Well I know that I am two days late with this subject but I had just finished up the last nomination for my own little Game of the Year list and now I am ready to announce the winner and the other nominees!

Nominee #1: Max Payne 3

I have to say this game caught me completely off guard. It had peaked my interest a bit when it was first coming out but I didn't bring myself to try it out until recently and now I am regretting about waiting so long to play it. This is the final game to the Max Payne trilogy and Rockstar certainly knows how to end the series with quite a bang. The story follows Max finally trying to get over the loss of his wife and daughter and in doing so he moves to South America to work as bodyguards for a very rich and powerful family, but a simple bodyguard detail quickly turns into something much more drastic and deadly with a few unexpected twists in the mix. The story pulls you in very quickly as things escalate and the characters are very real and believable. The gameplay is very solid and satisfying, especially when that last slow-mo effect for putting the killing bullet through an enemy's brain is very delightful. The game has a reasonable difficulty progression but sometimes it gets very hard in an instant which caught me off guard quite a few times. Even though the story was good and the characters were all wonderfully acted, the only thing that really bugged me about it all was Max himself. Since he is still letting go of his past he monologues about how down on his luck he is and about how much of a so called failure he has titled himself. It does get annoying quite a few hours into the game but it is bearable. The one really major complaint that I have with the game are the many glitches that really take you out of the experience completely. I could be totally engrossed and then suddenly yanked away when Max gets stuck in cover, unable to move or shoot or do anything. Still even with all these flaws this was definitely one of the most stellar titles that came out last year.

Nominee #2: Borderlands 2

I was a huge fan of the first Borderlands and when the second one was announced, I was ecstatic. It was looking fantastic from all the previews and all I could hope for was Gearbox taking the original experience from the first and improving upon everything. Borderlands 2 lived up to the first but also sores far beyond it. Gearbox improved on seemingly everything that was wrong from the first and made it so much better. All the locals of each area are very nicely detailed and a joy to look over sometimes. Most importantly though besides upgraded settings is a very well told story in this one as you take control of one of four new vault hunters, lured in by Handsome Jack so that he can kill you. This quickly turns into a full blown quest to kill Jack and save the planet of Pandora from a very grave threat. The first didn't have much of a story but the sequel comes through with a very well put together tale and the characters that you meet along the way are all extremely memorable. This game also probably introduced me to my favorite villain ever, Handsome Jack. Never have I ever loved but also hated a game character so much as I did Handsome Jack. This game was actually probably the only game that made me get emotional during a few scenes. The gameplay is still as fun as ever with the shoot and loot style but now it is even better. All the character classes are very fairly balanced and offer unique benefits to the player and every single one is a joy to play. Each of the guns now have their own unique personality so to speak as they each have something that is unique to the manufacturer which adds another little level of depth into the looting style. This game was just satisfying all the way through and the ending to this was just so satisfying and gratifying and excites me for what is to come.

Nominee #3: Far Cry 3

The last nominee in this mini list and one of the last games to cross the finish line, coming out very late in last year but it is a game that no one should miss. I just finished playing this yesterday and wow, what a game. This game starts out as what seems like a normal vacation paradise among friends but this is brought crashing down as you play through the eyes of the main character Jason Brody as he and his friends are all captured and being held for ransom before they are sold off to slavery. After a daring escape it is up to Jason to save himself and his friends from the pirates and escape. Insanity is everywhere on the island, from the normal people, to the pirates and even to Jason himself. Throughout the story we slowly start to see Jason move on from a young adult to hasn't killed anyone to a ruthless monster that can kill with ease and almost with happiness. Nothing about the island is normal which makes for the encounters with other main characters always a untrusting moment. You don't know if they are friend or foe and whether they will suddenly turn on you in the blink of an eye. The main villains are also very well done characters though in the order which they are eliminated from the story I wish was the other way. Vaas is very insightful with his words as they do hold a deeper darker meaning but it in those moments when his mood suddenly swings back and forth you really see his insanity come through. Hoyt plays everything out like a game, always making sure to be one step ahead but isn't afraid to take care of things himself. All in all Vaas was the much more interesting villian in this game. The only real complaint that I have with the game is the ending. It wasn't as satisfying as the others on this list and left much to be desired. The gameplay is a wonderfully built FPS open world game. The variety of activities and other things to do on the island is bound to keep you busy when you aren't hunting exoctic animals for various upgrades. Everything works very well and the game is perfectly suited to any style of gameplay, whether you want to be a Rambo or a silent killer. Also many of the missions of the game were very well done and one of them had joined itself into one of my favorite gaming moments ever. All in all, this is a game that no one should miss out on.

And now my winner for Game of the Year for 2012 is......
Borderlands 2!!!

This was a very tough choice as it ultimately came down to Borderlands 2 and Far Cry 3. Far Cry 3 is an amazing game but the ending left much to be desired unlike Borderlands 2 which was very satisfying throughout the entire thing and even into the end with a gratifying conclusion. Far Cry, you put up quite a fight but in the end, to me at least, Borderlands 2 came through which a overall more fun experience and complete one too.

So that is my choice but what are your guy's winners for this past year? I am curious to know what you guys think won Game of the Year ^^