The Video Game Revue

My Top 10

Via Joystiq, I came across this cool article comparing lists of the "top 10 greatest games of all time" that have cropped up in gaming publications over the years. I found that the article was more interesting in terms of exposing the various biases of game publications over the years than actually for what it had to say about which games are the greatest, but it did inspire me to one-off my own top 10 list:

10. Tetris

Originally I was going to slot this in much higher, but then I got to thinking about it, and as much as Tetris is such an incredibly elegant and addicitive game (and one of very few that I consider myself to be reasonably competitive at), I just don't think that it's as deeply influential as a lot of people give it credit for. Action puzzle games are popular, and there are none more popular than Tetris, but in a way it's actually sort of damning that nobody has de-throned Tetris after all of these years. Each of the other games that I talk about below has either had brilliant successors or is a brilliant successor in gaming history. Tetris is the only dead-end of the bunch. Of course, you could argue that that's because Tetris is the only pristinely perfect game on this list, and so it should rightfully get the top spot. I wouldn't argue against that--not any more than I already have.

9. Street Fighter II

While not the first of its kind (obviously), and far from the final word in fighting games, SF2 does represent a massive turning point in the fighting game industry. It did not spawn the genre, but it certainly defined it, and a much beloved genre at that.

8. Civilization

I don't consider myself a tremendous Civ fan, but I was quite the addict back in the day. There are, perhaps, bigger and better strategy-sim games out there--ones with fewer design flaws, better gameplay, deeper strategy, and that sort of thing. But Civ was there long ago, and not only did it have the guts to tackle a scope as huge as covering the entire history of human civilization, but it also executed well enough to be universally appealing. Civ is addictive to everyone from casual gamers to hardcore strategy nuts, and it remains one of the most revered PC games ever developed.

7. Ikaruga

This was a difficult pick, since there are so many other games that I could have put in this spot: Space Invaders, Galaga, 1943, or Gradius, for instance. Overall, I think that Ikaruga is the best fit because it showcases so well the potential for depth that the classic shoot-em-up genre has. Ikaruga blends intense action with puzzle-like strategy elements, and it also has that elegance of only taking a few minutes to learn yet presenting a lasting challenge that takes many hours of dedicated practice to master. It sets a terrific precedent for games to follow.

6. Super Mario Bros. 3

In my opinion, this is the best Mario game ever developed, and also the single greatest NES game ever made. SMB3 expands on the exploration element of SMB2 while refining the gameplay as well as the style of the series. Super Mario World--which is perhaps my personal favourite--is primarily a refinement of SMB3, whereas SMB3 is radically innovative. SMB3 is also more challenging than most games in the series, which I feel is a positive trait. Simply put, SMB3 is a brilliant game.

5. Metal Gear Solid

I've ranted about all of this before, but MGS is a true work of art, and a superb display of storytelling mixed with fine-tuned gameplay. This is a game that truly exhibits what games are capable of being.

4. Zelda: A Link to the Past

Not only is this the best Zelda game ever make, but it also stands as one of the most elegant and clever quest games ever developed. It seamlessly combines elements of action, puzzle, exploration, and story-telling. This is truely a rare masterpiece of a game.

3. Half-Life

It isn't easy to pick a single FPS title for this list, but in the end, I went with Half-Life over other obvious picks such as Quake. I really think that in the overall scheme of things, Half-Life has had the biggest impact on the genre, although that's a difficult call to make. Also, I think that Half-Life has a broader appeal, but one as deep as Quake. I feel somewhat as though I've robbed id Software of some well-deserved recognition here, but there's only one spot open on this list for an FPS game, and Half-Life is that game.

2. World of WarCraft

WoW is far more than a game--it's a cultural phenominon. Slowly I'm beginning to realise that in some ways, WoW is like our generation's version of Woodstock. It has defined us in ways that even the most clued-in of us has yet to realise, and it is having much deeper repercussions than the vast majority of us suspect. Aside from all of that, WoW is perhaps the most addictive and expansive RPG game ever developed.

1. Final Fantasy VI

And yet, for the top spot, I'm still sticking with the die-hard favourite, Final Fantasy VI. Even though Final Fantasy has gone to bigger and arguably better places in the last ten years, I still feel that FF VI has the best character, plot, setting, and gameplay of any RPG game ever developed. This is certainly a personal bias of mine, and it's likely that most readers would find this list more reasonable if FF VI were dropped outright and everything else was promoted. Still, I insist that FF VI has reached a rare plateau of games-as-art that outshines anything else I've ever experienced in a video game. There is nothing that I want more from the gaming industry than to produce more games like this one.

As a quick aside, I did start playing Dragon Quest VIII the other day, although I didn't get very far. I'm pleasantly surprised by the graphics--especially the character and enemy models--which are even more stylish and impressive than I was expecting. So far the gameplay has also proven to be quite true to the classic Dragon Quest style, although I have to admit that I haven't really played a Dragon Quest game since the very first one: I obtained my copy of Dragon Warrior as a free promotion for subscribing to Nintendo Power, some fourteen years ago or thereabouts, and I played it extensively. In any case, I'm really enjoying DQ VIII so far, but I still have a ways to go before Digital Devil Saga is done with.

posted by Parappa @ 9:54 AM