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GameSpot Q&A: What's Your Favorite Moment From a Game This Year?
Welcome back to GameSpot Q&A a section where we ask our staff and readers an interesting discussion question about video games. Look at this as a forum where you and others can discuss and compare your opinions of this beloved hobby of ours. Let us know what your answer is to this week's question in the comments below!
This week's question is:
What's your favorite moment/part from a game this year?
While we were forming our opinions for this year's best games, we began to think about what our favorite moments from them were, like our favorite mission, boss fight, chapter, etc. With so many fantastic experiences out there, there were numerous instances that enthralled not only us, but countless other gamers out there. But if you had to choose one, be it narrative or mechanically driven, what was your favorite moment? Below is some of our top choices. *Potential Spoilers Below*
Undertale | Rob Crossley, Editor
Undertale. I honestly thought that by the end of the year I would be extolling the virtues of nothing but Metal Gear, and yet my favorite moment of 2015 comes from a game that I hadn't even heard of when it shipped. Undertale is the funniest game I've ever played (and yes that includes The Secret of Monkey Island,) making genuinely excellent wisecracks and subverting your expectations with some deliriously absurd contraptions. One moment features a showdown with The Great Papyrus; he is essentially the David Brent of antagonist quizmasters, frequently dumbfounded when you solve his ridiculously simple puzzles. So when he decides to devise the hardest riddle he can muster, you are presented with a grid so complex that it is outright impossible to complete in time. Below is a video explaining its rules:
It is such a wonderfully childish creation of difficulty, so amateurish and inelegant, that it's funny just to see the absurdity of it all. That's not my favourite moment of 2015 though. My favourite moment occurs several hours later, when you are being tortured by this deranged, invincible killer robot called Mettaton, when you have to play the puzzle for real. I've not laughed that hard playing a game before.
Evolve | Chris Watters, Host/Producer
I like multiplayer games, and I like winning. There were countless times when I shouted in glee over a sweet Rocket League goal, or pumped my fist victoriously after outsmarting an opponent in Rainbow Six Siege. But there's only one game that made me leap out of my seat, stomp around the room, and roar triumphantly at the top of my lungs: Evolve. Playing as the monster and tearing apart a talented team of four opponents is a beautiful, bestial thrill, one that topped the charts for me this year.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain | Peter Brown, Senior Reviews Editor
I initially chose Quiet as my buddy in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain because of her tactical potential. However, there came a time when I realized her true value: companionship. Quiet's soothing hum during tense missions gave me solace when I needed it the most, and it wasn't until I swapped her out for another buddy that I realized how attached to her I'd become. This was a pivotal moment that redefined how I felt about Quiet's character, and the game in general; while its big events made an impact, it's a great game because of the smaller touches that tie everything together.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (2015)Rainbow Six Siege | Aaron Sampson, Senior Producer
Only one shooter got my heart racing this year and that was Rainbow Six Siege. The best moment was the first time I put my back to a wall, thinking I was covered, but then the wall disintegrated behind me. It hasn't since been Battlefield: Bad Company 2 that I've seen a destruction system so dedicated to making players feel unsafe at all times. Siege is a thinking gamer's shooter, and when you find yourself in a 1v3 scenario with your team shouting in your ear, nothing feels quite like it.
Star Wars: Battlefront | Eddie Makuch
Star Wars Battlefront is my favorite game this year. It expertly captures the feeling and tone of the Star Wars universe, and I've enjoyed the many hours I've logged so far. The DICE-developed shooter has also provided me with my favorite moment in gaming this year: taking down an AT-AT. There is something special about working together with your Rebel teammates to push back approaching Imperials and eventually, if you've performed well enough, call in airships and take down the hulking combat walker down. It's a great feeling.
Star Wars Battlefront (2015)Bloodborne | Mike Mahardy, Editor
Bloodborne is full of infuriating, exhilarating, soul crushing, rewarding moments. But my favorite was that last swing it took to bring down the Blood Starved Beast. For whatever reason, this boss gave me more trouble than any other opponent in that hellish Victorian landscape. Maybe it was the monster's poison damage, or its the sweeping, enigmatic attacks--for whatever reason, it took me about 15 tries to bring it down. But once I did, I felt that unique rush that can only come from a Miyazaki game.
Rocket League | Justin Haywald, Senior News Editor
I can't choose just one moment from 2015. That's not because there are too many amazing games (which is also true) it's because my favorite moments from one specific game have blended together into an abstract of excitement, tension, and joy: scoring a goal in Rocket League. Rocket League might be a dark horse in a year filled with amazing AAA titles, but this game distills the experience of competitive sports down to an impenetrable core. Like the best games, Rocket League is deceptively simple on its surface: you drive around and hit a ball into a goal. But the amount of control you have both on the ground and when doing crazy aerial stunts means that you can still feel like a novice after playing hours and hours of matches. Coordinating an attack pattern and scoring a goal with teammates, especially when they're friends and in the same room with you, has provided me with the greatest highs over and over again this year. Whether you're the person setting up a precision pass to help out with a game-winning goal, or soaring over your opponents to steal the ball away and knock it into the goal in the match's last seconds, Rocket League caused me to erupt out of my chair with a violent cheer normally reserved for Warriors basketball games. Those are memories that will go far beyond 2015.
Rocket League (2015)Tales of the Borderlands | Scott Butterworth, Editor
[Tales from the Borderlands spoilers] 2015’s most memorable gun battle featured no guns at all. Instead, combatants came armed only with their fingers and a healthy supply of silly, tongue-in-cheek satire. I’m talking, of course, about the legendary Hyperion finger gun battle from episode four of Tales from the Borderlands. I deeply admire Telltale’s unflinching commitment to a joke that could have easily backfired, so as much as I love the hard-hitting emotional moments of Metal Gear Solid V and the unbeatable exhilaration of tense Rocket League matches, I have to commend Tales for blindsiding me with an unexpected yet utterly hilarious moment.
More...
This week's question is:
What's your favorite moment/part from a game this year?
While we were forming our opinions for this year's best games, we began to think about what our favorite moments from them were, like our favorite mission, boss fight, chapter, etc. With so many fantastic experiences out there, there were numerous instances that enthralled not only us, but countless other gamers out there. But if you had to choose one, be it narrative or mechanically driven, what was your favorite moment? Below is some of our top choices. *Potential Spoilers Below*
Undertale | Rob Crossley, Editor
Undertale. I honestly thought that by the end of the year I would be extolling the virtues of nothing but Metal Gear, and yet my favorite moment of 2015 comes from a game that I hadn't even heard of when it shipped. Undertale is the funniest game I've ever played (and yes that includes The Secret of Monkey Island,) making genuinely excellent wisecracks and subverting your expectations with some deliriously absurd contraptions. One moment features a showdown with The Great Papyrus; he is essentially the David Brent of antagonist quizmasters, frequently dumbfounded when you solve his ridiculously simple puzzles. So when he decides to devise the hardest riddle he can muster, you are presented with a grid so complex that it is outright impossible to complete in time. Below is a video explaining its rules:
It is such a wonderfully childish creation of difficulty, so amateurish and inelegant, that it's funny just to see the absurdity of it all. That's not my favourite moment of 2015 though. My favourite moment occurs several hours later, when you are being tortured by this deranged, invincible killer robot called Mettaton, when you have to play the puzzle for real. I've not laughed that hard playing a game before.
Evolve | Chris Watters, Host/Producer
I like multiplayer games, and I like winning. There were countless times when I shouted in glee over a sweet Rocket League goal, or pumped my fist victoriously after outsmarting an opponent in Rainbow Six Siege. But there's only one game that made me leap out of my seat, stomp around the room, and roar triumphantly at the top of my lungs: Evolve. Playing as the monster and tearing apart a talented team of four opponents is a beautiful, bestial thrill, one that topped the charts for me this year.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain | Peter Brown, Senior Reviews Editor
I initially chose Quiet as my buddy in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain because of her tactical potential. However, there came a time when I realized her true value: companionship. Quiet's soothing hum during tense missions gave me solace when I needed it the most, and it wasn't until I swapped her out for another buddy that I realized how attached to her I'd become. This was a pivotal moment that redefined how I felt about Quiet's character, and the game in general; while its big events made an impact, it's a great game because of the smaller touches that tie everything together.
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (2015)Rainbow Six Siege | Aaron Sampson, Senior Producer
Only one shooter got my heart racing this year and that was Rainbow Six Siege. The best moment was the first time I put my back to a wall, thinking I was covered, but then the wall disintegrated behind me. It hasn't since been Battlefield: Bad Company 2 that I've seen a destruction system so dedicated to making players feel unsafe at all times. Siege is a thinking gamer's shooter, and when you find yourself in a 1v3 scenario with your team shouting in your ear, nothing feels quite like it.
Star Wars: Battlefront | Eddie Makuch
Star Wars Battlefront is my favorite game this year. It expertly captures the feeling and tone of the Star Wars universe, and I've enjoyed the many hours I've logged so far. The DICE-developed shooter has also provided me with my favorite moment in gaming this year: taking down an AT-AT. There is something special about working together with your Rebel teammates to push back approaching Imperials and eventually, if you've performed well enough, call in airships and take down the hulking combat walker down. It's a great feeling.
Star Wars Battlefront (2015)Bloodborne | Mike Mahardy, Editor
Bloodborne is full of infuriating, exhilarating, soul crushing, rewarding moments. But my favorite was that last swing it took to bring down the Blood Starved Beast. For whatever reason, this boss gave me more trouble than any other opponent in that hellish Victorian landscape. Maybe it was the monster's poison damage, or its the sweeping, enigmatic attacks--for whatever reason, it took me about 15 tries to bring it down. But once I did, I felt that unique rush that can only come from a Miyazaki game.
Rocket League | Justin Haywald, Senior News Editor
I can't choose just one moment from 2015. That's not because there are too many amazing games (which is also true) it's because my favorite moments from one specific game have blended together into an abstract of excitement, tension, and joy: scoring a goal in Rocket League. Rocket League might be a dark horse in a year filled with amazing AAA titles, but this game distills the experience of competitive sports down to an impenetrable core. Like the best games, Rocket League is deceptively simple on its surface: you drive around and hit a ball into a goal. But the amount of control you have both on the ground and when doing crazy aerial stunts means that you can still feel like a novice after playing hours and hours of matches. Coordinating an attack pattern and scoring a goal with teammates, especially when they're friends and in the same room with you, has provided me with the greatest highs over and over again this year. Whether you're the person setting up a precision pass to help out with a game-winning goal, or soaring over your opponents to steal the ball away and knock it into the goal in the match's last seconds, Rocket League caused me to erupt out of my chair with a violent cheer normally reserved for Warriors basketball games. Those are memories that will go far beyond 2015.
Rocket League (2015)Tales of the Borderlands | Scott Butterworth, Editor
[Tales from the Borderlands spoilers] 2015’s most memorable gun battle featured no guns at all. Instead, combatants came armed only with their fingers and a healthy supply of silly, tongue-in-cheek satire. I’m talking, of course, about the legendary Hyperion finger gun battle from episode four of Tales from the Borderlands. I deeply admire Telltale’s unflinching commitment to a joke that could have easily backfired, so as much as I love the hard-hitting emotional moments of Metal Gear Solid V and the unbeatable exhilaration of tense Rocket League matches, I have to commend Tales for blindsiding me with an unexpected yet utterly hilarious moment.
More...