And GameSpot's Game of the Year is...

[Pewter City Geodude]

...The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (http://www.gamespot.com/gamespot/features/all/bestof2003/day6_2.html)!

A well-deserved award, great for Nintendo.

Discuss.

[Crazy]

Cool but I am stuck on that accursed game! I can't get into to the two mountins which lead into the two sage temples!!! I DON"T KNOW WHERE TO GO.

[PNT510]

I personly though Star Wars; KOTOR should have won, but Wind Waker is a great game none the less.

[The Muffin Man]

Hey look, Vice City didn't (unrightfully) win.

Nice. Looks like they actually measured things besides popularity among non-gamer males between age 15-30...

[Powarun]

The Muffin Man is true on that one.

But it was rigged, Not to say that I am not happy for Ww, its just if you get a free game for preordering a game, and the game has a new style of graphics how could it not lose, plus it was a sequal to an already popular series.

[PNT510]

Originally posted by The Muffin Man
Hey look, Vice City didn't (unrightfully) win.

Nice. Looks like they actually measured things besides popularity among non-gamer males between age 15-30...

That's because Vice City wasn't in the running. Vice City came out in 2002.

[Hikaru]

Originally posted by Powarun

But it was rigged, Not to say that I am not happy for Ww, its just if you get a free game for preordering a game, and the game has a new style of graphics how could it not lose, plus it was a sequal to an already popular series.

Wind Waker was the best Gamecube game of the year, that much is certain. But to say the game won because it was a sequel is silly, since it was up against 3 games which were either sequels or based on massive franchises. And the new style of graphics definitely hindered it, if they made the E3 Realistic Zelda game, it would have won every award handily.

[DarkTemplarZ]

And I'm still pissed off that Metroid Prime was game of the year for 2002 over GTA: Vice City. Damn first
person shooters suck. The only thing worse than an
FPS is a Zelda game :( I really hate Zelda, IMO KotOR or Tony Hawk's Underground should've won

[Mewfour]

Actually, I think the reason why MP won over VC was because Metroid Prime actually put a new spin on the FPS engine, bringing a new flavor to a tired, tired genre that we've been playing over and over and over since 1996. Vice City was just more of the same.

[Strider]

Originally posted by DarkTemplarZ
And I'm still pissed off that Metroid Prime was game of the year for 2002 over GTA: Vice City. Damn first
person shooters suck. The only thing worse than an
FPS is a Zelda game :( I really hate Zelda, IMO KotOR or Tony Hawk's Underground should've won

Technically, Metroid Prime is a first person action/adventure game, not shooter. Many arguments sprout out of that, however.

Anyways, good choice for game of the year; although, as mentioned, serious contenders like Viewtiful Joe and Knights of the Old Republic could have easily taken the spot too.

[Pewter City Geodude]

So opinions vary, but I think everyone can agree that it was a very close race.

[SageofLaughter]

In my opinion, in a year with games like Prince of Persia, Jak II, SSX3, KotOR and Panzer Dragoon Orta, a limiting and easy game like Wind Waker doesn't deserve any GotY awards.

I love Zelda games with all my heart, and that's probably never going to change, but Wind Waker failed to capture the elements that made me fall in love with the series.

In my opinion, GotY should be about innovation and change, which is why I think Prince of Persia or KotOR should have won.

[Craig]

Call of duty did not win?
BAH

Blasphemy.

[Crazy]

Originally posted by DarkTemplarZ
And I'm still pissed off that Metroid Prime was game of the year for 2002 over GTA: Vice City. Damn first
person shooters suck. The only thing worse than an
FPS is a Zelda game :( I really hate Zelda, IMO KotOR or Tony Hawk's Underground should've won

What is so amazing about GTA? Both games are the same and you just run around killing people. Blood and over the top don't make a good game. MP DOES NOT SUCK.

[SageofLaughter]

Originally posted by Crazy
MP DOES NOT SUCK.

When someone essentially disregards an entire genre with a single comment that they fail to back up, it's not worth getting worked up over their opinions XD

[Last Exile]

Metroid Prime, F-Zero GX, Soul Calibur II - All better than Zelda IMO. I've never had a clue about the whole Zelda thing.

PS. Apparently the Nintendo version of Soul Calbiur 2 is outselling the other console versions by 30%! Not bad! ;)

[Laz-E-Boy]

Originally posted by Citrus Crush Chikorita
Metroid Prime, F-Zero GX, Soul Calibur II - All better than Zelda IMO. I've never had a clue about the whole Zelda thing.

PS. Apparently the Nintendo version of Soul Calbiur 2 is outselling the other console versions by 30%! Not bad! ;)

Guess why? Cause of Link, who of course is from Zelda. ;)

[Razola]

Kind of surprising.

Wind Waker was an amazing game. It definitely gave me a believeable world with excellent graphics. The clean blue ocean is still breathtaking.

But in terms of gameplay, Zelda does little to shake it up. It's still a matter of going to several dungeons and completing side quests along the way. It's well done, and WW does keep it shorter than the 8 or so dungeons of OoT, but Zelda is becoming a formula.

I think Viewtiful Joe or PoP should've gotten top honors. Call of Duty is a good WWII FPS, but it's simple taking the genre to the final limits. Games like Mario Kart and F-Zero, while well-done, are like WW in terms of being sequels to a franchise. Sure, changes are made, but the core gameplay has only slight changes.

It's a tough call, and I have yet to play games like PoP and the like. Right now I think Viewtiful Joe really stood out in terms of GotY, along with WarioWare.

[The Muffin Man]

Originally posted by PNT510
That's because Vice City wasn't in the running. Vice City came out in 2002.

Double Pack.

[PNT510]

The double pack isn't a new game.

[classy_cat18]

I love TWW, but this is still a surprise to me. And for those who are skeptical:

http://www.mtv.com/onair/ultimate_countdown/count.jhtml

You can see this in more detail in the current issue of EGM. It beat Halo and Grand Theft Auto! Didn't know so many people thought Link was so cool. Must be because of his appearance in Soul Calibur II.