Yes, but not only because of that. its because it doesnt have any "outstanding" traits, I understand this is super subjective but let me explain.
Does this mean that The Last of Us 2 also shouldn't make the GotY list next year?
That was already a thing with previous Fire Emblem games, like Awakening, albeit Three Houses does it much better. Three Houses is more of a refinement and mixture of older and newer Fire Emblem games than something that's necessarily entirely new
Is The Last of Us 2 the fifths sequel in a franchise?
Well, then cross this from the list, too. I didn't play it yet. What I saw and what I played from the older games it felt like a big improvement/change so at least they tried to make something fresh and more unique inside the franchise.
Does it matter? It'll still be an iterative game from the last one and yet another cinematic and narrative driven game from Naughty Dog
I think it does matter, at least with the listed games. Devil May Cry 5 is a fine game, but it's not as good as Devil May Cry 3. It also lacks a good story and something like level-design. It's all same-looking corridors all the time. All this has been done better in previous games. Smash Bros sure is a big package overall, but it still feels like good ol' Smash Bros. There is nothing "special" about that game anymore. Mario Maker 2 like I said feels like an enhanced port/addon rather than a full game. Zelda has prettier graphics now but it's fundamentally the same game we had 25 years ago. Don't get me wrong, all these games are good or even great. But fresh concepts done right should be celebrated to encourage developers to try new things.
I don't disagree about celebrating fresh concepts. It's just that, within the game industry, even new IPs aren't necessarily doing something fresh and unique, often going off of what came before, following the same mold the developer is already comfortable in, or just using standard elements within the genre, so limiting awards specifically to games that are fresh and unique is rather tough to do. Like you'd be left with a small handful of games, at best
in what category do you think it didnt deserve to be nominated?
Well yeah its the most user friendly one, but its not the only one and neither the one with the most freedom. It feels like I what expected it to be in 2019, maybe in part due to SMM1.
But its Game of the Year. Not New IP of the Year or Non-Remake of the Year. Putting up these weird fences in what is supposed to be a category every single game can be nominated for/win makes no sense. If you want only games that bring new things to the table you are looking for a 'Best New IP' category.
None of the games there are bad picks by any means, but listing games like that feels kinda reductive in a way? Theres more to it than just review aggregates, youd miss unique experimental games like Death Stranding and Outer Wilds, which are hard to argue against them being year defining games (especially DS).
You're correct that 20 hours is an enormous time sink, and this is a major flaw in Death Stranding and a flaw that permeates the video game medium in general. However, without actually playing the game, you're talking about something you don't know about. And that's why I dismiss that opinion, and your rebuttal that it's a weak argument.
Read my other posts, I got into this. Smash Bros, Mario Maker 2 and DMC5 are cleary no GOTY contenders for me because they are either too similar to older games (Smash + MM2) or older games are actually better (DMC3 > DMC5).
