All this week, Gamervision’s writers will be listing their five favorite games of 2008. These aren’t necessarily the best games of the year, they’re the ones that made the biggest impression on us, kept us coming back the longest, and most affected the way we think of, see and play games. These are the titles that will influence what we play and how we view the gaming landscape over the coming year and beyond.

Make sure to check us out next week when we announce our “Best Ever of 2008 Awards,” where we name our picks for the best in every genre in gaming, along with a few superlatives for other achievements in gaming. It all leads up to our presentation of our “Game of the Year” on January 2, so keep checking back with us for our assessment of the best of the year in gaming.

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It needs to be said that choosing my five favorite games this year was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Last December, when all of the dust had settled from the plethora of triple-A holiday season releases, I thought that there was no way this year could possibly top 2007, but it has. In fact, it’s put 2007 to shame. Also, because this was my first full year working for Gamervision, I played through more games this year than any other twelve-month period in my life—and I already played a lot of games before. As a result, trying to narrow down my favorites to five top picks was quite difficult. It pained me not to put games like Grand Theft Auto IV, The World Ends With You, and Professor Layton on this list, but the more I thought about it, the more the following five games stood out above all others.

These games are not perfect, although they’re pretty damn close. I picked them, and love them, because of the unique experiences that they offer. All of them are incredibly different. Some I expected, some came as a surprise. The one thing these games have in common is that I will continue to enjoy them even after the year is over. Presented in no particular order, because attempting to do that would probably make my head explode, here are my five favorite games of 2008.

Persona 4

It will probably come as no surprise to anyone who pays attention that this game is on my list. As far as role-playing games go, this one is damn near perfect. Who would have thought that I would still be playing my PS2 in 2008? Atlus did, because they truly delivered on this follow-up to my personal favorite game of 2007, Persona 3. I never expected Persona 4 to live up to the previous game in the series, but it surpassed expectations in every way. With a fantastic story, an improved battle system, relatable characters, and unique time management responsibilities, this is absolutely an RPG experience like no other.

LittleBigPlanet

I know that this game isn’t perfect. With a last-minute delay, server issues, and outrage over “moderated” (read: deleted) user-created levels, there has been plenty of bad press surrounding this PS3 exclusive over the last couple of months. As a reviewer, I have been able to recognize LittleBigPlanet’s flaws. As a gamer, however, I just don’t care, because there is so much to love about this game. I’ve gone through the main story both solo and with others in a quest to collect as many items as possible, while introducing this wonderful game to my friends and family. Many of the user-created levels are stellar and highly enjoyable, and I’ve also finally started spending some time with the level creator. It may not be the highest-rated game of 2008, but it is probably the one I will continue to play the most consistently for the foreseeable future.

Left 4 Dead

Move from Point A to Point B, shoot lots of zombies while doing so. Okay, yes, the concept is delightfully simple, but so what? That hasn’t stopped Left 4 Dead from being one of the most enjoyable games of the year. There’s nothing like trying to survive a campaign while making sure your teammates do the same, especially with the infected swarming you at every turn. It’s been a while since I felt the kind of spine-tingling fear that occurs when someone whispers, “There’s a witch right behind you!” While I do wish there were more maps available in Versus mode, I have somehow managed to not get sick of any of the campaigns thus far. I normally don’t enjoy games that put more emphasis on multiplayer than single-player, but I had to make an exception for Left 4 Dead. I hope that everyone will be playing this into ‘09, because I don’t feel like I’m anywhere near done with it. I’ll try to control my friendly fire from now on, okay?

Braid

I had no idea what to expect from this game. Early word of mouth was good, so I decided to give the demo a try. Almost immediately, I loved the game to pieces, and I ran out to buy Microsoft Points so that I could buy the full version--$15 price tag be damned. Braid became an obsession not just for me, but for the entire Gamervision office this summer. It was severely challenging and beautifully presented, both graphically and music-wise. For me, there was nothing like the satisfaction of collecting every single puzzle piece on my own; it made me feel like a genius. Even after beating the game, the time trials became a worthy adversary; Mikeyraw and I used to run through level after level together here at Gamervision HQ, and became a great team when trying to figure out how to beat the seemingly impossible times. It may be a shorter game than any of the others on this list, but it has made a lasting impression.

Fable II

A year ago, I didn’t even believe that this game would make it out in 2008. Over the last twelve months, as Fable II got closer and closer to completion, I listened to Peter Molyneux’s drunken promises with cautious optimism. Yes, the man was known for his embellishment of the facts, but I was a huge fan of the first Fable and had high hopes for the sequel. Shockingly enough, Fable II was released in October of this year, and even more surprisingly, Peter Molyneux and Lionhead Studios have actually delivered in a big way. There is so much going on at all times in Fable II that it’s almost overwhelming. I love exploring the world, the leveling system, taking odd jobs to make some gold, and making one poor marriage decision after another (including wedding a rich lesbian in hopes of getting a large dowry, only to get next to nothing and shack up in a broken-down hovel). While the main storyline may be on the short side, doing everything that I want to do in this game will probably keep me playing into 2009.

The Gamervision writing staff's top favorite games will continue tomorrow with Coop's picks, so make sure to stop back in between unwrapping presents and guzzling eggnog!

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