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Here's a quick look at some of the major titles released, categorized roughly by genre:
RPG fans had an unusually rich selection of games to choose from, ranging from the sprawling, single-player epic (of walking!) Morrowind, to the action-oriented Dungeon Siege, which sought to out-Diablo Diablo. Straddling a middle ground was the long-awaited Neverwinter Nights, the first RPG to fully incorporate the 3rd Edition D&D rules. All three games included editors and toolsets or had them available as downloads, further seeking to extend the longevity of each. Other RPG's of note were Divine Divinity, Gothic (technically a 2001 release) and Arx Fatalis.
Strategy fans had an assortment of sequels to choose from. New World Computing released Heroes of Might & Magic IV. Qualifying as a sleeper hit was the hard-to-find Moonbase Commander. On the real-time front, Blizzard finally released Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos. Ensemble followed up Age of Kings with the fully 3D Age of Mythology. Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 saw the venerable series updated (if modestly). Will the soon-to-be released Master of Orion 3 also be a worthy candidate? And has Irrational Games' comic book-themed Freedom Force been overshadowed by the big boys?
Fans of first person shooters faced an unusually high number of releases. Primary among them is Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, a perennial bestseller and winner of many rave reviews. It's also proven to be the most consistently popular shooter online after the 800 pound gorilla known as Counter-Strike. Competing with itself, EA also published Battlefield 1942, a sprawling multiplayer game with a focus on vehicles -- air, ground and sea. Rounding out the World War II theme was 2001's late entry, the occult-laced Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Raven dealt out a double dose of sequels with Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast and Soldier of Fortune 2: Double Helix. Monolith successfully returned with No One Lives Forever 2. Epic took the reins from DE to finish up and release Unreal Tournament 2003. Not to be outdone, 4D Rulers also released one of the other few old school shooters of 2002, Gore. Ahem. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter offered a better dose of "beauty without brains". Westwood proved that the Command & Conquer series may not work in an FPS format with the tepidly-received Renegade -- but is it an overlooked winner? Eschewing the first person perspective, Hitman 2 generated good sales along with controversy over its subject matter.
Defying genres were Derek "Smartpants" Smart's latest opus, Battlecruiser Millenium, Rockstar's PC port of Grand Theft Auto 3 and, of course, what may be the true winner of 2002, Sponge Bob Square Pants: Operation Krabby Patty!
Naturally, many titles are missing from the above list, including entire generes (sports, for example). What are your picks for the best PC games of 2002?
> Splinter Cell for the xbox is supposed to be one of the best games
> this year. Only i can't judge because i don't own a copy as of yet.
> What do you think?
Its good.
Not as good as MARIOOOOOOO!
Capiche?
> Majora's Mask. eh!!!???
Yeah It may be a bit hard at some times but man is it one hell of a fu game.
> If Operation Flashpoint was released this year (I don't think it was)
> then that's the game of the year. Otherwise it's Medieval Total War or
> Allied Assualt (it's so hard to choose)
He's right, both of these games are great, or good at least.
> If Operation Flashpoint was released this year (I don't think it was)
> then that's the game of the year. Otherwise it's Medieval Total War or
> Allied Assualt (it's so hard to choose)
then choose both of them. Yey!
> I lvoe fifa 2003 the graphics are soooo good.
Am I behind the times? What is this 'lvoe'? Or are YOU incapable of spelling?
I'll let the others decide...