I had a friend that I let borrow Tekken 3 back in the day. When I got it back months later, the entire case was covered in cocaine residue.
Nuff said.
Foolz said:X-Wing Alliance, third greatest ever.
Gran Turismo 1 and 3, second. To my eyes, even the PlayStation Gran Turismos still look incredible. The difference between 3, 4, 5 and 6, is astoundingly small. It wasn't until Sport that there was a massive leap forwards. 2nd didn't do much for me, nor did the 4th or 5th (even though I played it for 50-100 hours), but 1 and 3 are perfect games.
on was a fucking boss. This is the only fighting game (other than Tag Tournament) I felt was worth putting any effort into learning the characters and so forth for. The endings were a great reward system. My favourite character was Julia, sister's Law, cousin's Nina, father's Xiaoyu, and a friend who took it super seriously but my sister and I could thrash with consummate ease, King. And, of course, we all loved Eddy. Except for my father, who just button mashed as Xiaoyu no matter what.
Absolutely great top 3, and I loved the whole top 50 of all time. Great job! I look forward to your GOTY list.
Lol glad you enjoyed it. Maybe I’ll do another! Lol
Dvader said:Lol glad you enjoyed it. Maybe I’ll do another! Lol
I have a feeling you might do a top 50 honourable mentions of great games that weren't quite worthy of the ultimate top 50!
49. Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds and Oracle of Ages/Seasons
I few years ago Nintendo gave us a glorious gift, a sequel of sorts to one of the greatest games ever made ALTTP. Back to the classic top down gameplay, return to the same world we fell in love with now with a new twist. I was enamored with the game the second I saw it, the great art style, the popping 3D visuals, it's a Zelda fans dream come true. But it came with a caveat, ALBW tried some new things with it's items in dunegon in an effort to change up the formula, something that would continue in BOTW. Im ok with change, when it makes the game better, letting the player rent items and choose a dungeon was almost a gimmick in this game. It didn't make the adventure feel any more free and just made it so that all the dungeons were of simple difficulty, no progression. It's a shame they tried this new system out because the rest of the game is stellar.
The new gameplay mechanic introduced in ALBW is pure genius, the ability to enter walls as a 2D painting of link and walk around corners and enter various locations regula link cant. It was used in many puzzles, in clever ways that changed the way I approached dunegons and the overworld. It's everything a full game mechanic should be. It might not be my favorite 2D Zelda but it's still a fantastic game. There are lots of retro games these days, some trying to be like Zelda but Nintendo shows they are still unmatched.
Portable Zelda's owe everything to Link's Awakening, while ALBW was more of a take on ALTTP the Oracle games built on what LA started. A more whimsical, more odd adventure with unique gameplay mechanics. Link could jump in these games, nuff said. LA is the gold standard, but I wanted more. I would borrow (ok I just took it) my sisters Gameboy Color and play all these classic GBC games on it. One day while reading some game magazine I came upon the news that there was not one but two GBC Zelda games coming, made by Capcom?! I was sold, of the two choices Ages was my go to game because it focused more on puzzles, Seasons more on action. I chose correctly, Ages was ckearly the better of the two with better dunegons and more interesting world.
Each game had different overworlds, different dungeons, different bosses and a different game wide mechanic. For ages you can turn back time and see the world in two different areas. In seasons you can change the season and with it change the overworld. These games were no joke, some dungeons were straight up tough. The overworld could leave you stuck becuase of the different ways it can be manipulated. Maybe the game design wasn't as elegant as Nintendo usually makes it but the elements of what makes Zelda great is clearly present. I played seasons soon after then did the connecting thingy to get the true ending where you fight Ganon. After the oracle games portable zelda got kind of weird, Minish Cap didn't do much for me and then the two DS games while fun were a big step back from the adventures found on the GBC.
I played some Xwing VS Tie fighter back in the day. Can't remember what exact game it was, but I did have a cool flightstick to play it with. If my memory serves me well, this was probably the first game I played online, against one of my friends who also had it.
ALBW's was ok, but it didn't blow me away. I don't think I bothered with the renting system much. I either bought them, or it didn't influence me because I didn't die during the whole game;
I only played Oracle of Ages back then on the GBC, didn't own seasons. It was a cool game. I also enjoyed Minish Cap a lot, what didn't you like about it?
SupremeAC said:I played some Xwing VS Tie fighter back in the day. Can't remember what exact game it was, but I did have a cool flightstick to play it with. If my memory serves me well, this was probably the first game I played online, against one of my friends who also had it.
ALBW's was ok, but it didn't blow me away. I don't think I bothered with the renting system much. I either bought them, or it didn't influence me because I didn't die during the whole game;
I only played Oracle of Ages back then on the GBC, didn't own seasons. It was a cool game. I also enjoyed Minish Cap a lot, what didn't you like about it?
Coming after oracle Minish felt very simple and restrictive. It had fewer easier dungeons. The overworld was split in a weird way cause of the map system, I forget the thing you match to open areas.
Weren't the Zelda games made by the 2nd Resident Evil team Flagship?
edgecrusher said:Weren't the Zelda games made by the 2nd Resident Evil team Flagship?
Yes they were.
48. Sonic The Hedgehog and Sonic 3 and Knucles
1991, I'm 8, like most kids I am into the great cartoons of the time, the games, the movies. I had an NES and loved it dearly but it was getting old. A new gen was starting, I didn't know much about it until there were commercials airing all across kids programming, GENESIS DOES. You cant do this on Ninetendo, GENESIS DOES! And what did Genesis do, well it was 16-bits baby, I was blown away, 16?! tThats double8?! It's two times better than the NES. Those graphics, the amount of colors, I wanted this! But the ad campaign didn't really take off until Sega found their mascot, their Mario killer, Sonic the Hedgehog. He was cool, he had attitude, and he was FAST. Mario was fat, slow and boring, Sonic was the new hot stuff. As you can see the ad campaign worked on me, Sonic looked like a dream game, I never seen any game that popped the way it did.
But I'm 8, I can't buy anything myself and I never asked for a Genesis. Lucky for me my dad saw the same commercials and my dad always needs the newest gadgets, so one day out of damn nowhere he says lets go to Toys R Us (remember that! I should do a whole blog just on Toys R Us). So I am thrilled, my favorite store in the world, what can we possibily be doing there. Ohhh we headed to my favorite ailse, the magical video game section of paper tickets. It was just rows of printed out game covers and backs with a paper ticket you grab if you want to buy it. Remember this is pre internet, all our game info came from just reading the back of those covers. So my dad goes right to the Genesis section and takes a ticket, OH MY GOD, I'm getting a Genesis which comes with Sonic! He also bought three sports games, Madden, Pat Riley Basketball and Hardball; there is his angle, he wanted to play the most state of the art sports games. It's all good I got Sonic.
That day is one of my fondest game memories. My uncle came over, so it was me, my dad and my brother all huddled in the room with the now disconnected NES and the new shiny Genesis (16-bits!), They took turnes trying out each sports game. We were blown away by Madden, it had weather, injuries where an ambulance would show up, it was wild. I sat patiently waiting for my turn to play Sonic, clearly no one else was interested in it. They got their fill and so it was finally my turn, screw those sports games give me the game that would rival Mario. I start it and that theme song plays and sonic wags a finger at you in 16-bit glory, I hit start and that iconic Green Hill Zone music begins. I couldn't believe how beautiful everything was, how fluid and responsive the controls were, and just how fast it could all move.
Sonic was not an easy game, sure the first few levels are a breeze, well Marble hill is an asshole level but still doable. But then you hit Labryinth Zone and it hits another gear of hard. I remember being stuck in the water slide puzzle for many days. I kept hammering away, made it to starlight and then finally Scarp Brain with that menacing music and devilish level design. FInally one time I was able to beat it... but Dr. Robotnick still had the emeralds! I love everything about the first Sonic, even the weird bonus levels. It single handedly made me the Sega fan I am. It made me a blind fanboy who all of a sudden was team Sega, screw Nintendo. It's a very important game in my life, it has been surpassed by it's sequels but that first one does hold a special place in my heart.
Yes we are skipping a game, thats to come later as to me it's at a different level. Sonic 3 came aa few yeras into the Genesis which was showing its age. Now after 2 I was at maximum hype for Sonic 3, I would read loads of articles from gaming mags. I remember one had a two page spread just laying our the first level on the page. Sonic 3 was a big step up for the franchise in good and bad ways to me. Sonic 3 feels the most like a platformer, it's slowed down with a lot more emphasis on getting passed obstacles in front of you in ways that are much more like traditional platformers. The levels also became huge with many paths, every level very well designed. But Sonic 3 was short and only had 6 worlds, it felt far smaller than Sonic 2 because Sonic 3 wasnt finished.
Sonic and Knuckles came out later that year and had the strangest gimmick ever, lock on technology. Once locked on with Sonic 3 you basically unlocked the full game, since Sonic 3 and Knuckles has been the definitive version when playing these games. When together they make a massive Sonic epic that is nearly twice as long as any other Sonic game and introduces a totally new playable character who would go on to become one of the most beloved characters in the franchise. This was Sega saying we can make a game where traditional platforming is more of a foucs, this game has incredible design and variety. So many levels introduce some new mechanic whether it would be a spinning top that crashes through walls, or skiing down a mountain, to gravity changing tunnels, this is the sonic that can contend with Mario’s level diversity. Then there is the music which is phenomenal. Michael Jackson helped in making a few of the track, ice cap zone is my favorite. It’s a fantastic game with great moments and bosses.
Quick mention to Mania, its probably the most well made game in the series but it just came out recently so it doesn't mean enough to me to crack this list.
Maybe I'll give 2D Sonic a second chance sometime. Perhaps it'd be easier to start with 3 if it's more platformy?
47. God of War 3
The PS3 had a rough go at the start with the 360 having better third party ports, much better support and so on. But Sony still had it's first party titles, God of War was the big one that was missing around launch because they decided to launch GoW2 on PS2 the same year PS3 came out. And so we waited years to see what a next gen GoW would look like and my god it did not disappoint. The famous quote from some media member was that "it was like a painting come to life". God of War 3 was the best looking video game ever up to that point in time, a gorgeous game that holds up. Now I don't think GoW3 reach the highs of the second entry but it still is one of the best action adventure games you will find.
The combat was improved with more ways to interact with enemies like grabbing them to use as a battering ram. Or riding on top of the more massive enemies and using them to stomp the grunts. More magic attacks, more fluid combos, its the best GoW has played. The game opens up with a spectacle that only GoW could bring, an incredible battle against Poseidon which to this day is still one of the most impressive set pieces ever. The GoW formula just works, there is such a great ebb and flow to the title so that there is always something different coming up. Big combat sections, followed by platforming, a littl puzzle solving, new mechanics all the time, beautiful levels to explore and great boss battles.
I replayed this game last year to prep for GoW4 and I was enthralled by it all over again. There aren't many games like this anymore, everything is open world or some game as a service. I miss the linear action game so much. I couldn't put it down, it demands your attention for every second and never lets you get bored. No filler, no fat, just game. So many great momemnts like te Hades battle, the inside of the labyrinth with its rotating cubes while battling giant scorpions, the M.C. Escher's like perspective puzzle in the garden and the hercules boss battle. Sure the story was getting rather ridiculous and Kratos had become an irredeemable asshole but the point of the story was simply the spectacle and GoW 3 delivered.
46. Super Smash Bros. Melee, Brawl, Wii U and Ultimate
Good ole smash, I say the best multiplayer party game ever invented. When you get four people together it is magical. So many ways to play, so many characters to choose from, so many incredible come backs and shocking wins. It is everything you could want from a group fighting game and so much more. My history with Smash started with the original which I played at my best friends house. Remember I had no N64 so I missed out on many of those games but we had a friend who owned the N64 (my nemesis as I was the Sega/Sony guy and he was the Nintendo guy), he would bring it over my best friends house and we would have a bunch of people over and play Smash Bros. The original was very basic but the core elemenmts were there. I of course chose Link as my main and have never looked back, he remains my best fighter after all these years.
So I finally gave in and got a Nintendo console with the GC and it didn't have the best launch. Rogue Squadron was taking most of my time with it, it was Melee that was the first big Nintendo release for the GC, probably the first Nintendo console game I have bought since an NES game. Do I really have to tell you why this is one of the best games ever made? The combat was perfect, to this day Smash doesn't feel as fluid and fast as it did in Melee. It introduced so many characters and levels and kicked off the game mode extravaganza that would evolve as the series continued. It also gave us the Gamecube controller which to this day is still the gold standard to play Smash and I have bought the adapter and only play Smash games with the GC controller. The melee theme song to me is the Smash theme song, when I think of Smash I think of the melee menu music. Without Melee this series is not the monster it is today.
Brawl, the controversial one, but for me it might be my favorite. Brawl is when the series went super sayan and became not just a Nintendo fighting game but a museum of all classic gaming. A celebration of everything I grew up on. Nintendo opened the door for outside companies to join in on the fight and so we got the dream matchups we always wanted to see, Sonic versus Mario. I am a single player guy so when they announced a full fledged single player campaign I was jumping for joy. Some hated the Subspace Emessary but I LOVED it. It was the video game avengers, EVERYONE joining forces in epic cutscenes. The levels were tailored to each character. Massive boss battles with classic enemies from a whole host of games.
Thats just the beginning, the giantic trophy room was an achievement system on steriods with over 100 challenges to complete. Every mode from before and more was included. It was the first Smash game with an online mode, sure it was laggy and barebones but even I got to play with you fine folks many a night. There was a level editor, incredible collection of stages and the music OH THE MUSIC. Smash also became the best collection of classic music in gaming. New remixes, old classics which could be unlocked and set to levels at any frequency you want. Every character and level had details that would make Kojima blush, it was stunning to see how every aspect of this game made sure to fit into the context of whatever game that level or character was from. I must have put over a hundred hours into Brawl, I dont care that it was slower paced, the content was taken to the next level.
More characters, more levels, more music, better online and more faithful gameplay to melee. Wii U Smash was the best of both worlds, playability with loads of options. Gone was a campaign mode which really bummed me out but it had more than enough content to keep me playing for another 100 hours. This game came out when I was traveling for work, I was many years in and sort of bored of seeing the same places. Smash U came out and I just brought my Wii U with me on trips and it was like a piece of home coming along. I would get online and play with friends. Or try to clear the challenge board piece by piece.
But the reason I loved this game so much is how my friends all bought it, for the most part we don't play games together any more. But with this we would host Smash parties, get like 7 or 8 guys together and smash all night. That sentence didn't come out right. Anyway it's the best multiplayer experience I had in recent years.
And now we come to Ultimate which lives up to it's name. It is without question the Ultimate Smash Bros game, there is basically no reason to make another one. Every single fighter, every level, all the music, and the biggest campaign mode, maybe too big. The best online the series has seen and its all PORTABLE on the switch. The value this game has is insane, straight madness. I need to get back into it because there was just too much to do and that damn story mode is ridiculously long but I like what they were doing with the sticker system. It is the culmination of this wonderful series. I had to include all four of these because there is no denying the level of quality every entry showcases.
My God, those GC graphics haven't aged well...
Smash Bros. A series I end up buying every generation and playing less every time. Very similar to Mario Kart in that way.
SupremeAC said:My God, those GC graphics haven't aged well...
Smash Bros. A series I end up buying every generation and playing less every time. Very similar to Mario Kart in that way.
Yeah for sure.
I’m somewhat the opposite. I buy it every generation and end up playing it more each time.
And we are back.
45. Metroid Prime 3
Metroid Prime 2 was a letdown after the masterpiece that was the first one. The third one was hopefully going to deliver in a way the second one did not, and it would do so with the power of the Wiimote. With full laser aiming Metroid Prime 3 became one of the showcases for the strength of the wiimote, you can hit all four corners of the screen without even toughcing the camera. Combat was far faster and more fluid. What was probably the weakest aspect of MP the combat became a big strength with the wiimote controls. I adored the controls, I have always been a big fan of the wiimote and this is one of the best uses for it.
Metroid Prime 3 did something most Metroids do not, break the game up into sections rather than one large interconnected world. Normally that is a big no no but MP3 makes it work. Each world you explore is of a decent size and comes filled with new gameplay mechanics that are activated by finding a new powerup. You can still revisit past planets to find hidden items. All the exploration and upgrading is still there now with more environmental variety and much better pacing. The opening act to MP3 is so exciting, it blows away any set piece the first two had and showed that Retro can create those epic gameplay moments that Sony was beginning to get so great at with Gof of War and Uncharted. MP3 is a tentpole game for the Wii, sadly it's also the last great Metroid game, hopefully Prime if it ever does make it out alive can be nearly as good.
The controls were indeed great.
That was just about the only great thing about it. It looked great, too, I suppose.
The slow combat was one of the greatest strengths of the first two. And the massively underrated 2 used that combat in much more creative ways than anything in Uncharted.
That said, as a traditional FPS, it's really, really good.
44. Ratchet and Clank Going Commando and A Crack in Time
During the PS1 days two companies made a name for themselves by jumping into the 3D platformer ring, Naughty Dog and Insomniac. Crash went on to be the de facto mascot for the PS1 and Spyro, well he was there, good game but didn't set the world on fire. The PS2 would serve as round two for these developers to once again go at it for platforming dominance exclusive to the Playstation 2, during that gen Insomniac clearly came out the big winner with their best franchise Ratchet and Clank. Focusing more on wild weapons and combat that precise 3D platforming, Ratchet created a new style of action adventure platformer where action was center stage. The formula was incredibly strong, fly to multiple worlds each with their own theme and monstrocities to fight and earn bolts to constantly buy new weaponry which upgrades every time you use it. This gameplay loop keeps the variety coming as you never know what crazy gun is coming next and there were gadgets to find much like Zelda items which allow for new travesal options and puzzles. These games had it all and two of them really stand out.
Going Commando is one of those perfect sequels that takes everything done in the first and makes it bigger and better in almost every way. The first game feels like a prototype in comparison, the sequel added the leveling up of weapons which has become the core pillar of progression for the entire franchise going forward. Now guns evolve the more you use them, don't throw away that first gun keep using it because it can transform into a messager of death that can wipre out a whole screen of enemies. This also plays into the challenge mode post game which is an excellent new game plus with even crazier weapon upgrades.
But the improvements didn't stop there, we got sphereical worlds that acts as a precursor to Mario Galaxy, space combat missions and arena battles. It was the first taste of the incredible variety this series would continue to show. Going Commando remains a highlight, there is argument for Up Your Arsenal but I felt that was more of a sideways movement than the clear leg up GC was to the first.
The series got a bit lost after UYA with some side games and some smaller titles on the PS3. The first major effort on PS3 was Tools of Destruction and it felt like a step back from the PS2 games in content. Graphically it was stunning and the games never controlled better. Still it was missing the depth offered in past games, A Crack in Time fixed that. ACIT is the culmination of the entire Ratchet franchise, all the best ideas distilled into one majestic game that stands with the very best the PS3 had to offer.
The title refers to the time hijinks featured in the game which manefest as Clank puzzles which are genius. You essencially can record clank and the rewind time and use that recording as a clone to perform actions while your clank can do other actions, up to four clones can be created. These time puzzles are the best the series has ever offered, by far my favorite Clank sections. The imporvements didnt end there, space combat got a big upgrade with one large space to explore and battle around in. The hoverboots make navigating the larger worlds a blast. The best roster of weapons, the best cast of characters, the best story, the best post game content, ACIT is the best the series has to offer.
I kind of found the controls in Prime 3 to be like a typical game on the Wii. They did the job, could be pretty inventive at times, highly annoying at other times, & I had to constantly be thinking about the controls instead of just naturally playing a game & NOT thinking about the controls. It's a big part of the reason why I was really looking forward to the Trilogy released on Switch with normal controls for the first time ever. As with the Switch Pro pad, they should easily be able to improve all 3 games with some tweaks.
X-Wing Alliance, third greatest ever.
Gran Turismo 1 and 3, second. To my eyes, even the PlayStation Gran Turismos still look incredible. The difference between 3, 4, 5 and 6, is astoundingly small. It wasn't until Sport that there was a massive leap forwards. 2nd didn't do much for me, nor did the 4th or 5th (even though I played it for 50-100 hours), but 1 and 3 are perfect games.
Gon was a fucking boss. This is the only fighting game (other than Tag Tournament) I felt was worth putting any effort into learning the characters and so forth for. The endings were a great reward system. My favourite character was Julia, sister's Law, cousin's Nina, father's Xiaoyu, and a friend who took it super seriously but my sister and I could thrash with consummate ease, King. And, of course, we all loved Eddy. Except for my father, who just button mashed as Xiaoyu no matter what.
Absolutely great top 3, and I loved the whole top 50 of all time. Great job! I look forward to your GOTY list.