A year ago, it would have been crazy to nominate a remaster that wasn’t based on a game released several years ago. In 2014 alone though we’ve seen remasters of Sleeping Dogs, Tomb Raider, Metro 2033 and Last Light (in the form of Metro Redux) and The Last of Us.

Pretty much all of these games came out last year alone and the remasters were simply a way of bringing them on to the PS4 and Xbox One. There are plenty more remasters on the way with Tearaway Unfolded, the rumoured Beyond: Two Souls PS4 remaster, Final Fantasy Type-O HD and Resident Evil.

What stood out this year though and made us re-think the “evils” of remasters for year-old games? The decision was pretty easy, truth be told.

Nominees:

• The Last of Us: Remastered (PS4)
• Grand Theft Auto 5 (PS4/Xbox One)
• Metro Redux (PS4/Xbox One/PC)
• Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (Xbox One/PS4)

Winner: Grand Theft Auto 5 PS4/Xbox One

Grand Theft Auto 5 skirted the line between remaster and port by bumping up the visuals significantly for the PS4 and Xbox One while adding a whole bunch of new features. Rockstar didn’t completely alter the game – in fact, if you ignored the new first person mode, Grand Theft Auto 5 on the PS4 and Xbox One felt like a remaster of the original.

However, in the graphical sense alone, Rockstar had to put in tons more effort to help Grand Theft Auto 5 stand out on current gen platforms. A higher resolution, improved foliage, larger NPC counts, dynamic weather, detailed pavements and lens-flares – achieving all of this in a world as large as Los Santos is simply awe-inspiring but Rockstar managed to pull it off and add new features in the process.

Grand Theft Auto 5 on the PS4 and Xbox One has earned our award for Best Remaster of the Year, edging out The Last of Us: Remastered slightly in the process.

Note: GamingBolt’s Game of the Year categories, nominations and awards are selected via an internal nomination, voting and debate process. You can check the rest of categories and the respective winners here.