Top 3 games of each year 2003-2023, based on the number of Game of the Year awards they received. Which year had the greatest podium, and which year was the weakest?
2021 immediately stands out from recent years. It Takes Two, RE: Village and Forza is a weak podium compared to those around it.
BananaResearcher
2007 was a ridiculously good year, I don’t think any other year can compete with the quantity (and variety) of incredibly good games that came out that year.
As for worst, I dunno man, feels like gaming in general has been on a big slump since 2016 so pick your year. Individual exceptions like Zelda or Elden Ring notwithstanding I feel like a bunch of years could compete for worst. I’d say 2019, 2020, 2021 are all good contenders, individual exceptions (elden ring) aside. E: nevermind, ER is 2022 anyway.
RandomProcezz
2021 is the clown of the list
Ok-Bat-6913
Personally i like 2013 the most, and it’s hard for me to tell which year is the weakest
Struggiiii
2013, what a year.
raidercecil
2012 goty was an interactive comic…that with 2021 are far away the worst imo
asian1panda
2018 gotta be the best for me,
elkeiem
~~Elden Ring~~ i mean 2022
Aromatic-Quiet5171
Weakest year for me would be 2014 (even though I ended up loving Inquisition some years later).
Strongest in terms of impact Probably 2004.
Strongest in terms of my personal favourite, probably 2015. The Witcher 3 and Bloodborne are both in my top 5 games. A 3rd game other than Fallout would’ve made this choice feel a bit better (I didn’t like FO4 at all), but the other two outweigh this…
CodeGeazz
Early 2000s are filled with bangers what a time
StretchArmstrong74
2012 and it’s not close. None of these games would sniff the awards in most years.
BARD3NGUNN
Have to admit, considering how divisive it was upon launch, I didn’t realize Death Stranding had won so many GOTY awards – I remember people complaining about it being nominated as a GOTY contender at The Game Award.
Star-Lord101
Funny to see Call Of Duty nominated for GOTY three times, 2009 was the peak of online gaming IMO. Sad to see how far COD has fallen
Lion_sama
Weird how some years have 3 great games, and other 3 good but not great games.
2014 weakest year?
LostSif
2008 is probably my favorite
Dizzy-Significance75
in retrospect, its wild rdr2 lost to god of war
holeung
2014 🙂↕️🙂↕️
Oath_Br3aker
2004 is pretty legendary
Lavanthus
Looking back, some of these were really weird years.
Like I remember RDR2 winning pretty much every award in the Game Awards, but somehow GoW won the GOTY award. That is still just weird.
THE_IMPROVISER8
2022,2020.2018 are my Favourites.2021 Felt a little weak
Samurai_Banette
2004 is pure insanity. All three of those games are foundational to modern game design and shaped gaming for over a decade.
As much as people say things like “oh, doom was the first fps,” “it was golden eye”, “it was this other obscure game,” no, Halo is the first game that a modern audience would identify as a shooter. Halo looked better than every game of its time, it had better writing, it had WAY better gameplay, it had multiplayer, it had vehicle combat, it had functional ai, everything. And then Halo 2 took all that and cranked it up to 11. Halo was the minecraft of it’s era.
And then you have the second best selling GTA game. You know that popular idea that open world games are good? This is unironically where that belief came from. Oblivion a couple years later would cement that belief, and previous gta games were data points, but this felt like the line in the sand.
And then you have half-life 2. Like, just the name still has weight.
l4dygaladriel
I’m suprised RDR2 didn’t won during 2018. Guess that was the strongest era of competition between modern games
kinogutschein
2004, 2007 and 2018 were really strong IMH.
2012, 2014 and 2021 were weak.
Equal-Tailor-1269
2004 is widely regarded as the best year in gaming, not only for the games crowned as “the best” but by the names which were left out. They really give you the size of masterpieces that came out that year.
MrRager473
Man it feels like the walking dead game is only like, 4 years old, but it’s 12 years old……
Electrical_Life6186
The Wonderful 101: Remastered was not put up for any awards.
Which means that no year was ever strong. Because it is a game that could heal the world of all wrongs if people truly played and read into it.
ProgrammerGlobal8708
Oblivion number 1.
Fallout 3 number 1.
Fallout 4 number 2.
Starfield….. 🤷
ProgrammerGlobal8708
13 15 17 18 all very strong.
AntonDeMorgan
Starfield must’ve hit hard for Bethesda. All their games got game of the year awards and starfield got none and it’s a laughing stock
Hotspur000
Didn’t Dragon Age: Origins win a lot of GotY awards?
MakzumaX52
Ghost of tsushima won GoTY in 2020.
SuperSaiyanIR
Death Stranding got more awards than Sekiro…? I liked Death Stranding, but to say it’s in the same tier as Sekiro, let alone better than it seems almost preposterous to me.
33 Comments
2021 immediately stands out from recent years. It Takes Two, RE: Village and Forza is a weak podium compared to those around it.
2007 was a ridiculously good year, I don’t think any other year can compete with the quantity (and variety) of incredibly good games that came out that year.
As for worst, I dunno man, feels like gaming in general has been on a big slump since 2016 so pick your year. Individual exceptions like Zelda or Elden Ring notwithstanding I feel like a bunch of years could compete for worst. I’d say 2019, 2020, 2021 are all good contenders, individual exceptions (elden ring) aside. E: nevermind, ER is 2022 anyway.
2021 is the clown of the list
Personally i like 2013 the most, and it’s hard for me to tell which year is the weakest
2013, what a year.
2012 goty was an interactive comic…that with 2021 are far away the worst imo
2018 gotta be the best for me,
~~Elden Ring~~ i mean 2022
Weakest year for me would be 2014 (even though I ended up loving Inquisition some years later).
Strongest in terms of impact Probably 2004.
Strongest in terms of my personal favourite, probably 2015. The Witcher 3 and Bloodborne are both in my top 5 games. A 3rd game other than Fallout would’ve made this choice feel a bit better (I didn’t like FO4 at all), but the other two outweigh this…
Early 2000s are filled with bangers what a time
2012 and it’s not close. None of these games would sniff the awards in most years.
Have to admit, considering how divisive it was upon launch, I didn’t realize Death Stranding had won so many GOTY awards – I remember people complaining about it being nominated as a GOTY contender at The Game Award.
Funny to see Call Of Duty nominated for GOTY three times, 2009 was the peak of online gaming IMO. Sad to see how far COD has fallen
Weird how some years have 3 great games, and other 3 good but not great games.
2014 weakest year?
2008 is probably my favorite
in retrospect, its wild rdr2 lost to god of war
2014 🙂↕️🙂↕️
2004 is pretty legendary
Looking back, some of these were really weird years.
Like I remember RDR2 winning pretty much every award in the Game Awards, but somehow GoW won the GOTY award. That is still just weird.
2022,2020.2018 are my Favourites.2021 Felt a little weak
2004 is pure insanity. All three of those games are foundational to modern game design and shaped gaming for over a decade.
As much as people say things like “oh, doom was the first fps,” “it was golden eye”, “it was this other obscure game,” no, Halo is the first game that a modern audience would identify as a shooter. Halo looked better than every game of its time, it had better writing, it had WAY better gameplay, it had multiplayer, it had vehicle combat, it had functional ai, everything. And then Halo 2 took all that and cranked it up to 11. Halo was the minecraft of it’s era.
And then you have the second best selling GTA game. You know that popular idea that open world games are good? This is unironically where that belief came from. Oblivion a couple years later would cement that belief, and previous gta games were data points, but this felt like the line in the sand.
And then you have half-life 2. Like, just the name still has weight.
I’m suprised RDR2 didn’t won during 2018. Guess that was the strongest era of competition between modern games
2004, 2007 and 2018 were really strong IMH.
2012, 2014 and 2021 were weak.
2004 is widely regarded as the best year in gaming, not only for the games crowned as “the best” but by the names which were left out. They really give you the size of masterpieces that came out that year.
Man it feels like the walking dead game is only like, 4 years old, but it’s 12 years old……
The Wonderful 101: Remastered was not put up for any awards.
Which means that no year was ever strong. Because it is a game that could heal the world of all wrongs if people truly played and read into it.
Oblivion number 1.
Fallout 3 number 1.
Fallout 4 number 2.
Starfield….. 🤷
13 15 17 18 all very strong.
Starfield must’ve hit hard for Bethesda. All their games got game of the year awards and starfield got none and it’s a laughing stock
Didn’t Dragon Age: Origins win a lot of GotY awards?
Ghost of tsushima won GoTY in 2020.
Death Stranding got more awards than Sekiro…? I liked Death Stranding, but to say it’s in the same tier as Sekiro, let alone better than it seems almost preposterous to me.
Where are all the Ubisoft “GOTY”?