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GAF Games o' the Generation (DC/PS2/GBA/GC/Xbox/PC 2000-2005) Voting Closed
- Thread starter AniHawk
- Start date
1. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ; The 80s setting, cartoon style, overall tone and superlative radio stations make it the peak of the series and indeed the generation. Like somebody said earlier nothing could beat the feeling of riding a bike along the beach listening to Billie Jean.
2. Persona 4 ; The most likeable cast to be found in any videogame.
3. Advance Wars ; Can't split it from it's sequel but I'll give this the nod as it was first. It acted as a gateway drug for SRPGs. Terrible for handheld play though, sure I could have saved at any time but I just wanted to finish the map... then have a sneak peak at the next one... then I just wanted to finish the map...
4. Mother 3 ; Gave me my GAF username, brilliantly written /translated. Can say more within a few text boxes and sprite (?) movements than most twenty minute cinematic cut-scences.
5. Shadow Of The Colossus ; Hanging onto the back of that flying desert colossus is still one of the best moments in any game. Obviously it's the first game to bring up in are games art debates. I wish more titles followed the same minimal approach to story-telling.
6. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; This took the opposite approach to story-telling but miraculously did it well. The setting, little touches, bosses, everything just comes together in the peak of the series.
7. Warioware: Twisted ; I imported this to Europe after Nintendo lied about it on coming soon lists for well over a year.
8. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas ; Mechanically better than Vice City but I wasn't so keen on everything else. Still the best game in the series for getting your wanted rating right up and trying to evade the cops for as long as possible (which is obviously the whole point of the series).
9. Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath ; Why can't more FPSs feature a western aesthetic, live ammo and chicken people? It was really pretty too. Shame nobody bought it, at least there's now hope for more Oddworld games.
10. Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain ; I felt I should have out RE4, Ico, GTA3 or something similar here but had to go with this as it was my multi-player game of choice for years (mostly because the sequels went downhill).
Honourable mentions
x James Bond 007: Nightfire
I better stop with that because I could go on for ages...actually I have to mention the Mario and SNES GBA ports as it was my first experience of many of those games even if they won't be counted.
I find it interesting how many games on my list have a focus on the story, can't say that about most of my favourite games these days.
2. Persona 4 ; The most likeable cast to be found in any videogame.
3. Advance Wars ; Can't split it from it's sequel but I'll give this the nod as it was first. It acted as a gateway drug for SRPGs. Terrible for handheld play though, sure I could have saved at any time but I just wanted to finish the map... then have a sneak peak at the next one... then I just wanted to finish the map...
4. Mother 3 ; Gave me my GAF username, brilliantly written /translated. Can say more within a few text boxes and sprite (?) movements than most twenty minute cinematic cut-scences.
5. Shadow Of The Colossus ; Hanging onto the back of that flying desert colossus is still one of the best moments in any game. Obviously it's the first game to bring up in are games art debates. I wish more titles followed the same minimal approach to story-telling.
6. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; This took the opposite approach to story-telling but miraculously did it well. The setting, little touches, bosses, everything just comes together in the peak of the series.
7. Warioware: Twisted ; I imported this to Europe after Nintendo lied about it on coming soon lists for well over a year.
8. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas ; Mechanically better than Vice City but I wasn't so keen on everything else. Still the best game in the series for getting your wanted rating right up and trying to evade the cops for as long as possible (which is obviously the whole point of the series).
9. Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath ; Why can't more FPSs feature a western aesthetic, live ammo and chicken people? It was really pretty too. Shame nobody bought it, at least there's now hope for more Oddworld games.
10. Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain ; I felt I should have out RE4, Ico, GTA3 or something similar here but had to go with this as it was my multi-player game of choice for years (mostly because the sequels went downhill).
Honourable mentions
x James Bond 007: Nightfire
I better stop with that because I could go on for ages...actually I have to mention the Mario and SNES GBA ports as it was my first experience of many of those games even if they won't be counted.
I find it interesting how many games on my list have a focus on the story, can't say that about most of my favourite games these days.
Ein Bear
Member
This list was very, very hard to put together, but here we go:
1) Resident Evil 4
Not just the best game of it's generation, but the best game ever made, period. No other game has such a perfect balance of gameplay, pacing and atmosphere. Everything from the encounter design, the weapon upgrades, the treasure hunting, the bonus unlockables, the way enemies heads blow up, the glorious, endlessly quotable script, etc, etc, is all just perfect. A masterpiece.
2) Metroid Prime
There was a time where 'turning Metroid into an FPS' was almost universally agreed upon as a bad idea. Turns out, Metroid is actually better as an FPS, with the series handling it's transition to 3D better than anyone ever imagined. The game just drips with atmosphere, and Tallon IV genuinely feels like a real world as you slowly explore and discover it's secrets.
3) Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
It's very close between MGS2 and 3 for me, but I have to give the nod to Snake Eater. The amount of sheer stuff in the game is absolutely mind blowing, and the story it tells is incredible whilst striking a better balance with the gameplay than previous installments. The 60s spy-vibe is great fun, and the 'jungle survival' elements make for great twists on the gameplay as you stalk your prey, Predator-style. The fight with The End has to be the all time greatest boss.
4) Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
For all the improvements MGS3 made, I still think there's a lot of fun to be had with the more 'arcadey', top-down approach of MGS2. A part of me kinda of prefers the more focused, less open feel, where each room is like a mini-puzzle. The sheer batshit insanity of the storyline is absolutely fantastic too, with nothing in the industry ever managing to top the crazy ending moments, or the legendary Raiden fade-out.
5) Halo: Combat Evolved
The friendships I have today were forged in Blood Gulch. The campaign was, and still is, great fun, but it was the multiplayer that really made Halo shine. Sleeping over at a friends house, system-linking Xboxes is one of those unforgettable memories of my youth.
6) The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
There's this whimsical tone to the Wind Waker that I love. The graphics and soundtrack just come together in a way that makes me want to go live by the sea and go sailing. I'm a big fan of the updates the game made to the combat system (it still has my favourite combat in any Zelda), and it did a great job of making the overworld an interesting place to explore.
7) Shenmue
Playing this game on release blew my mind. The sheer amount of things you could interact with is still unmatched even today, and I still somehow manage to find new things to do every time I replay the game. For an epic revenge story there still manages to be this laid back, chilled out vibe to the game that I love. When I die, I want to go to Dobuita. Also: the voice acting fucking rules.
8) Devil May Cry 3
Sod Ninja Gaiden, this is the best character action game of the generation. The combat system is absolutely insane fun to play around with, and the ridiculous cutscenes are still the greatest videos ever put on a disc. The whole game is a non-stop crazy party and I love it.
9) Half Life 2
The best single player FPS campaign ever made. Half Life 2 is full of great encounters, memorable characters and beautifully haunting environments. The physics still hold up today as being ridiculously impressive, and the 'road trip' feel of the game is still unmatched.
10) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Bioware really made a good call in setting KotOR thousands of years before the films. Freedom from having to involve any of the movies' characters or storylines really helped the game feel like it's own, grand adventure whilst still having that Star Wars flavour. Slaughtering sand people with HK-47 will always be special.
Honourable Mentions
Super Smash Bros Melee - Only just missed my top ten, I played this game an insane amount.
Halo 2 - Was torn between including this or Halo: CE. Still deserves a mention.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - I love this game, but, despite owning both versions, have always considered it a part of the Wii generation. Doesn't feel in the spirit of things to include it on the list proper.
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes - I'm one of those people that actually prefers TS to the original, but using three slots on MGS games felt like overkill...
1) Resident Evil 4
Not just the best game of it's generation, but the best game ever made, period. No other game has such a perfect balance of gameplay, pacing and atmosphere. Everything from the encounter design, the weapon upgrades, the treasure hunting, the bonus unlockables, the way enemies heads blow up, the glorious, endlessly quotable script, etc, etc, is all just perfect. A masterpiece.
2) Metroid Prime
There was a time where 'turning Metroid into an FPS' was almost universally agreed upon as a bad idea. Turns out, Metroid is actually better as an FPS, with the series handling it's transition to 3D better than anyone ever imagined. The game just drips with atmosphere, and Tallon IV genuinely feels like a real world as you slowly explore and discover it's secrets.
3) Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
It's very close between MGS2 and 3 for me, but I have to give the nod to Snake Eater. The amount of sheer stuff in the game is absolutely mind blowing, and the story it tells is incredible whilst striking a better balance with the gameplay than previous installments. The 60s spy-vibe is great fun, and the 'jungle survival' elements make for great twists on the gameplay as you stalk your prey, Predator-style. The fight with The End has to be the all time greatest boss.
4) Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
For all the improvements MGS3 made, I still think there's a lot of fun to be had with the more 'arcadey', top-down approach of MGS2. A part of me kinda of prefers the more focused, less open feel, where each room is like a mini-puzzle. The sheer batshit insanity of the storyline is absolutely fantastic too, with nothing in the industry ever managing to top the crazy ending moments, or the legendary Raiden fade-out.
5) Halo: Combat Evolved
The friendships I have today were forged in Blood Gulch. The campaign was, and still is, great fun, but it was the multiplayer that really made Halo shine. Sleeping over at a friends house, system-linking Xboxes is one of those unforgettable memories of my youth.
6) The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
There's this whimsical tone to the Wind Waker that I love. The graphics and soundtrack just come together in a way that makes me want to go live by the sea and go sailing. I'm a big fan of the updates the game made to the combat system (it still has my favourite combat in any Zelda), and it did a great job of making the overworld an interesting place to explore.
7) Shenmue
Playing this game on release blew my mind. The sheer amount of things you could interact with is still unmatched even today, and I still somehow manage to find new things to do every time I replay the game. For an epic revenge story there still manages to be this laid back, chilled out vibe to the game that I love. When I die, I want to go to Dobuita. Also: the voice acting fucking rules.
8) Devil May Cry 3
Sod Ninja Gaiden, this is the best character action game of the generation. The combat system is absolutely insane fun to play around with, and the ridiculous cutscenes are still the greatest videos ever put on a disc. The whole game is a non-stop crazy party and I love it.
9) Half Life 2
The best single player FPS campaign ever made. Half Life 2 is full of great encounters, memorable characters and beautifully haunting environments. The physics still hold up today as being ridiculously impressive, and the 'road trip' feel of the game is still unmatched.
10) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Bioware really made a good call in setting KotOR thousands of years before the films. Freedom from having to involve any of the movies' characters or storylines really helped the game feel like it's own, grand adventure whilst still having that Star Wars flavour. Slaughtering sand people with HK-47 will always be special.
Honourable Mentions
Super Smash Bros Melee - Only just missed my top ten, I played this game an insane amount.
Halo 2 - Was torn between including this or Halo: CE. Still deserves a mention.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - I love this game, but, despite owning both versions, have always considered it a part of the Wii generation. Doesn't feel in the spirit of things to include it on the list proper.
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes - I'm one of those people that actually prefers TS to the original, but using three slots on MGS games felt like overkill...
1. Alpha Centauri
2. Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
3. Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
4. Final Fantasy XI Online
5. Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
6. World of Warcraft
7. Final Fantasy XII
8. Ninja Gaiden Black
9. Persona 3: FES
10. Counter-Strike
x. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
2. Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
3. Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
4. Final Fantasy XI Online
5. Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
6. World of Warcraft
7. Final Fantasy XII
8. Ninja Gaiden Black
9. Persona 3: FES
10. Counter-Strike
x. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
Spieler Eins
Member
1. Resident Evil Remake ; This game has masterful level design, featuring Metroidvania-esque progression, exploration and puzzles. But even with already complex level structure intact, there's another layer added through survival gameplay, which keeps you planning your moves and strategies, more than in any other RE title. Mixing that with a proper difficulty, absolutely amazing art direction and music pretty much gives you the definitive Resident Evil experience of this generation and most likely of all time. Yet it also is one of the best remakes of all time. Because they've not only added new areas, puzzles and enemies, but they've also both altered and enhanced the gameplay, plus changed the general structure up for a much grander title than the original. The graphical composition is also completely new, terrifying, and not blatantly restricted by the original. Certain developers nowadays would have sold this as an actual sequel.
2. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap ; The only truly great title to ever feature Cartoon-Link. The dungeons and gameplay mechanics are very varied and it both looks and sounds astonishing on the GBA. And most importantly, the world is filled with tons of sidequests, characters and simply things to do. The main town is the busiest right after Majora's Mask and the shrinking mechanic actually enhances certain quests and exploration.
3. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door ; This game has one of the best RPG battle systems, since it mixes engaging micro- and reaction games into the otherwise turn based system. It has tons of different, yet unique scenarios and mechanics, more than most other RPGs anyway, and great writing plus presentation. Despite the simplicity, the battle system offers a pretty decent amount of strategy making, which also is necessary for the final batch of boss fights, which can be quite challenging. It's biggest fault back in the day was being a blatant copy of its predecessor, but nowadays, this more refined and better looking version of Paper Mario is obviously the prefered one.
4. Killer7 ; This title lives off its unique, yet also disturbing atmosphere and story, which make any David Lynch movie look tame and simplistic in comparison. The cel shading looks wonderful, the music is great and any fan of twisted mystery/horror stories needs to check this title out, since the story is not only fascinating, but also uses the advantages of the videogame format very well. Although the gameplay itself isn't that great, it serves its purpose (despite some minor annoyances) and its simplicity allows for great shots and angles, adding to the overall style.
5. Okami ; Tutorials aside, this is a great Zelda-esque, featuring a world map that actually gives you the feeling of being on a big journey, with tons of different and beautiful vistas, good characters, story and obviously beautiful art and music. They do a lot of different things with the paintbrush mechanics and it simply feels good to play.
6. Metroid Prime ; The generation's equivalent of Mario's jump into a new dimension prior. Some aspects of Metroid got lost into its transition to 3D, yet it created something new and grand. It's a slower paced Metroid that lives off the atmosphere and immersion, for which the decision for first person view was spot-on. Not only were several graphical effects regarding the visor very refreshing back in the day, but the scanning mechanic wonderfully weaves tutorials, story telling, puzzle solving and general examining into exploring ancient temples and other great locations. Unfortunately, it falls kinda flat in the end, but it still was an excellent adventure.
7. God Hand ; Yes, this game is solely about punching people (and other creatures). But the mixture of high difficulty, precise controls and custome movesets makes this title tons of fun, motivating, but never frustrating. Also, even though it lasts about 15 hours, it also never gets tedious, since new enemy types and other stage hazards never stop coming and you gotta keep adjusting your strategies and improving your skills. You're also wrestling with gorillas.
8. Tales of Symphonia ; A likeable cast and the story still has some good twists, even though some tropes were often recycled in later Tales of- titles. The first attempt at 3D Tales' (real-time) combat is still very fun, the presentation is great and unlike later titles, this still has classic dungeons with decent puzzles and all that jazz you'd expect.
9. Skies of Arcadia Legends ; Even though the individual aspects of this RPG don't seem very special on their own, together they make a game that truly gives you the feeling of being on a gigantic pirate adventure, discovering a whole world and becoming a pirate master. Even more so if you take even a small amount of time to explore the optional content. You might want to get the Legends version for a lower random encounter rate though.
10. WarioWare, Inc. ; This wasn't even the first Warioware title I've played, yet it still was easily the most fun. It might just be one out of maybe a handful truly great minigame collections ever created. The mixture of testing your reactions through all kinds of merely second-long challenges and completely unpredictable, wack presentation makes this tons of fun and even some unlockable extras (of which some are almost full classic games) can be motivating for hours.
x. Silent Hill 2 ; This might be the scariest survival horror title, but the gameplay was always a little annoying compared to Resident Evil.
x. Luigi's Mansion ; A quirky and unique adventure, whose feelng the second title couldn't quite capture (even though it was good). The presentation back in the day was mindblowing coming from Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot, which made this feel like a living cartoon.
x. Eternal Darkness ; This survival horror title was usually known (if at all) for its ,,sanity effects'', but its strength actually was all the different historical setpieces over the story course of two thousand years.
A Black Falcon
Member
1999 PC games absolutely 100% should be eligible, though. There's no reason at all to exclude them. The Dreamcast released in December '98 after all, and PC games of '99 look and play just as well or better.
there was a small discussion in the 2014 goty thread. it was changed to so that hopefully it makes sense the more we go back in time (1994-1999 for pc for instance makes some sense on the previous generation). of course with last gen running so long, that number will be skewed a bit. maybe 2006-2012.
please read the red text in the op.
1. Devil May Cry ; Created my favorite sub-genre and pretty much molded my taste in games. I'm still comparing action games to the original Devil May Cry and while a lot of them have surpassed DMC in regard to combat mechanics, none of them can match the level design, enemy design, soundtrack or just the visceral feel of the combat. Still the most complete package of any game in the genre.
2. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty ; Some parts of the story have lost a little impact for me given the retcons of MGS4 but I won't hold that against Sons of Liberty. Playing and talking about this game was an addiction for me. Polished as hell, memorable, enjoyable twists (I LIKED RAIDEN!) and extremely fun.
3. Final Fantasy X ; My favorite Final Fantasy. The battle system and sphere grid were fun to play with, loved the cast, the music and setting.
4. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; Only reason this is behind MGS2 is because there was a boss in this game who shot bees at me. Sorry but I drew the line at the fat guy on rollerblades. Beyond that, this game has the best setting in the franchise, the best soundtrack and the single best character (The Boss).
5. SSX ; The best arcade sports ever and the reason I become agitated when anyone says PS2 had a poor launch lineup. The competition among my friends to post the best scores was fierce, such a fun time in gaming for me.
6. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic ;
7. Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner ;
8. Ninja Gaiden Black ;
9. SOCOM II: U.S. Navy SEALs ;
10. Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition ;
2. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty ; Some parts of the story have lost a little impact for me given the retcons of MGS4 but I won't hold that against Sons of Liberty. Playing and talking about this game was an addiction for me. Polished as hell, memorable, enjoyable twists (I LIKED RAIDEN!) and extremely fun.
3. Final Fantasy X ; My favorite Final Fantasy. The battle system and sphere grid were fun to play with, loved the cast, the music and setting.
4. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; Only reason this is behind MGS2 is because there was a boss in this game who shot bees at me. Sorry but I drew the line at the fat guy on rollerblades. Beyond that, this game has the best setting in the franchise, the best soundtrack and the single best character (The Boss).
5. SSX ; The best arcade sports ever and the reason I become agitated when anyone says PS2 had a poor launch lineup. The competition among my friends to post the best scores was fierce, such a fun time in gaming for me.
6. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic ;
7. Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner ;
8. Ninja Gaiden Black ;
9. SOCOM II: U.S. Navy SEALs ;
10. Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition ;
A Black Falcon
Member
1994-1999? But the consoles of that generation released in 1993-1996, not 1994 and on only. I'd think starting that gen on PC in 1993 as well would make sense. Including Quake III in a "5th gen era" list, with console games from hardware released in 1993-1996, is kind of absurd on a technological level.
However, of course there's no perfect way to break up PC (and Arcade) gaming, that's true. There aren't clearly defined generations there, so you'll end up with some arbitrary line. I'm sure that any way you divide it will leave someone unsatisfied, because computer and arcade games just don't have generations like console games do.
I'd personally line up the start point with something close to the year when the first console released that generation. 1999-2004 would be the obvious point for the 6th gen then, since the Dreamcast released at the end of '98 (could say '98, but '99 makes for both gens having the same number of years in them, which is good). Then 1993-1998 for the generation before that, because the 4th gen consoles started releasing in 1993, not 1994. 1987-1992 for the one before that. Before that it's trickier (beginning-1975 (very few games released during this period, of course, but it is considered a generation), 1976-1981, 1982-1986? I don't know, but I'm sticking with my belief that the consoles of 1982 (Colecovision, 5200, Vectrex) should be considered 3rd-gen and not 2nd, so that's why I said 1982 there and not 1983 as most would say.
As for the generation that just completed... well, I think it'd be fair to say that the last gen was just as long on PC as it was on consoles. 2006-2012 makes sense to me too.
andthebeatgoeson
Junior Member
1. Resident Evil 4; One of the best games of all time. I've played it close to 20 times, on multiple systems and have triple dipped. I knew instantly that it was a classic. Great pacing, great atmosphere, great variety in enemies and encounters, great progression in encounters (they build off previous experiences), great endgame/newgame +, great characters, great graphics, great satisfying game play, gun play and surprisingly, one of the only games that makes QTEs fun. Makes shooting with a gamepad fun. Some how, the experience, for me, was not broken after getting all the overpowered weapons. I still do runs with the chicago typewriter. And enjoy it. Probably why I loved playing on the Wii. I have no problem with improved aiming. I keep upgrading it on my all time list: instantly jumped to top 5 and I can easily argue it's the best game I ever played. I would buy another HD remake on consoles without question.
2. GTA3; Some flaws but easily overlooked by pioneering open world games as we know them. It's not the best GTA but I give it a lot of credit for opening the door. I had a ton of fun just fucking around, in this game. Not much has changed from 3 to the latest iterations for the mission (follow guy, shoot guy, escort guy, go to here, go to there) and some things are worse (free driving without being slow downed by a hydrant). 3 is much more memorable for me. The music, the cars, the driving, the jumps, the experience of the weather and day/night system. I've 100% this game 3-4 times. I was just infatuated by it's charm. I still remember the opera station, going off a jump in slow mo, getting story updates by radio. I'll remember this one in 20 years. 4? Not so much.
3. Advance Wars: Black Hole Rising. Just my intro to the series. Great games in genres I've never been exposed to get high marks from me. It's turn based gameplay at it's finest and may push me into playing Fire Emblem. I'm waiting for the next update.
4. Max Payne 2: Oh Mona Sax. With that sniper rifle. So sweet. I didn't even mind the platforming. The story is so deliciously cheesy. The better of the two games, story wise and many improvements in gameplay.
5. Ace Combat 4: I never played this series until PS2 dropped like a nuke. And I've had conversations about the flaws of this game. But the story and presentation pushed it over the edge. Great graphics and an excellent shooter. Also, great new game plus and it entices you to keep playing. Something satisfying about wrecking shit with the best planes. Speeding around the board or pushing the throttle to hit the ceiling. A great descriptor of the problems of current day games: you don't need loud explosions and constant talking to tell a great story. Just great voice acting, a great producer who understands how to tell a story without reciting every detail. Just still, beautiful pictures, sounds and allow your mind to fill in the blanks. They went away from it on 5 and I've never given the series much thought after. Mobius 1!
6. Soul Calibur; Kilik and that stick. Hnng. Screw you, EA. Shit decisions since forever.
7. Rise of Nations; Getting more tired to explain but loved the demands of these games, and the risk-like campaign. Always wanted to enter the modern era and wreck some bastards on horses. Never could do it.
8. Metroid Prime; Don't listen to Anihawk. He lies. Great game with beautiful graphics, and the goat music. Stay awhile in the cold. You'll love it.
9. Fzero GX; 1600 mph of beauty and beast, smacking fools around, which is a great mechanic that most racing games should try and implement. I'm waiting, Ninty, I'm waiting.
10. Halo; Surprised it made it but then again, I remember LAN play. Hang em High or that Canyon board, that sniper, those grenades. I have to really overlook the terrible level design but the story, the locations and, mostly, the multiplayer really push this game to greatness.
X. Wind Waker; I love Zelda games and I'm surprised this didn't rank higher but there are too many games to choose from. The lack of a solid overworld and too much water hamper this but it still ranks high on a Zelda scale. The Zelda scale being 8-10. Bound to have a decent or good game and mostly great.
X. Pikmin 1; A beautiful game, a ground breaking series. Not a shooter, unless you consider throwing little ants shooting. Deserves more love and credit.
X. Castlevania Aria of Sorrow; classic metroidvania that convinced me to grind for souls. All of them. Good games convince you to do terrible things (ie walk in and out of rooms for souls, look for packages, play QTEs, scan every enemy, sail on water for hours on end, etc).
X. Crazy Taxi; So many sore knuckles and hands. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah....come on! And that song that cusses. Fuck you, EA, again.
X. Max Payne 1; Because, why not? Hard to replay but was great when it first launched on PC. Need that KB&M. Need that dark story. Need dat slow mo death animations.
X. Grand Theft Auto VC; About the same, worse driving experience but brought it all together with the them, the neon lights, the properties and the last modern GTA that didn't throw the kitchen sink and the plumber under the sink at you. Why do I want to level up my bike skills? I don't. Stop that shit and ask if it's important. If a few people like it, it doesn't mean it should be in the game. Don't serve the people who love 100 hour games. Unless it's monster hunter. But still
2. GTA3; Some flaws but easily overlooked by pioneering open world games as we know them. It's not the best GTA but I give it a lot of credit for opening the door. I had a ton of fun just fucking around, in this game. Not much has changed from 3 to the latest iterations for the mission (follow guy, shoot guy, escort guy, go to here, go to there) and some things are worse (free driving without being slow downed by a hydrant). 3 is much more memorable for me. The music, the cars, the driving, the jumps, the experience of the weather and day/night system. I've 100% this game 3-4 times. I was just infatuated by it's charm. I still remember the opera station, going off a jump in slow mo, getting story updates by radio. I'll remember this one in 20 years. 4? Not so much.
3. Advance Wars: Black Hole Rising. Just my intro to the series. Great games in genres I've never been exposed to get high marks from me. It's turn based gameplay at it's finest and may push me into playing Fire Emblem. I'm waiting for the next update.
4. Max Payne 2: Oh Mona Sax. With that sniper rifle. So sweet. I didn't even mind the platforming. The story is so deliciously cheesy. The better of the two games, story wise and many improvements in gameplay.
5. Ace Combat 4: I never played this series until PS2 dropped like a nuke. And I've had conversations about the flaws of this game. But the story and presentation pushed it over the edge. Great graphics and an excellent shooter. Also, great new game plus and it entices you to keep playing. Something satisfying about wrecking shit with the best planes. Speeding around the board or pushing the throttle to hit the ceiling. A great descriptor of the problems of current day games: you don't need loud explosions and constant talking to tell a great story. Just great voice acting, a great producer who understands how to tell a story without reciting every detail. Just still, beautiful pictures, sounds and allow your mind to fill in the blanks. They went away from it on 5 and I've never given the series much thought after. Mobius 1!
6. Soul Calibur; Kilik and that stick. Hnng. Screw you, EA. Shit decisions since forever.
7. Rise of Nations; Getting more tired to explain but loved the demands of these games, and the risk-like campaign. Always wanted to enter the modern era and wreck some bastards on horses. Never could do it.
8. Metroid Prime; Don't listen to Anihawk. He lies. Great game with beautiful graphics, and the goat music. Stay awhile in the cold. You'll love it.
9. Fzero GX; 1600 mph of beauty and beast, smacking fools around, which is a great mechanic that most racing games should try and implement. I'm waiting, Ninty, I'm waiting.
10. Halo; Surprised it made it but then again, I remember LAN play. Hang em High or that Canyon board, that sniper, those grenades. I have to really overlook the terrible level design but the story, the locations and, mostly, the multiplayer really push this game to greatness.
X. Wind Waker; I love Zelda games and I'm surprised this didn't rank higher but there are too many games to choose from. The lack of a solid overworld and too much water hamper this but it still ranks high on a Zelda scale. The Zelda scale being 8-10. Bound to have a decent or good game and mostly great.
X. Pikmin 1; A beautiful game, a ground breaking series. Not a shooter, unless you consider throwing little ants shooting. Deserves more love and credit.
X. Castlevania Aria of Sorrow; classic metroidvania that convinced me to grind for souls. All of them. Good games convince you to do terrible things (ie walk in and out of rooms for souls, look for packages, play QTEs, scan every enemy, sail on water for hours on end, etc).
X. Crazy Taxi; So many sore knuckles and hands. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah....come on! And that song that cusses. Fuck you, EA, again.
X. Max Payne 1; Because, why not? Hard to replay but was great when it first launched on PC. Need that KB&M. Need that dark story. Need dat slow mo death animations.
X. Grand Theft Auto VC; About the same, worse driving experience but brought it all together with the them, the neon lights, the properties and the last modern GTA that didn't throw the kitchen sink and the plumber under the sink at you. Why do I want to level up my bike skills? I don't. Stop that shit and ask if it's important. If a few people like it, it doesn't mean it should be in the game. Don't serve the people who love 100 hour games. Unless it's monster hunter. But still
1. Metroid Prime ; damn fantastic game, I don't even know what to say. the atmosphere, the exploration, the action, it was just amazing.
2. Half-Life 2 ; this game was mindblowing
3. F-Zero GX ; best racing game ever made
4. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ; played this on the GC, it's actually the best of the 3D Zelda games. Yeah.
5. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door ; a simple but amazing RPG
6. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time ; fantastic game, this series has the best 3D platforming you can get without a plumber.
7. Super Mario Sunshine ; speaking of plumbers, let's not forget that this game was actually really good, even if it wasn't as enjoyable as the games before or after it in the series
8. Viewtiful Joe ; henshin a go go, baby! this game was hard but also super fun. good stuff.
9. Skies of Arcadia: Legends ; just a damned well-made JRPG. I wanna be a sky pirate again.
10. SSX 3 ; fantastic snowboarding game. I loved racing all the way from the top of the mountain to the bottom over like 20 minutes
2. Half-Life 2 ; this game was mindblowing
3. F-Zero GX ; best racing game ever made
4. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ; played this on the GC, it's actually the best of the 3D Zelda games. Yeah.
5. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door ; a simple but amazing RPG
6. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time ; fantastic game, this series has the best 3D platforming you can get without a plumber.
7. Super Mario Sunshine ; speaking of plumbers, let's not forget that this game was actually really good, even if it wasn't as enjoyable as the games before or after it in the series
8. Viewtiful Joe ; henshin a go go, baby! this game was hard but also super fun. good stuff.
9. Skies of Arcadia: Legends ; just a damned well-made JRPG. I wanna be a sky pirate again.
10. SSX 3 ; fantastic snowboarding game. I loved racing all the way from the top of the mountain to the bottom over like 20 minutes
TheSpaceBetween
Member
It's like every other ballot doesn't follow the rules. Smh.
it's around 10% so far. i'll pm the people who i quoted earlier, at some later date, before voting closes.
decoyplatypus
Member
I feel a bit weird having so many sequels on my list. I suppose it’s natural for studios to refine their games’ mechanics and hit their stride in the second or third game of a series, but my list would be more interesting (to me at least) if it focused on game designs that originated in this time period.
1. Civilization 4; having the whole generation makes this easy because I get to factor in the expansions. Civ 4 is one of my favorite games of all time. It is certainly my most-played game of all time. I played hundreds upon hundreds of hours of Civ 4 and never exhausted its potential for fun scenarios and weird strategy challenges. Until Civ 5's most-recent expansion, it was STILL my go-to game for binge sessions. Soren Johnson, take a bow.
2. Metroid Prime; it doesn't have Super Metroid's perfect pacing or pick-up-and-play accessibility, but it has just about everything else. The beautiful environments entice the player to learn every twist in the game's labyrinthine world. The map display is still better than almost any 3D exploration game has managed (see DX:HR). The lore cachés added to the game's drama without disrupting its atmosphere. It’s a classic.
3. Ico; this might be the only game on my list I haven't replayed recently. I love that it inspires deep sentiment without lengthy cutscenes and creates a beautiful, narrative experience without sacrificing gameplay fundamentals. Sure, the puzzles and platforming are basic, but they require genuine engagement on the player’s part, which is more than I can say for some of Ico’s imitators.
4. Smash Bros. Melee; this is my favorite local multiplayer game ever. I don’t know that I can describe its mechanics, characters, and stages in a way that has any relation to my affection for the game. It would be like breaking down the rules of soccer. I may love the game, but I would be hard pressed to start explaining what’s great about it from the ground-up. Melee is just one of the fundamental social activities of a long period of my life.
5. F-Zero GX; my favorite racing game ever. This one is a bit easier to explain. I love its speed. I love its twisting, diving, and jagged courses that can throw you at the smallest moment of carelessness. I love its intuitive controls that let you take each sharp curve just a little bit closer to the edge. If Nintendo released it in HD with online multiplayer and a track editor, I would never need another racer.
6. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
7. WarioWare Twisted!
8. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
9. SMT: Nocturne
10. Resident Evil 4
Honorable Mention (i.e. the next 5, in no particular order):
Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines
Advance Wars
Super Mario Sunshine
Europa Universalis 2
1. Civilization 4; having the whole generation makes this easy because I get to factor in the expansions. Civ 4 is one of my favorite games of all time. It is certainly my most-played game of all time. I played hundreds upon hundreds of hours of Civ 4 and never exhausted its potential for fun scenarios and weird strategy challenges. Until Civ 5's most-recent expansion, it was STILL my go-to game for binge sessions. Soren Johnson, take a bow.
2. Metroid Prime; it doesn't have Super Metroid's perfect pacing or pick-up-and-play accessibility, but it has just about everything else. The beautiful environments entice the player to learn every twist in the game's labyrinthine world. The map display is still better than almost any 3D exploration game has managed (see DX:HR). The lore cachés added to the game's drama without disrupting its atmosphere. It’s a classic.
3. Ico; this might be the only game on my list I haven't replayed recently. I love that it inspires deep sentiment without lengthy cutscenes and creates a beautiful, narrative experience without sacrificing gameplay fundamentals. Sure, the puzzles and platforming are basic, but they require genuine engagement on the player’s part, which is more than I can say for some of Ico’s imitators.
4. Smash Bros. Melee; this is my favorite local multiplayer game ever. I don’t know that I can describe its mechanics, characters, and stages in a way that has any relation to my affection for the game. It would be like breaking down the rules of soccer. I may love the game, but I would be hard pressed to start explaining what’s great about it from the ground-up. Melee is just one of the fundamental social activities of a long period of my life.
5. F-Zero GX; my favorite racing game ever. This one is a bit easier to explain. I love its speed. I love its twisting, diving, and jagged courses that can throw you at the smallest moment of carelessness. I love its intuitive controls that let you take each sharp curve just a little bit closer to the edge. If Nintendo released it in HD with online multiplayer and a track editor, I would never need another racer.
6. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
7. WarioWare Twisted!
8. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
9. SMT: Nocturne
10. Resident Evil 4
Honorable Mention (i.e. the next 5, in no particular order):
Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
Vampire: The Masquerade: Bloodlines
Advance Wars
Super Mario Sunshine
Europa Universalis 2
ULTROS!
People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late. I like to eat ice cream and I really enjoy a nice pair of slacks.
1. Final Fantasy X ; One great thing I loved about FFX was how immersive the world was. This was the first time I was fully immersed in the world of FF.
2. Silent Hill 2
3. Silent Hill 3
4. Mother 3
5. Suikoden V
6. Sonic Adventure
7. Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
8. Katamari Damacy
9. Resident Evil 4
10. Kingdom Hearts 2
2. Silent Hill 2
3. Silent Hill 3
4. Mother 3
5. Suikoden V
6. Sonic Adventure
7. Star Ocean: Till the End of Time
8. Katamari Damacy
9. Resident Evil 4
10. Kingdom Hearts 2
whatever you feel like doing. i am personally listing my favorite games, but if you think 'games of the generation' means something else, i won't stop you.
Ok. I'll do mostly favorites then. Thanks for doing this!
Randomizer
Member
1. Resident Evil 4; This game is just game design perfection. The most faultless game I've ever played. The pacing it just incredible, flowing from one amazing set piece to the next. It's relentless, addictive and just so much fun. The gunplay is extremely satisfying, feels so good to get a headshot and watch an enemies head exploded into a bloody mess. Who can forget the awesome melee attacks, "one shot to the leg, run over quickly, suplex! Head explodes!" The bosses are fantastic and can be incredibly tense, the horror aspect of the game really shines here. The B-movie cheese of the characters and story fit the game really well, honestly if the story took itself too seriously it could have made the game worse (see The Evil Within). Endlessly replayable and should be used as the template of how to pace a game.
2. Metal Gear Solid 3; I had no hype for this game as I was expecting a true sequel to MGS2 but this was a prequel story wise. Blew my expectations through the stratosphere, turned out to be not only the best MGS but also one of the greatest games ever made. The removal of the soliton radar and the use of camouflage made the stealth much more tense and rewarding. The level design was great and it had some amazing boss battles. All the fun Easter eggs and silliness you come to except from Kojima. A really enjoyable James Bond inspired story with an extremely memorable ending.
3. Metroid Prime; Another game with flawless design. The puzzles, power-ups and item hunting and general adventure based nature makes it truly unique for a FPS, though I suppose First Person Adventure is better suited. The art design is amazing, as well as the music and atmosphere which are unparalleled. The open ended exploration and difficultly make it a very rewarding experience. Nothing is more rewarding than figuring out what to do with a tricky puzzle or defeating a difficult boss battle. Excellent debut game by a studio that as of yet, haven't fail to deliver.
4. Shadow of the Colossus; An ethereal atmosphere and feelings of sombreness shroud this beautifully unique masterpiece. Everything about it brims with originality and the work of true artists wishing to elevate gaming to new heights. Where most 'AAA' games are equivalent to a summer blockbuster, this is the Cannes winning work of a true auteur.
5. Metal Gear Solid 2; I remember watching the E3 trailer of this and being absolutely blown away. This is the game that defined the generation for me, it was truly a massive generational leap over the previous gen. The Tanker part acted as a tutorial for the new mechanics, it was such a fun sandbox to test them in. I spent hours and hours just figuring everything out. The first person aiming, dragging bodies to hide them, hiding in lockers, hold ups, disabling radios etc. The Raiden twist whilst seemingly strange at first turned out to be a master stroke. This was Kojima's post-modern, fourth wall breaking, prophetic masterpiece.
6. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker; You can't mention Wind Waker without mentioning it's incredibly beautiful and striking graphics and art design. One of the most distinctive and original looking games ever made. A fun, happy and charming adventure on the open seas with some glaring faults due to developmental time constraints. A little more time in the oven and I've no doubt it would've been higher up the list.
7. Shenmue;
8. Devil May Cry 3;
9. Ninja Gaiden;
10. Super Smash Bros Melee;
x. Resident Evil Remake
x. F-Zero
x. Paper Mario Thousand Year Door
x. Mother 3
x. Ico
x. Viewtiful Joe
x. Okami
x. Devil May Cry
x. Slient Hill 2
x. Many, many more
Insanely good generation, possibly the greatest. So many unforgeable games made this a real struggle outside the Top 5. Literally could do a hundred honourable mentions.
2. Metal Gear Solid 3; I had no hype for this game as I was expecting a true sequel to MGS2 but this was a prequel story wise. Blew my expectations through the stratosphere, turned out to be not only the best MGS but also one of the greatest games ever made. The removal of the soliton radar and the use of camouflage made the stealth much more tense and rewarding. The level design was great and it had some amazing boss battles. All the fun Easter eggs and silliness you come to except from Kojima. A really enjoyable James Bond inspired story with an extremely memorable ending.
3. Metroid Prime; Another game with flawless design. The puzzles, power-ups and item hunting and general adventure based nature makes it truly unique for a FPS, though I suppose First Person Adventure is better suited. The art design is amazing, as well as the music and atmosphere which are unparalleled. The open ended exploration and difficultly make it a very rewarding experience. Nothing is more rewarding than figuring out what to do with a tricky puzzle or defeating a difficult boss battle. Excellent debut game by a studio that as of yet, haven't fail to deliver.
4. Shadow of the Colossus; An ethereal atmosphere and feelings of sombreness shroud this beautifully unique masterpiece. Everything about it brims with originality and the work of true artists wishing to elevate gaming to new heights. Where most 'AAA' games are equivalent to a summer blockbuster, this is the Cannes winning work of a true auteur.
5. Metal Gear Solid 2; I remember watching the E3 trailer of this and being absolutely blown away. This is the game that defined the generation for me, it was truly a massive generational leap over the previous gen. The Tanker part acted as a tutorial for the new mechanics, it was such a fun sandbox to test them in. I spent hours and hours just figuring everything out. The first person aiming, dragging bodies to hide them, hiding in lockers, hold ups, disabling radios etc. The Raiden twist whilst seemingly strange at first turned out to be a master stroke. This was Kojima's post-modern, fourth wall breaking, prophetic masterpiece.
6. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker; You can't mention Wind Waker without mentioning it's incredibly beautiful and striking graphics and art design. One of the most distinctive and original looking games ever made. A fun, happy and charming adventure on the open seas with some glaring faults due to developmental time constraints. A little more time in the oven and I've no doubt it would've been higher up the list.
7. Shenmue;
8. Devil May Cry 3;
9. Ninja Gaiden;
10. Super Smash Bros Melee;
x. Resident Evil Remake
x. F-Zero
x. Paper Mario Thousand Year Door
x. Mother 3
x. Ico
x. Viewtiful Joe
x. Okami
x. Devil May Cry
x. Slient Hill 2
x. Many, many more
Insanely good generation, possibly the greatest. So many unforgeable games made this a real struggle outside the Top 5. Literally could do a hundred honourable mentions.
oh damn. you're right.
i wasn't into the pc scene from then (well, ever), so i just assumed people knew better.
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
This might be one of the weirdest responses yet. Such a random assortment of games.
i don't know. virtual pool 3 topping a list is pretty special.
edit: i don't mean that in a disaparaging way. i didn't know the game existed.
On a similar note, I've seen a lot of votes for Age of Empires II which is also a 1999 game.
1. Warcraft III: Frozen Throne ; Spent a good 10 years playing this game. So many amazing custom game modes.
2. Metroid Prime ; Near perfection. It didn't have the replay-ability of most of the other games on my list but the first playthrough was one of the best moments in gaming.
3. Halo: Combat Evolved ; Didn't own an xbox but basically lived at a friend's house to play this every day for a month. Coop perfection.
4. Age of Mythology ; Another amazing RTS game. Loved the mythical units. FIrst game I played very competitively online.
5. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ; My first open world experience. And boy was it a good one.
6. Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising ; Turn based strategy at its finest.
7. Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots ; Yet another amazing RTS. This was truly the golden age for the genre. I really enjoyed trying to recreate massive battles in this game.
8. Metroid Fusion ; The only thing that managed to make me occasionally put down Metroid Prime in the month it came out.
9. Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker ; Loved the art style. Loved the gameplay. First zelda game I ever beat.
10. Need for Speed: Underground ; Ridiculously awesome customization at the time and just a very addicting game.
x. Super Smash Bros: Melee ; So many hours of fun with friends.
x. Animal Crossing ; Who would have thought living a boring o life could be so fun
x. Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II ; possibly my first serious video game addiction. I could not stop playing this.
2. Metroid Prime ; Near perfection. It didn't have the replay-ability of most of the other games on my list but the first playthrough was one of the best moments in gaming.
3. Halo: Combat Evolved ; Didn't own an xbox but basically lived at a friend's house to play this every day for a month. Coop perfection.
4. Age of Mythology ; Another amazing RTS game. Loved the mythical units. FIrst game I played very competitively online.
5. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ; My first open world experience. And boy was it a good one.
6. Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising ; Turn based strategy at its finest.
7. Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots ; Yet another amazing RTS. This was truly the golden age for the genre. I really enjoyed trying to recreate massive battles in this game.
8. Metroid Fusion ; The only thing that managed to make me occasionally put down Metroid Prime in the month it came out.
9. Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker ; Loved the art style. Loved the gameplay. First zelda game I ever beat.
10. Need for Speed: Underground ; Ridiculously awesome customization at the time and just a very addicting game.
x. Super Smash Bros: Melee ; So many hours of fun with friends.
x. Animal Crossing ; Who would have thought living a boring o life could be so fun
x. Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II ; possibly my first serious video game addiction. I could not stop playing this.
Could be worse. I'm pretty sure BG2 is not even in the top 20
Vampirolol
Member
I don't believe you.
but dear AniHawk, OP doesn't make sense on many levels, but most importantly 1999 year is 6th generation, no amount of discussion or decisions can change that, it's a fact. And people will ignore arbitrary time frame because it makes no sense, as I explained in my previous post. if we go by generation 1999 year is in, or you mean about one third of PC votes in this particular topic won't count? It's your choice of course, as you are doing this work.
the only pc games that have been listed that are being dq'ed are age of empires ii: age of kings and sid meier's alpha centauri. i will be contacting those people so they can change their list should they want to.
the op is fairly consistent in that the generation is largely defined by platform. when a platform exists for decades and changes from game to game (arcades), or gradually over time (pc), then it needs some other distinction. it's really a matter of drawing the line somewhere.
But it's funny when we draw a line with more or less 10 years of console games, because hey, it's right hardware!, but only 5 years of PC games and exclude one year that's actually very important for PC gaming, no?
this probably won't be the only games of the generation thread if that's what you're expecting.
SargerusBR
I love Pokken!
You are now my favorite mod <3
1. World of Warcraft ; Given that, in 2015, I'm still playing this game, it has to be my top pick as GOTG. WoW has many flaws but if there is one thing it's able to do, is to keep itself fresh after so many years, with content updates, expansions and tech upgrades.
2. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (US import) ; My first Nippon Ichi game and it was love at first sight. I've spent copious amount of time on this game and I still never did everything it had to offer. The best part about it is in the mix between the gameplay mechanics and the story. more than many of the follow ups, Disgaea hit that sweet spot in which both the quirky, funny and insanely over the top plot and characters kept me going just as much as the addicting power up gameplay. It was awesome to see Laharl decimate monsters with big numbers not only for the big numbers, but also because of his awesome laugh.
3. Ico ; An experience more than a game. I still remember playing it for the first time, marveling at the style of the game, feeling giddy when finding out that taking a rest on a sofa with the girl I was trying to escape with was the way to save. Even with no text, since the game required a second play-through to make the few lines in the game understandable, it managed to communicate to me everything it had to say.
4. Shadow of the Colossus ; As a game it could be considered better than Ico. The gameplay is more involving, it looks better, there are many little things to find out in its world and it still retain that same sense of wonder Ico had, though as an experience I rank it just one step lower. Technical problems aside, It was really a marvel to see this game running on a PS2. It really cemented my love for Ueda and Team Ico.
5. Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening ; Over the top action goodness. That's what DMC 3 is. I remember people being skeptics about this game prior to release, coming after the disappointing second entry (which I never played). But me? I came from playing the first entry and to me this game looked amazing from the get go. Between the tight action and crazy plot, the game keeps upping itself at each new chapter. Even the weapons you get are just as crazy and over the top as Dante riding a missile.
6. Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner ; When talking about great sequels that really improved on their predecessors, I think ZoE2 warrants a mention. The first game wasn't really anything special, despite me enjoying it, but this sequels improved on every aspect. Better action, better graphics, better music (the opening is seriously something else) and I'd also say better story. It's the perfect anime giant mecha action fighter that I dreamed of when watching Mazinger Z as a kid.
7. Wild Arms 3 (US Import) ; I remember buying this game on a whim. I finally had modded my PS2 and it was time to let the American imports roll in. Between all the stuff I bought was this one game. I had never played the previous games, but this one seemed pretty cool. The import review I'd read on my favorite magazine made it look cool, the art-style was pretty nice and I was in the mood for a kind of western style JRPG.
I wasn't disappointed, as the game delivered on every aspect. The puzzle part, the anime story, the character development (Virginia is one great female main character), the optional activities, the battle mechanics, the music. It had everything. It even had a mechanic to avoid random battles, how freaking cool is that?!
One of the aspect I loved the most about the game though has to be the story inside the story, as one of the optional activity in the game was to find some story books that told a story. I simply loved to sit there and read them, complete with sound effects and stuff, especially since I liked the story it told.
Another aspect I loved the game for was that, based on progress, the Opening changed. It really felt like watching a multi-season long anime. Also, for some reason, from time to time the Opening music in the American version would be the Japanese one, instead of the English one. It was quite the nice little quirk.
8. Rule of Rose (US Import) ; A misunderstood little gem. The intriguing mystery about what happened at that orphanage, the creepy yet somewhat realistic cruelty that young girls can display, the idea that running away is the best course of action as a young girl faced against such monstrosities. I enjoyed everything about this game, clunky controls included. The clunky controls in this instance even improved my immersion in the game, as it felt more realistic to me as the weak, young girl to whiff around with a weapon.
9. Final Fantasy XII ; Usually I'd put a Final Fantasy much higher, especially one like XII, which got many things right (although also many things wrong) but there are too many other games that sit higher in my feelings totem pole so for this time 9th place will have to do.
XII has been a very interesting entry in the Final Fantasy franchise, taking many cues from the MMO entry in the battle system, so much so that it feels like playing an offline MMOs, though since you can program your own companions, it could be said that the experience is improved as you don't get morons in your party unless you make them be one.
The problems Matsuno faced ruined the chance for the game to be the best possible game it could have been, sadly, but he still managed to put out one hell of a game.
10. Primal ; How could I not put Primal in here? The game was a blast for me. The battle gameplay wasn't really deep, but the two character swapping gameplay to solve puzzles was great, the two characters themselves were great, with Jen serving as a strong female lead and Scree being the funny sidekick and the story brought us into some pretty interesting worlds. The game was also damn pretty to look at.
It had some some bugs and sadly it bombed, so I'll never see a sequel, but it'll forever have a spot in my heart.
x. The Mark of Kri ; Since its only 10 titles for the main list, this goes into the honorable mentions. The game was a lot of fun to play, with some nice stealth gameplay and action battle system. Considering that I bought it expecting nothing much from it, it was one of those nice surprises. Maybe I should hunt down Rise of the Kasai one day, though with it only being released in America, is gonna be tough.
x. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind ; This gets a honorable mention not for what it did (as I never managed to get myself into liking it), but for what it tried to do. Bethesda puts out a lot of buggy shit, but their ambitions with games like Morrowind deserve a mention.
x. Silent Hill 3 ; Another game that has to sit in the honorable mentions just because. What made me love this game is the atmosphere along with the technical aspect of the game. For all the criticism the game got for the monster design, I thought it was a creepy and interesting experience and one that I believe stands the test of time.
x. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence ; One of the best Metal Gear Solid games and one that proves that women can make for great antagonists. Antagonists that can overshadow the main character.
x. Makai Kingdoms : If not for Disgaea, this would be on the list. It added many cool aspects to the base formula of the N1 SRPG games while keeping the funny and over the top plot story. It's just too bad it wasn't as loved by everyone else as it was by me.
x. Final Fantasy X-2 ; The game had a great OST, a great battle system, a strong girl-power/JPOP feel, but what it gets an honorable mention for is that it's been the best sleeping aid I've ever found. No other game has managed to put me to sleep like this one did every time I tried to play it. My SAOTG.
x. NeverWinter Nights ; I've always read praises for BioWare and the games they put out but I'll be honest, they always seemed pretty average to me. This game was no exception. I had my fun with it, but it was a pretty average game to play all considered. So, why does it gets a honorable mention? Because the game came out with a toolkit that made it possible to play some great user created stories and the multi-player aspect of the game was pretty fun.
x. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (US Import) ; The Kaneko art + the Meguro OST would be enough to warrant a mention, but the apocalyptic story and gameplay system make this another entry that has to sit out of the main list just because I can't fit it in.
x. Persona 3/4 (US Import) ; I'm gonna mention both games at the same time (hopefully it is allowed for honorable mentions!) because the reasons for mentioning both are the same: Soejima's art and Meguro's OST make for some great fun time while dungeon crawling and s-linking.
x. Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (US Import) ; Really interesting game-play ideas that gave birth to one of the most intriguing JRPGs of the generation, complete with one hell of a OST thanks to Sakimoto.
2. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness (US import) ; My first Nippon Ichi game and it was love at first sight. I've spent copious amount of time on this game and I still never did everything it had to offer. The best part about it is in the mix between the gameplay mechanics and the story. more than many of the follow ups, Disgaea hit that sweet spot in which both the quirky, funny and insanely over the top plot and characters kept me going just as much as the addicting power up gameplay. It was awesome to see Laharl decimate monsters with big numbers not only for the big numbers, but also because of his awesome laugh.
3. Ico ; An experience more than a game. I still remember playing it for the first time, marveling at the style of the game, feeling giddy when finding out that taking a rest on a sofa with the girl I was trying to escape with was the way to save. Even with no text, since the game required a second play-through to make the few lines in the game understandable, it managed to communicate to me everything it had to say.
4. Shadow of the Colossus ; As a game it could be considered better than Ico. The gameplay is more involving, it looks better, there are many little things to find out in its world and it still retain that same sense of wonder Ico had, though as an experience I rank it just one step lower. Technical problems aside, It was really a marvel to see this game running on a PS2. It really cemented my love for Ueda and Team Ico.
5. Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening ; Over the top action goodness. That's what DMC 3 is. I remember people being skeptics about this game prior to release, coming after the disappointing second entry (which I never played). But me? I came from playing the first entry and to me this game looked amazing from the get go. Between the tight action and crazy plot, the game keeps upping itself at each new chapter. Even the weapons you get are just as crazy and over the top as Dante riding a missile.
6. Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner ; When talking about great sequels that really improved on their predecessors, I think ZoE2 warrants a mention. The first game wasn't really anything special, despite me enjoying it, but this sequels improved on every aspect. Better action, better graphics, better music (the opening is seriously something else) and I'd also say better story. It's the perfect anime giant mecha action fighter that I dreamed of when watching Mazinger Z as a kid.
7. Wild Arms 3 (US Import) ; I remember buying this game on a whim. I finally had modded my PS2 and it was time to let the American imports roll in. Between all the stuff I bought was this one game. I had never played the previous games, but this one seemed pretty cool. The import review I'd read on my favorite magazine made it look cool, the art-style was pretty nice and I was in the mood for a kind of western style JRPG.
I wasn't disappointed, as the game delivered on every aspect. The puzzle part, the anime story, the character development (Virginia is one great female main character), the optional activities, the battle mechanics, the music. It had everything. It even had a mechanic to avoid random battles, how freaking cool is that?!
One of the aspect I loved the most about the game though has to be the story inside the story, as one of the optional activity in the game was to find some story books that told a story. I simply loved to sit there and read them, complete with sound effects and stuff, especially since I liked the story it told.
Another aspect I loved the game for was that, based on progress, the Opening changed. It really felt like watching a multi-season long anime. Also, for some reason, from time to time the Opening music in the American version would be the Japanese one, instead of the English one. It was quite the nice little quirk.
8. Rule of Rose (US Import) ; A misunderstood little gem. The intriguing mystery about what happened at that orphanage, the creepy yet somewhat realistic cruelty that young girls can display, the idea that running away is the best course of action as a young girl faced against such monstrosities. I enjoyed everything about this game, clunky controls included. The clunky controls in this instance even improved my immersion in the game, as it felt more realistic to me as the weak, young girl to whiff around with a weapon.
9. Final Fantasy XII ; Usually I'd put a Final Fantasy much higher, especially one like XII, which got many things right (although also many things wrong) but there are too many other games that sit higher in my feelings totem pole so for this time 9th place will have to do.
XII has been a very interesting entry in the Final Fantasy franchise, taking many cues from the MMO entry in the battle system, so much so that it feels like playing an offline MMOs, though since you can program your own companions, it could be said that the experience is improved as you don't get morons in your party unless you make them be one.
The problems Matsuno faced ruined the chance for the game to be the best possible game it could have been, sadly, but he still managed to put out one hell of a game.
10. Primal ; How could I not put Primal in here? The game was a blast for me. The battle gameplay wasn't really deep, but the two character swapping gameplay to solve puzzles was great, the two characters themselves were great, with Jen serving as a strong female lead and Scree being the funny sidekick and the story brought us into some pretty interesting worlds. The game was also damn pretty to look at.
It had some some bugs and sadly it bombed, so I'll never see a sequel, but it'll forever have a spot in my heart.
x. The Mark of Kri ; Since its only 10 titles for the main list, this goes into the honorable mentions. The game was a lot of fun to play, with some nice stealth gameplay and action battle system. Considering that I bought it expecting nothing much from it, it was one of those nice surprises. Maybe I should hunt down Rise of the Kasai one day, though with it only being released in America, is gonna be tough.
x. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind ; This gets a honorable mention not for what it did (as I never managed to get myself into liking it), but for what it tried to do. Bethesda puts out a lot of buggy shit, but their ambitions with games like Morrowind deserve a mention.
x. Silent Hill 3 ; Another game that has to sit in the honorable mentions just because. What made me love this game is the atmosphere along with the technical aspect of the game. For all the criticism the game got for the monster design, I thought it was a creepy and interesting experience and one that I believe stands the test of time.
x. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence ; One of the best Metal Gear Solid games and one that proves that women can make for great antagonists. Antagonists that can overshadow the main character.
x. Makai Kingdoms : If not for Disgaea, this would be on the list. It added many cool aspects to the base formula of the N1 SRPG games while keeping the funny and over the top plot story. It's just too bad it wasn't as loved by everyone else as it was by me.
x. Final Fantasy X-2 ; The game had a great OST, a great battle system, a strong girl-power/JPOP feel, but what it gets an honorable mention for is that it's been the best sleeping aid I've ever found. No other game has managed to put me to sleep like this one did every time I tried to play it. My SAOTG.
x. NeverWinter Nights ; I've always read praises for BioWare and the games they put out but I'll be honest, they always seemed pretty average to me. This game was no exception. I had my fun with it, but it was a pretty average game to play all considered. So, why does it gets a honorable mention? Because the game came out with a toolkit that made it possible to play some great user created stories and the multi-player aspect of the game was pretty fun.
x. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (US Import) ; The Kaneko art + the Meguro OST would be enough to warrant a mention, but the apocalyptic story and gameplay system make this another entry that has to sit out of the main list just because I can't fit it in.
x. Persona 3/4 (US Import) ; I'm gonna mention both games at the same time (hopefully it is allowed for honorable mentions!) because the reasons for mentioning both are the same: Soejima's art and Meguro's OST make for some great fun time while dungeon crawling and s-linking.
x. Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter (US Import) ; Really interesting game-play ideas that gave birth to one of the most intriguing JRPGs of the generation, complete with one hell of a OST thanks to Sakimoto.
petran79
Banned
I think 2000-2005 for pc is a good starting point. At that time windows xp appeared and forced developers to drop ms-dos and windows 98 compatibility for good. Another factor for pc gaming slump back then
gingerbeardman
Member
1. Katamari Damacy (PS2) ; loved everything about this, so much so that got an import-capable PS2 just to play it. that soundtrack, those graphics, that humour!
2. Ico (PS2) ; beautiful from start to finish.
3. Shadow of the Colossus (PS2) ; humbling and epic at the same time.
4. Polarium Advance (GBA) ; the greatest puzzle game ever, playable one handed for the commute and with enough puzzles to play one-a-day for a year.
5. Guru Logi Champ (GBA) ; the second greatest puzzle game ever, hundreds of pixel puzzles with a crazy story when through them.
6. Kururin Squash! (GC) ; the perfect culmination of the irritating stick concept.
7. RalliSport Challenge 2 (Xbox) ; no other rally driving game has been able to touch this.
8. Links 2004 (Xbox) ; astonishingly complete golf game that plays better than any other before or since.
9. Orbital (GBA) ; fantastically atmospheric one-button game.
10. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GC) ; the only Zelda I have ever completed.
x. Vanishing Point (DC) ; criminally underrated driving game with amazing stunt mode.
x. Mario Golf Advance Tour (GBA) ; not a great leap from the GBC version, but still insanely great.
x. Super Monkey Ball (GC) ; party game to end all party games.
x. Ooga Booga (DC) ; super fun sports game wrapped up in tropical island graphics.
2. Ico (PS2) ; beautiful from start to finish.
3. Shadow of the Colossus (PS2) ; humbling and epic at the same time.
4. Polarium Advance (GBA) ; the greatest puzzle game ever, playable one handed for the commute and with enough puzzles to play one-a-day for a year.
5. Guru Logi Champ (GBA) ; the second greatest puzzle game ever, hundreds of pixel puzzles with a crazy story when through them.
6. Kururin Squash! (GC) ; the perfect culmination of the irritating stick concept.
7. RalliSport Challenge 2 (Xbox) ; no other rally driving game has been able to touch this.
8. Links 2004 (Xbox) ; astonishingly complete golf game that plays better than any other before or since.
9. Orbital (GBA) ; fantastically atmospheric one-button game.
10. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GC) ; the only Zelda I have ever completed.
x. Vanishing Point (DC) ; criminally underrated driving game with amazing stunt mode.
x. Mario Golf Advance Tour (GBA) ; not a great leap from the GBC version, but still insanely great.
x. Super Monkey Ball (GC) ; party game to end all party games.
x. Ooga Booga (DC) ; super fun sports game wrapped up in tropical island graphics.
TylerDurden4321
Member
1. Star Wars Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast ; I'm a big X-Wing fan, but no other game catches the Star Wars atmosphere as this one.
2. Max Payne 2 ; The mostly serious, gritty atmosphere that was yet SO over-the-top. As a video game it translated Hong Kong action movies better into american culture than any movie did. Also early HAVOC physics voice actor's narration was awesome!
3. Counter Strike ; Its release date is 1999 but the main version (1.6) was after 2000, no question, this belongs high on this list.
4. Half-Life 2 ; I originally wanted to put this around place 9-10 then I remembered "MODS!".
5. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; I wish Bond movies did this... just go back to some other era.
6. Quake III Arena ; God, it's so FAST and SO GOOD at 120fps. I'm fine with FPSs that are made with the controller as the main input, but it's just not possible to have this much fun without an ultra-high framerate and controls as responsive as a mouse.
7. Sid Meier's Civilization IV ; Even though I like Civ5, I still think Civ4 was the best. It didn't child-proof it's design in dumbed-down ways and the addiction-factor was... no other game had this "damn! the sun is coming up again, it can't be that late already!".
8. Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn ; this is an edit. Just checked and it's after 2000. Was sure it was 1998 or 1999. So, one down with the former #8, 9 and 10 .
9. Gran Turismo IV ; The first GT I've ever played and it was revelatory. I learned a lot about cars and driving.
10. Battlefield 1942 ; I only played this once. On a LAN-Party with friends of the friend I was there with. It was a very special experience with those WWII buffs. This could have been my #1, had these LAN-Parties happened more often.
x . Comanche 4 ; I can not believe that I rate this higher than my other honorable mentions... I just remember this game so well(!). It felt awesome with my flightstick and I loved the look of it.
x. Resident Evil 4
x. God of War II
x. Metroid Prime
x. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
x. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault ; I served my 1 military time the year this was released. We watched war movies, played this and talked about how it must have been... not too seriously.
x. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas ; Idk... somehow I didn't play that much of it.
x. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ; played more of this, but I feel like San Andreas was the better game.
x. Need for Speed: Underground ; I can't help it. I remember it well and it was casual fun.
x. F.E.A.R. ; Best graphics from that period IMO. Game wasn't really good, just wanted to mention it for the graphics.
On a side note: I think it's wrong, not to include System Shock II because of a few months, it belongs to that generation of games - more so than a Baldur's Gate II at least. It would have been in my Top5.
2. Max Payne 2 ; The mostly serious, gritty atmosphere that was yet SO over-the-top. As a video game it translated Hong Kong action movies better into american culture than any movie did. Also early HAVOC physics voice actor's narration was awesome!
3. Counter Strike ; Its release date is 1999 but the main version (1.6) was after 2000, no question, this belongs high on this list.
4. Half-Life 2 ; I originally wanted to put this around place 9-10 then I remembered "MODS!".
5. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ; I wish Bond movies did this... just go back to some other era.
6. Quake III Arena ; God, it's so FAST and SO GOOD at 120fps. I'm fine with FPSs that are made with the controller as the main input, but it's just not possible to have this much fun without an ultra-high framerate and controls as responsive as a mouse.
7. Sid Meier's Civilization IV ; Even though I like Civ5, I still think Civ4 was the best. It didn't child-proof it's design in dumbed-down ways and the addiction-factor was... no other game had this "damn! the sun is coming up again, it can't be that late already!".
8. Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn ; this is an edit. Just checked and it's after 2000. Was sure it was 1998 or 1999. So, one down with the former #8, 9 and 10 .
9. Gran Turismo IV ; The first GT I've ever played and it was revelatory. I learned a lot about cars and driving.
10. Battlefield 1942 ; I only played this once. On a LAN-Party with friends of the friend I was there with. It was a very special experience with those WWII buffs. This could have been my #1, had these LAN-Parties happened more often.
x . Comanche 4 ; I can not believe that I rate this higher than my other honorable mentions... I just remember this game so well(!). It felt awesome with my flightstick and I loved the look of it.
x. Resident Evil 4
x. God of War II
x. Metroid Prime
x. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
x. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault ; I served my 1 military time the year this was released. We watched war movies, played this and talked about how it must have been... not too seriously.
x. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas ; Idk... somehow I didn't play that much of it.
x. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ; played more of this, but I feel like San Andreas was the better game.
x. Need for Speed: Underground ; I can't help it. I remember it well and it was casual fun.
x. F.E.A.R. ; Best graphics from that period IMO. Game wasn't really good, just wanted to mention it for the graphics.
On a side note: I think it's wrong, not to include System Shock II because of a few months, it belongs to that generation of games - more so than a Baldur's Gate II at least. It would have been in my Top5.
InfiniteCombo
Banned
This is a very, very rock-solid list. You, my friend, have good taste in video games.
I have to start drafting my own list, soon.
EDIT: I'm not sure I was supposed to quote your list, even if I was innocently showing appreciation for it. Not sure if it would mess work AniHawk's parser.
Well obviously, but you drew the line in the wrong spot. There's literally no reason that 1999 PC games shouldn't count.
Unlike with movies & TV shows, games never did stick out to me as that one experience from beginning to end that wow'ed me. Thus making it rather difficult to rank them in a particular order. This is due to me rarely finishing games (especially back in the day) and multiplayer-focused games that seemingly never end. Games for me personally are much more of a time-consuming, but fun, activity.
1. Halo: Combat Evolved; The definitive Splitscreen-FPS & the game of countless afternoons and evenings hanging with my friends. I wasn't the best, but Bazooka-match in Hang 'em high is still the most fun I had gaming since the forever.
2. Tales of Symphonia; The JRPG that consumed me. As far as SP goes, I never really connected with any game, as much as I did with Tales of Symphonia. Back then as it is today, I hate replaying games. With the exemption of the Mass Effect-series, I'm just done with any given game, once I push it to the side. Not so with Symphonia, going to more ridiclious places with each and every New Game+ with double and then 10x the exp. It was a blast and my defining moment of owning a GameCube, my first own console. (In past generations I was very much reliant on my friends SNES & N64)
3. Golden Sun: The Lost Age; Standing proudly next to Symphonia, Golden Sun was another special experience. Really, this duo-combo of awesomeness started and peaked my interest in JRPG's. Not since then have I found another game of the genre that compelled me this way. Beautiful graphics, an engaging story and the sheer epicness of it all, enthralled my young self.
4. James Bond 007: Nightfire; The following games with all be games, I enjoyed on a friends' XBOX (as I did with the above mentioned Halo), so they are mostly multiplayer, but oh boy! What fun we had. The maps, the weapons, the characters.
5. Star Wars Battlefront; Friggin Star Wars. Battle. Front. Can't wait for the reboot. This is near and dear to my heart. I haven't played any thing like it back then & to have that feeling back, would be amazing.
6. Fifa 2003; It's Fifa, you know. But as with every other entry on this list, it was just there at the right time and so we played it. For hours. And hours. And hours. It deserves its spot for just that.
7. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3; I don't even know I enjoyed it that much, but the music, the quirkiness and secrets. The levels, the competition between friends. I like it, a lot.
8. The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap; A late GBA-game, but a good one. Not as strong as Ages or Seasons (or Link's Awakening), but it nevertheless cemented my believe that handheld-Zelda is best-Zelda. (Spirit Tracks is shit in comparison though)
9. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker; Loved it. Stopped playing at the Triforce-race. Holy shit was that dumb. But until then, it was another amazing GameCube-experience, I am happy to have enjoyed.
This is very much a list of someone who couldn't afford a steady stream of games and the newest tech, but I don't regret that time. In fact I'm rather grateful for having to have the chance to experience the golden split-screen time (N64/XBOX). Yoo-ha!
Honorable Mentions: This catagory is solely for the duo that defined my LAN-life. CounterStrike 1.6 & Warcraft: Frozen Thrones. I don't like them necessarily the way others do, due to me being rather bad at them. That didn't stop me in participating in countless allnighters at a friends house over. and. over. again. and again. Today we come together only once a year with a few people, but it's worth for the memory alone.
1. Halo: Combat Evolved; The definitive Splitscreen-FPS & the game of countless afternoons and evenings hanging with my friends. I wasn't the best, but Bazooka-match in Hang 'em high is still the most fun I had gaming since the forever.
2. Tales of Symphonia; The JRPG that consumed me. As far as SP goes, I never really connected with any game, as much as I did with Tales of Symphonia. Back then as it is today, I hate replaying games. With the exemption of the Mass Effect-series, I'm just done with any given game, once I push it to the side. Not so with Symphonia, going to more ridiclious places with each and every New Game+ with double and then 10x the exp. It was a blast and my defining moment of owning a GameCube, my first own console. (In past generations I was very much reliant on my friends SNES & N64)
3. Golden Sun: The Lost Age; Standing proudly next to Symphonia, Golden Sun was another special experience. Really, this duo-combo of awesomeness started and peaked my interest in JRPG's. Not since then have I found another game of the genre that compelled me this way. Beautiful graphics, an engaging story and the sheer epicness of it all, enthralled my young self.
4. James Bond 007: Nightfire; The following games with all be games, I enjoyed on a friends' XBOX (as I did with the above mentioned Halo), so they are mostly multiplayer, but oh boy! What fun we had. The maps, the weapons, the characters.
5. Star Wars Battlefront; Friggin Star Wars. Battle. Front. Can't wait for the reboot. This is near and dear to my heart. I haven't played any thing like it back then & to have that feeling back, would be amazing.
6. Fifa 2003; It's Fifa, you know. But as with every other entry on this list, it was just there at the right time and so we played it. For hours. And hours. And hours. It deserves its spot for just that.
7. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3; I don't even know I enjoyed it that much, but the music, the quirkiness and secrets. The levels, the competition between friends. I like it, a lot.
8. The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap; A late GBA-game, but a good one. Not as strong as Ages or Seasons (or Link's Awakening), but it nevertheless cemented my believe that handheld-Zelda is best-Zelda. (Spirit Tracks is shit in comparison though)
9. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker; Loved it. Stopped playing at the Triforce-race. Holy shit was that dumb. But until then, it was another amazing GameCube-experience, I am happy to have enjoyed.
This is very much a list of someone who couldn't afford a steady stream of games and the newest tech, but I don't regret that time. In fact I'm rather grateful for having to have the chance to experience the golden split-screen time (N64/XBOX). Yoo-ha!
Honorable Mentions: This catagory is solely for the duo that defined my LAN-life. CounterStrike 1.6 & Warcraft: Frozen Thrones. I don't like them necessarily the way others do, due to me being rather bad at them. That didn't stop me in participating in countless allnighters at a friends house over. and. over. again. and again. Today we come together only once a year with a few people, but it's worth for the memory alone.
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
1. Shenmue II ; My favourite game of all time. I look at video games, and then I look at this game and realise that it's completely in a league of it's own. I can barely even put it into words. The atmosphere? Untouchable. The soundtrack? Perfection. The unfolding story? Inspired. The cast of characters? The best of the best. The graphics at the time? Jaw dropping. The amount of detail crammed into the game? Insanity. Disc 4 of the game? The greatest few hours ever burnt onto a video game disc. Everyone should give this series a go, it's truly something special. The very definition of a masterpiece.
2. Shenmue ; Umm, pretty much everything I said about Shenmue II applies here as well. Another masterpiece.
3. Resident Evil 4 ; What can I say that hasn't already been said a million time already? Believe the hype. The game is perfect.
4. Metroid Prime ; Incredible level design, atmosphere and OH GOD THAT SOUNDTRACK!
5. God of War II ; The best God of War game. Insanely fun with fantastic variety, pacing and great boss fights. Very memorable game.
6. Resident Evil Remake ; The first time I played this I felt like I was playing a game from the future. Deliciously atmospheric still to this day.
7. Soul Calibur II ; I put a ridiculous amount of time into this. It's just pure fun and probably my favourite fighting game ever.
8. Jet Grind Radio ; The soundtrack. Need I even say more?
9. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ; Epic. Not the best Zelda (Ocarina of Time is the king) but still a solid, and for the most part memorable game.
10. Okami ; The soundtrack. The graphics. Dat ending! ;_;
Dreamcast released at the end of 1999 in NA, EU, AUS meaning almost everything released that year was fifth gen releases. I would consider that a very good reason not to include 1999 PC games.
Drives me crazy. Good thing I'm not a mod, because I'd ban everyone too lazy to even read the first line in the friggin' OP, highlighted in red.
