Woodling Gameblogging Award Nominees 2020
Dec. 21st, 2020 05:53 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kjorteoLook, I'll be honest with you: The focus end of my mental health has taken an absolute nosedive, I've been so bad at getting around to doing basically anything that I completely forgot about IFComp this year, 2020 has been a thing as I'm sure you're all aware, and there is a tremendous urge to just crawl back into bed forever while the completely ignored work and house tasks and unpaid bills (my finances are fine and I can totally afford them; I just, like, forget to get around to sending in the payments) and concerned "hey I haven't heard from you in like three months, are you still alive or what" IMs pile up. It's gone well past the point of me just being lazy and sucking and into the territory where I think I have a legitimate neurodivergency-related problem here. (Either this is an antidepressant side effect or there's an undiagnosed "okay great we nuked the anxiety, now what about the ADHD" or something lurking back in there somewhere.) Kurt joined our system several months ago and (as of when I'm writing this, updating it is on the to-do list for later) this Dreamwidth icon of the system still only has Ardei, Sara, and me. There was a whole big story about how he came to be, his relationship with us, the struggles and growing pains we had getting used to the new addition to the family, that I just... haven't told yet. People who hang out with us every day on Telegram have watched it unfold, but to the Dreamwidth audience, there's just this sort of "oh yeah there are four of us in my head now, don't worry about it, I'll explain later maybe" handwave that has yet to come to fruition.
Basically what I'm saying is that the final few months of 2020 have seen me blow past the point of not just dropping the ball, but somehow losing my hands in a tragic rock/paper/scissors accident and evolving into a lesser form of life that is now physically incapable of grasping the ball. As such, yeah the gameblogging awards are a little late this year.
We're expanding to let all four of us (yes there are four, I'm going to add Kurt to the icon eventually, shut up) weigh in with our respective picks and preferences. As always feel free make your bets and predictions as to how we're each going to vote, though we're on a bit of a compressed schedule since I was maybe a little behind schedule turning the nominations post in.
2020 by the numbers: 24 games completed, 8 abandoned (though that includes a bunch of last-minute housekeeping entries,) and 3 ongoing, for a total of 35 games blogged, a number that exactly ties last year's overall total. Considering how much of a void day the entire last quarter of the year has been for us, I find that hard to believe unless we had a really strong early lead that I just kind of blew at the end there, but that's what the figures claim, anyway.
Anyway! Awards. Nominations. Categories. Words.
Rita Repulsa award for Achievements in Backlog Liberation
Some games are long, some are hard, some have just been in the backlog forever. Whatever the reason, this award honors the games whose eventual completion made us say, "Finally! After ten thousand years, I'm free! It's time to conquer Earth!"
Nominees:
Car Quest
Dragon Warrior II
I Became a Dog 2
Lawn Mower
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Honorable Mentions:
Hidden my game by mom 3
Celine: We have some long ones, some hard ones, some ones that have been kicking around our shared brain since childhood, and some that are any combination of all of the above.
Crying Bulbasaur award for Achievements in Emotional Devastation
Whether it makes us cry, warms our heart, makes us think about our lives, or otherwise makes us feel things, this award is to honor the games that took us on a journey through the strongest emotions.
Nominees:
A Game For You, Josh
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Something for Someone Else
This Is Fine
Two Eyes
Honorable Mentions:
HOME
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
My Friend is a Raven
When the Past Was Around (Prologue)
Celine: Okay, so, Freebird Games didn't release anything this year, so there's less straightforward "this game had plot beats that made us cry" than usual. In fact, DQB2 may be the only one that follows the traditional formula in that regard (it is a Dragon Quest game, after all.) Instead, we have a lot of indie poignancy and reflection, from pondering the human condition to dwelling on lost loves to "good heavens the past four years have been emotionally trying."
Sara: Look. You stretched the definition of feeling things this year but... did you? We did feel things, here. I wouldn't argue this was a lean year so much an... unconventional one? Outside-the-box feels?
Kurt: Counterpoint: We just lived through 2020. Do you really need to have played Rakuen or something on top of that? Have we not all suffered enough?
Celine: Valid.
Hint Coin award for Most Puzzling Puzzler
This award celebrates the headaches, confusion, and eventual triumph and/or shame in using a walkthrough that come with the best puzzle games and puzzles in games.
Nominees:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Escape Lala
King Rabbit
Monument Valley 2
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
Dokkiri God Evasion
Hidden my game by mom 3
I Became a Dog 2
Super Jigsaw Puzzle Generations
Two Eyes
Celine: "This category's bench is kind of thin for a large part of the year but we can usually make up for it during IFComp," Celine said.
Sara: *Gestures at 2020*
Celine: Yeah, I know. And like, these aren't bad, all things considered. Nothing here is too meaty (I mean a literal "it's a jigsaw puzzle, that's it, just assemble the jigsaw puzzle" jigsaw puzzle game was almost a finalist,) but I mean, they can't all be Sixteen Easy Pieces.
Sara: ... God. Would you want them to be?
Wing of Wyvern award for Most Retro Nostalgia Trip
Whether it is an actual classic game or a modern pixel-fest reminiscent of one, this award honors the games that really take you back to Tantagel Castle.
Nominees:
Bokosuka Wars
Mario Adventure
Dragon Warrior II
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lyle in Cube Sector
Honorable Mentions:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Lawn Mower
Plants vs. Zombies
Celine: Oh, heck. Okay, here the competition gets a lot heavier.
Sara: Four NES games and an early 2000s keygen-music'd PC indie thing, huh. Yeah, someone was looking backwards this year.
Celine: Would you prefer we lived in the present? *Gesture around*
Little Cup award for Achievements in Fluff
Not every game needs to be a long and serious epic. This award honors the light and/or little palate cleansers, because games are fun.
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
A Game For You, Josh
Monument Valley 2
This Is Fine
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
3 Blind Mice: A Remediation Game for Improper Children
Escape Lala
HOME
My Friend is a Raven
Mushroom Cats
Celine: I guess there was a lot of fluff this year, at least. Being short nibble-sized romps, I can get through a fair number of these and so this category usually does not disappoint.
Sara: Good emotional spread, too. We have cute, existential, puzzling, heartwarming in the face of despair, and... *squint* ... trippy.
Piece of Heart award for Warmest Fuzzy
Whether it's a short indie romp or a long epic, and whether heartwarming moments are in the plot directly or just as a project that feels like it was made with love, this award honors games that make players feel good inside.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
A Game For You, Josh
HOME
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Honorable Mentions:
Dragon Quest Builders 2
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Monument Valley 2
Something for Someone Else
When the Past Was Around (Prologue)
Celine: ... And speaking of emotional spreads!
Sara: I like how half the nominees for this category are Little Cup's Honorables. And the other half are Little Cup's A-list. And Animal Crossing, which is the second-biggest cup we had this year.
Ardei: ... This category makes me feel warm. I like it here. *Curls up around the games like a heat rock*
Celine: ... Oh. Well, uh. Vote now on which game you think provides the most heat to our resident reptile's belly region, I guess.
Ardei: *soft rumble*
Furry Little Body award for Achievements in Anthropomorphic Appeal
Because sometimes you just need a silly little award to acknowledge that one character you want to bang.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Anubis and the Buried Bone
BirdGut
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Welcome to Moreytown
Honorable Mentions:
Down Ward
King Rabbit
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Revenge of the Bird King
Two Eyes
Kurt: I like how you haven't touched Anubis and the Buried Bone since before you even started doing these awards, but this year you finally got around to admitting that and doing the official write-up for it and now it's instantly shot into finalist contention. YIFFS FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE.
Celine: I mean, fitting, since it's Anubis and all.
Kurt: YIFFS ETERNAL. *Notices ur abandonware demo that was last updated probably when the actual ancient Egyptian empire was, like, current* OwO what's this?
Celine: This category was hard to write because I have a tendency to Freudian-typo "king" into "kink" anyway, and doubly so when we're talking about... well, this. And "Revenge of the Bird Kink" just sounds like a game about how we met Kurt.
Golden Pheasant award for Artistic Achievement
Regardless of what the game actually does with them and whether it works overall, this award celebrates the truly outstanding and impressive feats in a game's assets, be the graphics, music, voice acting, game engine, or anything else.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Down Ward
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lumin's Path
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
Escape Lala
NO THING
This Is Fine
Celine: I really wanted to put NO THING in A-list contention but there just wasn't anything the four of us could agree should give up its spot to make the necessary room. Everything here has some amazing assets, from several different kinds of appealing visual styles to at least a couple great soundtracks.
Ardei: Even a game such as Down Ward, which has but one song, is remarkable because it is a good song. Furthermore, it has one of the aforementioned appealing visual styles.
Trap Devised by Satan award for Game Most Likely Not Done Yet
Backlogs are immense, time is finite, and most games can be crossed off the list and moved on from once completed. However, some games deserve a special mention for their lasting appeal and replay value. This award honors the ones that don't want to be over.
Nominees:
Car Quest
I.R.P. Intelligent-Rackety-Paradise
Lyle in Cube Sector
Plants vs. Zombies
Super Jigsaw Puzzle Generations
Honorable Mentions:
HOME
Lawn Mower
This Is Fine
Welcome to Moreytown
Wurroom
Celine: Some semi-short romps that openly invite the player to explore them again (two of which I already have; and their entries this year were not the first time I played through them,) a literal jigsaw puzzle game, and whatever the snouts I.R.P. is (which may be enough to be worth a second look in its own right because seriously what.) Good mix.
Extra Life award for Most Deserving of a Second Chance
Not every played game is completed. Most of the abandoned ones were abandoned for a reason, and quickly forgotten. Could some of them find redemption and a path back onto the active to-do list, though? Maybe these ones could....
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Down Ward
Revenge of the Bird King
Mario Adventure
NO THING
Honorable Mentions:
Anubis and the Buried Bone
Bokosuka Wars
Lumin's Path
Kurt: I'm glad Anubis and the Buried Bone was only an honorable mention. If you seriously put it in top contention for this award, I would have had to like... caw at you or something. You haven't touched it since before you started gameblogging, it's dead, leave it be. But an honorable is okay I guess.
Sara: A game you sunk 250 hours into and burned out on but that never really has a clean break, a couple that were fine but just too hard, and a couple that you barely even felt like you'd actually stopped playing them when you finally got around to writing the entry. Hmm. Not a bad spread.
Stan S. Stanman award for If You Only Buy One Game from This List....
Whether it's an overlooked indie gem or a well known game that deserves its reputation, this award honors the one game each year that everyone reading this really owes it to themselves to check out.
Nominees:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
A Game For You, Josh
Car Quest
Dragon Quest Builders 2
NO THING
Honorable Mentions:
King Rabbit
Lyle in Cube Sector
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Wurroom
Celine: I feel like this category is usually pretty good at getting a diverse spread of why each game is nominated, which makes for a more varied, less predictable competition due to the apples-to-oranges comparison. Does the esoteric existential indie game that's worth checking out compare to the AAA "please get this game we're also playing so you can visit our island sometime" factor? Does the cute easily-attainable freeware fluff piece compare to the serious epic for which you have to pay? What do we recommend everyone else get into?
Kurt:petting us all day
Celine: ... *side glance* Um...
Sara: *Shushes Celine* No, I like where he's going with this.
Clanmates' Choice award for Clanmates' Choice
Another silly for-fun category. We pick five games, and the members of Clan Sugardoom each pick one!
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Bokosuka Wars
Dragon Warrior II
Lyle in Cube Sector
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
Escape Lala
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Celine: We expanded the Sqrlmog's Choice awards this year so that Xyzzy is no longer the only clanmate who gets to participate. We were already expanding every other category because there are four woodlings now, so why not, right? That change was overdue.
Anyway, we deliberately try to keep "what exactly are they picking, here" reasoning as intentionally vague as the Tumblr elections, often including games that make for a quirky mix of a list regardless of whether the clanmates in question have even played them. Will they go for the shitpost answer? Will they go for a "no but seriously" sincere defense of the one game here they really do believe in and want to recognize? Who knows! (We know, because they have submitted their answers to us already, but we are of course not telling yet.)
Woodlings' Choice award for Best Game Overall
The grand prize as well as the most personal one. After all the other categories, after honoring every game for whatever it does best and whatever other demographics that might appeal to, this is the one that we, the woodlings, found to be our personal overall favorites.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Dragon Warrior II
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lyle in Cube Sector
Honorable Mentions:
BirdGut
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
NO THING
Plants vs. Zombies
Celine: You know, say what you will about the year and my ability to do... like... anything; we did manage to get some pretty great games in the finals this year. I mean, we usually do, but like... it's good that even 2020 wasn't an exception. There are some fantastic games out there.
Sara: I mean, this still may be the least suspenseful the grand finale has ever been on your end, as far as the "I wonder which one she's going to pick" factor.
Celine: On my end. That doesn't affect how you all will decide, so there could still be some surprises there.
= Copy/pasted boilerplate outro because mnnrrhhh =
And there you have it! As always, you can keep track of all of this stuff along with past years' info, all in neat sorted spreadsheet form, right here. Feel free to weigh in with your guesses as well as your personal picks--we love talking about games! (I mean, like, as long as you're not a toxic Gamer of course, but I assume anyone bothering to look us up on Dreamwidth is cool.)
Basically what I'm saying is that the final few months of 2020 have seen me blow past the point of not just dropping the ball, but somehow losing my hands in a tragic rock/paper/scissors accident and evolving into a lesser form of life that is now physically incapable of grasping the ball. As such, yeah the gameblogging awards are a little late this year.
We're expanding to let all four of us (yes there are four, I'm going to add Kurt to the icon eventually, shut up) weigh in with our respective picks and preferences. As always feel free make your bets and predictions as to how we're each going to vote, though we're on a bit of a compressed schedule since I was maybe a little behind schedule turning the nominations post in.
2020 by the numbers: 24 games completed, 8 abandoned (though that includes a bunch of last-minute housekeeping entries,) and 3 ongoing, for a total of 35 games blogged, a number that exactly ties last year's overall total. Considering how much of a void day the entire last quarter of the year has been for us, I find that hard to believe unless we had a really strong early lead that I just kind of blew at the end there, but that's what the figures claim, anyway.
Anyway! Awards. Nominations. Categories. Words.
Rita Repulsa award for Achievements in Backlog Liberation
Some games are long, some are hard, some have just been in the backlog forever. Whatever the reason, this award honors the games whose eventual completion made us say, "Finally! After ten thousand years, I'm free! It's time to conquer Earth!"
Nominees:
Car Quest
Dragon Warrior II
I Became a Dog 2
Lawn Mower
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Honorable Mentions:
Hidden my game by mom 3
Celine: We have some long ones, some hard ones, some ones that have been kicking around our shared brain since childhood, and some that are any combination of all of the above.
Crying Bulbasaur award for Achievements in Emotional Devastation
Whether it makes us cry, warms our heart, makes us think about our lives, or otherwise makes us feel things, this award is to honor the games that took us on a journey through the strongest emotions.
Nominees:
A Game For You, Josh
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Something for Someone Else
This Is Fine
Two Eyes
Honorable Mentions:
HOME
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
My Friend is a Raven
When the Past Was Around (Prologue)
Celine: Okay, so, Freebird Games didn't release anything this year, so there's less straightforward "this game had plot beats that made us cry" than usual. In fact, DQB2 may be the only one that follows the traditional formula in that regard (it is a Dragon Quest game, after all.) Instead, we have a lot of indie poignancy and reflection, from pondering the human condition to dwelling on lost loves to "good heavens the past four years have been emotionally trying."
Sara: Look. You stretched the definition of feeling things this year but... did you? We did feel things, here. I wouldn't argue this was a lean year so much an... unconventional one? Outside-the-box feels?
Kurt: Counterpoint: We just lived through 2020. Do you really need to have played Rakuen or something on top of that? Have we not all suffered enough?
Celine: Valid.
Hint Coin award for Most Puzzling Puzzler
This award celebrates the headaches, confusion, and eventual triumph and/or shame in using a walkthrough that come with the best puzzle games and puzzles in games.
Nominees:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Escape Lala
King Rabbit
Monument Valley 2
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
Dokkiri God Evasion
Hidden my game by mom 3
I Became a Dog 2
Super Jigsaw Puzzle Generations
Two Eyes
Celine: "This category's bench is kind of thin for a large part of the year but we can usually make up for it during IFComp," Celine said.
Sara: *Gestures at 2020*
Celine: Yeah, I know. And like, these aren't bad, all things considered. Nothing here is too meaty (I mean a literal "it's a jigsaw puzzle, that's it, just assemble the jigsaw puzzle" jigsaw puzzle game was almost a finalist,) but I mean, they can't all be Sixteen Easy Pieces.
Sara: ... God. Would you want them to be?
Wing of Wyvern award for Most Retro Nostalgia Trip
Whether it is an actual classic game or a modern pixel-fest reminiscent of one, this award honors the games that really take you back to Tantagel Castle.
Nominees:
Bokosuka Wars
Mario Adventure
Dragon Warrior II
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lyle in Cube Sector
Honorable Mentions:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Lawn Mower
Plants vs. Zombies
Celine: Oh, heck. Okay, here the competition gets a lot heavier.
Sara: Four NES games and an early 2000s keygen-music'd PC indie thing, huh. Yeah, someone was looking backwards this year.
Celine: Would you prefer we lived in the present? *Gesture around*
Little Cup award for Achievements in Fluff
Not every game needs to be a long and serious epic. This award honors the light and/or little palate cleansers, because games are fun.
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
A Game For You, Josh
Monument Valley 2
This Is Fine
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
3 Blind Mice: A Remediation Game for Improper Children
Escape Lala
HOME
My Friend is a Raven
Mushroom Cats
Celine: I guess there was a lot of fluff this year, at least. Being short nibble-sized romps, I can get through a fair number of these and so this category usually does not disappoint.
Sara: Good emotional spread, too. We have cute, existential, puzzling, heartwarming in the face of despair, and... *squint* ... trippy.
Piece of Heart award for Warmest Fuzzy
Whether it's a short indie romp or a long epic, and whether heartwarming moments are in the plot directly or just as a project that feels like it was made with love, this award honors games that make players feel good inside.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
A Game For You, Josh
HOME
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Honorable Mentions:
Dragon Quest Builders 2
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Monument Valley 2
Something for Someone Else
When the Past Was Around (Prologue)
Celine: ... And speaking of emotional spreads!
Sara: I like how half the nominees for this category are Little Cup's Honorables. And the other half are Little Cup's A-list. And Animal Crossing, which is the second-biggest cup we had this year.
Ardei: ... This category makes me feel warm. I like it here. *Curls up around the games like a heat rock*
Celine: ... Oh. Well, uh. Vote now on which game you think provides the most heat to our resident reptile's belly region, I guess.
Ardei: *soft rumble*
Furry Little Body award for Achievements in Anthropomorphic Appeal
Because sometimes you just need a silly little award to acknowledge that one character you want to bang.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Anubis and the Buried Bone
BirdGut
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Welcome to Moreytown
Honorable Mentions:
Down Ward
King Rabbit
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Revenge of the Bird King
Two Eyes
Kurt: I like how you haven't touched Anubis and the Buried Bone since before you even started doing these awards, but this year you finally got around to admitting that and doing the official write-up for it and now it's instantly shot into finalist contention. YIFFS FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE.
Celine: I mean, fitting, since it's Anubis and all.
Kurt: YIFFS ETERNAL. *Notices ur abandonware demo that was last updated probably when the actual ancient Egyptian empire was, like, current* OwO what's this?
Celine: This category was hard to write because I have a tendency to Freudian-typo "king" into "kink" anyway, and doubly so when we're talking about... well, this. And "Revenge of the Bird Kink" just sounds like a game about how we met Kurt.
Golden Pheasant award for Artistic Achievement
Regardless of what the game actually does with them and whether it works overall, this award celebrates the truly outstanding and impressive feats in a game's assets, be the graphics, music, voice acting, game engine, or anything else.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Down Ward
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lumin's Path
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
Escape Lala
NO THING
This Is Fine
Celine: I really wanted to put NO THING in A-list contention but there just wasn't anything the four of us could agree should give up its spot to make the necessary room. Everything here has some amazing assets, from several different kinds of appealing visual styles to at least a couple great soundtracks.
Ardei: Even a game such as Down Ward, which has but one song, is remarkable because it is a good song. Furthermore, it has one of the aforementioned appealing visual styles.
Trap Devised by Satan award for Game Most Likely Not Done Yet
Backlogs are immense, time is finite, and most games can be crossed off the list and moved on from once completed. However, some games deserve a special mention for their lasting appeal and replay value. This award honors the ones that don't want to be over.
Nominees:
Car Quest
I.R.P. Intelligent-Rackety-Paradise
Lyle in Cube Sector
Plants vs. Zombies
Super Jigsaw Puzzle Generations
Honorable Mentions:
HOME
Lawn Mower
This Is Fine
Welcome to Moreytown
Wurroom
Celine: Some semi-short romps that openly invite the player to explore them again (two of which I already have; and their entries this year were not the first time I played through them,) a literal jigsaw puzzle game, and whatever the snouts I.R.P. is (which may be enough to be worth a second look in its own right because seriously what.) Good mix.
Extra Life award for Most Deserving of a Second Chance
Not every played game is completed. Most of the abandoned ones were abandoned for a reason, and quickly forgotten. Could some of them find redemption and a path back onto the active to-do list, though? Maybe these ones could....
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Down Ward
Revenge of the Bird King
Mario Adventure
NO THING
Honorable Mentions:
Anubis and the Buried Bone
Bokosuka Wars
Lumin's Path
Kurt: I'm glad Anubis and the Buried Bone was only an honorable mention. If you seriously put it in top contention for this award, I would have had to like... caw at you or something. You haven't touched it since before you started gameblogging, it's dead, leave it be. But an honorable is okay I guess.
Sara: A game you sunk 250 hours into and burned out on but that never really has a clean break, a couple that were fine but just too hard, and a couple that you barely even felt like you'd actually stopped playing them when you finally got around to writing the entry. Hmm. Not a bad spread.
Stan S. Stanman award for If You Only Buy One Game from This List....
Whether it's an overlooked indie gem or a well known game that deserves its reputation, this award honors the one game each year that everyone reading this really owes it to themselves to check out.
Nominees:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
A Game For You, Josh
Car Quest
Dragon Quest Builders 2
NO THING
Honorable Mentions:
King Rabbit
Lyle in Cube Sector
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Wurroom
Celine: I feel like this category is usually pretty good at getting a diverse spread of why each game is nominated, which makes for a more varied, less predictable competition due to the apples-to-oranges comparison. Does the esoteric existential indie game that's worth checking out compare to the AAA "please get this game we're also playing so you can visit our island sometime" factor? Does the cute easily-attainable freeware fluff piece compare to the serious epic for which you have to pay? What do we recommend everyone else get into?
Kurt:
Celine: ... *side glance* Um...
Sara: *Shushes Celine* No, I like where he's going with this.
Clanmates' Choice award for Clanmates' Choice
Another silly for-fun category. We pick five games, and the members of Clan Sugardoom each pick one!
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Bokosuka Wars
Dragon Warrior II
Lyle in Cube Sector
Wurroom
Honorable Mentions:
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
Escape Lala
Mushroom Cats
This Is Fine
Celine: We expanded the Sqrlmog's Choice awards this year so that Xyzzy is no longer the only clanmate who gets to participate. We were already expanding every other category because there are four woodlings now, so why not, right? That change was overdue.
Anyway, we deliberately try to keep "what exactly are they picking, here" reasoning as intentionally vague as the Tumblr elections, often including games that make for a quirky mix of a list regardless of whether the clanmates in question have even played them. Will they go for the shitpost answer? Will they go for a "no but seriously" sincere defense of the one game here they really do believe in and want to recognize? Who knows! (We know, because they have submitted their answers to us already, but we are of course not telling yet.)
Woodlings' Choice award for Best Game Overall
The grand prize as well as the most personal one. After all the other categories, after honoring every game for whatever it does best and whatever other demographics that might appeal to, this is the one that we, the woodlings, found to be our personal overall favorites.
Nominees:
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Dragon Quest Builders 2
Dragon Warrior II
Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Lyle in Cube Sector
Honorable Mentions:
BirdGut
A Book of Beasts and Buddies
Car Quest
NO THING
Plants vs. Zombies
Celine: You know, say what you will about the year and my ability to do... like... anything; we did manage to get some pretty great games in the finals this year. I mean, we usually do, but like... it's good that even 2020 wasn't an exception. There are some fantastic games out there.
Sara: I mean, this still may be the least suspenseful the grand finale has ever been on your end, as far as the "I wonder which one she's going to pick" factor.
Celine: On my end. That doesn't affect how you all will decide, so there could still be some surprises there.
= Copy/pasted boilerplate outro because mnnrrhhh =
And there you have it! As always, you can keep track of all of this stuff along with past years' info, all in neat sorted spreadsheet form, right here. Feel free to weigh in with your guesses as well as your personal picks--we love talking about games! (I mean, like, as long as you're not a toxic Gamer of course, but I assume anyone bothering to look us up on Dreamwidth is cool.)