Regular readers of the site are already shocked. Did we seriously just give our top spot to the only game in this countdown that didn't receive a 10/10? Can we really declare that Red Dead Redemption, a product so riddled with glitches that the programming confuseswomen with donkeys, is the best of the year so far?
Yes, and to be honest, the decision was pretty damn easy. Rockstar's Western is flawed for sure, and not an experience that everyone will enjoy, but it is – hands down – the game that has most occupied our office discussions, most consumed our hours at home and most captured our collective imaginations. Each morning, at least one editor will rush in to describe the beautiful desert sunset he watched over Nuevo Parisio the night before, or to brag about the number of murderous grizzly bears he hunted and skinned in the forests of West Elizabeth, or to marvel at how much time he wasted on a single virtual poker game in the virtual saloons of virtual Armadillo.
Red Dead Redemption's world is that deep. It's that detailed. It's that absorbing. And, as you may have noticed, we're only talking about the side stuff. Considering the game also boasts a mature, historically significant story, features blazing, bullet-riddled missions that could fit right into any classic Western film and stars one of the most likable and believable heroes of this generation… well, that's why we feel so confident awarding Red Dead Redemption the (current) best game of 2010.
Care to challenge, July through December?
Jun 28, 2010
Before you hunker down to weather the long, warm summer, read our guide to its biggest games
GamesRadar's E3 2010 awards
The best games and moments from the big show, plus the stuff that made us want to die
The Top 7... Best games of 2009 (so far)
Six months down, six more to go. Here's what's kicked our ass at 09's halfway mark
Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet is "a game about faith and religion," which Neil Druckmann jokes will surely get less hate than The Last of Us 2
The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann says Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet will also be about "being lonely," as if his zombie apocalypse wasn’t isolating enough: "I really want you to be lost"
