ZombiePie's Christmas/End of the Year Blog

by zombiepie

Hey Giant Bomb how are we all doing today? I'm fine and I just decided that with the end of the year breathing down everyone's neck that I might as well do one more blog before the end of the year comes to a close. So without further ado I guess I should talk about what my Game of the Year is....I don't think anyone is gonna agree with my selection but hell I don't really care My Game of the Ye...

My Game of the Year

Costume Quest is My Game of the Year Now I know what you are thinking Costume Quest is good but not really game of the year material, and I would actually agree with you. But something completely unrelated to the game happened that pretty much made it my game of the year. It wasn't the game's undeniable charm that wooed me because there are other games that exuded charm more effectively than Costume Quest. The writing was good but other experiences this year felt more hilarious. Also it definitely wasn't the gameplay because I played numerous games that were more enjoyable than Costume Quest from a gameplay standpoint. SO why is Costume Quest my game of the year? Well something happened. While I was playing Costume Quest my younger sister (17) sat down with me and watched me play the game. She commentated and gave me advice on how to do better in the game...something she never does due to the fact that she doesn't play video games. We interacted with on another during the course of this game. When she laughed I laughed. When I got stuck she was able to help me out. It was fun, and by the time I had finished the game she asked me if she could have a go and I helped her beat her first boss in a video game. We saw this game through together twice and it didn't wear thin either time. It was memorable and a great time that I can honestly say I'll cherish. So to that end Costume Quest was the BEST GAME EXPERIENCE I had this entire year, and for that it's my Game of the Year. So on that note I would like to thank the men and women of Double Fine for making this fine game.

Other Game Stuff I Want to Talk About

Least Improved Sequel - Fable III -
Fable III, more than The Force Unleashed 2, is the least improved sequel of the year. Fun? Yes. Humorous? Yes. But is it an improvement of the franchise? No, in fact I would argue that it's a step in the wrong direction. Peter Molyneux is quickly becoming the James Cameron of the video game industry where his hubris and ideas are no longer adding to his products but are detracting from them. In fact I want to see what a Fable game without Peter Molyneux would be like. The interface is dumb. Don't be contrarian for the sake of being contrarian. The story is weak no doubt about it. Logan while a well acted character is one of the least interesting villains in an RPG I have ever experienced since Blue Dragon. As for the setting I think it's time for the Fable franchise to go backwards in time as opposed to going forward in time. Where the setting feels more steeped in the land of myth and legend and less in the modern era. Finally Brad is right about the second movement of Fable III in that it is the biggest cock tease I have experienced in a while. Points of no return…need to done right if they are going to be an accepted trope in video games.

My "Best" Game of the Year - Mass Effect 2 -
God is Mass Effect 2 a great game. Bioware knows how to start and end their games and I feel like that really needs to be commended. That and they really tightened up their game for the better. For me turning junk into Omni-gel was my biggest contrivance from the first Mass Effect 2 and the fact that I didn’t once have to worry about my inventory had me dancing around in circles. The writing is great and the story is one of the most effectively told in a video game. Also if you must know I’m a Tali guy, so take that Hamz! She’s my favorite character!

Game I Can Imagine Still Playing Five Years from Now - Civilization 5
I have a confession to make. I was still playing Civilization IV until Civilization V was released. And while I’ll admit I probably won’t be sinking in the same amount of time (it’s for the better) into Civ 5 as I did with Civ 4 I still feel like I’m still figuring out new ways to make my play style better. Sid Meier is without a doubt the best hardcore casual developer in the entire video game industry.

Other Non-Game Related Stuff I Want to Talk About

I finally have overtaken mracoon in wiki points. I have The Lost World: Jurassic Park to thank. If you must know I'm still taking that adding credits to game wikis seriously. Also I have no motivation to make anymore significant edits to wiki pages.
I saw Tron: Legacy. I think it is a better and more enjoyable movie than Avatar in 3D or 2D.
I saw Black Swan. Psychosexual is an effective word to use to describe Black Swan. Not to spoil anything, but there's a lot of masturbation in this movie...Also the hang nail scene made me go into the fetal position.
12 Days of Whiskey is one of the most enjoyable and creative quest sets the engineers have come up with yet! Great work guys and I would love to see more quests formatted like this.
So the Spotlight is doing alright.
Thank you all for being patient during the last spam attack. Also many thanks to the people that helped out in reporting all of the spam that we had on the site.
The best thing about getting video games as a present? Being able to know you got some just from the shape of the giftwrap. Looks like I'm getting two this year which is one more than usual.
More Mod Steam game giveaways are coming soon if you wanted to know. Just keep an eye for any threads the week after Christmas if you want a shot at winning stuff!
Thanks to Costume Quest I have 2 S-ranks now! Yes I bought Grubbins on Ice and I enjoyed every minute of it.

So that's about it Giant Bomb! I wish you all a safe and enjoyable Break/Holidays! Stay safe, have fun and keep it clean Giant Bomb.

With Love and Hugs,
ZombiePie