2005's Most Interesting Gamers (and Anti-Gamers)

GamerGod takes a look at what it considers the 10 Most Interesting People in Gaming for 2005. As with any ranked list on the internet, there's quite a bit of room for debate. The #2 choice in particular is somewhat dubious. One point of interest is how many of the names either came out of the Hot Coffee incident or were given renewed attention because of it.

We start our list with a name that many may not immediately recognize. Patrick is on the list not for who he is, but what he did. In one simple act, Patrick lit up a national debate centered around gaming, and generated the largest and most visible headlines in gaming. Who is Patrick Wildenborg? The guy who unlocked "Hot Coffee."

With the release of a simple mod that unlocked existing game code, Patrick started a firestorm that has yet to die down completely. That puts Patrick at #10 on our list.

Fortunately, at least one actual designer made the list, but the fact that there's only one says a lot of rather discouraging things about the games industry. When it comes down to it, the people who should be best known to gamers are the ones creating the games, but sadly that frequently isn't the case. Whom did you see as being the most interesting, or having the most impact, in the industry this past year?