After reading multitudes of reviews and an average score (on metacritic) of 98%, a couple of months ago I decided to buy GTA4 for my PS3. I had never played any of the GTA games before; I had only seen short glimpses of them from friends playing and video footage. The premise of the game had never particularly interested me, but I thought I should give the series a shot. Many reviews lauded it as the pinnacle of gaming achievement to date, and some people said it would change my view of gaming forever. I beat the game in a few weeks of time, after a hefty 35+ hrs of play (it's a really long game). My impression? It was pretty good. Pretty good, but not great, amazing, or incredibly awesome. GTA4 was definitely a fun game, with a good story and a very nice open environment. But at no time(while playing or aftewards) did I ever think this was one of the best games I'd ever played, much less did my view on gaming change. So what games do I think are more important than GTA4? Here is my top 10 list, in alphabetical order (I think all of them are great, so I didnt want to have to rank them). Of course, this is my personal list, so some games that I have heard are great, but I didnt get a chance to play, are not on here. Some of my all time favorites (
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Ninja Gaiden Sigma) are not on here either, since i tried to keep it down to ten; they didnt do too much to "change the way I view gaming," even though they were tons of fun.
Everyday Shooter Who says video games aren't art? Probably people who have never tried this game. Although short, a good player (not me) could probably finish it in just a few hours, the absurd visuals and surprising variety packed into each level of this game are some of the coolest 2-D art I have ever encountered in a game.
Guilty Gear X2 The problem with most multiplayer games is the lack of either balance or variety. A balanced game will lack variety in playable characters/factions (counterstrike, warcraft 2), while a game with variety will lack balance between choices (Marvel vs Capcom 2). Guilty Gear X2 manages to pull off both far better than any multiplayer game I have ever encountered. Add crazy anime-like fighting, incredibly deep gameplay, and the opportunity to beat up your friends mercilessly, and I was hooked.
Half Life (series) Half life took storytelling in first person shooters and took it to a completely new level. Going back and playing HL1 now will show the game hasn't aged too well (poor graphics and it's much copied gameplay have made it just another fps), but I think it is what set the standard for the plethora of FPS games out there today. Half Life 2 still looks good, and is the same engine used by Valve's Orange Box games. PS: Gravity gun was awesome. Mario Galaxy Holy crap! This game introduced me (and I think a lot of the gaming world) to some crazy game mechanics. I never imagined what its like to run around small, oddly shaped planets, with gravity direction changing constantly to keep you on your toes. Plus it's really satisfying seeing Mario fly around to tiny planets with his stubby limbs and plumber suit. Portal Who would've thought a simple game mechanic could do so much to revive a bland, overdone genre(fps)? Valve did. If you havent played Portal, you should. Puzzles are fun!
Shadow of the Colossus
It's not easy to create a deep, immersive world in gaming, and its even harder when not given any background story and minimal dialogue throughout the entire game. Somehow, Team Ico pulled this off, while still leaving a satisfying ending, even though we never really know the events leading up to and after the story within the game. Not to mention its really fun to figure out how to topple beasts hundreds of times bigger than you. weee!
Starcraft/Brood War Like GGXX, Starcraft managed to bring variety and balance, although to the RTS genre. Not only is this game relatively easy to pick up, but Koreans have shown that you can make a living off of it if you're good enough. The depth and replay value of this game is just THAT GOOD. Somebody call for an exterminator?
Super Metroid Is it possible to create a world steeped in history, a complete sense of isolation, and a "holy crap!" ending to a game with just 16-bit graphics? Hell yeah! I played this game about 8 years after it was released, and even though the graphics were a huge step back from what I had grown accustomed to, this game was still awesome. That is how well designed it is. Go download and play it on an SNES emulator if you have not played it yet.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past The only Zelda game I have ever played to completion, which is probably why it is here instead of Ocarina of Time. I don't really like dealing with inventory screens(frikken Diablo 2 inventory management), but there are just too many nifty tools and magic items in this game to not have an inventory. Don't forget the huge slap in the face you got when you realized you were less than halfway through the game the first time you encounter the "last boss". Having the Light/Dark worlds not only drove the story forward, but also introduced some pretty cool puzzles to a really fun game.
Tribes (same video I posted a little while back) Hurrah for multiplayer FPS games. This is the only one on here because I still think it is the most unique FPS I have ever played. Flying around on a jetpack while having to lead your shots to account for opponent's movements, time it takes for your projectile to reach its target, and even your own momentum affecting your shots was a really steep learning curve. But damn it was fun. This was the first multiplayer game that I played a lot of, and I miss it.
My fears have been confirmed. They are going to ruin my favorite show ever... Hopefully this shitty NBC version will be largely ignored and fade out of existence quickly
"Jeremy Clarkson, executive producer and host of the UK “Top Gear” said:
“This is fantastic news - but how on earth you lot are going to do it
on the wrong side of the road I’ve no idea.”"
I doubt clarkson really thinks this is a good idea... but he's gotta pretend like he's supportive so he doesnt seem bitter that theyre ruining his show
all the recent FPS games i've played are all pretty much the same. Tribes really was revolutionary and still is quite different from any other FPS around.
