Runoff, 2002, Game of the Year

[Pajderman]

This is a difficult year that saddens me a lot. The game I played the most from games released this year is by far Warcraft 3. The campaign is awesome but the mods and community created content is what elevated this game to legendary status. So many spin off genres started or got popularized in the Warcraft 3 motor. But then Blizzard in a spiteful mode for loosing the Dota name effectively killed the mods in the update released with the train-wreck Warcraft 3 reforged. Any mods would automatically be Blizzard owned going forward. Old maps and mods disappeared. It is still possible to play on private servers using one of the older patches of the game I've heard, something I have yet to try out.
If it was not for the fact that I try to judge games based on my enjoyment of playing them today in their current state Warcraft 3 would be a top 10 game ever for me.

The Gamecube had probably its best year. The legend of Zelda the Wind Waker got scuffed at for its art direction but visiting it today the world is still a marvel of beauty and have aged considerable better visually then the brother Twilight Princess. Metroid Prime surprised the gamers and Nintendo alike bringing the Metroid franchise in to the 3D realm with affirmation and is one of the best looking games of the generation. Resident evil started to make the Gamecube its home pawing the way for my favorite game ever a few years down the line. Another survival horror game saw the light (or darkness) the same year. Eternal Darkness is still unmatched when it comes to third wall braking in games. Mario Sunshine my least favorite of the 3d Marios but not without its fans also released in 2002.

The first Kingdom Hearts made Donald and Goofy action heroes. A blend of multiple genres and spawning several loved Disney worlds it is my favorite in the series. Many consider the second game superior, but I felt that the streamlined direction and awful first few hours of the second game lost my interest. Exploring the settings with double jumps and gliding in the air was more fun for me even if it lacked a lot of polish.

My vote goes to other this time around. A fantastic game got released in Japan for the GBA. A series that had yet to see a western release. Only really played it recently with fan translations since it has not got an official release outside of Japan. I struggle to choose between my favorite game in the series between it and the first western release of Fire Emblem. But no matter which of them I like more, Fire Emblem: Fūin no Tsurugi, aka Fire Emblem the Binding Blade is my game of the year.