And the winner is:

Skyrim

Was there ever any doubt? Look you can tell us about all the other great games that came out this year, but when put toe to toe with Skyrim, they really couldn't hold a candle. It's not just the sheer size of the game, it's the sense of freedom, the sense of exploration, and the sense of kicking a giant dragon's ass.

Adventuring in the lands of Skyrim truly feels open. You can take a break from slaying dragons and just sight see if you wanted to. Or perhaps take up a trade and craft some fine armor or weapons. Alchemy is also available to those that would rather spend their time concocting powerful healing potions or deadly poisons. Helping citizens in the land of Skyrim is also encouraged as they often provide great rewards.

The openness of Skyrim doesn't just pertain to the map, but also to your character. The freedom to truly be anything you want is finally attainable. Hybrid classes that usually wouldn't work in other RPG's can be a reality. A mage donning heavy armor, a thief specializing in two handed swords, it's all doable in Skyrim.

We can only hope that the game continues to receive attention, and gets some truly awesome DLC down the road. Oblivion had some memorable DLC (excluding horse armor of course) and we hope Bethesda keeps pushing Skyrim to its limit and make it an even better game than it already is.