Well i did in some ways, because if everyone coded just to get featured, they would be disappointed later and leave. I think as long as you get recognition on some forums or via ticalc.org reviews and downloads, that's what counts, but most importantly, you must enjoy coding those games. Example: Check ticalc.org latest news: it says they're done for November features, yet no Exodus feature and the POTY cutoff date is usually November 30th. No Exodus feature doesn't mean it's a bad game. I personally enjoyed it when trying it and there are big fans of that game. I'm disappointed it did not get considered, though.
EDIT: Actually it might be December 7th or something this year, since there's a TI-81 POTY survey before the 83+ one