoples problem, they look at mgs4 and dont take its prequals into any consideration. it is one of if not the best running series of games, its soo well designed and the detail is amazing, for any1 who played and liked mgs1 that was on the ps1 and followed the series will look at this list of games after playing mgs4 and think.....loool no comparison.

    i consider the mgs series to be quite mature..so younger people will prob just see mgs as a shooter or something shallow. and it really isnt.

  • Incubus420

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:07 pm PT

    If MGS 4 isn't considered the best game of 2008 then im pretty sure this website is flawed. The only game I could possibly think would beat it would be GTA4, which was not as good as MGS4. What is really going to be the most interesting thing to watch is who gets honorable mentions. I also think that 2009 is going to be alot better for Games then 2008 was. Uncharted 2, Killzone 2, and Street Fighter 4 are games that are better then 70% of the games on the list already. As I always say the game industry is looking bright in these dark times.

  • Zerotrousers

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:04 pm PT

    IMHO, NHL09 and Braid should be replaced with GoW2 and Left 4 Dead

    Anyway: 1: Fallout 3. 2: MGS4. 3: LBP. 4: Deadspace. 5: GTA4. 6: Super smash brothers brawl. 7: Resistance 2. 8: Bioshock (Although it's my second favourite game ever, it's sorta old news, so a big no-no for this year's list.). 9: Braid. 10: NHL 09.

  • Danz0

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 1:01 pm PT

    y mgs4 because it concludes what has to be the best series ever made its got my vote! if u havent followed the series u may not understand y its soo good and deserves to win! but i agree i can't understand y gears 2 isnt on there!!!

  • murano28

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:59 pm PT

    Even tho few people don't love metal gear solid 4. I think their rating won't go down 8 out 10. Because when you vote the game there are options like graphics and sound, mgs would get 10 from me for those options. But will lose points for tilt (fun) and gameplay. But would still end up around 8 or something. Plus most people who gave 10's are metal gear fans. Uncharted in the other hand got fare ratings from almost all people who played the game. (gamespot excluded lol). Uncharted was way fun, and i'm sure most people fell in love with that game.

  • murano28

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:52 pm PT

    I really want to be honest here. I mean why is mgs 4 is so hyped.. Yes graphics and visuals are great. It got a nice story. But Overall it has some bad points too. For example long cutscenes make some people sleepy. (specially if you are older). Less gameplay and more cutscenes make the game less fun (You won't wanna play the game everyday more likely once a week may be). And I don't think the game is that creative at all. Today there are games much more creative than msg 4. So some people sound like they never played great games in their lives. I have all the top games. And i must say dead space, bioshock, call of duty 4 - 5, gta 4 and many more. These games i listed are much more enjoyable and playable for me than mgs 4. Plus how come god of war is not included. Why would you add nhl 09. If you add nhl 09 why not fifa 09. That's not fare is it. And I understand when people say why there is no gears of war 2 even tho i'm not a xbox fan. I mean they could create a better list.

  • jblhblhjvljhgtc

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:51 pm PT

    gamespot sucks ign rules GOW2 must be on the top ten metal gear game of the year .

  • kratospete

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:48 pm PT

    mgs4 was the best dead space in 2nd and bioshock 3rd

  • doraemon1987

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:47 pm PT

    cmon this is a no brainer, its mgs4....that game has soo much depth, concept, style..man im gonna stfu cos i could go on forever....mgs4 handsdown..rest arnt even close tbh.

  • quickchord

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:36 pm PT

    Well So much for giving GTA IV a 10... lol!

  • caocca

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:28 pm PT

    I say kick NHL09 and put GOW 2 to put some action in this list.

  • feleas

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:27 pm PT

    NHL09 has 1% (141 currently) lmao that's epic.

  • caocca

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:26 pm PT

    Well well, looks like nothing has change... MGS4 is the best this year... so far this statistics hasn's change since the day they open the voting. I voted for fallout but I have to recognize that MGS4 is a very good game, grat story, graphics, sound, gameplay. I really can't believe gamespot put NHL09 in this list WTFFFFFFFFFFF.

  • feleas

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:22 pm PT

    Best games of 2008? Say wha? Where's GoW2 (Which did NOT come out last year to whoever the tool who said that); L4D, which is pretty damn high in the ratings for its replay capabilities and versus mode; and what is this Braid game? I heard NOTHING about it, nor any advertisement. Why, there wasn't even any articles or anything on the front page all year about this Braid game.

  • hoyt414

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:19 pm PT

    i don't even own an xbox, i only own a ps3, but this is a pathetic GOTY list.

  • _Pinbot_

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:16 pm PT

    Wow that list is a joke. The question is "In your opinion, which of the following games has the most momentum going into the 2008 awards?" yet they leave out one of the most discussed and debated games Gears of War 2. GS has really dropped the ball on this one.

  • pelimies91

    Posted Dec 5, 2008 12:11 pm PT

    That suprised me that resistanse 2 had get only 2% of votes. Still I think that it has lot of potential.

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