The Game Awards 2015 took place in Los Angeles last night, and while Nintendo didn't choose to show off any new games or make any groundbreaking announcements, the company did come away with three (and not two, as we previously reported) awards.
Super Mario Maker was awarded Best Family Game, while Splatoon bagged Best Multiplayer and Best Shooter - quite an achievement when you consider how that particular genre is dominated by titles like Call of Duty, Rocket League, Destiny and Star Wars Battlefront.
Sadly, Nintendo missed out on the Developer of the Year award, which instead went to Witcher 3 studio CD Projekt Red.
The other big Nintendo-related segment was an emotional tribute to the late Satoru Iwata, who passed away earlier this year. Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime took to the stage to deliver a passionate and moving speech about his former colleague and friend.
Here's the full list of winners:
GAME OF THE YEAR
Bloodborne (From Software/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Fallout 4 (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks)
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (Kojima Productions/Konami)
Super Mario Maker (Nintendo EAD Group No. 4/Nintendo)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt Red/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
DEVELOPER OF THE YEAR
Bethesda Game Studios
CD Projekt Red
From Software
Kojima Productions
Nintendo
BEST INDEPENDENT GAME
Axiom Verge (Tom Happ)
Her Story (Sam Barlow)
Ori and the Blind Forest (Moon Studios/Microsoft Studios)
Rocket League (Psyonix)
Undertale (tobyfox)
BEST MOBILE/HANDHELD GAME
Downwell (Moppin/Devolver Digital)
Fallout Shelter (Bethesda Game Studios|Behaviour Interactive/Bethesda Softworks)
Lara Croft Go (Square Enix Montreal/Square Enix)
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (Capcom)
Pac-Man 256 (Hipster Whale/Bandai Namco Entertainment)
BEST NARRATIVE
Her Story (Sam Barlow)
Life is Strange (Dontnod Entertainment/Square Enix)
Tales From the Borderlands (Telltale Games)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt Red/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Until Dawn (Supermassive Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
BEST ART DIRECTION
Batman: Arkham Knight (Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Bloodborne (From Software/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (Kojima Productions/Konami)
Ori and the Blind Forest (Moon Studios/Microsoft Studios)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt Red/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
BEST SCORE/SOUNDTRACK
Fallout 4 (Inon Zur/Bethesda Game Studios)
Halo 5: Guardians (Kazuma Jinnouchi/343 Industries)
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (Ludvig Forssell, Justin Burnett, Daniel James/Kojima Productions)
Ori and the Blind Forest (Gareth Coker/Moon Studios)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (Marcin Przybyłowicz, Mikolai Stroinski, Percival/CD Projekt Red)
BEST PERFORMANCE
Ashly Burch as Chloe Price (Life is Strange)
Camilla Luddington as Lara Croft (Rise of the Tomb Raider)
Doug Cockle as Geralt (The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt)
Mark Hamill as The Joker (Batman: Arkham Knight)
Viva Seifert (Her Story)
GAMES FOR CHANGE
Cibele (Nina Freeman)
Her Story (Sam Barlow)
Life is Strange (Dontnod Entertainment/Square Enix)
Sunset (Tale of Tales)
Undertale (tobyfox)
BEST SHOOTER
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Destiny: The Taken King (Bungie/Activision)
Halo 5: Guardians (343 Industries/Microsoft Studios)
Splatoon (Nintendo EAD Group No. 2/Nintendo)
Star Wars Battlefront (EA DICE/Electronic Arts)
BEST ACTION/ADVENTURE GAME
Assassin's Creed Syndicate (Ubisoft Quebec/Ubisoft)
Batman: Arkham Knight (Rocksteady Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain (Kojima Productions/Konami)
Ori and the Blind Forest (Moon Studios/Microsoft Studios)
Rise of the Tomb Raider (Crystal Dynamics/Microsoft Studios)
BEST ROLE-PLAYING GAME
Bloodborne (From Software/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Fallout 4 (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda Softworks)
Pillars of Eternity (Obsidian Entertainment/Paradox Interactive)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (CD Projekt Red/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Undertale (tobyfox)
BEST FIGHTING GAME
Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- (Arc System Works/Aksys Games)
Mortal Kombat X (NetherRealm Studios/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Rise of Incarnates (Bandai Namco Entertainment)
Rising Thunder (Radiant Entertainment)
BEST FAMILY GAME
Disney Infinity 3.0 (Avalanche Software/Disney Interactive)
Lego Dimensions (TT Games/Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment)
Skylanders SuperChargers (Vicarious Visions|Beenox/Activision)
Splatoon (Nintendo EAD Group No. 2/Nintendo)
Super Mario Maker (Nintendo EAD Group No. 4/Nintendo)
BEST SPORTS/RACING GAME
FIFA 16 (EA Canada/Electronic Arts)
Forza Motorsport 6 (Turn 10 Studios/Microsoft Studios)
NBA 2K16 (Visual Concepts/2K Sports)
Pro Evolution Soccer 2016 (PES Productions/Konami)
Rocket League (Psyonix)
BEST MULTIPLAYER
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Destiny: The Taken King (Bungie/Activision)
Halo 5: Guardians (343 Industries/Microsoft Studios)
Rocket League (Psyonix)
Splatoon (Nintendo EAD Group No. 2/Nintendo)
MOST ANTICIPATED GAME
Horizon Zero Dawn (Guerrilla Games/Sony Computer Entertaiment)
No Man's Sky (Hello Games)
Quantum Break (Remedy Entertainment/Microsoft Studios)
The Last Guardian (GenDesign/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Uncharted 4: A Thief's End (Naughty Dog/Sony Computer Entertainment)
ESPORTS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Kenny "KennyS" Schrub (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive/Team EnVyUs)
Lee "Faker" Sang-hyeok (League of Legends/SK Telecom T1)
Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive/Fnatic)
Peter "ppd" Dager (Dota 2/Evil Geniuses)
Syed Sumail "Suma1L" Hassan (Dota 2/Evil Geniuses)
ESPORTS TEAM OF THE YEAR
Evil Geniuses
Fnatic
Optic Gaming
SK Telecom T1
Team SoloMid
ESPORTS GAME OF THE YEAR
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (Sledgehammer Games/Activision)
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (Valve)
Dota 2 (Valve)
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (Blizzard Entertainment)
League of Legends (Riot Games)
TRENDING GAMER
Total Biscuit
Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles
Greg Miller
Markiplier
PewDiePie
BEST FAN CREATION
GTA 5 – Targets (Hoodoo Operator)
Real GTA (Corridor Digital)
Portal Stories: Mel (Prism Studios)
Super Mario Maker e-Reader Levels (Baddboy78 / theycallmeshaky)
Twitch Plays Dark Souls (Twitch Community)
Comments 78
Pearl jam, man of the hour!!!😂
Excellent tribute
Did it not get best shooter? Thought I read that on Nintendo Everything.
I don't think Splatoon deserved best multiplayer there solely because of the map rotation (sadly still at 2 every 4 hours).
@Grumblevolcano
While I disagree that it shouldn't be best multiplayer, they really should increase the maps to 3 per rotation especially now that we have so many.
You just had to remind me of the Iwata speech. Way to make me tear up again!
^Same here.
And that pic of mr. Iwata and mr. Miyamoto with ds is pure gold.
I do think Splatoon deserves best multiplayer just because how innovative it is. Also, CD Projekt RED absolutely deserves best developer this year. They not only made an outstanding game but also were great with post-launch support. Witcher 3 could never run on Wii U, but maybe they will do their next game also on NX?
Spatoon getting best multiplayer is 100% grade-A all-natural top-quality farm-fresh gluten-free BS. BO3 and Halo 5 had massively better multiplayer experiences. And MH4U being beaten by that Laura Croft game is some BS too. Now that I think about it I really shouldn't care from the same awards that gave I like using bad words Dragon Age Inquisition a game of the year.
@Damo Splatoon also won Best Shooter.I never watched the show but I think this was awarded after it finished? Best Multiplayer and Best Shooter is like you say,quite an achievement for little Splatoon! My personal game of the year/ decade/ millennium!
Quality over quantity. Nintendo's mantra. Well deserved, Big N.
Weren't the winners like decided by the fans?
Edit: Strike that. It was voted on by a group of Jury and Advisors
@OorWullie We've updated the post to reflect this, thanks!
I am sorry for starting the whole Pikmin thing in the live chat. People who watched the awards on this site will get it.
OMG! Has no-one else picked up on this?
Go to 5:00 in the Iwata tribute video...
Reggie wrote:
...Pudding Smiles
...Cooking Mama 6: Pudding Smiles CONFIRMED!!!1!
Wait, Splatoon beat COD: Blops 3, Halo 5, Destiny, AND Star Wars for "Best Shooter"?! That's just... so awesome! Also, what a fantastic speech by Reggie. It brought a tear to my eye. No really, it did.
@Mr_Diabolical language dude, pretty sure this is a family friendly site, and it shouldn't affect you that much what a group of people think of some games. I agree with you about the latter two, DAI was boring for me and the 3DS has been criminally overlooked by a lot of critics/pundits in favour of the more popular mobile scene. Your opinion of Splatoon isn't as clear-cut for others as you seem convinced it is, some of us are bored silly of head shots and kill streaks, Splatoon was a fantastic and fresh take on multiplayer shooters, and more than deserves its awardS in my opinion, and obviously the people deciding this at the Game Awards.
Well done Splatoon - an amazing game that deserves everything it gets.
And for Nintendo to enter the bulging and saturated shooter genre and come up with something fresh and original and win awards, is outstanding. Also balances out their poor releases and mistakes this year.
The reason Splatoon won is likely because it felt like a breath of fresh air in what can be considered an otherwise sautrated Genre
Splatoon winning best shooter was a bit unexpected. I was expecting it to be one of the other nominees because...well...that's to be expected. So this was a pleasant surprise!
Off topic I know but Witcher 3 for best RPG?
Highest profile? Maybe. But the best? Nah.
Also, where was the big Nintendo reveal we were sort of promised? I've looked over everything and can't see a single Nintendo reveal or new footage. Bah!
Third and finally: I think Splatoon is worthy of best multiplayer: it's a breath of fresh air, it doesn't conform to the stale, slate grey COD crap that is the modern shooter, the whole family can have a go, it looks amazing, it doesn't require membership costs to take it online either. So yeah. Well done Splatoon!
Nice to see Splatoon get some recognition; it should've been nominated for game of the year as well.
@TheAceofMystery I'm pretty sure that was the highlight of the show for me, well after Splaton won best multiplayer early on.
I really can't get behind SMM for best family game. no matter how well it may have been received, It's a single player game. I'd really like to know how many people who voted for these awards have played these games with their families. We haven't played Lego Dimensions yet, and my wife isn't a big fan of DI's look or the toy box aspect, and Skylanders may be getting a bit long in the tooth, but at least they all offer couch c-op. "Couch co-op" should be the #1 requirement for "family game".
Whichever game is being played the most at noon Christmas day is the real family game winner. Could be Mario Tennis on Wii U. Or AC:aF. It won't be SMM.
I will say there is a feeling of drought for good 4-player family games this year. Which is the reason Mario Tennis and amiibo Festival may get more sales than their reviews would suggest. It's really too bad Lego Dimensions couldn't handle 4 player as it lets you use 6 figures and 1 vehicle at a time. Disney Infinity does do 4 player online, but only 2 at home.
Guuhhhh, the feels!!
What a nice tribute to Mr. Iwata. Please understand, I'll miss him.
@Splatburst Or at least make the rotations more frequent. I shouldn't have to schedule when I play just to try the new maps.
@TheAceofMystery Ruined the live chat with Pikmin. (I don't forgive you.)
@rjejr: That was your highlight? Let me give you some highlights then.
@ThomasBW84: Lied to us, and apologists like @AceDefective were defending him while he made excuses.
@Crimzonlogic: Pretended to be a loli vampire, and I could confirm that @Captain_Toad is a vampire but not a loli. (He has bad memory though. He can't even remember talking in prehistoric times)
@Nicolai: and I were surprised at another teenage woman.
@JoBro2513: Was disappointed when Cranky Kong was announced(literally cried) and @platoonleaderg: passed out before the show ended because he was adamant about trying to stay up until 5:00 A:M even though I told him he should go to sleep.
@Soren: Kept telling everyone to get off the stage, and I tried to talk to him about it but it ended with us not being cool with eachother anymore. @EverythingAmiibo: admitted he angsts over being less pretty than ijustine. He also complained about all her makeup, not realizing that his lack of makeup is why he probably can't match her looks...or maybe he does which only makes it more sad.
This of course was all before @TheAceofMystery made everything about Pikmin. Then again he told me where I should look to find the shot of a woman lifting her shirt during the awards show.(right after psychonauts 2 reveal?) So if it's there I'll forgive him. It's around 40 minutes in. I'm checking now.
EDIT: Well that was a rip-off. It's at 1:08:03 , but technically she did lift it so I guess I forgive him.
Like last year, I'm impressed with how much love Nintendo has been given. I mean 2 out of the 2 major games released by Nintendo won in 3 categories. Sort of madness. I'm not even sure I agree with it as much as I like seeing the recognition.
This awards show is in an interesting place. It brings some legitimacy to the game industry. Plenty of genuine passion was on display along with all the adverts and Keifer giving a little taste of his perspective on the fans was a nice touch. It has "grown up" from last year a bit, but last year was more engaging for me. It's a tough problem getting core gamers to appreciate stodgy awards shows while trying to be taken seriously. I think it's about as good as we could hope at this point.
@rjejr Well, I know that we've had multiple times where family of all ages gathered around to see what crazy stage my kids have made and listened to their goofy sound effects and laughed.
As for DI 3.0, only two in a home play at once, but the Star Wars theme and the favorite Pixar/Disney characters get everyone to check it out rather than ignore it.
Also, I think "family" game means that it's appropriate for families to play. Often it will be one parent and a kid just playing together, right? As with all awards categories get blurry anyway.
I'll miss you Iwata-San.....
@aaronsullivan Perfect timing, you were just the man I was looking for.
After my disillusionment w/ the "family game" category I went in search of some actual family games - meaning more than 1 player, though I completely understand your "safe for all ages" definition - and came across these 2. Your kids are probably too young for these but I was wondering if you had any experience with either.
http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B004U5R5BI?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SDJGCRA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_2&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
Oh, and I'm considering this on topic b/c they are family games and the name of the awards show was The Game Awards, not Videogame Awards. It's tenuous I'll admit.
Hey @Captain_Gonru any thoughts? I know you've played this stuff with your AC friends.
@Damo
You forgot to bold the winner for Action/Adventure
Nice to have Splatoon winning. That little gem of a game deserves it.
I don't expect that video game awards will ever reach Emmy level, but this was a fun view! I pretty much only tuned in to see if there would be an Iwata tribute and I was very glad to see Reggie talk about it.
I'm probably late to the party, but I'm PUMPED for Splatoon now. My girlfriend and I snagged a copy at Walmart for $25 on Black Friday but she's making me wait until Christmas to play. So I know what I'll be doing in January.
Does anyone know of good streamers/youtubers to watch for Splatoon?
@ggnorekthx Try @EverythingAmiibo: I'm not sure if he still does Splatoon but I think he does. It's nice because he posts here.
@Fee @ggnorekthx I've got some pretty sweet top 10 Splatoon weapons videos But yeah, as of late, Splatoon hasn't really featured simply because of the time that those vids take to make, it's mostly news atm. Heading to the US on the 10th as well so will only be a vid per week for a month.
@Fee You're right. I admit it, I'm becoming a drag so I can be as beautiful as ijustine! lol, I was meaning of course I'm jealous of her success, but I really don't like the white straight hair and over makeup-ed type of girl, I genuinely find it a wee bit gross.
Edit: (dyed white hair!! Not white skin, not making a racist comment here xD)
What the heck... am I reading this right?
A game other than Monster Hunter won best handheld game?
Seriously, what is wrong with these people? They haven't even played the games they're voting on. How could they? If they had, there would be no other choice but MH4U. I've been playing games a long time, and it ranks up there as one of my faves of all time, possibly THE fave of all time. I seriously doubt Lara Croft Go can top it. If it can, why do I even bother playing 3DS? I can just play games BETTER than the best of all time right on my phone.
Thanks, watching one of your Splatfests now @EverythingAmiibo
The skill level in your games is exactly what I was looking for, the first few people I watched were playing for basically the first time and it was really obvious lol.
Congratulations Splat👀n! Well deserved...grotesque bloody dismemberment and foul talking teens are not necessary to achieve greatness as a shooter and multiplayer game! Thank you Nintendo for proving this through this most outstanding and extremely fun masterpiece.
Yup...some mobile game defeated MH4U....ugh.
Nice see Splatoon win. The game really deserves.
Great success for Nintendo. Best Shooter is amazing. And being nominated for Developer of the Year is hugely impressive too. Reggie's speech was beautiful. Way to go Nintendo, you nailed it.
@TheAceofMystery So much for spamming the Game Awards article with Pikmin.
I've seen a lot of hatred over Splatoon winning both Best Shooter and Best Mutiplayer. That is always a good thing to see, it means the awards didn't just go for what the idiots wanted.
The Game Awards for the most part was pretty meh and boring, Reggie's speech about Iwata was great though.
@Mr_Diabolical You should think of the game awards like the Oscars. Very few of your choices will win an award. While I do agree Halo 5 is jead and shoulders above the rest in terms of best multiplayer shooter, I still think Splatoon deserves praise for its unique and (rare for the genre) family friendly approach to shooters. At the end of the day the awards are normally kust an excuse to make the big wigs more money and gain a good reputation. I mean, how many "stars" were being interviewed asking for an opinion on Star Wars Battlefront and not one of them saying its an overpriced sparse content ridden and unfair shooter like it is? Still, much like the oscars you get occasional moments of brilliance and common sense. E.G. The Satoru Iwata tribute and Geoff Keighley exposing Konami for the swines they are over the whole Hideo Kojima saga.
How is it possible that Splatoon wasn't nominated for Best Score/OST? Jeez... not everything has to be flamboyant to be great.
For one game, CD Projekt Red received 6 nominations, winning 3 of them. Nothing unfortunate here. Splatoon is a pretty good game and a fairly distinctive shooter. Mario Maker is the company's own spin on something fan's have been doing for years (the multiple engines are the real selling point). Another good, almost great game. But the Witcher 3 is just loaded with content, the story is deeply engaging, the audio work is sublime and it's accessible, no matter how many other people want to play it. CDPR acknowledged the bugs and killed themselves to not only fix the game but to make it better in the process. Congrats to Nintendo's titles, but the better game won.
@Megumi I saw this too, wow! Probably the biggest thing that got screwed up in my opinion.
I don't care for the show in general or the show it replaced (The Spike Video Game Awards). I usually watch it solely for the world premiers. I actually went to the first Spike TV one when it was in Vegas.
Mobile games are usually voted on for their accessibility, uniqueness, controls and art direction. Nothing against MH4U, but it's a pretty tired franchise that doesn't appeal to alot of Western gamers. It's incredibly niche, can be overly complicated and requires time to play out its quests. Pick up and play doesn't exactly describe the game to me. Neither does the 4 make it seem terribly unique.
Unexpected but well-deserved honours for Splatoon. It really is a very enjoyable game that shows Nintendo still "gets it".
@SahashraLA
Oh sorry, I misread the title "Best Mobile/Handheld Game". I thought that meant the best, but as it turns out; I guess it actually meant most unique game experience and most accessible.
I actually disagree with your evaluation of the game. I hated the previous Monster Hunter games for some of the reasons you pointed out but managed to jump right into MH4U. I also really like the pick-up and play experience that MH4U offers on the 3DS. I'm very busy but I'm able to jump into a hunt and be finished in 15-30 minutes. I'm also confused why a number in the name automatically makes it not unique. Witcher 3 managed to win game of the year and Metal Gear 5 did okay as well.
Can't believe Monster Hunter lost to Lara Croft Go ahha wth
But very happy about Splatoon's wins, much deserved for how defiantly different it is to all the other shooters today.
Wait so how good is this "Lara Croft Go"?
I am not surprised that Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate didn't win the award, but it was definitely worthy of it, being the amazing game it is!
It might not be as easily accessible but still huge disappointment there -_-
Splatoon was some good news I didn't expect though. Good for Nintendo. Love that shooter, hate the occasional lag >.<
@TheAceofMystery It's okay dude, it was actually pretty fun
@Soren We still have the oppurtunity, Pikmin Emblem: Path of Nectar
@Fee Disappointment City has gotten you yet again
Question: Does Xenoblade X not have a chance at getting nominated for anything? It came out obviously right after the awards, and it can't get nominated next year right? It seems a shame for it not to have been included in the best RPGs category.
And it seems like these shows should take place in the early part of the next year when all of that year's games have had time on the market.
Oh, also, Splatoon won out over Halo 5, CoD, Battlefront, and Destiny. Splatoon. Beat Halo 5, CoD, Battlefront, and Destiny.
THE IRONY IS DELECTABLE.
@JaxonH "They haven't even played the games they're voting on." Well while I'm inclined to agree with you about a mobile game winning over MH4U...it doesn't sound like you've played Lara Croft Go either. However, let's not forget this is the show that, last year, gave this same award to some card game or another rather than Smash 3DS...Seriously, I'm pretty sure no card game is better than Smash 3DS! (Intentional hypocrisy )
@Giygas_95
"You haven't played Lara Croft Go either"
No, I haven't. And don't pretend I have. However, I've been playing games for 30 years. Thousands of games. And MH4U is at the top of that list. Now, I don't know how good this Lara Croft game is but I do know that games as good as MH4U only come around once a decade. The odds of some mobile game besting that? Beyond astronomical.
Furthermore, I HAVE played Rise of the Tomb Raider. And I would undoubtably rate MH4U higher (as much as I love RotTR- it's utterly fantastic). Now, if even the main AAA console Lara Croft game can't match MH4U, why would I stand to reason it's cheap, mobile game counterpart could?
Is it POSSIBLE? Sure, statistically speaking. It's possible. But the odds are so low I'd think you'd have a better chance winning the lotto and getting struck by lightning the same day, than for Lara Croft Go to be a better game than MH4U
@JaxonH Don't get the idea that I completely disagree with you either. I think it's like someone above said though, MH can be hard for people to get into and requires a serious time investment. And like I said, I couldn't believe it last year when Smash 3DS got overlooked for some card game...BUT, I haven't played said card game or Lara Croft either. I understand the thought that no mobile has much of a chance of being better than games like MH and Smash, but clearly a lot of people must think that.
Either that, or more people have played them due to their being on phones. Now that I think about it though, I feel like that card game that won best mobile game last year was on Vita...can't remember for sure.
Edit: Ah yes, it was Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft for ios, Mac, Android, etc. Yeah I imagine it could be due to games like that being available to a lot more people.
@rjejr
So, King of Tokyo I've heard good things about but have not played. It certainly seems up your alley. boardgamegeek.com is a good place to look to get more information, though there's a lot of info to sift through, but you can find ratings, (7-8 out of 10 is usually very good and this rates 7.29) and some video reviews.
I've played games similar to Magic the Gathering and it's a very competitive 1 on 1 game. So, if you are looking for that it has been around for a long time and goes very deep, but also involves a ton of collecting.
In that set of games, I'd pick Dominion Intrigue for you and the family. Everyone can play together and Dominion is a clever game that is pretty quick moving. It's a "deck-building" game without all the necessary collecting that those 1-on-1 battle ccg (collectible card games) like Magic the Gathering have.
If you see a bunch of Dominion boxes, there are expansions, but the original Dominion (with no subtitle) and Dominion Intrigue are the only "base sets" that come with some key cards you'll need to play that the expansioins don't have. You can do the original or Intrigue.
@JaxonH @Giygas_95
Lara Croft GO is a very well designed and accessible puzzle game take on Tomb Raider. It's a totally, totally different type of game that MH, obviously. I think it winning is more a symptom of the broad category than any objective "better" you can think of.
@aaronsullivan
I don't doubt it's a good game. But the category is for "Best" so there has to be one better than the other. And I can only think of a handful of games I've ever played, ever, that are actually better than MH4U. Those that have invested the time and played through the game will certainly agree. Like I said, I'm a HUGE Tomb Raider fan. Played through the Tomb Raider Definitive Edition (rarely do games grab me enough to completion) and I'm nearly half ways through Rise of the Tomb Raider.
But not even that game is better. So there's just no way it's mobile counterpart is. If it is then that means the mobile game is better than Rise of the Tomb Raider, and maybe they need to stop making the console games and just start porting the mobile ones to console.
@aaronsullivan I think you're right. Games like that are available to a lot more people than MH and Smash. Also probably a lot cheaper I'd imagine.
Never thought I'd see the day when Nintendo wins a Best Shooter award. Splatoon is a pretty cool game. I'm glad it's been relatively successful.
Seems like they liked Her Story a lot. I was impressed by the concept, but I've never gotten around to picking it up. I'm a bit surprised Undertale didn't pick up Best Indie Game. But I haven't played Rocket League, so I'll trust their judgement on that one for now.
@aaronsullivan My kids are both getting MTG cards for the holidays - I forget which one, we do both - but that Magic board game is actually closer to Risk I think than the card game. It says 5 player - I'm guessing #5 is just a dealer or dungeon master or something - but 4 player Risk seems like a hit for our house. I went ahead and ordered both anyway. Think I'll be spending a lot of time on that boardgamegeek website. Both my wife and kids are off for 10 days for the holidays and we have no plans. My kids will play a TON of 2 player videogames, but I want some quality family time, and this year that means boards games. Thanks as always.
@rjejr
I was reading an article on the board game sales (and their comments) and I saw about the Magic game. I wasn't looking closely before. I've got nothing on that one except that it's rated a bit lower on boardgamegeek. Sounds like the theme will be relatable for the kids and it will work just fine, though. Apparenly it feels a bit "starter kit" too.
Carcassonne is still a good one for group play. Agricola for something a bit deeper (start with the "family" rules).
If I remember right, you didn't enjoy the Battlestar Galactica reboot, right? Well, if I remember wrong, the Board Game for that is truly great.
7 Wonders is a bit obtuse at first, but has kept a good reputation over the years. (I haven't played it much but I've liked it)
Truth is, while most Americans think of board games as Monopoly, Risk, and games that rely on social aspects to cover shallow, luck-driven game play, Euro board gaming has thrived with their signature games. Not that there isn't a huge swath of American board game geeks that are fully aware of this and even American game companies that make awesome deep games. It's just still far from the mass market here.
My point is board games have entered into a bit of a new golden age so take your pick!
I guess the world is coming to an end. Nintendo won best shooter
But in all seriousness that's great Splatoon got the respect it deserved and wasn't written off as a kiddie game.
Not Nintendo related but also great that Rocket League got a couple wins. Anyone that has a PS4 or PC should really check it out.
Splatoon won best shooter, now I know why Sony/MS fanboys have their knickers in a twist. Anyway, it's a great game, so is Mario Maker and Ori and the Blind Forest.
@aaronsullivan "If I remember right, you didn't enjoy the Battlestar Galactica reboot, right?"
Well the miniseries and the first 16 episodes is possibly better than anything TV has ever offered. Up there with Quantum Leap and Game of Thrones. Sopranos is over rated. But then the Clyons invaded Iraq and that was that. Though it's still one of the best shows ever.
Would the kids be ok w/ it though, they've never seen it or the originals. I did just find out Hulu has the complete Reboot but my kid saw the "N64" graphics and walked out of the room. Silly boy. Probably no chance to get him to watch Thunderbirds. My wife won't even watch that, she's afraid of the marionettes. Heathens.
I think I need to start a "board game" wishlist on Amazon to go along with my "DBZ" list. We still haven't seen Resurrection F.
I'm currently listening to Smokey Robinson and the Miracles on Amazon Prime while I work on my list. That's about as off topic as I can get.
Dang, I still remember this event like it was yesterday. I met so many cool people. Thanks for making that day special guys.
@rjejr completely disagree about MM - my whole family play it regularly
@Giygas_95 I have to agree it's a shame that "Xenoblade Chronicles X" didn't even get nominated for Best RPG just because of the release timing. They really should hold off on these kinds of awards until next February or March like they do for the Academy Awards and other awards for movies. True, there are a lot more high profile movies that come out in December than video games, but that doesn't mean the few we do get deserve to get shafted on awards night.
That was a very genuine tribute to Iwata. Thanks Reggie.
@BulbasaurusRex Yeah my thoughts exactly. Hold off on the awards until early next year. Having them in December seems like big time jumping the gun. It also meant that Fast Racing Neo couldn't get nominated for Best Racing game, and Just Cause 3 couldn't get nominated for Best action adventure game.
I mean it's quite common for some of the year's biggest releases to be in December.
@rjejr BSG the game is worth looking into. The two possible sticking points: 1. it takes a long time to play the first couple times. 2. Someone will be a secret Cylon and they'll probably have to engage in some deception to win.
Other than that I think it's okay for younger folk but I must confess I've never played that one with kids.
It's one of the best implementations of theme in a game I've ever experienced. You're right that that will be lost on the young ones but the premise is cool anyway. Also the first box stops at a pretty early part narratively.
I think the content is all tasteful but now I'm second guessing myself.
(Pretty much agree with your opinion of the show )
@rjejr
http://www.theboardgamefamily.com/2014/12/battlestar-galactica-board-game-review/
This family plays with an 8 year old and the box is rated 10 and up. That review echoes some of what I said and I've never seen it until a minute ago.
@ggnorekthx I've just started doing YouTube vids of Splatoon stuff every now and then. My YouTube channel is Mr A-Game if you're interested
@aaronsullivan Well that's a game all right. Do they have a Firefly version? I need to make my kids watch Firefly before BSG. If you agree with me on BSG may I recommend Torchwood. It's more adult than BSG but it had a great first 2 seasons, then an ok miniseries, than a really bad miniseries to end it.
Saw Wii U in the Toys R Us flyer this morning, $299 w/ MK8, next to PS4 w/ SW:B for $299. I know Wii U has the Gamepad, but PS4 has a blu ray player - worth $50 - and a 500GB HDD. I know Wii U has external HDD support but that's another $50. And people may argue PS4 has mandatory installs so it fills up fast, but XCX is 22GB, thats almost all the available space, so it renders that point moot, you can at least fit 6 or 7 of the biggest games on PS4. I was ok w/ Super Splat for $250, but MK8 for $299 doesn't look nearly as good. Not even for $249 in the Best Buy ad. Still too much.
@rjejr There is a firefly game, but I don't think it's anywhere near as good as this. My brother has played it though and likes it.
Love Firefly myself. Became aware of touchwood right as the really bad mini series started.
Agree with you on the bundles. It looks real bad. PS4 is now $300 with games bundled. Not just a temporary price drop like the $250 Wii U. $200 was the price point to hit for Nintendo no matter what it took to get there, save dropping the GamePad it just needed to be up there as a comparison price.
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