What are your 2016 GOTY contenders?

[Exhuminator]

Well folks it's almost December, 2016 is nearly done, like it or not (I'm very ready for this year to over personally). So as we near the final days of 2016, I find myself reflecting on the over 120 games I've beaten so far... with no clear idea what I think will be my 2016 GOTY. But what about you? Have you got some picks in mind?

I'm not saying to name your 2016 GOTY right now, just some games you played that are in the running. And I don't necessarily mean 2016 releases either, just games you played for the first time in 2016, regardless of their actual release date. There's still time left in 2016 for us to try some of your top picks for this year, who knows we may agree.

[Sarge]

Man, I was just thinking about this the other day. I'm not sure what my GOTY is yet. I'll probably use two metrics for when I figure it out, the best game I played this year, and the best game that actually released this year. (Not sure if Rise of the Tomb Raider counts, in that case.)

[Exhuminator]

I'll probably use two metrics for when I figure it out, the best game I played this year, and the best game that actually released this year.

That's how I always do it. As for RotTR, I'd go with its original release date personally.

[Sarge]

I've beaten surprisingly little that originated this year. Funny, that. Of those that I have, Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight is in the running for sure.

EDIT: Oh, shoot, one of the best games I played this year isn't even an official release. AM2R was fantastic.

[Ack]

Shoot, I've only beaten one game that actually came out in 2016, and that was DOOM.

Looking back over my list as it currently stands, I don't think I could pick a contender. I mean, these are all titles that I adored that I've beaten this year:

Ultima Underworld, System Shock, Thief Gold, Silent Hill, Might & Magic III, Outlaws, Eye of the Beholder, Shadowrun: Dragonfall, Lufia

Declaring something the "best" out of the likes of that? That's tough.

[ElkinFencer10]

I'm really torn between Doom and Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE. If I had to pick, I'd probably pick TMS, but DAMN, it's hard. Those are like 50.0000000001% one and 49.9999999999% for the other with me. =/

[Exhuminator]

Ultima Underworld, System Shock, Thief Gold, Silent Hill, Might & Magic III, Outlaws, Eye of the Beholder, Shadowrun: Dragonfall, Lufia

Declaring something the "best" out of the likes of that? That's tough.

I gotcha bro:

[isiolia]

Most of the games I've played this year have been ones I quite enjoyed, including some that did come out this year such as Uncharted 4 and Dishonored 2.

However, for me, after grinding a Mythic weapon in FFXI and all that earlier in the year, I wound up playing the Soulsborne games a lot, and the Dark Souls titles particularly. While still far short of how much time some people have put into them (especially since I haven't really done New Game+, and they scale to NG+7), I did wind up replaying all three...and buying artbooks, and watching a lot of related Youtube videos, and just overall putting hundreds of hours into it all.
Can't really say that about much else I've played this year, so that's what really stands out for 2016 gaming for me. Naming just one...would be hard.

[prfsnl_gmr]

The best game I played that was released in 2016 is Dragon Quest VII (3DS). If the Dragon Quest series is the "comfort food" of JRPGs, then Dragon Quest VII is a Thanksgiving feast. There's just so much of it!

Not including Dragon Quest VII, my top five "new to me" games this year are:

Guardian Heroes (SATURN/360)
King's Field: The Ancient City (PS2)
The Room Two (iOS)
Shantae & The Pirate's Curse (WII U)
Virtua Fighter 2 (ARCADE/PS3)

My top five "happy surprises" this year were:

Aeternoblade (3DS)
Armillo (WII U)
Finding Teddy (iOS)
Kero Blaster (iOS)
Ninja Smasher! (3DS)

All five of those games greatly exceeded my expectations.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Playing games that were actually released this year...... LOL!

Guardian Heroes really impressed me. It's THE RPG / beat 'em up hybrid game. The sheer attention to detail and variance that's packed into the controls and design is just mind-blowing. There's just so much stuff here.

Shovel Knight was also extremely memorable. It's rare that I see a modern "retro" indie game that manages to outshine legit old-school classics but this one does. The game represents everything we've grown to love about 8-bit platformers, with all the bullshitty elements stripped out. Awesome.