The 2010 Boysie Awards

What a great year it’s been for video games. There have been almost 100 really good games this year. But only a fraction of them are great. Here are the best of the best!

BEST PS3 GAME

ModNation Racers (Sony)

Not only do the makers of ModNation Racers let you customize your car, they also let you build your own tracks, full of hilarious powerups. Then, they let you build your own towns, too. It’s like creating your own Mario Kart game, except with better graphics.

BEST XBOX 360 GAME

Toy Story 3 (Disney)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

Toy Story 3 was the first sandbox video game for kids. The game is full of exploration and fun missions to enjoy. By the end of it, you feel like you know Buzz and the gang a lot better. It’s great when game makers don’t treat kids like babies.

BEST WII GAME

Guilty Party (Disney)

There have been a lot of really good Wii games this year, but few have felt as completely new as Guilty Party. If you love solving a mystery, you’ll always laugh and wonder at the motivations behind the characters here. With 50 mini games, the game design is so good, you’ll rarely play the same mystery in exactly the same way. Talk about replay value!

Runner Up: Super Mario Galaxy 2

BEST DS GAME

Pokemon Ranger: Guardian Signs (Nintendo)

Yes, there have been other games in the Ranger series. But this is the one that kept me coming back for more. I loved watching the various Pokemon waddle along as part of my crew. Plus, the branching story and the earnest characters are touching, too.

BEST PSP GAME

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep (Square-Enix)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

There aren’t many games released for PSP anymore. But Birth by Sleep is a must-have. The series that mixes Final Fantasy characters with Disney characters takes you to amazing places, such as Never Land, the Dwarf Woodlands and into Deep Space. Plus, the racing and music mini games alone are worth the price of admission.

BEST DOWNLOADABLE CONSOLE GAME

Costume Quest (THQ for PS3, Xbox 360)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

This Halloween-based role-playing game is cute, but it’s so much more. The dialog by renowned designer Tim Schaefer makes you bust a gut laughing. And the cranky, charismatic characters feel real, so much so that you wish they’d come back with a sequel for Christmas. Even the leveling-up (which can be boring) is compelling. More, please.

BEST IPAD GAME

Angry Birds (Rovio)

Everyone’s playing Angry Birds, and it’s best on the iPad. Tossing those exploding birds onto hundreds of structures takes real skill. But watching the strange structures topple down onto those nasty pigs is just as much fun. If you love Boom Blox, you’ll adore Angry Birds.

BEST GAMING PLATFORM

iPad (Apple)

The iPad has so many amazing games. It’s like a treasure chest that constantly replenishes itself with games, many of which are new and innovative, some of which are free. You may not have an iPad yet. But you probably will soon. (It’s not only for games, you know.)

BEST OVERALL SPORTS GAME (TIE)

NHL Slapshot (EA for Wii)

There’s something about playing with other kids on an icy pond with plastic hockey-stick controllers that really makes this Wii game shine. And that’s just the beginning of your career in NHL Slapshot. If you don’t know who the legendary Wayne Gretzky is, well, you will now. He’s your coach in the game. (Lucky you!)

NBA 2K11 (Take Two for PS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, PSP, PC)

You’re stunned by the realistic graphics. Then, you feel 10 feet tall as you dunk like a pro. Getting to play as a rookie Michael Jordan doesn’t hurt, either. And the soundtrack will really get you pumping.

BEST RACING GAME (TIE)

Gran Turismo 5 (Sony for PS3)

It takes half a decade for the developers to make a new Gran Turismo. This time, they’ve outdone themselves. Over 1,000 licensed cars, 26 locations and 70 tracks make it endlessly playable. There’s kart racing, a fine soundtrack and 3-D (if you have a 3-D set). Gran Turismo is like a realistic painting—except you can play inside this one.

Split/Second (Disney for PS3, Xbox 360, PSP, PC)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

Driving these fantasy racing cars as you take part in a fictional game show is a hoot. But it’s the “powerplays” that are fun. Explosions, destructible environments, crashes and implosions are what really make Split/Second one of the year’s great games.

BEST ADAPTATION

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (Warner Bros. for PS3, Wii, Xbox 360, DS, PSP, PC)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

Sure, you liked LEGO Batman and LEGO Star Wars. But this Potter endeavor isn’t just another LEGO game. There is something just as dark, eerie and adventuresome in this game as there is in the books and movies. It grabs you from the first moments, and it doesn’t let go until the game is over.

BEST NEW TECHNOLOGY

Kinect (Microsoft)

Yes, the games are a little like Wii games. And yes, some of them aren’t great. But imagine the possibilities in the future! With Kinect, Microsoft proved that controller-less games are really fun. Now, they just need a killer game so everyone will want Kinect.

BEST COMEBACK GAME

Sonic Colors (Sega for Wii, DS)

Let’s face it: The last few Sonic games weren’t so hot. But Sega got it right this time. Here, there are lots of amazing powerups, like the Cyan Laser Wisp. That allows Sonic to bounce off all kinds of surfaces—and to travel through power lines. There’s much more speedy fun, too.

BEST MMO GAME

LEGO Universe (Warner Bros. for Mac, PC)
Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older

Sure, this is a terrific kids’ MMO, but any gamer would love to play. It’s a world full of clever story-telling, careful building of your environment and, of course, great LEGO characters.

GAME OF THE YEAR

LEGO Harry Potter Years 1-4

Runner Up: Costume Quest