Thanks to BigDave888 for the original idea: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=23275&p=762634

Now we're a fair way into 2013, now seems like a good time to set up a new thread for this.

Basically, what have been your five favourite games of the year so far?

For me, Tommy from today is definitely there. Along with Steve from January. I'd also say Giuseppe for comedy, and Jainaba for pure drama. I cannot think of a fifth at the moment. There have been many great games this year so far, but those are the main four that I enjoyed most.

#5 Giuseppe: A very funny and insane man in every way except his monetary decisions which got him an £18,000 Banker
#4 Janaba: A very entertaining game that was capped off with a sensible £40,000 Deal regardless of what happened thereafter.
#3 Anhed: The biggest OHO so far this year who was willing to risk £23,000 on a 50/50 chance to win a life-changing £75,000 in a very tense final part. Sadly it didn't work out (though his decision was not reckless).
#2 Brownyn: She road her strong board throughout to an arguable either way £45,000 Deal that turned out to be a technical banker spanking.
#1 Tommy : He knew when to pull out the "confetti hound" card and used that along with his charm and bravery to get a £45,000 Banker .

Tommy might even be in my top 5 games EVER, largely as I saw it live and the atmosphere in the studio was just electric!

Well, in order...

1: Bronwyn
No contest for me. Best game I've seen since I started watching again back in October last year. A great character with lots of bravery and the biggest win so far this year (tied with Tommy).

2: Steve
When everything seemed to be going wrong, and he pulled it around like that, winning £15,000 after demolishing all the power 5 in the first 8 boxes, something you rarely see!

3: Amy
Just because I don't think anyone here expected her to be brave enough to go to the end. A fantastic OPW.

4: Kristian
And again, fortune favours the brave. In Kristian's case anyone, first OPW from the box in ages...

5: Trish
Like Amy, a very unexpected character and a well deserved power 5 deal, a highly entertaining Sunday show which came out of the blue...

#5 THEO- The dance was amazing, and the fact that he really wanted to go for the £100K. Also there is something about £22,250 that I like.

#4 WANDA AND GUISEPPE- For me, Deal isn't always about big money wins and spanking the banker, or even making the right decisions stats-wise, it's the entertainment value. These games sure had it, different, but equally barmy. Oh! Both of them won decent amounts, and Guiseppe spanked!

#3 AHMED- I didn't realize how much of an OHO he was in the studio until a little comment he made at 5 box, he really wanted to change his family's life, and obviously the £23,000 final offer wasn't enough. It's a shame the 50/50 chance went the wrong way, but after the show he didn't have regrets about going for it.

#2 JOAN COLLINS- Just because I was there, and she if WELL FIT for 124. And she didn't have a bloody clue what was going on! Well done to the edit dept!

#1 TOMMY- The atmosphere was astonishing, Noel's build up's about him becoming the FMQM, the long pauses before box openings and desperate offers from the Banker really made a great show and heart-stopping moments. Oh, and 2 songs!

OH NO! HOW COULD I FORGET JANIBA AND KERRIE!? They are joint 2nd along with Joan Collins!

It's great when we are spoilt for choice though isn't it!

Of course! And I have did spell the lovely Jainaba's name wrong. Forgive me

Tommy - was not even one bit cautious and very brave turning down the 8 box offer
Kerrie - had the guts to be in live play at two box...
Ahmed - was a pure OHO and here to make the most of his experience
Steve - two box worth always rembering and very worth the gamble
Amy - was brave enough to be in live play at two box

I see you view "bravery" as making it to 2 box unless you get ridiculously generous offer along the way and then selling your box for a profit. At least your not nearly as aggressive in your beliefs as you were a year ago . I personally didn't include Steve's game as he wasn't memorable for anything other than his amazing comeback, though he was basically forced to 2 box and was fortunate enough to hit the 10% perfect final round (I wish my account was activated sooner so I could have forced a tie between him and Bronwyn for the January Show of the Month ).

Time to update this, I think.

My top five hasn't changed much: Tommy, Steve and Giuseppe are still there. I would probably add Craig (from April) and Bradley's games as well. Other standouts would include Rohima's game, Bex's dramatic crash, and at least one from the first two weeks of April. I didn't include Roy's game for a few reasons, mainly because I didn't see it LIVE (I was stuck on a bus in a traffic jam, and had my Dad text me what was happening!), and also because I was a little disappointed he didn't take the final punt and claim the title.

5. Anhed

Still deserves a spot as he was willing to take a bigger risk than any other player this year in order to win the mega-money.

4. Marlene

Earns a spot for playing a dream board to her advantage, No Dealing several derisory offers and then sensibly dealing £118,000 when the Banker finally stopped being stingy. She also broke the unofficial record of the Biggest Deal ever from a moderate player, smashing Amy's (and arguably Germaine's) Deal of £75,000.

3. JLS

Definitely earns a spot for being the best celebrity game yet, showing a great combination of humor and bravery that earned their charity a massive £50,000.

2. Roy

Definitely earns a spot for actually having the bottle to play on at 5 box with the £250,000 in play, something no contestant has done since him. I definitely understand his final Deal as £100,000 is life-changing money to him and his family that he didn't want to risk.

1. Tommy

Without question still the best game of the year, as he was very entertaining and was one of the few contestants who knew how to get the banker to offer abnormally generous offers.

Time to bring this back I think.

Apart from Paddy, my top five hasn't changed that much.

Paddy became my number 3. Why? Because he really wasn't a huge stand-out in the wings, and his jackpot win was pretty manufactured with ridiculously low offers in the serious stage of the game. Roy is still number 2 as he accomplished the only six figure win this year through excellent play by both sides and Tommy is still number 1 for providing the overall most entertaining game this year.

This moves JLS to 4th and Marlene to 5th (as her win was even more manufactured than Paddy's).

I wouldn't say it was manufactured; it was more the Banker underestimating him. And at least he went for it; if another player had had that board, they may have played safe.

And what about 4 and 5?

So, now we're at the end of the year, what are everyone's final five?

1. Tommy- every aspect of the show was great.

2. Gwyn- a touching story that fueled his drive, and he had the courage to win the mega-money without the assistance of a ridiculously strong board.

3. Roy- like Gwyn, he didn't need a ridiculously strong board to win mega-money

4. JLS- by far the best celebrity game this year, complete with hilarious banter and a deserved mega-money win for charity

5. Paddy- a deserved jackpot win, though it felt a bit too manufactured for my liking

5th= Roy

4th= Paddy

3rd= Rohima

2nd= Tommy

1st= Gwyn

oooh.. Shocker.

Hmmm... let's see (god, this is HARD!)

5th: Roy - Mega Money Win, only slightly marred by how heavily it was telegraphed on Twitter...

4th: Paddy - Made all the better by being thrown off the scent, and effectively NOT spoilt about the FMQM!

3rd: Marlene - Absolute classic to see live for its freaky coincidence, and Marlene was such a lovely person who was very chatty to me in DMs on Twitter in the interim period before airing!

2nd: Tommy - Showed guts and nerves of steel to extract a VERY generous 83%-ish-of-mean 5-box offer, perfect gameplay and result... AND a sing-along! One of the best live games I'd seen of the year, along with Marlene!

1st: Gwyn - The point about Gwyn is he never stopped believing! He'd find another way of reaching his goal if it didn't work out. What a great philosophy, and a thoroughly likeable contestant! As "hard-earnt" a P5 win as Tommy's really!