PC Gamer Top 100 Game Awards 2005

[ade_mcc 0]

This is the top 100 games as selected by the writers of PCGamer (UK). I think given the caliber of games further down this list, OFP has done extrordinarily well to do this well. Congratulations BIS and all persons associated.

1 Half life 2

2 Rome Total War

3 World of Warcraft

4 Deus Ex

5 GTA: San Andreas

6 Battlefield 2

7 Thief: Deadly Shadows

8 Planetscape Torment

9 Knights of the old republic

10 The Sims 2

11 Balders Gate 2

12 System Shock 2

13 Call of Duty

14 Rise of nations

15 Guild Wars

16 Quake 3 Arena

17 Counter Strike Source

18 Warcraft 3

19 City of Heros

20 Day of the Tentacle

21 Darwinia

22 Far Cry

23 Operation Flashpoint: CWC

Last year #22

Blurb:

Flashpoint is more of a soldier sim than a soldier game, but that doesn't make it any less loveable. With the campaigns finished long ago (including the nortoriously difficult Resistance), PC Gamer's attention has switched to the brilliant on-line co-operative mode, where teams of 4 or 5 work together to complete the vast archives of missions provided by the mod community. This is a game where half the fun comes from crawling through bushes for hours at a time, slowly working your way to the perfect sniper spot.

24 Civilisation 2

25 Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

26 IL-2 Sturmovik Forgotten Battles

27 Splinter Cel: Chaos Theory

28 UT2004

29 Elde Scrolls: Morrowind

30 Tie Fighter

31 Grim Fandango

32 Brothers In Arms

33 Prince of Peria: The Sands of Time

34 Ultima Underworld 2

35 Pro Evolution Soccer 4

36 Combat Mission Africa Korps

37 Football Manager 2005

28 Eve Online

39 Sacrifice

40 Max Payne

41 Ultima VII: The Black Gate

42 Doom 2

43 Halo

44 Trackmania Sunrise

45 Total Annihilation

46 Sam and Max Hit the Road

47 Silent Hunter 3

48 Freespace 2

49 Beyond Good and Evil

50 Monkey Island 2

51 Psychonauts

52 GTR

53 UFO: Enenmy Unknown

54 The Longest journey

55 Fallout 2

56 Homeworld 2

57 Outcast

58 Giants: Citizen Kabuto

59 Swat 4

60 Elite+

61 Diablo 2

62 No-one lives forwever 2

63 Syndicate

64 Neverwinter Nights

65 Perimeter

66 Mafia: City of Lost Heven

67 Starcraft

68 Hidden & Dangerous

69 Rollercoaster Tycoon 3

70 Hostile Waters

71 Grandprix Legends

72 Simcity 2000

73 Deus Ex : Invisible War

74 Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith

75 Duke Nukem 3D

76 Freedom Force Vs The Third Reich

77 Ground Control: Dark Connspircy

78 Serious Sam

79 Alien vs Preditor

80 Need for speed : underground

81 Battlezone

82 Mutant Storm

83 Cronicals of Riddick

84 Tempest 2000

85 Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines

86 Anachronox

87 Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004

88 Commandos 2

89 Midtown Madness

90 Hitman 2

91 Startopia

92 Uplink

93 Alien Swarm

94 Mr Driller

95 Ancorhead

96 Worms 2

97 Boiling Point

98 ZangbandTK

99 N

100 Doom 3

[Gadger 0]

Battlefield 2 # 6, sigh.

[EiZei 0]

.. or Quake 3 and Half-life 2 #1.

[hellfish6 7]

I think it's a bit unfair to rank games so highly that have only been out for a couple of months, like BF2, GTA:SA, etc. I think there should at least be a year's buffer between games on the list and their release date to see if the game stands the test of time.

It's possible that HL2 or GTA:SA or BF2 will be completely forgotten in another couple of months. Likewise, it's hard to separate hype from quality at this point.

That said, I think OFP did very, very well.

[Colossus 2]

Congrats. But I think ArmA or/and "Game 2" will take first place next time they give out a Top 100 Game Awards

And what the heck is this? Swat 4 is ranked better then Mafia??!

AIs in SWAT 4  is more stupid then the guys at SWAT 3, they can't do sh*t

This list is rubbish, nothing is right here. I mean, Boiling Point

before Doom 3? Do they know how buggy Boiling Point is?

[hellfish6 7]

I think Boiling Point, despite it's faults, is a brilliant game. I can see why they'd rate it higher than Doom 3, which is essentially Doom 1 with better graphics. Doom 2 did pretty good, though.

I'm very happy to see Close Combat: First to Fight and Full Spectrum Warrior aren't on that list. Both games were abysmal, IMHO.

[TabloMaxos 0]

Quote[/b] ]55 Fallout 2

F A L L O U T 2 in top games of 2005!!!

We need F3 right here right now.

[Albert Schweitzer 10]

Doom 3 at #100? actually I think the list cant be long enough to put it at the end.

[oyman 0]

Starcraft at #67 its like 10 years old

it is a good game though

[ade_mcc 0]

The rules, just in-case some of the inclusions/exclusions look a bit fishy.

Taken directly from the mag:

1 - The annual Top100 is the work of the collective will of the staff of PC Gamer magazine. It does not reflect one writers taste - its an amalgamation of their opinions. The top 5 games of each writer are listed elsewhere.

2 - All games are measured against the standars of their peers. The PC is an evolving medium, where new technology enables new experiances. Unfortunatly, games do date - and simple nostalger is no reason to keep a game in the chart. Games that are not worth playing today are dropped infavour of those that are.

3 - Games have to provide the same fun today as they did when we first enjoyed them. This rule is especially important for Massivly Multiplayer online games. This year we removed Planetside from the chart entirely, from the lofty position of number 14. Changes made by the developer, and a declining audience, prevent us from engaging in the same wide-scale battles that we loved two years ago.

4 - Sequels usually trump the original game, unless the jury agrees that the original is superior, or different enough to be included seperatly. Doom 3 is considerably different enough from Doom 2 to make it into the chart. Doom is very similar to Doom 2 and is therefore superceeded by the its sequal.

5 - This year we've allowed a group of mods and freeware games to enter our chart. The PC Gamer collective considers these works of user-created entertainment as worth of consideration in their own right, This has ment a drop in position for games that in the past have relied on their own range of mods and add-ons to propel themselves into the higher reaches of the chart.

-----

As mentioned above, the top 5 game of each of the 8 writers is also listed. One writer puts OFP at #5 whilst another puts it #3.

[EiZei 0]

Starcraft at #67 its like 10 years old

it is a good game though

You'd be surprised how popular it still is, especially in S. Korea where it got almost scary at one point.

Wonder why blizzard is not making a sequel, would be a foolproof cash cow.

[ade_mcc 0]

Knackers - Ive just found the entire list in full on the cover DVD. That would have saved me all this typing!!!!

Oh well, it does come with the list of games dropped from last years 100, copied and pasted below and UK readers may be interested that the OFP demo v1.42 is included on the disk. As is Battlefield 2 which I will play with tonight, purely for research you understand. I will not be drawn to the dark side I promise!

What we have learn't from all this:

1 - PCGamer love OFP

2 - PCGamer are really anticipating AA + Game 2 too

3 - PCGamer aren't afraid to promote OFP. The 2001 demo on the current disk and FDF mod twice in the last 6 months.

Right, off now to their forums (I post there infrequently) to say hello and to see if they will think about putting ECP etc on their disks.

---

The Top 100 discussion began with the ritual culling of the fat from last years chart.

Game Previous Position

Oasis 100

Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 99

Tron 2.0 97

Colin McRae Rally 4 96

FIFA 95

Delta Force: Black Hawk Down 94

Age of Wonders 2: Shadow Magic 91

Mechwarrior: Mercenaries 89

Broken Sword 3: The Sleeping Dragon 84

Star Wars: Galaxies 82

Rainbow Six: Raven Shield 78

MDK 76

Toca Race Driver 2 75

C&C: Generals 64

Full Throttle 60

Jedi Knight 51

Enemy Territory 49

Commandos 2 48

Laser Squad Nemesis 44

Championship Manager 36

Planetside 14

[DracoPaladore 0]

This list is rubbish,

I disagree. Except for the poor location of OFP and the poor location of Swat 4, I think the list overall is quite fair and well rounded (meaning, while shooters are in the top, so are STR and RPG). The balance is there. But remember, the list is a balance of a staff-rooms mixture of opinions, tastes, and what the new flavour is out there. Newer games are most likely going to take tops for a while, mainly because they'll get more attention and everyone plays them. Can't argue with age, Day of the Tentacle is in the top twenty. I want to try it now, now that everyone in every magazien so far has pretty much stuck it in their top 100 lists and usually within the last 30 mark.

Glad to see Vampire: Bloodlines got in there. I'm playing it still, but it's tough. I tried playing a Nosfuratu. My lord, talk about ugly with legs. Any problems you have with your bodily appearence will most likely vanish when your eyes grace over that hideous thing. It's too bad that loading times are a pain in the ass, though. Game is really creepy too. There are some points where the game can be as tense as Doom 3. Right now I have to fight some wierd arse vampirish dude in the basement of this overly disgusting fleshy horror house.

I think Doom 3 should have made higher, though. Despite a few downfalls, I enjoyed it quite a bit and with the new content coming out from the community it's better. The new SP pack you can download is quite cool too, as some of the missions in there are as good or even better than vanilla D3.

There are also a few more I wish got higher on the list, but there's really nothing to it. Overall these guys seem pretty balanced in new and old, as well as genre. Of course the newest fads are going to take tops for awhile, but I personally have no real problems as the two most hated games in this forum I have a general inclination to play quite a bit. Half Life 2 has so much more freedom than many realise. Ah, nothing more fun than creating your own personal movie of an army of Resistance taking the massive train bridge from an army of Combine.

But it's too bad OFP didn't take tops.

[Scorpio 0]

Hrm. Deus Ex 2 ain't in the list. In my opinion either that or the original Deus Ex is #1 of all time.

[.pablo. 0]

i'm surprised ofp got that high; i very much doubt that would've happened if it were a US mag.

Quote[/b] ]Wonder why blizzard is not making a sequel, would be a foolproof cash cow.

because blizzard doesn't make cash cows; they take their time and make sure the game is good. that's why everyone loves them, and its the same reason the ofp community loves BIS.

[The Frenchman 0]

The list has Half Life 2 but no Half Life! What the hell?! Half Life was much more revolutionary than Half Life 2. I would also rant about Marathon not making the list, but since Marathon is a Mac game, it would make sense not including it. A good percentage of the top 10 games are too new to be considered the best PC games ever. BF2 hardly(if at all) adds anything new to the market, and CSS is just CS(which didn't make the list) with less game types and maps with ok graphics.

And speaking of bs...

This is a ranking of overall games, not just PC ones.

OFP and Marathon arent even listed. Marathon added friendly AI and the ability to look up and down and they didn't even bother listing it. And don't get me started on HALO outranking Fallout and Mafia.

[DBR_ONIX 0]

http://www.blizzard.com/ghost/

Isn't that a sequel?

That list is a little.. flawed.. (IMHO..), BF2 isn't exactly an amazing game, and it's around GTA:SA, which is.. f***ing huge, if nothing else, it's a really well put together game, the story-line, and how it ties in the whole way though etc shouldn't be even near the "BF1942 : graphical shineyness release", and it's not like they we're the first to do shiney-things with graphics, HL2 or Doom 3 were the (most publicised probobly ).

- Ben

[ade_mcc 0]

Quote[/b] ]Hrm. Deus Ex 2 ain't in the list. In my opinion either that or the original Deus Ex is #1 of all time.

Yes it is - 73 Deus Ex : Invisible War

Quote[/b] ]The list has Half Life 2 but no Half Life! What the hell?! Half Life was much more revolutionary than Half Life 2.

I refer you to rule #4 - Sequels usually trump the original game, unless the jury agrees that the original is superior, or different enough to be included seperatly. Doom 3 is considerably different enough from Doom 2 to make it into the chart. Doom is very similar to Doom 2 and is therefore superceeded by the its sequal.

Not a bad list at all considering

[Scorpio 0]

Yes it is - 73 Deus Ex : Invisible War

Ahh yes, my bad. But at #73, they've got to be joking.

[DracoPaladore 0]

I refer you to rule #4 - Sequels usually trump the original game, unless the jury agrees that the original is superior, or different enough to be included seperatly.  Doom 3 is considerably different enough from Doom 2 to make it into the chart.  Doom is very similar to Doom 2 and is therefore superceeded by the its sequal.

Not a bad list at all considering

I think the basic idea is not pick a game for the amount of mods or massive community it has, but instead for the core original gameplay thatm ade it in the first place.

Half-Life was revolutionary in the aspect of Multiplayer and modifications. But, IMHO and probobly the Magazines, HL2 had a better single player than the original half life.

[ade_mcc 0]

In the defense of PCGamer, between them they have played every single game extensivly and sure, there will be a bit of bias here and there - we're all human after all.

As some one said in the PCGamer forums:

Quote[/b] ]It's PC Gamer's opinion, and if they think HL2 is the best game then they put it at the top of their Top 100; if you don't like it, vote in the Reader's Top 100.

We're biast, we love OFP but compared to HL, BF, Deus Ex we are a relativly small comunity. At yet OFP still did remarkably well.

Nuff said. Have a good weekend folks.

[oyman 0]

http://www.blizzard.com/ghost/

Isn't that a sequel?

i think thats just a standalone game, not starcraft 2

we need full 3d zerglings!

[USSRsniper 0]

26 IL-2 Sturmovik Forgotten Battles THIS IS GREATEST WW2 air combat simulator!!!

[Espectro (DayZ) 0]

Starcraft at #67 its like 10 years old

it is a good game though

Starcraft should be #1

IMHO, no RTS have come close to it yet... That its 10 years of age, is just another great archive...

I just checked battle.net, right now theres 143.000 players world wide, playing starcraft: brood war.

Wouldnt that be enough for #1?

//Edit

Ghost is a standalone 3d shoot em up for the xbox and ps2..the only thing it has in common with starcraft is the story behind it.

[Bordoy 0]

Congrats. But I think ArmA or/and "Game 2" will take first place next time they give out a Top 100 Game Awards

And what the heck is this? Swat 4 is ranked better then Mafia??!

AIs in SWAT 4  is more stupid then the guys at SWAT 3, they can't do sh*t

This list is rubbish, nothing is right here. I mean, Boiling Point

before Doom 3? Do they know how buggy Boiling Point is?

SWAT4 is a great game mate. I don't think they are supposed to shit