Since this is a community-based vote, the rules are pretty simple:
- Each day will hold voting for one new category.
- Vote for one option.
- In the event of a tie, a secondary vote will be held in addition to the current day's vote. Please vote for only one option per category.
- If nobody votes on a category for whatever reason, that award will be granted to Five Nights at Freddy's 4.


With that out of the way, today's category is
Best Character
For those character who grabbed your attention, your interest, maybe even your attraction, you weird cartoon-loving freak.

Papyrus - Undertale

The hero of the small monster town of Snowdin, innocent and pure but possessing great power. Loves spaghetti.

The Bloody Baron - The Witcher III: Wild Hunt

A man of power and secrets, whose wish to find his wife and daughter conceals a thick tapestry of violence, love and hate.

Detective Manny Pardo - Hotline Miami II: Wrong Number

This vote is a god damn charade. Why are we giving these nobodies attention when the Miami Mutilator is still at large.

Huey Emmerich - Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

The shining white knight of Mother Base, who risked his life trying to save them all. The only sane one here. Did nothing wrong.

The Joker - Batman: Arkham Knight

After his end in Arkham City, he suddenly appears within the head of the Dark Knight himself, taunting him at every turn. A result of Scarecrow's fear gas, or has something been building up inside Batman all along?...

Place your bets, people.

IMO you should use a google poll or something with results hidden until you get all of them.

Then it's more fun when they're announced.

^If you're gonna do that, I'll recommend SurveyMonkey

It's what I used for the POTY polls last year. Free & allows you to create polls with hidden results that don't allow vote changing

And day 1's winner, by an embarrassing margin, is Papyrus. Good job, you. Go make some spaghetti.

This brings us to our next day, and our next category:
Best Boss Fight
Despite there being a good number of final bosses here, you don't need to be a final boss to be the best boss. What matters is your significance, your memorability. With that in mind, our contestants:

Ultra Greed - The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth

When the expansion to The Binding of Isaac introduced the new Greed Mode, with it came an all-new boss battle to match: Ultra Greed, a souped-up superman of a deadly sin. With fluid animation unlike any other boss in the game and battle mechanics unique to him (and also Hush, but screw that guy), this boss is as good as gold.

sans - Undertale

sans doesn't like fighting. He doesn't like doing much work at all, just chilling and doing his own thing, much like you or me. But when you go too far - when you decide to destroy everything he holds dear, just because you can, and therefore "have to" - then you're going to have a bad time.

Ludwig, the Holy Blade - Bloodborne: The Old Hunters

As the first boss of Bloodborne's highly anticipated DLC, Ludwig the Holy Blade - the Accursed - prepares you both for the expansion's difficulty and its tone. A hunter of old, corrupted by madness and the beguile of his blade, Ludwig welcomes you with open arms, legs, and various limbs, into the Hunter's Nightmare.

The Throne - Nuclear Throne

The Nuclear Throne: the dream of mutants and freaks of the post-apocalypse, an unreachable treasure that kings and queens of the wasteland all strive for. But if you were to reach the Nuclear Throne, what would you do then? And what if the Throne turned out to be itself another force to reckon with?

DJ Octavio - Splatoon

Behind the menacing Octarian army in Splatoon's Hero Mode is their malevolent king, Octavio... who also happens to be a DJ. A fantastic DJ. And if his sick remixes and bass drops aren't enough to make you explode, he's also equipped with enough missiles and mecha fists to finish the job.

Quiet - Metal Gear Solid V

In a world with giant nuke-wielding battle machines, cybernetic vampires, telepaths capable of controlling even the fourth wall, and a man on fire, Quiet is the greatest sniper in the world. Think about that while you're running through an empty warzone, with only a gentle melody wafting through the air.


This time, by request, we'll be using an external polling site. The official results will be announced tomorrow, with no leaks: who knows, maybe it'll be something other than Undertale.
Place your vote here.




(and hey, maybe someone could sticky this? just a thought.)

And in an astonishing upset, in the category of best boss fight, DJ Octavio takes second place! Nintendo does it once again! Congratulations, that silver medal was well rewarded.
(sans took first place, to nobody's surprise.)

While we recover from that intense category, let's move on to something smaller and more relaxed: the Best Open World. It's been a big year for open world games, following in the footsteps of 2014's GTAV - but who did it best?

The Northern Kingdoms - The Witcher III

When it comes to size, Wild Hunt is certainly no slouch: with nearly the entirety of the Northern Kingdoms available for exploration, there's enough content here for nine Witchers.

Mira - Xenoblade Chronicles X

No matter how much NoA censored, they couldn't hide this massive open world, of five continent-sized islands each boasting a unique ecosystem and hundreds of hidden secrets.

Paradise - Postal 2: Paradise Lost

The town of Paradise may not be as large as its competition, but in terms of number of secrets per corner, hidden terrorist training camps, and diverse locales to piss on, Paradise is incomparable.

Boston - Fallout 4

A special treat for any real-life inhabitants of Boston, Bethesda's newest game is a full and faithful (I assume) recreation of your hometown. Maybe you'll even find your own house in the wreckage! (Don't quote me on this)

Medici - Just Cause 3

There are few games that embrace the "open" aspect of an open world quite like Just Cause, with a giant island perfect for grappling, gliding, and swinging about like your friendly neighborhood dictator.


Here comes a new challenger!
Australia - Mad Max

A road warrior is nothing without roads, and 2015's Mad Max video game has roads in spades. The size of this world is such that it's designed to be crossed exclusively by car, with plenty of open space for sandy car warfare. Carfare.


Place your vote here.

By a narrow margin, Planet Mira beats out the Northern Kingdoms for best open world. Xenoblade Chronicles X really does have it all. (Unless you're American.)

With that out of the way, it's time to get the gang together for Best Multiplayer

Splatoon
Bloodborne
Rocket League
Mortal Kombat X


...What? I don't have anything witty to say. I don't play a lot of modern games.
Splatoon matches you up against a bunch of overleveled players sometimes, but it's balanced enough that this isn't a death sentence. Bloodborne's hunter summoning is fun and hearkens back to the co-op of Dark Souls 2, but even the best of gimmicks is still a gimmick. Rocket League's built around wackiness and absurd physics, which is a mixed bag in itself. And Mortal Kombat online is Mortal Kombat with slightly more head explosions.

As always, Place your vote here.

And by the people's vote, the best multiplayer game is Splatoon! It just goes to show... squids.
(All the other votes went to Rocket League, which probably also goes to show something.)

For our next vote, get yourself comfortable and fish out your best headphones, because you're judging the Best Soundtrack

Undertale

You want Megalovania, go vote for best boss fight again. After two victories in a row, the indie darling deserves a bit of a handicap. (Even though the song's still great.)

Rock Band 4

THERE IS A CITY THAT THIS DARKNESS CAN'T HIDE
THERE ARE THE EMBERS OF A FIRE THAT'S GONE OUT
BUT I CAN STILL FEEL THE HEAT ON MY SKIN
THIS MESS WE'RE IN

Bloodborne

Slaughtering beasts isn't an easy job. It's haunting. It's got strings, and an orchestra. Maybe some vocals if you're lucky.

Crypt of the Necrodancer

What would a rhythm-roguelike be without some heavy tunes to get the blood pumping and toes tapping? A pretty bad rhythm-roguelike, that's what.

The Witcher III

Of course, slaughtering beasts doesn't have to be a depressing Gothic affair. Maybe try fighting during the day for a change.

Metal Gear Solid V

40% orchestral and contemplative, 40% tense and suspenseful, plus some 80's nostalgia for good measure. Classic Metal Gear.

Place your vote here.

Our best soundtrack poll got more votes than most other polls got combined, all for Undertale. Jesus, you people, I get that you like leitmotifs, but mellow down a bit.

Let's take a brief reprieve from your indie darling, and see if we can't focus some of that hype into our next category, the Best Simulator!




Yeah... we're definitely not gonna get all those Undertale votes back.


Kerbal Space Program

After being in Early Access for two years, this space flight simulator finally became finished this year, and 100% ready for release. Your first attempts at space travel, however, will certainly be not. Don't get too attached to those little green buggers.

Prison Architect

Of course, if you prefer something more down-to-earth, you can't get much more grounded than locking up jailbirds. The hell of the legal justice system is at your fingertips, and there's no shame in manipulating that power, right? After all, they all deserve it.

The Escapists

On the flip side of the coin, we have The Escapists, a game about breaking out. Guess the system's broke no matter which way you turn, eh?

Infinifactory

A step away from the more "realistic" games and into a realm of pure logic: Infinifactory, where you create complex machines to build devices of various shapes and sizes. No fooling around with finicky physics here, everything is expertly calculated to screw you over in just the right way.

Cities: Skylines

When EA destroys your favorite childhood franchise yet again, what choice do you have but to recreate those memories yourself? Cities is the game tailor-made to scratch that SimCity itch that's been welling up for years, and then some.

I Am Bread

You are bread. This is a "wacky" game about making funny things happen with physics. These games are popular. Is it good? You are the judge.

Human Resource Machine

A logic based puzzler in the same vein as Infinifactory, only even more dark and depressing. In this stylish game from the creators of World of Goo and Little Inferno, you scale the corporate ladder and avoid losing your job to robots, by... following commands of computer code. He who fights monsters, hm? Or works for them, at least.

Here Comes a New Challenger!
SimplePlanes

Descending from the heavens like the flying machines of its subject, SimplePlanes is proving to be the best new simulator game of December. But does it stand up to its older and more experienced competition? Or is it just Kerbal Space Program on a smaller scale?

With twice as many votes as its competitors, I Am Bread takes the gold. Logic puzzlers may come and go, but youtube comedy is forever. Or 2015, at least.

As we approach the endgame, let's take a moment to properly appreciate the little guys, with the Best Indie Game category.

Kerbal Space Program
The glee of constructing your very own space craft, horror of watching it crash and explode, the determination to perfect your process, and the joy of seeing your dreams come true in a shining flight to the stars; Kerbal Space Program is obsession, comedy and catharsis in a pretty package.

Rocket League
There's fun in sports that comes from strategy, from organizing expert teamwork and planning to bring victory to your team. And then there's Rocket League. Insanity replaces strategy, physics takes out teamwork, and watching your car flip uselessly through the air is just as fun as hitting the ball. What could be better?

Axiom Verge
Hearkening back to the classic days of Super Metroid, and adding a couple unique twists, it's Axiom Verge; a game that pinged onto the indie radar out of the blue, and charmed people all over. I'm sugarcoating this a little, aren't I? This game is dark and insane and it's marvelous.

Ori and the Blind Forest
Here we have a flipped angle at the metroidvania genre; artful rather than nostalgic, tear-jerking rather than thought-provoking, but just as warm and comfy. It's like a Ghibli movie made into a video game, with more furries.

Nuclear Throne
A step away from the beauty of exploration, and into the powerful realm of nonstop action. With an artisan's touch behind every gunshot and screen shake, the world of the Nuclear Throne is menacing, threatening, but lovingly immersive all at once.

Undertale
The surprise underdog of 2015, releasing late in the year but still capturing the hearts and minds of the indie scene with its characters and concepts. Already it's won all three of its prior nominations, but can it hold its own against the top challengers of its genre?

...I think I already know the answer to that question.

Place your vote here.
For kicks, I suggest you place a vote here as well; it's the same thing, but without Undertale. To see what people's thoughts are otherwise.

what should have been done to begin with tbh

Undertale took the popular vote by 71%, with the rest of the votes all going to Rocket League; however, in the non-Undertale polls, the results were much more varied, with votes going to Kerbal, Nuclear Throne and Ori and the Blind Forest as well. Interesting development, that.

Alright, we've seen the best, now to judge the rest (before we go back to the best). What was this year's Most Forgotten Game?

Her Story
The journalists and judges raved over this full motion video-based title long after its release, but among actual consumers, this one just vanished from the limelight as soon as it appeared.

Sunset
A game that sold so badly, and was so forgotten, that the studio creating it filed for bankruptcy, posted a massive rant on Twitter blaming capitalism and telling gamers to die, and then made a new Kickstarter campaign for a new game. Never change, indie clique.

Armikrog
This Kickstarter darling by famed creator Doug TenNapel turned heads on its announcement, prompting joy from Neverhood fans and disdain from critics of Doug's religious views, but released to little fanfare and a lackluster, rushed-feeling little piece of heart.

Everybody's Gone to the Rapture
More like nobody's gone to play this PS4-exclusive walking simulator with nothing to do because everybody's already gone.

Hatred
Boy, this game sure prompted months of controversy when it was announced, huh? Then it actually came out, and ppplllllltttt.

Halo 5: Guardians
That's right, a new Halo game actually came out this year. I know, I'm surprised too. You'd think we would have heard about this.

Shelter 2
After the first Shelter game caught audience's hearts and imaginations with a tragic story of a mother badger protecting her young, the sequel promised an all new story and setting, and delivered. But this time, nobody cared. Undertale, am I right? (Probably not.)

Place your vote here.

the hell? wasn't The Order 1994 on this originally?

That's the one that should've won this one imo

or that game by that tranny

revolution 60 or whatever

Revolution 60 actually came out in '14, but The Order, that one I forgot.

The Order: 1886
A game so terrible and forgettable, even I forgot about it when making this list.

Place your vote here this time. That includes the two people who already voted on the original version.

Y'know, you guys certainly remembered The Order: 1886 enough to award it most forgotten game. Does that disqualify it? Hell if I know.

In any case, we're approaching the endgame, but let's take a quick smoke break before the final stretch, and talk about the number five. In the year 2015, we managed to see quite a few games released that were the fifth in their series. How many, you may ask? As it turns out, three. I wish it was five too, but conspiracies aren't always real. If only GTA came out this year, we'd be one five closer.
In any case, depending on who you ask, these games were all huge disappointments. But which one was the Most Disappointing Five?

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

One of the biggest releases of the year, with hours of gameplay and content... and it was only half finished. And riddled with microtransactions, meaningless "home base insurance", and a slew of ridiculous business decisions on Konami's part. Basically, the beginning of the end for the franchise.

Halo 5: Guardians

Know what's a great way to advertise the new game in a beloved franchise? Not advertising it at all. Filling it with pointless diversity too, because everyone knows we play a first person shooter about a guy who always wears a helmet because we love the diverse cast.

Seriously, why didn't you advertise this game, 343?

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 5

With Tony Hawk's contract expiring in just a couple days, there was no time to spare when releasing this final title in the series. But apparently plenty of money to spare.

[size]Place your vote here.[/size]