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Best Original IP
Video games often rely on familiar names to worm their way onto people's systems. Whether it's an outside license based on a popular movie or a venerable franchise whose gaming roots stretch back multiple decades, well-known characters and environments have been implemented into countless gameplay types through the years. This year had a wealth of new intellectual properties that forced their developers to not only create an engaging gameplay experience, but an entire world as well. Whether these new ideas are as timeless as the gaming franchises we have been playing for years, or if they'll exist for one glorious game and disappear in a flash, is not ours to decide. Rather, we are honoring these original universes because they sucked us in and made us care about their newly introduced protagonists.
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Braid
- Number None Inc.
- Number None Inc.
- Review score: 9.5
Travel seven platforming worlds to save a princess, but be wary of the peculiar flow of time in...
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Dead Space
- EA Redwood Shores
- Electronic Arts
- Review score: 9.0
Dead Space is a survival-horror game in which players take on the role of Engineer Isaac Clarke...
Watch the review » -
Patapon
- SCE Japan Studio
- SCEE
- Review score: 9.0
In this quirky strategy game that mixes strategy with rhythm, you play as an all-powerful guide...
Watch the review » -
No More Heroes
- Grasshopper Manuf...
- Ubisoft
- Review score: 9.0
From SUDA-51, creator of the surreal shooter Killer7, No More Heroes chronicles Travis Touchdown's...
Watch the review » -
Left 4 Dead
- Valve Software
- Electronic Arts
- Review score: 8.5
Using the Counter-Strike Source Engine, Left 4 Dead has a group of four unlikely heroes join...
Voting Results:
Best Original IP| Braid | 8% | 1,090 |
| Dead Space | 41% | 5,571 |
| Patapon | 8% | 1,031 |
| No More Heroes | 15% | 2,023 |
| Left 4 Dead | 29% | 3,988 |
Readers' Choice Winner
Dead Space
- Publisher: Electronic Arts
- Developer: EA Redwood Shores
GameSpot's Best Games of 2008 Readers' Choice Winner
The Dead Space experience is all about surviving in its sci-fi world through strategic dismemberment, so experience the horror before the Necromorphs dismember you. After all, you are never truly safe in Dead Space. When an immense mining ship, the USG Ishimura, comes into contact with a mysterious alien artifact in a remote star system, its communications with Earth are mysteriously cut off. Engineer Isaac Clarke is sent to repair the Ishimura's communications array, but he arrives to find a living nightmare. The ship is a floating bloodbath, the crew unspeakably mutilated and infected by an ancient alien scourge. Clarke's repair mission becomes one of survival as he fights not just to save himself, but to return the artifact to the planet at any cost.
- Watch the video review: HD | SD
- Read the review »
Best Original IP
274 comments
Dead Space is simply amazing. @kabuto202 and parrot of adun: the difference between SS and Bioshock+Dead Space is that the latter rose up of the crowd more prominently, and had way different gaming mechanics. Anyway, even if they were the same, is that a bad thing? Are people actually complaining about good games?
No more hereos is the better choice, Gamespot got it right this time. Dead Space is a great game but its not hugely original.
*+1 for kabuto202* Definitely (well in concept anyway). Same reason anyone thought Bioshock was worth their time. No one (here) remembers SS 1 or 2.
i'd definitely have to go with the editor's on this one. No more heroes was an absolutely amazing game and gave plenty of room to improve on the already amazing structure. i'd say dead space has gone as far as it can go unless they come out with something really unique in the next one. the no more heroes universe is so unique and interesting, while the dead space universe is such treaded ground. oh... a good horror game in space, but with dismemberment instead of headshots, real creative.
I'd have to agree. NMH was an M rated original IP that started the whole "we aren't just a kid system" revolution for the wii. Now, we have MadWorld coming out soon and I figure it will be a candidate for next years award.
Agreed, PSgamer99. NMH was, indeed, a great game with quite a lot of flair, great design and some wacky moments that brought it together into an awesome new series... but Dead Space was, by far, the best new IP this year. The tactical dismemberment gameplay, story, design, graphics, gameplay... it all came together into one hell of a great package.
I can see both winners (readers' and editor's choices) winning this, Dead Space is an excellent horror game and No More Heroes is just brilliant in that it cuts down the "Wii is a kiddy system" with it's beam katana and fountains of blood and coins :P can't wait for the sequels to both.
Wait...this is talking about best original main character? Despite Dead Space being a great game, Isaac Clarke is no where near original. His type of "Quiet guy with guns" character has been done hundreds of times..And nobody please tell me that his "universe" is original because just about everyone was calling this "RE4 in Space" just before it's release =P. What am trying to say is, Dead Space is great, no doubt....but Original? Far, FAR from it.
were are mirrors edge and TWEWY? they should be on before Braid and Patapon IMO (and yes, i own both)
YEAH A VICTORY FROM TRAVIS TOUCHDOWN and of course for suda 51 YEAHHHHHHHH NO MORE HEROS ITS VERY COOL NICE AND SIMPLE THAT MAKES YOU FEELL O F,KING ALIVE
For God's sake, finally! NMH deserved to win more than this. Best boss fights shouldn't have even been a contest, This game is basically built around the boss fights. Yet MGS4 walked away with yet another trophy this year. Seriously, the game was really good, but not so great that it should win everything it gets nominated for.
Duh, Dead Space is just Doom 3 in space with a few minor upgrades. I wouldn't call it original.
"The city that Travis Touchdown calls home is known as Santa Destroy, despite the absence of Christmas apparel. " Santa Destroy... like Santa Monica or Santa Cruz. I'm pretty sure they were going for a parody of a California town, not a nonsensical Christmas-related name. That's what I've always figured anyway.
Are Gamespot against Little Big Planet or something? It didn't appear in game of the year either.
@i8blind - You sure are dumn, MGS 4 is not even new IP., lol . MGS 4 got the highest rated award this year, not GeOW2.
is no more heroes better then little big planet?? seriously-littlebigplanet was one of the best games of the year and gamespots need to incorporate all consoles should not prevent the nomination of by far the best IP of the year
No More Heroes is the one of the best games I've played on the wii, I'm glad it won something.
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