Games of the year 2006

[Skybird]

My christmas present: a harmless thread.

My opinion is simply that - my personal opinion. Anyone who wants can disagree with me.

I have bought five titles this year:

SBP-PE
Oblivion
GTR 2
Medieval 2
PES 6

My winner of the year comes as no surprise for anyone here: of course - how could it be any different - it is Steel Beasts Pro PE. In the technical and military sim departments it outclassed any other release this year, maybe with the exception of FSX (which I haven't tried). Practically over two thirds of all my gaming time I spend with this sim, both in playing and in the mission editor. It has made good ol' Skybird to sort out IL2 and F4, and almost completely stopped him from flying anything at all Future prospects are bright, this baby delivers twice and three times for the buck despite some minor shortcomings. If you rate yourself as a hardcore realism simmer, than you can't afford to miss this one, even if tanks are no special interest of yours (chances are this title will turn you into a believer). Plus: both their support and their community is of top class. So far we have had two major patches with fixings and plenty of added details (practically all real major things were sorted out with the first one, while there are less important details left to be fixed, and more aspects to be added), one hotfix, and one free major addon with new vehicles and top class manual, all the stuff released within the first 8 months - for the future, only the sky is the limit. Community activity levels reminds me of the Sub Command community days I have experienced here, at the SPB boards there is plenty of professionalism and passion to be seen.

The Wowh!-experience of the year was delivered by Oblivion. Currently I start to play it a second time, since I just ugraded to a new 7800GS grafix card - it seems I fried my last attempt, a Radeon x850 whose drivers also did not make me happy. What I see and experience with this game makes my gasping for air in disbelief, and make me feel happy and surprised like it was the case in the good ol' days of early computer gaming, when every idea in fact was a very new thing and to be seen for the very first time. This is no ordinary game - it is an experience. Think of it as travel memories that get transplanted directly into your brain, like in the movie "Total Recall" . Awesome, charming, and beautifully looking. One of the best computer games I have ever heared of in the last 20 years.

The dissappointment of the year was Medieval 2 in release state, and the first patch still leaves much to be wished. Plenty of bugs and flaws as well as a broken AI and bad balancing of statistics and issues on the strategic map put the superb graphics and some new ideas into relation for me on the first or second day. This game was released several months before it was finished, and that's how it played before the patch. Being a passionate player of Total War since Shogun, I lost interest with M2 very soon, then started again after the patch, but it does not spike more enthusiasm than Rome did. Or to be more open: in the very beginning I was pissed. As some of you remember I am very unforgiving about premarture game releases - and this title was as guilty of that as could be. Nothing more devastating I can say about a game than this: I got bored even from first day on, and put it on ice on the second. Let's hope that the patching will be supported by the producer as long as it is needed so that they can save what there is to be saved. Great potential - but much of it needlessly wasted so far. What can save it is that it is created to assist modders - and these guys are where I put my hope.

Two unbelievably solid performances were shown by GTR 2 and Pro Evolution Soccer 6.


GTR 2 came without Starforce (which made me shelving the first GTR), a slightly streamlined interface, seriously improved graphics, complex setup options, a polished AI that just is about how it should be and that I consider to be the best and most human-like I have ever seen in any racing sim (being believable even in the "human" driving errors it produces), very good sound, a superior cockpit experience, improved physics and an driving feeling that must be experienced in order to be believed. IMO it is far better than rFactor, and I like it more than Richard Burns Rally. All other racing games of higher age (including my beloved Nascar 2003 by Papyrus) it already had left behind before reaching the first turn. Plenty of mods, addon tracks, and my beloved contemporary Nordschleife in three layouts and very good visual presentation completed my happiness experience. Moddrs are active -. i have over a hundred tracks in my folder, I think, some of them the most beautiful tracks to be seen so far.I have sorted out all other racing sims I had on the shelf or on HD. This one is king on the hill, and it is second to none. the patch came as a surprise to me, I wasn't aware that there was something to be patched. Consequently, it just corrected some very few clipping problems with curbs, and some MP things that I do not use. A very mature release. That's how it must be done.

My last (and only) Pro Evolution Soccer was version 3, which made me curse too often about the many tackles and cards, and flaws in the AI. It was too frustrating if you did not invest three hours per day to train. Version 6 is extremely close to what I would like to see in a football sim in order to call it perfect. Speed is about right and not too fast, diversity and adjustability is great, the ingame events are so very close to reality, and realistic physics and body variables of the moving players outclasses any other sim of team sports, not only football, there is. For someone looking for a team sports simulation, this is the best pick he can choose. I thought of myself of being too old as if I ever could get interested to play team sport games again - but I find myself playing the PSE 6 leagues and tournaments regularly, always discovering something new, developing new team moves and tactics, and improve my gameplay, getting lost in total immersion - it'S like watching a match on TV, that good it is. I cannot understand what they always say when comparing the graphics of PES with those of FIFA. This sim looks great, and plays even better.

Due to hardware considerations before the new grafix board, so far I opted to step back from investing in Armed Assault and FSX, and I have no plans to buy a new system within at least the next two years if the current one does not brake down. Armed assault triggered very mixed feelings in the forums and is said to be bug-ridden, the German version comes with Securom - which also has caused troubles for many users complaing about interference from the copy protection, maybe things are not as worse as Starforce, but the trouble is there. Although these are said to have been cleaned by a quick patch, I will not invest money into it. I still run Flashpoint Enhanced Effects.

The classic of the year, a game that is very old (six years) but has seen a revival, is Virtual Pool 3, which I have played a lot this year again. It is fantastic, the mouse functioning as the lower end of the Queu (sp?) instead of controlling power via a slider on a scale - it handles very much like real pool. Plus it has polished grafics, superior handling, eight different tables, and two dozen pool variations and accurate physics. Everyone agrees that after six years - this is still the king in the hall - no other pool simulation even comes close to this one. Many say that it helped them to train pool and improve the real playing by that. I blindly believe that. Not on official sale anymore, but often to be found at Ebay. Try it! You will be very positively suprised - promised.

23rd - Merry Christmas to everyone!

[Torplexed]

Interesting. I just realized this is the first year since I've owned a computer in which I have not purchased any games. There is still some time left tho.

[Seeadler]

My personal games of the year are:

- X3:Reunion
Not released this year (2005) but the latest patch from this year kicks out the StarForce protection and I was able to reinstall and finally play this game on my SF-free gaming PC

- Oblivion + Knights of the Nine
- Battlefield:2142

big dissappointment of the year:

- Gothic 3

[Cpt. Stewker]

My games of the year (based upon how much time I have played them):

Oblivion - This is the game I have sunk the most time into. The first game that I have created mods for as well.

World of Wacraft - A close second. Played this since release and still do occasionally. Waiting on the expansion now. If you count last year as well, this game would account for more game play time than all other games I have played combined.

Silent Hunter III - A good find this one was.

Battlefield 2142 - Really got into this one for awhile. Me and my roomate both play so it's great to team up and kick some ass. Haven't played for a bit though. SH3 can be blamed for that.

Medieval 2 - A good strategy game, but over the years my interest in this genre has waned. C&C3 though does look good.

Falcon 4.0 - My new obsession.

Infinity: The Quest for Earth (Combat Prototype) - A space sim MMO that is currently being developed. A combat prototype is out as a free download which includes limited multiplayer. Been looking forward to this one and have contributed some to it (a ship model).

[Camaero]

Galactic Civilizations II - One hell of a game. I think it whoops CivIV any day of the week.

BF2142 - I have been really loving this game. Not my favorite kind of game, but good when you just want to shoot someone.

Company of Heroes - I love this damn game! Best RTS ever.

Flight Simulator X - Beautiful graphics, fun missions, flying, I could not ask for much more. Since I will be going for my private pilots license soon, this game will be a great tool.

Oblivion - This game is amazing. I don't know why, but after I beat it, I just have not had the desire to play it anymore. The replayability for me was a lot lower than Morrowind was. (Don't ask me why. Maybe SHIII and IL2 just take up too much of my free time.)

Those are my favorites (and not in any particular order) from 06.

My TRUE favorites that have lasted the test of time however, and are still my most played games are: IL2 (I just bought IL2 46 so maybe you could include that for 06) and SHIII.

I could play nothing but those two games and live happily ever after. (Until BoB & SHIV come out that is )

[Smaragdadler]

1. ArmA

end of list

[CCIP]

I think I'm almost with Torplexed on this one - though I did buy quite a few older games, not many new ones.

Of the new ones, only Distant Guns and First Eagles come to mind, both paid downloads from small developers. First Eagles is really an 'investment in potential' based on knowing the modding community involved with Third Wire games and how they will get that one to where it should be. Distant Guns: Russo-Japanese War 1904-1905 I would call a solid 8/10 game that is an absolute must for anyone interested in steel battleships (in 3D)! There were/are bugs, but the support (with patches now in the dozens) from the devs Jim Rose and Norm Koger has been fantastic. I hear the next in the series is already under development, I keep my fingers crossed for WWI as the setting. Definitely recommend that one (with a slight caution about awkward interface - I personally don't mind it).

[Takeda Shingen]

Originally Posted by Torplexed

Interesting. I just realized this is the first year since I've owned a computer in which I have not purchased any games. There is still some time left tho.

You know what? I didn't buy any games this year, either. I hadn't thought about it until I read your post. FSX interests me greatly, but I am waiting for Vista before going that route.

[Cpt. Stewker]

Originally Posted by Takeda Shingen

You know what? I didn't buy any games this year, either. I hadn't thought about it until I read your post. FSX interests me greatly, but I am waiting for Vista before going that route.

Speaking of vista/dx10 and FSX, have you seen before and after pics of how it is going to look? It made my jaw hit the floor. Seriously my jaw detached itself and landed on my carpet.

EDIT: Here it is. FSX in DX10 glory.

[Torplexed]

Breathtaking stuff. I wish the Norwegian fjords in SH3 looked like that. I'll probably need a new rig before I can tackle those kinda graphics.

[Kapitan_Phillips]

No way is that ingame. No. Way.













Is it?

[CCIP]

Certainly in line with the advertised shader capabilities of DX10 (which account for most of the cool stuff seen there)

I'm becoming increasingly 'luddite' with my games, meanwhile (like them basic-looking but good). Maybe in part because I'm bitter that I can never scratch up enough cash for a system that would be genuinely 'up to date'

[Torplexed]

I'm the same way. There are many pretty eye-catching games out there that are as shallow as spit on concrete. Hopefully, the developers are catching on.

[Cpt. Stewker]

Originally Posted by Kapitan_Phillips

No way is that ingame. No. Way.













Is it?

It isn't in the released game yet, they haven't released the DX10 update but that is what it is going to be looking like. We are on the cusp of a HUGE graphics improvement over the next few years with the advent of DirectX 10 and Vista. FSX is just the start

EDIT: Sorry for Derailing. CARRY ON!
EDIT2x: ARGHHH, I've got the bonnet avatar. Must... post... more.... to... get... rid... of... bonnet.

[August]

Eve still keeps me occupied.