Top 75 games: A list by sharky & shion

[Pumpkin]

We were going to do this every two days (next one tomorrow) but I will be away from my laptop all day tomorrow so this one is early. I also apologize for how one sided this one is :P.

65. Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2
FFTA2.jpg
Relese Date: NA June 2008
Platform: Nintendo DS

I played this game before Tactics Advance and I have to say, I very much enjoyed it. I enjoyed finding missions at the pub and earning the prizes and also having different characters and different races in different roles.The characters and the story however were not very memorable for me. It was also not as serious of a game as I was expecting after having played Tactics, but it was a fun little game to play on my down time.

64. Mario Tennis
mario tennis.jpg
Release Date: NA August 2000
Platforms: Nintendo 64, GameBoy Color(2001), Virtual Console(2010)

Mario Tennis was one of the first N64 games I played when I was a little girl and still getting used to using a controller. I was awful at it at first. Then due to some moving, I lost the game. When I went back and played it a few years later after becoming familiar with a controller, this game was a lot of fun for me. My character of choice was Daisy. The game was a good fun activity and the 4 players just added to the fun. If I find the game again and have some extra money, I would be more than happy to get it, although I should probably play some more actual tennis instead.

63. Pokemon Snap
pokemon snap.jpg
Release Date: NA June 1999
Platfroms: Nintendo 64, Virtual Console (2007)

This game was not long, or complicated, but it was fun none the less. I enjoy taking pictures, I enjoy Pokemon, and sometimes I just need a quick fun cheer me up game. Gaining new things like the flute and what have you gave reason to go back and redo some of the levels. The photo album option was cute. Most of all I enjoyed watching this fictional creatures roam about and taking pictures of their adorableness. I remember gathering a big pack of Charmanders all making the happy face and it was adorable. This is a cute, fun, silly game to play on a day that needs a pick-me-up.

62. Final Fantasy X-2
FFX-2.jpg
Release Date: 2003
Platforms: Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Playstation Vita

Hey, I know. Let’s make a Final Fantasy X sequel, and give it a Charlie’s Angels theme. Brilliant! This is not a good storyline. I really expected to see Tom Green show up, and the cinematic bits with the J-pop concerts were atrocious. They took the distinguished high summoner and gave her daisy dukes and twin Beretta's strapped on her hips. Be that as it may, the graphics were very well done for PS2, some music was great (other music was horrible, making the overall result average), and it was not a rehash of FFX. While of course it was the same ol’ Spira many new enemy designs were present, and most importantly the battle system was really great. I mean really great. It brought back the job classes (dress spheres), and I love job classes. Once you turned on the option to skip the stupid Sailor Moon transformation sequence for every time they switched spheres, and learned to block out the inane banter during fights, it was enjoyable.
I liked the idea of Missions, and the ability to basically fly anywhere and access any part of Spira at anytime. This FF took on a decidedly lighthearted feel, and while that made many of the Missions feel quite silly, and sometimes it made the game quite cheesy, I liked that too. I didn’t like the story much, and I didn’t like most characters. So what made me like this game? It was the kick ass dress sphere/job system, the carefree attitude, and the triumphant return of the ATB system. It was enough to make me beat the game. Twice! Why couldn’t they have put those aspects in FF10 to make one great game?

Some moments of this game were absolutely cringe worthy (the massage scene, the dressphere changes, anytime Yuna sings), but some of it was actual fun. The battle system is in my opinion the best in the series. If they had put the battle system and ability system in Final Fantasy X, it would be an excellent game. A lot of the “Missions” were annoying, but some, like the Highroad mystery, were actually quite enjoyable. As dumb as most of the story (and characters) is, I have played this game more than once and I will continue to play it. It was a lot of fun.

61. Xenosaga Episode II
xenosaga II.jpg
Release Date: February 2005
Platform: Playstation 2

Xenosaga Episode II is the weakest in the series. The drastic change in characters looks had upset me and so did the drastic change in the battle system. It went from complex to overly simple. The story took a turn and mostly became a side story for Jr., Albedo, and the U.R.T.V.'s as well as some stuff about Old Miltia. I can see why fans were disappointed, but to me it was still an enjoyable game. I thought the story between Jr. And Albedo was actually very interesting. Most of the game wasn't even necessary to the series, but it did help dive further into the back story and that was okay with me.

[Slothy]

Pokemon Snap really is better than a game that's a Pokemon photo safari had any business being.

[Pumpkin]

Yes. Yes it is. I'll be playing it this weekend and hopefully sharky will stop eye rolling at it's mention because he is convinced it shouldn't be it's own game and should just be a mini-game

[Slothy]

Sharky is objectively wrong and Pokemon Snap is amazing.

[Pike]

Sharky is objectively wrong and Pokemon Snap is amazing.

Agreed. If they remade it on WiiU and used that monitor-controller thing as the camera I would buy a WiiU for that alone.

[Pumpkin]

To be fair he has never actually seen the game played or played it himself. There is still a chance for redemption.

(Also he bought me the game and is buying me an N64 for Mother's Day, so as wrong as he may be about Pokemon Snap, I am still very grateful )

[Snakz92]

Pleaseputwildarms
Pleaseputwildarms
Pleaseputwildarms

[sharkythesharkdogg]

[Forsaken Lover]

"1000 Words" was a beautiful scene so I don't mind Yuna singing. Also I wouldn't put Xenosaga II on my Top Anything List except maybe Most Disappointing Game Ever.

Here's hoping Episode 1 is in your top 10-20.

[chionos]

Way too much Pokemon already and you're only 1/5 of the way through the list. Good gravy.

It's interesting to see how some gameplay elements can make an otherwise terrible game into something respectable. e.g. X-2 being on this list despite its admitted shortcomings.

[sharkythesharkdogg]

We've both observed how there are games we would not have on our individual lists that wound up on a joint list. That's part of the fun. There's a few games I reviewed because I played them, but not because I wanted them on the list, and vice versa.

Just wait until you get to shion's review of FFVII.

Yes, for me gameplay can smooth out or over shadow a lot of faults.

[Pumpkin]

Way too much Pokemon already and you're only 1/5 of the way through the list. Good gravy.

Too bad. There's still one more on there. Deal with it.

[Raistlin]

... Final Fantasy X-2 ranked above FFXII and Suikoden IV?

And here I thought you two couldn't be as crazy as Cracker.

[chionos]

... Final Fantasy X-2 ranked above FFXII and Suikoden IV?

And here I thought you two couldn't be as crazy as Cracker.

We're getting their craziness combined. As you know Raist, craziness is multiplicative. So even if Cracker's at like a 95, and Shion's a 47 and Sharky's a 46 (which in sum is 93), by their forces combined they're like a 4162 on the craziness scale and that trout's up there somewhere between HC and PG range.

[Quindiana Jones]

That's not quite how it works, chionos. When combining craziness, the individual crazies are added together, then multiplied by the number of people contributing. They're closer to 186, which is almost as high as Loony BoB.