What your favorite games that define or even defy their original generation?

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onQ123

Gold Member
For me it's Ms Pac-Man , Mario Kart 64 , Street Fighter 2 , Super Mario World, Killer Instinct 1 , Zen Pinball, Soul Calibur , Tekken 3 , Sonic The Hedgehog, Crash Bandicoot.


Not my choices but games like GTA 5 , Minecraft & so on that continued to sell throughout multiple generations are also included in the topic.
 
To me it was World of Warcraft back in 2004.

I never thought an MMO could be this expansive, lively and immersive. It was also associated with my carefree teenager time, so it always has a special spot in my gaming memory.

786505-thunder-bluff.jpg
 
Donkey Kong Country on the SNES was earth-shattering when it came out in 1994, blowing away expectations of what 16-bit games could be like. It sums up that whole time and place in the medium in my mind.

Banjo Kazooie, Ocarina of Time, and Goldeneye 007 will also always represent the N64 era for me, each pushing the boundaries of excellence in their own way.
 
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Vaquilla said:
Donkey Kong Country on the SNES was earth-shattering when it came out in 1994, blowing away expectations of what 16-bit games could be like. It sums up that whole time and place in the medium in my mind.

Banjo Kazooie, Ocarina of Time, and Goldeneye 007 will also always represent the N64 era for me, each pushing the boundaries of excellence in their own way.
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Rare was in Rare Form at Nintendo
 
Gran turismo 1. Set the stage for sim racing games. Even now a lot of racing games copy the template laid down by it.

Uncharted 2 would be another one.
 
I agree with Street Fighter 2. It was a generation-defining game and still has the most iconic character design.

Only some Fatal Fury characters come close.
 
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Breath of the Wild is pretty much the poster child for the Switch generation, setting the tone for the company's resurgence and newfound ambition from day 1.

Incredible game.
 
COD4 has a lot of meaning and really defined a generation, bad company 2 was that guy that walked in the arena with COD4's basic fundamentals (ranking) and also defined a generation with destruction.

RE7 moved VR into homes, Spider-Man on PS4 I think should be talked about defining a generation even though Batman layed down the groundwork.
 
Can you give me an example of what you mean by "defied it's generation"?

Would it be something like SotN? An excellent 2d game in an era that was all about the move to 3d?
 
MayauMiao said:
Metal Gear Solid 2 would be one.



The tech was jaw dropping.
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Peak technology. It hasn't even been topped by other games in the same franchise in several aspects.
It's crazy how the sixth generation was the peak of the interactive evolution of this medium and we didn't know how good we had it.
 
Grizzled Ghost said:
Can you give me an example of what you mean by "defied it's generation"?

Would it be something like SotN? An excellent 2d game in an era that was all about the move to 3d?
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Stuff like Pacman & Tetris that continues to be played no matter what generation we are in.

For the newer games you have stuff like GTA 5 & Minecraft that was released on PS3/Xbox 360 but they continued to sell throughout PS4/Xbox One & even PS5/ Xbox Series


Edit: Last Of Us also sold well through 3 generations
 
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Off the top of my head all of these games defined the generations.
Only naming some consoles and no portables.

Hated 2600

NES:
TLOZ(1+2)
Rygar
Castlevania 2+3
Metroid
Pro Wrestling

SMS:
The Ninja
Shinobi
Rastan

SG/MD:
33CKCY4.png

Ghouls n Ghosts
Streets of Rage(1+2)
Thunderforce series
Revenge of Shinobi
Shadow Dancer
Shinobi 3
Castlevania:Bloodlines

TG16:
Legendary Axe
Dungeon Explorer series
Neutopia series.

Neo-Geo:
H17JImr.jpeg


SNES:
Street Fighter 2 series
Tloz ALTTP
Super Metroid
Super Ghouls n Ghosts
Super Castlevania

PS1:
Toshiden
SF Alpha Series

N64:
Virtual Pro Wrestling Series
Mario 64
Tloz OOT

SS:
Guardian Heroes
Fire Pro Wrestling 6 man scramble
Panzer Dragoon series

SDC:
Soul Calibur
Crazy Taxi
NFL 2K series
SF3TS

XB:
Ninja Gaiden/Black
Halo CE
Unreal Championship series
Crimson Skies

NGC:
SW Rouge Leader
RE 4
Metroid Prime

PS2:
Tekken Tag
Rygar
Gow 2

XB360:
Gears of war series
Dark Souls
Borderlands 2

Wii: hated it/used it to play GC games

PS3:
Demon's Souls!!!!!
Killzone (2+3)
BFBC2
Dragon's Crown
MAG
NG Sigma 2

PS4:
Bloodborne
Destiny (1+2)
BF4
Titan Fall 2
Division (1+2)

Xbo:
Gears (4+5)
Killer Instinct
Titan Fall

PS5:
Elden Ring

XB Series:
 
Wii Sports was one of defining games of its generation.
Some of the most pure fun I had that gen was staying up all night playing bowling and tennis with mates in Uni when we were all young, drunk, and living out of home for the first time; along with Mario Kart Wii and Halo 3 it was one of our go-to games while I was a student.
 
onQ123 said:
Stuff like Pacman & Tetris that continues to be played no matter what generation we are in.
Click to expand...

Aha, in that case. The first StarCraft.

For a console game I'll pick Mario 64 because my phone is still pushing speed run news on me. Most games that spring to mind have been dropped here already like SotN and Halo CE.

Every other game in a local retro game franchise store is used, except repro Pokemon carts. They're display only behind glass and they get you one from the back room. I think that says something...
 
onQ123 said:
Tekken 3
Click to expand...
Ooh yeah. That shit was fire. Arguably the series hasn't progressed much since, but... Tekken 3. That was it.

But I'd like to add another forgotten classic, that didn't define a generation, but should have. Ultima Underworld. The OG FPS RPG. The mouse-driven interface is weird (WASD wasn't a thing at that point), but it was better than what the Doom engine could provide in many aspects (and came before Doom). You could look up and down. And there could be things like bridges that you can cross under (Doom's maps are essentially 2D).
 
Final Fantasy X

An exceptional generational game that consistently provided entertainment throughout its entirety. In my opinion, it remains unparalleled in its enduring popularity across multiple generations.
 
Forspoken
Dustborn
Dragon Age: Veilguard

Games that perfectly define current generation.
 
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S0ULZB0URNE said:
Off the top of my head all of these games defined the generations.
Only naming some consoles and no portables.

Hated 2600

NES:
TLOZ(1+2)
Rygar
Castlevania 2+3
Metroid
Pro Wrestling

SMS:
The Ninja
Shinobi
Rastan

SG/MD:
33CKCY4.png

Ghouls n Ghosts
Streets of Rage(1+2)
Thunderforce series
Revenge of Shinobi
Shadow Dancer
Shinobi 3
Castlevania:Bloodlines

TG16:
Legendary Axe
Dungeon Explorer series
Neutopia series.

Neo-Geo:
H17JImr.jpeg


SNES:
Street Fighter 2 series
Tloz ALTTP
Super Metroid
Super Ghouls n Ghosts
Super Castlevania

PS1:
Toshiden
SF Alpha Series

N64:
Virtual Pro Wrestling Series
Mario 64
Tloz OOT

SS:
Guardian Heroes
Fire Pro Wrestling 6 man scramble
Panzer Dragoon series

SDC:
Soul Calibur
Crazy Taxi
NFL 2K series
SF3TS

XB:
Ninja Gaiden/Black
Halo CE
Unreal Championship series
Crimson Skies

NGC:
SW Rouge Leader
RE 4
Metroid Prime

PS2:
Tekken Tag
Rygar
Gow 2

XB360:
Gears of war series
Dark Souls
Borderlands 2

Wii: hated it/used it to play GC games

PS3:
Demon's Souls!!!!!
Killzone (2+3)
BFBC2
Dragon's Crown
MAG
NG Sigma 2

PS4:
Bloodborne
Destiny (1+2)
BF4
Titan Fall 2
Division (1+2)

Xbo:
Gears (4+5)
Killer Instinct
Titan Fall

PS5:
Elden Ring

XB Series:
Click to expand...


Everything in this guys list…. But add VF2 and sega rally to the sega Saturn list
 
Vaquilla said:
Breath of the Wild is pretty much the poster child for the Switch generation, setting the tone for the company's resurgence and newfound ambition from day 1.

Incredible game.
Click to expand...
Bought a Switch for my kid, also bought this game for myself, i'm loving it, it just feels right.
 
For me:

PC: Total Annihilation
Ps1: MGS and FFVII
Ps2: GTA San Andreas and MGS2
Ps3: GTAV and Demon's Souls
PS4: RDR2
PS5: GTA6 (probably)
 
LectureMaster said:
To me it was World of Warcraft back in 2004.

I never thought an MMO could be this expansive, lively and immersive. It was also associated with my carefree teenager time, so it always has a special spot in my gaming memory.

786505-thunder-bluff.jpg
Click to expand...
I hope I dropped it for good now but man, there is no game like it. Come for the leveling progression, stay for the people.
2004-2008, 2014-2025 rip in piss sweet prince
 
Super Mario Bros/ Zelda-Nes
Sonic 2-/ Streets of Rage 2-mega drive
Donkey Kong Country/ Mario Kart-snes
Resi 2/ FF7-ps1
Mario 64/Goldeneye-N64
Shenmue/Soul Caliber-Dreamcast
Jet set radio Future/ Halo-Xbox
MGS 2/ SH2-Ps2
Gears of War/Street fighter IV-Xbox 360
uncharted 2/Mgs 4-ps3
Bloodborne-/red dead 2-Ps4
 
While not my cup of tea personally, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is undoubtedly one of the defining games of the current generation, blowing up as it did and becoming a breakout phenomenon.
 
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