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10 Game of the Year Winners That Aged Like Fine Wine
Collider highlights ten Game of the Year-winning video games it considers to have remained exceptional over time, judging their gameplay, influence, originality, design, visuals, storytelling, and lasting critical and fan support. The list matters as it argues that older games can retain cultural and mechanical relevance despite major advances in technology and game design.
– ‘Street Fighter II’ (1991) is praised for its enduringly smooth mechanics and foundational influence on modern fighting games. – ‘Batman: Arkham Asylum’ (2009) is recognised for pioneering acclaimed superhero-game design through its focused, Metroidvania-style structure. – ‘Shadow of the Colossus’ (2005) is highlighted for its distinctive premise, sparse world and battles against 16 colossal creatures. – The article limits its selections to winners from BAFTA, D.I.C.E., The Game Awards, Game Developers Choice Awards and the Golden Joystick Awards.
In short
- Older Game of the Year winners can still feel influential and enjoyable.
- ‘Street Fighter II’ remains a fighting-game landmark.
- ‘Arkham Asylum’ and ‘Shadow of the Colossus’ retain distinctive appeal.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Games with exceptional foundational design like Street Fighter II and Shadow of the Colossus remain compelling through mechanical purity and conceptual boldness that transcend technological era. Their sustained critical and player engagement demonstrates that certain design principles possess genuine timelessness, challenging the assumption that technical advancement automatically produces superior games. The persistent influence of older designs on modern titles and continued relevance of classic works suggest that exceptional game design can achieve lasting cultural and mechanical significance.
The case against
Selecting exceptions and declaring them timeless risks conflating 'historically important' with 'aged well', particularly given nostalgia's substantial influence on critical retrospection and assessment. Most GOTY winners do show considerable age across interfaces, controls, narrative sophistication, and presentation, with modern games offering demonstrably superior experiences in nearly every measurable dimension. The existence of rare exceptions does not establish that older games age well generally, but rather illustrates how genuinely exceptional those few enduring titles are.
Explained simply
Video game awards recognise titles judged outstanding in a particular year, but their influence can last much longer. This story considers how some award-winning games have held up as technology and design have changed.
Its examples include Street Fighter II, whose controls helped shape fighting games, Batman: Arkham Asylum, which influenced superhero-game design, and Shadow of the Colossus, known for its sparse world and battles with giant creatures. The games were selected from winners of five major awards, including BAFTA and The Game Awards.
The list matters because it looks at more than how a game appeared when it was released: it considers its design, storytelling, influence and continued appeal to players and critics. Older games can remain part of gaming culture even as newer hardware makes different experiences possible.