So even though I had to take care of the action with the Video Game Awards first, I spent most of the previous weekend trying out Final Fantasy XV, a game that featured enough ambition for any three games. It didn't always go according to Hoyle, but you've got to give a game like that credit for its sheer staggering effort.

First, I was shocked at the scope of it all. The game took almost 60 gigs to install, and then demanded a roughly 10 gig day one patch. Game sizes are getting positively ludicrous, though it means better games, so I'm not complaining on that point overmuch.

Then I actually tucked into the gameplay itself and discovered that this game was stuffed full of things to do. There was an enormous main plot, of course, which featured everything from nobility succession to invasions by foreign powers, but there were also a panoply of side quests that could be undertaken at most any time. It was, indeed, the first open world Final Fantasy, and it was breathtaking in its scope. The only thing I could think after my first 10 hours in was, man, this could take hundreds of hours to finish.

All of which led me to my ultimate conclusion: there's a lot going on in this game. From its elephantine file size to its staggering array of plot elements, the idea that someone could actually beat this thing without having huge amounts of time to devote to it is almost impossible to consider. But man, it is a joy. It's worth every bit of bandwidth it took to download, and every second to install from disc. It's a wonder for the ages, and a fantastic way to close out a year in gaming.

It leaves me wondering just what Final Fantasy XVI will look like....