Game of the Year: Alien: Isolation
Well, this would actually have been Resident Evil HD Remaster, but technically that's not out until January, despite it, err, being based on a game released in 2002 and the PS3 version being out now. So, instead, it's Alien: Isolation - a worthy replacement, and a title which takes risks in an area of the industry that hates doing exactly that.
Yes, Alien could have done with having a few hours chopped out of it, and yes some of the set-pieces are maddening and artificially difficult. But its achievements elsewhere more than make up for its shortcomings. It's a game with not only a credible antagonist, but one to whom your relationship changes via action, not cutscene.
At first you fear the Alien, then you respect it. (Then you get the power, but that is unrelated.) Like Ripley in Scott's 1979 movie, players have to learn to conquer these fears - but never become complacent - in order to progress. It's delightful in its give-no-fucks attitude, preferring to rip your head off rather than hold your hand.
Despite the fact that it's overlong, it's also quite well paced, in terms of adjusting your encounters with the Alien. A mid-game piece of fan service falls on its face, but the introduction of the flamethrower genuinely changes things: now you can actually drive the beast back. In a game about powerlessness, to take players from being petrified to being able to confront their enemy - that enemy - head on is a special thing.
PES 2015
While it will never beat EA's title in terms of sales, PES is back on top when it comes to gameplay. FIFA 15 stumbled by making its goalkeepers near-unbeatable, and PES capitalised this year in a way it's been unable to do for a while. Rumours of PES' death have been greatly exaggerated - 2013 is better than most of the recent FIFA titles - but 2015 has both on-pitch cred and, thanks to some canny marketing, pre-release buzz.
Said buzz wasn't enough to propel it to massive sales, but those that did buy it found one of the best football games ever made. I've played it now for over 50 hours, and am still nowhere near tired of it. Little changes will appeal to those that haven't played the series in a while: Master League is nowhere near as unwieldy as, say, 2013, and real-time negotiations will delight those that suffered from PES' rather byzantine transfer setups of years gone by. By far the best football game on new-gen, and a timesink of massive proportions.
Nidhogg
For this.
Honourable Mentions
Far Cry 4, Lee Carvallo's Putting Challenge, The Killinator, PT, Resident Evil HD Remaster
