Game of the Year #9: Resident Evil 4 (Gamecube)

No, you didn't miss #10 - I really do think that only 9 good games came out this year, and 8 of those were derivative sequels. Ouch. It's the worst year for gaming since 2001, and would have been the worst in a lot longer, if it weren't for the humble DS, bless its soul.

Resident Evil 4 gets the #9 spot, but only just. You've read in all the reviews how it's a wonderful reinvention of the series, and I guess it is. Mostly, however, it looks really pretty, lets you kick, shoot or stab the heads off things, and fixes a few control and camera issues that have plagued games of this type for far too long. I raved about this game in the first couple of weeks, but with some distance from it, I'm prepared to admit that it's fairly ridiculous, intermittently frustrating, repetitive, and unengaging on any but the most visceral, lizard-brain, kill-or-be-killed level. I really couldn't give a crap about the girl with the short skirt, or that bloke with the accent, but I was a bit freaked out when the dude with the bag over his head sawed me in half with a chainsaw. You get the idea. It's one of those.