E-Mail This Article to a Friend Giving thanks The question is, what aren't we grateful for? BY THE GAMING ROOM STAFF

This Thanksgiving, the Gaming Room staff pays tribute to all the great games we've seen this year, and those we're still looking forward to. The industry has matured and evolved to the point where video games now rival movies not only in terms of profitability, but in terms of storytelling prowess. And what did our pilgrim forebears brave the high seas for if not to grant us all the opportunity to pretend to jack cars, fight intergalactic battles, and engage in stealth jungle combat – all while never leaving the comfort of our couches? It's a great time to be a gamer. Here's what we're thankful for.

WHAT A YEAR!

We as gamers have got a whole lot to be thankful for this year, if only because we are on what I call the "back nine" of the life span of this generation's systems. I always thought it was a shame that the best games for a system didn’t come out until the system was almost obsolete. Regardless, as a gamer I’m thankful to have gotten to play Halo 2, Metal Gear Solid 3, Ninja Gaiden, Katamari Damacy, Final Fantasy XI, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (even though the genre is tired, it’s pretty good), and many other games this year. I’m also thankful for the guys who work at Gamestop on Rt. 1 in Saugus, MA. Pat, the manager, is a real good guy and I appreciated it immensely that he didn’t make me wait in line with all the other nuts for Halo 2 and Madden 2005.

Speaking of Madden, I’m thankful that my fantasy team is now 10-1 and is streaking towards the playoffs. I’m also thankful that the other guys who make up my Madden league are at my house faithfully every Thursday night to play some games.

I know I’m risking some serious hate mail here, but I’m thankful that I was able to actually get nearly a hundred bucks on eBay for my dust collector. Oh, I mean my Nintendo GameCube – the system that I consider to be the biggest hardware flop since the Sega Saturn. Yeah, you heard me. Let me break it down for you. It looks like a lunch box, the controllers suck, and Mario Sunshine was a mess. "Celda" the Windwaker was a good game, but extremely overrated (same goes for Metroid Prime). Other than that there are precious few good games for the system. I’m just hoping Nintendo gets out of the hardware biz and concentrates on making games. Will it happen? Probably not. But then again, who would have thought it would have happened with Sega?

Lastly, I’m thankful for Brad Mindich, one of the head honchos at the Phoenix. At the risk of sounding like a brown-noser, I appreciate that Brad took me seriously when I drunkenly suggested at WFNX's Best Music Poll show that the Phoenix have a video-game section. On behalf of Mitch, myself, and the rest of the writers, thank you.

Happy Thanksgiving, gamers. It’s been a hell of a year.

– Jim Murray

FUTURE EVENTS SUCH AS THESE WILL AFFECT YOU IN THE FUTURE

I am thankful that 2005 is approaching like a freight train, because that means a return to normalcy for my two favorite gaming franchises. After two years of – to put it gently – "experimentation," Square is finally going to give us a proper Final Fantasy game.

In '03, they did Final Fantasy X-2, a sequel to Final Fantasy X, the first such game. It focused on the heroines and romantic angle of its predecessor, which would all be well and good except that the ad campaign made it seem like the girls had started some sort of Japanese karaoke pop group, and that said pop group was somehow an integral part of the gameplay. While I'm sure this was not the case, it was enough for me to stay away.

Then last year, they trotted out Final Fantasy XI, which was their first online game. Frankly, the whole online gaming thing has passed me by, what with my active social life and all, but that's not the point. Final Fantasy is meant to be a single-player, individual experience; there's no finding other people to play with. You play through the story your way – plus it didn't help that it cost about $100 to purchase because of the modem it came with. That's just not worth it. Fortunately, it looks like Final Fantasy XII is a return to form, which is good because two years without a Cid on my television is just too long.

On top of that, it looks like Nintendo is finally dropping the kiddie angle and giving us an intense-looking, "grown-up" Zelda title. Granted, the problem with Windwaker wasn't the cartoonish feel; it was the 12 hours of gameplay devoted to sailing around looking for shit. This one looks a little more like Ocarina of Time, except with way more violence, so it should be a trip. Which is good, because I've had entirely too much free time on my hands lately.

– Ryan Stewart

FANBOY BONANZA

First, let me say I am extremely thankful for Fable. I know, that’s so last month, but I can’t help it. It’s like the greatest parts of KOTOR – that’s Knights of the Old Republic to all you cool people – mixed with Lord of the Rings – or "LOR" to us informed types. (Actually, that’s a pretty cool name for a character, "Lor Kotor." Of course, you’d have to throw a couple of apostrophes and accents in there, just for flavor). It makes me feel all warm inside, like the first time I played Ocarina of Time. Everybody else can take their Grand Theft Autos and their Metroids (sorry Mitch) and feed them to the Mother Brain.

Come to think of it, I’m thankful for the bounty of surprisingly playable Star Wars games out there; especially Battlefront, but especially KOTOR – go ahead, try and stop me! May is still a long, long, time away, and there are no more Clone Wars cartoons (get these suckers on DVD!) to speak of, so these games are a serviceable stop-gap until we find out whether Episode III sucks some hairy Wookie ass, or if it actually kicks said ass instead. Either way, I’m gonna see it 50 times. Meanwhile, I think I’ll dust off my old N64 and play some Rogue Squadron. (If only I could remember the code for the Millennium Falcon…)

I’m thankful for those ESPN Sports commercials with Tracy Morgan. Remember that guy? He’s the greatest SNL casualty since Tim Kazurinsky. Also, that Xbox commercial with the guy in the jungle playing with the natives, and that Ratchet and Clank commercial where the dude turns his friend’s mom into a sheep. Truly brilliant.

Finally, I’m thankful for Electronic Arts, who remembered what made N64’s Goldeneye so brilliant. And I forgive them for the blatant coattail riding of that game by naming their new one Goldeneye: Rogue Agent. Hey, you gotta go with what sells. (SEX!) See, this has nothing to do with sex, but you probably read it anyway.

Happy Thanksgiving!

– Aaron Solomon

GRATUITOUS BUTT-KISSING

First of all, let me tell you what I'm not thankful for: all the goddamn sequels. That's all we've seen this year. Some have been good, and some have even been great, but almost all have had the colon and then the subtitle in their names (Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War; Burnout 3: Takedown; Sly 2: Band of Thieves). This is not a trend I'm happy with. Where are the new ideas? What's next, sub-sequels? "Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War 2: Electric Boogaloo?"

Nevertheless, it's been a very good year for games. Nintendo continues to focus on quality over quantity, the PlayStation 2 has the deepest library of any system in recent memory, and Xbox Live is still the only way to play online. Not only is there something for everybody – there's everything for everybody. What that means is that it's more important now than ever before to have a critical gaming press that prizes truth and objectivity above all else.

To that end, I am most thankful to our readers. You have dozens, if not hundreds of choices for your game reviews. Without naming any names, most of these other outlets seem to be scoring games on a scale of 8.0 to 10, and have no problem recommending you drop 50 bucks on just about every game that comes out. For those of you who demand more discerning criticism, we thank you for choosing us. Without you, there would be no Phoenix Gaming Room.

Ah, geez, it's getting a little dusty in here…

– Mitch Krpata