We’ve played the games, we’ve made our cases for our nominees, and we’ve now sat and deliberated and voted on our top game of 2012. And we can now reveal that our winner for Game of the Year 2012 is…

Dishonored!!

Darrell

IMDABES! Well, Dishonored is. It’s so good I ended that sentence with a preposition—which is in actuality perfectly acceptable. And anyone who thinks otherwise is a namby-pamby who can’t appreciate a damn fine action game when it’s rubbed in their face in the form of a GOTY award.

I’m having a hard time deciding what to say here that I haven’t already said. Dishonored is the coming together of so many things I can appreciate in a video game, and more importantly, in a new IP. Anyone who has been gaming for any length of time should smile upon those rare new worlds that excel in what they set out to do; they’re a respite from the seemingly endless franchise iterations and roman numerals.

Dishonored gave me something to appreciate in what would have otherwise been a humdrum and disappointing year in gaming. There were other noteworthy games out there, but nothing that I would find myself looking back on quite so fondly.

(Screw Bethesda for pricing PC games at $60. The tramp turnips.)

Dean B

I think this is an apt winner, despite the incorrectly spelt name. I’ve only given it a small spin but what I played was a pretty neat game. I was certainly a fan of the style of the game, slight hints of the paintery style of Team Fortress 2. Darrells prior write up were certainly gushing of his opinion of the game and it’s methods of implementing morality and that’s something I look forward to when I dive into the game fully. Another great thing is to see a new AAA IP gain such favour and success near the end of a generation, in a world of Pokémons and Mass Effects.

Dean V

As Dean said above, I can think of no more deserving new IP in 2012 than Dishonored to win. I have not played the game myself, but in a year of sequels, threequels, and revisiting old IPs, a brand new, well-done IP like Dishonored came as a breath of fresh air. On top of that, a return to the stealth genre, the creation of a dynamic and creative setting of Dunwall, and a large amount of player freedom and choice makes Dishonored more than deserving of best game of 2012 for creativity alone. It may not have been my pick, but Dishonored is more than deserving.

 

Press X or Die Public Vote Winner 2012

Mass Effect 3

Gregg

I’ll admit I was a little surprised by this one, even if it was my own choice. I’m actually quite glad to see it hadn’t been written off by everyone, as the internet furore would have you believe. Though, it’s clear that there’s no doubting the wide and lasting appeal of the Mass Effect franchise. Writers, artists, musicians and even science-lovers, young and old, male and female, from all across the world are drawn to the series. And the extra attention given to the combat, especially in the multiplayer, has even spawned a community of hardcore players discussing builds, tactics and balance suggestions among other things. It even has its own lingo.

So, a big congratulations to BioWare. It may not have been the final instalment that everyone was hoping for, but it was a pioneering series and still a damn good game.