Every year, gaming websites come out with their annual holiday gift guides. While they're meant to give people ideas in terms of game-related gifts, many people (including me) peruse them for other reasons. They allow us to see how many sites recommend our favorite game(s) to others, serve as a helpful reminder of the awesome titles from earlier in the year, and act as a heat check and early indicator of where each outlet ranks the year's games. If they liked it, chances are they're going to suggest it.
Reading them all and comparing the various guides for every console takes a lot of time, though. Time you and I don't have. Unfortunately for me, I made time by staying up until roughly 5AM one night researching guides, comparing data, and ultimately listing games in tiers from five to one star. How did I come up with the tiers? Simple! I looked at the five gift guides I consider the cream of the crop (IGN, GameSpot, 1UP, GameTrailers, Kotaku) and marked down which games each outlet picked. At the end, I separated them based on how many of the five sites suggested them; all five suggesting a game resulted in the game being given the five star ranking, etc. It's not 100% accurate in terms of science and what-not, but I believe it's a good indicator of the games' overall popularity.
And for those of you who DO use gift guides for purchasing tips, this list will narrow down all of the choices, and present them in a most-suggested to least-suggested order, making it easier to figure out which games will (likely) be better received as a gift. So less work for you.
Enjoy, find out how your favorite games did compared to others, and feel free to add to my list of random facts and noticed trends (at the very end of the article) by commenting!
Xbox 360
Five Star
Fallout 3 (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Gears of War 2 (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Grand Theft Auto IV (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Four Star
Fable II (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (1UP)
Rock Band 2 (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Three Star
Burnout Paradise (Kotaku) (GS) (1UP)
NHL 09 (GS) (IGN) (GT)
Prince of Persia (Kotaku) (IGN) (1UP)
Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise (GS) (GT) (1UP)
Two Star
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts (IGN) (1UP)
Bionic Commando: Rearmed XBLA (Kotaku) (1UP)
Bioshock (Kotaku) (1UP)
Condemned 2: Bloodshot (GT) (1UP)
Dead Space (Kotaku) (GS) (1UP)
Far Cry 2 (GS) (1UP)
Left 4 Dead (Kotaku) (1UP)
LEGO Batman (Kotaku) (1UP)
Madden NFL 09 (Kotaku) (1UP)
Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe (Kotaku) (1UP)
NBA 2K9 (GT) (1UP)
SoulCalibur IV (Kotaku) (1UP)
One Star
Battlefield: Bad Company (IGN)
Braid XBLA (Kotaku)
Bully: Scholarship Edition (Kotaku)
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Kotaku)
Call of Duty: World at War (1UP)
Castle Crashers XBLA (Kotaku)
Devil May Cry 4 (1UP)
Duke Nukem 3D XBLA (1UP)
Galaga Legions XBLA (1UP)
Geometry Wars Retro Evolved XBLA (1UP)
GRID (IGN)
GripShift XBLA (1UP)
Guitar Hero World Tour (1UP)
Ikaruga XBLA (1UP)
The Last Remnant (GT)
LEGO Indiana Jones (1UP)
Lips (1UP)
Lost Planet: Extreme Conditions – Colonies Edition (1UP)
Mega Man 9 XBLA (1UP)
Midnight Club Los Angeles (1UP)
Mirror’s Edge (1UP)
N+ XBLA (1UP)
NCAA Basketball 09 (1UP)
NCAA Football 09 (1UP)
Need for Speed: Undercover (Kotaku) (1UP)
Ninja Gaiden 2 (1UP)
The Orange Box (Kotaku)
Poker Smash XBLA (1UP)
Portal: Still Alive XBLA (1UP)
Rez HD XBLA (1UP)
Roogoo XBLA (1UP)
Saints Row 2 (1UP)
Scene It? Box Office Smash! (GT)
Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution (GS)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (1UP)
Street Fighter II Turbo: HD Remix XBLA (1UP)
Tales of Vesperia (1UP)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 (1UP)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (1UP)
Tomb Raider Underworld (1UP)
WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2009 (1UP)
Four Star
Grand Theft Auto IV (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (1UP)
Metal Gear Solid 4 (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (1UP)
Rock Band 2 (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Valkyria Chronicles (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Three Star
Bioshock (Kotaku) (GS) (1UP)
Two Star
Burnout Paradise (GS) (1UP)
Dead Space (IGN) (1UP)
Far Cry 2 (GS) (1UP)
Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm (GT) (1UP)
NHL 09 (GS) (GT)
PixelJunk Eden PSN (Kotaku) (1UP)
PixelJunk Monsters PSN (Kotaku) (1UP)
Prince of Persia (IGN) (1UP)
SingStar Bundle (Kotaku) (GT)
Soul Calibur IV (Kotaku) (1UP)
WipEout HD PSN (Kotaku) (1UP)
One Star
Alone in the Dark: Inferno (1UP)
Bionic Commando Rearmed PSN (1UP)
Buzz! Quiz TV Bundle (Kotaku)
Call of Duty: World at War (1UP)
Condemned 2: Bloodshot (1UP)
Devil May Cry 4 (1UP)
Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice (Kotaku)
Echochrome PSN (Kotaku)
Eye of Judgment (Kotaku)
Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (IGN)
Guitar Hero World Tour (1UP)
LEGO Batman (1UP)
LEGO Indiana Jones (1UP)
Madden NFL 09 (1UP)
Mega Man 9 PSN (1UP)
Midnight Club Los Angeles (1UP)
Mirror’s Edge (1UP)
MLB 08: The Show (GT)
Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe (1UP)
MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (1UP)
NBA 2K9 (1UP)
NCAA Basketball 09 (1UP)
NCAA Football 09 (1UP)
Need for Speed: Undercover (1UP)
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords – Revenge of the Plague Lord PSN (Kotaku)
Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction (Kotaku)
Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution (GS)
Saints Row 2 (1UP)
Siren: Blood Curse (1UP)
SOCOM Confrontation (1UP)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (1UP)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 (1UP)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas 2 (1UP)
Tomb Raider Underworld (1UP)
Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (Kotaku)
WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2009 (1UP)
Wii
Five Star
Okami (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Four Star
Animal Crossing: City Folk (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Boom Blox (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
de Blob (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT)
World of Goo WiiWare (Kotaku) (GS) (1UP)
Three Star
Mario Kart Wii (Kotaku) (GS) (GT)
No More Heroes (Kotaku) (GS) (GT)
Two Star
Guitar Hero World Tour (GS) (IGN)
Madden NFL 09 All-Play (IGN) (GT)
Rock Band (Kotaku) (GS)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2009 All-Play (GS) (IGN)
Wii Fit (IGN) (1UP)
One Star
Bomberman ’93 VC (Kotaku)
Blast Works: Build, Trade, Destroy (1UP)
Bully: Scholarship Edition (1UP)
Call of Duty: World at War (1UP)
Cooking Mama World Kitchen (1UP)
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past VC (Kotaku)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Kotaku)
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga (Kotaku)
Link’s Crossbow Training (Kotaku)
Mega Man 9 WiiWare (1UP)
MLB Power Pros 2008 (GS)
Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection (Kotaku)
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (Kotaku)
Sam & Max Season 1 (1UP)
Shaun White Snowboarding (GT)
Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People WiiWare (1UP)
Super Mario Galaxy (Kotaku)
Super Metroid (Kotaku)
Super Paper Mario (Kotaku)
Wario Land: Shake It (IGN)
We Ski (1UP)
Wii Music (1UP)
WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009 (1UP)
Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure (Kotaku)
Nintendo DS
Five Star
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
The World Ends With You (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Four Star
N/A
Three Star
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (Kotaku) (GS) (1UP)
Lock’s Quest (Kotaku) (GT) (1UP)
Professor Layton and the Curious Village (GS) (GT) (1UP)
Two Star
Chrono Trigger (IGN) (1UP)
Disgaea DS (Kotaku) (IGN)
Final Fantasy IV (GS) (GT)
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Rings of Fate (GT) (1UP)
GRID (Kotaku) (GS)
Guitar Hero: On Tour (IGN) (GT)
Kirby Super Star Ultra (GT) (1UP)
Metal Slug 7 (IGN) (1UP)
Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword (GS) (1UP)
Sid Meier’s Civilization Revolution (Kotaku) (GS)
Space Invaders Extreme (IGN) (1UP)
One Star
Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice (1UP)
Age of Empires: Mythologies (1UP)
Bangai-O Spirits (Kotaku)
Bleach: Dark Souls (GS)
Etrian Odyssey 2: Heroes of Lagaard (1UP)
Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift (IGN)
Iron Chef America (Kotaku)
Korg DS-10 Synthesizer (1UP)
Little Red Riding Hood’s Zombie BBQ (1UP)
Mario Kart DS (Kotaku)
Metroid Prime: Hunters (Kotaku)
N+ (IGN)
Ninjatown (1UP)
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (Kotaku)
Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood (1UP)
Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff (GT)
Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 (GS)
Viva Piñata Pocket Paradise (IGN)
PlayStation Portable
Five Star
God of War: Chains of Olympus (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Patapon (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Four Star
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (Kotaku) (GS) (IGN) (GT)
Three Star
Buzz! Master Quiz (Kotaku) (IGN) (GT)
N+ (GS) (IGN) (GT)
Space Invaders Extreme (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Two Star
Downstream Panic! (GS) (IGN)
Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2 (IGN) (GT)
MLB 08: The Show (GT) (1UP)
Secret Agent Clank (GS) (GT)
WipEout Pulse (GS) (IGN)
One Star
Beats (Kotaku)
EchoChrome (GS)
FIFA Soccer 09 (IGN)
FlatOut: Head On (GS)
Football Manager Handheld 2009 (Kotaku)
Lumines II (Kotaku)
Midnight Club Los Angeles Remix (1UP)
Monster Hunter Portable Freedom 2 (Kotaku)
Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice (GS)
Puzzle Guzzle (GS)
PC
Five Stars
Fallout 3 (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP) (Kotaku)
Sins of a Solar Empire (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP) (Kotaku)
Four Star
Crysis Warhead (GS) (IGN) (GT) (1UP)
Far Cry 2 (GS) (IGN) (1UP) (Kotaku)
Left 4 Dead (IGN) (GT) (1UP) (Kotaku)
Spore (IGN) (GT) (1UP) (Kotaku)
Three Star
Mass Effect (GS) (IGN) (1UP)
Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (GS) (IGN) (Kotaku)
World of Goo (GS) (1UP) (Kotaku)
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (GS) (IGN) (1UP)
Two Star
Audiosurf (1UP) (Kotaku)
Bionic Commando Rearmed (1UP) (Kotaku)
Galactic Civilizations 2: Twilight of the Arnor (IGN) (1UP)
Command & Conquer Red Alert 3 (1UP) (Kotaku)
Peggle Nights (1UP) (Kotaku)
The Witcher: Enhanced Edition (1UP) (Kotaku)
One Star
Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway (GS)
Call of Duty: World at War (1UP)
Command & Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath (1UP)
Dead Space (GS)
FIFA 09 (GT)
GTR: Evolution (1UP)
Guitar Hero III (Kotaku)
LEGO Batman (GT)
Lost Planet: Extreme Conditions – Colonies Edition (1UP)
Need for Speed: Undercover (1UP)
Penumbra: Black Plague (1UP)
Rose & Camellia (Kotaku) (free)
Sam & Max Season 2: Chariots of the Dogs (1UP)
Sid Meier’s Civilization IV: Colonization (1UP)
Sid Meier’s Civilization IV: Complete (Kotaku)
Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People (1UP)
Team Fortress 2 (Kotaku)
The Orange Box (Kotaku)
Tomb Raider Underworld (1UP)
Trivial Pursuit Daily 20 (GT) (free)
World of Warcraft Battle Chest (Kotaku)
Noticed Trends and Random Factoids:
Only two guides -- GameTrailers' PSP guide and IGN's PC guide -- resulted in the site not suggesting a one star game
1UP listed far more games on average than the other sites, even if the number of handheld suggestions were much less numerous in comparison to the consoles (over 40 for PS3, 5 for PSP). This led to instances where they dominated the one star suggestions. On the Xbox 360: 76%. On PC: 75%
Kotaku suggested more games from previous years than the other four sites
On average, titles appearing on both the Xbox 360 and on the PS3 were suggested more often for the 360
The 360 is the only platform (other than PC) with more than one non-first party game recommended across all sites: GTA 4 and Fallout 3
At least one "cult" title was suggested by all sites for every guide except Xbox 360 and PS3. Patapon for PSP; The World Ends With You for DS; Sins of a Solar Empire for PC; Okami for Wii
The only sports game to be listed on at least three sites is NHL 09 on the Xbox 360
Rock Band 2 was suggested more than Guitar Hero World Tour for every format but Wii
Fallout 3 was recommended by all sites for all platforms it appears on.
Two games -- Trivial Pursuit Daily 20 and Rose & Camellia -- are free to play and require no purchase.
Completing this list, looking for trends, and formatting this article took somewhere between three to four hours, and two cans of Sierra Mist Free
November 26th, 2008 at 2:19 am
Very nice. Well done, sir.
November 30th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
I agree with Mr. Kyle. It's really interesting to see the few games all five of the sites agreed on, and the ones only one or two thought to mention.