2007 has been hailed by many as the greatest year for video games so far. Sales numbers further substantiate that claim, with 2007 marking the peak year of sales in the industry, and also setting the record for the most money grossed in 24 hours in any form of media(Halo 3). Blockbuster hits were abundant across all the platforms, from Super Mario Galaxy, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, Crysis, Uncharted, and much, much more. As 2007 draws to an end, many publications have began running the annual Game of the Year awards. EXGN has decided to round up the GOTY winners from over a dozen various, big name publications. Whats the general concensus as to which title truly was the Game of the Year? Read on…

5. Rock Band(PS3/PS2/360) – Harmonix

From the creators of Guitar Hero I and II comes Rock Band! Now you and three friends can get together and form your own complete band, playing lead guitar, bass guitar, drums and a singer. Despite the hefty $169 price and some initial hardware issues, Rock Band went on to become one of the highest ranked games this year, averaging 93.2% according to Game Rankings. With the availablity of downloadable songs and the ingenuity behind its design, Rock Band is sure to keep gamers busy with their virtual bands well into 2008.

What others said:
“… Rock Band is the true evolution of music games. Immersive and just plain addictive experience far greater than the sum of its parts. It’s magic.” Wired.com, Game of the Year winner

4. The Orange Box(PC/PS3/360) – Valve

Combining 3 classic Valve games – Half Life 2, Portal, and Team Fortress 2 – the Orange Box is not only an excellent deal because of the quantity of content included, but also because of the quality of the content as well. The Orange Box was universally praised by several publications, Portal specifically, and maintains and impressive rating of 96.2$ for both the PC and 360 versions. Even the PS3 version, which suffered some frame rate issues, was still a great pick up if there was no other option. Overall, the Orange Box is well deserving of GOTY crown.

What others said:
“Portal isn’t just the best game of the year, it’s a landmark title for the industry whose influence will run as deep as our desire for change, and gives the best proof yet that games don’t need to be long to be great.” GamerNode.com, Game of the Year Winner
“The game[Portal] is phenomenal in every sense of the word…” Joystiq.com, Game of the Year
“… the only argument we had in choosing the Game of the Year was whether to give it to the five-game Orange Box as a collection or whether Portal earned the trophy all on its own. It’s that good.” GamesRadar.com, Game of the Year

3. Call of Duty 4(PC/PS3/360) – Infinity Ward

After the less then stellar Call of Duty 3(developed by Treyarch Studios), Infinity Ward went back to the drawing board and started fresh. Call of Duty 4 would be the first game in the series to take place in the modern era. This step forward allowed them to breathe a breath of fresh air into the series, updating it with all sorts of new weapons and technology. The 3 different versions for the 3 different platforms all received great reviews, with the 360 version sitting at 94%, and the PS3 and PC versions at 93%. With the superb(if not a bit short) single player, and incredibly varied and in depth multiplayer, its obvious that Call of Duty 4 has raised the bar for first person shooters.

What others said:
“Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty 4 hit on all cylinders, stunning us with gorgeous graphics, pristinely polished gameplay, and a captivating single-player storyline that hit us with such impact as to leave us breathless.” GameSpy.com, Game of the Year
“The top slot went to office favorite Call of Duty 4 for its toe-curling action and deep online mode.” GamePro, Game of the Year
“Not only is Call of Duty 4 winner of Game of the Year, but also stands proudly as game of the generation thus far.” MyGEN.com, Game of the Year

2. Bioshock(360/PC) – 2K Games

If I had a dollar for every time I read a “Bioshock to PS3″ rumor, I would be a billionaire. Seriously, the quality of a game is obvious when fanboy owners of another console drum up as many port rumors as there have been thus far for Bioshock. At one point, GameRankings had this game at the #1 rated game of all time, and today it still holds at a tight 95% for both versions. My personal choice for GOTY, Bioshock revolutionized the way first person shooters should play. From its beautiful graphics, chilling atmosphere, and open ended gameplay, this game is the total package.

What others said:
“Beyond just the superb quality of the package, we all felt there was an experience that transcended basic gameplay. To play BioShock was to experience something that few gamers had ever experienced before. It was this immersive originality that elevated the game above all others.” Destructoid.com, Game of the Year
“A shooter like no other… One of the most beautifully compelling action games, written for a thinking audience.” XPlay, Game of the Year

And finally, the title voted Game of the Year by the most major publications…

1. Super Mario Galaxy(Wii) – Nintendo

Winning by a landslide is Super Mario Galaxy. Mario Galaxy had a lot riding on its shoulders, but it rose to all challenges. It proved that Wii games could use the Wiimote well, and still be challenging and entertaining. It redeemed the Mario name after Mario Sunshine was critically panned for a lack of innovation. Mario Galaxy has bright, pristine graphics that push the Wii to its limits and deep, innovative gameplay that pushes even further. Super Mario Galaxy received rave reviews from all – by GameRankings, its rated as the 2nd best game of all time and then best game of 2007. Obviously, the later rings true, as Super Mario Galaxy earned 9 Game of the Year 2007 titles out of the 22 publications we surveyed. Congrats to Nintendo!

What others said:
“… the best overall package of polish, gameplay, and presentation for what it is–a traditional but highly evolved platformer” GameSpot.com, Game of the Year
“…features more variety then any other game this year.” GameTrailers.com, Game of the Year
“Galaxy surprises and delights at every turn, placing both familiar and new tasks firmly in its own, distinct, masterpiece of a universe. In short, it’s utterly true to Mario’s roots, and yet is fixed firmly on his future, too.” NextGen.com/Edge, Game of the Year
“… we loved every minute. Here’s a game that actually feels at home on the Wii, with a control system that’s absolutely superb… Not only did it catapult Mario into the heavens, it did the same to us.” Yahoo! Games, Game of the Year

Article written by N.Gasse on 01/02/08.
The grand totals came out to: SMG 9 titles, Bioshock 4, Call of Duty 4 3, Orange Box 2, Rock Band 1. Sources include: GameSpot, GamePro, GameTrailers, XPlay, Kotaku, Joystiq, Edge, NextGen, GamesRadar, GameSpy, CVG, GamerNode, SpikeTV, Destructoid, DPad, Yahoo! Games, PALGN, MyGEN, and more.

Although no official review has been posted yet, it seems IGN’s initial impressions of Assassin’s Creed are not very good. In their weekly podcast, they gave pick of the week to Smackdown VS Raw and Medal of Honor: Airborne. When asked about which game had the best graphics, they gave the response “Ass Creed”. They are not allowed to post a review of Ubisoft’s game until tomorrow, but if the podcast is anything to go by, do not expect a 10. Check IGN tomorrow for the full review.

All good things come to an end: the Roman Empire, all you can eat pizza Tuesday nights at Pizza Hut, and most recently, Bungie’s 7 year partnership with Microsoft. Rumors of a split first came the day after the release of Halo 3, and was made public on October 1. As a result of the split, Microsoft retained full ownership of the Halo intellectual property as well as a small stake in ownership

The split between the two was not hostile, Bungie president Harold Ryan said he just did not like the big corporation atmosphere that had developed in the studio after their partnership began. Many speculate that Microsoft was also pressuring Bungie to make a Halo 4, which Bungie did not want to do. However, while Bungie claimed they did not want to make a Halo 4, they did say they were interested in making more games that take place in the Halo universe. Frank O’Conor, content manager at Bungie Studios, even went on to say “If we ever return to the Halo universe, I’m sure we’d have cool stories to tell”.

Also, while the split means that Bungie could make games for the Sony PS3 or Nintendo Wii, they insist that, for the moment, they are only interested in making XBox 360/PC games.

Next-gen.biz has recently released an interview with Grant Collier, Infinity Ward’s head. The interview mainly focused around Infinity Ward’s upcoming title Call of Duty 4. Collier addresses a lot of perceived issues in CoD4, such as its departure from the WWII era, the new features that many felt would isolate long time fans of the series, why they abandoned the Wii, and the linear campaign mode. Also, when questioned about he thought about all the competition in the FPS genre this holiday season, he seemed unphased. He replied “for the 360 it’s pretty much Halo 3 that’s the competition… On PS3 we’re number one”.

In all honesty, CoD4 is looking to be a smash hit. However, Collier shouldn’t take his competition so lightly. Crysis, Unreal Tournament 3, and Haze are all looking to be solid titles as well. Check out the full interview here.

Look for Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty 4 on November 5, 2007, for the PS3, 360, and PC. Pre-order it now from PlayAsia!

Haze’s exclusivity has been questioned on internet forums for months now. Originally billed as a multiplatform title in the spring, rumors began shortly afterwards that it was PS3 exclusive. In May, Free Radical announced that the Playstation 3 version had become the lead platform, and the game would launch for PS3 in Nov. 2007, while the 360/PC version were due out in 2008. Then, Free Radical removed the XBox 360 logo from their website. Most recently, at the Games Convention in Leipzig, a German website reported that Free Radical had announced in a closed doors meeting that the 360 version had been canceled.

Free Radical has laid all the rumors to rest, telling GameSpot “currently the game is indeed only planned for the PS3″ and that “The official statement on PC and Xbox 360 is that these platforms are not confirmed”. The PC version logo has also been removed from the official Haze website, Free Radical’s site, and the Ubi Soft site.

Free Radical’s new sci fi shooter is looking to innovate the FPS genre, similar to how Bioshock has. It promises an unparalleled story; beautiful, lush graphics; and great multiplayer, both coop and versus. Haze is a big pick up for the PS3, and will most likely be the PS3’s Game of the Year 2007 contender.  Haze is still due(exclusively now) out for PS3 this November. Pre-order it now from PlayAsia!

OK, even the biggest, most polished video games have their fair share of graphical and program glitches. The recently released Bioshock is certainly no exception. This glitch just happens to be extremely funny, especially taken into the context of Big Daddy’s and Little Sisters. Check out what this Big Daddy does when his Little Sister isn’t around!

As each generation of console pushes onward, data storage continually evolves. It started on cartridges, worked its way to 700MB CDs, 1GB GD-Roms, then 4.5 GB DVDs, and now with the PS3, a 60GB Blu Ray disc is used. Its able to store hundreds thousands of times more data then the cartridges used no more then 15 years ago!

An Israeli technology company, known as Mempile, is now in the process of creating a disc that could hold up to one terrabyte(TB) of information – thats 1000 GB! Each layer on the disc can hold 5GB, and Mempile claims that it can hold over 200 virtual layers. Currently, the company has designed prototypes that can hold up to 800GB, but they believe with another year or so of research, they can hit the 1TB mark.

Mempile says that the disc will hit the market in about 2-3 years, initially with 600GB discs. The discs will cost a hefty sum at $30-$40 per disc.

A new on stage demonstration of Assassin’s Creed was shown at the Penny Arcade Expo 2007(PAX 2007). Assassin’s Creed is the latest game coming from Ubi Soft Montreal, the team behind the popular Prince of Persia series. The PAX demonstration featured the same mission shown as the E3 2007 demonstration. Once again, the 11 minute demo was played using the XBox 360 build.

The demo opens to a familiar scene, the city of Jerusalem. The game’s protagonist, Altair, is shown taking a new path to get to his target. Once Altair finds his target, a trap is triggered and Altair must fight off several attackers. The new PAX demo showed off a few new kill strikes, as well as showing how long ranged weapons work. The PS3 demo also showed off a feature that Jade Raymond(producer of AC) mentioned during the E3 demo. The computer’s AI is programmed to do different things each time a mission is played. In the E3 demo, the boss tried to lose Altair by dashing through the crowd. In the PAX demo, he ran to a guard station to seek the aid of the guards. Also revealed in the PAX demo is that once the target has been eliminated, the mission doesn’t just end. The video showed Altair has he attempted to escape from his pursuers, and also had him reporting back to the man who hired him. The on stage demonstration also displayed an impressive real time weapon change, a feature only capable of being performed by using the full power of the next gen video game consoles. Overall, it was an impressive demo.

On negative note, however, there still seems to be some bugs with the game. For example, at one instance, it shows a guard running full speed off the side of a building. There is also another floating body at 9:57.

You can check out GameSpots video of the demo HERE!

Assassins Creed is due out in November of 2007, for the PC, PS3, and XBox 360. You can preorder Assassins Creed now at PlayAsia!

According to a German website, Exp.de, the 360 version of Free Radical’s up coming shooter, Haze, has been canceled. Haze was originally set to be a timed exclusive on PS3, due out for in November 2007. The PC and 360 versions were set for a release sometime in 2008. The PC and PS3 version are still on time for their respective releases. This could be a disappointment to many 360 owners. More information should be in soon

Original German Article

Wie wir soeben bei einer Präsentation des Shooters aus erster Hand erfahren haben, wird es keine Xbox-360-Version von Haze geben. Der Titel ist dieses Jahr noch PS3-exklusiv und wird voraussichtlich im November erscheinen, 2008 wird eine PC-Fassung folgen. Weitere Informationen zur Präsentation folgen heute Abend.

N4G translation:

How we learned just now in a presentation of the Shooters out of first hand, there will be no XBox Version of Haze. The title is this year yet PS3 exclusive and will appear presumably in November, 2008 will follow a PC version. Further information to the presentation follows tonight.

Haze is set for a release on the PS3 this November. Pre-order it now on PlayAsia.com!

After code for a PS3 version of Bioshock was found on the PC demo of Bioshock, PS3 fanboys went ecstatic over the possibilities of a PS3 version of the critically acclaimed game. Bioshock has been receiving rave reviews, and its no wonder there was so much hope for a PS3 version.

But alas, it was not to be. Lead designer of Bioshock Kevin Levine contacted Joystiq.com, and has debunked the rumor, stating in plain terms “I promise you, there is no secret plan about the PS3 that we’re keeping from people. There’s no PS3 development going on that we’re hiding. There’s lots of stuff that gets into game code, plans change over time and we got an exclusive deal with Microsoft … that’s not a Rosetta Stone discovery.” Sorry PS3 owners, guess you’ll have to wait for Haze or Unreal Tournament for your FPS fix.