GOTY revisited

[seanmac31]

With the launch of the 360 and its sports games, along with CH2K6, it seems like a good time to revisit the topic. What were the best sports games released this year? My list would probably look like this-

1) NBA 2K6 (360)- Just the best basketball game I've ever played, by a mile. It looks great, the play is fluid, and it does a better job of simulating NBA team and player tendencies than anything else I've seen. And did I mention that it looks great?

2) NCAA 06 (Xbox)- I'm loving the new Madden for the 360, but it's too much of a work-in-progress to consider it here. So instead, I'll go with NCAA 06, which I think is easily the best EA football game released for this generation of consoles, and possibly the best football game period. The play is very smooth, the impact players feature ended up working really well, and the game control is much more elegant than the clunky Madden 06.

3) NHL 2K6 (360)- I'm going to commit a no-no and nominate a game I haven't actually played yet. But I thought the Xbox version was tremendous, and seeing as I haven't heard anything to make me think the 360 version isn't the same game with better graphics and crease control, I thought I would throw it in. The NHL 2K series has been the best hockey game on the market for years now, but it was always just a bit off thanks to the ubergoalies. That problem is very much solved in 2K6, and the ability to score convincingly from long shots, wrist shots, deflections and rebounds just accentuates how great the rest of the game engine has been all along.

[Toper]

My list (in no particular order):

- NBA 2k6 (360): My favorite launch title, and the first game I grab when I want to show off the new hardware.

- College Hoops 2k6 (Xbox): Overshadows the pro counterpart on the xbox, and has the gameplay/animation tweaks to stand toe-to-toe with its 360 pro basketball big brother...cannot wait for this to come out on 360.

- Pro Evolution Soccer 5 (Xbox): Got to play this on my friend's modded xbox...just when you thought it couldn't get any better, Konami comes out with an upgrade that makes the previous version obsolete. I'm considering getting my xbox modded for this one game alone.

- World Series of Poker (psp): This game resides in my psp in sleep mode. I have killed so much "dead time" with this title. Winning a bracelet in this game was probably my most difficult (and most rewarding) accomplishment in a sports game this year.

- Hot Shots Golf (psp): If it wasn't for this title, my psp would have been gone a long time ago...probably the best playing golf game I've played this year (long live the 3-button swing!!!).

Honorable mentions: MLB (psp), NCAA Football 2006 (xbox), MVP 2006 (xbox), MotoGP3 (xbox), PGR 3 (360)

Most Innovative: Blitz the League

Most Improved: 2k Sports Basketball games

Worst Sportsgame of the Year: NBA Live (360)

Biggest Disappointment: No 2k6 Football (with the improvements that 2k Sports made with their basketball series, I would've loved to have seen what they could've done with their football game this year (and I'm a "madden guy"))...EXCLUSIVITY SUX!!!

[kevinpars]

Tough call for me. I will nominate 3:

* MVP Baseball 2005 - I will admit that I still suck at this game and don't think I have ever gone a ML game without giving up a HR, much less pitch a shutout. But it a fun game to play with tons of options. The hitting model and the mediocre franchise mode holds it back.

* NCAA Football 2006 - A fun game and certainly much better than the 2005 version. But dropped passes still hide a flawed engine. Hard for me to rate this game, since it is the # game I look to purchase. Take this game out of the mix, and I might give up gaming. I played the hell out of the flawed 2005 game, so I am biased.

* College Hoops 06 - A little early to make a call on this one, but it is a very fun game and very deep. No major bugs have popped up yet. I started even enjoying this more when I turned off the momentum option - which led to artificially enhanced runs by both teams. With this turned off (as someone on OS pointed out) you are in much more control of your destiny - for good or bad. Anyway, this is a hell of a fun game to pick up and play, much less start a dynasty and recruit high school freshman and get the jump on Duke.

I am holding off on the other 2K games until I get a 360, so I can't comment on the minimum amount of time I have spent with NBA and NHL.

[Badgun]

1. NBA 2k6 (Xbox 360) - What can I say that hasn't been said? This is simply the best basketball game I have ever played. Not only that, it's also the most fun I've ever had using a losing team (Lakers). There's just not enough superlatives to describe this game. Best looking game ever. If College Hoops is anything like this, we're in for a big treat come January.

2. MVP Baseball 2005 (Xbox) - Wow! I played a full 162 games schedule without simming a single game. As much as I despise EA at times, I am sad that we won't get to see MVP 2006 on the 360. Even though I though 2k's game had better atmosphere and Sony's game had much better animations, MVP was closer to the complete package than the other two. EA has set the standard...if you don't have playable A, AA, and AAA minors, you don't have a baseball game.

3. Tie Madden 2006 (Xbox) and Hot Shots Golf Open Tee (PSP) I've enjoyed Madden immensely this year and though it still had lots of flaws, it was still a lot of fun to play. This Hot Shots was the first Hot Shots that I finished. I unlocked EVERYTHING. I played this game everywhere I went and it is far and away the best game on the PSP for me. It is the measuring stick with how to do hand held golf games. It is everything Tiger Woods isn't. Hopefully we'll see Hot Shots 5 on some system soon.

Honorable Mention:

NCAA 2006 (Xbox)
MLB 2006 (PSP)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 06 (PC)


Footnote: I see College Hoops 2k6 is on everyone's list. The reason it's not on mine is I decided to hold off until the 360 version comes out. Hopefully it will be in stores on 1/2/06.

[Leebo33]

My top 3 in contention for GOTY (all Xbox):

1. College Hoops 2K6 - I need more time with it, but it appears as if they've nailed everything I ever wanted in a basketball game...good AI, fastbreaks, "Drive" camera, CPU 3 pointers, plenty of fouls, good controls, great presentation, errant passes, good ball physics, differences in team play style and skill level, online play, deep dynasty mode, etc. This is what I've been waiting for since I first fell in love with the 2K1 engine. There have been a lot of disappointments in the series, but it was worth the wait. As long as I don't need to boil my disk, it should be my GOTY.

2. Madden NFL 06 - I love it. If it didn't have the stupid glitch it would probably be #1B. As is, it's probably a distant second.

3. NHL 2K6 - starting to fade a bit, but that's really due more to the fact that hockey is lower on my list of favorite sports than the others.

Honorable mention: MVP 2005, WE9 PSP, WE8i, and NBA 2K6

[EDiddy]

Any time one of these lists is created, and the current version of Wining Elevene is not metioned, something is wrong. Top 3, every year, easy call. Tiger Woods of video games.

1. MVP 05
2. WE

I really can not go three deep

[Leebo33]

Any time one of these lists is created, and the current version of Wining Elevene is not metioned, something is wrong.

The something in my book that is wrong is called the lack of online play. There's no excuse. It's impossible for me to give consideration to a game without online play. FIFA has been on XBL for 2 years now. Some of the other major franchises have been online for 4 or 5 years.

No online play="honorable mention." I could see cutting PSP games a break, but there's no way WE shouldn't be online for PS2/Xbox or both.

[EDiddy]

Ok, thats fair leebo. I would still put it in my list as I enjoy it so much more than any other sports sim out there. But I definitly undertand what you are saying.

[sportdan30]

1. NBA2K6 (360) - Just an unbelieveably enjoyable game to play. I haven't even played online nor I have a started a season. Can't wait to dive into both of those. By turning down "crash the boards" all the way, and turning "clutch factor" off, this game is pure bliss. Think I'll wait on CH for the 360. This game will no doubt keep my attention until 1/24/06.

2. MVP 05 - Even though I didn't get through an entire season, I never got bored playing this game. Unfortunately, kids and other activities took precedence. I'm sad to see EA lose the rights to the MLB license as much as much as I'm bummed that the 2K series lost the NFL license. EA finally got it right with their baseball game.

3. NHL2K5- Great overall game. Unfortunately, because the 360 was released fairly close to when NHL2K5 released, I never really put in enough time with the game.

CH 2K6 (360) - I'm quite confident this game will leap frog both of the above mentioned games. But to release it at the end of January? That blows!

[Brando70]

No brainer for me. MVP 2005. Not only my favorite sports game this year, it's my favorite sports game of this generation of consoles. The pitching and fielding are unmatched, and the hitting model really grew on me the more I played it. The franchise was just average but didn't detract from my enjoyment of the game.

Runner up would be College Hoops 2k6. I haven't played it enough to really pick it apart, but I can just tell that this is the college basketball game I have wanted since NCAA Basketball for the SNES.

[pk500]

1. NHL 2K6 (Xbox)
2. Moto GP 3 (Xbox)
3. Winning Eleven 8 (Xbox)
4. MVP 2005 (Xbox)
5. NCAA 06 (Xbox)
6. Madden 06 (Xbox)
7. Colin McRae Rally 05 (Xbox)

NHL 2K6 wins by a wide margin for me. I've enjoyed it probably more than any sports game I've ever played. I'm easily in the triple digits in games played.

There's a pretty sizable gap between Moto GP 3 and Winning Eleven 8 for me. The top two stand alone, as they're the only games on this list that I still own, playing both quite often.

Like Leebo, WE 8 loses points with me due to its lack of online play. Plus the game is a victim of its brilliance. It's been so good for so long that every new edition just feels like the previous game with more refinements. That's not a bad thing, but I didn't get the "Holy f*ck, what a great new game with tons of improvements and new features!" feeling with WE 8 that I got with NHL 2K6 and Moto GP 3.

If Madden 06 didn't have the "giveaway glitch" on the Xbox, it would have slotted into the third spot for me.

MVP 2005 easily was the most improved game of the year. The 2004 version wasn't a bad game, but the 2005 version was the best total baseball package I've ever played. And to think EA made it!

It's funny: I rip EA as much as almost anyone in here -- don't worry, anchester and TRI, you're still the kings -- yet three of my top seven sports games of the year were made by the Princes of Darkness.

This has been an excellent year for sports gaming <b>refinement.</b> Every one of the games on my list is a sequel that was improved in some way, with tweaked gameplay, better graphics or more spit and polish.

But this was a lousy year for sports gaming <b>innovation.</b> I can't think of any sports games that were big risk-takers or innovative, and I can't think of a single truly innovative and/or daring feature such as First Person Football with NFL 2K5.

Although I enjoyed Forza when I picked it up again about six weeks ago, it remains the biggest disappointment of the year for me. It lacks a cockpit or hood cam, relies way too heavily on "money cars" in online racing and became an exercise in tedious car collecting offline. Maybe I expected too much or didn't understand the designers' intent, but I thought Forza would be more of a racing game. It is a Gran Turismo clone to the core, other than having an effective damage model unlike GT.

Forza is a tuner's wet dream, but like TCrouch, I would prefer to know that my driving won or lost a race instead of wondering if some dweeb beat me with his tuning skill. That's why games with minimal tuning and upgrades like TOCA 2 and Moto GP 3 kick major ass.

This is a great thread. And I've really enjoyed my sports gaming this year. But my overall game of the year is Operation Flashpoint: Elite for the Xbox, hands down. That game has gripped me by the balls like few I've ever played in the merry 20-plus years I've been involved in this hobby.

Take care,
PK

[Leebo33]

The only innovations I can really think of off the top of my head are the passing cone and 2K basketball shot stick.

[RobVarak]

1. WE-8, by a long, long, long shot. 15 seasons of Master League speaks to how much I enjoyed playing this one.

2. NBA2k6 (Xbox 360) I don't like the NBA...at all. But the gameplay is sublime and the graphics are jaw-dropping. Bonus points for being incredibly fun in franchise mode, especially with fantasy drafted squads, and avoiding bugs here as well.

3. NFL 2k5 Last year's offering was still better than this year's Madden IMO.

[fsquid]

NBA 2k6
PES 5 (PC)
Football Manager 2006 (PC)

Everyone knows what these games are about, so there you go.

[JRod]

1. NCAA 06 - The only game I'm playing right now. I started after getting so fed up with Madden. It's more fun to see how you do week by week then it is to play a season of Madden.

1. MVP 06 - My top two are a tie. MVP is the most complete baseball game ever made. It's doesn't have the complete High Heat gameplay but you could do a lot with the game and it would be fun. I will probably start to play this again sometime after football season.

3. Winning Eleven - Like PK said, they have a great gameplay model but do nothing with it. There's no league structure. No online play. And the game is not bringing any new ideas into the genre. The Nippon Challange needed to be a feature where you select any international team and play in your qualifying rounds so you play San Marino v Spain.

4. NHL 2k6 - great game but I'm not diging it as much as the top 3 games because hockey is not a sports priority for me.


Games that are good but I don't like them.
NBA and CH take that category. I feel the game is too random. I don't understand why some shots are missed and others aren't. I think the controls are sluggish in CH. Chaulk up my apathy for NBA 2k6 as not being a fan on pro Bball.

Ehh Games
Madden is a good game but needs new life into it. Does the 360 and next gen consoles do that? We'll have to wait until next year to find out if Madden takes the next step.

[lexbur]

1. GT4.

I realize this choice destroys any remaining shreds of credibility I have here as a game critic, but if time spent playing is the major criteria used in selecting GOTY, GT4 gets it by a long shot for me. Heck, I spent more time just completing those 34 driving missions alone than I spent with any other game.

PK’s comment about Forza being a tuner’s wet dream, and how he and TCrouch would prefer to know that driving skill won or lost a race is EXACTLY why those 34 driving missions and the “Super” license tests are pretty much the only part of GT4 that interests me. They give you a car, a track, and a mission. It’s up to nothing but your driving skill to complete them.

GT4 really shines as a “driving game”, not a “racing” game, and they give you way more things to do driving-wise (challenges, time trials, license tests) than Forza or TOCA. I’m starting to give up on ever finding a racing game that racing against the AI is fun and challenging. TOCA and WoO have been my favorites in that department so far, but those still aren’t as satisfying to me as getting a gold medal in a “Super” license test or passing one of those D*MN driving missions.

I also agree with PK’s comment about this year being a lousy year for innovation and an excellent year for refinement. I think GT4 epitomizes that. There’s nothing innovative about it at all, still no damage, no online racing, and racing against the AI in the career mode is a total bore (which is why I’ll never get higher than 50% completion of the game).

But I feel it’s been refined quite a bit. The most noticeable refinements being the slider that adjusts the difficulty in the arcade races (great for when you just have a little time to kill and want a quick racing fix), ALL THOSE TRACKS (I still have only been on some of them one or two times, they make every other racing game’s track selection seem skimpy), and those D*MN DRIVING MISSIONS! I can’t say enough about how fun and challenging those 34 driving missions are. I know they’re probably not everybody’s cup of tea, but to me, they were my crack while I was trying to complete them.


2. NHL 2K6


3. MVP 2005

[matthewk]

This is easy:

1. MVP 2005 (Xbox) - Now I have to get the PC version so I can play with classic and all-time teams

2. Moto GP3 (Xbox) - Haven't played it much lately, but it's still #2 in sports this year for me.

Other than those 2, the only other sports game I've played with any regularity the past 6 months has been NFL 2k5. I'd rank that #3 if you count last years game with roster tweaks.

Other than that, I've been fading away from sports game lately. A few great Star Wars games, X-Men legends, and Day of Reckoning 2 have taken up all of my gaming time since June.

I've done much less hopping from title to title every 2 weeks, and have instead focused on a couple of gems at a time. I still revisit Links and MX Superfly. Probably explains why I have no interest in a 360, although it is fun reading the stories of those hunting for them

[bdoughty]

TIE

1. NCAA 06 & College Hoops 2K6

This will go down as "the year" for fans of college games for the current generation. Factor in a college baseball game coming out in the spring and it is definately been a nice way to cap off being an Xbox owner.

2. ESPN NFL 2K5

Still the best current gen football game on the market. Since we have updated schedules and rosters I figure it should still get a vote.

3. Winning Eleven 8

[Dave]

1. Madden 06 (XBox) - LOVE the passing cone, have played this version more than any other. Not entirely sure why, maybe I've finally found some sliders that helped make it a more competitive single-player game than usual...but I have played this more than any other game lately. Still has some flaws that bother me though.

2. NHL 2k6 (XBox) - Plays a great game of hockey. Stopped playing it for a while since my season always locks up when I try to save it.

3. Moto GP3 (Xbox) - Challenging as hell for me. Controlling a motorcycle is so much different than a car, so I had to learn a new way to go (relatively) fast. An intense, engrossing handling model. We need another poker night for this one, soon.

I really need to check out the 2k6 hoops titles, obviously.

[fatheadX]

I haven't been gaming much lately, but these games were my favorite this year:

1) MVP 2005 (Xbox) - Solid all around, although I didn't get as far into my season as I wanted to.
2) Moto GP3 (Xbox) - I've always loved this series. The new tracks are fantastic.
3) Ridge Racer (PSP) - I probably played this more than anything this year.
4) MLB 2005 (PSP) - Decent game in need of some tweaks. Still a great portable game.

I didn't play a football or basketball game this year as the 2K5 games fill the need well enough for me right now. I can't tell if I've hit a lull or if I'm nearly out of this gaming hobby. I didn't even want a 360 until they became scarce. If I find one, I may buy it and see if that rekindles the gaming flame.

[ddtrane]

My choices for GOTY:

3. WE8. The first time I've actually enjoyed this sport besides the World Cup.

2. MLB 2006. Only the second baseball title I've ever liked with Konamis game on the PS1 being the first.

1a. and 1b. goes to NHL 2K6 and Burnout Revenge. NHL 2K6 is for me the most rewarding/exciting sports experience of recent memory. Burnout Revenge is videocrack for me, I can't seem to put this game down. Every time I finish a race I feel like I have to race again.

[Zeppo]

(No 360 game considered )

For me it has to be WE8, hands down. No other game, sports or otherwise, has the degree of freedom, unpredictability, soundness, or verisimilitude as this series. Each new entry to the series is a massive improvement over the last. The depth in the gameplay is simply unparalleled. What makes the game great is that the player is totally in control, thus ulitmately responsible for the gameplay style. Each user is almost playing a unique game. Every time I play, I not only see something I've never seen, I do something I've never done, and that's not happening in any other sports title. Online play would be great, but it's not something I can hold against it since this is the only sports game I can play v. CPU and never lose interest (I think due to both the depth in gameplay and control, and the depth and randomness in the AI, not to mention the enormous database of players including so many historical greats).

Plus, as far as I'm concerned, every sports game released now should have multi-Xbox multiplayer options, without question. They're all failures if you look at it from where I'm sitting.

Second would be MVP05. Last year's solid game, but fine tuned and with all the glitches fixed, plus online for the Xbox. Online play was not as balanced as I would have liked. The slight lag actually improved the pitching (in my mind, since it added more random screw-ups by the user), but made hitting something that took practice to get used to, keeping it from being a great pick up and play game. I couldn't tell you how many 1-0 extra inning games I played online. There's no question it's hard to hit. Just looking at all the aids given to the hitter reveals that, but I absolutely loved the hitting engine. Once I figured out what the hell was going on, it just got deeper and deeper.

Third I'd say Forza. That game delivered in nearly every area it sought to. Perhaps there was too much variety available in the cars and gameplay options for many to fiind exactly the experience they were looking for. Certainly the game was wide open, allowing you to do a ton of different things. Yes, online random games made most all classes one-horse races and this is a problem, but the possibilities were there for all sorts of user-made restrictions if you had the discipline. Ultimately a more sphisticated class system could still allow upgrades and variety in parts packages but maintain competitiveness across different car models. Sure, the one-horse race thing is not ideal, but how is it any different in Forza than any other racer? ToCA is all about 'everyone in the same car,' but at least Forza gives you the option of challenging yourself by upgrading and tuning up a unique car and trying to compete. Nothing made me as happy as those early days, seeing a room full of DSPers all in unique models with personally created paint jobs, and who knew what under the hood. I had a personal rule: never use the class 'super car.' It wasn't hard to do, and served me well.

The biggest faults in Forza for me were the ridiculously small field (only 8 on track, offline or online, wha. . .?) and less than stellar CPU Driver AI. Another huge fault was the screwed up race endings, with the :30 second rule, etc. That kind of stuff is inexcusable. Drivatar was an interesting idea, but it didn't seem to integrate too well into the overall game. Better that more creativity and energy have been put into CPU AI than the whole Drivatar thing. Kudos are in order, though, for using the Halo2 'optimum host' system. Every XBL game needs to do this.

But the underlying driving engine was solid as a rock, and immensely satisfying. The damage model was as good as I've seen on a console, including the tire degradation, though unfortunately it rarely had any impact, as the number of 'medium length' (1/2hr or so) or longer races I ran could be counted on Mordechai Brown's pitching hand. Still, it was great to have an Xbox racing game online where you had to pit due to tires and fuel, and the ones we did do online were pehnomenal. That 5-lapper at the 'ring remains a highlight of online gaming for me. The driving line aid is the best idea for a racing game in forever, allowing pick-up-and-play racers to be much more competitive. The library of cars was immense and full of variety. There should have been more circuits, especially real ones, but the fictional ones were very good.

I didn't race a lot against the CPU, and I got sick of random games after the DSP rooms got emptier and emptier. I still think a league like we did in ToCA would have been superb, although a big part of ToCA's draw was the relatively huge fields. But this game deserves to be top three for this year.

[Danimal]

MVP05 - May be the best sports game ever IMO

NCAA Football06 - Just a lot of fun, even with the glitches

Tiger Woods PC - Still the best golf game on the market.

CH2K6 will be there too, I just haven't had enough time with it yet to make that statement, I mean the game is a week old.

[dbdynsty25]

MVP '05 (Xbox)
NBA 2k6 (360)

[10spro]

WE9 (Import version) PS2

MVP 2005 (Xbox)

Hot Shots Golf (PSP)

NHL 2K6 and NCAA 06 (Xbox)