best-of-2008 posts

Big Download has only been officially online for a little more than eight months but we still managed to post up a number of major news stories for you guys to read back in 2008. With 2009 now firmly in place, we still wanted to go back to our charts to see what news stories got the most traffic during our first year. These are news stories only; not feature articles nor posts about our hosted downloads.

The top 10 list includes three World of Warcraft posts and two posts about the PC version of Grand Theft Auto IV. But the story that got the most traffic was when we reported that there would be no demo for EA's Need For Speed Undercover. Clearly the fact that there would be no demo for this racing game caught a lot of interest from our readers and emphasizes the fact that having a demo for a PC game is a good marketing idea. Not having one could hurt a game's chance for success.

1. No Need For Speed Undercover demo planned
2. Download Mercenaries 2 "Oh No You Didn't" song for free
3. Blizzard's next MMO won't be a World of Warcraft sequel
4. C&C: Red Alert 3 CD Copy not complete for all copies
5. Grand Theft Auto IV PC system requirements revealed?
6. GTA IV PC patch update
7. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 officially announced
8. 15 year old collapses after marathon Lich King play session
9. Left 4 Dead patch adds optional server browser
10. World of Warcraft 2.4.3. patch notes now up

You've seen our awards for the best PC games released in 2008. Now our sister site Joystiq lends their considerable authority to the fray as they give our their top 10 best games, console or PC, that were released in the last 12 months. As you check out the titles that they have given their thumbs up to you will notice quite a few games that were released on the PC platform as well as a couple of titles that are scheduled to have a PC release in 2009.

We don't want to spoil Joystiq's party by revealing their picks but we think you will agree they hit the nail on the head in this case. Check it out now.

So far our multi-part overview of the next 12 months in PC games has looked at a ton of action and FPS titles. Now its time for the strategy and RTS genre to get their due. There are a lot of major titles in this category that are (hopefully) coming out in 2009, including one that could be the biggest PC game in terms of sales this year...if it's released this year that is.

Big Download has managed to get some exclusive screenshots to some of the games on our list including the above image from Demigod. And we are not done yet. Check back with us on Tuesday as we go over the many different RPG and MMO titles due out in 2009. (Keep in mind that many games on this list could have their release dates changed).

Click on the image above to continue reading 2009 (and beyond) PC Game Preview: Strategy-RTS Titles

Yesterday we started our look at the PC games of 2009 with a ton of various upcoming action and FPS titles. But there are so many of these type of games due out in the next 12 months that we had to split that preview up into two parts. This entry not only contains a number of traditional action titles but also has some fighting games and flying action game titles as well.

Check back on Monday as we will next take a look at the various strategy-RTS based games due out in the next year.

Click on the picture above to read more on the 2009 PC Game Preview: Action-FPS Titles Part 2

Christmas is now over and we are now just a few days away from the start of 2009. As with the beginning of any new year there is a feeling of excitement of what the next 365 days will bring. For the PC game industry the new year is already looking very bright with a ton of highly anticipated game titles due to be released in the next 12 months.

Big Download has looked into our crystal ball (ok, it's actually a Bioshock bobble head doll) for all of the games we hope to be playing in 2009. The result is a multi-part preview we will be running in the last days before 2008 is over with that will give you some idea of what to expect. Keep in mind that our preview is not meant to be totally comphensive as there are a number of games our there that have yet to be announced. Also, release dates for games can and do change so many of the titles in our feature might not make 2009 (in fact we have put in some games that we know won't be released this year)

We even have some exclusive new screenshots to some of the games we are featuring in our preview article. One such shot is above from the upcoming Raven Software-id Software-Activision shooter Wolfenstein. For our first part of our 2009 PC game preview we take a look at a number of upcoming action and first person shooter titles. Stay tuned on Saturday as we will preview even more action games in the works.

Update: The second part of our action-FPS preview is now live

Click on the image above to continue reading our 2009 PC game preview on action and FPS titles

Big Download was launched less than eight months ago but in that time we have played a lot of PC games. A LOT of games. You can go back and read our reviews of the various titles we have picked up and played this year so far. So when we decided to go back and see which of the many games we have played should be picked for our first annual awards, we thought it we would a bit of a daunting task.

That's what we thought it would happen. The truth is that when we (and by "we" we mean myself and my colleague Steven Wong) got together to finalize our picks, it turned out we had much the same thoughts about this matter. There were small differences but in the end the list of winners we have picked are those that for the most part we agreed with right from the start. The end result is a list that we are pretty confident is a fair representation of the state of PC gaming this year. There were some surprises, both good and bad, in this list, but overall 2008 spawned a lot of gaming entertainment across many levels. So without further ado, let's get on with our picks for the best PC games in the last 12 months.

Click on the image above to continue reading Big Download's 2008 PC Game Awards

As we look back on the events of 2008, there was plenty of bad news to report. Games were released that didn't fulfill their promise, long time developers shut their doors, and the fight to keep people from pirating games went up against other gamers who didn't want to be treated like criminals with DRM set-ups.

Yet there was also lots to celebrate as well; long awaited titles were finally released and new games were announced. PC gaming also had a number of surprises that kept gamers on their toes. Big Download decided to take a page from Kasey Kasem and count down our picks for the biggest PC game news of the year. There's no Long Distance Dedication but just imagine his voice in your head as you read though our feature.

Click on the image above to continue reading our countdown to the biggest PC game news stories of 2008.

Oh 2008. It's been a long 12 months, hasn't it? We've had some ups and downs and even some sideways moves at each other. But as this year nears its end we have to look back at our decisions, good and bad, and evaluate what we really meant to each other.

So in order to do that we decided to have a rose ceremony (blatantly ripped from Best Week Ever who itself ripped it off from The Bachelor) where we are giving out roses to our favorite people and groups in the PC game industry. However we also will make a point to not give roses out to certain other parties. That's the way it goes sometimes. It's nothing personal. Well, it's time to head out to the garden and start the ceremony. Join us, won't you?

Click on the picture above to continue reading Big Download's 2008 Rose Ceremony