Time has listed The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword as the third best video game of 2011. Sadly Skyward Sword is the only Nintendo video game on the list with the fantastic Super Mario 3D Land conspicuously absent. What do you think to their choices?
10. Battlefield 3
9. Sword & Sworcery
8. Dark Souls
7. Skyrim
6. Bastion
5. Batman: Arkham City
4. Uncharted 3
3. Skyward Sword
2. Portal 2
1. Minecraft
Great job making the list. :)
As fantastic as Skyward Sword is, the games above it both earned their places.
I agree. But if Skyward sword had better dungeons it could have been #1 or #2.
wut if the Wiiu had minecraft??? (CREEPER GASM)
It’s definently better than Minecraft, but as great and fantastic as Skyward Sword is, it’s not even close to Portal 2 in my opinion.
Nah, Skyward easily beats Portal 2 but the latter has a better freshness about it to people in general.
lol portal is good but not as good as Zelda but oh well that your opinion..
Zelda beats both games that beat it.
wow skyrim is soo far down on that list
OHOHOH!!!! YEAH IT’LL BE GREAT TO HAVE MINECRAFT ON WIIU! :D
Unfortunately, XBLA will be the sole provider of Minecraft on consoles.
at least it beat Skyrim, Batman (whivh I love) and Uncharted,
GO ZELDA!!!! The best videogame franchise in history
i think super mario 3d land is better than battlefield, although i havent played it yet. super mario 3d land has become quite possibly my favorite mario game ever, i just beat the final bonus level.
battlefield is on there because of it’s graphical prowess, which in a way, it deserves.
I don’t know why MW3 is not there and BF3 is there. MW3 is better.
But the fans just hated MW3 for a stupid reason.
MW3 isnt there solely because it is so similar to MW2.
The games listed here are listed because they brought something new to the market with fresh ideas, graphics, gameplay or story.
That is probably also the reason the major games are listed so far down the list.
I think its better than the two listed before it. but thats just me.
Portal 2 beats it out because of originality, it’s fantastic writing, and fantabulous gameplay.
Minecraft beats all of the other games because it’s total freedom; something that gamers have been hoping for since the dawn of time.
I’m surprised Uncharted 3 is on this list at all though, especially in front of Skryim
Wow, Skyward Sword beat out Batman: Arkham City and Skyrim. Great job, Nintendo!
of coursw it did.and i am happy that it beated uncshited 3.now thats a true game go zelda!fuck u sony!
minecraft as the best of the YEAR?! i dont want to live on this planet anymore
what he said
^this. I don’t see the fun in that game. Anyways, good job SS!
minecraft is OK. i deffinately do not belive that it is better than skyrim battlefield 3 or skyward sword.
you guys have no creativity whats so ever.
Exactly what Vito said.
Exactly what EJL said.
minecraft?! wtf no.
I really didn’t like Portal 2 that much o.o
Though I’m really happy to see Bastion on that list. I thoroughly enjoyed that game.
You didn’t like Portal 2? You must really have serious brain damage.
Seriously, I played through the entire Portal 2 campaign twice in one sitting the very first time I played it. The game is fresh, fun, one of the funniest games I’ve ever played, extremely challenging, and very rewarding. While I highly disagree that Minecraft is better than both Portal 2 and Skyward Sword, I do think that Portal 2 is slightly better than SS.
Don’t you know how to read? He said he didn’t liked it that much. Meaning he liked it, but not as much as he would enjoy other games.
Mostly upset that Minecraft beat Portal 2, but other than that good list. Nice seeing Bastion on there
Portal 2 and Minecraft both deserve to be called the best of the year as well, but to me it’s Skyward Sword all the way!
WTF IS MINECRAFT DOING AT ONE.. IT SUCKS BALLS I WOULD EXPECT SKYRIM TO BE THERE
Well Skyrim got 7th, so… :|
lol SKYRIM!!!! really I thought arkham city would be in 2nd but I never new portal was so popular and you cant just sit there and say that you didn’t think Minecraft would win :P
Portal has even become a course in some schools… so i would say it popular.
If you hate Minecraft it’s because you lack creativity. I bet you also like being lead by the hand through MW3’s campaign
I’ve been a Zelda fan for over 10 years now and was immensely looking forward to this game. And I have to say I’m highly disappointed. This game is just flat-out boring and seems so formulaic. I’ve been playing Skyrim (first time I’ve ever bought an Elder Scrolls game) and it is leagues ahead of Skyward Sword. I still love Zelda and it’s still my favourite series, but this game is just not nearly up to par.
Well to be fair, the Wii is quite limiting technology.
I played Skyrim and its fun as well, but it’s also on platforms that can support all the functionality and things involved. Also, Link doesn’t level, and only has in Zelda 2. While Skyward Sword is still amazing, I did notice plenty of new features to make the game better. I do like the stray away from just swinging the sword and everything dies quickly. It’s nice to see the enemies and bosses defend and counter against you in Skyward Sword.
Fair enough. Maybe I’m not far enough into Skyward Sword yet. I really want to be blown away by it…I just haven’t. Yet.
3rd Temple might convince you. 4th and 5th definitely will, they’re two of my all time favorite. If they don’t then the game isn’t for you.
omfg i loved the 3rd temple. after i beat it and the boss i literally verbally thanked nintendo.
Cool story bro…
I’m cool with Portal, but Minecraft? WTF? That game came out a while ago, you could purchase it, but it was still not complete. It just doesn’t belong in that list at all despite of the things that you can do in it.
ya you could buy it in 2009 but in case you haven’t realized stupid it was officially released at minecon
So? That’s no reason why it should be on this or any “Best of 2011” list simply because it initially came out in a previous year and was still incomplete. That’s like saying Valve would release Half Life 3 today partially and 4 years down the road, you can buy the finished game when a potential sequel could have been done by that time.
Not all producers have the money to wait untill the game is finished to publish it.
Notch programmed the game on his own(1 person) and wanted to be able to work on it full time, so he decided to sell the game and continue updating it afterwards.
It was released a few weeks ago.
I don’t see how it didn’t beat portal2 or how portal2 is so high on the list. It’s a great game and all but not better than a lot of the others listed here.
1) Portal 2 does desurve to be next to Skyward sword on the list.
2) Portal 2 & Skyward sword should be the top 2.
3) Why is minecraft so high?
Honestly, i think loz shoulda been above minecraft(i cant say anything about portal since ive Never actually played it) not that i dont love minecraft and think its a great game, its just that nothing can ever compare with skyward sword except possibly the next zelda game (ive heard rumors itll be a 3ds exclusive). all in all, i think time should stick with regular new and leave gaming to folks like gameinformer and g4.
implying that gameinformer and g4 is credible…
GameInformer is much more credible than G4. Honestly the people who host X-Play sound like they don’t even play games at all.
both are equally lame though.
Never played Portal?
Your opinion on “game of the year” lists is invalid.
I would’ve put Skyward Sword at number 10.
10? You must have serious problems.
Portal 2 and Skyward are the best games of the year.
Problems hm? It’s just my opinion. By your line of thinking I could say there must be something wrong with you if you don’t like Iron Maiden (a band I like but it doesn’t matter if someone else doesn’t).
this is an embarrassing list.
Minecraft at one? Don’t get me wrong I have the game and love it! Buuut it should be like 3 or 4.
Portal 2 is a fantastic game and probably deserves beating Skyward Sword. Although they’re both masterpieces.
Minecraft meanwhile is quite mundane although its popularity is extraordinary so it being so high isn’t surprising. Personally I’m more of a Terraria guy though. Wish that was on the list.
Oh, and Skyrim and Uncharted 3 should have swapped places on that list.
And that’s all.
My Personal Top 10 of this year
1: Portal 2
2: Skyward Sword
3: Arkham City
4: Dark Souls
5: Skyrim
6: Ocarina 3D
7: Uncharted 3
8: Dead Space 2
9: Aliens: Infestation
10: Super Mario 3D Land
It hasn’t been a particularly strong year for the big N but I’m optimistic for 2012 and the Wii U
Uncharted 3 and Dead Space 2?
good list dude. i would swap dead space 2 and ocarina 3d though imo
I think most of this list is fine, but Skyrim should have at least been in the top 4.
And… Xenoblade Chronicles? It’s much better than Minecraft!
THIS! I’m surprised its been omitted from the list.
Heck where’s Mariokart 7? No love for that one either.
USA does not have Xenoblades and i beleave time is american.
Take Minecraft out from number 1, bump everything up a place and then chuck Pokemon into 10th. Everything else is fine.
Minecraft is the only completely original game on this list; it deserves #1.
I love Pokemon, but there were too many great games this year to give up any spot to Pokemon.
it played like a fps, so it’s not a “completely original game”
damn everybody’s hating on minecraft. Every opinion is obviously subjective, but I find it dissapointing that such a creative, addicting, and well made game is being bashed because somebody decided to rank it above some popular triple a budget titles.
Some people just hate it because it’s possible, other people hate it because they lack creativity, and some other people hate it because it’s total freedom. Those same people think MW3 was a fun game, think that Pokemon should be GOTY every year, and hate fun.
first i HATE mw3. second i do not belive pokemon should get game of the year. and third i like mincraft, but i do not think it should be called the best game of the year. i mean it’s not even much of a game. compared to how much there is in these other games such as narative and level design. minecraft has none of it.
Portal 2 in front of Skyward Sword? Yes. Minecraft in front of Portal 2 AND Skyward Sword? …Seriously!??!?! Don’t get me wrong, I love Minecraft, but with all its bugs and lack of content or real purpose in the game, I don’t see how that beat out both Portal 2 and Skyward Sword, which both have amazing storylines (especially Portal 2) and constantly unique content.
Minecraft being the best of 2011… that makes no sense to me whatsoever.
Nice! Fair enough! This will be on my ”Bragging list”. Yeah!
Well I know Portal 2 is good, idk about minecraft, except it’s been talked about so it must be popular…to be completely honest i’m surprised some of them didn’t beat Skyward Sword…
…what the hell is “Sword and Sworcery”?
It’s an iPad/iPhone game, info here:
http://www.swordandsworcery.com/project/
I don’t own an iPad so I’ve never played it. It looks cool and like something I wouldn’t mind playing on DS, if it weren’t an Apple exclusive…
Minecraft is in front of Portal 2? Skyward sword lost to minecraft?
WHY ON EARTH IS MINECRAFT NUMBER 1 ON THERE!!!! IT DOES NOT DESURVE TO BE THERE!!!!!
THIS SHOULD BE THE LIST!!!
1) Skyward Sword
2) Portal 2
3) A good game NOT Minecraft!
Minecraft is the greatest game ever made. It’s truly the only game that’s been made so far that actually deserves a perfect rating.
Your bias is clouding your judgement, young fanboy.
I DECIDED TO WRITE THIS ALL IN CAPS BECAUSE I THINK I’M IMPORTANT!!!!!
AND IM USING AN EXCESS AMOUNT OF EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!
THIS MAKES ME SMART!!!
nuff said
Thank God, Modern Warfare 3 isn’t on the list
I agree, when I saw this I worried MW3 would win, that would have sucked!
………um…..are you…….nevermind.
Im suprised BF3 is higher then MW3
All the fans of MW hated MW3.
Most of those games are great, but the order’s screwed up pretty bad imo
4. Arkham City
3. Portal 2
2. Skyward Sword
1. Skyrim.
I think you forgot to switch Portal 2 and Skyrim’s places.
Nope, he forgot to switch Skyrim and Skyward Sword’s places.
i used to play skyrim, but then i took a wii mote on the knee
lol, well played
What do you know? It beats Skyrim but got overruled by Minecraft…
I find this funny.
I’m…surprisingly not upset with this list. It’s really solid and I can agree with each of those choices. I haven’t even played Minecraft, but the impact it has had on gaming culture and the sheer creativity it instills in people makes it a well deserved #1.
Really, everything fits where it is. I have no gripes at all, even with Skyward Sword at 3. It seems just.
top 10 should be
1. skyward sword
2. skyrim
3. ocarina of time 3d
4. arkhum city
5. sonic generations
6. Assassin’s Creed Revelations
7. pokemon black
8. super mario 3d land
9. mario kart 7
10. skylanders
That’s an awful list; have you even played half of these games?
While I agree that Skyrim deserves a high spot; Sonic Generations, Assassins Creed, Pokemon Black, Mario Kart, and Skylanders absolutely do not belong in this list.
Minecraft, at the very least, is a completely original game. Anybody who doesn’t include it is clearly biased against it.
ACR and Pokemon Black beat out Super Mario 3D Land? Even by your own crazy fanboy logic, this list doesn’t make sense.
Just a horrible list. Ocarina of Time is a remake, you misspelled “Arkham” (you can’t say the letters where right next to each other), Pokemon and Sonic SHOULD NOT have even been this list, and you mixed MK7 and SM3DL, Assassin’s Creed Revelations could have been higher. Skyrim and SS were too close to call so that problem is left to preference. This gives me the feeling that you’re a peer pressured child who took everybody’s preference but jumbled them up. You may call me a Nintendo fanboy, but I have a friend who prefers Sony so I get to enjoy both parties. One last thing I have to say since this list was so terrible and it is “You have committed a crime against Skyrim and its people. What say you in your defense?”
“sonic generations”
what the hell bro? whats wrong with you?
Skyrim? no Portal 2?
What is wrong with you?
Minecraft? NOOOOOO! Mario Kart 7 or Pokemon Black? YEEEEEES!
Seriously? You think the 7th remake of Mario Kart and the 23rd Pokemon game should beat out the only truly original game in a long time?
Who said Mario Kart 7 was a remake?
and if it was a remake wouldnt it be the 6th remake?
I agree completely with this list. Good going Time Magazine! :D
Well, Zelda at least beated Skybug… BUT MINECRAFT FIRST?!? I don’t want to live on this planet anymore…
That’s a cute name considering none of Skyrim’s glitches are completely game breaking, and even if they were they could easily be patched within a week.
The same can’t be said for another GotY contender with Sky in its name.
Yeah but that’s one glitch, a glitch that can be easily avoided and there are only a few more glitches, if at all, for Skyward Sword. While Skyrim has a helluva lot of glitches, I already asked my friend about the game and he himself said that it was full of them, although some will be fixed in the future.
I don’t want to get into the whole battle between games with Sky in the name, but Skyrim did need to be higher up the list.
Sorry about this one. I’m on a school computer that decided to be stupid about this blog.
Not even getting into the whole debate between games with Sky in the name, Skyrim should be higher up the list.
At least MW3 is not in the list.
THANK GOD.
This list is strange. What metrics were they using to determine the position? I’d agree they are the top 10 games. The order however, a little odd.
Can’t wait to see the Skyrim fanboys freak out when they find out Zelda beat Skyrim.
Already saw them over at G4..the rage is just wow..
On technical merit alone, Skyrim and Battlefield 3 should be the top.
I’m sure you would freak out if Skyrim was 3 and Skyward Sword was 7.
“technical merit”
Well on technical merit alone, the PS3 really should be far outselling the Wii… oh wait…
I wouldn’t get all upset about it, but I would get pissed if the Skyrim fanboys started teasing us.
Minecraft and Portal 2? Really? really?..
Yes, really; they deserve it.
Yes. Minecraft, and HELL yes, Portal 2.
No surprise there that Minecraft. How popular is it? VERY. Amazing game made by Notch! I like it! On the other hand, good for Nintendo!
I wasn’t expecting this, seeing Portal is a nice surprise, such a clean game. That and Skyward Sword are my two favorites this year. Minecraft is too dependant on people’s tastes to be at the top imo. I was expecting Skyrim wrongly at the top. It’s an amazing game, but I feel it was overrated. Morrowind was a lot better to me.
Bastion is a great game, and so is Portal 2. I am glad both of those are on there.
To everyone asking what Minecraft is doing in first place, the answer is that it’s belonging there.
How to know if this was made by REAL gamers?
They didn’t put ANY Call of Duty, that’s more than enough for me.
And to be in the third place?
Wow, Nintendo sure knows what a good game is, but let’s be honest, i was expecting Minecraft to be in the first place, so much popularity for a game that haven’t been release when it came out.
As for Portal 2, meh, i don’t know, Portal 1 was a much better game than Portal 2, maybe is just me.
Portal 2 is 3 times more of Portal 1 with more gameplay mechanics, more of a story, and more great writing.
AMEN.
Eh, I think Portal 2 deserves that spot. Maybe it’s not better than portal one to you, but it’s definitely one of the best games of this year.
Plus, GLaDOS’ voice is FAR less annoying in the second one. Actually, it’s kind of sexy..
I actually agree with this list (except for Skyrim being so low and Uncharted 3 being included at all)
Minecraft…. of course minecraft is going to be number one.
Portal 2 at number 2! Pretty nice!
does the game come with wii motion plus?
Minecraft is number one because it sold over 4 million since 2009. It sold 3 million this year.
I can’t speak for the other games but, I think Skyward Sword is a classic just for perfecting 1 to 1 motion control.
… Minecraft? That game has been going disappointingly downhill for ages now. >.> I would have expected Portal 2, Arkham City or Skyrim to be above Skyward Sword, but fuck Minecraft.
Long time looker, first time poster. Wanted to offer up my Skyward Sword review. Just finished the game and I am in awe. Want to share my thoughts with this cool, passionate community:
http://suchmovingpictures.blogspot.com/2011/12/review-skyward-sword-is-unprecedented.html
to the people thats saying “minecraft wtf?”, minecraft was one of the games that from beta it had A LOT of fan support and the amount of ppl playing was increasing rapidly. if you dont know the game, don’t judge it.
I like minecraft, but it should be lower on the list.
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Minecraft is #1? Time shouldn’t be compiling top ten lists if they can’t make a decent one…
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