Top Ten Games - ALL time, ALL platforms

DaceX

Ok recently I’ve been having a lot of fun digging out old games I’ve played in the past, reliving old memories and what not. And I was surprised how some games aged so horribly it was unplayable, but others were still unbelievably good! I found an old game called Zenogears and was absolutely blown away at how I missed this game when I was younger!

So I think what I’m hoping to get from this thread are not only people’s opinions on my fav games, but im REALLY hoping that some ones I missed will be brought to my attention

This is my top ten, but in no particular order. And it was really really hard keeping it to ten! I feel like i may have missed some.

If anyone can mention 10 in order feel free.


Shadow Of The Colossus
The most incredible thing I can say about this game is it tells an epic story without using any dialog or characters. Add a bleak uninhabited environment, and it’s a master class in storytelling. I genuinely belive videogames can be an immense vehicle for telling stories, but it also feels like a lot of games treat the player like they are an idiot and try to force feed a story on you, rather than just let you discover it. This game just let you take what you wanted for it.

Bioshock
The perfect combination of artistic style, story, graphics and game play. Add a great plot twist and amazing atmosphere and your on a winner. But really it was just the perfect storm of all the qualities mentioned above. I don’t think any aspect of the game out shone another.

Doom 3
Again this game had killer visuals and sound, and it was a remake of a classic game I played till my fingers bled. But the thing that impressed me most was how the game was paced. You spend the entire game skimping on ammo and cowering through the levels. When it gets to the point where your tired of all the hiding you arrive in hell and you don’t need a flashlight and there is an abundance of ammo.

Halo C:E
If anyone remembers console FPS before Halo, they were dark days! When I first played Halo I had that OMG moment on the start of the second level. If you play it you’ll know what I mean. To my knowledge it was the first console FPS that had a slight aim assist. It’s a shame that Halo 2 and 3 totally ruined a promising story arc, but as a stand alone game this was phenomenal.

Final Fantasy VII
This was just the most epic game ever. The storyline, depth and game play were just stunning. Even though I hate hippies. Enough said really!

GTA San Andreas
My favorite GTA game, it just pipped Vice City. But I think the era the game was set was more relevant to my age, also the game play was a lot better and the sandbox was HUGE. And the storyline was great too, because in pretty much all the GTA games bar this, I found myself asking “Is this going anywhere?”

Half Life 2
I think this game started a bit flat actually. The physics was amazing and the storyline was involving but it seemed a bit up its own arse, like it was just showing off what it could do. Thankfully I stuck with it and levels like “We don’t go to Ravenholm” and the last four levels were gaming perfection.

Ninja Gaiden Black
After 5 mins with this game I felt like throwing this game back at the guy in Virgin in Liffey Valley SC who sold it to me. It was like the ****ing game was broke. But if you stayed with it you were rewarded with a completely nonsense story, insane visuals and a fighting system that had a brutal learning curve. But what a rewarding feeling if you mastered it!

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic
Other than the side scrolling SNES games, and a few fps shooters, Star Wars games in general were just a let down. Ok there were plenty of decent games, but there were sooooo many duds too. But talking the franchise AWAY from when the movies were set was just what was needed. A truly stunning game, but in my opinion was most fun when you played it being evil!

X-Com Enemy Unknown
What an absolute gem, not the most original concept in terms of game play or art design. But it just worked so well! That feeling as a UFO recovery mission went totally tits up still haunts me today. Just like when it was the aliens turn and your guys dropped like flies? When a country joined the aliens it felt like a dagger in my heart! An amazing game, greater than the sum of its parts.



Honorable Mentions:
Jade Empire
Pro Evo series up till 2009
FIFA series from 09 to now
Football Manager series and previously Championship Manager
Halo series
Mass Effect
Red Dead Redemption
Portal: Still Alive
Doom and Doom 2
Duke Nukem 3d
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
God of War series
Deus Ex series
XenoGears

SeantheMan

Maybe use a bigger font,
That was too easy to read

Stercus Accidit

What was that game, Jim bond or someone stops a russian from using some golden satelite thing, you had a tank in a few places.. what was it called... might be worth a mention in some list somewhere.

Grumpypants

Tetris : Prob one of the greastest games ever created 125million copies sold later its still going.

Half Life 2 PC : Brilliant story graphics gameplay just one of the best games ive ever played.

Star wars NES : Pushed graphics to the limit at the time mixing 2D platforming and 3D flight levels.

Super Mario 3 SNES : What can be said other than brilliant.

Mario kart SNES : brilliant.

Pro evo 5 PS2/xbox : Still the best football game ever made slight improvment over 4 but light year ahead of anything after it or anything that FIFA has ever attempted.

Wolfenstein 3D First real FPS to use a 3D world.

Doom : Came out after wolfestein and blew it away, it was freeware as well and the reason Gabe started making games and set up Valve.

COD Modern warfare although the people playing it ruined it as a game cheating and moaning about camping, still it was so good graphically at the time that it blew everything else out of the water.

Football manager / championship manager (after name change) ruined my life but utterly adictive and brilliant.

Morlar

Quake needs to be on this list.

JayJay10

In no particular order.

Command and Conquer red alert retaliation
Spent hours with my mates on this one, used to use the console link cable and turn two portable tv's around and lets just say there was mayhem!!

Halo 2

All Halo's really (although reach is my fav) this was the first game i played online when i got the first xbox on xmas day, opened up a whole new world to me.

Super Mario Bros 3

First game i ever played, think it holds a special place in everyones heart, love the cheat to find the two whistles and go straight to the last level haha!!!:D

Resident evil 2
Never actually owned this game i used to play it on my mates console, he had all the cheats so zombies plus infinite weapons and ammo = a **** load of fun

Mortal kombat 3
One of my mates got the playstation for xmas in 95 with the above and destruction derby, needless to say he had a good bit of company for the whole of the holidays.

Die hard trilogy
Fantastic game, if you enjoyed the movies the game was right up your street, gotta love those cheezy catchphases with the bad german accent "you suprise me again mcclane" haha!!! brings back memories

Time crisis

Hahahaha!!!!!! must have looked a right tool jumping around the kitchen with the lite gun awesome game though.

Tomb raider

My favourite from the tomb raider series, in my view the original was the best although the second came very close venice level was brilliantly done.

Championship manager 3
The only real pc game i ever owed (apart from duke nukem 3D) probably to this day still my fav football management game.

Call of Duty Modern warfare 1 and 2
One of the best story lines ive ever seen in a video game, truely edge of your seat material, really hoping there will be a 3rd to finish of the story.

Worthy of a mention.
Colin McRae Rally
Doom
Grand Theft Auto
Soviet Strike
WWF Attitude
Theme Park
Wizards and Warriors 3
Starwars Battle front 1 and 2
Shadow of the Collossus
All Pro evo until 09 (as it just got rubbish)

Retr0gamer

Stercus Accidit wrote: »

What was that game, Jim bond or someone stops a russian from using some golden satelite thing, you had a tank in a few places.. what was it called... might be worth a mention in some list somewhere.

You mean the one that runs at between 1-5 FPS and plays terribly now?

On another related note.... All these bad games getting into top ten lists!!! I'm going to explode!!!!

I better not comment or I'll start another flame war

DaceX

Retr0gamer wrote: »

You mean the one that runs at between 1-5 FPS and plays terribly now?

Its like the game Wipeout, some games have aged horribly! GoldenEye was one too.

Stercus Accidit

Retr0gamer wrote: »

You mean the one that runs at between 1-5 FPS and plays terribly now?

Does that matter?

DaceX

Retr0gamer wrote: »

You mean the one that runs at between 1-5 FPS and plays terribly now?

On another related note.... All these bad games getting into top ten lists!!! I'm going to explode!!!!

I better not comment or I'll start another flame war

By all means if there are better games you think i should play or have missed playing in the past, fill me in.

Penn

Metal Gear Solid 1
Metal Gear Solid 3

Both absolutely fantastic games. Even if the story annoys you, the gameplay from these games is phenomenal. Little things, like how you defeat Psycho Mantis, or blowing up food huts and listening to soldiers claiming they're hungry later in the game. To big things, like some of the epic boss fights, or being discovered and hiding in a box, peeping out through the hole, praying they don't kick the box. Epic games, and well worthy for consideration as two of the best ever.

GTA:Vice City. I'd select this over San Andreas to be honest. Just loved every moment of it, whereas some of the customisation features in SA grated on me (having to eat, keep fit etc). Vice City was one of those rare games that just got everything absolutely right.

Don't know what else I'd pick to be honest. The three best games I've ever played right there

Retr0gamer

Might as well post up my own list off the top of my head. No particular Order either.

Panzer Dragoon Saga: Probably my favourite game ever. FFVII gets listed in a lot of these lists but it's far from the best RPG ever made. For me it's PDS. From it's cinematic battle system, unique universe, beautiful score and deep story it's superb.

Super Metroid: Quite possibly the perfect game. Great gameplay married with excellent exploration mechanics. And when you finish it you can always come back to it and try and sequence break it.

System Shock 2: For me the finest single player FPS ever made. Sure
it looks like crap now but in terms of story and atmosphere it's nbeaten (well maybe Deus Ex but I've yet to beat that). Add in deep RPG mechanics and it makes a mockery ofsimplistic shooters like Halo.

Super Mario World: For me the finest platformer ever made, but saying that there's a few mario games that would be deserving of this place.

Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask: I love the zelda games but for me this is the best (although link to the past comes close). While every zelda game is pretty much a remake of LttP Majoras Mask does something different and is like no other game.

Gunstar Heroes: Best game on the megadrive by far. So much innovation and a great control scheme. The game is just insane. The extra difficulty levels change the game significantly and the 2 player mode mean there's loads of replayability.

Persona 4: Another RPG that makes a mockery of FFVII. Great characters, decent plot but it's the combat and links system that makes this game so addictive. Probably the best RPG of the last 5 years if not more.

Shadow of the Colossus: Beautiful game and like no other. You owe it to yourself to play it.

Megaman 2: My favourite 8-bit game and a glorious example of great game design.

Radiant Silvergun: The finest 2D shooter ever made. Just wish I was good enough to beat it.

My top 10 is subject to change.

Did an old top 100 here:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055169401

Retr0gamer

Stercus Accidit wrote: »

Does that matter?

Yep it does but I don't want to get into this argument. Basically it was great but it's not very playable now because it's just horrible to control and there are better games out there. Something like Doom 2 I feel is still as good and fresh as the day it came out but Goldeneye is no where near as good as games that came out after it such as Half Life 1 and 2, Call of Duty, hell even Halo which we all know I don't rate.

JayJay10

DaceX wrote: »

Its like the game Wipeout, some games have aged horribly! GoldenEye was one too.

Speaking of games that have aged badly!! one of my favourite games on the playstation (which i mentioned in my list) WWF Attitude, i was only looking at it the other day on youtube and oh my god!! its terrible the stances, music, even the wrestling moves look awful but the worst has to be the voice overs i was rolling round laughing at them "Watchout for his THE ROCK BOTTOM" hahaha!!!! "Hello the rattle snake Stone Cold Steve Austin" brilliant!!

Monkey_Pirate

Duke Nukem Forever.

/thread

Hercule

For me the games I think of when I think top 10 are:

(in no particular order)

Chrono Trigger
Half-Life
Metal Gear Solid
Dune 2
GTA: Vice City
Tomb Raider
Final Fantasy 3
Front Mission 3
Timesplitters 2
Final Fantasy 7 (haters gonna hate)

with special mentions to:
Unreal Torunament, Gran Turismo 4, Perfect Dark, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion, Resident Evil 2, Call of Duty 1/UO, Call of Duty 4

Morlar

Here is my list ;

Quake - CD quality surround sound music, graphics engine (when ported to a dedicated card), look up look down, jump, swim, flick firing weapons, bullet proof multiplayer, all the things now taken for granted started here.
Doom 3 - sound and vision
HL2 - sound and vision and physics
Modern Warfare 2 - refining the above.
Need for speed 2 - brainless ps2 racing magic
Wipeout - I can still remember seeing this on the ps1 and playing to death, music and engine, level design.
'Z' Steel Soldiers - Vintage, funny and rock hard. One of the best bitmap bros games ever.
Command and Conquer - Good Hunting.
Close Combat (one of the best series of WW2 games)
Deadly Tide (just to include a rail shooter)

Honourable mentions : Crysis, Quake 3, Half Life1 & CS-S, BF2142, COD WAW, MOH Airborne, Day of Defeat Source, Age of Empires, GTA series, unreal tourney.

Boring list but there ya go.

johnny_adidas

a full page of replies and no mario galaxy

Retr0gamer

johnny_adidas wrote: »

a full page of replies and no mario galaxy

It really is amazing but a top ten just isn't enough. I'd need a top 300 to list all the games I think are well worth playing!

Kiith

In no particular order, and probably forgetting some.

Half Life - Do i even need to say why?
World of Warcraft - No other game has made me sink so many hours into it. While i am slightly jaded with the game at this stage, its still an amazing game, and an even greater achievement for Blizzard.
System Shock 2 - I've been recommending this game for years, and i'll be recommending it for years to come. One of the best games i've ever played, with one of the best (imo, the best) villians in computer games today. Plus, creepy as ****.
Deus Ex - Almost as good as System Shock 2, but i prefered the horror/sci-fi style of the latter. It's still an amazing game, with a crazy amount of play styles. Also, a great story.
Homeworld - Genre defining space opera. The first fully 3d RTS, and as a sci-fi fan, the first game that comes to mind when i think of space battles (well, join first as seen below). Fantastic game, amazing music, and massive explosions :P
Mario World - Simply the best platformer ever made. Still perfectly playable after 20 years.
Shadow of the Colossus - One of the most awe-inspiring games i've ever played. The 1st time you see a colossus, or the 1st flying colossus you fight. The feeling of 'man, i'm a total dick' when you actually kill one. Plus, Agro
Freespace 2 - DIVE! DIVE! DIVE! Need i say more
Zelda OOT - I know most people pick A Link to the Past as their favourite, but OOT is my personal favourite of the Zelda's. Fantastic story, with excellent gameplay, and a truly immense game world.
Final Fantasy 7 - Again, my favourite, rather then the best. It was my first foray into RPG's, and will always have a special place in my heart. Plus, i still listen to some of the music.

Retr0gamer

Hercule wrote: »

Front Mission 3

If you've got a way of playing copied PS2 games you need to check out the fan translation of Front Mission 5, I'd rank it higher than FM3 which I loved.

Hercule

If you've got a way of playing copied PS2 games you need to check out the fan translation of Front Mission 5, I'd rank it higher than FM3 which I loved.

- is the sub buggy?
- is emulation an option?
- did they keep the combat system?


I am worried the new front mission game is a westernised cluster****

cherryghost

I don't know how some of you can post a top 10 instantly like that. My head is exploding with games. Think I've typed up over 60 so far that I would put in the top 10. There's so much quality out there. Need moar time to think about it :pac:

DaceX

Retr0gamer wrote: »

It really is amazing but a top ten just isn't enough. I'd need a top 300 to list all the games I think are well worth playing!

Tell me about it! I feel like changing some of mine already. Probably Deus Ex for Doom 3

o1s1n

I tried to do this ages ago but just couldnt. So here's my favourite games instead by genre -

1.RPG -
1.Chrono Trigger (snes) /Panzer Dragoon Saga (Saturn)/ Fallout 2 (PC) /FF VII(PS1)

2.Platformer-
Sonic the Hedgehog (Megadrive)/Super Mario Bros 3 (Nes)/Tomb Raider (PS1)/ICO (PS1)

3. FPS-
Half Life Deathmatch pre STEAM (PC)/DOOM 2(PC)

4. Shooter -
Metal Slug(NeoGeo)/Gunstar Heroes(Megadrive)/Alien Soldier (Megadrive) MERCS (Megadrive)

5.Action platformers-
Castlevania SOTN (PS1)/Super Metroid (Snes)/The Revenge of Shinobi (MD)

6.Space shooters-
MUSHA (Megadrive) /Blazing Star (NeoGeo)/soukyugurentai(Saturn)/Radiant Silvergun (Saturn)/Raiden 2 (JAMMA/PS1)/Ikaruga (Dreamcast)/Castle Shikigami II (Dreamcast)

7.Side scrolling beat em ups-
Streets of rage 2(MD)/Aliens Versus Predator (cps2)/Sengoku 3 (NeoGeo)

8. Adventure RPG -
Zelda: A link to the Past (Snes)

9. Fighting games -
The Last Blade (NeoGeo)/Mark of the Wolves(NeoGeo)

10.Puzzle-
Tetris (GB)/Puzzle Bobble (NeoGeo)

Retr0gamer

Sub is perfect, no bugs. Only problem I have is that they kept it very literal and accurarte to the original japanese which means some of the dialogue is a bit direct but otherwise it's perfect.

Emulation is an option. One of my friends played through Nocturne and Persona 3 and 4 with the latest PS2 emulator. I'm sure FM5 will work. You'll need a powerful machine though.

The combat system is very like FM3 which is why I love it so much. They added the link system from FM4 which works really well.

You should try FM4 as well. Not as good as FM3 but I enjoyed it. Also worth trying out is FM1, best played on the DS. FM2 is being translated by the people that made the FM5 translation at the moment.

Unfortunately the word is that Front Mission Evolved is a major westernised cluster****.

Is it the mechs or the turn based strategy combat you like because I could recommend a load more good turn based strategy games in a similar vein. You'd probably love X-Com and Terror from the Deep.

Retr0gamer

Nice list o1s1n although I feel Tomb Raider has dated a lot and has been bettered.

landsleaving

I'm sure I'll want to change this but here goes, in no particular order:

Super Mario World: Just the most fun, inventive, exciting and ingenious game ever made, no more, no less.

Final Fantasy VI: By a long way the best Final Fantasy game. A deep cast of characters with unique skills, a good story as opposed to an anime ripoff. The pinnacle of the series.

Fallout 3: The only game of the current gen I've sunk a lot of hours into. A LOT. Love the setting, love the 50's aesthetic. This game feels like it was made for me alone.

Metal Slug: The most fun arcade shooter ever.

Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past: The perfect Zelda, so much to discover, yet it never gets boring. Just phenomenal on every level.

Harrier Attack: Forget R-Type and Gradius, this is my favourite ever shmup. Possibly because it was the first game I ever owned.

Sonic 2: Just a great counterpoint the the slower, more considered approach of Mario, sonic was so fast and cool. So many hours have been lost trying to beat metal sonic.

Shenmue: Never has such a linear experience felt so epic and yet personal.

Worms: The perfect multiplayer game. One controller, lots of beer, 3 mates. Perfect night!

Chrono Trigger: Best RPG ever, maybe?

DaceX

Oh Fallout 3 is a great shout! But fans of the originals get bent out shape over it. I'm surprised Baldurs Gate hasn't been mentioned more.....

Also speaking of beer and great multiplayer gaming, remember Micro Machines!!?

ShaneU

1 - Super Mario 64

2 - Ocarina of Time

3 - Oblivion

4 - Tekken 3

5 - Goldeneye

6 - Half Life 2

7 - Pokemon red/blue

8 - Majora's Mask

9 - Persona 4

10 - Final Fantasy X

o1s1n

Retr0gamer wrote: »

Nice list o1s1n although I feel Tomb Raider has dated a lot and has been bettered.

Oh I agree.

However, you remember that whole buzz that was around 95/96 as to what 3d might bring? It was a really exciting time in videogames.

Tomb Raider was the first proper free roaming 3d game I ever played and it absolutely blew my mind.