Game(s) of the Year 2008

What is there to say about the games of 2008 that already hasn't been said? Well, nothing probably. Especially coming from the skewed view of a 360 gamer. Well, mostly anyway. PC gaming has felt pretty stale to me in the past few years and I haven't felt the need to pick up a PS3. I don't need a Blu-Ray player, nor does Little Big Planet necessitate a $600+ price tag. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a PS3 basher, I can't justify it as a worthy purchase for me personally. So my perspective will be limited to my personal experience, not the limitless supply of games at a large game site. Yet for some strange reason, I still find myself compelled to chime in on the subject.

Of all the games released in 2008, how do you pick just one? I don't know if I even can. Let's see what I found memorable. Early in the year I got down on some Lost Odyssey. I'm usually not a huge JRPG guy, but it is an itch that needs scratched once in a while. One that had not been scratched since the SNES days. I thought it was pretty, dug the story, enjoyed the combat and thought the grinding was kept to a minimum. Still not GOTY material in my opinion, but memorable nonetheless.

Grand Theft Auto IV. Yes it's most certainly in the running. Great story. One of the most memorable all decade, let alone year. Video game plots suck, this one didn't, and I still enjoy the hell out of it.

Ninja Gaiden II still sticks with me. I always want to play it, but I am afraid to. It feels so wrong to love a game so much that I completely suck at. This game kicks my ass. I completely understand I suck and don't blame the game. That fact alone makes this game jump up my list.

Summer came, and so did Yoda to my 360 via Soulcalibur IV. I am 30 years old. I was 15 years old when Street Fighter II was huge. I grew up playing every fighter that came out. Including shitty shareware PC robot fighters, and ridiculously misconceived hunks of poo on the 64. I was bred on fighters. I love them. And from the first moment I played this series on Dreamcast along with DOA, I knew it was one of the special ones. SCIV did not disappoint. The deep character customization, online play and addictive combat will keep me coming back for a long time.

From September on, it's quite a blur. Rock Band 2, Fallout 3, Guitar Hero World Tour, Fable II, Prince of Persia, not to mention I was late to the party with Burnout Paradise and Dark Sector. I also have no desire to play Gears of War 2. I just don't dig it, though understand why people do. I guess if I had to pick one game of the year I couldn't. So I'll break it down into categories.

I'm in the mood to screw around: GTA IV honorable mentions: Fallout 3, Fable II

I want to kick some ass: Ninja Gaiden II honorable mention: Soulcalibur IV

Just drive man: Burnout Paradise honorable mention: GTA IV

I wanna rock!: Rock Band 2 honorable mention: Guitar Hero World Tour

Oooh, pretty: Prince of Persia honorable mentions: Fable II, Soulcalibur IV

Okay, fine. Here you go. are you happy. Your making me do what I didn't want to do. Pick one game. So here you go. it is.... Fallout 3. I see myself coming back to that the most in the future, especially with DLC. It had crazy missions, stories and in-jokes, I'll never forget it. This is also coming from an Oblivion junkie, so take it for what it's worth.