LogFAQs > #939250307

The 13 Games That Made Bracket (And How Long they Lasted):
-Ni No Kuni (Round 1)
-Fire Emblem Awakening (Round 2)
-Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (Round 2)
-Dota 2 (Round 1)
-Grand Theft Auto V (Round 3)
-Stanley Parable (Round 1)
-Assassin's Creed IV (Round 2)
-Tomb Raider (Round 1)
-Animal Crossing: New Leaf (Round 2)
-Bioshock Infinite (Round 2)
-The Last of Us (Division Finals)
-Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (Round 2)
-Rayman Legends (Round 2)

Notable Snubs:
-Pokemon X/Y
-Pikmin 3
-Luigis Mansion: Dark Moon
-Papers, Please
-Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies
-Metal Gear Rising: Revengance
-Injustice: Gods Among Us
-Guacamelee!

Headliners: Grand Theft Auto V, The Last of Us

Busts: Fire Emblem Awakening, Animal Crossing: New Leaf

Snubs Analysis:

Trust me, I am WELL aware that Im going to have to justify my headliners and busts picks this year, but well get there when we get there.

How is it, exactly, that Board 8 failed to get ANY Phoenix Wright game nominated this contest? Ive heard the reasoning that nominations were divided between DD and SoJ (and theoretically the Layton crossover), but come on. Two Ace Attorney games out of a potential seven (if you include the Investigations games) made it into the 2015 contest for Petes sake, and the barrier for entry in this contest was much lower. Call of Duty fans had NINE different games they could have nominated, and they still got one in. Assassins Creed fans had about as many as that to choose from, and they got TWO in.

Im not going to list a Pokemon game every year one came out in, but Im giving a special shoutout to X/Y because it had already made the 2015 bracket, and if any generation were to accompany HGSS Id assume it would be this one. And speaking of Nintendo, in further proof that this site is hardly NintendoFAQs and just ZeldaMarioSmashAndSometimesMetroidAndPokemonFAQs, Pikmin was snubbed from this contest, just as it had been snubbed from the last GotD contest. Same with the games headlined by Marios number 2.

Such an Injustice. Oh, that reminds me, remember how I said that in order to get a fighter to actually be worth anything in these contests you have to slap some pre-existing brand names on it? Yeah. Honestly I dont have that great of a read on that series, but it certainly seems pretty popular, and would have complemented the anemic fighting game roster of this contest well.

If you ask me, Metal Gear Rising is one of the more baffling snubs, definitely one of the most egregious ones that Im going to be listing in the entirety of this analysis. Like, its got Metal Gear in the name, AND its developed by Platinum games. Last I checked people still really like this game, and considering the fact that Metal Gear didnt hit the series cap, this was just BEGGING to be included.

If youre wondering why I include indie games on my snubs lists when there are some juicy AAA game that could have been placed in those slots, my thinking is essentially: if Allen wanted to put a spotlight on indie games for this contest (and he CLEARLY did, considering the snubs Ive been listing that could have claimed some of those spots), there was a hearty selection to choose from. Guacamelee is a sterling example of the Metroidvania genre, and Obra Dinn presumably owes its slot to the success of Papers, Please, Lucas Popes previous game that has slightly more name recognition behind it.

Bust Analysis:

Much like 2010, it was slim pickings this year for both busts and headliners, so a couple of these picks are sure to raise some eyebrows. Let me start, then, with the more confusing selection here.

Animal Crossing wasnt the favorite to win its fourpack by any means, theres no denying that. But in discussions surrounding the highly debated bottom half of Division 6, one game was ever present in peoples minds, and it wasnt any of the ones that were actually a part of the contest. Oh no, it was the recently launched Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a megahit that had reached our secluded site, one that hasnt really cared much for the series. There was chatter centered around how this eightpack was ripe for the taking, and because of that, a New Leaf doped up on New Horizons success might be able to elbow past the two Western games and the embarrassment. Turns out, there wasnt much reason to worry about RDR2 and Portal. While New Leaf put up a decent 42% on RDR2, that would only end up putting it on par with KHIII, which yeah. Not a bad performance, per se, just not the one it could have potentially been. You have to wonder what mightve happened if it actually was the Switch game up to bat; it very well could have won this match.

But the 3DS wasnt content with offering up what was only a mild bust at best, oh no. It served up the genuine article this year. Im going to save the bulk of my vitriol for the game that caused Fire Emblem to be so overrated, but Awakening isnt getting out of here without some harsh words. The theory was simple: Three Houses was such a big success, with such high levels of engagement across the Internet, that it would act as a rising tide for itself and Awakening. We saw this hypothesis proven with Persona, but hey, they say that a good hypothesis has to be one that can be falsified or whatever. Already there was a whiff of bullshit in its match with Deus Ex; in one of my guest crew write-ups I desperately tried arguing that 63% on Human Revolution was actually really good, but I knew I was just fooling myself. HR just doesnt have the clout the original has, and this match clued everyone in that wed been blowing all that smoke up FEs ass to be rewarded with nothing in return.

Now look, 2015 x-stats had Awakening vs Bloodborne as a 54-46 match. Even if BB had gotten a mild buff over the years, Awakening should have gotten a similar buff thanks to 3H. Hah hah hah. Thanks to B8s love of FE and indifference to Miyazakis games + bracket voting, Awakening looked ok for a few minutes before it became clear that wed been swindled. That 54-46 projection became flipped in Bloodbornes favor, and that was before a decently sized rally inflated its total. Funny story: If you hold MGSV at its 2015 level, Dark Souls increased 8% over the years. If you hold Awakening constant, Bloodborne ALSO increased about 8% since the last contest, which makes plenty of sense. If that math is accurate, then Awakening hardly budged. Theory falsified. Maybe Im just especially bitter because my FE > BB pick stung more than any other pick in my bracket; not because it cost me the most points, but because it was the ONLY match where I defied my gut instinct and let the board whisper sweet nothings in my ear. I KNEW Bloodborne would win, but hey, Nintendos really good on this site and 2015 x-stats and and and Im not blaming anyone, by the way, it was on me for not sticking to my beliefs.

---

If you're only on this board to whine about "SJWs", please redirect whatever you type on to the nearest trash can. And hop in after it.