If Fallout 4 was not to be released this year.

If Fallout 4 was not to be released this year 2015, I would make the claim that the Witcher 3 would take most of the game of the year awards from review sites. Anyone have any other suggestions or comments?

I would say that it wouldn't be in a list of several other games that will be in contention for 2015 GotY but instead will be in a list of 2016 GotY.

@Archangel3371: What game are you reffering to?

The game that this thread is about, Fallout 4.

@Archangel3371: I think your first comment is just pointing out the obvious, regardless that is fine. I would not argue that Fallout 4 would not be contending if released in 2016. I think Fallout 4 is just going to blow everything out of the water. It is a shame because the Witcher 3 and perhaps even Bloodborne or Metal Gear Solid V should be strong contenders. But, i do not think that will be the case. They will be the strongest contenders, but it will not be as close like previous years in gaming history.

Assuming Fallout 4 will get 90%+ in reviews.

A toss up between two sequels isn't really that important of a choice in my book.

You have any doubt that it won't get that? only site that might destroy it is Gamespot and Polygon. But you can almost be 99% certain that every other site is giving it a 9 or higher.

But i would not count on Fallout 4 being released this year. If it does i would be very surprised.

@Jacanuk: Well Fallout 4 is set to release November 10th 2015. I do not see a reason why it would be pushed back to 2016. No word of a push back has been discussed or announced.

Also, we have to take into account the hype a game builds up generally affects the reviews. In this case Fallout 4 is very hyped up, and will possibly earn better reviews. Not saying the game will not be near perfect, but the general public should take this into account. Not the biggest of deals. Just wanted to mention that.

@Jacanuk: I don't but anything is possible.

And you probably wont hear about until we are much closer to the release date.

I am betting on 2-3 weeks before release we will hear that they are pushing it back 3-6 months.

Yea, I would be surprised if it was pushed back at this point. The game made an E3 and Quakecon appearance and it's also suppose to make a Gamescon appearance all before it's Nov release. I don't think Bethesda would be attending these events if they weren't confident with their release date. But it's still possible, we'll see...

If all you like are Sandbox RPG games? Sure.

But last I checked it's been a good year, and will continue for other genres as well.

Here on Gamespot however, it will be Witcher3. With Kevin going that one possible vote for Bloodborne is lost lol.

I fully expect Fallout 4 to launch on the date already given.

Sure, not that I really care what games get what awards or anything. I do look forward to seeing how Fallout 4 is scored and everything, though. Bethesda doesn't exactly have a great track record as far as releasing games when they are ready or for just making not buggy games in general. I probably won't even bother playing Fallout 4 until it's gone through most of its inevitable waves of patches.

@SoNin360: I'm having a hard time controlling my excitement for Fallout 4 and debating whther or not to buy it at launch. I know it's going to be a buggy mess but I don't know if I have the will to wait a few weeks while people talk about it and I don't have it.

More big games this year than I thought. Witcher 3, Bloodborne, Phantom Pain, Fallout 4... going to be interesting

@tatman87: I agree completly.

@Shmiity: Yes, this has been quit the year for gaming. It is an intersting line up for some contenders. I am glad to see it that way.

That's my concern about waiting to get it, too. But even I do get it day one, I'm probably going to play it at a slower pace than most people, so I would be avoiding discussions anyway. So really, either way, I'm going to have to stay away or be very careful visiting gaming sites and such...

I am thinking Bloodborne would be a main contender. it took Dark Souls being out for quite a while before it had a large following of people, and with the addition of DS2, and Boodborne it has grown beyond the point of only having a "cult" following. the game play is extremely well put together and the way the story is delivered makes people want to continue playing to unravel all of the secrets that they can

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

@the_funyarinpa: good possibility on that actually. it might come down to bloodborne and metal gear. hard to compare though they are two completely different games.

@albinosamurai: I think Bloodborne and The Witcher 3 will be strong competators. Both solid games of course. It seems as though Bloodborne is the highest critically aclaimed From Software game.

@the_funyarinpa: Ah, some Phantom Pain fans in here. Yes i hope to see that game do well. It is much deserved.

@superpoorboy: true, the witcher might have a bit of advantage just due to scale, and CDProjekt is kinda the underdog developer in a way, and people like underdogs lol.

@albinosamurai: That is an excelent point I have not thought of. One thing I would like to mention as well, is that Bloodborne and The Witcher 3 were both games that were released earlier in the year and that will affect their contention for game of the year. As opposed to Metal Gear Solid V and Fallout 4 coming out later in the year gives them a better edge.

@superpoorboy: Ideally that shouldnt be a factor but we all know it is, also while the witcher and bloodborne both have a fanbase, it is nothing compared to the fanbase that both metal gear, and fallout can pull, and while it should come down to the gameplay itself, im thinking franchise popularity might rule out in some cases. not to degrade either franchise though, they are all superb games.

@albinosamurai: Yes I completly agree. Also the hype factor plays a part in the contentions as well. I remember Bloodborne had massive hype, and I hope Metal Gear Solid 5 gets the same treatment. But we all know Fallout 4 is just insanly hyped currently. Weather that is right or wrong.

@superpoorboy: hype will definately be a factor, even if it shouldnt be, in my opinion, game quality should be the only factor, it is difficult to manage, especially with the many differences between games, can a FPS be better than an adventure RPG? it is a difficult argument to make when two games cant really be easily compared. for example fallout 3 and skyrim, even the witcher 3 can be easily compared because they are all openworld RPGs, i think trying to compare games like bloodborne with the phantom pain, and dying light is impossible, they are all fantastic games but simply too different to say one is better.

@albinosamurai: Interesting points you have made. I agree that the process is difficult. Regardless, one game stands out in a special kind of way in the end.

i am just afraid that that special way is in fact the hype of a new game. some games truly do stand out above the rest, look at oblivion and skyrim, but this year there are so many amazing games, that are all special in there own way, i am afraid the winner might come down to hype and recent releases more than anything else.

@albinosamurai: No blame their. I guess we will have to wait and find out.

true that, in the end the fans are the ones that win.

vote for fallout4.

guys do you have several minutes free time for my master's dissertation survey. It's kinda interesting like the process of applying for jobs. Just need you look at someone's CV and answer 10+ multiply options questions about impressions of this person.

http://survey.ex.ac.uk/start/impression

It is not incoherent to suggest the thread title presupposes Fallout 4 dominance. The topic creator's own comments lend support to this theory. It is a shame because there is no current guarantee of the aforementioned occurence. An alternative thread title would be preferable as other games look to compete. Indeed, it is my contention that one game will not sweep award ceremonies in 2015 the way Inquisition did in 2014. Now, of course, Gamespot did not grant Inquisition its highest honor, but a large amount of gaming outlets did. And, if one may permit an off-hand remark; Gamespot has never bestowed upon a Bioware title its game of the year award, which is atypical.

you cant forget metal gear solid 5 , many editors liked it a lot. witcher is great no doubt about that but , it has got a very competition ahead to be game of the year.

The basis or opinions i was looking for with this post, is that I wanted to see if their was a game i was not thinking of that is in contention for game of the year. I think i have it pretty locked down. Fallout 4 in my mind is winning game of the year no doubt. But, games like Witcher 3, Bloodborne and Metal Gear Solid 5 are in heavy contention for it. I was also speculating why each game would deserve the crown, and what factors play into the descicion. I have gained other insights with this post, and i thank you. I would like to see some more as well.

More than likely. My personal favourite this year is Splatoon but I still need to buy Witcher 3. I think my likely candidates will be:

Fallout 4

Splatoon

Witcher 3

Xenoblade X

@bulby_g: those are soom good games. I wonder if any hipster games will win some game of the year like journey did back in the day. Im thinking shovel knight or Ori and the blind forest. Thoughts on any non AAA games?

I would have to agree with that. The Witcher 3 had the press on lockdown until Fallout 4 was announced this year. Now its anybody's guess.

MGSV might steal the show however. Greg Miller has played tons of the (mostly) finished product already and is embargoed from saying anything in specific about it... and is a big Witcher 3 and Arkham Knight fan... but has already said MGSV is going to probably be GOTY in the face of everything else from what he did play. Not that his word is law or anything, but its the only real insight we have. Even though there have been some closed-doors gameplay of Fallout, nobody has stepped forward to say its secured GOTY from what they played so far.

To each his own. But I have found, by and large, that many of the 3DS and Wii U critically acclaimed games have been very overrated. I can't count how many times I've heard "goty" about a Nintendo game in recent years and been disappointed. Including Bravely Default, Xenoblade Chronicles, Super Mario 3D World and Mario Kart 8. All good games, but not even GOTY contenders for me. Probably the biggest disappointment for me is ZombiU.--Bottom of the barrel as far as zombie games are concerned. Not to start an argument, just voicing my opinion... again, to each their own. But I don't think anything they have is GOTY-worthy. Maybe Super Mario Maker if I can't put the thing down once I play it. Also, while I haven't played it, Splatoon gets ripped to shreds by gamers who regularly play other online shooters.

@isturbo1984: You have made some fair points. But i at this point i still think it will end up fallout 4. Bethesda is keeping the story and gameplay a bit hidden so they do not have to show all their cards, on what this game will be like, and what it can do. I think they have some major advantages is and being it is a game that is releasing at the end of the year, and an rpg it may take the crown for most goty awards given this year.

@superpoorboy: a lot of unknowns. a LOT. but speaking frankly based on my own selfish tastes... i think you are right. I think Fallout 4 will be it for me. And I didn't even care about Fallout 3 much.--I thought it was a simple TES clone. F4 looks fucking amazing. A-maze-zing! Already put in 100+ hours into Witcher 3 and beat it. Impressed, but not as much as I was with the Mass Effect series or Skyrim. and I am insanely stoked for MGSV. Super Mario Maker may creep up to top spot for me if it can keep me enthralled on a daily basis till the end of the year. But I think Fallout grabs the gold, if only just slightly.

Well at least we have a new update on how mgs 5 is doing lol. 10/10 from gamespot and ign. It looks like mgs 5 can stand up to fallout 4 or even beat it at this point. I think mgs 5 has a greater chance to beat fallout 4 rather then witcher 3. I think its like fallout 4 60% of winning goty and mgs 5 40%. I would have said much higher for fallout 4 previously. But this is getting close or better now for mgs 5.

Fallout 4 will get a lot of bonus points for being a hyped Bethesda game (see Skyrim, which was a hilarious disaster at launch, yet it received universal acclaim).

Even so, I don't see it being in the top three games of the year. I suspect that it won't receive GOTY on the majority of review sites (and if it's anything like Bethesda's previous efforts, I hope that is true).

I've no doubt f4 will be released this year at the specified time. They've already stated that it's pretty much done anyway.