BoB's Top 100 Games [Archive] - Page 3 - Eyes on Final Fantasy Forums

Loony BoB

12-20-2013, 12:20 PM

Apologies, I've been pretty busy lately at work which is normally where I post these from! Not to mention that whole transferring ownership of EoFF thing being quite the distraction, Ciddies and FFXIV too.

36. The Logical Journey of the Zoombinis
PC, 1996

http://heelssocialinnovation.com/olivia91711/logical-journey-of-the-zoombinis-free-online-i3.jpg

When I was 15 I got my leg broken through Extreme Footbraking. This resulted in me spending a lot of time in a hospital bed, and after a while they felt I should be given some kind of entertainment. What this meant is they would wheel a computer desk next to my hospital bed and I would play the crap out of the Logical Journey of the Zoombinis, which is one of the greatest educational video games of all time. I don't care that it's easy, I love logic puzzles so much that it didn't even matter that the game was probably aimed at a notably younger generation.

This game was a genuinely fun and simple way for me to pass time back then, but I look back at it fondly for being exactly that - a fun time waster. It had a bit of a "gotta catch 'em all" thing going on with it, with the town buildings you could collect or something (I think? It's been a while) and of course there was the Lemmings aspect of "gotta save 'em all" too. While I don't think I'd opt to play this game ahead of some of the other games on this list these days, back then it was the kind of easy thing I needed to destress with and it did the trick perfectly. I imagine if I'd played it when I was closer to eight years old then I might have actually considered it ahead of other games, too!

Quindiana Jones

12-20-2013, 02:15 PM

OH YES YES YES. FUCKING YES. BOB YOU ARE MAGNIFICENT, YOU MAGNIFICENT BASTARD. OH GOD YES. ZOOMBINIS, HELL YES.

Absolutely loved this game as a kid. They'd let us play it sometimes in primary school. Some of the puzzles could be pretty challenging for my young mind. :D

Scotty_ffgamer

12-20-2013, 02:56 PM

Zoombinis are the best.

Jiro

12-27-2013, 04:54 AM

I loved the Zoombinis. We had them at school and they were used as a reward for something or other (clever teachers: reward learning with MORE LEARNING). But what I will remember above all else is that several kids got out of Religious Education by saying they were not of the Christian faith in order to play Zoombinis. Ex: one girl said she ~believed in mother nature~ and that was enough to get her onto the computers for like an hour each week playing Zoombinis and I will always resent Jesus for that.

Quindiana Jones

12-27-2013, 03:35 PM

What is that bullshit? You should not be allowed to not learn something simply because you don't like it. That girl needs a smack.

I do worship Zoombinis, though, so that's why I got to play it during assemblies.

Jiro

12-28-2013, 09:40 AM

What is that bulltrout? You should not be allowed to not learn something simply because you don't like it. That girl needs a smack.

I do worship Zoombinis, though, so that's why I got to play it during assemblies.

I don't think a single person who got out of RE had a legitimate excuse. Like, it was a pretty conservative town. Everybody was non denominational at best. I hadn't even decided to jump on the atheist train yet (mind you, this bullshit was part of the reason -- the Jesus I know would never have made us suffer through that droning old man while the others played Zoombinis).

Pike

12-29-2013, 05:20 PM

I... I have never in my life heard of this Zoombinis thing :shobon:

Loony BoB

12-29-2013, 07:28 PM

"Have played a video game that Pike hasn't heard of" now officially checked off my bucket list.

Pike

12-29-2013, 07:59 PM

I just now looked it up and I think I was just a few years too old for it. That's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it.

(BoB you even mentioned in your post that you were "too old" for it!)

Jiro

12-30-2013, 07:27 AM

Too old? Zoombini's had like three or four sequels!

Pike

12-30-2013, 10:16 AM

Exactly, and I was older each time a new one came out, so there would have been even less interest.

I remember lots of great educational games from the 80s though! :jess:

Loony BoB

12-30-2013, 10:21 AM

Zoombinis shouldn't be counted as a purely educational game anyway because it's just a generally awesome game. Saying "but I was born too early for this game" is like saying "but I was born too early for Portal."

Pike

12-30-2013, 10:24 AM

Why are you ruining my 80s derail bro?

Loony BoB

12-30-2013, 02:15 PM

35. Pokémon (series)
Various, 1998-2007

http://g3ar.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Pokemon.png

I only list 1998-2007 because I haven't played the more recent ones. Anyway, these games are all kinds of fun and I still can't understand just why Nintendo haven't created a subscription based MMO for Pokémon because it would challenge World of Warcraft for being the biggest MMO of all time. Seriously. But I'll try to avoid going into a rant about that for now... anyways, yeah, collecting them was my biggest desire and I would get seriously annoyed at how you need to play multiple games just to get them all, because that's just mean. I think we got all the older games in the end when I caved or something and then we never played them enough to actually get them all. I guess another game turned up and we got distracted...

I love the gameplay more in the later games but I love the Pokémon more in the earlier games. It's why I get so annoyed that you can't get them all and is probably the main reason I stopped getting the new games. If/when they do bring out a Pokémon MMO you can play on the PC, obtain every Pokémon and whatnot... I will subscribe to that MMO. Until then, I've probably given up for now, but damn that game (I think this sums up how little the games changed, that I call it "that game" rather than "those games" purely by instinct) was good and I'm glad I have all the memories. :)

Pike

12-30-2013, 03:00 PM

You really should play three newest games. X/Y has a LOT of the old Pokies in game and trading for the others is super easy. Also it's the best Pokemon game I've played - I think I even like it better than my beloved Gen 2.

Ayen

12-30-2013, 05:17 PM

YAY POKEMON! Pokemon Yellow was my first. Pikachu and I had a good time.

Scotty_ffgamer

12-30-2013, 05:28 PM

Pokemon is great! I second what Pike says about the new games (though, I've only played them a little.)

Also, Pike, no one could be too old for Zoombinis. Zoombinis is for everyone.

Jiro

12-31-2013, 06:02 AM

I refuse to let this thread progress until somebody finds a copy of Zoombini's that everyone can download and play. It's GREAT

Psychotic

12-31-2013, 10:50 AM

I seriously have no idea why they've not done a Pokemon MMO. It's a licence to print money.

Pike

12-31-2013, 02:14 PM

Nintendo refuses to do a lot of things that would print them money :p

Psychotic

12-31-2013, 02:18 PM

They could always make a new Mario game. They haven't done one of those in a month or two.

Jessweeee♪

12-31-2013, 03:48 PM

Pokemon Blue was the first game where I explored glitches and stuff. Totally blew my ten year old mind. :spin:

Bolivar

12-31-2013, 04:25 PM

^ Missing No. = Mew!

Slothy

12-31-2013, 07:59 PM

I seriously have no idea why they've not done a Pokemon MMO. It's a licence to print money.

Probably because Nintendo hasn't heard of the internet. I imagine if they tried to do an MMO it would have the worst network coding in history.

Also: gimme red or make me dead!

Jiro

12-31-2013, 11:45 PM

Pokémon Yellow was like, one of my first loves. Fucking Pikachu man.

Ayen

12-31-2013, 11:46 PM

Pikachu all the way!

I actually never ran into any of the glitches and I know my mom didn't when she was playing because she definitely would have said something. That's right, my mom played Pokemon o.o she is teh Pokemon Master.

Bubba

01-04-2014, 02:05 PM

Pokémon Yellow was like, one of my first loves. smurfing Pikachu man.

Pikachu all the way!

One of my favourite gaming fights of all time was with Pikachu.

I was way underlevelled and Lt. Surge had taken care of my rock/round pokemon with his meaty Raichu. He just couldn't hit my Pikachu after a few uses of Double Team though. Gradually reduced his HP to zero after a lengthy battle. Good times.

Lots of fond memories of red/blue/yellow.

Loony BoB

01-06-2014, 02:56 PM

34. Mass Effect 2
360, 2010

http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/036/9/1/Scientist_Salarian_by_Homicide_Crabs.jpg

Given that I've already included ME3 in this list, I'll keep this one short. I really liked a lot of the characters in this game (although it doesn't have my favourite). Mordin, EDI, Miranda, Jack, Thane and Legion were excellent. The others were okay, too. I really enjoyed how they brought a lot of life to the worlds in this game, although it still fell back to the old "boxes in corridoors" routine more often than one would like. It was really intriguing learning about Cerberus and pretending to learn about The Illusive Man. :p

In retrospect, I suppose this game is very much a transition game - a starting game known and an end game known and this one just gets us from Point A to Point B, which means a lot of character development and a lot of running around getting pieces to a puzzle that was started a long time ago and you know won't end in this game, either... but it was still really fun. For me, this is a game ranked high on the list thanks to solid gameplay and quality characters with a touch of good writing.

Ayen

01-07-2014, 03:47 AM

w00t! w00t! First Mass Effect game I played and one of my personal faves as well ^_^

Jessweeee♪

01-07-2014, 04:46 AM

Shepard dies in the first five minutes of the game what
Charge oh my god charge is so much fun
My favorite party in any RPG, Jack and Mordin especially
Suicide mission was great
oh holy smurf did that giant human reaper baby just shoot lasers at me what is it flying now?
oops I died and so did everyone else except Joker and EDI

Skyblade

01-07-2014, 06:11 AM

I love the picture you picked.

There is a ton of awesome in this game. But, personally, I adore Lair of the Shadow Broker most of all the missions available. Only downside is that the other companions don't speak during it. :(

Mahad

01-08-2014, 04:47 AM

That picture you picked...I really liked Mordin's character, and that was such an epic moment in the game. I loved this game, one of my favs.

But wait, where did ME3 ranked? Is there a list of games revealed so far somewhere?

Loony BoB

01-08-2014, 01:09 PM

The first post of this thread has all games so far in a list. :) Click the link for it to reveal itself in full.

Jiro

01-09-2014, 10:39 AM

Mordin is probably my favourite ME character, the guy is just... man. Mass Effect is a really great series.

Loony BoB

01-16-2014, 11:36 AM

33. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
PC, 1999

http://www.kekkai.org/google/devilsadvocate/alpha-centauri-pic4.png

Here you go, Pike. :p I know, I know, it's not top ten, but it's top 33 and you'll just have to make do. ;) I really loved a lot of the things that this game added to the Civilization standard, and it really miffs me that they don't include them in the Civ series to this day. I should be able to play a game that starts in Earth with a settler and a warrior and then create an spaceship and carry on my work on Alpha Centauri in a single game, and bring back alien worms to Earth to help me ensure I am safe from alien invaders and and and and... yeah!

But seriously, I would really, really love for this game to get a sequel, or for it to become a default feature of the Civ series. It was fantastically done. The factions themselves were far more unique than they are in the Civ series, and playing a different faction felt like a whole new experience. Terraforming was awesome, too, and I just feel this is the natural evolutionary game for Civ II/III. Fingers crossed that someday they will bring this back in a big way and we once again really enjoy a modern gaming masterpiece.

Skyblade

01-16-2014, 03:29 PM

33. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri
PC, 1999

http://www.kekkai.org/google/devilsadvocate/alpha-centauri-pic4.png

Here you go, Pike. :p I know, I know, it's not top ten, but it's top 33 and you'll just have to make do. ;) I really loved a lot of the things that this game added to the Civilization standard, and it really miffs me that they don't include them in the Civ series to this day. I should be able to play a game that starts in Earth with a settler and a warrior and then create an airship and carry on my work on Alpha Centauri in a single game, and bring back alien worms to Earth to help me ensure I am safe from alien invaders and and and and... yeah!

But seriously, I would really, really love for this game to get a sequel, or for it to become a default feature of the Civ series. It was fantastically done. The factions themselves were far more unique than they are in the Civ series, and playing a different faction felt like a whole new experience. Terraforming was awesome, too, and I just feel this is the natural evolutionary game for Civ II/III. Fingers crossed that someday they will bring this back in a big way and we once again really enjoy a modern gaming masterpiece.

I think you need more than an airship to reach Alpha Centauri, BoB.

That said, I never really considered adding this as another phase of a Civ game. But you're right, that would be awesome.

Pike

01-16-2014, 03:51 PM

Well at least you picked the best faction to put in your summary. :tongue:

Loony BoB

01-16-2014, 04:17 PM

I think you need more than an airship to reach Alpha Centauri, BoB.
:shifty: Well, an airship and uhm... some really good breath-holding skills... and uh... shh! *edits*

That said, I never really considered adding this as another phase of a Civ game. But you're right, that would be awesome.
Oh man, really? I was thinking "What, that's it?" the moment I left Earth in Civ II. xD "I WANT SPAAAAAACE"

Bubba

01-16-2014, 06:56 PM

At this point, I would like to say that Neocracker finished his countdown in just under four-and-a-half months. BoB's thread is now coming up on seven months and we are yet to enter the top 30.

I anticipate the reveal of his No.1 game to coincide with the launch of FFXVI.

Loony BoB

01-16-2014, 08:12 PM

I got sidetracked by various things, big time. xD But I'm trying to do this when I get moments free. And maybe FFXVI is my #1. :smash:

Skyblade

01-16-2014, 09:01 PM

That said, I never really considered adding this as another phase of a Civ game. But you're right, that would be awesome.
Oh man, really? I was thinking "What, that's it?" the moment I left Earth in Civ II. xD "I WANT SPAAAAAACE"

By the time I finished Civilization II, I had already played Master of Orion. And, while both are great games, the distinctions always kept me from going for the "ooh, now space" bit.

Master of Orion is the game that is actually what a space 4x game should be like. It acknowledges and accepts the differences between working on a planet and working in space. It expands your scope to a staggering degree. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, while awesome, loses a lot when compared to managing your empire across the galaxy.

The problem is that, while I would love to make that transition from planet to space... It would not be a smooth one. The play environments are fundamentally different. Most of space is just that - space. It's empty, with no place to build roads or terraform. This alone necessitates a drastic change to implementation of functionality.

Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri just feels like it comes up short. Granted, it's every bit as fun as a Civilization game (and probably one of the best, if not the best, in that series). But for a space game, it's missing the space. Heck, Civilization II had the Fantastic Worlds expansion, which added in tons of science fiction and fantasy mods and maps for the game. While playing Alpha Centauri, I couldn't help but wonder "why are we still bound to a single planet"? We're a spacefaring race that never leaves our new homeworld. Which is kind of depressing, and nowhere near as awesome.

And now I have my first ever desire to play Spore, because I heard it made this transition fairly successfully, despite several other problems I've heard around the game's release.

Pike

01-17-2014, 12:53 AM

Skyblade

01-17-2014, 01:04 AM

Skyblade, SMAC isn't a space 4X. It's Civ on a different planet with a hard science-fiction bend. If you go in expecting Master of Orion, GalCiv, or Space Empires, you're going to be disappointed because that's not what it's supposed to be.

Lots of sci-fi is bound to one single planet and that's what SMAC is.

True, but the initial segue into that spin-off discussion was talking about following up Civilization with a "now let's go to SPACE" comment by Loony BoB. And SMAC never, ever felt like that to me.

I'm not denying that SMAC is a great game, it is. I'm just saying that, for me, it never fit that criteria that Loony BoB was describing. It wasn't a space game, and it didn't feel as though it was a natural progression from where my Civilization would have gone. Once we made one ship, and colonized one planet, we could, and would, do it again.

This is what I was trying to say earlier. I would love a game that took Civilization as a basis and then expanded it out to become a galactic empire game like Master of Orion, but I never really thought about it (especially not when playing SMAC, since it isn't that sort of game) because to do that properly, you would have to completely change game fundamentals halfway through, which might be hard to pull off.

Also, Master of Orion II is a better game.

Denmark

01-17-2014, 01:43 AM

ITT: ~opinions~

SMAC is a fun game imo. My favorite Sid Meier game that I've played (I've played Civ II, III, and IV along with SMAC), mostly due to the sci-fi setting/colonizing a new planet lore thing. It's "what would we do if we had to start over from the beginning but with all of the knowledge we currently have on Earth".

Also University is the only correct faction and you are wrong if you claim otherwise.

Loony BoB

01-20-2014, 01:35 PM

32. Resident Evil 2
PSX, 1998

http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110828234560/residentevil/images/f/ff/1805270-resident_evil_2_william_g_i.jpg

I was never a fan of what happened to the RE series in more recent entries. What truly defined the RE series, for me, was the awkward angled perspectives that left you creeping very, very carefully not knowing what might be around the corner. I briefly played some of the later games and just filed them away under "Eh, maybe later." I understand that other people liked them a lot, but for me, there is something to be said for this style that makes it a classic and assured of this spot on my list.

Resident Evil is also one of the few game series out there in which I often pick the female when given an option. I can't remember exactly why this is, either. Normally I always wind up playing a guy if it's a straight option. I don't exactly avoid games with female leads, but I guess for me it's natural to pick the person who I relate to most or else I tend to go for the "tank" option... but when all I know about the characters is that one is a guy and one is a girl... *shrug*

Ayen

01-20-2014, 01:39 PM

Loony BoB is my new favorite person ever.

These games were a consistent and ever loving part of my childhood and 2 was one of, if not the best in the series.

Jiro

01-20-2014, 01:42 PM

You liked the idea of zombies nibbling on your delicate female bits, didn't you

you sicko

Slothy

01-20-2014, 01:45 PM

BoB chose the best Resident Evil and SMAC for the list? I don't often say this to you, but well done sir.

Loony BoB

01-20-2014, 01:52 PM

I'll take these plaudits while I can, before I come up with some other game to ruin everyone's faith in me again. :D

Bubba

01-20-2014, 02:15 PM

Resident Evil 2 was indeed a cracker. Lots more jumpy sections and some of the monsters were truly terrifying.

It's definitely a series that has seen a number of duds but this is one of the best.

NeoCracker

01-20-2014, 02:15 PM

Worry not, we lost faith in you ages ago. ;P

Loony BoB

01-22-2014, 01:49 PM

31. Resident Evil
PSX, 1996

http://img.gamefaqs.net/screens/6/4/7/gfs_10835_2_5.jpg

This game was my introduction to Survival Horror, as I imagine it was for many others. And oh man did it do it's job well. This and RE2 are incredibly close for me, but I would say this one edges it purely on the basis of having so much happening in that one building, and how interesting it got because of that. Likewise the "first ever game of the genre" factor meant it was a little more awesome to play at the time, as it was so new to me.

Like with RE2, the game had fixed camera angles and I learned very quickly to be extremely careful. It was edge-of-my-seat stuff back when I played it, and it was just awesome. Just those moments where you walk into OH MY GOD WHAT THE OH GOD NO NO NO AAAAARRRRRGH okay okay okay I think it was just the one of them thank God for that OH WAIT.

Ayen

01-22-2014, 01:54 PM

I used to act out these scenes through legos so damn much it's not even funny. This will always be my personal favorite of the franchise. I was so happy when I finally beat it.

btw do you ever ACTUALLY find Barry somewhere in Chris' scenario or is he just forgotten about?

Loony BoB

01-22-2014, 01:59 PM

Honestly can't remember too much about the finer details of the plot and I can't remember if I ever played it as Chris. I just remember certain scenes and whatnot, and the exhilerating feeling I got when playing the game. It was just so different and exciting, and the way the plot was revealed was something I found quite interesting at the time. I seem to remember it feeling very detailed at the time.

Oh, and before anyone asks (I've been asked before) - I have no idea if I played Director's Cut or not.

Ayen

01-22-2014, 02:06 PM

Easy way to answer that, do you remember being given three game modes to choose from?

Loony BoB

01-22-2014, 02:08 PM

I don't think so, but I don't remember much about the start of the game at all, just the specific scenarios within it, certain rooms, certain items, certain attacks, etc.

Ayen

01-22-2014, 02:12 PM

I remember more about the games than I probably should. Director's Cut had a mode for the original game, training (where the numbered items were all doubled) and advanced which changed Chris and Jill costumes. I have that, the original and the remake for GameCube and beat them all.

Barry: What is this?
Wesker: Wow, what a mansion!
Jill: Captain Wesker, where's Chris?
Wesker: No! Don't open that door!
Jill: But Chris is--!
BANG!
Barry: What was that?
Wesker: Maybe it's... Chris.

I still get a chuckle from the door line.

Bubba

01-22-2014, 03:26 PM

Ahh, the early days of voice acting.

The first Resident Evil is an outstanding game whichever way you look at it. Brilliant jump-out-of-your-pants moments (bloody dogs), Great bosses, scarce supplies. It's funny, when I played though The Last of Us I found myself thinking back quite often to when I first played Resident Evil. I'll never forget the sound effect when that first zombie turned it's head round... DUM, DUM-DUM

*shivers*

Spuuky

01-22-2014, 04:54 PM

The only problem is that it's impossible to go back to the early Resident Evil games now, because the controls are soooooooooooo baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. Also, the graphics aged really poorly.

Ayen

01-22-2014, 05:00 PM

Bubba

01-22-2014, 05:12 PM

The only problem is that it's impossible to go back to the early Resident Evil games now, because the controls are soooooooooooo baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. Also, the graphics aged really poorly.

I still play the old games despite this, so either it's not impossible or I'm capable of performing impossible feats.

Me too.

I played through this on my Vita during my last train ride to Glasgow.

Jiro

01-23-2014, 12:17 PM

Resident Evil 1 gave me nightmares. Couldn't figure out how to shoot, had to watch as a zombie slowly walked toward me and ate me. Fuck

Ayen

01-23-2014, 12:19 PM

I remember being too scared just to enter another room, even after my brother told me he cleared out all the zombies. That music didn't help matters either.

Slothy

01-23-2014, 01:06 PM

The only problem is that it's impossible to go back to the early Resident Evil games now, because the controls are soooooooooooo baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. Also, the graphics aged really poorly.

Disagree. Any of them from the RE1 director's cut on are pretty playable since they have auto aim. Movement is a bit tricky when camera angles change, but it's not like these are action games or anything, and I tend to adapt to the controls quite quickly.

Sephex

01-23-2014, 01:14 PM

The only problem is that it's impossible to go back to the early Resident Evil games now, because the controls are soooooooooooo baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. Also, the graphics aged really poorly.

Disagree. Any of them from the RE1 director's cut on are pretty playable since they have auto aim. Movement is a bit tricky when camera angles change, but it's not like these are action games or anything, and I tend to adapt to the controls quite quickly.

I agree. I never found the controls of the original games difficult. Once my mind wrapped around the fact that controlling a character is sort of like controlling a RC toy, I was all good.

Ayen

01-23-2014, 01:34 PM

I first played this game when I was six and never had any problems with the controls.

Loony BoB

02-01-2014, 04:31 PM

30. Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
PS3, 2011

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/uncharted3.png

I love me some Uncharted dialogue, I love me some Chloe Frazer, I love me some Charlie Cutter. This was definitely the blockbuster of the series, pulling out the absolutely ridiculous at every opportunity. But I'll be damned it it wasn't entertaining if completely unbelievable (but then, that should be expected in a lot of video games).

Charlie Cutter scenes were probably my favourites in this game, and the end boss fight was rubbish, but the game overall was still really enjoyable if you took the entire plot with a large dosage of salt. I just really love the gameplay in this series, and I really love the banter between the characters. It's just pure fun, and I never stopped wanting to play just a little bit more. :)

Jiro

02-02-2014, 03:44 AM

argh I desperately need to get Uncharted 3. Loved the first two to bits.

Bubba

02-03-2014, 09:46 AM

Uncharted 3 has some of the greatest action sequences I've ever seen in gaming or indeed film. I agree that Uncharted 2 is a better overall game but the chapter 'Rough Seas' in U3 is one of the most impressive things I've experienced in gaming. Simply phenomenal.

Loony BoB

02-03-2014, 01:25 PM

29. Final Fantasy XIII-2
PS3, 2011

http://static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130519160656/finalfantasy/images/d/d7/Paradox_Ending_3.jpg

What I'd give for a state-of-the-art 3D home console Pokémon game. I think this is the closest I'll get to it! I loved this game a lot. For all the flack XII & XIII get from different fans, they clearly found a great balance in this game - plot excepted, but then I don't think it was any better or worse than the plot in some of the "golden generation" of Final Fantasy, either. FF has always had poor endings, easily spotted plot holes, etc. So long as the gameplay is good and the characters are enjoyable (either by being interesting, funny or simply fun) then I've always been able to forgive a poor plot. In this case, Square Enix showed how much they can listen to the outcries from FFXIII and fixed almost damned near everything to be better in a gameplay sense.

It's a massive shame that so many people will probably never get around to giving this game a shot, because I think it really does point fans towards a sign that Square Enix is still capable of providing a true Final Fantasy. The only thing really missing from this adventure to stop it being a fully fledged FF was a large number of playable characters, but that is pretty much par for the course when it comes to the FF sequels. I just really hope that SE look at what they got right in this game and use that to develop future FF's in a way that fans can really enjoy. I'm ever an optimist, so I'm pretty sure they can get it right in time. I'm still not 100% sold on whether FFXV will be "that game" that brings back lost fans, but I still feel that there is a strong future in this series in the long run.

As for this game in particular, I hit Platinum on it as I did with the original. I wasn't really happy with how they worked the plot at all, particularly the very first part of the game and the very last. I think they could have done things better with Serah's interactions with Snow, too. But the gameplay, oh man. It was much more fun to Platinum than it's predecessor, and I loved growing my collection of creatures. When I first heard about the "accessories" system where you could slap on a ribbon to a creature or whatever, I was firm in the belief that I would never use it. But... but then... (http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2012/02/06)

Jessweeee♪

02-03-2014, 02:15 PM

I loved collecting all of the different monsters c:

Pete for President

02-03-2014, 04:31 PM

Heh, that does sound kinda fun. Maybe, just maybe I'll pluck this out of a budget bin some day.

Jiro

02-06-2014, 07:41 AM

Yeah Final Fantasy XIII-2 was pretty decent but like I just it just didn't feel right I don't know. Too many options monster wise imo. I'm not a big fan of those kinds of games for whatever reason (but like I totally support it as a concept).

Hollycat

02-06-2014, 01:45 PM

I think Ni No Kuni was closer to pokemon. It even had evolution.

Del Murder

02-06-2014, 04:36 PM

Nice trolling.

Loony BoB

02-08-2014, 09:11 AM

28. XCOM: Enemy Unknown
PC, 2012

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/skybladexcom.png

This game wasn't as brutal as the original. There were some things, such as the low number of people you could have on a mission, that I felt were a shame. But overall, this was an incredible game, and I loved it. The balance was a fair bit better, and while not as difficult as the original, it was still insanely hard to get that Ironman run completed. This was an old, somewhat forgotten style of gaming thrust into the modern world's gaming audience in exactly the right way.

My team would generally consist of one support, three heavy's and a couple of snipers - one with Squad Sight, one with Snap Shot. The last of those mentioned generally goes against what most people prefer, but I got saved by Mr. Snap Shot on many occasions where he normally could not have managed it due to some random tree or whatever. Squad Sight may have been the one that ended up with the most kills, but Snap Shot was definitely the one that ensured my Heavy and Support characters would survive.

I was very lucky to get that Ironman, I felt, because I had so few deaths. During my earlier "education" runs with saves I could fall back on, I would find the learning curve came down to one simple step: Killing Chryssalids the second you saw them. Thankfully I managed to do that on my first Ironman run and it all flew from there on in.

So yay for XCOM! Man, I love getting to this stage of the Top 100 because I get to talk about all these games I love so much.

On a sidenote, having played a bunch of AC games recently, I'm thinking I'd probably slot Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood in at around 40-43, the same level as the likes of Mass Effect 3, Halo 3, Age of Empires etc. The other games would probably be further down, if they were in the list at all. I think I'd have ACII at around 70 or just below it, and AC at around 91-92. Revelations might go there too somewhere, but eh, it just felt like it really needed a lot more to it. Still yet to finish ACIII, but I would say that goes in around the late 80's/early 90's, too.

Pike

02-08-2014, 10:12 AM

You'll have to adjust your list again when you play ACIV seeing as it's the best AC game. :3:

Anyways did you hear about the guy who beat Impossible Ironman XCOM with no deaths?

Loony BoB

02-08-2014, 02:01 PM

No deaths? That's on par with cheating! Was it livestreamed?

Pike

02-08-2014, 05:22 PM

I can't recall but he did FRAPS the whole thing and put it on YouTube (in multiple parts of course)

Scotty_ffgamer

02-08-2014, 05:40 PM

I really need to play this game one day considering I've owned it for a little while now.

Loony BoB

02-09-2014, 12:26 AM

It's free if you have PlayStation Plus as I just found out! But I think you're better off getting it for PC.

Pete for President

02-10-2014, 06:31 PM

I'm intrigued by XCOM and want to try it at some point. It seems like a very challenging game and I'm into that.

Skyblade

03-10-2014, 09:26 PM

Have you tried Enemy Within yet?

Aulayna

03-10-2014, 10:52 PM

Ayen

03-10-2014, 11:04 PM

NeoCracker

03-10-2014, 11:41 PM

Just throwing this out there BoB, your list is going WAY slower then mine. :p

Psychotic

03-10-2014, 11:49 PM

I still want to do an EoFF LP of the original.

Aulayna

03-11-2014, 12:14 AM

Just saw the previous page. People actually found Resident Evil games scary? Maybe I was just a tougher kid than I realised but I never really got on the edge of my seat or felt truly terrified at any point in those games. You had a gun, and stairs and doors stumped most of the walking biohazards. Apart from that Tyrant in the second playthrough of RE2 that would smash through the walls at set intervals. He was cool.

Play Nemesis.

Nemesis wasn't scary either. I've truthfully never found any RE game to be particularly scary. They're too B-Movie in scare tactics, which was their charm of course, but they were never really scary. I found walking around an abandon elementary school with the static on the radio in Silent Hill to be more tension building and scary than any RE really.

Don't get me wrong I love the RE games (well apart from 6, and to a lesser extent, 5), but I always found them a bit lax on the horror parts.

Shauna

03-11-2014, 12:44 AM

Yeah, the RE games are far too campy to be truly scary. The only bit that I have ever considered to be 2spooky is that bit in the first, when you first encounter a zombie and it turns its head. Ugh, that was one ugly and creepy thing. :(

Kalevala

03-11-2014, 02:30 AM

I have, horror of all horrors, not played XCOM yet. It's something I've been meaning to get around to.

Pike

03-11-2014, 10:19 AM

I still want to do an EoFF LP of the original.

Please do it.

Madonna

03-11-2014, 10:25 AM

Resident Evils are more scary in terms of survival than horror; the horror is a beautiful theme into which the survival bit is worked. When you are low in ammo in a monster-heavy area, that is when anxiety appears.

I loved this generation's iteration of X-COM despite it being a very different game from the original. However, it retains that lovely feature of losing your much-adored team. Instead of being one-shot from the dark when leaving the Skyranger, you now unfortunately run into Mutons in a sprint action, and their response move is to basically surround you.

Loony BoB

03-11-2014, 11:48 PM

Just throwing this out there BoB, your list is going WAY slower then mine. :p
We're in the process of replacing something like 4,000 PCs at work and I'm a central figure in the project, so I've had pretty much no time to spare lately (most of my EoFF browsing is done at work). I'll try to get another up during the coming evenings or something, though.

27. Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory
PC, 2003

http://screenshots.filesnetwork.com/13/potd/1084694062.jpg

"Need a medic! Need a medic! Need a me-- danke!" Oh, the words still echo in my ears. This was, for me, the best "versus" FPS game I have ever played. It was well balanced, anyone could get the hang of it eventually, it's all kinds of hilarious fun, it has multiple (well balanced) classes which you can, through death, switch between on the fly should you ever wish to. It's free, it's moddable (and the mods tend to be good'uns) and the people I played with - a mixture of EoFFers and a group of Dads and their kids from Manchester known as ...ah, crap, I forgot! Hopefully one of the EoFFers out there can help me remember them through screenshots or something.

Either way, this game was just loads of fun for all involved and the only downside is that it turned Danielle from a friendly, loving person into an foul mouthed, hardcore woman of great vengeance.

PS. Engineers were best.

Shauna

03-11-2014, 11:57 PM

Ahh, the times! They were good! I remember not being great at this game, but the random dudes we played with were always so nice. :D ~memories~

If I hadn't just unplugged my old PC I might have had some old ET stuff still floating around on there, but ah well. Their names will escape us for now.

Loony BoB

03-12-2014, 12:01 AM

I remembered evilbeard was one of the dudes, and through his name I found the clan we would hang around with - [et.splatterladder.com] » Details of Clan Gamers With Attitude (http://et.splatterladder.com/?mod=claninfo&idx=165489) - they were great fun on voicechat. I remember the Dads always being clear about things such as "no swearing" etc. and then one evening they were blatantly drunk off their faces and were swearing like mad, and their sons thought it was hilarious.

Also, their sons were crazy good at this game, as good as any gamers I'd seen, and one of them was something like seven years old.

Of the names on that list, the ones that look most familiar are Bigbow, Evilbeard, Calpol, Pudders! and pb521.

Shauna

03-12-2014, 12:04 AM

Aw, all the "Last Seen" being like 1000+ days makes me sad for some reason. x{

Slothy

03-12-2014, 02:17 AM

Just throwing it out there: this game is available for free these days. Legally I mean.

Psychotic

03-12-2014, 08:41 AM

When I saw this was the thread title I was going to just put NEED A MEDIC in huge letters but I see that was the first joke you made. :D

I don't remember much other than a couple of bits and pieces but I looked up the old thread and I said this to you
Tell the fine people about how I killed you, a medic healed you, I killed you again, a medic healed you again and then I killed you for the third time, all in under a minute. It's my favourite bedtime story!

Well, second only to the door slamming in your face as you tried to panzer me. :strut:The second one sounds particularly hilarious.

Loony BoB

03-12-2014, 06:48 PM

I remember that post, sadly. :( I vaguely remember the first of those things happening, too. But my strongest memories will always be when we fought near the beach and had that setting where falling didn't kill you and friendly fire didn't kill you, and the result was that we would spend large amounts of time launching each other far, far into the air, over the spawn point of the enemy, land in the sea, quietly swim up behind the spawn area with a knife and stab people from underwater.

Something like that, anyway.

I Took the Red Pill

03-12-2014, 07:39 PM

The EoFF ET games are one of my fondest memories of online gaming. This remains the only worthwhile screenshot I've ever taken:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g9/elementality1210/bob-1.jpg

Loony BoB

03-12-2014, 10:01 PM

26. Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
PC, 1985

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/carmensandiego.png

The best educational game in history as far as I'm concerned. The great thing about this game, for me, was how it didn't tell you things, it expected you to know them. There was no guide that came along with the version I got - I learned about the flags of each country, the currencies, capital cities, all kinds of things that a normal seven year old wouldn't have the foggiest about. I loved this game and when you reach that moment where, while on an investigation, you discover you're actually chasing THE Carmen Sandiego? Pretty awesome.

I don't care if this game wouldn't fly in today's age or work with my age anymore, the memories of playing this game are fond ones despite the fact that it was basically a fancy pop quiz. This game rocked because it was so fun you forgot it was educational.

Kalevala

03-12-2014, 11:45 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roiJizt8jxw

This game show and the choose-your-own-adventure books were a huge part of my childhood.

Skyblade

03-13-2014, 05:13 AM

I miss Carmen Sandiago. She is one of the core pieces of 90's kid culture. Carmen Sandiago is instantly recognizable. Between her incredible sense of style, her frelling brilliant theme song (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozYg8vDTmkc), and her enjoyably eclectic sense of adventure (I mean first, she steals landmarks, and second, she only does so in order to match wits with the people chasing her, never because she actually wants the things she steals), she is a villain that everyone loved.

I played several of her games as a kid (I don't remember them all, but I do know that one of them was Where in Space is Carmen Sandiago). I loved them all. I also remember that she had two relatively successful shows, from her animated adventures to the trivia game show.

I actually feel that Carmen Sandiago could make a comeback (in fact, I keep waiting for her to show up in an episode of Castle, she would fit in so perfectly). Though just an adventure game/quiz show, I think they could be restructured and updated to provide a lot of enjoyable fun even today.

Pike

03-13-2014, 05:07 PM

Can we just talk about the TV show for a second because watching WitWiCS every day followed immediately by Ghostwriter (which was an A++++ show) defined this one summer of my childhood

Rockapella is love, Rockapella is life

and PBS KIDS TV IS LIFE

Jiro

03-18-2014, 10:00 AM

Carmen Sandiago needs to come back. Yes. I agree on all points.

I am impressed at the number of educational games that have shown up in this list. Not because BoB is a loser nerd who enjoys learning, but because educational games are generally so bland and boring that having so many great ones over time -- especially so early -- is really quite an impressive feat for developers and educators.

Ayen

03-18-2014, 10:23 AM

Where on earth is Carmen Sandiego? (Carmen Sandiego!) Where on earth can she be? (Where on earth can she be?)

I used to have the biggest crush on Ivy.

All of Carmen Sandiego computer games rocked. I used to play them all the time at the local library.

Skyblade

03-19-2014, 01:15 AM

Task = Next time you go to a con, wear a red trench coat and fedora. Make count of anyone who does not recognize the cosplay. Report back with results. I doubt it will be a high count. I also doubt that any of the people who fail to recognize it will be older than twenty.

Loony BoB

04-10-2014, 04:18 PM

I may take my sweet ass time, but I'll get there in the end!

25. Warzone 2100
PSX, 1999

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Warzone_2100_-_model_creation_step_4.jpg

This game is, for me, by far the most underrated RTS out there. Ever. I liked the story, I liked the landscapes (nothing special, but at the time they were still good), I loved the gameplay. It was just the right level of difficulty for me at the time, and the last part of the game just felt rather epic to me. The amount of customisation you could go through when creating your army was perfectly balanced, too - not too complicated that you end up lost amongst things, but enough freedom to create a very large number of options each catered towards a specific purpose.

I liked that there was more to a map than "if you've uncovered it, you'll see everything forever" or "fog of war". It had a lot of radar stuff, and counter-this and counter-that. I liked the oil system and the timed missions which further added to the tactical nature of the game, you couldn't simply demolish the opposition (well, you could, but not to the extent of most RTS games). The 3D nature of the game was really well done, too. Not simply a case of high angle = see everything, there were many occasions when you would be circling around a hill in what was almost a "third person view" of a tank you were controlling (immersion points +1) and then suddenly see the enemy facing you dead on. Retreat! Fall back! Repair crew out first, radar out next, artillery hold, oh God, why did I travel so far ahead... xD

I loved this game enough to buy it on PC and PSX. :D Hard to say which I enjoyed it more on, probably PSX because it was my first time playing it.

Ayen

04-10-2014, 05:01 PM

TANKS!

You had me at tanks.

Skyblade

04-10-2014, 06:18 PM

Warzone 2100 was a fantastic game, and one I much loved. I actually kept trying to track down a copy for several years, only to find it incompatible with the later versions of Windows.

Then it became freeware (yes, this title is now freeware), and there was almost instantly a version available that was patched for support.

Jiro

04-12-2014, 02:47 PM

Never heard of it :(

04-12-2014, 03:29 PM

Did we 2 player this at your house one time? Sounds vaguely familiar to me.

Ayen

04-12-2014, 08:05 PM

Never heard of it :(

For once I'm not alone.

Madame Adequate

04-12-2014, 08:47 PM

YOU ARE IN CONTRAVENTION OF THE NEW PARADIGM

RETURN TO YOUR DESIGNATED AREAS, OR BE DESTROYED

zXtmVLt4gPA

Loony BoB

04-14-2014, 01:28 PM

Did we 2 player this at your house one time? Sounds vaguely familiar to me.
I don't think so... but given how small my collection of games was at the time, you inevitably would have stumbled across either one of my copies of the game.

24. The Mark of Kri
PS2, 2002

http://www.true-gaming.net/home/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/The-Mark-of-Kri-3.jpg

Probably my favourite game when it comes to free-flowing action fights. You mark your targets using one of the analogue sticks, and then away you go. It flows effortlessly when you switch between your circle target and your triangle target and so on. Eventually you'll be able to target nine enemies at once, which makes you feel it would be awkward since each button corresponds to an enemy... no chance, I remember the fights continuing to be fluid even when brawling 20-40 enemies at once, each swing of my weapon would move swiftly from one of my opponents to the next, like I was directing art rather than battle. Fluid battle of this like back in 2002 is something I hadn't seen before at all.

The stealth wasn't too shabby either, and the story and characters were alright, too. The environment was colourful and wonderful, the art and style even better. The first thoughts one might get when playing this game is "Disney?", but that is quickly thrown out the window when you start waving around a weapon. The varying deaths you can inflict on your enemies is far, far detached from Disney.

I found this game to be very different and all of the differences just simply worked for me. I know some have complained about the lack of boss fights, but I feel this just enhances the storytelling. Sometimes, in a Polynesian story such as this, there is only one boss. This game goes on as one of the most underrated of all in my very humble opinion.

Pete for President

04-14-2014, 04:26 PM

Always had an eye on this one but never got it in the end.

Ayen

04-14-2014, 05:19 PM

2002? I'm starting to feel old.

Never heard of this one either. Jeez, I'm starting to sound like a broken record.

Loony BoB

04-15-2014, 04:03 PM

23. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
PC, 2011

http://www.gamingdaily.co.uk/images/SkyMods-2012-2-24/mods3.png

My favourite Elder Scrolls game so far. Miles better than Oblivion when it comes to variation, scenery and gameplay. When I was last playing, I don't feel the mods were refined enough to compete with the two previous Elder Scrolls games, but the raw game was worth the money alone and mods were very much at the back of my mind.

There was definitely a lot of room for mods, though, and I imagine the stuff out right now must be far better than that which I experienced. I loved recruiting Dragon slayers, for example, but I felt that the limit on recruitments back then was too low - I love the "Gotta Catch 'em All" philosophy and a quick mod allowed me to command a minor army of dragon slayers to run around with me, and it was awesome.

I also loved the environment of Skyrim. It was not simply beautiful for it's overworld, but the small places (and massive ones) that were found underneath. The great underground city was amazing (although a little empty once you really got to exploring it) and there were a lot of beautiful caves. The little notes found in huts in the middle of nowhere, the discovery of a sneaky way to get your horse up to unthinkable locations, simple things that made this game entertaining. The enemy leveling system was far, far superior to that seen in Oblivion, too. I still feel I might prefer the Morrowind "let's not scale at all" scaling system, but Skyrim still felt great.

The story was alright. I'm really delighted with the way I ordered things. I finished the main story before I got to the part where you storm castles and whatnot, and I have to tell you, having a freaking dragon to call upon while storming a castle makes storming the castle feel so, so, so much freaking better than simply walking in with a bunch of randoms. It's epic.

Almost as epic as that feeling I got from right after finishing the main storyline. I was so immersed that I stopped quick traveling and simply walked my way down the mountain, full of some kind of feeling of immense achievement, and upon reaching the base I carried on walking for quite some time. It was only then that I realised just how great this game was, as encounter upon random encounter stumbled upon me as I walked from town to town. Quick travel should be blocked after the game is over. Only then can people truly appreciate how many unique encounters you can get in this game, and how much of the story you have unfolded can suddenly get referenced so much later on.

Ayen

04-15-2014, 09:33 PM

Oh, oh hey. A game I actually played!

Though I was lame and got it on the Xbox. I got into Skyrim and Game of Thrones the same week. That was a good week.

Jiro

04-16-2014, 10:10 AM

Always had an eye on this one but never got it in the end.

Yeah, me too. It looked pretty neat. Probably about a dozen great games around this time that never made it into my possession.

Pike

04-16-2014, 10:22 AM

Skyrim was great. Don't understand the hate it gets all over the internet from "hardcore" types. It had issues but it was still loads of fun and I dumped hours into it. Easily my second favorite TES game after Morrowind.

Loony BoB

04-16-2014, 12:31 PM

22. Left 4 Dead (series)
360, 2008-2010

cBeaLwGYg08‎

These two games may not be a 'long' series, but I've combined them as they're so incredibly similar. Despite being basically the same game, though, I must say that they were both well worth the purchase. Two of the best co-op games ever created, no less. The dynamic nature of the games kept Danielle and I replaying the episodes over and over, just because they were fun and we wouldn't know how things would turn out. There isn't too much to talk about in the games outside of the iconic sounds (see the video above) each of the special infected made, and the fact that after playing for prolonged periods we would walk around the streets of Edinburgh pointing out when we were in spots in which we just couldn't shake the feeling that a Smoker was lurking on the rooftops. Which was pretty often, I gotta say!

If L4D3 does come out, I'm pretty sure I'll be buying it. Haven't really checked for any news, but here's hoping!

Pike

04-16-2014, 05:36 PM

My favorite L4D2 mod is the one where you can be dinosaurs.

Shauna

04-16-2014, 05:42 PM

My favourite L4D thing is when one person gets bored and starts purposefully sabotaging the rest of the team. For example: throwing molotovs into stairwells, stopping them from ascending away from the dangerous hordes.

Did I say favourite? I meant most hated. Matt. :stare:

Dat Matt

04-16-2014, 05:53 PM

I'm just protecting our flank from zombies. Maybe if you weren't so slow you'd be able to keep up and avoid the fires.

*Hearty Laugh*

nwecvEy5zCE

The joke is I set fire to the players and laugh as they burn.

Ayen

04-16-2014, 10:55 PM

I have the first game on Xbox but couldn't get into it. That said, I also played single player, so that's probably why. This looks like the kind of game best enjoyed with a group of friends than on your own.

Shauna

04-16-2014, 11:15 PM

L4D is definitely a multiplayer game. xD

Ayen

04-16-2014, 11:26 PM

L4D is definitely a multiplayer game. xD

Well then, you butt plugs need to come to Kansas and play with me.

Jiro

04-17-2014, 01:22 AM

L4D is a great series. I have played it a fair bit online (thanks PG) and there are a bunch of cool map mods and whatnot. My favourite are the build ones where you have to research items and then build barricades while working on an escape vehicle. Super cool.

Shauna

04-17-2014, 01:21 PM

L4D is definitely a multiplayer game. xD

Well then, you butt plugs need to come to Kansas and play with me.

Pssh. Buy it stupid cheap on Steam, play online forever.

Loony BoB

04-17-2014, 02:08 PM

21. Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
PS3, 2007

http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111210183939/uncharted/images/d/d4/Nate_punches_pirates_private.jpg

This game seemed a bit darker than it's sequels when it came to the enemy. I played it after the second game but before the third. I felt the "non-standard" enemies were, as a whole, the best in the series. They were basic, primitive and outright aggressive - far more effective in leaving me in a panic than the more careful, calculating enemies found in the second and third games.

Having been fond of Chloe in the second and third games, I found her absence allowed Elena to shine a lot better in the first game, which gave me an appreciation for her character more so than the sequels ever would. I think they made her a little too worrying in the later games so that Chloe could get into all of the 'darker' side of things. Anyway, because of this game I was able to shake off my dislike for her and that can only be a good thing.

Not really sure what to add. The game is just fun, just like the rest of the series, but there is more for me to say about the other two games so... yeah!

Bolivar

04-17-2014, 02:27 PM

Very good game, just out shined by the latter entries. I actually beat Golden Abyss this morning, another strong entry in the series. Curious to see your thoughts and rankings on the others.

Any PS3 owner looking for something cheap, I can't imagine this game is more than a few bucks and it's well worth it.

Loony BoB

04-17-2014, 02:29 PM

Uncharted 3 has already been and gone down at #30. Just too over the top at times for me, I felt, which is why I rate this one better.

Wolf Kanno

04-18-2014, 01:25 AM

I need to finally sit down and play this series cause lord knows I'm a fan of Indiana Jones. I actually own the trilogy, but just haven't had the time to start playing them.

Jiro

04-18-2014, 01:55 AM

Yeah, I think Drake was a huge selling point for the PS3. I loved his little adventures.

Shauna

04-18-2014, 08:56 AM

I am actually just going to sit down right now and play Uncharted.

Ayen

04-18-2014, 08:59 AM

L4D is definitely a multiplayer game. xD

Well then, you butt plugs need to come to Kansas and play with me.

Pssh. Buy it stupid cheap on Steam, play online forever.

No. I'm a traditionalist.

@Uncharted screenshot, did that guy just get hit in the balls?

Bubba

04-29-2014, 12:35 PM

53480

Loony BoB

04-29-2014, 02:54 PM

20. Gauntlet: Dark Legacy
PS2, 2000

http://www.sinjinsolves.com/reviews/ngc/gauntlet/gdl1.jpg

This is perhaps my favourite co-op game ever, although you really need four people (and preferrably silly gamer types with a few drinks and an evening to waste) to allow it to really shine. It's a simple game but that is what makes it great - it does enough to occupy people and do their best to work together to some extent, it's cheesiness allows everyone to laugh it up and not take anything seriously but it's not so hard that you have to actually be focused in order to play it - you can talk about whatever the hell you want while you game.

When Matt and Shauna next visit this will be high on the agenda as far as I'm concerned. :D Also, this is probably one of only 2-3 games (well, game series, but this game in particular for Gauntlet's series) that I will ever actually still swith my PS2 on for.

Ayen

04-29-2014, 03:01 PM

This is perhaps my favourite co-op game ever, although you really need four people to allow it to really shine.

You really do. I didn't play this game, but I played Gauntlet Legends for the arcade with my cousins and then later when it came to the N64 with them, and it was a blast both times. Easily one of the best multiplayer experiences I ever had and I'm glad the next installment was just as good in that regard.

Bubba

04-29-2014, 03:17 PM

Hmmm... I think this may have passed me by.

It does look like quite a lot of fun though. If I ever pick up a new PS2 I may give it a whirl!

Bolivar

04-29-2014, 03:47 PM

Oh man this game. I remember snow days during high school, having friends bringing their controllers over, breaking out the multitap, and literally playing this all day long. The guys who make Magicka are developing the reboot, slated for this summer. Here's hoping it's something special.

Jiro

04-29-2014, 04:41 PM

I played Gauntlet with three buddies while drunk one early morning. It was fucking excellent.

Skyblade

04-29-2014, 09:07 PM

Gauntlet Legends on the arcade was the one I remember the most. But it was a fun series.

Wolf Kanno

04-30-2014, 03:50 AM

I have more fond memories of the original Gauntlet series than the 3D remakes but they were no slouch either.

Skyblade

05-02-2014, 07:16 AM

Whatever happened to the Gauntlet games? I haven't heard of them in years.

Bolivar

05-02-2014, 01:43 PM

The guys who make Magicka are developing the reboot, slated for this summer. Here's hoping it's something special.

05-02-2014, 04:24 PM

THE MIGHTY SUMMNER

Loony BoB

05-02-2014, 04:42 PM

19. Warcraft III
PC, 2002

http://classic.battle.net/war3/images/neutral/screens/screen-troll.jpg

Warcraft III was perhaps balance between RTS and RPG. It was obviously far more the former than the latter, as that is the one and only thing Warcraft should ever be (*cough*), but it had enough RPG elements to make you notice them without actually ruining the gameplay by having too much. I really, really enjoyed this game. The story was entertaining, the tactical aspects not too tricky to lose the fun aspect but also not so simple that they lacked challenge. I really liked all the different race options and enjoyed playing as each of them. I don't think I ever got the expansions played but I hear they were great, too.

I long for a new Warcraft RTS so much. I don't care how much World of Warcraft ruins my biggest Blizzard love, I'll long for the next iteration as long as I have to for it to actually be released. The Warcraft RTS series was golden and I really hope that the next one is out sooner rather than later.

Freya

05-02-2014, 04:47 PM

I love the Warcraft RTSs so much. Like so so much. They are great story telling and fun!

Bolivar

05-02-2014, 05:56 PM

I'm a big fan of the Warcraft RTS' and I think WC3 had probably the best single player component of any game I played in the genre. I can't think of any other where the different faction campaigns build on top of each other serially to tell one game's story (Command & Conquer Generals kinda had it, but it wasn't dependent on a mandatory order). The inclusion of slotted, levelable heroes was a big contribution to the story as well.

Unfortunately, it hurt the game's viability as an RTS. There's already so much to do in competitive matches, the hero aspect was the straw that broke the camel's back. It's probably why the multiplayer AI was so notoriously difficult and WC3's biggest legacy is Dota and the MOBA genre, not what it did for its own genre.

Loony BoB

05-03-2014, 10:58 AM

18. Frog Fractions
PC, 2012

Frog Fractions (http://twinbeard.com/frog-fractions)

I'm not going to say anything other that you should play this without reading anything about it. If you're playing for the first time, I would be delighted if you could record your playthrough and upload it so I can watch.

Quindiana Jones

05-03-2014, 12:06 PM

You had me at "man trying so hard to grow a beard that he accidentally grows two". :love:

Jiro

05-03-2014, 03:44 PM

Frog Fractions is excellent. Did you see he's kickstarting a "sequel"? You should check it out dude.

Pike

05-03-2014, 03:54 PM

Warcraft III was great. Not quite as good as StarCraft Brood War, but still great.

Loony BoB

05-29-2014, 01:18 PM

17. Mass Effect
360, 2007

http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs47/f/2009/221/2/6/Mass_Effect___Wrex_by_aiowa_globetrotter.jpg

I loved the original Mass Effect game more than the others and a lot of people find that weird, but oh well. Sure, the inventory system sucked and perhaps some of the characters in the sequels were better (and notably had some better lines, too), but this game had two things. The first most people will disagree with me over and that is the ability to land on the world in a space buggy (or Mako or whatever it's called) and drive around being dumb and shooting up monkeys, Geth and the like, occasionally stumbling across some random building where you could face an endless stream of Geth within.

Of course, the second thing is a little more in line with what people like, and that's the big man in the image above. Wrex is my favourite character in the Mass Effect series and I was absolutely gutted that we couldn't have him as one of our main characters in the sequels. The guy is brilliant and funny and badass all mixed up into one. I always did favour brute force and high HP in video games, though, so it makes sense that I like him so much.

In general, the ME games were all awesome. I feel, though, that the best story was the first one, the best gameplay was probably the first one and the best character was most definitely playable in the first one. Still... shame about that inventory system. Luckily in the long run it didn't really matter.

Wolf Kanno

05-29-2014, 10:43 PM

I don't think it is weird at all, I like ME1 way more than ME2. Yes characters like Mordin, Thane and Jack were awesome in ME2 but ME1 at least felt like an RPG, even if it was a clunky one. So I would definitely rank this higher than it's sequels.

chionos

05-30-2014, 06:09 PM

Agreed. Not weird at all. The first was the best.

Loony BoB

06-01-2014, 10:08 PM

16. Portal 2
PS3, 2011

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/portal2.png

I still haven't played the original Portal, but you know what? I adore Portal 2. I got it because of the hype that there was from the original combined with a reportedly awesome co-op aspect the sequel had. And oh man, the reports were correct. Danielle and I freaking loved this game and it was every kind of awesome we imagined and then some.

The co-op was a delight for the two of us, possibly the best co-op game we've ever played. Danielle and I really loved it. It was our first experience with GLaDOS and we were laughing all the way through while enjoying a lot of experimenting and investigating in order to get through the various trickeries of the levels.

The single player game was amazing, and had me in fits a lot of the time. I still play back a lot of the videos from time to time, notably the ending video which is a genuinely good song in it's own right. I find myself wondering if they'll be making a Portal 3. I hope so. It's awesome. In the meantime... I suppose I should eventually get around to playing #1. I've heard a lot already but I'm confident it'll have quite a lot of giggles for me that won't have been spoiled already.

Psychotic

06-01-2014, 10:12 PM

SPAAAAAAAAAAACE

I'm in space.

Wolf Kanno

06-01-2014, 10:23 PM

My GF tells me I do a really good Wheatley impression.

Loony BoB

06-01-2014, 10:29 PM

My GF tells me I do a really good Wheatley impression.
When you're trying to do one, or...? :D

Psychotic

06-01-2014, 10:30 PM

Quin does a fantastic Wheatley impression when he's just talking normally.

Pike

06-03-2014, 10:21 AM

You really need to play the original Portal.

Bake yourself a cake, and then don't eat it until you beat the game. (That's what I did)

Ayen

06-03-2014, 11:23 AM

I need to play Portal.

I third liking the original Mass Effect game to the sequels. I just enjoy the story and characters a lot more in the first game.

Quindiana Jones

06-03-2014, 02:14 PM

Quin does a fantastic Wheatley impression when he's just talking normally.

Hullo! :monster:

Loony BoB

06-03-2014, 02:42 PM

15. Warcraft II
PC, 1995

56413

Baa Ram Ewe. My tummy feels funny. That tickles! I've got a flying machine! Oh man, I can hear all of it in my head right now. This game was so much fun, such awesome fun, and it remains my favourite RTS purely down to that. Pure fun. None of this need for anything else that detracts from fun. Easily editable maps that you can easily edit fun things into to make maps more fun than they already were. If you haven't played a map literally full of nothing but sheep and your respective armies, you are missing out.

Do I need to say much more about this game other than that it's the most fun RTS ever? It's perfectly balanced, I suppose, too. Which adds to the fun. The things the characters say, the upgrade/research systems, the critters (did I mention the sheep?), the colourful and simple yet effective graphics. The actually-worth-it naval units. The fun. THE FUUUUN.

Zug zug?

Aulayna

06-03-2014, 03:23 PM

I came into this expecting a trough of disparaging remarks about future Blizzard titles and I was getting ready to :colbert: you into next week. Instead I was pleasantly surprised. :P

Loony BoB

06-03-2014, 03:36 PM

World of Warcraft sux idc about StarCraft why aren't they making Warcraft IV WoW has ruined everything uuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Theeeeere you go.

Aulayna

06-03-2014, 03:54 PM

:colbert:

Pike

06-03-2014, 04:48 PM

I still feel like StarCraft is the stronger RTS title but WCII is very very good.

Loony BoB

06-03-2014, 04:51 PM

I could never get into SC. I don't know if it's the colour, the poorer humour or what. I understand that SC could perhaps be a better tactical thing but that's not what I'm after, I'm after awesome fun and I guess I just feel that WC is more designed towards fun while SC is more designed towards pure strategy or something, dunno.

Skyblade

06-03-2014, 10:03 PM

This game does have a really big flaw: You can't get it anymore! Seriously, how hard would it be to put this up on your website for fifteen dollars, Blizzard?!

I lost my copy long ago, and I can no longer play it.

That said, I still preferred Warcraft III. Because Heroes.

Loony BoB

06-04-2014, 11:21 AM

14. TimeSplitters (series)
PS2, 2000-2005

http://www.gametrailers.com/side-mission/files/2012/11/timesplitters-monkey.jpg

This series was awesome! It includes a great co-op (that covers the entire story, as the best co-op games should), hilarious slapstick, amusing characters, good ol' fashioned FPS gameplay, enjoyable vs. modes, laughs at itself and never takes itself seriously and allows you to laugh at the plot holes instead of criticising them. I haven't played a TimeSplitters game that I haven't enjoyed, and that goes for Danielle, too, my partner in time travel. My favourite is probably Future Perfect, but every one of them was great regardless.

Crytek has done a wonderful thing by endorsing a fan-made remake considering they I really hope TimeSplitters Rewind turns out good, but part of me still wishes that an official game would be released by Crytek someday. It's just too good a series to simply let go. Do that KickStarter, dammit Crytek!

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view7/4341403/timesplitters-o.gif

I'm pretty psyched up now for the next one. My "Top 10" is more of a "Top 13" because from this point onwards my love for the games hits the extremes. There will be another considerable jump between #7 and #6. But man oh man these games. These games!

Ayen

06-04-2014, 01:44 PM

I didn't even know about any of the Warcraft games until World of Warcraft was invented.

WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING WITH MY LIFE?

Quindiana Jones

06-04-2014, 01:47 PM

"You first!"

*creeper stare*

"Okay." *climbs down ladder*

I absolutely love Timesplitters and, like you, Future Perfect is my favourite. So damn good.

Shauna

06-04-2014, 03:23 PM

I didn't even know about any of the Warcraft games until World of Warcraft was invented.

WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING WITH MY LIFE?

:stare:

Loony BoB

06-07-2014, 09:12 AM

13. Journey
PS3, 2012

http://geekrevolt.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/journey-game-screenshot-8.jpg

It's amazing how something so simple can be so groundbreaking. No words, very little interaction, no knowing who you're playing with, just one way to communicate with them. Suddenly, all jerkdom of the modern gaming world is swept away and no person can ruin your game, it is practically impossible for them to do so even though they are right there. The worst they can do is not follow, but then there is no designated leader, so who's to say it is you that is not following in equal measure? The people you have detested in other games can be great travelling partners in this one. You are truly anonymous. So are they.

The gameplay itself is the most simple part of it all. You grow your sash/scarf/ribbon/whatever it is. You jump, you slide, you move, you touch, you soar. If it were not for the other individual or the colours and graphics - which are simple in their own right - this game would be a very, very dull affair. I've gone through long periods of having no other character on my screen and it's a bit demoralising. But in the end you learn to wait for your partner, to search out a new one should they have gone.

This game has feels written all over it. It lives on your emotion, and the emotions are varied. thatgamecompany is a group that every now and then I search out what they're doing next. I can't wait to see how it turns out. I miss them already. I hope many other game companies can learn from them, because emotions should run high when you play a lot of the games out there. It makes it that much better an experience.

radicaledward124

06-07-2014, 09:26 AM

Journey is among my favorite games. I really liked playing with someone i didn't know and couldn't really talk to. It was fun.

Ayen

06-07-2014, 07:20 PM

Not surprised to see Journey on this list, and I haven't even played it.

This is how well I know BoB.

Formalhaut

06-07-2014, 07:22 PM

I should really try and get Journey...

Wolf Kanno

06-07-2014, 07:24 PM

Journey is a fantastic game, though I wasn't as bothered by playing it alone sometimes. Still I agree their handling of multiplayer does get out all of the problems with dealing with other people so bonus points there.

chionos

06-07-2014, 08:19 PM

Yes, a very special game indeed.

Colonel Angus

06-07-2014, 09:36 PM

Interesting list, BoB. Pretty PC heavy.

I dig (pun intended) the screenshot of Dig Dug you used. I never saw that version of the game. Pretty cool.

But I have to :lol:, because it's taken you a year to get to 13.

Wolf Kanno

06-08-2014, 05:36 AM

But I have to :lol:, because it's taken you a year to get to 13.

Yeah BoB, hurry up and finish so I can do my own list. :colbert:

Ayen

06-08-2014, 01:46 PM

#12

Coming: Summer 2016.

Raistlin

06-08-2014, 01:54 PM

If you haven't played a map literally full of nothing but sheep and your respective armies, you are missing out.

...The things the characters say, the upgrade/research systems, the critters (did I mention the sheep?) ...

... and why did you play on a map full of sheep?

Nevermind, we're all probably better off not knowing.

Pete for President

06-08-2014, 10:21 PM

Skyblade

06-08-2014, 10:34 PM

Excelsior is a really fun game. The "Phase One" had me confused though. I never realized that there was a Phase Two. Have you played it? If so, how is it in comparison?

Also, since ToriJ's list is now up, I realize that things might get crowded. So I just want to go ahead and call dibs on the next Top Titles thread, once BoB is finished.

But I have to :lol:, because it's taken you a year to get to 13.

Yeah BoB, hurry up and finish so I can do my own list. :colbert:

Sorry, Wolf. I called dibs quite a while ago.

Ayen

06-08-2014, 11:08 PM

I didn't know we could call dibs.

Wolf Kanno

06-09-2014, 06:08 AM

Yeah BoB, hurry up and finish so I can do my own list. :colbert:

Sorry, Wolf. I called dibs quite a while ago.

56930

NeoCracker

06-09-2014, 06:40 AM

...So why is everyone waiting for BoB to finish? :p

Psychotic

06-09-2014, 06:41 AM

(did I mention the sheep?)You're not doing a very good job of challenging stereotypes.

Also hell yes Timesplitters. Spent hours on Future Perfect. Days. I last remember making a horror map where you played as then England manager Steve McClaren. David Beckham, furious at being dropped from the team, has created a horror mansion designed to exact revenge. Armed with only bricks, can Steve McClaren save the day...?

Wolf Kanno

06-10-2014, 02:33 AM

...So why is everyone waiting for BoB to finish? :p

Being courteous. Besides, I don't even have my list in order, I'm just being an ass about BoB being slow. :wcanoe:

Skyblade

06-10-2014, 01:31 PM

...So why is everyone waiting for BoB to finish? :p

Being courteous. Besides, I don't even have my list in order, I'm just being an ass about BoB being slow. :wcanoe:

Hey, plenty of video games have had longer development time than this list, right? He's still faster than Duke Nukem Forever.

Loony BoB

06-10-2014, 02:14 PM

12. Far Cry 3
PS3, 2012

http://d1vr6n66ssr06c.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/farcry3.jpg

This game has so many awesome moments without going to the point of Uncharted 3's extremes of walking through deserts and magically washing ashore after being left alone in the ocean. It was an incredibly well designed game and takes the trophy for #1 FPS on this list (speaking of trophies, I got the Platinum for this one and it was never boring). Everything was just done right. I was really surprised to notice that nobody ever created a thread for this game in General Gaming, actually. Crazy, because it deserves one. Maybe I'll make one when I next replay it or something. While there are a lot of things I could touch on, I'm going to focus on my main two favourite things.

Firstly, the moments. They clearly knew how to set the tone. There are three moments in particular that stand out without the big bosses of the game being involved: Firstly, the moment you start talking to the locals and they talk back in a thick Maori accent. I was stunned when this happened and was calling Danielle into the room so she could listen. We found it hilarious and awesome. It's probably nothing for people who aren't NZ'ers but for me it was great. Then there was a scene where a Skrillex reggae mix came on when I had to set fire to some crops and it just felt perfect. Finally there was a certain Apocalypse Now piece that perfected another scene.

Second up? Vaas. Vaas is probably my favourite villain in 15 years. He captured my attention from the moment I first saw him (very early in the game, too) and he never, not once, got boring. I don't even know how to describe him. He's... he's insane. Not demented insane, but he's a nutter. He rides the line between "Oh, he's just being evil" and "The guy has lost his head entirely" with perfection. If I were face to face with this guy I would be troutting myself, because I would have no doubts that he would do anything he says he might do, regardless of how absurd it is or how ruthless it is. He is an awesome battrout crazy smurfer and I love him for it.

Colonel Angus

06-10-2014, 11:49 PM

Quindiana Jones

06-11-2014, 12:53 AM

My only qualm with Far Cry 3 was the handholdiness. FC3 with a fully customisable HUD, a la AC4, would have been utterly perfect. :D

Ayen

06-11-2014, 12:56 AM

I never played any of the Far Cry games, but I hear good things.

Wolf Kanno

06-11-2014, 12:57 AM

...So why is everyone waiting for BoB to finish? :p

Being courteous. Besides, I don't even have my list in order, I'm just being an ass about BoB being slow. :wcanoe:
We all know your top 20 are Final Fantasies. :p

You would actually be surprised how few FFs are in my top 20.

I never got around to playing Far Cry 3, largely cause I was never much into FPS games but my GF loved this game and talked about it all the time so I can understand the love it gets based off her own excitement for it.

Quindiana Jones

06-11-2014, 04:52 AM

I would have liked more of Far Cry 2's gameplay in Far Cry 3. The GPS, the watch, oh man. I loved that stuff.

Psychotic

06-11-2014, 10:36 AM

Just gonna leave this here.
Far Cry 3, a lovely open world jungle FPS/RPG hybrid.

The second attempt to capture the base.

My second attempt to capture the enemy base was poetry in motion. I began by scouting out the encampment from a nearby hillock, marking all of the guard's positions and formulated a plan. I crept out of the jungle and lured the guard at the gate away by throwing a rock. As he investigated the noise, I silently approached him from behind and gutted him with my knife. So far, so awesome. :cool:

Now that I was inside, I knew I had to disable the base's alarm systems. If a soldier spotted me, the alarm would be triggered and reinforcements would be summoned to pile further misery on me. The only problem is that it was guarded by two guards standing opposite each other. I couldn't kill one without the other one noticing. I had to be quick. I had recently learned a new skill and decided to try it out. As before, I crept up behind one of the guards and shanked him, but this time while my knife was still inside of him I reached for his and with one smooth motion unsheathed it and hurled it directly at his colleague. Aforementioned colleague had his comrade's knife in his neck before he had time to realise what had happened.

Now, this posed another problem. Sooner or later someone was going to stumble across the second guard's body as it was directly in the middle of the path. Well, may as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb, thought I. I planted a landmine right next to the body, and flitted round the side of the base, scrambling onto a rooftop just in time for the show. "What the smurf?" I heard a guard exclaim in his delightful African accent. "Is that a body?" Just to make sure, he decided to wander over just to check. It was, as he suspected, a body. However he had not anticipated the explosion to the face.

That had done it! The entire base was utterly confused and panicked at the explosion. It was at that point I hurled myself off the building, knife in hand, onto one of the guards. I then took advantage of the confusion by running out into the three of them that remained with my flamethrower blazing. Job done. Base Captured. No Alarms sounded, XP bonus. No detections, XP bonus. Who is the smurfing man? :smug:

You may of course have noticed that this was my second attempt. The first went a little like this.

The first attempt to capture the base.

I began by scouting out the encampment from a nearby hillock, marking all of the guard's positions and formulated a plan. I crept out of the jungle and lured the guard at the gate away by throwing a rock. As he investigated the noise, I silently approached him from behind and gutted him with my knife. So far, so awesome. :cool:

It was at this point that I received a flying kick to the face. It turns out a pair of cassowaries (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassowary) had taken offence to my presence in their patch of jungle and had decided to murder me. Trust me, those things do not smurf about and have massive talons. Needless to say I had not expected this at all and nearly shat myself. I tried to defend myself with the first weapon I had to hand: The flamethrower.

Now, as I'm sure you are aware a flamethrower is not the most subtle of weapons. Nor, too, are Cassowaries the quietest of animals. So as you can imagine, the commotion right outside the base's gates drew some attention. Quite what the guards at the base thought when they saw a crazy white boy running around backwards in circles spewing fire everywhere while shrieking and yelling birds hurled themselves at him I'm not quite sure, but I have a pretty good idea.

I had just managed to defeat the brutes and put myself out (do you know how difficult it is to remain un-ignited when a couple of flaming birds try to rip your throat out in the middle of a rapidly burning jungle? It's not easy!) with a slither of health left, when I turned and looked to see four guards with assault rifles pointed at me. Well, smurf.

Loony BoB

06-12-2014, 01:14 PM

11. Final Fantasy V
SNES, 1998

http://oapboap.org/img/xFF5.126.png.pagespeed.ic.RDPuRqgFA5.png

This game has an average story but I don't care, because everything about it is awesome. It's probably the most light-hearted of the entire series despite there being tragedy thrown in left right and centre that, if done in the style of the newer games would be mortifying. The best character dying, entire cities being thrown into oblivion, the enemy is a tree... wait, what?

The job system made this game. The gameplay of having, what, 20 jobs to pick from? I think that's right. And you can change them between battles and you don't lose experience in other jobs if you change and you can borrow skills and you can max out jobs and the balance is amazing and I don't care what anyone says I just love this job system so hard. Thankfully even if I did care what other people say, most other people agree. It's that good.

Also, this is the only Final Fantasy with Galuf and the only Final Fantasy with Syldra and the only Final Fantasy with a cross dressing pirate (I think it is anyway) and the only Final Fantasy where you can get a lap dance from three dancers at once. Whew!!

Wolf Kanno

06-12-2014, 04:47 PM

the only Final Fantasy where you can get a lap dance from three dancers at once. Whew!!

Cecil Harvey would like to remind everyone that before Bartz got three Lap dances and Cloud Strife hanged out in the light district that he was going to underground burlesque shows getting lap dances from nine ladies at a time. ;)

ser76Qr142c?t=56s

Loony BoB

06-12-2014, 05:09 PM

Ha! I never knew about that. Although I don't know if they actually gave him a lap dance or just performed twirls. With Bartz, they actually jump on his lap and put up a little heart while they "dance" on top of him while he sits down... xD

Ayen

06-12-2014, 10:54 PM

Oh, looky here. A game I played.

Love this game <3

Karifean

06-12-2014, 11:02 PM

Final Fantasy V is all sorts of amazing. It marks the beginning of Gilgamesh, one of the most awesome antagonists in the series. It also falls under my list of FF games that are just downright a lot of fun to play (along with VIII, XII and X-2) and it has probably my second-favorite gameplay in the series.

With this at #11, I'm definitely looking forward to the Top Ten.

Loony BoB

06-13-2014, 04:25 PM

10. Freelancer
PC, 2003

http://i.haymarket.net.au/News/25-best-space-games-ever-freelancer.jpg

Possibly the least "perfect" game in my top 20 or so, but it gets here because it is as fun as any game of this kind has been for me. I love space combat & trade simulators. I love them most when they are properly 3D, have the option of FPS or TPS, allow me to actually do things other than dogfight, allow me to land on worlds, allow me to explore said worlds, have good mining systems, good "research" systems and so forth. Licences! Co-op! And you know what? Freelancer has some of these things! More than any other game of it's kind that doesn't have a steep learning curve (Hi, X series) and can be played without a subscription (Lookin' at you, EVE Online), that's for sure.

Despite not having everything I really really really want, this game is awesomely replayable. I know, because I have been playing it over the past week or so. It's also great for modding, and I'm playing through a mod that does something like double the size of the game's universe, doubles the difficulty, doubles the storyline and doubles the amount of ships and gear you can deal with. And it's going great so far!

I so can't wait for Star Citizen. I'm seriously excited. I haven't been this excited about a game for quite some time, especially for a game that isn't Final Fantasy. I just hope it will meet those expectations! I am struggling to manage them. xD I mean... in an ideal world, EVE Online would have an offline option that doesn't requier a sub and it would have an epic storyline and obviously a more balanced (time-wise) skill tree given it's single player and has no sub. That kind of thing would be the perfect version of these kind of games to me. I'm not sure if it'll ever come out, but I live in hope. I really want to play EVE Online pretty much all the time, but I know that if I do then it's just boring because I have to wait days for each skill (after the initial burst of the smaller ones) and eventually it will extend to weeks and months and perhaps even longer if I play long enough. And that kind of grind isn't something I'm willing to invest in. I just wish I could play the game and experience it without that requirement.

Until then? Freelancer and (soon, I hope!) Star Citizen.

Ayen

06-13-2014, 06:34 PM

And now we're back to games I never heard of. Drawback to not being much of a PC gamer, I guess. The game looks and sounds awesome, though.

Loony BoB

06-14-2014, 05:20 PM

Still a good play today, I gotta say. You know it's a good game when you finish it and start looking for mods to extend the story so you can keep playing more.

9. Final Fantasy VIII
PSX, 1999

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/norg.png

Probably the best gameplay of any of the Final Fantasy games. It had so many fun things to do that were all rather easily accessable and while the difficulty was generally really low, even by Final Fantasy standards (in fact the lowest of the entire series by some distance), there were still some fights that could test an unlevelled party and people have come up with all kinds of challenges that can allow for good replayability. I haven't done any of these - hell, there are a number of things I haven't done in this game.

For me, it was all about maxing out your characters with loads of drawn magic until you reach the point that you can wipe the floor with all the enemies you can take on in The Islaands Closest to Heaven & Hell. Also, getting every one of the junction skills unlocked. Probably more the latter with the former being a method to do just that, to be honest. I'm a bit of a nutter for skills and traits and so forth, so this was right up my alley.

People have a lot to say about how bad the story was and I agree to a large extent (I'm never a fan of time travel or anything like it), yet I feel the romance wasn't as bad as people made it out to be. I mean, I actually miss a bit of romance in my Final Fantasy these days. There was none to speak of in XII and the romances in XIII weren't much to write home about. I could do with a bit more of the ol' PSX generation lurve in my video games.

Triple Triad was another great thing about this game. It's the best minigame in the FF series bar none. I never finished the Card Queen quests but maybe when I replay this game for the fourth or fifth time I'll bother to get around to it. =] Other little bits worth saying are that NORG is one of the most underrated NPCs in FF history and that for me, the Shumi are without question the most interesting and underrated race in FF history. I really wish I could learn more about them.

PS. In before NeoCracker.

Scotty_ffgamer

06-14-2014, 05:26 PM

Glad to see this game so high on the list!

Bubba

06-14-2014, 05:32 PM

Final Fantasy VIII is a superb game. I always say it suffered coming after FFVII which was monumental with the impact it had. It has so many outstanding moments and the FMV at the time of release was ridiculously impressive. There's a reason the intro is still regarded as the best in FF history.

It has moments of weakness sure, but that can be said for every one of the entries. I think it gets a lot of unnecessary hate (see Neocracker's post shortly after mine) but it truly is one of the best games in the series, in my opinion.

Karifean

06-14-2014, 05:41 PM

Ah Final Fantasy VIII. Love it so much. Best gameplay in the series? I disagree. Although it is an exceptionally fun game and Triple Triad definitely is the best minigame in the series, bar none.

If it weren't for your objectively wrong dislike for Final Fantasy X, this list could've been pretty acceptable.

Wolf Kanno

06-14-2014, 05:47 PM

VIII is a flawed but fun game imho. Wouldn't have ranked it higher than FFV but I feel BoB has already established with me that beyond our mutual issues with FFX our taste in FF games couldn't be farther apart (See the lack of FF IV/VI on this list and the inevitable reveal of FFVII being his Number One game) but I can agree that VIII has some good moments that I do feel counter some of it's less desirable elements. Don't necessarily agree with the love story thing, but I rarely like love stories in my video games.

Colonel Angus

06-14-2014, 05:52 PM

I remember VIII being my favorite FF before the PS2 editions came out. I've gotten to play it again recently & it brought back a lot of great memories. Triple Triad is outstanding. I wish I could find it online just to play when I'm bored.

It also has my favorite summon, Diablos. :radred:

BTW, Miss Mae is going to trout the bed when she reads your thoughts on FFXII's romances. #TeamBalthier #TeamFran

Loony BoB

06-14-2014, 06:28 PM

beyond our mutual issues with FFX our taste in FF games couldn't be farther apart (See the lack of FF IV/VI on this list
To be fair, FFIV (like FFIII) is a game I've not included because I need to replay it and actually get further than I did last time around. I remember liking it to some degree, though, so I'm optimistic. FFVI just doesn't do it for me but I think if I had played it on a handheld console in my bedroom when it came out, I'd have enjoyed it a fair chunk more. Instead I've played it on PC and on a PSP on the bus and while I like a lot about the game, it's just not one of my favourites.

BTW, Miss Mae is going to trout the bed when she reads your thoughts on FFXII's romances. #TeamBalthier #TeamFran
I never saw them as romantic, let alone a couple. But I always had suspicions that they were a couple! Just... not romantic at all with each other in the game. :p

Ayen

06-14-2014, 07:08 PM

Damn, VIII made it even higher on this list than it did mine. Though I suppose a two spot difference isn't that much of a gap.

Pumpkin

06-15-2014, 04:03 AM

I like FFVIII a lot :flirt:

I do not, however, like Triple Triad

Loony BoB

06-15-2014, 08:31 AM

8. Civilization IV
PC, 2005

http://forums.civfanatics.com/uploads/7394/Julius_Caesar.JPG

I have spent a lot of time on this game. It'll probably be in the top five games based on time spent on it. I like to play as the Indians, because fast workers never lose their usefulness throughout the entire game, and they can make excellent makeshift scouts too if you're competing for villages during the early stages. The early stages are always the most enjoyable for me, too, because I just love picking up those villages and discovering the best spots to settle as early as possible. The downside of this is that the game gets less interesting for me as it goes on... same with Danielle who usually loses interest once war starts kicking in.

But that's okay, because if we find a game dull we can just start all over again anyway. xD Often it becomes quite obvious that we're going to win and we stop there, too, rather than going the distance. When I'm playing solo, though, I tend to go full out on the world domination stakes. I don't play on the harder difficulties either, because quite frankly I'm not that good at the game despite how much I enjoy it. :(

Civ IV is pretty much the perfection of this kind of game for me. The only thing I still to this day find lacking is that I want to be able to go to space and discover new (alien) races to compete against once I launch my rocketship. I want it to be a kind of progression thing, a bit like Spore kind of got into. Once you are the dominant force in one place, you keep going up and up until you own the universe. :mwahaha: That would be awesome. But this isn't really a criticism of the game, it's more just showing off how I love it so much that when it becomes clear that the end of the game is nearing, I get a little sad about it. That's a compliment if anything!

Pike

06-15-2014, 10:18 AM

This is easily the best Civ game and possibly the best 4X game ever made. Yes, I think it's mechanically more sound than SMAC. It's just that good. And yeah it's my top played game on Steam and I haven't played it in like a year, which should show you how much I used to play it.

Skyblade

06-15-2014, 02:31 PM

BoB, you need to play Master of Orion II. Seriously.

Granted, it's only the space section, as all the planetary part came before the game starts. But it will show you how wrong you are about Civ IV being the "perfect" 4x game. I've never gotten that sort of timed burnout, and mechanically, it is an even better game.

Christmas

06-15-2014, 02:34 PM

Haha, I played this one. I like V much better though. :bigsmile:

I just like to turn everyone into my vassals. :bigsmile:

Loony BoB

06-18-2014, 05:09 PM

7. Chuck Yeager's Air Combat
PC, 1991

http://www.myabandonware.com/media/captures/C/chuck-yeagers-air-combat/chuck-yeagers-air-combat_25.png

This game will not feature on 99.9% (if not a higher percentage) of Top 100 Game lists and I accept that. However, for me, this game dictated my younger gaming years and therefore is dominant in the reason I love video games. It also helped me learn a fair bit about the history of air combat and introduced me to Chuck Yeager himself. :p

This game is both basic and yet very in depth for it's time. It covered most of the more general things you'll get in Air Combat games released these days and allowed you to participate in dogfights from World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. In all instances, you could participate from either side, so that meant you could pick up a MiG just as easily as a McDonnell Douglas (my fave plane was always the Phantom). You could also create your own battles, meaning a score of Spitfires could happily make attempts to shoot down a supersonic jet. In these custom cases I'll openly admit that I would use the cheat options and just get the satisfaction of taking down far more foes than I reasonably should. :D

Anyway, I loved this game like crazy and it's possible that I've played it more than any other given that I would play it regularly for years, possibly as much as all the other games I had combined, before consoles such as the PSX took hold of me.

Ayen

06-18-2014, 07:17 PM

Man, this takes me back to the days of Super Huey II and Fokker.

Dr Unne

06-18-2014, 10:59 PM

Loony BoB

06-18-2014, 11:08 PM

You do indeed black out if you hit enough G's. =]

Loony BoB

06-19-2014, 09:30 AM

6. Football Manager (series)
PC, 2007-2012

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/eofc/season1playerrecords.png

I've only included 2007-2012 because those are the games I've played. "But Daniel, why haven't you played 2013 or 2014? If you love this series so much, shouldn't you be loyal to it and buy all the games?" Well, here's the thing. I have a saves in FM2012 that have over 50 days of gaming on them. Why would I want to give that up? Until they make it so that I can import my save into the newer FM's, I'm not going to buy them every year. I play for the long haul, and right now this is not something I could do if I switched every year (well, unless I gave up on life, love and every other game out there).

I adore this game. It's incredibly well designed and incredibly addictive. In an ideal world, Eyeson F.C. would be continuing to play for a full 90 minutes on certain nights with fully commentary by yours truly of every match. Sadly, I don't think I can get away with that if I want to keep up with other games and, uh, not get divorced. xD But I do hope to bring back Eyeson F.C. into the Let's Play forum this summer, so please nag me about this over time and it'll probably happen. We'll get to the Premier League... eventually!

I don't really know how to sum up my enjoyment for this game, I'm really struggling... It's like when you marathon your favourite TV series. Imagine being able to watch every episode of Game of Thrones - every episode, even the ones that aren't released yet (hell, the ones that aren't made yet) right now. Imagine being able to do that for all three of your favourite new TV series that aren't finished. Getting to watch them for as long as you can dream of watching them. That's what FM is like. You can play for as long as you like and you don't have to wait for the next episode. You don't have to wait for the next match. You can just click a few buttons and progress onto it and play that one, too. This is Football Manager, and it is amazing.

Bubba

06-19-2014, 05:38 PM

I am no longer allowed to play this game. When I was in my teens and early twenties, I was obsessed with these game. I remember leading Juventus to the treble in Championship manager Italia. I have also won the premier league with Rochdale FC. This game is scarily addictive and as such I never play it any more. Lots of fond memories though.

There is that urban myth as well where everyone had a friend who took it way too seriously and used to wear a suit if they got to the FA Cup final.

Psychotic

06-19-2014, 05:56 PM

There is that urban myth as well where everyone had a friend who took it way too seriously and used to wear a suit if they got to the FA Cup final.I have seen numerous people confess to being this persion on the internet.

An Emile Heskey led Millwall winning the Premier League was my finest achievement :)

Loony BoB

07-04-2014, 03:31 PM

Skyblade

07-04-2014, 04:59 PM

I would have updated this by now but I've been too busy playing the game that will take spot #5. :shobon: Will try to get it sorted by the end of the weekend! xD This has now literally taken over a year, despite me intending to finish on day #365. Honeymoons are distracting.

The honeymoon activities are game number five? This is supposed to be family-friendly, BoB!

Besides, I think you'll get in trouble if those aren't number one.

Christmas

07-04-2014, 05:08 PM

6. Football Manager (series)
PC, 2007-2012

http://www.aiyon.com/keke/eofc/season1playerrecords.png

.

Why the hell am I seeing MANUS all over in that pic? You have some sick fetish or something? And he appears to be some soft of top player. :screwy:

Loony BoB

07-05-2014, 08:32 PM

5. The Longest Journey
PC, 1999

http://img.gamefaqs.net/screens/e/6/1/gfs_98512_2_16.jpg

JUST finished this for the second time and loved every bit of it all over again. :D I love the characters and the writing most of all, but the music, the story itself (so long as you're able to handle a bit of tongue in cheek), the art, the puzzles and general gameplay are all great. But the characters! The writing! The voice acting too! These are the things that make this game and I don't think this will be the last time I play the game all the way through.

While April is a great protagonist (and Crow an excellent sidekick), most of the NPCs are all great, from my favourite sarcastic ship captain to a race that that talks in past, present and future tense all at once in peculiar fashion. Little bonuses for finishing the game include hearing some of the bloopers from the voice recordings for the game, which is something I feel is a very novel reward that a lot of games can pick up on.

It's hard to really go into detail beyond that, unfortunately! It's just the great writing, great characters and great voice acting. That's what make an otherwise good game into an absolute great for me, at least in this case. :D

Shauna

07-05-2014, 09:36 PM

I have this ready to play at some point! It's on the list. Like so many of my games. ;_;

Aulayna

07-06-2014, 01:08 AM

I have this ready to play at some point! It's on the list. Like so many of my games. ;_;

Drop everything and play this, now!

Loony BoB

07-06-2014, 07:49 AM

Yes! :D It's worth it.

Jess

07-06-2014, 05:18 PM

How weird, I'm also currently playing this for the second time, after many years. I have no idea how I did some of the puzzles as a child. xD

Loony BoB

07-06-2014, 05:21 PM

Oh man, I know right? The Maerum crystal puzzle and the telephone statue puzzles did my nut in.

Ayen

07-06-2014, 08:57 PM

Loony BoB introduced me to this game and the sequel earlier this year when I was talking about my plans for Women's Month where I reviewed a bunch of games starring strong female protagonists. Time well spent. After playing both games I'm surprised that more people aren't familiar with the franchise.

Loony BoB

07-26-2014, 11:35 PM

Okay so with my honeymoon out of the way I suppose I may as well finish off this list, huh? xD Right.

4. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey
PC, 2006

http://lparchive.org/Dreamfall/Update%2018/dreamfall%202007-07-01%2014-15-11-49.jpg

Dreamfall! Well, if The Longest Journey was going to sit at #5, Dreamfall was always going to be in the top four. Sure, the controls are a bit clunky. Sure, the puzzles are insanely easy compared to the first game, but in the defence of Dreamfall the puzzles in TLJ had me in GameFAQs even when I replayed the thing. The graphics, however, are naturally better, the game is now 3D (third person angle), the story complex and arguably better than the original, the writing equally excellent and the voice acting somehow even better. I love The Longest Journey games and I am massively excited for the final game in the trilogy which is coming out this year.

My favourite character is again Crow, but there are many excellent characters once more - a special shoutout goes to Blind Bob - and it was cool seeing a number of characters from the previous game again, and seeing how life had changed for them. Even the locations! Just really loved the game. And the writer should get hired by Square Enix because he is probably the best in the business.

Apart from, you know, the GIGANTIC EFFING CLIFFHANGER. :stare: DREAMFALL CHAPTERS. COME OUT ALREADY.

Ayen

07-26-2014, 11:41 PM

I'm okay with this.

Loony BoB

07-29-2014, 05:33 PM

3. Slaves to Armok: God of Blood Chapter II: Dwarf Fortress
PC, 2006

Ladies and gentlemen, Spoonproblems has fallen. Iceglow tried to save it and could not, and so I tried to do it instead. I started with 33 Dwarves.

A list of what happened:

The ice had frozen over the entrance so no Dwarf could get out. Demon Dude had destroyed the still too. Therefore they were all dehydrated. I hacked the ice away.
Dignified Pauper and eternal essence can stop gloating as they died of thirst right after DD handed over power. As did the likes of Champagne Supernova, Del Murder, I'm my own MILF, Geniux Lynx, ShlupQuack and Angel Wings 8.
Demon Dude had promoted himself to Sherriff and hacked Red Pill and TrollHunter to death with his woodsman's axe. I deposed him as Sherriff.
The rotting corpses were causing everyone to go mad. The great hall was basically pure purple from the rotting miasma. Every Dwarf was tantruming and stopping.
To counter this I built a morgue which by the end was filled up entirely:
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/morgue.jpg
Demon Dude slashed up Iceglow and SuperMillionaire, hospitalising them. SM is a child and DD hacked a lung out. Yeah. I did not have a Doctor after Quin died so I appointed Furnace Operator Roto13 to the role of Chief Medical Dwarf. He celebrated his appointment by chasing a guinea pig around, kicking it, before lunging at it off the Spoonproblems bridge and into the moat, trapping himself down there. I did not bother to rescue him.
My first ever Fell Mood! :bigsmile:
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/FELLMOOD.jpg
Typical. I got turned into a pair of pants. No exaggeration, she killed me and turned me into a pair of Dwarf Leather Pants.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/MURDER.jpg
Clo went Berserk, beat Leader of Mortals to death and then fought the new Expedition Leader, Rostum. The two killed each other. Iceglow became the new Expedition Leader.
Demon Dude finished what he started and axed the brand new Expedition Leader to death as he lay in his hospital bed. He claimed the title of Expedition Leader for himself; I decided to lock him in the hospital.
Brennan then went berserk and murdered Jessweeee (karma, bitch) and then stalked the great hall, killing various animals. I felt I had no choice but to let Demon Dude out to fight him.
Pike killed Brennan with her pick, but suffered grievous wounds.
Dignified Pauper's ghost appeared out of nowhere and killed rubah.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/dpghost.jpg
lil orphan baby NorthernChaosGod stopped crawling around looking for the bodies of his dead parents and died of thirst. Depressing.
Demon Dude finally went berserk, and killed Lekana. I locked him in the morgue after he chased a Guineacock in there. King of all the Rotting Corpses.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e373/photobucketamazingness/demondudetriumphant.jpg
DK then went berserk and beat Rye and Laddy into a wall. He threw smittenkitten into a wall, slaying her. Then he and BoB went toe-to-toe - BoB being a legendary miner with a pick, DK being a badass fighter. DK killed BoB, but BoB smurfed DK's lungs up with his pick and DK eventually passed out dead.

Population of Spoonproblems at this point:

Roto13, stuck in a ditch.
Pike, unconscious with a broken foot.
SuperMillionaire, child, missing a lung and lying in hospital.
Demon Dude, berserk, locked in a morgue and about to starve.

The Famous Four.

The situation is unrescuable, but completely smurfing hilarious. :lol:

LOSING IS FUN!
Enough said.