This post has not been edited by the GamesBeat staff. Opinions by GamesBeat community writers do not necessarily reflect those of the staff.
Here we are: the 10 most-read community stories of 2010. If you haven't already, check out the first half of our list. Once you've done that…well, let's get to it, shall we?
10. The five best bad games of this generation by Oren Giladi
Mike Minotti, Writer: "Without the darkness, there is no light. That may seem like flimsy justification for the existence of such terrible games, but we would never be able to appreciate the masterpieces of our time if we couldn't compare them to the dregs of our industry. Besides, I know some people who absolutely loved Deadly Premonition. I guess one man's garbage is another man's Game of the Year."
9. Minecraft and the future of emergent storytelling by Niall Slater
Rob Savillo, Editor: "I've always felt that games shine best when they model systems rather than painstakingly hold my hand through a carefully crafted smoke-and-mirrors show. While the latter may offer the most authorial control over the narrative, the former puts the player in the director's chair. This is what emergent storytelling means, and the tales this produces ultimately resonate more deeply precisely because the player has a vested interest in their development. Minecraft is one of the best examples of such a game from last year, and I hope to see more studios learn from this approach. Keep an eye on Paradox Interactive's upcoming Sword of the Stars 2, which aims to let gameplay systems drive narrative in the same fashion."
Hit the jump for the rest of the list.
8. 22 great games you might have missed by Allistair Everett
Demian Linn, Co-founder: "This post actually went live on the last day of 2009, and we promoted it to the front page a week later. Everybody loves a good list, and I think this one took off for a couple reasons: You want to see how many of these you've already played, and you might discover a cool game you didn't know about. It's also an example of how promoting your work via Twitter, reddit, etc., can rack up the traffic — it was already at 4,000 views before it hit the home page."
7. Check her stance: Finally a female Pokemon trainer stands on her own two feet by Meghan Ventura
James DeRosa, Editor: "Meghan's article is irrefutable proof that stories don't always leap out of the woodwork and write themselves. Sometimes, they take a careful, critical eye and a bit of research. Who would have thought an article about knock-kneed Pokémon trainers would be one of the most-read stories on Bitmob? What's more, the article looks into the cultural mores and gender roles that have led to something as silly as pigeon-toed and hobbled 10-year-olds dogfighting creatures with names like Chikorita and Rattata."
6. Wasting time in open-world games by Ben Ingber
Andrew Hiscock, Community Manager: "Ben’s article highlighted a dilemma each gamer faces: Are we just wasting our time? This questions is hardest to answer when playing an open-world game, which is why I suspect his article garnered so much traffic. In response to his article, I offer up a game that may solve this conundrum: Red Dead Redemption, whose time wasting seemed meaningful through setting and narrative. Or at least more meaningful than what we normally play."
5. A six-year-old plays the opening of BioShock by Jack Wilde
Brett Bates, Managing Editor: "I'm pretty sure Jack drew inspiration from our most-read article of last year (skip ahead, if you don't mind spoiling the rest of this list), but he takes his creative piece in an entirely different — and very funny — direction, imagining the superb opening of BioShock from the perspective of a perky 6-year-old girl. Note to parents: Don't let small children play BioShock."
4. The amazing things you can build in Minecraft by Marcel Hoang
Layton Shumway, Writer: "The best thing about indie phenomenon Minecraft is the freedom of creative expression it provides. Yes, it boils down to essentially playing with blocks or Legos or any other building medium. The difference is that you obtained the raw material for those blocks yourself, through hard labor and clever defense from monsters. Even the simplest of structures, like the ones Marcel shows here, feel like incredibly personal achievements. It's hard to describe unless you've tried it yourself — and you should."
3. Why are fighting game movies so bad? by Armando Filgueiras Jr.
Chris Hoadley, Moderator: "This piece created a lot of discussion about whether fighting-game adaptations could ever be taken seriously due to the genre’s over-the-top action, large casts, and thin plots. To me, a good fighting-game movie would mirror a good sports movie, where training and overcoming adversity matters more than defeating a cardboard villain. Maybe the next Street Fighter movie should focus on a rematch between Ryu and Sagat instead of seeing how many action scenes it takes to defeat M. Bison."
2. Five game-design features you've always hated by Jon Porter
Rus McLaughlin, Writer: "Game development's a study in fast-forward evolution. Every major release strives to outdo everything that came before, but despite being in a constant state of (attempted) innovation, it's tough to let go of some things. Jon took 2010's #2 spot by nailing five gaming tropes long overdue for retirement."
1. My four-year-old son plays Grand Theft Auto by Matthew Orona
Jay Henningsen, Editor: “When I first saw this article listed in the Mobfeed, I reacted with shock and disbelief. I was ready to condemn it based purely on the title, but I was pleasantly surprised by the actual text. I felt that the touching story combined with the controversial title would be a good combination for success. It appears that my instincts were correct in this case.”
Dan “Shoe” Hsu, Co-founder: "I'm honored we got to host Matthew's 'My four-year-old son plays Grand Theft Auto' and not just because it happens to be our number-one post on Bitmob, traffic-wise. It perfectly exemplifies what we're trying to do on Bitmob, because it's not a typical news/preview/review piece you'd expect from a traditional games journalist. It's a touching story that only he, a Bitmob community writer, could pen, that only his son could make possible. It proves that we have really unique, creative content here, and we specifically cite this article when we pitch our business to investors — the "Where Community Meets the Press" thing clearly works…and works well!"
Thank you again, all of you! We can only imagine that you'll get even more hits this year.