Dan's End of 2014 Awards - Part Two

Welcome back to the second part of my End of 2014 Awards. If you missed the first part of my own take on the traditional Game of the Year format, you can find it here – it outlines the motives behind these awards and also justifies the format, so if you’re a bit perplexed as to why games from the late nineties are appearing on this list, you’ll find the answers there.

Today I’ll be presenting another pair of games with awards in commemoration of the lasting memories they’ve left with me this year. What with it being Christmas Day and all, I’ve spent most of my time with family and haven’t left myself with much of a window in which to write up today’s entry. For that reason, it’s probably going to be a little bit shorter than yesterday’s. Here goes.

Ten Years Gone Award for Game I Should Have Finished a Decade Ago

Final Fantasy VIII (PS1 – Squaresoft – 1999)

I can vividly remember the day on which I received my copy of Final Fantasy VIII. It was February 28^th 2001. Two months previously I’d spent some of my Christmas money on a second-hand copy of Final Fantasy VII, starting a love affair with the franchise that’s lasted almost a decade and a half at this point. My mother, seeing how much I was enjoying my first foray into the world of Squaresoft RPGs, surprised me with a copy of the series’ eighth instalment for my eleventh birthday, further fuelling my passion for all things Final Fantasy.

In retrospect, Final Fantasy VIII was probably the game that kick-started my incredible ‘Pile of Shame’. When I received it, I’d just reached the start of the second disc in Final Fantasy VII. Not long after that came the European release of Final Fantasy IX, which I snapped up with my birthday money just a few days later. In the space of just over two months, I’d gone from owning no lengthy games to owning three, and not being anywhere near finishing any of them. The Pile of Shame was thus born, and it seems to have done nothing but steadily grow ever since.

Under such circumstances, it’s understandable that one game might fall by the wayside, and Final Fantasy VIII was unfortunate enough to be that game. For whatever reason, its more realistic presentation and cumbersome Junction system didn’t grab me in the same way that VII’s Materia or IX’s throw-back mechanics did. What isn’t understandable is that it would take me almost fifteen years to see Final Fantasy VIII through to its ending cinematic. That’s right – up until this year, I’d never made it beyond the start of the game’s third disc. For someone who considers themselves a bona fide Final Fantasy fan, that’s just downright unforgivable.

Completing Final Fantasy VIII back in March of this year has definitely laid some personal demons to rest. In some ways I’m glad I waited this long, because I think I was able to appreciate it more as a result. While a lot of the interpersonal drama didn’t move me very much, I loved the main story arc (even If it did jump right off the deep end in its final act), and there’s no denying that Rinoa is a pretty fantastic character. The Junction system felt a lot more intuitive to my adult mind than it ever did to twelve-year-old Dan, meaning I was able to get a lot more out of it from a gameplay standpoint too. It’s still the black sheep of the PS1 FF family in my eyes, but it would be unfair to expect it to live up to my nostalgic love of VII, or the sheer brilliance of IX. I’m just glad I’ve finally seen the game through to its conclusion and experienced everything it has to offer. It was an experience that was definitely worth the wait.

Oh Beautiful! Award for Best HD Remaster

Ratchet & Clank (PS3 – Insomniac Games – 2002/2012)

Here’s an award I very nearly gave to God of War II yesterday. There’s no denying that the God of War HD collection looks great, thanks to its detailed character models, slick animation and epic sense of scale, all up-res’d and prettified to take advantage of the PlayStation 3’s extra horsepower. Having said that, it’s still somewhat held back by virtue of being a game with a realistic art style originally developed for the PlayStation 2. The limitations of the original hardware are still visible underneath the improved textures and stable frame rate, meaning that while the God of War HD collection looks great, it's still recognisable as a PS2 game.

Compare this with the cartoonish Ratchet & Clank series, and it’s easy to see which games have better stood the test of time from an artistic standpoint. Ratchet & Clank looked great when it first debuted on the PlayStation 2 back in 2002 thanks to its vibrant colour palette and distinctive art style. Because it works within the constraints of the console rather than striving to push the boundaries with a limited attempt at realism, I think Insomniac Games’ PS2 debut has visually aged much better than SCE Santa Monica’s masterpiece. The remastered HD version from 2012’s Ratchet & Clank Trilogy for the PS3 takes that already timeless source material and applies just the right amount of make-up. The textures are sharper, the frame rate is silky smooth, and the colours seem to pop even more than they did in the original game. It’s ultimately this which led to Ratchet snatching the award out from under Kratos’ angry Spartan nose.

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That’s going to do it for today’s awards. Be sure to come back tomorrow when I’ll be dishing out another pair of gongs to games that defined my 2014 in the third part of this series. I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Christmas Day. Take care, and I’ll see you around.

Dan

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Currently playing - Pokémon Omega Ruby (3DS)