Concluding The Third Annual Coint and Plick Poll: ILG’s Best Video Games of 2009 - Part Four: #1 through #20

#1: Arkham Asylum – PS3/360 –189 pts – 13 votes – 3 Top Game Vote – Top PS3/360 Game – Most Points – Most Votes
Official Game Site

BNW: Very well done. Slightly overrated but still high quality and fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02utCE9AQB4

Metacritic

EZ Snappin: A good Batman game? Whodathunkit?

http://media.gamesource.it/gallery/xbox360/68301/BatmanArkhamAsylum-8287.jpg

Kevin Conroy discusses voicing Batman

Adam: Watching goons get progressively more freaked out as you take down their buddies one by one is pretty satisfying. Also the way that pushing the left stick all the way forward doesn't make Batman run--dude just walks… and very confidently so for a guy wearing a cape.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei2aYcsF7rA

MPX4A: Best thing I've done so far:
1. String thug up
2. Spray proximity-triggered explosive gel below thug
3. Wait for thug's buddy to notice and run towards him
4. Cut thug down with batarang onto explosives

Gay Gamer thoughts

Polyphonic: Fun game and certainly the best superhero game ever.

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2008/12/batman-arkham-asylum-dropdown-490px.jpg

MP3 of David Chen’s lively Harvard Media class on Arkham Asylum

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-D33XpzQsA

Arkham Asylum's Sophisticated Story

S1ocki: Not only a great game, but one that managed to incorporate the character's mythology in a way that surprised and impressed me. The flashback scenes were more artful and interesting storytelling than I'd ever seen in a video game, rivaling the Batman movies in their interpretation of the endlessly re-told tale of the Caped Crusader's origins, and—without giving too much away—at points using the familiar conventions of video gaming in really innovative ways. As I said about Uncharted 2, I'm skeptical of video games' ability to replace, or even mimic, cinematic storytelling, but this pointed to some interesting new directions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb8fWUUXeKM&hl=en_US

Arkham Asylum Slash

CraigG : I just found this game satisfying in pretty much every way. The story line was good without feeling the need to get overly complex, the fighting is really great and you get a warm glow when you manage to wipe out over ten guys without taking a single hit. The stealth sections, wiping out a room one by one, watching them panic… it’s all so satisfying. Everything is well balanced in terms of combat/stealth and I feel the only thing letting the game down IMHO are the boss battles, which are mostly only fun because they fill the fight with lots of fighting against regular grunts too. Overall, easily the best game I played all year.

http://ps3thevolution.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/batman_arkham_asylum.jpg

Forksclovetofu: Less groundbreaking and more that it just does everything perfectly right. I appreciate the ridiculous depth; it’s an adventure, button masher, stealth, puzzle hunter, fighting game jammed into one. Never really hits a slow point; I found it amazingly well balanced and engaging.

NYT Review with obligatory ‘Confederacy of Dunces’ reference

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8W2RdF5ifDU

Mordy: This is one of the best things I've played this year. I don't know if that's high praise for the game, tho, or just a good indication of how disappointing 2009 has been for gaming.

"There are 314 breakable TVs on Arkham Island."

Antexit: Arkham does some great stuff with the Batman story and there are some amazing Psycho Mantis-level mindfucks. Not only is it the first superhero game that makes you feel like you're the hero in his every aspect (as opposed to the Spidey games, which got swinging and crawling great and everything else sucks) but it's a better stealth game in a lot of ways than Metal Gear. I love how balanced the combat is! The bad guys seem to be able to take about as many hits as you, and you really get the sense that you're up against a room full of bad guys and the reason you come out on top is not that they're all really weak or that you have some artificial advantage but that they're a bunch of thugs and you're BATMAN.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osg3R0AURRo

Rocksteady Post Mortem

http://www.dasgamer.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/batman-arkham-asylum.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZafl__TXnQ

Jjjusten: This is 80% great, but drops in the ranks a little bit in retrospect for the fact that it's way too easy. The boss battles are the worst aspect of that; I would be remiss if I didn't mention that the Killer Croc level is, no joke, ONE OF THE DUMBEST AND WORST LEVELS IN MODERN GAMING. Whoever decided that replacing challenging or difficulty with easy, mindbending tedium needs to get a pink-slip. That said, when the game is on, it's on. Plus, it looks great... except everyone I talk to plays 90% of the game in detective mode, so we never actually see much of it.

http://elmundotech.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/highres_screenshot_00142_resize.jpg

I am about to play the Croc level and jjusten is harshin' on my mellow.

It's really not that bad. Or that lengthy.

great performance by a PS3 exclusive on a board that seems to have slightly more 360 owners

he's so right xxp

*FORKS APPLAUSE*

So some quick parting thoughts:

This project ended up being more of a handful than I thought (over 72 single spaced pages!) but gave me an idea of how broad the boundaries of the hobby have become. It also reinforced how impossible it is to keep up with what's out there; even in a wii/ps3/360/ps2/PC/DS/PSP household, you'd be forced to play each game on this list for only four days apiece to be done by 2011.

As for myself, I still want to play (or play more of) Scribblenauts, Henry Hatsworth, Uncharted 2, Way of the Samurai 3, A Boy and His Blob, Pixeljunk Shooter, Dragon Age Origins, Muramasa, Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes, Little King Story, Aaaaaaaa, Afrika, Wipeout HD, New Monkey Island, New Sam and Max, New Super Mario Brothers, 50 Cent: Blood in the Sand, Trine, Borderlands, Professor Layton, Red Faction Guerilla, Nostalgia, Fat Princess, Metroid Prime Trilogy... and that's just for starters! I've still got years-old games to play and more coming out every day.

This glut of options is why communities like ILG are so very helpful; speaking with real, quirky and opinionated folks about their tastes, decisions, purchases, frustrations and obsessions provides the editorial filter that 99% of gaming journalism doesn't. This, more than headshots and perfect combos, is what social gaming is really about for me.

Alright, now I'm gonna try to take back on Valkyria Chronicles.

v good show forks. one of the better done ilx polls for sure.

Post complete list for lazy poly

Thanks forks. Job well done and greatly appreciated.

top job.

Who voted dragon age as the #1 game. Because I think it should have been me... I wanted to see if my votes ever got sent. I might be having problems with ILX mail

then again I might have picked Spirit Tracks

great list Forks

ya good work forkinator.

cool poll -- really strange results to me, as all the difft systems really seem like different universes to me

yah "forkinator" thanks for doing this. it really is an... idiosyncratic list.

lampinator otm

the s1ockster

in tha house

forkinator x

casual gaming lurker here to say thanks, enjoyed following the list, already found a few interesting games to check out as a result of it - much appreciated

(my "systems" are basically PSP and flash games at this point, no consoles and PC too lame for hardcore gaming, so it's ALL an alien world to me!)

A+ jobs forks, thx!

my ballot

Demons Souls - 30
Mushihimesama Futari Ver 1.5 - 10
New Super Mario Brothers Wii - 10
Half Minute Hero - 10
Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes - 10
Style Savvy - 10

good job john!

15: Trials HD (360)
15: Demon's Souls (PS3)
12: Left 4 Dead 2 (360)
12: Rock Band: Beatles (360)
11: UnCharted 2 (PS3)
10: Prototype (360)
10: Arkham Asylum (360)
5: Punch-Out! Wii
5: Machinarium (PC)
5: Flower (PS3)

Demons Souls - 30
Mushihimesama Futari Ver 1.5 - 10
New Super Mario Brothers Wii - 10
Half Minute Hero - 10
Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes - 10
Style Savvy - 10

<3 <3 <3 <3

my ballot:

Borderlands - 25 (360)
Left 4 Dead 2 - 15 (360)
MadWorld - 15 (wii)
Arkham Asylum - 10 (360)
Ghostbusters - 10 (360)
House of the Dead: Overkill - 5 (wii)
Red Faction: Guerrilla - 5 (360)
Machinarium - 5 (mac)
50 Cent: Blood in the Sand - 5 (360)
1 vs 100 - 5 (360)

my ballot:

Assassin's Creed 2/PS3 (25 Points)
Dragon Age/PS3 (20 Points)
Pro Evolution Soccer 2009/Wii (10 Points)   
Prototype/PS3 (10 Points)
Arkham Asylum/PS3 (8 Points)
Wii Sports Resort/Wii (7 Points)
Skate 2/PS3 (5 Points)
NHL 10/PS3 (5 Points)
FIFA 10/PS3 (5 Points)
Metroid Prime Trilogy/Wii (5 Points)

my ballot. curious to know who shared votes with me on the jap stuff:

01 - 30 - blazblue: calamity trigger (arc system works; xbox360)
02 - 20 - dragon quest v: hand of the heavenly bride (square enix; nintendo ds)
03 - 10 - demons souls (from software; ps3)
04 - 08 - smt: devil survivor (atlus; nintendo ds)
05 - 07 - anon 1404 (related designs; pc)
06 - 05 - plants vs zombies (popcap; pc)
07 - 05 - muramasa: the demon blade (vanillaware; wii)
08 - 05 - suikoden tierkries (konami; nintendo ds)
09 - 05 - street figher iv (capcom; xbox360)
10 - 05 - virtual on: oratorio tangram 5.66 (sega; xbla)

Yeah forks, you are the man! thanks for putting in all this work for another year. These threads are really enjoyable.

Final list:
#93: Bomberman Ultra – PSN – 1 point – 1 vote
#92: HALO 3 ODST – 360 – 3 pts – 1 vote
#91: Colin McRae’s Dirt 2 – 360 – 4 pts – 1 vote
#77: Virtual On Oratorio Tangram 5.66 – XBLA – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: 50 Cent, Blood On The Sand – 360 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Rock Band – iPhone – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Red Faction: Guerilla – 360 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: House of the Dead: Overkill – Wii – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: PixelJunk Shooter – PSN – 5 points – 1 vote
#77: Muramasa: The Demon Blade – Wii – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2010 – Wii – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Forza Motorsport 3 – 360 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Critter Crunch – PSN – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Need For Speed: Shift – 360 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: DeathSmiles – 360 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: NHL 2010 – PS3 – 5 pts – 1 vote
#77: Droplitz - XBLA – 5 pts – 1 vote
#75: Way of the Samurai 3 – PS3 - 7 pts – 1 vote
#75: Anno 1404 / Dawn of Discovery – PC – 7 pts – 1 vote
#72: Madden ’10 – PS3 – 8 pts – 1 vote
#72: Infamous – PS3 – 8 pts - 1 vote
#72: Trash Panic – PSN – 8 pts – 1 vote
#61: Professor Layton and The Diabolical Box – DS – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Bayonetta – 360 – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Wordjong Daily Challenge – iPhone – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Style Savvy/Style Boutique – DS – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Half Minute Hero – PSP – 10 pts – 1 vote – Top PSP game
#61: Tekken 6 – 360 – 10pts – 1 vote
#61: Bookworm – iPhone – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: A Boy and His Blob – Wii – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Ghostbusters – 360 – 10pts – 1 vote
#61: Killing Floor – PC – 10 pts – 1 vote
#61: Shatter – PSN – 10 pts – 1 vote
#59: Money Seize – Flash – FREE - 11 pts – 1 vote
#59: Games by JTMB02 (Achievement Unlocked, This Is the Only Level, Run Elephant Run, et. al. – Flash – FREE - 11 pts – 1 vote
#58: Suikoden Tierkreis – DS – 11 pts – 2 votes
#57: MLB 2009: The Show – PS3 – 12 pts – 1 vote
#56: Saint’s Row 2 – PC – 13 pts – 1 vote
#54: Fallout 3: Broken Steel – 360 – 15 pts – 1 vote
#54: Madworld – Wii – 15 pts – 1 vote
#52: Big Word Puzzle Book – DS – 15 pts – 2 votes
#52: Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes – DS – 15 pts – 2 votes
#51: Chrono Trigger (UK Release) – DS – 16 pts – 1 vote – 1 Top Game Vote
#50: Time Fcuk – Online Flash Game – FREE – 16 pts – 2 votes
#49: Wii Sports Resort – Wii – 17 pts – 2 votes
#48: Killzone 2 – PS3 – 18 pts – 2 votes
#46: Azkend – iPhone – 20 pts – 1 vote
#46: Wipeout HD Fury – PSN – 20 pts – 1 vote
#44: Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 – Wii/360 – 20 pts – 2 Votes
#44: Prototype – PS3/360 – 20 pts – 2 votes
#43: Fallout 3: Point Lookout – 360 – 23 pts – 3 votes
#42: GTA Chinatown Wars – DS – 24 pts – 2 votes
#41: Worms 2: Armageddon – XBLA – 25 pts – 1 vote- .5 Top Game Vote
#40: Henry Hatsworth in The Puzzling Adventure – DS – 26 pts – 2 vote
#39: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor – DS – 27 pts – 2 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#38: Mario and Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story – DS – 27 pts – 3 votes
#36: Punch Out! – Wii – 27 pts – 4 votes
#36: 1 vs. 100 – XBLA – 27 pts – 4 votes
#34: World of Warcraft (2009) - PC – 30 pts – 1 vote - .5 Top Game Vote
#34: Blazblue: Calamity Trigger – 360 – 30 pts – 1 vote – 1 Top Game Vote
#33: Skate 2 – PS3 – 31 pts – 3 votes
#32: Scribblenauts – DS – 31 pts – 4 votes
#31: Metroid Prime Trilogy – Wii – 32 pts – 4 votes
#30: Canabalt – Online Flash Game – FREE – 33 pts – 3 votes – Top Flash Game – Top Free Game
#29: Mushihimesama Futari Version 1.5 – 360 – 35 pts – 2 votes - .5 Top Game Vote
#27: Battlefield 1943 – XBLA – 39 pts – 4 votes
#27: Peggle – iPhone – 39 pts – 4 votes
#26: Orbital – iPhone – 40pts – 2 votes - .5 Top Game Vote
#25: Persona 4 (UK Release) – PS2 – 40 pts – 2 votes – 1 Top Game Vote – Top PS2 game
#24: Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride – DS – 43 pts – 2 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#23: Machinarium – PC – 46pts – 4 votes
#22: Borderlands – 360/PS3 – 47 pts – 3 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#21: Assassin’s Creed 2 - PS3/360 – 50 pts – 3 Votes - 1 Top Game Vote
#20: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – PS3 – 52 pts – 4 votes
#19: Shadow Complex – XBLA – 52 pts – 5 votes
#18: GTA IV – Episodes from Liberty City: The Ballad of Gay Tony/The Lost and The Damned – XBLA + 360 - 55 pts – 4 votes - .5 Top Game Vote – Top 360 Exclusive
#17: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – PS3/360 – 56 pts – 5 votes
#16: Retro Game Challenge – DS – 56 pts – 6 votes
#15: FIFA Soccer 2010 – PS3/360 – 57 pts – 4 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#14: Street Fighter IV – 360 – 58 pts – 5 votes - 1.5 Top Game Vote
#13: Flower – PSN – 59 pts – 7 votes - Top PSN Game
#12: Rittai Picross / Picross 3-D – DS – 60 pts – 3 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#11: Left 4 Dead 2 – 360 – 60 pts – 5 vote - .5 Top Game Vote
#10: Drop7 – Iphone – 71 pts – 4 votes – 2 Top Game Votes – Top iPhone Game
#9: Torchlight – PC/Mac Emulation – 72pts – 5 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#8: Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks – DS – 73 pts – 5 votes - .5 Top Game Vote – Top DS Game
#7: Plants vs. Zombies – PC/Mac – 84 pts – 7 votes – 2 Top Game Votes – Top PC/Mac Game
#6: New Super Mario Brothers – Wii – 91 pts – 8 votes – Top Wii exclusive
#5: Trials HD – XBLA – 98 pts – 7 votes – 1.5 Top Game Vote – Top XBLA game
#4: Beatles: Rock Band – PS3/360 – 138 pts – 11 votes – 1 Top Game Vote
#3: Dragon Age: Origins – PS3/360 – 143 pts – 8 Votes - 1.5 Top Game Vote
#2: Demon’s Souls – PS3 – 156 pts – 9 votes – 4 Top Game Votes – Top PS3 Exclusive – Most Top Game Votes
#1: Arkham Asylum – PS3/360 –189 pts – 13 votes – 3 Top Game Vote – Top PS3/360 Game – Most Points – Most Votes

Glad you're digging it; next year I may need help.

sounds like you already need help!

LOL

comedy.
lorax, i'm getting your ilxmail. i got your ballot. i placed all your votes.

Just ask next year, you got it for sure dude.

Also just to give the cartoon bug eyes again - WTF w/Drop7 (2 top game votes! Wow!) and Trials HD. Can I say that enough? Even Flower in the Top 20 was a shock! I do love the increasing popularity of digital distribution and the low priced, smaller scale games that have come along with it.

Thanks forks-- I really loved reading this and it's a trip to see how much changes when you see games ranked according to how much the dudes who buy and play the games have actually enjoyed and valued them. This list may be totally unique in that way! I think the top five would still be just as good if you picked them up and played them in five years, at the end of this generation and when they've been bit to death by what follows-- compare that to something like Gears of War or other recent critical faves. Who wants to play that?

Plants Vs Zombies - OSX - 18 points
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City - XBOX 360 - 15 points
Demons’ Souls - PS3 - 11 points
Modern Warfare 2 - PS3 - 11 points
Flower - PS3 - 9 points
Uncharted 2 - PS3 - 9 points
Arkham Asylum - XBOX 360 - 8 points
Trash Panic - PS3 - 8 points
Beatles: Rock Band - XBOX 360 - 6 points
Street Fighter 4 - XBOX 360 - 5 points

drop7 would've been much higher if i had my shit together

maybe next year when i can vote for the ipad version

here's my ballot. i do own a ps3 but those games are expensive new, you know...

Dragon Quest V DS - 23
Henry Hatsworth in The Puzzling Adventure (DS) - 16
Machinarium (PC) - 16
Retro Game Challenge (DS) - 16
Money Seize (online) - 11
Time Fcuk (online) - 6
Plants vs. Zombies (PC) - 6
Metroid Prime Trilogy (Wii) - 6

World of Warcraft (ongoing) - 30
Orbital for iPhone - 30
Wipeout HD Fury - 20
Street Fighter IV - 8
Dragon Age - 7
Demons Souls - 5

lol at my point distribution pushing my hobby-horse games way up in the rankings

i would have probably given orbital more points but I HATE WHAT IT HAS DONE TO MY LIFE

but i still love it so. sigh.

the croc level was fine for me; my main issue with Arkham was the MIND NUMBING REPETITION of voice over stuff. I knew I was frustratingly stuck on a level when I had to listen to joker or harley or gordon or thug #12 or a warden say the same shit 99BAZILLION times. They drastically underestimated either how many variants they needed or when the time was to cut off the talking. Having it go on forever sometimes made me have to play it on mute when hunting for riddles.

Idk, the croc thing was this maddening combo of really easy and really slow and really unfun.

Biggest problem I have w/the game is kind of the zero replayability factor.

That being said, like bioshock, worth it for how great a single playthrough can be when in the right hands.

23 Left 4 Dead 2
23 Trials HD
14 Battlefield 1943
12 Beatles Rock Band
10 Orbital Iphone
8 Drop7
5 Guitar Hero Iphone
5 GTAIV TBOGT

yrs a mostly casual gamer

= 1) GTA IV - The Ballad of Gay Tony
= 1) Worms 2: Armageddon (XBLA)
3) Rockband: Beatles
4) GTA IV: The Lost And Damned
5) Pro Evolution Soccer
6) Time Fcuk
7) Battlefield 1943

in all fairness Worms 2 isn't the same game as the worms armageddon from a decade ago

1. Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor (19 POINTS)
2. Dragon Age: Origins (13 POINTS)
3. Trials HD (12 POINTS)
4. Games by jtmb02 (achievement unlocked, this is the only level, run elephant run) (11 POINTS)
5. Killing Floor (10 POINTS)
6. Shadow Complex (9 POINTS)
7. Arkham Asylum (8 POINTS)
8. 1 Vs 100 (7 POINTS)
9. Suikoden Tierkreis (6 POINTS)
10. Droplitz (5 POINTS)

In retrospect I would've made some changes, added & dropped some things, but... yeah that was my list.

Forks if you need some help next year definitely, definitely let me know, I am totally in. Awesome work. What a bizarre top 10 though-- I guess I forgot how many Ps3ers are on here.

yeah - amazing work forks this was a pleasure to read!

1. Arkham Asylum - (20 points)
2. Skate 2 - (18points)
3. Fallout 3 - Broken Steel - (15points)
4. Fallout 3 - Point Lookout - (15points)
5. Trials HD - (10points)
6. New Super Mario Brothers Wii - (9points)
7. Bowser's Inside Story - (8points)
8. Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks - (5points)

Disappointment - Scribblenauts

I probably would have tied Arkham Assylum and Borderlands at top, and bumped Zelda off the list if I had played Borderlands before the ballot.

Thanks again Forks!

5 Guitar Hero Iphone

lol this doesn't even exist you twonk.