Parallax Media’s Super Duper GOTY Awards 2018: The 2018 Parallaxies

Now that it’s 2019, it’s time for us to take a look at the games of the past year and determine the best of the best (as voted by the Parallax Editors). Welcome to Parallax’s first ever Super Duper GOTY Awards, which can also be referred to as the Parallaxies, due to this digital trophy each winner will receive — expertly crafted by our own Josh.

These awards cover Parallax’s Game of the Year for 2018, as well as what we think were the games with the best features, which gaming related content creators had the best year and more. Keep in mind that since we’re only a small site still looking for more writers, there unfortunately isn’t a category for every genre like you might see in other game awards articles.So without further to do, let’s start things off with the Best Remake award.

A lot of times we hear people say “Why not just make a sequel or new game instead of remaking an old one?” but 2018 shows just how much games have evolved since the time of the original release. From enhanced graphics, to improved controls and even dynamic music, 2018 had no shortage of well done remakes, but only one went above and beyond.

The nominees for Best Remake are

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser’s Minions

Shadow of the Colossus

Spyro Reignited Trilogy

Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner MVRs

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Remake goes to…

Spyro Reignited Trilogy

Next, we have the award for best anime/manga based game. Plenty of anime and manga series saw new and notable video games this year, from classics like Dragon Ball and Fist of the North Star, to more recent series like My Hero Academia and Black Clover. The majority of these games received decent reception, but only one stood out among the crowd. The nominees for Best Anime/Manga based game are

Black Clover Quartet Knights

Dragonball FighterZ

Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise

My Hero Academia One’s Justice

Naruto to Boruto Shinobi Striker

 

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Anime/Manga Based Game goes to…

Dragonball FighterZ

 

2018 was an interesting year for RPGs, with the return of the Dragon Quest, finally learning more about the different characters and stories in Octopath Traveler, seeing the world of Ni No Kuni in an entirely different light with its sequel, and experiencing the Kanto region in HD through Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu and Let’s Go Eevee, there was no shortage of great RPG experiences.

The nominees for Best RPG are

Dragon Quest XI

Ni No Kuni II

Octopath Traveler

Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu & Let’s Go Eevee

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best RPG goes to…

Octopath Traveler

When it comes to video game music, there’s plenty of variety. Between epic or whimsical orchestral scores and retro inspired soundtracks, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. The nominees for Best Soundtrack are

Celeste (Lena Raine)

God of War (Bear McCreary)

Octopath Traveler (Yasunori Nishiki)

Spider-Man (John Paesano)

The Messenger (Rainbowdragoneyes)

 

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Soundtrack goes to…

The Messenger (Rainbowdragoneyes)

Although YouTube has plenty of problems between it’s hard to read algorithms, deciding not to show subscribers when new videos have been uploaded at times, and unnecessary drama, it’s still one of the biggest platforms people go to for consuming gaming related content. Whether they be news, reviews, Let’s Plays, or other video game related videos, YouTube has it all. Among these content creators, several stand out among the rest due to their excitement, energy, and overall personality. The nominees for Best YouTube Gaming Personality are

BeatEmUps

Dunkey

Girlfriend Reviews

Greg Miller

YongYea

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for best YouTube Gaming Personality goes to…

Greg Miller

This next award highlights the best content creating group of 2018, because two or more heads is always better than one.The chemistry, comedy, and communities we get from these groups continue to show us how video games can bring people together and inspire them to make more creative content.

The nominees for Best Internet Group are

Easy Allies

Kinda Funny

Special Moves

What’s Good Games

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Internet Group goes to…

Kinda Funny

There’s no denying the significance of Twitch in modern video game culture, but here at Parallax, we like to highlight some smaller streamers alongside the bigger ones to keep things interesting and possibly less predictable. Whether these streamers have more positive interactions with their community, inspire others to be better, or just provide a great way to kick back and relax, they all deserve their spot as nominees, but only one will win.

The nominees for Best Twitch Streamer are

Andy Cortez

Breebunn

JolNrbs

Ninja

Pokimane

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Twitch Streamer goes to…

Breebunn

Every year, we see certain moments have an impact on the entire gaming industry and community. These moments can be positive or negative, and create plenty of hype, sympathy, and of course, memes. 2018 was no different, and had a number of notable, Impactful Gaming Moments. In fact, it has more nominees than any other category.

The nominees for 2018’s Most Impactful Gaming Moment are

Diablo Immortal Reveal & Reception

Drake & Ninja Fortnite Stream

Fallout 76 Bags

Riot Games Exposé

Telltale’s Massive Shutdown

Tetris Champ Gets Taken Down

THQ Nordic Buys A Lot of Things

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Most Impactful Gaming Moment goes to…

Telltale

Mechanics can make or break a game, and in 2018 we had some pretty interesting mechanics we’ve never seen before, as well as some familiar ones with a new spin. From changing graphical styles to solve puzzles, to allowing characters to go beyond their limits and more, it was always intriguing to see how these new and unique mechanics changed gameplay.

The nominees for Most Unique Gameplay Mechanic are

Mega Man 11 – Double Gear System

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – RPG Spirits

The Messenger – 8 bit to 16 bit transformation

Wandersong – Color Wheel

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Most Unique Gameplay Mechanic goes to…

The Messenger

A well written narrative helps us show just how much video games have evolved over the past few decades. They can help show us what it means to be a hero, that a person isn’t just their past, and that sometimes our worst enemy is right in the mirror and how we need to realize and accept that. 2018 had a handful of impressive narratives, with one standing out among the rest.

The nominees for Best Narrative are

Celeste

God of War

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Spider-Man

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Narrative goes to…

God of War

The next award is something that is truly special for us to announce as we have a whole podcast dedicated to the independent games out there that don’t get enough love they deserve. One of the big problems with indie games now is that there are just so many good ones out there. All of the games nominated got a lot of love from at least one of the members of the team but in the end, only one can be the best independent game of the year.

The nominees for Best Indie Game are

Celeste

Dead Cells

Into The Breach

The Messenger

And the 2018 Parallaxy Award for Best Indie Game goes to…

Celeste

And now it’s time for the final award, Parallax Media’s 2018 Game of the Year Award as voted by the editors. In 2018, we got to swing around New York in Insomniac’s Spider-Man, experience the life of outlaw Arthur Morgan in the vast open world of Red Dead Redemption 2, look back at the past and get a hint of the future with Kratos in God of War, and slay giant monsters both on our own and alongside friends in Monster Hunter: World. All of these games have received plenty of accolades, but only one will receive the crown for Parallax’s 2018 Game of the Year.

The nominees are

Celeste

Dragon Ball Fighter Z

God of War

Monster Hunter: World

Spider-Man

Red Dead Redemption 2

And Parallax Media’s Game of the Year for 2018 is…

God of War.

And that’s a wrap on Parallax Media’s Super Duper Alternative GOTY Awards 2018: The 2018 Parallaxies. Hopefully 2019 will be an even more awesome year for video games and we’ll have more award categories. Make sure to keep an eye on Parallax Media for plenty of exclusive features, op-eds, interviews, and more as the year continues!