XboxOZ360′s Top 12 Games ‘Overall’ of 2008 – OXCGN.

by GrathiusXR & Shadow Wave

©2008 Arthur Kotsopoulos – Ben Cadwallader

We look at the top 12 games from several platforms in order to determine which are the Top 12 Overall Games for 2008, and you might just be surprised at the ‘overall’ winner for 2008 – coming from an Xbox site. OXCGN (aka XboxOZ360-gamer) has always maintained that the staff are “gamers” – not fanbois. Most have more than 2 consoles and platforms to play games on and simply enjoy ‘gaming’ period.

So what better way to round off the year than to take a look at what we believe to be the top 12 ‘overall’ games of 2008. Some of you may agree, disagree or simply sit on the fence, but each game has its merits and each one has been judged on those qualities as well as several other factors which help it stand ahead of the rest.

Please, sit back, grab a drink, and take your time to ‘read through’ the Top 12 Overall Games of 2008, and feel free to let us know of your thoughts in the comments section.  (Ed note: any abusive language will be dealt with with a ban – sorry. We’re not here to be abused, nor are our readers, so some civility please.)

We have several of the Xbox and Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Arcade games reviewed on the site, so you can check those out from the links in each game. Please enjoy.

• 12 – FIFA09 (All major consoles and PC)

One of the best sports games in years and one of the best representations of the ‘beautiful game’, FIFA09 improves on every aspect where FIFA08 fell short.

With a multitude of online and offline game modes available there are countless hours of fun to be had with FIFA09. Faster gameplay and custom tactics to suit your playing style, Adidas Live Season that forever changes the game each week and so much more.

It’s a sport game that can be easily picked up and played with no skill or knowledge required, and while Konami struggle with PES to define it on the next-gen consoles, EA are only improving in every area to please the fans.

It’s earned the last spot on the list because apart from all the shooters and RPG games it is one of the few sports games that manages to stands out against the big name titles. It’s a shame that despite it being a sports game it doesn’t get many nominations for GOTY.

• Check out our full review here.

• 11 – Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core (PSP)

This is the definitive Playstation Portable game of 2008. Crisis Core provides players with a story driven prequel to the great classic Playstation 1 game, Final Fantasy 7, which is sure to make many fans happy.

Instead of playing as Cloud, you play as the lesser, but important character from the original game, Zack. Crisis Core tells Zack’s story of working for the Shinra Corporation before the events of Final Fantasy 7.

Crisis Core doesn’t use a turn based battle system, but has become more of an action game with RPG elements. Zack can run around the area and attack when he wishes.  Due to the games long length, the combat can become a bit tiresome towards the end, as pressing the X button performs most of the combat, but what drives this game is its deep and revealing story.

For the PSP system the graphics, sound quality and presentation is top notch, and never becomes mundane. Fans of the series will love to revisit classic areas that look very different now on the PSP system. The game even has full CGI cut scenes that comes close to rivalling the quality of the Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children movie.

We gave Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core the number 11 spot, as it is a game that fans or people new to the genre can pick up and understand.  It’s a very impressive game that will captivate players until the credits roll.  Hopefully this sequel means we are one step closer to getting the dreamed about Final Fantasy 7 remake. If you own a PSP, do yourself a favour and pick up this brilliant title.

• Check out the IGN.au review here.

• 10 – Resistance 2 (PS3)

Resistance 2 sits amongst the upper tier of PS3 flagship titles alongside LittleBigPlanet, MGS4, and the soon to be released Killzone 2. It is one of the few exceptional first person shooters that push the PS3 in terms of game play and content.

Boasting a staggering 60-player multiplayer to suit anyone’s needs and a separate single player co-op experience, which runs parallel to the single player, Resistance 2 is a complete package.

10th spot is what we feel Resistance 2 deserves, as it’s not the greatest example of gaming in any one area but provides an overall package that delivers. Big scale battles, a great variety of weapons and enemies and plenty of Chimera to shoot at, Resistance 2 is an FPS game that any fan of the genre should have a go at as it is one of the few good shooter games that stands out as fun, challenging and worthy of experiencing.

• Check out the Metacritic review here.

• 9 – Lost Odyssey (Xbox 360)

It’s a JRPG game that knows how to entertain. It was a tale of evil, power, love, friendship, family and most of all, life. Mistwalker provided a game that encompasses everything you could ask for in the JRPG genre.

It stands out as a great accomplishment with stunning visuals, a huge world to explore, and with a great variety of enemies, characters that you love to hate and hate to love and so much more. Playing through the game as Kaim, an immortal that has lived for hundreds of years, has allowed Mistwlalker to include a plethora of side stories for almost everything.

Kaim interacts with NPC’s throughout his journey, with these interactions unlocking various dream sequences that become the vehicle for deeper character development and story exposition. Lost Odyssey does not disappoint, with an engrossing tale that spans 4 discs and stretches beyond 50 hours.

Lost Odyssey sits at 9th spot, as it wasn’t a title that many could just pick up and play, and required a serious time investment, which is something most gamers are short on.

• Read our full review here.

• 8 – Super Smash Brothers Brawl (Wii)

The long awaited third game in the Smash Brothers franchise was finally released on the Wii after many delays this year by Nintendo, and is sure to provide avid gamers with hours of multiplayer madness that will surely help make parties and small social gatherings more lively.

While Brawl’s single player may eventually become boring and tiresome, the real experience this game delivers is in its multiplayer. Its simple control scheme makes the game very easy for almost anyone to pick up and play.  There are heaps of characters to choose from, with many famous Nintendo personalities making an appearance, as well as some iconic characters from other series.

4 player battles are great fun and full of laughter if you are playing with a group of friends, and as each character bows out of the fight, it will eventually lead to an intense 2 player duel, where anything can happen.

We gave Super Smash Brothers Brawl the number 8 spot, because of how long the multiplayer will surely live. This is a game that will be frequently put into the Nintendo Wii  for years to come. The social aspect of the title places it amongst the other great multiplayer games of 2008.

• Checkout the IGN.au review here.

• 7 – Crysis Warhead (PC)

Crysis Warhead is a fantastic PC game for its low price and value. While not a true sequel to the original Crysis game, Warhead gives players a chance to view the story from a different perspective and ‘fill in the gaps’ by playing this time as the character Psycho. You play through events occurring on the other side of the island, adding a unique viewpoint to the action. Warhead has been better optimised and performs more consistently on any type of computer.

Crysis Warhead sets the bar for graphical quality just above the original game, and provides jaw-dropping visuals for the player to lose himself or herself in. The players gets to rock out in the nanosuit and then are able to take out their enemies in almost whatever style they wish by altering the enhancements the suit provides. Speed, strength, or invisibility, can be improved, which dramatically changes the style of play.

Also bundled with Crysis Warhead is a fun multiplayer game called Crysis Wars, where players can fight each other in Death Match style multiplayer matches, and where each player is in their own nano suit. It becomes very entertaining to play against an enemy that has a completely different play style to you by exploiting a different function of the nanosuit.

We gave Crysis Warhead the number 7 spot because for the lower price point of $49.95 AUD, this is a great game to put your PC through its paces; its game play is very diverse and should provide great entertainment for gamers that love shooters.

• Check out our full review here.

• 6 – Far Cry 2 (Xbox 360/ PS3/ PC)

Ubisoft Montreal knows how to deliver a top-tier experience and they have not failed with Far Cry 2. Thrusting the player into an open African environment and giving them the tools they need to complete their objective, Far Cry 2 creates many great unscripted and unexpected moments.

Take the stealth approach if you desire, using the night as cover and attacking with Molotov’s, a pistol and a sniper rifle. Alternatively take the Rambo approach with an AK47, some grenades and a grenade launcher as a secondary weapon. The terrain is huge and expansive, offering 50 square kilometres to explore.

Sure the travel is a bit tedious at times but this open-world is sure to immerse you in the game. Watch the sun set, make a bush fire and watch the wind do the rest, plus so much more.  Then there is the map editor which is absolutely amazing.  You can create your own world then go play in it.

It gets 6th place for the fact that it is your world to explore at any time and do anything you want in. There was no forcing you down a particular path; the game was just one big non-linear playground to have fun in.

• Check out our full review here.

• 5 – Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360)

The sequel to what is undoubtedly one of the most popular Xbox 360 titles to date, Gears of War 2 raises the bar for the genre in almost every aspect. Epic vistas to look at, more variety of enemies, new game play features and a more fleshed out storyline are just some of the features of Gears of War 2.

Whether it’s playing the campaign on your own or with a friend, gathering a party of 5 to go forth and battle against others on Xbox Live, enjoying the company of fellow gamers in the 50 waves of Horde mode, or playing with intelligent Bots, Gears of War 2 has something to offer both Single Player and Multiplayer fans alike. Gears of War 2 promised a lot and delivered on almost everything, but what’s a great title without its flaws hey?

We gave it the 5th spot mainly because it is still flawed with certain glitches and issues (mainly regarding Multiplayer) but offers an experience and a single player campaign that is just pure awesome. Whether it’s gunning down Reavers with a turret or battling Brumaks with mortar weapons, Gears of War 2 has delivered.

• Check out our full review here.

• 4 – Fallout 3 (Xbox 360/ PC/PS3)

Bethedsa’s first Fallout game, they have had to change a lot from the classic game play of the previous titles to be more appropriate for the current generation.  Using the impressive Oblivion engine, Bethedsa have created a very strong game, where players can spend hours wandering around the post-apocalyptic wasteland.

Another very strong story has been written for Fallout 3, where players break out of the safe Vault 101, in search of their father (Voice acting by Liam Neeson) and stumble into the radiation filled wasteland.  Once the player is out of the Vault, you can do as you wish,  travel wherever you want, do quests in whatever order you wish, and make your own decisions which have varying consequences. Fallout 3 is a game that lasts as long as the player wants, which can last up to 100+ hours if you wish.

Players will fight many mutated animals and other dangerous enemies in their travels, where they can choose to fight in third person view, or first person. The new VATS combat system has also been added, where players can pause the game and target specific areas of an enemy (such as an arm), and watch as it flies off in a gory mess after the gun has been fired – and it never gets old!

You can learn a great deal about the game’s history through many quests that are found throughout the wasteland.

We gave Fallout 3 the Number 4 spot because of its rich, diverse environment that players can lose themselves in for a very long time.

• Check out our full review here.

• 3 – Dead Space (Xbox 360/PC/ PS3)

The iconic EA over the years has produced a plethora of games, though many have been heavily criticised as being disappointing and downright abysmal. Yet this year EA have stepped up their game and have come forth to produce titles of quality.

Dead Space is a one of those titles, with the use of narrow dark corridors, graphic dismemberment and excellent audio.  It  created a genuinely spine tingling sensation of claustrophobia and helplessness. It was hard to find a fault with this title, which featured a storyline that had twists and turns right up until the final cut scene.

It’s a title best played at night with the lights turned off and the sound full blast, as ammo is scarce, enemies can be heard scratching at the walls and character movement is solid. Using a 3rd person view and incorporating the HUD directly on the player’s torso it created a more immersive experience that firmly wedges itself amongst the other great titles of the year.

We gave it 3rd place because it absorbed you into the game like no other. It fleshed out the storyline with twists till the very end and kept you guessing.

• Check out our full review here.

• 2 – Braid: (Xbox Live Arcade)

Jonathan Blow’s Braid is the most unique and influential game to be released for a very long time, a game that takes the side scrolling, platforming genre to a new level of creativity. Whether it’s the game play, story, graphics or music, all aspects of this game are completely different from all other XBLA releases making it a great game that stands out from the rest.

You play as Tim and as you travel through different worlds searching for your ‘princess’, you discover more and more of the very deep and complex well-written story of the protagonist and his memories.  Instead of general side scrolling like Mario, Braid has implemented more of a puzzle theme into the game, where you manipulate different aspects of time to collect (ironically) puzzle pieces, which unlock other parts of his memory to get him closer to finding the princess.

The gorgeous watercolour style graphics glisten from your television set. The rich colours and unique design are inspiring and make Braid even more interesting to play through. The style of each world’s design is accompanied by suitable music specifically chosen by Jonathan Blow. It is very fitting and does a very good job at setting the theme of each world.

We felt Braid deserves the number 2 spot in our Game of the Year listing as it oozes class and creativity. We hope that Jonathan Blow’s problems with the Xbox Live Arcade Service are resolved, or if not, we see a Braid sequel on any platform. But whatever the case, we can’t wait for it.

• Check out our full review here.

• 1 – MGS4 (PS3)

Hideo Kojima’s latest and final story of the Solid Snake saga marks the end of an era in gaming. Each instalment of the Metal Gear Solid series has amazed us with its high cinematic presentation and game play. Whether gamers experienced the whole series, or just played Metal Gear Solid 4, the game attracted whoever experienced it into its deep and enticing story.

The game has near movie quality cut scenes that will set the standard for future titles, with brilliant voice acting and animations.  These cut scenes (whilst quite lengthy), were always a joy to watch and thankfully Metal Gear Solid 4 was given the ability to pause these cinematics.

Even if the player prefers game play to the gorgeous cut scenes, the game play does not disappoint. Using Snake’s Octocamo stealth suit, the player can watch as Snake blends into the background to hide from foes and traverse the various areas much more safely.

For the Rambos amongst us we can run in guns blazing thanks to the much more diverse amount of weapons the player has at our disposal. Once the game has been beaten there are heaps of incentives to replaying the single player portion, such as getting the illusive stealth camouflage item.

We give Metal Gear Solid 4 first place for Game of the Year; it’s truly a gaming benchmark and an amazing story to be engrossed in. Even in a year full of Xbox 360 quality games, this PS3 game still rises above.

• Check out our full review here.

©2008 Arthur Kotsopoulos – Ben Cadwallader

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