Spike TV made an effort to recognize the game industry with the first annual Spike TV Video Game Awards. Unfortunately, though the production was admirable, it was impossible to take them seriously. The categories didn't make much sense, and some of the selections left me wondering if there were any gamers at all among the judges. Call of Duty wins "Best First-Person Action Game," yet Halo is awarded "Best PC Game?" Are they trying to spread the awards around evenly or something? And, if you ask me, it's a travesty that Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball won any award except "most adolescent game concept to reach store shelves." To say nothing of categories like "Most Addictive Game" and "Most Anticipated Game," which are patently ludicrous. One of the few categories that made some sense was "Best Online Game," which went to Final Fantasy XI.
I would love to see a more discerning award show for games start up, but in the meantime, sites like GameSpy and GameSpot remain about the most credible judges of video games around. Some of the winners in 2003 included Project Gotham Racing 2 (Xbox), which GameSpy chose as their "Multiplayer Game of the Year," and WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne (PC), GameSpot's selection for a similar category. Curiously, none of last year's MMOGs fared very well in the multiplayer categories, failing to make even the runner-up list on either site.
One game that did make it to the multiplayer finals on both sites is Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. I certainly haven't played every multiplayer game (and expansion pack) that came out in 2003, but ET would be my personal choice for the distinction. It's an exceptionally polished game packed with innovative features and great maps at the unheard of price of - free! I think we will see a number of commercial projects in the future that borrow ideas, such as the experience system, from Enemy Territory. To top it off, it's a mod-friendly game that is likely to be kept alive by the community for quite some time.
So, all costs aside, which of the multiplayer games released this year was the most fun? Again, not having played anywhere near all of them, I would have to say PlanetSide, but only by the narrowest margin. Despite a host of very nearly crippling technical issues and a price that I don't think many gamers are willing to pay, when it's running smoothly it is an incredibly compelling and immersive multiplayer experience.
Naturally, every gamer has their own preferences. Polls show that census often goes against the picks of the so-called experts, so drop by the forum give us your pick for Game of the Year!
