1996, Game of the Year

[The_Liquid_Laser]

The 1996 Game of the Year is Super Mario 64.
The runner up is Pokemon Red/Green/Blue/Yellow.
The master thread for all of these contests can be found here.

Please comment on what you believe to be the Game of the Year for 1996.  You might even want to discuss/argue with other posters first before you vote.  Or maybe you just want to argue with yourself first?  Whatever.  Please vote for Game of the Year for 1996 and post why.  Without further ado, here is the list of games.

 

Sid Meier’s Civilization II (PC)
This second entry into the Civilization series was even more popular than the first, selling 3 million copies total.  It was later ported to Mac and Playstation.

 

Quake (PC/Linux)
Quake was the next big FPS from id Software.  Unlike Doom, it was considered “true 3D”, while Doom is sometimes called “2.5D” for using some 2D elements.  Quake went on to sell over 1.4 million units by the end of 1997 and it was ported to several other platforms including N64 and Saturn.

Pokemon Red/Green/Blue/Yellow (Game Boy)
The Game Boy was outdated technology when it launched back in 1989, so by 1996 it was more than ready to be retired.  Or was it?  When this first Pokemon game released it revitalized the Game Boy platform effectively giving it a lifespan lasting 2 generations, a feat not repeated by any other major console.  This first Gameboy entry in the Pokemon series, across all SKU’s, has gone on to sell over 46 million copies making it even more popular than Tetris on the Game Boy with it’s measly 35 million copies.

 

Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (SNES)
Squaresoft and Nintendo had gotten so close, that Nintendo had them make a RPG using their beloved Mario characters.  And since these years represent Squaresoft at their best, they made what is often considered the best Mario RPG of all time.  Super Mario RPG sold over 2.1 million copies on the SNES and has a highly anticipated remake coming out later this year.

Crash Bandicoot (Playstation)
The small development team at Naughty Dog decided to expand their studio and make this platformer for the Playstation.  It would go on to be Sony’s mascot during the Playstation years.  Crash Bandicoot would sell over 6.8 million copies on the Playstation.

 

Resident Evil (Playstation/PC)
Capcom creates the definitive name in survival horror with Resident Evil.  Survive in a mansion while being chased by zombies and running out of ammo.  Resident Evil would sell over 5 million copies on the Playstation alone, while also getting ported to the PC the same year and Saturn in the following year.

 

Tomb Raider (Saturn/PC/Playstation)
Combine guns, platforming, interesting level design and some polygonal T&A, and you’ve got a winning combination.  Tomb Raider would sell over 7.1 million copies on the Playstation alone, making it even more popular of a title than the one with Sony’s mascot.

 

Super Mario 64 (N64)
While Playstation was making games with 3D graphics, this first 3D Mario title would show off how to use a dynamic camera and an analogue stick in a 3D action game.  It would become the best-selling title on the N64 with over 11.9 million copies sold.

 

Mario Kart 64 (N64)
Mario Kart would go 3D the same year that Mario platforming went 3D.  Mario Kart was the second-best selling title on the N64 with over 9.8 million copies sold.

 

Other (please specify)
If you think another game deserves to be "Game of the Year" other than one of the 9 I listed above, then please vote “Other” and say your game in the comments.  If the "Other" category takes at least 2nd place and no other game gets at least 50% of the vote, then I will do a runoff vote including the most mentioned game(s) from the comments.

The winner of this vote will be decided Thursday, Oct 12 at 11:59 EST.

 

Last edited by The_Liquid_Laser - on 13 October 2023