About the nomination

“Game of the Year” is always the most difficult and heterogeneous of the nominations, because very different projects fall into it: from indie to aaa, from shooters to strategies, from complex philosophical parables to explosive bloody fighting valves. Well, the more interesting: you never know what kind of nominees in it will be. Although, of course, this year the fate itself determined the first place.

Seventh place – Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Animal Crossing – One of those episodes that are extremely loved in the east and in the West, but we are almost unknown. But the franchise will soon hit the third ten! Maybe the case is exclusivity for the consoles not very popular in Russia Nintendo , Maybe – in a cartoon style, maybe – in a very measured and leisurely gameplay. This is not so important. It is important that this combination The Sims, Stardew Valley, Don’t Starve and endless vacation on a paradise island can easily drag out for a couple of hundred hours, and all this time the player will definitely do something to do.

Here you can extract resources, craft instruments, build houses, grow flowers, fish, collect insects, sell the fruits of their labors, engage in terraorphism and generally do everything that Sims usually do (and even more), but without any pressure from the outside. If you want – dig, don't want to – don't dig. Moreover, everything that happens in this sweet world is also tied to the course of real time. But even this timeketing and endless grind do not irritate at all at all. They seem to be created specifically in order to relax, meditate and generally comprehend Zen.

In conclusion, it is enough to say that New Horizons I went out simultaneously with Doom Eternal – and easily overshadowed the sales even the long -awaited brainchild ID Software. And this despite the fact that the game is an exclusive of a single platform. And to understand what she is still so good, you should delve into it on your own … just do not be surprised if you get stuck there until spring.

Sixth place – Doom Eternal

At one time we called Doom 2016 The best joker of the decade. A very good result for the studio, the main achievements of which, it would seem, remained somewhere in the nineties. Naturally, ID Software made every effort to make Doom Eternal at least no worse than her predecessor. And the hell, they managed!

It is too early to give advances in a new decade, but doom eternal is at least one of the best shooters of recent years. He is still as fast, evil and ruthless as before: no reloading, no shelters, no automatic health regeneration, no stops. We need cartridges – saw a demon. Need a first -aid kit – ruin the demon. There is no time to blink, there is no time to breathe – there is time only to run, shoot, shred, jump, cut. Destroy creatures under the fierce metal of Mika Gordon. Revel in violence and adrenaline. And also – to study the ENT unexpectedly rich for such a game.

Doom Eternal is a great way to test yourself for strength or simply shreds hellish legions at leisure, just like then, in the 93rd. And at the same time just the perfect sequel: more, brighter and in some way even cooler than the original (although, it would seem, where).

Fifth place – Hades

Supergiant Games , Authors Bastion And Transistor, Once again they managed to surpass themselves. This small, but a remote game is an unexpectedly organic combination of an extremely stylish “watercolor” picture worthy of the AAA project of voice acting and gameplay at the junction Diablo, Dark Souls and Rogue-Lite. Moreover, at first glance, there is nothing special in it: to see the multifaceted gameplay and a deep story, you need to lose. To die once, ten, a hundred – as much as you need to get another piece of the plot puzzle, hear a new comment from the familiar character, to defeat the invincible boss with new weapons or fresh tactics.

Yes, Hades It is definitely not for those who do not tolerate a repetitive gameplay. But each race (and they rarely last longer than half an hour) necessarily gives something new: game mechanics, enemy, or just a grain of information. And I don't want to stop at all.

Hades is perhaps the most successful of the existing works of Supergiant Games. And also – the best independent game of 2020 according to Gambling.

Fourth place – Yakuza: Like a Dragon

Series Yakuza (The original Japanese name is Ryu Ga Gotoku, which, in fact, is translated into English as Like a Dragon) is very popular in his homeland, but in the West her fate cannot be called otherwise than difficult. The fault of this is lousy localization, and thoughtless marketing, and the game specificity itself. Well, Like a Dragon changed the main character, genre, name (in the Western edition, it lost the figure) and became an excellent entrance point for those who have long wanted to try Yakuza, but was rightly afraid for their minds.

But it’s worth risking! The new Protagonist Itiban Kasuga manages to be homeless for the series, and participate in the disassembly of mafia clans (of course, full plot turns, intrigues and betrayal), and make a whole bunch of feats in the name of the common people. And all this is decorated as a mixture Dragon Quest, South Park: The Stick of Truth And Shenmue. Moreover, the combination turned out to be unexpectedly steep: with an intelligent step -by -step fighting, interesting heroes, spectacular production and a complex plot.

Yes, this jrpg about gangsters singing in karaoke is a very specific and extremely Japanese thing. But if you are not afraid of cultural shock and just love everything that is connected with the country of the rising sun, then do not pass by. And even if you prefer something more familiar and understandable, then just give this game a chance-you will learn a lot of unexpected tastes.

Third place – Cyberpunk 2077

Role -playing games from Eastern Europe in the rest of the world have always been cautious. They were complex, unfriendly, most often rather terrible in appearance – and often very strange in content. The more unusual exceptions to the rules from CD Projekt Red : from the authors of typical East European RPG, they have grown to the High League from The Witcher 3, And now Cyberpunk 2077 made them a real elite.

This is a big, beautiful and diverse game that sometimes resembles "Running blade" in half with "Hardcore" Ilya Naishuller – she is so stylish, driven, dynamic and well -set. A real project of a new generation, which costs every minute out of eight long waiting years. Here are only technical problems, without which there were not due to a hasty release, almost put the cross on all this splendor.

A chic setting, a pretty picture, branching quests, an adult plot and Kiana Reeves were on one side of the scales. On the other – bugs, technical dampness and unrealistic requirements for the gland. It is better not to launch this game at all on the weak PC or the consoles of the past generation, if you do not want to be disappointed in it, in yourself and in the world as a whole. On the other hand, for the sake of her it is not a pity to buy both a new video card and PS5.

Honestly, if the Poles held Cyberpunk 2077 on the slipways for some time to bring to mind the optimization for the old consoles (or completely refused to release this version) and the weak PC, then their creation would definitely become a game of the year … with a good situation – Already the following.

Second place – The Last of US Part II

At one time The Last of Us showed what the old PlayStation 3 is capable of. Now Part II I did the same for PS4. The directing has become even better and more complicated, the themes and the presentation itself are older, and the post -apocalypse is darker and at the same time more beautiful. This is really one of the most beautiful and designed games for the past generation of consoles. Red stains of blood and voluminous traces in the snow, smooth and realistic movements of heroes, dancing in the air the disputes of Cordyceps … And this is amazing attention to the little things? Personal things and photos in abandoned houses, a stand with the best workers on the supermarket wall, forgotten in the children's corner PS3, near which is an open box with Uncharted 2, – It seems that this is capable only in Naughty Dog.

Of course, The Last of US Part II has something to scold. Yes, the word “chauvinist” is really too often here, and the main moral lesson about non -resistance to evil is served as intrusively, as if developers do not believe in the intellectual abilities of their audience. Yes, the favorite technique of the developers of indie there is-to give the plot through the notes scattered everywhere-it no longer looks like an immersive trick, but simply a relic of game design from the last century. Yes, the three -part structure “Research – Stlass – A shootout” does not look as cheerful as before. Yes, they killed everyone's beloved hero. But to hate them for it as stupid as threatening CD Projekt Red employees with physical reprisal due to the next transfer of Cyberpunk 2077.

Be that as it may, The Last of US Part II is still one of the best games in the history of the industry as a whole and in the Naughty Dog portfolio in particular. No matter what.

Special drugs – Among us

We know that Among us officially came out already in 2018. But the amazing fate of this game did not allow us to pass by: after all, until recently, the unable project suddenly became a real cultural phenomenon.

Due to this? Certainly not deep and comprehensive gameplay. In short, this is the multiplayer analogue of the "mafia" (ordinary, social, and not The City of Lost Heaven) in real time. There is a spaceship, every member of the crew of which is controlled by a living person. There are honest astronauts – they should simply do their work and survive; And there are traitors whose task is to get rid of the rest of the players. To Rollino Casino understand whether a person was a sabotage, just throw him into space with an open vote-or suddenly find a cold corpse somewhere in the reactor compartment. All this looks as primitive as possible: from the side of the running of some gnomes in stupid hats, it seems no more meaningful than the flickering of moths near the night lamp.

But at the same time, there are all the signs of the hit: a simple, but funny picture, an elementary gameplay, crazy reiglable, a strong social part and the entrance threshold even lower than that Counter-STRIKE: to start playing, you do not need to know and be able to at all. This is made up of a very dummy, funny and unexpected indie-meal, which would surely get the first place, go out in this, and not in the year before.

First place-Half-Life: Alyx

No matter how hard the publishers of the games and manufacturers of iron try, the VR still remains a thing with an unclear fate. Therefore, from the games there are still either rail tires or projects in the spirit Vader: Immortal And Beat Saber, Or the versions of ordinary hits sharpened under the VR: Skyrim, Fallout 4, Superhot… large and expensive plot games created exclusively for helmets and using their potential to the full coil, in fact, and there is no. Rather, it was not before the exit Half-Life: Alyx.

The main thing in this game is that it is competent and technologically – as entertainment for VR – both gameplayo and as a work of interactive art. Of course, no one expected from Valve empty atmosphere, flat sound or outdated graphics. But the most important thing here is scrupulous attention to the little things: from the physically reliable behavior of liquids in the vessels or realistic reloading to episodes, when you need to close your mouth and nose with your hand so as not to breathe in poisonous fumes. Although the most amazing – not even in the study of details, but in shooting. Of course, it requires addiction, but any of the three trunks works really in its own way, the body kit seriously change the gameplay, and each next type of enemies requires a special approach.

Yes, Alyx is not Half-Life 3. This is a much more valuable thing: not a simple continuation of the famous series, but a real revolution in the genre that finally demonstrates what full -fledged games in virtual reality are capable of and what should look like and look like. And all that was before her is so, training.

The outgoing year was damn difficult: for the world, and for the industry, and for each of us. Well, it’s nice to see that even in such difficult times new cool games continue to be released, console generations are replaced, and people find time to not only survive, but simply have fun. The 2020s, probably, became the richest on powerful AAA-releases a year over the past five years-but was able to present a couple of pleasant surprises. And how do you like such results?

• AAA-Igra of the year. Half-Life: Alyx, Cyberpunk 2077, The Last of US Part 2
• Indie of the year. Hades, Spelunky 2, Factorio
• What to give for yourself for the new 2021? Correct guide for gifts