Name your top 5 favourite games of all time.

These have been done in the past, but not in a while. There has been many games released since and more on the horizon so how does your old list hold up to know? What are your Top 5 games of all time and why?

5: Super Mario Brothers. This was my first video game that got me into gaming to begin with. For that alone it holds a special place in my heart even though many better games have come since then.

4: Final Fantasy VI: This game took over my life at one point where I played it everyday for years. This was before there were walkthroughs on the Internet and a friend of mine and I would hop on the school bus and share what we had found the night before. It is how games were done back in the day.

3: Breath of Fire II: When I finally put down FFVI I found this gem at a pawn shop with a Prima Games guide for $5 and picked it up. Had a blast playing the game and loved that you could build a town that turned into an airship. The story was great too, and loved the Characters. Loved this game.

2: Chrono Trigger: Do I need to go into much detail on this? This game was a total masterpiece. The story, the timeline, the characters. It is as close to perfect as a game can get. Wish they would do more with this, but glad they didn't totally kill this with a massive franchise.

1: Final Fantasy Tatics: This was my first SRPG, and man did it hook me. The climate in Ivilace, the war, the story. Need I say more? This game is just awesome never found anything I love more yet.

This is is my top 5 and it is what I think is a solid list. What about the rest of you on EoFF? Do people have a hidden gem they love? Or is there a game most hate but you just love? What is your top 5 games of all time?

#1 Umineko no Naku Koro ni
#2 Little Busters!
#3 Tomoyo After -It's a Wonderful Life-
#4 CLANNAD
#5 The Devil on G-string

Nowadays it would probably take until spot 11 or something for a non-VN to make the list.

1. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Solid storytelling, solid gameplay, and those tech quotes, man. I don't know if any other game has ever captivated me in every way quite like this one. This is real science fiction, the likes of which you normally only see in books. Asimov would be proud.

2. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. I have never in ny life played another game with lore this thick and arcane. It's been decades and people are still arguing about it. Oh, and also you're encouraged to break the game and become a god. That's a nifty bonus.

3. Starcraft: Brood War. I still maintain this is the greatest real-time strategy game of all time. I have never played another RTS that manages to maintain such balance while also having the different factions all play completely differently to each other. Just all around brilliant.

4. Dragon Age: Origins. The world, the characters, and the story all combine with old-school Infinity Engine esque gameplay to create possibly the last great traditional CRPG. When Bioware does what they do best (rather than trying to knock off Bethesda) they are really, really talented.

5. Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword: From a technical gameplay standpoint this is the greatest 4X/turn-based strategy of all time. SMAC's atmosphere allows it to edge just above Civ IV but on the merits of sheer gameplay, Civ IV has yet to be topped.

Big fat honorable mentions to Yoshi's Island, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Banjo-Kazooie, Deus Ex, Yars' Revenge, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Warcraft III, Dragon Age 2, and Super Mario RPG.

Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Drakengard E Timeline - Nier
Fabula Nova Crystallis: Final Fantasy XIII Trilogy
The Legend of Zelda Child Timeline - Twilight Princess
Final Fantasy VI | Final Fantasy IX

Planescape: Torment, Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy IX, and Fallout: New Vegas probably.

Deus Ex - Hell smurfing yes give me my cyberpunk dystopia conspiracy thriller.

The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind - Exactly as Pike says, the game's lore and depth is without peer, and though the gameplay isn't up to that of Skyrim's, the mere fact of so much to explore and so many ways to build your character makes up for most of it.

Suikoden II - I really adore this game so much. I replayed it a few months ago and it still holds up, it's still a wonderful, political story with a vast cast of characters, variety, solid JRPG mechanics, atmosphere, and some of the best music in video games.

Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri - This is sci-fi done about as well as it's ever been done. Oh no, I don't mean 'in video games', I mean ever. Despite being a 4X the game is fundamentally about the future of humanity, and every tech, every faction, every wonder, even every building, contributes to this in an unfathomably fantastic way.

Darkest Hour - It's incredibly hard to choose a Paradox title to round out this list, and it also doesn't feel quite right to exclude Civ IV, but looking at my time played in DH I can't really say it's not a game that has captivated me more than almost any other. It looked like trout on release and if you don't like NATO counters, sperging over WW2-era tanks, and worrying about building enough supply ships to keep D-Day in guns and ammo, you probably won't like it. Me, though, I think this game is crack, and I regularly spend weeks playing nothing but campaign after campaign. This is probably the best WW2 strategy sim ever. But then, they haven't made a computer version of Advanced Squad Leader yet ;)

There are so many games I've had to omit here. BG2, Dragon Age Origins, Breath of Fire 3, Sonic 2/3/&Knux, the rest of Paradox's stuff, Dwarf Fortress, SimCity 4, Theme Hospital, uggghhhh how dare you limit me to only five :(

In no particular order since this list shifts a bit except the top two.

Attachment 71917
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Attachment 71918
Mega Man II

Attachment 71919
Final Fantasy VI

Attachment 71920
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Attachment 71921
Chrono Trigger

Honorable Mentions: Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, Persona 3: FES, Mega Man X, Xenogears, Final Fantasy Tactics, Suikoden II, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and Street Fighter II.

1. Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken

2. Final Fantasy IV

3. Majora's Mask

4. Chrono Trigger

5. Smash Bros. Melee

Honorable mentions would be: F-Zero GX, Xenoblade Chronicles, Final Fantasy XV, Ocarina of Time and Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.

1. Final Fantasy IX
2. Majora's Mask
3. Final Fantasy VIII
4. TBD
5. TBD

Oh this is difficult. Like, really difficult. I don't play games I didn't like (in fact, I can't remember a game I regretted playing), so pretty much every game series is a contender.

Uuuuuugh. In a rough order (which shifts around a lot). Okay, here:

5) Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies

In deciding my favourite Phoenix Wright game, it was more of a process of elimination. it wasn't the first one. It wasn't the second one. It wasn't the fourth one. There was three contenders. Spirit of Justice is very solid, but it had to reduce the role of Athena to fit in character development for others. Dual Destinies is a fantastic soft-reboot of the series and introduces a fun mechanic in psychoanalysis, a new character to coincide with that, and a gripping overall arc. Trials and Tribulations meanwhile very neatly wraps up the original trilogy.

Tricky, but I'll give it to the newer game. Dual Destinies had much riding on it after Apollo Justice, and I think it delivered.

4) Final Fantasy XII

I was trying to think of my favourite Final Fantasy game. Surprisingly, it was a toss-up between FFVII, FFXII and FFX-2. While FFX-2 is fun, the story is admittedly ropey and secondary to the astoundingly good gameplay. FFVII had a better story, but suffered from a dodgy middle-half, a few plot clunks and minor characterisation issues. Still, it was a fantastic example of world-building, especially in Midgar.

FFXII had very good gameplay throughout, interesting game mechanics, and a great hunt system. The story is subtle, and while I wish there was more cutscenes to flesh out some more actors (Drace was criminally underused), what was there was interesting. Still wish Penelo got something, though. Overall though, I think I can just about give it to FFXII.

With FFXII: TZA coming out soon, it might bump up a place.

3) The Sims 3

I had so many good memories making characters and families in this game. Not enough gay characters in video games? That's fine! Just make up a gay family and subvert that. It really drained my laptop which was punching about its weight to play it, but the expansions I could manage provided much entertainment. From going to University, climbing a career ladder, to just relaxing at home with friends, it is the perfect game to escape the real world and hang out in virtual bliss.

Seriously though, who kills their Sims? Monsters.

2) Mass Effect 3

A game so loaded with pathos the ending (which I personally like) still gets me everytime. What really bumps this game up the list though is that it comes at the end of a story, a story you've had with Shepard across three games, with all the characters you've made friends with over the years. Popular companions Garrus, Tali, Liara, Wrex and all the others come together and - especially in the amazing Citadel - provide an entertaining, deeply personal final adventure through the Milky Way Galaxy.

Oh and the combat is refined from the past two games.

1) Persona 4: Golden

The clue is in the title really. Persona 4: Golden is probably the most complete package of a game I could hope for. The characters, and the bonds between them, really make the game. Living life in Inaba, listening to people's concerns and helping them through their troubles, is what I play games for. The gameplay is improved over previous Persona entries, but honestly this isn't about the gameplay. The theme is so optimistic, so uplifting, I always think on this game with a smile.

Though Persona 5 might very well displace P4G when I come to play it.

Sixth place would probably go to Dragon Age: Inquisition, but each Dragon Age game is good but with one flaw that keeps it from achieving greatness. As a series however, it is top tier. Other mentions are FFX-2 and PW: T&T.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Pike

possibly the last great traditional CRPG.

---

=/

There are plenty of good and even great CRPGs post-DAO (which is an all-time great, yes). I assume Wasteland 2, Tides of Numenera, and Pillars of Eternity are probably good (but I haven't made it to them), I know Divinity:OS is another all-time great.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Spuuky

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Pike

possibly the last great traditional CRPG.

---

=/

There are plenty of good and even great CRPGs post-DAO (which is an all-time great, yes). I assume Wasteland 2, Tides of Numenera, and Pillars of Eternity are probably good (but I haven't made it to them), I know Divinity:OS is another all-time great.

---

Okay Pillars of Eternity was really good yeah. I guess what I meant was, the last great traditional CRPG that was sort of... still pushing the borders of the genre without completely breaking outside the box yet. PoE was great but it felt sort of conservative to me in the sense that it was staying very close to BG2 (nothing wrong with that of course.) I haven't played the others yet.

In no particular order:

Dark Souls - immaculate level design, great atmosphere, great combat, the best "action game" I've ever played. One underappreciated element of the game, I think, is that it has restraint where restraint is needed. Plenty has been said about this game even on this forum.

The Talos Principle - this game was basically made for me; the design is clean and elegant, it is wordy but not in a way that gets in the way, and I think no one quite understands the themes of sin and obedience exactly the same way someone who was raised Catholic and has fallen from grace does. Helps that the puzzles are also great; basically the "serious" version of Portal.

Gothic 2 - yes, I know none of you have ever played it or ever will, but this series was better than the Elder Scrolls at Elder Scrolls things, before it went off the rails later. An open-world, meaningful-choice game with true freedom to explore while still being deeply hand-crafted is a good combination for me. Hasn't aged the best, but not everything can.

Divinity: Original Sin - none of those first three are turn-based; I think this is the best turn-based combat system I've played. So much you can do, and so many and varied places to do it. And I love truly open games, and I love games that make no attempt to hold your hand in figuring things out. But really, the combat, especially on the highest difficulty; environmental manipulation is something a lot more games could benefit from.

Final Fantasy 6 - the exemplar of its genre; great characters, music, vastness, etc, and just the right mix of seriousness and levity. Maybe the best visual game of the old sprite graphics, before it went dormant for a decade or two and was revived in indie games. And yes, I like it more than CT in that regard, even though CT is obviously great as well.

Honorable mentions to all the other games in those series, Xeno-stuff, Portal, various Dragon Quests and CTs and Lufias and Earthbounds and such, Fallout 2 and NV, Dragon Age, Sleeping Dogs, Mutant League Football, Deus Ex in most of its incarnations, DotA, Diablo 2, all the games of my youth, and millions of other games which I forgot to specifically mention

5) Super Mario Bros. 3

I had to include a Mario game on here somewhere. They are such a big reason as to why I love computer games. I honestly can't think of a bad Mario game that I have played. It's just pure fun.

It was a close call between this and Super Mario World. The fact that this was released on the NES and still they managed to make such a deep and challenging game is incredible. The introduction of the ability to fly was a game-changer. Plus you had the frog suit, hammer suit, tanooki suit and shed loads of secrets to find. Plus, the extra challenge in this game gives it the edge of its SNES successor.

4) Shadow of the Colossus

I never played it on the PS2 and only discovered this gem on the PS3 remaster. Most video games I play for fun but the truly special ones make you feel different emotions. This was one of those games.

I was in awe at the size of the colossi and the fact that you were only armed with a sword, a bow and arrow and a horse made each one a puzzle. Taking down a colossus gave you such a strange mix of satisfaction and sadness that is truly unique in gaming, I think. Bleak and beautiful, it sticks in the memory long after you've finished it.

3) The Last of Us

Moved video games forward about ten years. So many outstanding aspects. The story is perfectly paced, the character growth is phenomenal as is the voice acting. It plays fantastically too. I've been so tense playing a game before and the clickers... that noise. Man...

I didn't actually want them to do a sequel but as soon as it was announced I was all over it. Looking forward to being back in that world again because as bleak as it was... damn, I miss it.

2) The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

I got the game for my eleventh birthday and still clearly remember booting it up before going to school that day. Link woke up, his Uncle had left the house, it was raining, I went snooping round the castle and uncovered a secret entrance underneath the castle. I had to stop there but it was all I could think about all day at school.

This was my first ever Zelda experience and it's just a perfectly designed game. You can literally walk from one side of the map to the other in two minutes but they packed so much into such a small space it was incredible. Zelda dungeons and puzzles have been done better in subsequent games but they were still amazing at the time. This game takes me back to being eleven years old every time I play it.

1) Final Fantasy VII

Obviously steeped in nostalgia too, this game is just magical for me. I played it on release in 1997 and the FMV just blew me away at the time. I was not long from my SNES days so seeing that level of quality was stunning. Great characters, great story (despite some pretty big flaws) and a memorable villain. Also, the materia system was fantastic.

It seems every time I play it I notice something new. I recently completed a 100% run on the game and I discovered so much more about it nearly 20 years after its release. Like I said, magical.

Digital Devil Saga
Digimon World
Wind Waker
Final Fantasy V
Crono Trigger

These are all games I've played multiple times and will play more still.

One per series, no particular order

Xenoblade Chronicles

https://assets.vg247.com/current//20...ronicles_x.jpg

Silent Hill 2

http://cdn2us.denofgeek.com/sites/de...?itok=UeYIWJ9w

Baldur's Gate (both games)

http://megagames.com/sites/default/f...ed-Edition.jpg

Persona 3

http://www.siliconera.com/wordpress/...rth__thumb.jpg

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

http://ilarge.lisimg.com/image/26158...ce-artwork.jpg

I haven't played most of the games in my top 5 in a while due to money issues so I'll hold off on writing about them until I get the opportunity to replay them.