Lurker > MetalmindStats

I'll concur with all of Axem's votes.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Red

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Here's the new and improved version of my GotD II mock bracket from 2018: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/boards/8-gamefaqs-contests/78318602

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

A little bit over a year ago, I made a GotD II mock bracket which generated quite a bit of discussion. Now that 2019 has come and gone, and with GotD II hopefully soon in the offing, I wanted to update it to include the year's GameFAQs highlights, along with adjusting some retrospectively odd seeds and set-ups from the previous bracket.

Before complaining about certain snubs or the way I've listed certain games' titles, I ask you to consider these points:

• All games in this bracket were originally released in the 2010s (2010-2019) in North America, regardless of their release date in their country of origin.
• If a game has no version that has been released in North America, I used its European, Australian (if known), and Japanese release dates in that order of preference to determine its eligibility. (I don't think this ever came up, but it's still worth stating.)
• If a game had an alpha, beta, or other test version available prior to the full versions release date, I only considered the full version's release date.
• I excluded all enhanced versions of any sort, except when the original version wasnt released in North America (Bravely Default). This will undoubtedly be the most controversial of these points because of Resident Evil 2. To explain briefly: there's exactly one case on record of any sort of enhanced version of a game previously being allowed in a contest, which was The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth. Frankly, I'm not convinced Allen realized Rebirth wasn't actually a sequel to the original Binding of Isaac, and I don't think Resident Evil 2's recent exclusion from our 2019 GotY remakes / remasters poll necessarily means Allen views it as a brand-new game.
• Finally, I listed all titles just as they are in GameFAQs' database.

I opted for all of these in order to make this bracket as close to what we can expect from the actual GotD II as possible.

Now, without further ado, here's the new bracket:

Division 1:

(1) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim vs. (16) Untitled Goose Game
(8) Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Spirit of Justice vs. (9) Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
(5) Minecraft vs. (12) Cuphead
(4) Tales of Berseria vs. (13) Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds
(3) Batman: Arkham City vs. (14) Fortnite
(6) Xenoblade Chronicles 2 vs. (11) DOOM
(7) Splatoon 2 vs. (10) Assassins Creed Odyssey
(2) Portal 2 vs. (15) Pokemon GO

Division 2:

(1) Fire Emblem: Three Houses vs. (16) Spec Ops: The Line
(8) Dark Souls II vs. (9) Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors
(5) The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword vs. (12) Dishonored
(4) Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain vs. (13) Night in the Woods
(3) Red Dead Redemption 2 vs. (14) South Park: The Stick of Truth
(6) Tomb Raider vs. (11) Mortal Kombat
(7) Death Stranding vs. (10) NIER
(2) Super Mario Odyssey vs. (15) Fate/Grand Order

Division 3:

(1) Persona 5 vs. (16) Bastion
(8) To the Moon vs. (9) Super Mario 3D World
(5) Mass Effect 3 vs. (12) Sonic Mania
(4) Marvels Spider-Man vs. (13) Hollow Knight
(3) Red Dead Redemption vs. (14) Final Fantasy XIV Online
(6) Borderlands 2 vs. (11) Mega Man 11
(7) Super Mario Maker 2 vs. (10) Donkey Kong Country Returns
(2) Mass Effect 2 vs. (15) Danganrompa: Trigger Happy Havoc

Division 4:

(1) Super Smash Bros. Ultimate vs. (16) Valkyria Chronicles 4
(8) Zero Escape: Virtues Last Reward vs. (9) Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
(5) Fallout: New Vegas vs. (12) Bravely Default
(4) Uncharted 4: A Thiefs End vs. (13) Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
(3) Kingdom Hearts III vs. (14) Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
(6) Shovel Knight vs. (11) Sonic Generations
(7) Pokemon Sword / Shield vs. (10) Xenoblade Chronicles X
(2) Bloodborne vs. (15) Rocket League

Division 5:

(1) The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt vs. (16) Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call
(8) Octopath Traveler vs. (9) Animal Crossing: New Leaf
(5) Final Fantasy XIII vs. (12) Kid Icarus: Uprising
(4) Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age vs. (13) Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Dual Destinies
(3) Yakuza 0 vs. (14) Terraria
(6) The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds vs. (11) Nioh
(7) Destiny 2 vs. (10) Sid Meiers Civilization V
(2) The Last of Us vs. (15) A Hat in Time

Division 6:

(1) Grand Theft Auto V vs. (16) Pokemon Black/White Version 2
(8) Mario Kart 8 vs. (9) Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
(5) Fire Emblem Awakening vs. (12) Divinity: Original Sin II
(4) Bayonetta 2 vs. (13) God of War III
(3) Final Fantasy XV vs. (14) Hyrule Warriors
(6) Fallout 4 vs. (11) Pokemon Black/White Version
(7) Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception vs. (10) Life is Strange
(2) Xenoblade Chronicles vs. (15) Devil May Cry 5

Division 7:

(1) Dark Souls vs. (16) Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
(8) Dragon Age: Inquisition vs. (9) Fire Emblem Fates
(5) BioShock Infinite vs. (12) Pokemon Sun / Moon
(4) Monster Hunter: World vs. (13) Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
(3) Super Mario Galaxy 2 vs. (14) Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep
(6) Dark Souls III vs. (11) Deus Ex: Human Revolution
(7) Doki Doki Literature Club! vs. (10) Dragons Dogma
(2) God of War vs. (15) Celeste

Division 8:

(1) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild vs. (16) Umineko When They Cry: Question Arc
(8) The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky vs. (9) Journey
(5) Overwatch vs. (12) Dragon Ball FighterZ
(4) Undertale vs. (13) Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
(3) Horizon Zero Dawn vs. (14) Kirbys Return to Dream Land
(6) The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series vs. (11) Stardew Valley
(7) Resident Evil 7: biohazard vs. (10) The Outer Worlds
(2) NieR: Automata vs. (15) Rayman Legends

I welcome any predictions, as well as other comments such as griping about snubs, assuming you keep the above points in mind.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Snoopy: Low Fodder - Close on sheer icon factor, but Axem's right: the GameFAQs demographic has no reason to care.

Ditto: High Fodder - Imagine if we actually got a match pic with Crono (or any character, really) versus that same character with Ditto eyes, though.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

LeonhartFour posted...

Eh, POTD results don't necessarily correlate to contest results.

I know that. My point is we're less likely to even get a GotD II contest if we also get a poll about it.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Two Fodder Line votes and a Mid Fodder average out to High Fodder for Honest Abe.

As for today's slate, Low Fodder for Steven Armstrong is obvious. I will wait for more votes on the other two.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Yuri_LowelI posted...

instead were going to have a bunch of indie/VR games that noone gives a shit about.

Blame our GotY format as a whole for that one, not Allen's specific incompetence this year. While you could fairly quibble with the repeated placement (or in some cases, non-placement) of certain games in certain polls, Kingdom Hearts III was the only real snub (seriously, we needed Crash Team Racing over it, yet that game wasn't in the remake poll?), and even then, it would have jobbed hard to RE2.

Yuri_LowelI posted...

LA looks better on the switch poll than this. IT outright beat Luigis Mansion 3 and got near FE.

I'm not sure in what universe almost getting doubled by Three Houses is getting near it. Not to mention you were the one trumping how strong DQ11 Definitive was supposed to be, and now beating some game no one remotely cares about here is supposed to be a better showing than almost doubling a version of DQ11?

Also, I don't want a GotD poll simply because I want to see that question answered this next contest, and that's less likely if we also have a poll about it.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Ralph: Mid Fodder - On the merits that the first Wreck-It Ralph is probably the most popular Disney Animation movie since the end of the Disney Renaissance on GameFAQs as a whole, and because the second movie's mixed reception definitely wasn't bad enough to torpedo his strength.

Lincoln: Mid Fodder - I'm still skeptical about the strength of real-life people on GameFAQs.

Mew: Fodder Line

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

linid0t posted...

Cant have a finale without the Nintendo requirement

Three Houses would have still been in there with or without RE2 in this poll. Ironically, RE2's omission here probably assures its win in the final GotY poll thanks to Link's Awakening leeching Three Houses.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Winslow
Thomas
Grookey
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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

I'll concur with all of Axem's rankings.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

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Mysterio (tough choice)
Red

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Villager: Mid Fodder - I'm again skeptical people care, whereas they definitely care about Isabelle. Villager isn't quite iconic enough a series rep to display real strength despite that.
Chaos: Low Fodder
Red: Mid Fodder - I voted High on Tommy way back when, and it stands to reason any other Ranger is comfortably behind based on that poll.
Catwoman: High Fodder - I don't think the Catwoman movie even crosses the mind of 90% of GameFAQs.

Nominate Kitty Pryde.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Alm: Low Fodder
Naruto: Mid Fodder

Tali: Mid Fodder - Skewing conservative here because she didn't make 2013's field and Mordin did, even though the latter didn't debut until ME2. That implies to me she isn't quite the fan favorite she'd need to be to reach High Fodder.

Navi: Mid Fodder - Fun(?) fact: when I imagine the phrase "Hey! Listen!", it's in the voice of Veronica from Dragon Quest XI, rather than Navi's voice. I would have to guess it's a much more positive association.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Sofia
Red
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Hart: Mid Fodder
Raichu: High Fodder
Old Man: Mid Fodder

Nominate Jade (Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age).

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Nelson_Mandela posted...

-requiring a mouse and/or keyboard for the best playing experience

IMO at least (because I know some people would disagree about the last for one), Minecraft, Terraria, and Stardew Valley all have vastly superior controls using a mouse/keyboard compared to a controller. On top of that, while mods are far from necessary to enjoy each of those games, they're there if you want to delve into them on PC, but not other versions.

I can't say much beyond that, because there's not many games I've played both on PC and on console.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Corviknight
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Adelaide
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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Shy Guy: Low Fodder - I feel like some people are just assuming Shy Guy will have real contest strength because they personally like him, rather than offering convincing arguments about why GameFAQs voters would care.
Groose: Low Fodder
The Rock: Mid Fodder - The key is that, as half_silver said, he won't be mainly deriving his strength from the niche that is professional wrestling.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Xiahou Shake posted...

Battle efficiency is kind of amazing in DQ11 since because the skill system progresses the way it does you have characters dancing in and out of the meta limelight as the story unfolds. Like Rab is a godly character who makes all other casters moot when you first get him and yet he bows out to those same characters later in the game. Or how Erik is solid dps, then borderline useless around the time Jade shows up, then becomes the best dps in the game further than that.

I definitely agree with this. For what it's worth, I found Veronica always fun and useful in battle, but she was around for less of the game than anyone else except maybe #8 (who was also always useful when around). Likewise, while Rab was relatively less useful than everyone else throughout act 3, he fills invaluable roles in battle for much of act 2.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

My full ranking looks something like this: Veronica > Sylvando > Serena/Luminary > Erik/#8 > Rab/Jade

Based on gameplay alone, it would be more like Veronica > The Rest > Rab, though even he was fun to use at points.

To be honest, I thought Sylvando would commandingly win this poll. The Jade love is also somewhat surprising to me; while she's fun in battles, so is pretty much everyone else, and I felt like she was just kind of there otherwise.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Votes Veronica

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!

Garnet: Mid Fodder - I'm not that confident in random FF9 party members, though Garnet's certainly more likely to be strong than an anthropomorphic rat.

Nier: Mid Fodder - His 2013 match wasn't atrocious, especially considering the circumstances. I'm confident both the game and especially series value of Nier has soared since then, which should translate into a big boost for the eponymous character.

Luffy: Low Fodder - What are the anime series GameFAQs cares about anyways, besides the various permutations of Dragon Ball?

Koopa: Mid Fodder - See my line about the Goomba. People care a bit more about it as a character, but I don't think that's quite enough.

Nominate Naruto for re-ranking just because I wouldn't take this site to have particularly positive opinions about the character or the anime in general.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Winslow
Shazam
Thomas

So glad I (unintentionally) watched The Lighthouse just in time to vote in these matches.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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I'm not sure about perfect, but can you really call yourself a board gamer if you haven't tried Catan at least once in your life?

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
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Spoiler alert for the upcoming Gauntlet Crew Ranks Musicals II topic, I see.

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"I believe in a universe that doesn't care, and people who do."
You won the CBX Guru Contest, Advokaiser! Bully for you!