Circuit Jerk

So here it is, the moment of truth begins. Neil said to me, “Dan, don’t be a pussy. We didn’t create this site to have ties.” Instead of a top 10, we ended up with a top 14. I’ve always been a fan of multiples of seven, so here we go.

14. Brutal Legend: Yep, I said it; my #1 this year is Brutal Legend.  I could have put Modern Warfare 2 or Left 4 Dead 2 or any other 2 here… but that’s just it, Brutal Legend doesn’t have a “2” behind it.  Brutal Legend is an amazing and original IP.  It is very imaginative and really captures the “feel” of Metal and Rock music. -Andy

13. Beatles Rock Band: I hate Metallica… The Rock Bands and Guitar Heroes of the gaming world are losing me, but the Beatles: Rock Band had me break out the Les Pauls. -James

12. Dragon Age: Origins: I have a thing for Bioware and there’s little doubt to that. They know how to make a RPG that catches breaths life into the world they’ve created. Though I heard complaints about the 360 version, the PC version of Dragon Age plays as a more complex KOTOR set in a fantasy world worthy of Tolkien’s pen. -Brett

11. The Saboteur: Pandemic’s death rattle was one to be proud of. They had always been criticized for making games that were almost good enough to be considered triple A. The Saboteur fixed all that was wrong about Mercenaries 2 and put a badass, clever Irishman at the helm harking back to the Duke Nukem days. I fully expected Sean to say, “I’m going to kill Nazis and chew bubblegum, but I’m all out of gum.” -Dan

Best Couch Game: Borderlands barely beat out Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2, but where else have you played a seamless splitscreen game. More than that, where else have you played a splitscreen game where both players can go to opposite sides of the map and work on two different missions.

This goes without saying. -James

Best use of an MA rating: Brutal Legend would not have been the same game if the cursing and gore were toned down. Most games can get away with turning blood green and straying away from F-bombs, but a game about Metal just couldn’t do it.

“DECAPITATIOOOOOOONNNNNN” -Andy

Over the Top Character: Soap McTavish prooved himself over and over again as the only person who can hang with Captain Price, but then he has to turn the level up to 11 by being a complete badass with a disregard for the impossible.

“With his new fauxhawk, he rules.” -Robert

Best use of a new weapon: The double blades in Assassin’s Creed 2. They might not have as fun of an effect as the Corrosive guns from Borderlands, but they are a hell of a lot more functional in the business of killing fools.

“Two blades through the eye hole, and suckers have bleeding brains.” -Dan

Worst/Most Useless Peripheral: Almost unanimously, Wii-motion Plus was picked for most useless peripheral. Not because functionality wise its useless, but because we don’t know why they can’t just build it into controllers.

“I have to pay $80 (Remote $40 + Nunchuck $20 +Motion Plus $20) to get a complete working controller for the Wii and we need four of each.” -Andy

Best Downloadable Game: Battlefield 1943 was a cold glass of lemonade in the dry dessert that is summer gaming.

“A Better Online Experience than MW2 and it only cost me $5.” -James G