Games of the Year, 1990-2014

[Veknoid_Outcast]

RolStoppable said:

Veknoid_Outcast said:

1997

GoldenEye 007

Developer: Rare

Release date: August 25, 1997

GoldenEye 007 ranks among games like Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake as one of the more important shooters ever made. Upon its arrival on N64 in 1997, GoldenEye proved two important things: one, that first-person shooters could survive, even thrive, on home consoles; and two, that they need not all be corridor shooters where players run from point A to point B, blasting everything in sight. In GoldenEye, stealth and strategy matter. Apart from its incredible and challenging single-player mode, which has tons of replay value, GoldenEye features a legendary split-screen multiplayer mode with customizable weapon sets and expertly-designed maps.

2001

Halo: Combat Evolved

Developer: Bungie 

Release date: November 15, 2001

There are only so many truly revolutionary titles in the history of video games. One such game is Halo: Combat Evolved. What did it achieve? Well, by providing the nascent Xbox with a "killer app," it secured Microsoft's spot in the gaming world. It also introduced features, control schemes, and themes that have, for better or for worse, infiltrated almost every mainstream first-person shooter since. And, lastly, it shifted first-person shooters away from computers and onto home consoles. So it's a hugely influential title, but it's also an amazingly great game, with superior graphics, a standout soundtrack, a well-written story, outstanding level design, and perfect gameplay.

You should be ashamed of yourself for buying into Microsoft's kool-aid, especially because there is proof that you should know better.

But there's a difference between proving the viability of shooters on home consoles (GoldenEye) and the vast migration of shooters to home consoles (post-Halo). GoldenEye did it first, yes, but Halo was much more impactful.