Playing PlanetSide 2 is like being eight and riding a bike without holding on to the handlebars. Mum! Are you watching? Did you see that sniper shot? Were you watching when I jumped off the roof of that building, clamped C4 to a tank’s hull, jetpacked over a cliff edge, and pressed the detonator? Did you see the time I spawned a Liberator gunship and picked Chris up at a base south of a bio lab being taken by the New Conglomerate? He hopped in the gunner seat, mum, and together we destroyed the enemy’s only Sunderer! We blunted their advance mum! Mum! Are you still looking? Keep looking, mum, I’m going to do something cool now!

You’re never more than a few minutes from something cool in PlanetSide 2. Vehicle spawn delays mean you can’t spawn the same vehicle too soon after producing a previous one of the same type. Rather than frustrating, this provides me with an excuse to run the gamut of PlanetSide’s varieties of warfare. I usually start fights in a one-man Mosquito fighter, trying to swat enemy pilots out of the sky with air-to-air missiles. When I crash or get shot down, I change pace and climb aboard my Sunderer battle bus, providing a respawn point for my pals and healing any other vehicle that comes near with my engineer’s repair tool.

When that, too, meets an explodey fate, I retreat to the relative safety of my Prowler tank chassis, the thick armour offering some relief against boom-happy enemies. Until, inevitably, I get shot in the rear with a rocket and I have to begin the whole chain again. This time, maybe I’ll spawn a Liberator and try to cajole someone into gunning for me.

Other shooters do the best they can with one form of combat. Battlefield 3 tries mid-range vehicle fighting. Call of Duty does close-up reaction shooting. Only PlanetSide 2 offers everything. Most impressively, it does them all well. It’s a well-stocked tasting menu of a game: what would sir/madam like to try tonight? Some quad-biking with a base-capturing squad? Certainly, it’ll be right out. May I recommend the massive armour column? It’s really very good.

Read More: Planetside 2 review and our guide to how to conquer Indar

Runners Up: Tribes Ascend and Natural Selection 2.

At the end of each year we hand out awards to honor the experiences that live in our best memories of the preceding months—the games that moved us with their ambition, quality, and pioneering spirit. None of the decisions are ever easy, and there's no secret formula: we pit opinion against opinion with straightforward, old-fashioned arguing until one winner is left standing in the GOTY battle cage. Look below for the first landmark of that exciting week-long debate: a list of our eligible winners in 11 categories, including Game of the Year.

Beyond recognizing what games we loved most this year, though, it’s crucial to call attention to a truth that connects them all: PC gaming is exploding. Our hobby is many-tentacled and unbridled—practically every niche, genre, and business model mutated in a meaningful way this year. Two shooters built on new, PC-only technology released (PlanetSide 2 and Natural Selection 2). Dota 2 grew into its adolescence. League of Legends’ Season 2 Championship drew an audience of 8.2 million—the most ever for an eSports event. Modders resurrected content that was thought to be lost. So many remakes and spiritual successors to old school PC games got crowdfunded that we're sure we’d miss some if we tried to list them all.

That said, the following list marks the peaks of this mountainous year, and you'll find out which games won in the next issue of PC Gamer, and here on the web soon.



Dota 2
Dishonored
Mass Effect 3
PlanetSide 2
The Walking Dead
Tribes: Ascend
XCOM: Enemy Unknown



Crusader Kings II
FTL: Faster Than Light
Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion
XCOM: Enemy Unknown



Guild Wars 2
PlanetSide 2
Rift: Storm Legion
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria



Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition
Diablo III
Mass Effect 3
Torchlight II



Borderlands 2
Dishonored
Far Cry 3
Max Payne 3
Spec Ops: The Line



Hawken
Natural Selection 2
PlanetSide 2
Tribes: Ascend



Dota 2
League of Legends
StarCraft II




Black Mesa: Source
Crusader Kings II: A Game of Thrones
DayZ
The Sith Lords Restored Content Mod



Lone Survivor
The Walking Dead
Thirty Flights of Loving
Resonance




FTL: Faster Than Light
Hotline Miami
Legend of Grimrock
Thirty Flights of Loving



Euro Truck Simulator 2
aeroflyFS
XPlane
Football Manager 2013

A dash of DLC developments appears on today's list for Mass Effect 3, Assassin's Creed 3, and Max Payne 3. Also appearing are NCsoft's official word on the community movements against City of Heroes' impending closure and Hi-Rez's narrower design focus for Global Agenda 2. In the wise words of Claptrap: read on, minions!


Patch 4 for Mass Effect 3 hits this week with tons of tweaks and balance adjustments to weapons and squashed bugs galore. "Fixed an exploit where players were able to use rockets from other weapons." Wait, that wasn't my pistol's actual alternate fire mode?
I cannot tell a lie -- now off with his head: The "Tyranny of King Washington" DLC for Assassin's Creed 3 pits tree-hopping axeman Connor against the titular Founding Father in an alternate reality take on history. Buying the $30 Season Pass ensures access to all three planned episodic packs.
The "Hostage Negotiation" pack for Max Payne 3 adds four new multiplayer maps for spear-diving gunmen themed around seedy nightclubs ramshackle favelas. Grab it later this fall for $10.
NCsoft acknowledges the outpouring of support for keeping City of Heroes' servers online, but in a brief post on its official website, the publisher hit everyone's one weakness by saying it's "exhausted all options" that were ultimately "not successful."
Hi-Rez announces Global Agenda 2 will be more oriented for PVP based on player feedback and the success of Tribes: Ascend.

This week's best deals  ►  Borderlands 2, Saints Row: The Third, and more
Amazon has 10% off Borderlands 2 - it's not a lot, but it did just release - and a more substantial 40% off The Walking Dead. Meanwhile, Saints Row: The Third is 66% off on Steam and free to play this weekend, the Tribes: Ascend Starter Pack is only $7.49 at GameStop, and Green Man Gaming continues to give out 25% off vouchers (it matches Amazon's Borderlands 2 deal, too).


10% off Borderlands 2 at Amazon - $53.99
40% off The Walking Dead at Amazon - $14.99
75% off Tribes: Ascend Starter Pack at GameStop - $7.49
66% off Killing Floor Bundle on Steam - $10.19
66% off Saints Row: The Third on Steam - $13.59
75% off Bastion at GameFly - $3.75
25% off a PC download at Green Man Gaming with voucher code: GMG20-27J4Z-8NXHO



Steam  ►  Saints Row: The Third, Red Orchestra 2, Killing Floor
Saints Row: The Third is 66% off and free to play this weekend. Killing Floor and Red Orchestra 2 also get the double-six treatment, and Sniper Elite V2 is 50% off.


66% off Saints Row: The Third - $13.59
66% off Killing Floor Bundle - $10.19
66% off Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad - GOTY - $6.79
50% off Sniper Elite V2 - $24.99
75% off Kung Fu Strike - The Warrior's Rise - $2.49
More Steam deals



Amazon  ►  Borderlands 2, The Walking Dead
Amazon was a little disappointing last week, but this week it has 10% off the just-released Borderlands 2 and 40% off The Walking Dead. The other sales have carried over from previous weeks, and some have been around for ages. Someone at Amazon really wants you to play Mount & Blade.


10% off Borderlands 2 - $53.99
40% off The Walking Dead - $14.99
50% off Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X 2 - $9.99
50% off Deus Ex: Human Revolution - $14.99
60% off Mount & Blade - $6.03
More Amazon PC game downloads


Green Man Gaming   ►  25% off voucher, Borderlands 2

Use the voucher code GMG20-27J4Z-8NXHO to receive 25% off a digital download by Tuesday September 25th at 4 a.m. PDT. By the way, Arma II: Combined Ops was recently added to GMG's catalog, so there's an idea. Plus, there's all the deals below:


10% off Borderlands 2 - $53.99
60% off Duke Nukem Forever - $7.99
60% off Mafia - $5.98
75% off Mafia II - $7.49
75% off Sid Meier's Civilization V - $7.49
60% off Borderlands - $7.99
60% off BioShock - $7.99
75% off BioShock 2 - $4.99
More GMG deals


Get Games  ►  Guild Wars 2, Sleeping Dogs
You can still get Sleeping Dogs for 25% off and Borderlands for 50% off. Guild Wars 2, however, is down from 25% to 15% off, and still only for European customers. Sad face.


15% off Guild Wars 2 - $46.75 (Europe only)
15% off Guild Wars 2: Digital Deluxe Edition - $63.75 (Europe only)
25% off Sleeping Dogs - $37.49
50% off Borderlands - $9.99
More deals from Get Games


GameStop   ►   Tribes: Ascend, Arma II
GameStop has 75% off the Tribes: Ascend Starter Pack. That's a pretty good deal - it includes all classes, permanent VIP status (50% XP bonus), 800 Gold, a 30 day XP booster, and some gear and perks. Compare that to $10 for 800 Gold (and nothing else) from Hi-Rez's store.


75% off Tribes: Ascend Starter Pack - $7.49
20% off ARMA II - $15.99
50% off Resident Evil 5 - $9.99
14% off War of the Roses - House of York Deluxe Edition - $29.99
20% off Sleeping Dogs - $39.99 (Cheaper above)
More GameStop deals


GOG  ►  Atari All-Stars
GOG is selling a selection of Atari games at 60% off this weekend. I would list them all here, but it turns out Atari published a lot of games.

GamersGate  ►  Same deals, different day

Some of last week's deals, like BioShock at 50% off, are gone, but those that remain look to be the same as always - mostly tons of Paradox games. Let me know if I missed anything crazy big.

GameFly   ►  Bastion 'n Batman
Bastion is a damn neat game, and it's currently only $3.75 at GameFly.

75% off Bastion - $3.75
75% off F.E.A.R. 3 - $4.99
20% off Batman: Arkham City GOTY - $23.99
75% off Batman: Arkham Asylum GOTY - $4.99
50% off Resident Evil 5 - $9.99
More GameFly deals


Let us know in the comments if you find any more great deals!

Disclaimer: We offer no guarantees regarding the validity of these sales, their restrictions, or the quality of service provided by these distributors. We cannot vet every deal: we only list what we see advertised at the time of writing. Buy at your own risk!

I think I might start playing Sentinel again in Tribes. Though I was courted away from the sniper class by the speed and glory of the flag-capping Pathfinder, yesterday's Marksman update is wooing me. The patch gives Sentinels the SAP20, a more powerful Phase Rifle variant, a secondary shotgun, and speed-activated mines. I could be in the minority, but I quite like all of them.

Sentinel stuff
 
The SAP20 rifle sucks up more energy than the original Phase Rifle, but does more max damage than either the Phase or BTX1 rifles. Since I always preferred the BTX1, I'm not used to the Energy constraint, but the power is worth it. I switched my perks to Ultra Capacitor I and II for my new build to compensate.

The Accurized Shotgun deals less damage than the Pathfinder's shotty, but its tightened spread makes it effective at longer ranges. It requires a lot of precision amid the jet-powered close-quarters skirmishes, but it's effective enough that I make a comfortable living chasing slower-moving mammals as they try to trundle off with the flag. Its range keeps surprising me, and I'm a fan even though it may not be objectively better than the Sentinel's other secondaries.



The new Motion Mines pull off a cute trick, only detonating under targets traveling over 120KPH. Experienced flag-cappers are pretty good at clearing the flag stand with their Spinfusor, but the speed traps at least slightly increase the odds of scoring a useful hit - no more big guys stomping all over my stuff. They're also harder to spot than Claymores.

I don't know if this new build will keep me locked into a scope forever, but it's at least renewed my interest for now. And that's all I'll say about it, because I'm probably one of the few talking about the marksman-related updates in the Marksman update.

"100% inheritance"
 
No, everyone is talking about the Pathfinder's new Blinksfusor and its 100% inheritance. That means that, unlike all other Spinfusor variants, its projectiles inherit 100% of the user's velocity when fired. The others only inherit 50%, giving them an odd, but classic drag which can take a while for new players to get used to. But, of course, now that we're all used to it (and were before Tribes: Ascend), the addition of the Blinksfusor has some baffled. Others see it as more logical than regular spinfusors (yeah, it sort of is), while others yet say, "Eh, whatever. I guess you could use it if you want." I'm with that camp. It felt weird for a bit, but didn't have a noticeable effect on my accuracy. I won't use it.



Rage redone
 
Also notable is an update to the Rage perk. Rage actives when a flag grab occurs near the player, briefly increasing Energy and reducing player mass to jump-start the chase. With this update, the Rage effect makes players immune to their first self-inflicted damage after it activates, though self-harm also removes the effect. It was a much asked-for adjustment.

There are tons of other tweaks, nerfs, knob-twists, and so on, so have a look at the complete patch notes.

Experience gained from Tribes: Ascend matches in public and custom servers will be doubled starting tomorrow and lasting until Tuesday, a perfect excuse for some Labor Day CTF and a string of Shazbots directed at the nefarious moving flag in the recently added Blitz mode.

Only baseline experience from rounds is doubled, but VIP status or other experience boosts will stack on top of the bonus.

Tribes: Ascend's new Blitz mode (previewed in the video above) is capture-the-flag with the addendum "if you can, mwahaha!" The mode relocates a team's flag base after each capture, often increasing its defensibility. Blitz is currently supported on three maps: Arx Novena, Katabatic, and Dry Dock.

My hope is that by making every capture more difficult than the last, shutouts should be less common in Blitz, and closer games will create more drama and memorable moments. It also should mean that neither team can lazily repeat the same brute force attacks until a few squeak through: tactics will have to change as the match progresses.

Also in the Blitz release, the Technician class gets his equipment update, which includes a remote repair kit, new turret, and new primary weapon; the Dangerous Crossing and Permafrost maps have been promoted to the quickplay queue; and classic Tribes 2 voices have been added. ! The details on the new mode and gear, as well as the bug fixes and balance tweaks, are in the full patch notes.

The Twinfusor update for Tribes: Ascend is due to deploy today, adding new weapons, maps, balance tweaks, voice packs, skins and more. The patch is named after the new weapon which is, as you might expect, a Spinfusor that fires two slightly weaker shots in quick succession. There are light, medium and heavy versions to suit the signature style of each class.

We'll be able to test those out on two new maps. Permafrost is an icy stage full of green crystals and bases that hide their flags indoors. Blowing up a base's generator will cause the flag to rise majestically into the wide open air, where passing pathfinders can snatch it with ease. Dangerous Crossing links both bases with a massive bridge surrounded by rolling hills and a thick layer of fog that'll suit players who prefer a stealthy approach. Take a look at all the new additions in the Twinfusor trailer below.

It's a big ol' update. You can find the full changelog just underneath the video. It's especially good to see a proper party system in place, it should really speed up those minutes wasted doing the "what server are you on? I'm on my way in. Which team are you on? It's loading. There's no room on your team I'll switch over in a minute" dance.

Tribes: Ascend is free to play. You can download it from the Tribes: Ascend site to get started, or grab it through Steam, if you prefer. We love a bit of Tribes. Find out why in our Tribes: Ascend review.



Major Highlights

Three new weapons have been added: The Pathfinder’s Light Twinfusor, the Soldier’s Twinfusor and Juggernaut’s Heavy Twinfusor.
Stonehenge has been added to the standard CTF map rotation.
A new CTF Map, Permafrost, has been added to custom servers.
A new CTF Map, Dangerous Crossing, has been added to custom servers.
New Players joining the queue (under rank 6) will now play a smaller subset of maps more friendly to learning the game. All maps will rotate for players rank 6 and over.
Players are more likely to be grouped in matches with other players of their same level/rank.
Players may now create a party of their friends before joining the Quick Match queues.
Access through the popout tab on the Play Now option.
The Leader may send invites to friends and others by name.
Members can chat together in and out of game, and are notified when the Leader joins or leaves a queue.
Members are removed from the party automatically if they leave the queue or game.
Three new skins have been added: Pathfinder Freerunner, Brute Crusher and Sentinel Spectre
Voicepacks are now available to purchase. Four are available, two female and two male.
Players may now add a Clan Tag in front of their player name. Tags may be purchased under the Store menu.
Additional loadout slots have been added.
News Items now display in the main game lobby as a ticker at the bottom of the screen.

 
Weapon/Balance Items

Three new weapons have been added: The Pathfinder’s Light Twinfusor, the Soldier’s Twinfusor and Juggernaut’s Heavy Twinfusor.
Increased self-knockback (“disk-jumping” or “rocket-jumping”) on all explosive projectile weapons by 20%.
Increased projectile collision size on all Spinfusors, Bolt Launchers, and Thumpers to 10 (as a reference, Plasma Guns are 35). This will make mid-airs and direct hits more forgiving.
Decreased the extra delay between bursts on Pathfinder’s LAR from 0.16s to 0.072s.
Increased damage by 8% on Doombringer’s Titan Launcher.
Increased radius on each explosion sequence of Brute’s Gladiator.
Increased damage 33% on final explosion sequence of Brute’s Gladiator.
Decreased starting AOE range on Brute’s Fractal Grenade and Extended Fractal by 10%.
Decreased damage on Brute’s Fractal Grenade and Extended Fractal by 10%.
Reduced duration of Brute’s Fractal Grenade and Extended Fractal by 1s.
Reduced damage on Infiltrator’s Jackal so it can no longer 1 shot an upgraded medium from stealth. This is a 16% reduction.
Reduced knockback on Infiltrator’s Jackal by half for each explosion.
Increased starting ammo counts on Infiltrator’s Smoke Grenade and Prism Mine from 1 to 2. Infiltrator now starts with all belt options having an ammo count of 2.
Reduced knockback from Pathfinder’s Impact Nitron and Compact Nitron’s by 23% to be more in line with the amount of damage being done, and to favor using the increased values on spinfusors and other projectile weapons.
Reduced knockback from Raider’s White Out grenade, Grenade Launcher, Arx Buster and Dust Devil to be more appropriate for the number of shots and amount of damage being done.
Reduced reload time on Doombringer’s Titan Launcher from 1.8 to 1.7.
Reduced reload time on Doombringer’s Heavy Bolt Launcher from 1.8 to 1.7.
Increased damage on Soldier’s Proximity Grenade by 16%.
Reduced damage 4% on Doombringer’s Chain Cannon.
Reduced damage 5% on Doombringer’s Chaingun.
Reduced starting ammo from 280 to 200 and upgrades from 50 to 25 ammo (each) on Doombringer’s Chaingun and Chain Cannon.
Reduced damage 5% on Technician’s Rockwind SMG.
Increased damage 14% on Doombringer’s Defective Frag Grenade.
Increased damage 13% on Doombringer’s Frag Grenade.
The Close Combat perk’s backstab bonus has been increased to double damage, and is now the first unlock for the perk.
The Looter Perk has been increased to provide a base 50% ammo bonus, and upgrades to 100%.
The Sonic Punch Perk has had its shockwave distance increased by 23%.
The Stealthy Perk now reduces base sensor detection by 50%, upgraded to 90%, and the upgrade for turret targeting delay has been increased to 30%.
The Safefall perk now starts at 50% falling and splat damage reduction, and is upgraded to immunity from all falling and splat damage. In addition, its final unlock has been increased from 80% vehicle run over damage reduction to immunity from vehicle run over damage.

 
Additional Items

Added an option under “HUD” to disable screen cracking when taking damage.
Base XP is now earned on Custom Servers at all times. “Performance XP” is earned once 6 people join the server.
Fixed an issue where mines could be indestructible by AOE blasts if placed in certain places in various maps.
Flag model no longer shows in first-person spectate mode.
Spectators can now zoom in and out when viewing a vehicle.
Fixed an issue where the camera could look strange if spectating in first-person mode and the view target entered a vehicle.
Fixed an exploit where the Pathfinder’s Thrust Pack could have unlimited thrust energy.
Fixed an issue where shotguns would only reload one ammo when performing an inactive reload.
Fixed an issue where the sound on the Pathfinder’s Light Assault Rifle would cut out when firing repeatedly.
Fixed an issue where guns that deal multiple damage per shot, such as shotguns, properly display damage numbers when shooting objectives and vehicles. Before the fix, the numbers would draw on top of each other making it seem like there was only a single instance of damage.
In the VGS menu, the labels for “Turrets” and “Sensors” were swapped under the upgrade commands.
Fixed an issue where the detection radius of a Base Radar Sensor was not increasing as it upgrades.
Fixed not being able to log in after being disconnected from the server.
Fixed a problem with deployable and pack ammo not showing correctly on the HUD.
Variety of map cleanups.