RealViews 1st Annual Game Awards

Most Anticipated Game of ’12

Reader’s Choice (26%)
BIOSHOCK: INFINITE

Borderlands 2 (3%)
Call of Duty Title (12%)
Diablo III (15%)
Grand Theft Auto V (20%)
Halo 4 (9%)
Max Payne 3 (2%)
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (5%)
Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm (6%)
Twisted Metal (2%)

Editor’s Pick
GRAND THEFT AUTO V

2012 is shaping up to be another knockout year, especially with juggernauts Mass Effect 3 and Max Payne coming right around the corner, but it’s hard to deny another offering from Rockstar Games. When GTA IV dropped, the gaming world stopped and witnessed the evolution of the sandbox game and after playing the Rockstar-published L.A. Noire and seeing the unparalleled facial animation technology, can you imagine the absolutely knockout story-telling Rockstar has in store for us? Us neither, and that’s why it’s our most anticipated title this year.

Best Voice Acting (Female)

Reader’s Choice (74%)
SONITA HENRY (ELLIE LANGFORD — DEAD SPACE 2)

Erika Heynatz (Elsa Lichtmann from L.A. Noire) (4%)
Ellen Mclain (Glados from Portal 2)(20%)
Claudia Black ( Chloe Frazer from Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception) (1%)
Emily Rose (Elena Fisher form Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception) (1%)

Editor’s Pick
Emily Rose (Elena Fisher — Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception)

The Reader’s Choice sure was a shocker but not undeserved and that’s for sure (as Dead Space 2 seems to have been forgotten by much of the press). However, Emily Rose’s pitch-perfect portrayal of a divorcee to Nathan Drake was, in some ways, heart-breaking. Hearing her beg for Drake to stop his useless escapades and trying to talk sense to him definitely resonated with the player, making you question if Drake is doing the right thing.

Best Voice Acting (Male)

Reader’s Choice (39%)
MARK HAMIL (JOKER — BATMAN: ARKHAM CITY)

Aaron Staton (Cole Phelps from L.A. Noire) (18%)
J.K. Simmons (Cave Johnson from Portal 2) (18%)
Stephen Merchant (Wheatley from Portal 2) (16%)
Nolan North (Nathan Drake from Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception) (9%)

Editor’s Pick
STEPHEN MERCHANT (WHEATLEY — PORTAL 2)

What an absolute heart-ripper it was when our dear, dear beloved Wheatley became the power-hungry villain of the knockout title Portal 2. Merchant delivered an absolutely charismatic and undeniably lovable portrayal of the Wheatley, perfectly delivering on the humor and highlighting the excellent, excellent writing on Valve’s part. Good on ya, mate.

Best Graphics

Reader’s Choice (47%)
BATTLEFIELD 3

Killzone 3 (17%)
L.A. Noire (11%)
Rage (8%)
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (17%)

Editor’s Pick
UNCHARTED 3: DRAKE’S DECEPTION

While in sheer terms of resolution and crispness, Battlefield 3 on the PC is the undisputed graphical champion of last year. However, the technicality and unparalleled programmers of Naughty Dog assured that Uncharted 3 grace us with its shit-in-your-pants set pieces that you can’t get anywhere else but on Sony’s black box. Most people don’t understand how hard it is to program these 100% “controllable cutscene moments” . From a giant sinking cruiser to the breath-stopping moment of the in-flight plane crash that finds you scrambling to hold onto something, it’s hard to argue it’s graphical prowess.

Best Audio Design

Reader’s Choice (78%)
DEAD SPACE 2

Battlefield 3 (8%)
Killzone 3 (5%)
L.A. Noire (7%)
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (3%)

Editor’s Pick
DEAD SPACE 2

Well, readers, this time we agree! Isaac’s quest through space hell was a surround sound treat. Everything from Isaac’s breaths under his mask to the bloody — and I mean fucking bloody – crunches of stomping limbs off necromorphs adds to the dreadful and harrowing atmosphere. Whenever you find yourself in the depths of space, the audio almost completely drops, creating awe-inspiring moments. Dead Space 2 will make you afraid of the dark again.

Best Fighting Game

Reader’s Choice (45%)
MORTAL KOMBAT

Fight Night Champion (5%)
King of Fighters XIII (0%)
Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds (20%)
WWE ’12 (30%)

Editor’s Pick
MORTAL KOMBAT

Yes, it was great to see the much-awaited sequel to Marvel Vs. Capcom, but is it not greater we got to see Ermac split a guy in half from the groin!? While MvC3 is more of a twitch fighter and better suited/balanced for tournaments, there’s an unrivaled satisfaction to just methodically beating the shit out of your opponent in Mortal Kombat. Throw in the fact that Nether Realm Studios perfectly integrated the story pretty much seamlessly with each fight, thus innovating in the fighting game story world, and you got yourself one hell of a fighter.

Best Sports Game

Reader’s Choice (38%)
TOP SPIN 4

FIFA Soccer 2012 (32%)
Fight Night Champion (9%)
Madden 2012 (9%)
NBA 2K12 (12%)

Editor’s Pick
NBA 2K12

I’m sure Top Spin 4 is an exceptional tennis game but NBA 2K12 is the undisputed champion of this arena. With a stupid amount of game modes, tweaks, and just buckets and buckets of content, this is a wet dream cum true for any basketball fan. The new shot stick is an absolute blast to play with and the graphics/animations simply stunning. Seriously, when you view this game from afar, don’t feel stupid for mistaking it for an actual broadcast of the game.

Best Driving Game

Reader’s Choice (Tie! 48% – 48%)
MOTORSTORM: APOCALYPSE

DiRT 3 (10%)
Driver: San Francisco (6%)
Need for Speed: The Run (25%)

FORZA MOTORSPORT 4

Editor’s Pick
FORZA MOTORSPORT 4

It wasn’t the strongest year for racing games but that didn’t stop 2011 from hosting one of this generations best racing simulators. As much as the Gran Turismo franchise is revered, it seems like Forza is becoming the favorite of this generation. With it’s borderline photorealistic graphics and on-the-money control schemes, what better title to turn the crown over to than Forza Motorsport 4.

Best Role-Playing Game

Reader’s Choice (64%)
THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM

Dark Souls (2%)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution (19%)
Dragon Age II (3%)
The Witcher 2 (12%)

Editor’s Pick
THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM

Yes, it was tempting to pick some sort of elitist, snobby answer just for the sake of not picking Skyrim but goddamn it, does Skyrim make me want to take it out, sleep with it, and call her back after the first five minutes apart — we just could not get enough of Skyrim. This title shows the potential of video games, a benchmark for the industry that firmly stomps it feet and yelling, “find another piece of entertainment in any other medium than games that rival me!”. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is filled to the brim and so, so much fucking more with content. From weapons, skills, perks, and quests, it’s hard to recommend another game that will take up hundreds of hours of your life in a quality manner.

Best Action-Adventure Game

Reader’s Choice (40%)
ASSASSIN’S CREED: REVELATIONS

Batman: Arkham City (21%)
inFAMOUS 2 (19%)
Saints Row: The Third (6%)
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (14%)

Editor’s Pick
UNCHARTED 3: DRAKE’S DECEPTION

It’s hard to find another title with this much badassery mixed with fantastic story-telling. Our protagonist, Nathan Drake, goes through a lot of shit through this game — running for his life through a Titanic-like cruiser while it’s capsizing, hanging by the thread from a crashing plane, and running/jumping across falling chunks of earth are only some of those stuff you do through this truly epic and awe-inducing adventure. Did I mention that these moments aren’t cutscenes or quicktime events but you actually play these parts?

Best Third-Person Shooter

Reader’s Choice (78%)
DEAD SPACE 2

Gears of War 3 (5%)
Saints Row: The Third (2%
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (7%)
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine (8%)

Editor’s Picks
GEARS OF WAR 3

You might be surprised Uncharted 3 lost this category, but truth be told, it’s not really a good third-person shooter — in fact, the aiming is pretty terrible. And damn it, Epic Games’ Gears of War 3 is one hell of a third-person rompe! Fenix and co. finally reach some finality in the conclusion to the Gears trilogy in a stellar campaign and the multiplayer is the best it has ever been in the series. With Horde 2.0 allowing you to play as the Locust and the competitive component being as smooth as Gears can be, it’s a no-brainer for this category.

Best First-Person Shooter

Reader’s Choice (36%)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Battlefield 3 (35%)
Bulletstorm (24%)
Killzone 3 (0%)
Resistance 3 (5%)

Editor’s Pick
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Man, what a hotly debated category. Not a single game was weak in this category but thanks to Infinity Ward’s expert handling of all things FPS, MW3 takes the edge. Battlefield 3′s campaign was a monotonous bore with too many unpolished aspects, not even the outstanding (maybe even better than MW3) multiplayer could save it (not to mention the horrible co-op). Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is just an undeniably better rounded package. The new Survival mode is outstanding and addictive, the Spec-Ops co-op mode is as fun as ever, and the campaign full of the set-pieces we know and love. Sure, the multiplayer is showing its age, but when looked as a whole package, what better way to spend $60?

Best Multiplayer

Reader’s Choice (40%)
CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 3

Battlefield 3 (38%)
Gears of War 3 (2%)
Killzone 3 (19%)
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (2%)

Editor’s Pick
KILLZONE 3

Yes, yes, Battlefield 3 and MW3 are knockout multiplayer offerings, but something about Killzone 3′s main multiplayer component, Warzone, where your favorite FPS game modes are blended into one match, that make it rise above the pack. It’s a simple yet truly innovating approach in today’s FPS offerings, giving us a thrilling and white-knuckle competitive experience that can’t be found in any other shooter. Unlocking class-based abilities and weapons keep you addicted and it looks better than Dice’s BF3 (on consoles, mind you), so there’s really not much room to complain.

Game of the Year

 

Reader’s Choice (52%)
THE ELDER SCROLLS V: SKYRIM

Batman: Arkham City (15%)
Gears of War 3 (8%)
Portal 2 (14%)
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception (12%)

Editor’s Pick
UNCHARTED 3: DRAKE’S DECEPTION

What else there left to say of this sweeping, grandeur of an adventure? The breath-taking visuals, pitch-perfect audio, incomparable voice cast, story pacing, and oso much more all add up to make something so much more greater than the sum of its parts. Naughty Dog wants us to know they are not a studio to be fucked with, rising to the toop echelon this generation as one of our time’s most bankable developers. The plausibility-defying setpieces alone make it worth the $80 price tag (wait, it’s only $60? But everything is so–). Then there’s the excellent and unique third-person shooter multiplayer component with tons and tons of customization and the added strategy of being able to climb up to higher ground, creating the signature stamp of Uncharted multiplayer.