Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Favorite Games Ever

A common debate amongst me and my friends is what our favorite games of all time are. While I could go on for days about my favorite games in various genres I just hastily put together these six games. Write in and tell me what some of yours are. But give me a reason why, don’t just tell me your favorite game is Mutant League Hockey and not offer up any explanations.

Chrono Trigger: (Super NES) The amount of times I played through this game are staggering, a truly well written, well put together game. I will probably buy a Nintendo DS just for the rerelease of this game.

Legend of Zelda - A Link to the Past: (Super NES) In my opinion the greatest of the Zelda games. I played this game so much that I could beat it in one sitting without any deaths.

Soul Reaver: (Playstation 1) I don’t know why but I truly love this game and wait patiently for the day when the series comes back. Time travel storylines make me happy.

Bioshock: (XBox 360) A true masterpiece in storytelling with interesting combat mechanics. It would be perfect if not for the constant hacking mini game.

Rock Band: (XBox 360) I will never be tired of this game, the greatest party game of all time.

Tony Hawk 3: (Playstation 1) My favorite in the series before it turned to shit. I once won a bet that I could finish this game with 100% completion in under an hour.

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

I don't game much but my favorites from back in the day were Diablo 2, Fallout, Might and Magic Series, Starcraft, Age of Empires...

Anonymous said...

Half-Life
Warcraft 1 (not WOW)
F.E.A.R.
WOW
Assassin's Creed
in that order

-Demise

Anonymous said...

in order:

5) Final Fantasy 6 (US version 6)
This was the first game I had played where the bad guy had no redeeming quality at all. He was just 100% pure evil.

4) Chrono Trigger
The storyline in this game blew me away. All the time travel made sense in this game. Plus, an awesome battle system.

3) Chrono Cross
The sequel/prequel to Chrono Trigger. Instead of time travel, it was parallel universes, however, all the time travel in "trigger" directly caused the events in "cross", and all the events in "Cross" set in motion the beginning of "trigger". BRILLIANT!

2) Legacy of Kain
A vampire adventure game, you're the bad guy, either save the world, or bring it down into hell, your choice. Truly awesome game!

1) Xenogears
Despite all of it's flaws, Xenogears is a prime example of what I look for in a game. The combat system, when you weren't in your Gear, was brilliant, but while piloting your Gear, was horrible. The graphics weren't great, even by the standards of 1998. However, it was Xenogears that taught me a game can be painful to play, but as long as the story and characters were compelling enough, it deserved to be played through to the end. To this day, i contend that the storyline of Xenogears surpasses any book, show, or movie I've read or seen.

Ryan said...

Doc -

I loved Starcraft but as far as RTS's go Warcraft 2 would be my top one. I loved that game. Other PC games I truly love are the Monkey Island series, Sam and Max Hit the Road and Full Throttle.

Demise -

My love for the warcraft series spans them all but 2 is my tops, why 1 out of curiosity? Because it was the original? I'm also curious to know why you say F.E.A.R.?

Mr. Chris said...

1. Resident Evil 4 - In my opinion, the best (so far) in the series.

2. Rockband - 'Nuff said.

3. Star Wars - Knights of the Old Republic (and the sequel) - The only RPGs I have ever finished.

4. Ninja Gaiden (XBox) - Constant challenge. Really good gameplay, awesome weapons.

5. Star Wars - Dark Forces - Shootin' stormtroopers!

6. Marble Madness (Arcade) Used to play it with my girlfriend (now my wife) when we were in 6th grade!

These are just the first ones I could think of.

Ryan said...

Aaron -

Good call on FF 6, I'm not a huge FF guy but yeah, 6 was really F'n good. By far the series' pinacle.

Ryan said...

Chris (are you serious) -

This is why we just might be soulmates. Dark Forces, hell yes. The best Star Wars game to ever exist. Ninja Gaiden for the XBox was good, I found it really easy though (apparently I was the only one). Marble Madness is one of those games that no matter how old I get I still can't get past the same level I'd fail on as a kid. Seriously, in 20 years you'd think I'd be able to show some improvement.

Anonymous said...

1)ICO
2)Wild Arms 2
3)Klonoa
4)Trauma Centre
5)Prince of Persia: Sands of Time

Ryan said...

Nowtas -

ICO and Wild Arms 2 were pretty amazing. I couldn't get that into Sands of Time due to just repeating the same zones over and over again.

Outside the Cinema said...

1)Bulls Vs. Lakers
2)Rock Band
3)Silent Hill 1
4)Gta Vice City
5)WWF Wrestlemania 2000
6)Resident Evil
7)Madden 04
8)Mike Tyson's Punch Out
9)Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3
10)Legacy Of Kain

Anonymous said...

I'm not much of a gamer, don't really have the technology to or time to explore it as much as I like. But of what I have played a lot of two in particular stand out.

Resident Evil 4 (Wii Version).
I couldn't imagine playing it on anything but a Wii. Run, point, explode head. Awesome fun. Have played it through so many times.

Tetris (on my phone).
Travelling on trains, buses or trams. Listening to podcasts. Sitting on the toilet. Just plain old sitting or standing. Tetris is just the best thing ever to keep your hands and your mind busy.

James said...

You two do know that Soul Reaver is a sequel to Legacy of Kain, right? It just seems like maybe yall didn't connect the dots. My list...

Diablo 2
Carmageddon 2
Super Mario Bros.
Bionic Commando
WoW

Ryan said...

Eskimo - Yes, yes I am well aware. I've played every game in that series and loved every one except for soul reaver 2.

Anonymous said...

I am aware as well. . I always liked Legacy of Kain the best after playing em all

Ryan said...

I got to thinking last night because of this post about for a rather long period in the early 90's I became an almost exclusive PC gamer and ignored consoles. There was a period where Lucas Arts put out some of the greatest games, games that I still remember with great affection:
Sam and Max Hit the Road
The Monkey Island Series
Full Throttle
Day of the Tentacle
Tie Fighter
Dark Forces

Now a days I practically ignore PC games (apart from the obvious WoW).

Anonymous said...

you forgot Grim Fandango in there. . . truly an amazing game

Ryan said...

Whoa, that was a huge oversight on my part. Good call. Such a cool game. What was the name of that point and click adventure type game they had around the same time, you were on the moon or mars or something?

James said...

There was a PC game called I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream that I never played, but I was always fascinated by the title. I think I may do a little research thing on it and see what I can find.

Anonymous said...

Roger Wilco in Space Quest??? maybe? that's the only space themed adventure game in the 90's I can think of, but it's a Sierra game, are you thinking of a Lucas Arts game?

Ryan said...

The Dig is what I was thinking of.

OverlordStrider said...

5. Mass Effect
4. Onimusha 1
3. Baldurs Gate
2. Bioshock
1. Disgaea 1

OverlordStrider said...

ohh yeah BTW..your list is pretty damn good!

Ryan said...

Yeah Onimusha was an awesome game, the series definately peaked with that one though. 3 wasn't bad but the others were very forgetable. I was pretty underwhelmed with Mass Effect. I thought it was awesome in concept but after going to my 50th planet that looked the same as the others to find the same downed satellite that was on every planet I got to thinking... this is boring. Plus developers need to realize that nobody wants real time elevators. Ever.

OverlordStrider said...

hahahahahaha real time elevators! thats hilarious...but brutaly true.

Ryan said...

Mirror's Edge suffered from the same elevator-affliction. Which was even more frustrating because it was a game built around fast paced platforming outside of the social system. Maybe they were trying to make some sort of commentary that the elevators were symbols of society's restrictions or something. Either way, it was not good.

Anonymous said...

Great list, mate. Chrono Trigger has been one I've been dying to finish. I never got to finish it back in the day and I hear the DS version is just as good as the original so I plan on picking it up in the near future. I loved Chrono Cross and while it had nothing to do with Chrono Trigger and just about everybody hated it, its still today one of my favs.

I couldn't agree more with you on Legend of Zelda. If I had to pick one game that I remember the most growing up and enjoying, it would have to be that. Probably one of the most well put together games out their that still is tons of fun to play.

My all time favorite game though is easily FFVII. Nothing stacks on top of that. One of the most memorable games I've played and its still going strong. Theirs other games I could mention but my list would take up too much.

Again, great list!

Anonymous said...

Chron Cross had nothing to do with Chrono Trigger??? Yeah, you really need to beat "trigger". . . tHOSE 2 GAMES HAD EVERYTHING TO DO WITH EACH OTHER. . IT'S AMAZING REALLY. . . I wasn't yelling there, I accidently hit my caps lock and feel to lazy to go back and correct it.

Anonymous said...

Ugh, I don't know if any of you are PC AND console but I gotta say it makes compiling this list just that much harder. I almost just want to post "series" instead of individual games but I digress.

1. Diablo II Lord of Destruction. Been playing that for about seven years now and it has never ceased to keep me entertained. The online play, random map generator, millions of items, and character strategy have kept my interest for all these years.

2. American McGee's Alice: fun, macabre, unconventional, a fantastic play all around. Best video game soundtrack I have ever heard, period.

3. Baldur's Gate Shadows of Amn: too many reasons to name but many are the same as Diablo II. Endless, detailed, in depth story, strategy, etc.

4. Super Smash Brothers Melee: four player free-for-all fighting game with all the old skool Nintendo characters? Um, yeah. Nuff said.

5. Yoshi's Story: this gets a sentimental value vote, as it was the first 64 game I'd ever really played, and it was while I was at the Seattle Children's Hospital in physical therapy. They let me rent out YS to play in my hospice room. Plus I'm a girl so yay, I get to like cute games.

6. Legend of Zelda Majora's Mask: I could have said Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, but while I adore that game, I've always had a special place in my heart for MM. Its kinda the "underdog" of the two 64 games and what can I say, I always root for the underdog. I also loved the new spin it took on an old theme (a common Nintendo technique). As a sequel you could not ask for anything more. I was very impressed with the aesthetic, and it was enjoyable and familiar without being too repetitive. I found the myriad of side quests to be a great addition that really added to the game play. This is also somewhat of a sentimental favorite because I spent every Easter holed up in my apartment playing MM and eating Cadbury mini eggs. That's a tradition seven years running now.

Honorable mentions: GTASA, Super Mario Galaxy, SimCity 4, Soul Calibur IV. I'm sure I'll think of more later and get mad.

Ryan said...

American McGees Alice was awesome and Super Smash Bros made up my entire senior year of college. I totally hear you on not being able to pick 6 overall games. I should revisit this idea and break it down into more specific categories because while The Secret of Monkey Island and Tie Fighter are two of my favorite PC games they don't really relate to one another. Nor do they really exist on the same level as console games.

Anonymous said...

American McGee's Alice multi platform sequel announced!!

Anonymous said...

1. Tecmo Super Bowl is one of the benchmark games. It wasn't the first game to use real athletes (Tecmo Bowl did that and probably some others) but it was the first game where you could play a real season and it would keep track of all the stats. I probably played through a season over 100 times.

2. Ocarina of Time. My favorite of all the Zeldas that I played. Majora's Mask was ok, but the ending was one of the most disappointing ever.

3. Metal Gear Solid 4. I think I have to represent the minority PS3 owners. The other Metal Gear games were great but this one tied everything together and had an amazing story line (if you like 30 minute cut scenes like myself!)