Lurker > CasanovaZelos

#52. Red Dead Redemption (2010)
Developed by Rockstar San Diego

I have previously observed that Red Dead Redemption feels like the serious counterpart to Rockstars Grand Theft Auto franchise. Where the sequel pushed realism to the point of artistic absurdity, the first game manages to feel like a more mature experience while also maintaining the chaotic freedom of a sandbox game. The original Red Dead Redemption is simply Rockstars formula in its greatest form.

John Marston is one of their more compelling protagonists, a flawed man with a torrid history trying to escape a criminal world which keeps pulling him back in. Part of his appeal is simply due to genre any point GTA tries to make can be lost in its overwhelming violence. These mass shootouts are simply the nature of the western genre, which helps make Marston more relatable. His position in the narrative helps establish sympathy he is being forced into this macabre role by the government at the threat of losing his family. Theres a sense of fatalism which permeates this entire experience.

A big selling point of open world games is their massive maps. These worlds have only gotten bigger with time, but some games really lack proper emphasis. I dont believe any open world game has had a stronger moment than the first time you cross the border into Mexico in Red Dead Redemption. Seeing the map suddenly expand beyond what you initially imagined was mind-blowing, and setting this to a gentle ballad by Jose Gonzalez sets a perfect mood. This is how you make each section of a map feel meaningful.

The controls in Rockstar games tend to feel a bit wonky, but RDR reached a high point without all the extra baggage of their later works. The Dead Eye mechanic was an ingenious system to implement in a style which until then had struggled with fluid shooting mechanics. Additionally, riding horses through the desert simply feels more engaging than holding down the gas button and breezing through a modern city. While Liberty City might offer more scenery, I greatly prefer not having to play a pedestrian dodging game every time I need to get from point A to point B.

Like every other Rockstar game, the missions are a grab bag of stray ideas. While there may be few which stick out among the pack, the simple fact is that the gameplay in RDR is so much better than their other games that these are a consistently strong experience.

The finale is Rockstars most emotionally resonant moment. Marston achieves everything to be reunited with his family. But in true Western fashion, nothing ever comes easy. Its important that Red Dead Redemption is not set at the height of the Wild West but during its final breaths. Like Eastwoods Unforgiven, this is the story of people being bluntly erased from a changing world. Many games have unwinnable fights, but the way this finale slowly builds toward Marstons acceptance of this fate is unforgettable. After sending his family off to safety, Marston steps out and faces an entire firing squad. The game naturally goes into Dead Eye, a mechanic which until this point has given the sense of being superhuman. But its simply not enough against such a large crowd. Theres a reason Red Dead Redemption 2 had to be a prequel when Marston goes out gun blazing, the Wild West dies with him.

Games will keep evolving technologically with time, and Red Dead Redemption 2 has pushed limits like few others. But technical complexity only does so much for an artistic experience; the original Red Dead Redemption simply does more with less. No other game has both captured and expanded upon the atmosphere of a spaghetti Western in this way. If RDR2 is a video game explicitly attempting high art, then RDR1 is a perfect slice of the type of genre fiction which drew us all into the medium in the first place.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#53. Overwatch (2016)
Developed by Blizzard Entertainment

The danger of writing about online-only games which are constantly evolving is that the game I experienced and placed among the all-time greats might no longer exist. Blizzard are certainly capable of fumbling a good experience, and the last time I checked out Overwatch presented a much-needed balance fix which also ballooned the wait time for matches. As such, the quality varies at any given time.

But what Overwatch manages at its core is an evolution of the team-based shooter. Like Team Fortress 2, Overwatch features a large cast each filling a distinct role. Overwatchs is much larger, with each character placed in a very specific niche thus, theres a bit more focus on choosing the right character for the team.

What sets Overwatch apart is its heavier focus on support and tank classes there might be twice as many DPS classes, but its several healers certainly outpace TF2s rather limited medic. Mercy takes on the medics basic function, healing allies with a continual beam while boasting key abilities to zip around the map to dive in and out of safety. But if thats not your style, Lucio zooms around with the ability to both heal everyone in his presence and also boost their speed all while being free to get in a few blasts himself. Ana is a healing sniper, able to heal in huge bursts from a great distance. My favorite, Moira, throws balls of energy which can offer either continual healing to teammates in range or sap health from enemies. Her playstyle forces her onto the frontlines, as her basic healing ability is directly linked to her damage output. The tanks are just as varied. Playing supporting classes in other games can sometimes feel like playing a necessary but unwanted part, but I actually find playing support in Overwatch an absolute blast.

While Team Fortress 2 eventually added various weapons for each class, I actually prefer the lack of options within each character in Overwatch. Every Soldier: 76 you face has the same capabilities, so its easy to look at the current teams and immediately know what youre facing. Despite the ease of comparison, this helps differentiate these two classic games TF2 maintains a greater focus on pure skill, while Overwatch puts an emphasis on adaptation. Overwatch feels more like a strategy-FPS hybrid than a traditional shooter. So, as someone who has never cared too much about the shooting aspect of FPS games, it should be clear why I prefer Overwatch.

Despite its ever-expanding roster, I think the true aesthetic highlight is the games various maps. Places like Kings Row and Eichenwalde ooze with personality. While a few assault maps are a bit too chokepoint-heavy, the rest of the maps tend to be great (especially on competitive, where you play both sides and simply have to get further than the opposing team). Even during a particularly bad round, each map takes just the right amount of time.

Ive never been the biggest fans of multiplayer games, especially in my adult life, so its surprising something like Overwatch gripped me like few others. Theres simply something charming about its aesthetics and limited variety. Honestly, my main reason for avoiding multiplayer video games is how much focus the industry puts on the FPS genre I switched to board games because they offer more variety. Overwatch is yet another shooter, but its emphasis on teamwork and strategy while offering classes which operate outside traditional FPS controls makes it infinitely more accessible.

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Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Here's my GotY 2003



#54. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2003)
Developed by Nintendo EAD

The Wind Waker apparently was a controversial game when released. Dropping an aesthetic established in two medium-defining games and replacing it with colorful cel-shading was a bold move. For a perfect example of the backlash, the only year Link legitimately lost one of the many GameFAQs character popularity contests was 2003, when the picture for the match featured Wind Waker Link against Cloud Strifes new and improved Kingdom Hearts model.

As someone who really started gaming during the Gamecube era, Wind Waker was actually my introduction to the Zelda series. The backlash has certainly died down in the ensuing years, and for very good reason. With early 3D video games, a stylistic art style trumps realistic graphics. The Wind Waker still holds up where many of its contemporaries now look dated. If I have repeatedly praised Nintendo for this feat, it is only because their dedication to making their games actually hold up visually was surprisingly uncommon. The Wind Waker has a charm like few others, and its colorful nature actually heightens the darker moments.

While Wind Wakers ocean can feel a bit empty (it is an ocean, after all), I always enjoyed weaving my way through uncharted waters while moving to the next destination. Theres a sense of mystery behind this design, and knowing each square of the map has to contain something worthwhile gives a purpose to this exploration. This barren world in contrast to the open plains of Ocarina of Time also heightens the stakes; how could the world be left in such a state?

While each Zelda game since Ocarina of Time has had its own unique gimmick (barring Twilight Princess, which essentially operates as OoT 2.0), Wind Waker is one of the few to capture its own unique presentation while perfectly incorporating Ocarina of Times sense of progression. Each of the central dungeons have their own distinct appeal. Dragon Roost Cavern and Forbidden Woods both have a grand sense of scale which is then outsized by the even grander Tower of the Gods. The Earth and Water Temples make great use of Links allies.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is in an odd position where most of its exceptional qualities are outdone by other installments in its series. The fact it still manages to be an all-time classic simply showcases the quality of Zeldas basic formula. The dungeons might not compare to Ocarina of Time, the world certainly isnt as expansive as Breath of the Wild, and the ocean gimmick doesnt match the impact of Majoras Masks three day cycle. But Wind Waker consistently displays all of the key elements in a surprisingly disparate series. If I had to suggest one game to truly capture the spirit of The Legend of Zelda in its entirety, The Wind Waker would be at the top of my list.

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Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Bowl of popcorn??

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#55. Hotline Miami (2012)
Developed by Dennaton Games

A brutally difficult top-down shooter with a narrative and atmosphere yanked straight from a David Lynch film, Hotline Miami is a game like few others. The story revolves around Jacket, a silent hitman who dons animal masks before slaughtering his targets. What starts as a traditional video game set-up quickly unravels once it becomes clear Jackets silent acceptance of these demands speaks to an unspoken trauma.

The visual presentation is consistently trippy, with Jacket repeatedly confronted by masked figures commenting on his actions. Are these people somehow involved, or are they even people at all? The fact Jacket wears these masks suggests they might be his own hallucinations. Colors flash along the edge of the screen with every kill, and later chapters mess around with ideas like having the entire screen twist to simulate dizziness. The soundtrack consists of frenetic electronic songs which only adds to the hallucinatory experience.

The gameplay is highly addictive. While challenging, the levels are quick enough to never be frustrating. With each of Jackets masks offering different advantages, there are tons of ways to tackle each stage. My preference is to sneak around and melee everyone I can; guns can be quicker, but they can also draw bigger crowds. Jacket is as fragile as any enemy, so every encounter is tense, especially once the game starts mixing in guard dogs and portly men who are immune to melee damage and can survive a few shots. Instead of having an inventory system, Jacket simply uses whatever is available. This tends to force the player to fight their way up to the better weapons.

Horror in video games can come about in many ways. The traditional survival horror genre goes for the obvious with a protagonist facing off against evil creatures. Hotline Miami is one of a rare class which goes for dissonance between player and character. Playing as Jacket feels wrong, but the experience is so strong that youre going to continue, even as the world collapses around him. While video games have been established as a medium for interactive narratives, few games realize the potential for discomfort by only offering the protagonist the wrong path. Where such a story in any other medium would likely be an emotionally distant character study, Hotline Miami forces you to play along in a psychopaths sadistic game.

Short and to the point, Hotline Miami mixes together chaotic gameplay, a soundtrack consisting of nothing but hypnotic bangers, and a dizzying narrative into one unforgettable experience.

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Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#56. Persona 3 (2007)
Developed by Atlus

Atluss Persona series, starting with 3, mixes a ton of disparate elements into a surprisingly effective package. Persona 3 is the simplest take on the formula, but that simplicity has helped keep it distinct from its sequels. Where 4 and 5 weave intricate plots throughout the massive length, 3 feels more episodic. This allows the social element to feel more centralized.

The selling point of Persona is the way it mixes classic JRPG elements with the visual novel. Set over the better part of an in-game year, each day gives you time to do only a few things. The main character has just started at a new high school, where hes dragged into a group fighting Shadows which invade the city during certain times. At the center of all this is a massive tower which the player must climb over the course of the 80+ hour game.

As a teenager, a social life is also necessary. Throughout Persona 3, you will meet characters corresponding to tarot cards. The player can summon his own personas with those labels, and improving relationships with these characters makes his personas stronger. These connections are a necessity fresh personas tend to be under-leveled, but the experience boost from a strong bond gives a powerful edge.

Thus, the game is all about balancing time between building those bonds and conquering that tower with little direct guidance. The game suggests reaching a certain floor by certain points in the story, but its up to the player to find the time. Unfortunately, party members will grow tired over time, limiting how much you can explore during a single in-game day. Though this game is massive, time is always limited unless you follow a guide, you will simply have to ignore some social links. Though well-integrated into the gameplay, these social links are also well written and serve to better emphasize the setting outside of the party members.

Something which has always intrigued me about Persona is how it manages to capture the feeling of an epic without necessarily being one. Despite its size, the majority of Persona 3 feels like a slice of life story which gets repeatedly invaded. Though plenty prefer the stronger narrative presence in the later games, Persona 3 lends itself to a more laidback experience. By breaking the experience into daily activities, its a story which is easy to take in pieces or if youre really engaged, it can have the same effect as the Civilization series. Ive definitely found myself promising to only play one more day, with the longer dungeon sequences being a nice reminder to take a break after that day turns into a week.

As with the mainline Shin Megami Tensei games, the Persona series has its own strong combat engine compared to other JRPGs. While a bit simpler than Nocturnes turn press system, the one more system still emphasizes the need to hit weaknesses. In this system, each character acts separately, and they can chain together multiple hits if they keep hitting weaknesses. The main character might be well-equipped to hit whatever weak point is present, but thats where the time mechanic becomes essential. Magic costs SP, and SP generally only recovers once you rest for the day. This forces a heavy focus on resource management during each trip the last thing you want is to use more days than necessary to climb Tartarus. You need that time for social links!

While the overarching narrative remains in the background throughout most of the second act, the finale hits hard. Throughout most of the game, why youre stuck fighting these shadows is a mystery. The finale goes to some heavy places, a perfect payoff for such a long journey.

It would be careless of me not to mention the soundtrack. From the soothing Velvet Room piece which serves as a series staple to the J-pop bops scattered throughout the cities and battles down to the dark ambience of key revelations, everything here stands on its own while perfectly adding to the games modern atmosphere. The highlight is The Battle for Everyones Souls, which plays during one of the final battles. Starting with heavy metal guitars, the song soon gives way to the Velvet Room vocals. These two disparate sounds are seamlessly mixed together and help make this one of gamings most unforgettable final bosses. The guitars reinforce this difficult battle, while the serene vocals serves as a reminder of how far youve come with these people. Another highlight is the tragic yet empowering Memories of You which plays over the credits. The fact both of these come from the ending reinforce the fact this game simply gets better as it goes and it starts pretty strong!

Persona 3 helped establish one of gamings best formulas. The year-round social mechanics sets a perfect stage to really get attached to the characters while also serving a gameplay purpose. Like any other Shin Megami Tensei game, this is a JRPG which provides a legitimate challenge. Plenty of games mix genres to varying degrees of success, but few match how Persona 3 uses elements of the visual novel to add weight to its procedurally generated dungeon crawler.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

This is not my first time playing but I finally got past the part where I stopped during my first playthrough (I got too busy with college back then), am I allowed inside now?

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#57. Dark Souls III (2016)
Developed by FromSoftware

The strength of FromSoftwares output over the last decade is how much they switched up combat over each iteration while maintaining the same foreboding world-building. The basic mechanics remain largely the same, but the change in feel between Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Dark Souls III, and Sekiro is distinct enough for each to stand apart.

Dark Souls III feels like a halfway point between Dark Souls methodical enemy design and Bloodbornes ceaseless assaults. Where the first could be conquered largely by going slow and steady, Dark Souls III requires constant but careful aggression. While I tend to prefer the two extremes of those earlier games, Dark Souls III uses this new system to craft some of the greatest boss fights in the series.

But what makes these boss fights so great goes beyond the mechanics alone. While losing some of the original games intricate connections, Dark Souls III makes up for it by expanding the scope of each individual location. Many of the connections in the first game felt like neat reminders that all of its areas were surprisingly close. Here, the shortcuts are a necessity. Soulsborne games are all about the checkpoint-to-boss run. The game rewards exploration by cutting many of those paths shorter. What makes this world design so great is mechanically simple many central bonfires have a few exits, but all but the first remain locked until you progress. By seeing a locked door, the game is providing an unspoken hint your next stop likely involves finding your way back to the same point from the other direction. This really emphasizes the bosses as the grand finale of the entire location instead of just the third or fourth checkpoint. They might send you back to the beginning, but the beginning is rarely that far if youve earned it.

Despite the extravagant presentation of these locations, subtlety is the key. These games are constantly teaching the player what to expect while relying on us picking up the pieces. Its never holding the players hand, but its rarely dropping the player into uncharted territory.

Games which are challenging purely to be challenging rarely click with me, but the best Soulsborne games always feel like theyre teaching me something new with each death which is actually why I tend to prefer the runs between bosses to the bosses themselves. While you may die a few dozen times, theres rarely a point while exploring where youll feel as if youre not making progress. Most bosses are simply asking the player to use their skills to the best of their abilities, which is common enough in most video games. If youre not particularly good at a certain boss, it can devolve into a repetitive and hopeless battle. Some enjoy the thrill of overcoming these odds, but certain moments can feel like distinct blockades from what I truly enjoy about the genre.

But what makes the Soulsborne games so surprisingly accessible (sans Sekiro, which doesnt actually fall into the genre but is still related and feels like a serious step down for this and a variety of other reasons) are the options provided to mitigate this difficulty. These are RPGs, after all, and sometimes all you really need is a few more levels or a weapon upgrade. If youre truly incapable of beating the boss on your own, thats fine, too one of the coolest features allows the option to summon other players for help, which practically changes the genre entirely.

One thing worth mentioning is how much skill this game involves. Theres nothing quite like starting up a new character and realizing youre capable of rolling over those early bosses. This is not a numbers game like a traditional RPG at all who needs more HP when you can avoid the attacks entirely? These other options can make it easier, but victory is ultimately possible at any level.

The online features have always been a highlight. In Dark Souls III, you can become embered to increase your maximum health. However, while in this state, other players can invade. General invasion isnt too common, but certain areas are designed for constant swarms. The covenant mechanic offers a ton of variety in how these encounters come about, and the possibility of invasion adds a constant tension even after familiarizing yourself with an area. Players can also leave notes on the ground to warn others, which can eliminate many intentionally cheap moments as long as you bother checking.

Despite Bloodborne being a separate series, its eldritch influences left an obvious mark. The first boss in Dark Souls III has been corrupted by a writhing black mass. The next has devolved into moving on four legs. Others like the Dancer of the Boreal Valley carry an inhuman grace. All of the bosses have their own iconic presentation and play against the mechanics in their own ways; no two bosses are alike, even the two which should be. The game also has a phenomenal soundtrack, adding that extra epic ambience to each encounter.

There are also three distinct areas most of us would miss without a guide, with one of these areas being hidden behind an already optional area. With such a foreboding atmosphere throughout, stumbling across what feels like you were never supposed to find is an unforgettable experience. No matter what location youre in, theres always a dark beauty to this game. The final location and its bleeding sun is truly breathtaking.

Dark Souls III is largely more of the same but when something is part of an era defining movement, thats not a bad thing. Offering just the right amount of nostalgia while otherwise pushing boundaries, Dark Souls III helps prove the Soulsborne formula is imitable the only problem is most other developers have yet to figure out how.

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Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Ocarina of Time because I have absolutely no faith in people

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Spider-men: Returnal

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I don't know why, but I had a tough time writing about Fallout: New Vegas and Bayonetta 2. I feel like if I had just played them I could have dived into more details, especially with New Vegas. The biggest challenge with this project is trying to recall details beyond the general level for games I haven't touched in years.

Or maybe it's just because I've been tired today *shrug* But I should probably try drawing attention to specific moments

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#58. Bayonetta 2 (2014)
Developed by PlatinumGames

For all intents, the Bayonetta series filled the void left by the Devil May Cry series between 2005 and 2019. The first game was directed by Hideki Kamiya, who also directed the first Devil May Cry. Bayonetta 2 generally built upon that first installment, which was personally marred by my experience with the atrocious PS3 port.

What Bayonetta 2 may lack in mechanical depths is made up by the simple pleasure of its dodge mechanic. Called Witch Time, a successful dodge will momentarily slow down time and let Bayonetta get in a small combo. Theres a simple grace to the flow of battle. While the best Devil May Cry games have deeper mechanics, their basic enemy designs could be all over the place. In Bayonetta, everything feels tightly built around these simpler ideas. For the average player, Bayonetta 2 is absolutely a top-notch gameplay experience.

Like Devil May Cry, Bayonetta can also be really dumb. Where Dante is an edgy dork, Bayonetta pushes a dominant sexy image to the point of absurdity. A lot of games try and completely fail at being sexy, usually to the point of embarrassment. By being so unabashedly at the center of the presentation, Bayonettas take is oddly compelling. The character was designed by a woman, and this feels key to explaining why it works. Her sexy performance comes off less like fanservice and more like a power move. While obviously not successful for everyone, she somehow appeals to the four major corners of human sexuality. Bayonetta is a power fantasy for both lesbian and straight women and a fabulous inspiration to drag queens everywhere in fact, I believe she might be least appealing to the straight men for whom we usually assume these sorts of characters are designed.

The whole series oozes style. Everything from the basic enemies to the boss battles to the backgrounds remain in constant motion, and the frequent shifting in and out of slow motion builds upon this. Sometimes billed as stylish action games, having such a frenetic energy is key to the experience. The narrative and characters are the exact kind of joyous nonsense you would expect from Devil May Cry, just with a more feminine tone.

Character action games like Bayonetta 2 are some of gamings simpler joys. The whole game can be completed in only a few hours, but theres a ton of variety to draw you back for more. From new weapons and abilities to harder difficulties and an alternate character, this is the type of game that demands being played a few times. With such a stellar combat system, this demand is far from a problem.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Hollow Knight is one of the reason I love the GameFAQs contests; it's a game I had completely overlooked, but seeing it almost take down FF15 after getting out of round 1 was enough to make me take notice.



#59. Fallout: New Vegas (2010)
Developed by Obsidian Entertainment

While the Fallout series has been around for a while, the series went through a total transformation after changing publishers. The first two games were classic isometric WRPGs. As soon as Bethesda took over, they essentially changed it into The Elder Scrolls with a different setting. Fallout: New Vegas now feels like the most essential game in the series, combining the gameplay of the latter entries with the charm of the originals thanks to being developed by many involved in the older games.

New Vegas did not always sit atop that pedestal. Bethesda games are always busted, but New Vegas felt particularly unstable. When I first bought the game, I put it down after only an hour due to my characters gun constantly bobbing up and down at random. It was the type of flaw which did not outright break the game but made the visual interface nauseating. It took picking up years later after tons of patches to see the true quality.

Fallout is at its best while being humorous. The numbered Bethesda entries have their fair share of comedy, but the settings can be a bit drab. Strolling through the National Mall in Fallout 3 is certainly a compelling experience, but the Las Vegas setting allows some brilliant nonsense.

What makes The Elder Scrolls work and thus Fallout by association is the massive amount of content to explore. Where most RPGs consist of caves and keeps, the retro-future setting of Fallout offers some truly unique locations. The series staple is the fallout vaults, which is how people survived into the present day. However, each and every vault was actually an experiment. Diving deeper and discovering their stories is always a joy. One feels lifted straight out of a Shirley Jackson social horror story while another has been overrun with fungus. The lore runs deep, always maintaining a darkly humorous atmosphere even as it descends into madness.

The quests are always a riot thanks to the many oddball factions. One gang consists of Elvis impersonators while one of the major factions vying for power has regressed into ancient Roman culture. The strip offers a dusty yet colorful environment, with each of the casinos having their own bonkers narrative. Despite being post-apocalyptic, so many of these areas feel alive.

Ive always been a fan of how this series handles its nature as an RPG/FPS hybrid. The V.A.T.S. system is a stylized way to momentarily emphasize strategy over shooting. And while there are stat increases, a lot of the fun in levelling is choosing from the massive variety of perks. Some add new dialogue options, others make V.A.T.S. more versatile, while another reveals the entire map. There are so many ways to play this game, especially when considering the typical morality system which offers several ways of handling each quest. One of the most ingenious details is how dialogue options can change depending upon your build including some special lines when your character is particularly unintelligent.

We put up with Bethesdas glitches because the core experience tends to be so strong. Theres just so much to do here, and the game accommodates whatever playstyle you choose. With Obsidians brilliant writing, New Vegas is simply the best Fallout game.

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Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

New page, so here's the list so far:
#100. Rock Band 3 (2010)
#99. Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020)
#98. Paper Mario (2001)
#97. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992)
#96. Devil May Cry 3 (2005)
#95. The Walking Dead (2012)
#94. Ikaruga (2001)
#93. Shining Force II (1994)
#92. Batman: Arkham City (2011)
#91. Portal (2007)
#90. Into the Breach (2018)
#89. Devil May Cry 5 (2019)
#88. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018)
#87. Night in the Woods (2017)
#86. God of War (2018)
#85. We Love Katamari (2005)
#84. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (2004)
#83. Star Fox 64 (1997)
#82. Pokemon Black and White (2011)
#81. Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
#80. Shovel Knight (2014)
#79. Tales of Vesperia (2008)
#78. RollerCoaster Tycoon (1999)
#77. Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (2009)
#76. EarthBound (1995)
#75. Left 4 Dead 2 (2009)
#74. Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988)
#73. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018)
#72. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009)
#71. Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (2017)
#70. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (2005)
#69. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
#68. Mass Effect (2007)
#67. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
#66. Dragon Quest XI (2017)
#65. Final Fantasy XII (2006)
#64. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (2014)
#63. Mario Kart 8 (2014)
#62. Mass Effect 3 (2012)
#61. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017)



#60. Hollow Knight (2017)
Developed by Team Cherry

Hollow Knight merges two subgenres which regularly prove hard yet popular to imitate. Instead of having a proper title, both of these are named after the games which started it all. This is not a unique trait the first-person shooter genre was commonly referred to as Doom clones. FPS became the popular term once other games improved upon its foundation. This suggests that other entries in these subgenres have failed to differentiate themselves enough to force us to collectively determine another name. Looking at my own top 100, this appears to be largely true Hollow Knight is the only game here belonging to the Metroidvania and Soulsborne subgenres outside of, well, Metroid, Castlevania, and From Softwares variously titled games. The fact it manages both would seem an extraordinary feat, but the truth is that these two genres share many common elements. Hollow Knight exploits this to massive success.

A Metroidvania game does not necessarily need a map, but lacking one tends to be a frustrating feature. Hollow Knight manages to maximize its tension by delaying this element. Each new area requires finding a cartographer who sells a basic map, forcing you to stumble around blind until you pick up his literal paper trail. Even once you find the map, it does not automatically update with each step the knight must rest at a bench first. This little change makes a massive atmospheric difference, which is key to selling the Soulsborne experience.

Another key element of Metroidvanias is a world where each area needs to be revisited, and Hollow Knight is loaded with hidden rooms. A lot of paths are blocked by requiring upgrades, but many of these locations have alternative entrances. Hollow Knight feels very open compared to others in the genre, which can sometimes feel like linear games with the illusion of limitless direction. Large swaths of Hollow Knight can be taken in any order. There are also dozens of side areas I passed over repeatedly before finally noticing an entrance once you think youve seen everything, youll suddenly discover an entire sub-area with its own boss. There was even an early game boss I failed to stumble across until I neared the end. Most Metroidvania games will have a few hiccups where theres only one rather obtuse path forward. Hollow Knight simply has so many paths and such an open structure that youll never run out of places to explore.

Hollow Knight features many of the surface-level Soulsborne elements, such as the need to recover resources from wherever you died and the bench-to-boss runs. But what really sells these games are their foreboding atmospheres. Many developers confuse this for brutal difficulty despite the Souls series employing an unusual system for mitigating the challenge if desired. Hollow Knight is just challenging enough. Bosses like the Watcher Knights will absolutely roll you over in the first few attempts, but it never feels unmanageable. The patterns are clear enough to show why you failed; the challenge is less about overwhelming the player and more about understanding the exact moments to attack. The gameplay is effortlessly smooth, ensuring that these numerous attempts are actually enjoyable.

But, again, these games arent hard purely for the sake of difficulty. They make each new and sprawling location feel like a reward, giving a sense of trespassing within places which needed utmost protection. At least from my perspective, the true joy of this genre is not the boss fights but seeing the massive world unfurl. By giving only the slightest direct information, these games largely rely on environmental storytelling. A lot can be gathered just be seeing which bosses are protecting which area, and the lack of explanation makes some locations truly terrifying despite the cartoonish art style.

The lack of RPG elements actually feels essential here. Instead of simply levelling to gain power, improvements are scattered across the world. In the rare case you do come across a boss which seems too hard to manage, thats all the more reason to turn around and explore another corridor. With dozens of charms to equip, mask fragments which increase health, and pale ore to improve your weapon, theres always something around the corner which might give the right advantage. You may end up grinding to be able to buy a few great charms, but the most charming element of this game is the way it rewards constant progression.

Hollow Knight is all about the sensation of being lost. In fact, this might just be the biggest Metroidvania out there, and the whole experience is dizzying. From the first descent into the Forgotten Crossroads to the absolutely nightmarish run through the White Palace, every area leaves its mark. Maintaining the perfect difficulty to be challenging but never hard enough to outright block progression, Hollow Knight captures the spirit of Dark Souls while remaining surprisingly accessible.

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Does anyone have a list of what is scheduled for 2020?

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I thought No Man's Sky started doing No Man's Sky right?

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Scalie Life is Strange?

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"Returnal" is a pretty good song by Oneohtrix Point Never

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61. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017)
Developed by Capcom

The Resident Evil series has now gone through three distinct eras. The original games helped establish the survival horror genre, while Resident Evil 4 turned the series toward the third-person shooter genre. Neither of these eras were particularly scary. The earliest games might have gotten a few jumps here and there, but they were built more around the tension of navigating a contained location with esoteric puzzles. The horror was largely aesthetic.

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, on the other hand, took a ton of influence from contemporary indie hits and delivered one of the most terrifying video game experiences. The problem in earlier entries is that, no matter how scary the monster you faced, you were playing an armed officer. Here, you play a completely ordinary person who was simply searching for his wife after receiving an alarming video. Mix in some seemingly immortal enemies, and you get a recipe for hopelessness. Every moment is suspenseful, as you never know when the Bakers will show up.

The opening sets the stage so perfectly. Having the first encounter be Ethans own wife establishes something being very wrong and things were already bad with the basic concept. Theres a moment during this fight where you will likely assume you made a great mistake, only for the moment to keep playing out. So many horror games have introduced grotesque scenes as punishment for failure. Having such a moment be a scripted event results in several forms of emotional whiplash, establishing this game will be just as terrifying as it first appeared.

Like the original, Resident Evil 7 does a perfect job of keeping itself contained to a small location. The Baker Mansion is intricate, filled with dozens of horrifying corridors. This location also avoids the typical video game mansion design, where there are rooms which seemingly serve no purpose beyond being a puzzle in a video game. This feels like a place people might actually live, which makes the nauseating design all the more effective. Theres more to this game, but the slow pacing really emphasizes every corner.

The Bakers themselves are among the more striking villains I have encountered. RE7 draws explicitly from the Texas Chain Saw Massacre in tone, and they are a perfect take on the redneck hillbilly trope. The game also doesnt settle for that somewhat problematic design; theres a sad, twisted tale beneath these events to make this more than just the story of a man escaping psycho killers. Every encounter set my heart racing, though its a strange effect of video games that they are least intimidating during their boss fights. Like the shark from Jaws, they operate better as a threat than a direct encounter. The common mooks known as Molded are equally terrifying, operating more in the Lovecraftian pulsing horror vein.

The game maintains a consistently stressful tone while also shaking things up every stage. Some of my favorite moments involve VHS tapes which Ethan finds, putting the player in control of previous victims. Their integration is ingenious, as Ethan learns key details to aid his own survival. The best of these places a character in a morbid escape room puzzle straight out of the Saw franchise (with two of the franchises featured in this list seemingly drawing from Saw, I guess that series was good for something after all).

The best things about Resident Evils constant reinvention is that each era has featured at least one all-time great video game. When these games change things up, they have purpose in doing so. There are times where Resident Evil 7 barely feels like part of the actual series, yet it feels like the fulfillment of what Resident Evil would have offered from the beginning if it only had the technology.

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RyoCaliente posted...

I really like Final Fantasy XII and never understood why people criticize it so much. The gambit system serves to make random encounters less mundane; you don't really have to do too much to get past those, but I never really encountered a boss or a big fight where I could just let it play itself. I don't mind Vaan as the protagonist either; he's like the companion in Doctor Who, not the main figure but the audience identification figure. You can't explain the world to Balthier/Ashe/Basch because they know it already. Vaan serves that purpose. The alternative would be too use codex entries, but nobody really liked that in XIII.

I love Ivalice in general as well. I was always wowed by the architecture and life in all the cities.

As far as Vaan goes, part of the problem is that the audience identification figure can do more than learn the story. Compare him to Tidus, who's even more clueless yet earns his place as the protagonist by the game's end. Vaan and especially Penelo feel forgotten after a certain point. I feel like Final Fantasy sometimes has issues giving its cast proper screen time - Wakka also seems to disappear halfway into X (which I was fine with, but!).



#62. Mass Effect 3 (2012)
Developed by BioWare

How wonderful it would have been to experience a game like this before the internet outrage machine. It felt as though everyone had made up their mind about this games awful ending before even touching the game itself. And that ending certainly put a damper on my experience after playing the first two Mass Effect games multiple times, I only bothered with a single playthrough of Mass Effect 3. There seemed to be little point in seeing how my choices would affect things when the series ended in a funnel. But this is an epic RPG, and focusing so much on a failed landing ignores everything else which this game does remarkably well.

Mass Effect 2 transformed the original games wonky combat system into one of the best I have ever experienced, and Mass Effect 3 builds upon that. The RPG mechanics naturally lock the player into a certain role, but the addition of cooperative multiplayer missions give the option to experience tons of styles. I mentioned before that I only played through this game once, and while part of that was due to the ending, another part is that the game simply offered more chances to experience all the different styles without needing to start a new campaign. While integrating success here into the campaign was a questionable choice, this decision did force an active community into what turned out to be one of the games strongest aspects. Theres also the simple pleasure of finally being able to play as the other species in the series, each coming with their own abilities.

Like so many other choice-based experiences, Mass Effect 3 makes up for a lack of true control by having consistently stellar writing the real reason the ending is so bad is not the lack of impact from previous decisions but by the entire experience feeling disconnected and poorly written when compared to everything else. They tried to go the 2001 route without surrealism, and this is simply not what the series was building toward. This feels particularly egregious because the rest of the game juggles so much more with style.

Each of the Mass Effect games capture the galaxy in a different atmosphere, and the apocalyptic nature of 3 fulfills what the series was promising would happen. Watching these worlds being attacked is devastating, which really emphasizes our investment in these alien species. The biggest success in this story is managing to focus on the interspecies conflicts which have been brewing since the first installment. Everything comes to a head here. One would think people would come together in such dire circumstances, but so many of these species have been pushed to the edge. A galactic civilization built upon acts of genocide, several species doubt their survival whether or not the reapers kill them all. Many games with dire situations can feel like the protagonist is being distracted by minor squabbles, but this game benefits from the series having weaved an intricate political web. Even with the entire galaxy falling apart, every minor issue has a sense of urgency because Shepard needs everyone unified without distractions.

Despite one glaring flaw, Mass Effect 3 feels like everything fans could have wanted an oppressive atmosphere, strong writing and callbacks, all wrapped around a perfect third-person shooter/RPG hybrid.

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#63. Mario Kart 8 (2014)
Developed by Nintendo EAD

Before Melee and when I had to visit my cousins for a chance to play anything Nintendo, Mario Kart 64 was the easiest way for us to all play together. Some have been better than others, but the Mario Kart series has moved from there with a general upward trajectory. The latest entry feels all-encompassing, avoiding technical pratfalls while being loaded with excellent tracks.

A key element about both Mario Kart and Super Smash Bros. that I see many complain about is the luck-based elements. Smash luckily has the feature to turn those random elements off. As a kart racer, items are central to Mario Karts design philosophy. What I think people overlook is that these elements are what raised these series out of their niche genres. Both traditional racers and fighting games have a glaring flaw due to their focus on skill. New players are going to be trounced. While these games are good for actual competitions, anyone stuck with a few inexperienced friends is going to have a rough time convincing them to keep trying. Ive met a few fighting game enthusiasts who simply cant participate in their hobby theyre caught in an awkward place between being too good for locals but not good enough for professional tourneys.

In Mario Kart, items give everyone the feeling they can influence the race, no matter their skill level. Key to Mario Kart 8 is there being enough ways to mitigate damage as the top player. Skill is still the determining factor 90% of the time, but that little sliver gives everyone else hope. For anyone who prefers playing with ordinary friends, this perception is a must. Realistic racing games simply cant offer that experience.

With 48 tracks, Mario Kart 8 is by far the largest game in the series. What makes this truly special is that there are many I love and very few (if any) I outright dislike. By offering both quality and quantity, Mario Kart 8 goes one step beyond its predecessors.

The highlight here is Mount Wario, a track which feels more like skiing down a snowy mountain than a traditional race; unlike most other tracks, Mount Wario does not loop. This is simply one massive track. Each track carries a distinct energy, from racing through a flashy nightclub to balancing atop an eel to staples like Bowsers castle and Rainbow Road. Plenty of great classic tracks come back, while the DLC expansion (which comes with the Switch version) features tracks based on Zelda, Animal Crossing, and F-Zero. Theres just so much on offer here, and its all top quality.

For those looking for a challenge, the game introduces a 200cc mode. At this speed, every track becomes a nightmare to navigate. I feel like anyone who played this series started off by bashing into walls and drifting off edges during sharp turns. 200cc is a new way for even experienced players to revisit that frustration!

Mario Kart has always filled its niche with quality games, but most entries lacked a serious oomph. They were the side game that you might as well purchase if youre already getting a Nintendo system, rare games which go well with parties. With so much quality content and smooth mechanics, Mario Kart 8 is the first time the series has felt like a central draw.

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Tidus

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#64. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth (2014)
Developed by Nicalis

I kind of hate liking The Binding of Isaac as much as I do. Everything about its aesthetic falls into this unbearably edgy form of dark comedy. Where Zelda has Link breaking open pots, Isaac is stuck sifting through piles of poop as he fights against evil. There are even several allusions to internet memes like rage comics. Nothing about this should work for me.

But with hundreds and hundreds of hours played, I cannot deny this is one of my favorites. Everything about its gameplay design makes it easy to just pick up when I have a little bit of free time, and the cycle tends to suck me into several subsequent attempts. This is as addictive as video games come.

While designed to look like a Legend of Zelda game, Binding of Isaac plays more like a twin-stick shooter. You control Isaac, a poor child attempting to escape his abusive mother. After making his way into the basement, he has to fight his way through enemies by shooting them with his tears. Each floor has a treasure room and a boss fight, both of which give power-ups.

Binding of Isaac excels through the sheer volume of its content. With the latest expansion, there are over 400 items which change Isaacs stats. These vary from simple stat boosts to total changes in gameplay. One makes Isaac spew a torrent of blood, piercing objects and killing most enemies within seconds. Another turns his tears into remote controlled missiles. With its semi-roguelike nature, every playthrough is different. Part of what makes this special is how these various items can synergize, and particularly poor combinations can make things impossible theres nothing quite like having exploding tears which boomerang their way back to Isaac any time he misses.

Part of the fun is how this game slowly evolves. In the beginning, there are only six levels, culminating in a fight against Mom. As you keep playing, more and more stages unlock with various paths a full playthrough ends up being twelve stages, with most floors being larger than the last. These levels also have distinct variations which can randomly pop up. While a few bosses are always set, most floors have dozens of options, and they each offer a fun fight (except The Bloat, of course). With each playthrough lasting between a few minutes if youre unlucky to around 40 if you manage everything, Isaac is short enough to give multiple fulfilling attempts in the same sitting.

The game is also loaded with alternate characters with their own specialties and handicaps. There are also several challenges which give specific loadouts; some are silly while others are as challenging as the game can get. All of these features come with the additional incentive that successful completion unlocks a new item. Theres always something more to do.

The Binding of Isaac borders on infinite variability. Plenty of games can claim the same. What makes this game in particular special is how simple yet challenging it can be. Anyone can pick this game up with ease, as the gameplay simply consists of moving and firing. But like any good shooter, getting down enemy patterns is the key to success, and Isaac is loaded with hundreds of fun enemies to master. Or you might just end up with a combination which kills even the final boss in ten seconds either option is fun.

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#65. Final Fantasy XII (2006)
Developed by Square Enix

It feels like every Final Fantasy since VII has split the fanbase. The polar opposite of Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy has always tried to redefine itself. Those between IV and IX were slight variations, focusing more on different ways to build your characters while featuring the same combat system. X overhauled that central system but still felt like a Final Fantasy. XII goes so hard in the other direction that, if not for its title and a few familiar creatures, one could have easily assumed it was a new series entirely.

Im not going to pretend Final Fantasy XII is flawless. Previous Final Fantasy games have some of the most beloved casts in gaming the only great character from XII is Balthier. For whatever reason, XII went with a more subdued and realistic art style, leaving most of the cast looking mundane. A messy production left non-entity Vaan as the protagonist, and the narrative is almost impossible to follow. Those drawn to the series for its stories had every reason in the world to be disappointed it took until the 2017 rerelease for it to really click with me.

But once it clicked, it hit hard. XII is sometimes derided as a single player MMORPG. For me, it lands in the perfect place between the two genres. This is about as big as JRPGs come, yet it never gets as overwhelming and demanding as a full MMO. Theres so much to explore, but it never leaves you waiting or needing to endlessly grind.

A common complaint from its release now seems rather precious. Instead of controlling every individual action for each character, the game has something it calls a gambit system. You are given up to 12 lines of if x, then y statements for each character. The earlier lines take precedence, so you can set up your healer to raise the unconscious first, heal if no one is knocked out, and then attack if no one needs healing. Its an ingenious system which allows fluid combat, which is key since this game avoids random encounters by having enemies integrated into the locations. With more RPGs moving toward action combat where the AI controls everyone but the main character, its shocking more games havent expanded on this feature to give the player precise control over their teammates. The only other game I know which uses a similar system is Dragon Age. While this can cause a lot of battles to essentially play themselves, I find this intricate programming preferable to mashing the attack button against random mobs. The player can always give commands when necessary, and there are plenty of hard encounters which will require restricting the programming. Combat in XII feels a lot more tactical than its predecessors, even when much of it is hands-free.

Ive always been a fan of how Final Fantasy manages to reinvent leveling, and the license board started off as an intriguing concept which was fully brought to life in the rerelease. The original version gave everyone the same board, giving the player control over what path to send their characters down. The Zodiac Age mixes this with the underutilized job system and dual-classing, limiting the characters but guiding them down distinct paths. Deciding which ability to go after next is always a tough decision. Every RPG should aspire to make levelling this fun.

While I mentioned that the art style does little favor for the characters, the world itself is breathtaking. Few cities in gaming feel as alive as Rabanastre. Having enemies scattered across the land leaves every location bustling with life. Later locations are colossal, and the pure variety makes it feel like you are truly trekking across every inch of this world. There are dozens of side quests, and I wanted to do all of them just to visit every corner. In fact, I believe this is the only game where I bothered to get the Platinum trophy, simply because I was having so much fun seeing all this game had to offer.

Beyond simple scope, the world has a mesmerizing layout. Nearly every location has some passage sitting just out of reach. Many late game quests involve revisiting these areas and finally seeing what lies beyond those gates. Final Fantasy XII is constantly building a sense of intrigue.

14 years later, Final Fantasy XII still sits in a perfect niche. The only game I know which captures that not-MMO style is Xenoblade Chronicles. How more games havent followed in their footsteps is baffling, though it takes a lot of effort to make a world this awe-inspiring. While never capturing the typical Final Fantasy charm, XII managed to excel with its own distinct magnificence.

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#66. Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age (2017)
Developed by Square Enix

If Dragon Quest VIII perfectly merged the classic gameplay of the series with evolving visual capabilities, Dragon Quest XI is that plus more. The appeal to a classic structure feels even more relevant in its era, when Square Enixs other flagship franchise turned away from turn-based combat to little success. The JRPG is not quite what it used to be culturally, and sometimes its good to stick to a familiar formula. Honestly, turn-based combat is like the 2D platformer; it only feels archaic because its an idea that worked from the beginning. There are variations, but theres nothing which can outright improve upon it without becoming something else entirely.

The changes XI does make keep to the simple nature while giving the player more control. Previous Dragon Quest games required choosing everyones actions at the same time, and then the entire round would play out. Here, you get to choose actions as the individual turns come up. The game also has a larger cast than earlier entries, which is incorporated with the option to change party members mid-combat. Overall, Dragon Quest XI feels like a hybrid between its own series and where Final Fantasy might have ended up if it stuck closer to FFX. Even the ability board feature feels straight out of the PS2 Final Fantasy era.

Like VIII, XI features a massive world to explore. This time around, locations are more clearly divided, but they still evoke a massive sense of scale. This is simply a gorgeous game to look at, and its colorful art style is a nice change of pace from most modern epics. Theres something about Akira Torimayas style which speaks to me, even if a lot of his characters end up looking similar. The individual enemies and subplots are charming as always. Its simply rare to get something with such a grand scale while maintaining a consistently pleasant atmosphere.

The characters in Dragon Quest tend to be two-dimensional, but many in XI have stronger personalities. The biggest surprise is Sylvando. When you first meet him, its easy to assume hes going to be the worst gay stereotype. Hes flamboyant and loud, but the narrative never relegates him to comic relief. Hes as brave as any knight; he simply wants to make people smile while protecting them. Theres a ton of other baggage usually associated with this type of character, but Sylvando is simply an exuberant presence. His storyline also runs deeper than this surface presentation, showing he has his own conflicts to sort out. While his behavior can still come off as stereotypical, its never in a negative fashion and I have met plenty of gay men who intentionally put on this sort of persona. Whats wrong with being flamboyant?

Dragon Quest XI is a game for those wanting an update on something familiar. Everything about it feels like a greatest hits collection of JRPGs from the genres glory days. If this is just the same Dragon Quest as always, then that simply means theres never been anything wrong with Dragon Quest. But its all that and a little bit more.

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I have to actually go in to work tomorrow for a bit so these will be a bit later than usual, but I do plan to do another batch of 3

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#67. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (2004)
Developed by Rockstar North

With both Grand Theft Auto IV and Red Dead Redemption 2, Rockstar was explicitly aiming to make compelling narratives. For whatever reason, their idea of compelling involves a lot of unnecessary realism and bleak presentation. Despite its sometimes silly nature, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas managed to say just as much if not more.

After the success of Grand Theft Auto III, Rockstar used the same basic engine to build two compelling period pieces. Vice City was an 80s throwback, letting the audience play out their Scarface fantasies in an obvious Miami expy. San Andreas jumps ahead a few years to 1992, setting itself in a fictionalized Los Angeles on the verge of riots over police brutality.

While III had a silent protagonist and Vice Citys Tommy Vercetti is a violent sociopath, San Andreass Carl Johnson is surprisingly sympathetic. He gets just as involved in a bunch of horrid schemes as the others, but the game manages to create a more justified sense of desperation. Tackling both its heavy subject matter and featuring a black protagonist in an otherwise exaggerated atmosphere seems like a recipe for disaster, but Rockstar treats those specific elements with enough care to avoid creating a stereotypical gangsta narrative.

Though III gets a lot of the credit for bringing the series into mainstream culture, its sequels brought enough quality of life changes to make that game almost obsolete. III doesnt even have an in-game map, which seems almost unthinkable for an open world game. Even the camera in Vice City feels off when compared to San Andreas. Rockstar kept outdoing themselves during the PS2 era, resulting in more fluid controls, a customizable character, a simply gigantic world to explore, and a bunch of nonsense to keep things interesting. The budget and production time keeps ballooning with each sequel, but I still believe San Andreas stands as the height of the series IV takes itself too seriously while V goes so hard in the opposite direction that it comes off as a particularly bad season of South Park. The basics work just as well in San Andreas without having to put up with these detrimental qualities.

Part of Grand Theft Autos success is that its fun to simply mess around without making any progress. The series brings modern cities to life in a way few others have managed, and its fun to play as an agent of chaos. Through the variety of vehicles and weaponry, theres always something more to try out.

San Andreas also has killer radio stations for scoring the mayhem. Whether you tune into Playback FM for some Public Enemy and Eric B. & Rakim or turn the dial to Radio X to get some early alternative jams from Rage Against the Machine and Soundgarden, theres always something great reinforcing the games era. The most striking inclusion is K Rose, a classic country station which makes sense as soon as the game world really opens up.

What I find striking is how San Andreas manages to incorporate its many distractions into the narrative. CJs story starts small, simply helping those in his neighborhood. Somehow, he gets dragged into bigger schemes in all these new locations but theres a certain point where hes hit with a wakeup call. That opening tension has never gone away. CJ simply left his neighborhood. Grand Theft Auto has always had an absurd upward progression, but San Andreas pulling us down to earth helps set the stage for a phenomenal finale.

Grand Theft Auto always tries to have a little bit of everything. Though the series since III has been largely consistent, only San Andreas lands all of its punches.

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#68. Mass Effect (2007)
Developed by BioWare

Would Mass Effect even be a Western RPG series without promising a ton of stuff it would never pull off? Perhaps the most disappointing thing is that it almost managed this incredible feat practically everything went off without a hitch besides that infamous ending. Not even the entire final act, but the last fifteen minutes was enough for certain people to toss aside the entirety of what was otherwise among the most fulfilling stories to emerge from gaming. We only got this invested in the first place due to the strong beginning.

Its difficult to think of another game that establishes a new universe so effectively, especially in a science fiction setting. Humans are the latest species to join galactic civilization. An ancient network of relays allows near-instantaneous travel across space. Commander Shepard becomes the first human Spectre, special agents granted nearly unrestrained authority by the central governing body. Some great menace is lurking at the threshold, and it is Shepards job to both figure out what is happening and convince the Council to take this threat seriously.

What sets Mass Effect apart from so many other fantasy worlds is the intricate histories and conflicts of its various races. The battle between the quarians and geth starts off as the most straightforward. The quarians created an artificial race, grew nervous, and ended up losing a war against their own creations. With the quarians stuck aboard a Migrant Fleet and the geth now joining the bad guys, its easy to choose sides (for now).

The conflict between the krogans and salarians is a lot ickier. Galactic civilization was nearly overrun by another species known as rachni until the krogans were discovered. The salarians turned this primitive race into a weapon, only to neuter the species once they, too, started to be perceived as a threat. Both sides have a perfect argument. The salarians essentially committed genocide, but the krogan really are that dangerous. Of the major races, only the turians and asari really seem to have their stuff together.

The character designs are top-notch. All of these species have unforgettable appearances. Both the krogan and turians are reminiscent of dinosaurs, but in very different ways. The bulky krogans carry raw strength while the slender turians are far more graceful. Asari are more humanoid, though other species seem convinced of their own similarities. The quarians are mysteries, forced to wear full-body suits due to their weakened immune systems. Mass Effect avoids the trope of sci-fi stories tossing us dozens of bizarre designs as background characters; each of these species has an explanation for their evolution. Mixed with their rich histories, BioWare was able to emphasize the plights of these individual species with nuance.

In classic BioWare fashion, this game is all about an interactive narrative where the player can make big decisions. While the system they use offers little freedom (consistency is rewarded), the mere possibility of another path is compelling. The story is strong enough that I ended up doing three separate playthroughs (one good, one bad, one consistently making poor choices). The game is also loaded with side quests, most offering their own intense choices.

The party members are of varying quality what would have otherwise been a jaw-dropping moment is reduced by the mundanity of the human party members but the best are some of my favorite video game characters. Tali and Liara need the sequels to really come into their own, but krogan Urdnot Wrex and turian Garrus Vakarian are unforgettable. The krogan could have easily been a background species, existing more as a potential threat than true characters. Having one on the central team offers a perfect window into their disturbing history and disparate culture. Wrexs blunt nature also leads into a lot of the best lines. Garruss character arc is one of the trilogys strongest suits, with his struggle between following the law and true justice being perfectly established here.

The combat system is something else BioWare mixes third-person shooter mechanics with an RPG power system. While this can be a bit wonky and is perfected in the later games, the series really hit upon something with this combination. I mentioned playing through this game three times to see various ways the stories could unfold, but I would have never wasted my time if the gameplay wasnt equally engrossing.

Mass Effect is the beginning of a beautiful trilogy; while the gameplay might show its age when compared to the sequels, its sense of world-building is matched by few others. By setting up an entire galaxy where half the species seem on the verge of slaughtering another, it established a complex narrative rife with palpable tension which would ultimately sustain the entire trilogy. While the sequels would feature more dangerous external threats, the original made sure to inform us the galaxy was doing a perfectly good job imploding on its own.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#69. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
Developed by Intelligent Systems

I realized after starting this project that writing about the Paper Mario games would be among the hardest. Having not played either game in over a decade now, certain elements have blurred together. Add in that The Thousand-Year Door is a sequel in the most traditional sense, and how do I say enough about both without repeating myself?

There are other series with multiple entries, but most have distinct enough features that I can really hone in on those specific quirks. The Thousand-Year Door is Paper Mario but bigger and better, but not in a way which makes the predecessor obsolete. Unlike comparing Left 4 Dead to its sequel, Paper Mario and The Thousand-Year Door remain distinct experiences due to features typical of the JRPG franchise. They have their own sets of characters and stories, with both having great writing. The real sticking point for both deserving their place on this list is that Paper Marios charm is in its simplicity; TTYD making things even slightly more complex means certain people will prefer the original.

The two chapters from The Thousand-Year Door which have stuck with me the most come from opposite ends of the spectrum. Both highlight distinct traits that make the Paper Mario series so good. The first is chapter 3, which features Mario fighting his way through a series of arena battles. Where most Paper Mario chapters are full of areas to explore, the Glitz Pit remains focused on combat. There are a ton of battles to fight through, and each comes with their own stipulation which limits your options. This can really force the player to change up their strategy. Champion Rawk Hawk is one of the more memorable characters in the series, his narcissistic attitude perfect encouragement to climb the ranks and beat him down.

Chapter 6, on the other hand, is all about Paper Marios humorous sense of storytelling. Mario finds himself on a train with a bunch of odd passengers and eventually gets caught up in a series of mysteries. This pseudo-Christie narrative gives the writers a perfect opportunity to go crazy. An encounter involving a ghosts diary plays an especially fun trick on the curious.

Changes to the battle system help make the partners feel more distinct. TTYD gives partners their own HP value, making them feel more like traditional party members. The game also introduces an audience who have various interactions throughout the game. These changes arent huge, but thats key to the signature simplicity.

Like its predecessor, TTYD cuts away to Princess Peach. Getting to actually know the princess rarely happens in the main series, and she is a lot of fun here. We also get a few moments to play as Bowser in classic Mario inspired levels.

Theres not much more to say about The Thousand-Year Door in comparison to the original. The first Paper Mario is a short and simple JRPG, a genre which usually goes for complexity and epic quests. The Thousand-Year Door is more of this, but where everything feels slightly improved. The Mario series has tons of spin-offs, but few feel as key to its grander identity due to the charming handling of its universe.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Also, I may or may not edit the top section of this list; there's a game I'm playing now which could land high up, and I already realized I will likely be combining the write-ups for two of the higher entries due to how similar they are (it's the only example I have on this list where a game and its follow-up are of almost exact quality without the latter outright replacing the former). I only mention this since this will change the earlier year and genre breakdown if I do add this other game.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#70. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King (2005)
Developed by Level-5

Dragon Quest was the first JRPG to find real success, and the series has purposefully kept to simple mechanics ever since. Due to this lack of evolution, most of the Dragon Quest games are acceptable favorites. VIII simply hits a specific niche which resonates with me. Where earlier entries are as aesthetically simple as the mechanics, VIII pairs the classic gameplay with an ever-expansive world.

When I first played this back in 2005, I had never encountered a game which felt so big. Most JRPGs tended toward overworlds which essentially truncate the locations for easier navigation. Dragon Quest VIII keeps everything to scale. Combined with the gorgeous cel-shading, this is easily one of the most aesthetically pleasing games of its era. There were so many moments where I would stop playing to stare in awe at the land. More games have moved to this presentation style, but few match the sense of wonder found here.

Matching the visual scale is the games massive length. The overarching narrative is incredibly simple, but most of the game consists of self-contained missions with a ton of charm. Each new location has its own story. Games of such size usually have a ton of empty space, but every inch of Dragon Quest VIII has purpose.

The gameplay is simple, but that does not mean its shallow. Each character comes with their own sets of skills which the player can control, giving variance to different playthroughs. Boss battles tend to be strategic affairs. The only real problem is the series overreliance on metal slimes; there are a few points where it feels like you have to grind to keep up, and that largely devolves into hunting the same rare monsters over and over.

The series in general is charming, but thats really brought to life here. The creatures have tons of distinct designs and their own silly mechanics. Some early monsters will simply devolve into laughter for their turn, while another will waste its turn casting a late-game spell for which it lacks the MP. The world captures everything from rural country sides to sprawling kingdoms to frozen grottos. The central cast all have their own quirks. The highlight is Yangus, a bumbling bandit with a thick Cockney accent.

The minor quests each offer their own distinct atmosphere. Some can be somber, such as a kingdom in mourning. The one which sticks out most happens in the kingdom of Argonia, where the party must assist the spoiled Prince Charmles (Get it? Charmless? This series loves its puns) in hunting giant lizards. Charmles joins the party, but completely fumbles everything he does and ends up running away. These diverse quests help sustain this massive journey.

Dragon Quest VIII is an exceptional JRPG not because it pushes the genre forward, but because it offers the basics in stellar form. It might seem wrong to praise a game purely for offering a stylistic improvement over its predecessors, but theres no need to fix whats not broken. VIII takes the familiar and makes it bigger than life.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#71. Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony (2017)
Developed by Spike Chunsoft

Though classified under the wider visual novel umbrella, Danganronpa is far from an experience where you press a button to forward the plot. Danganronpa owes much of its existence to the Ace Attorney series, where plucky lawyer Phoenix Wright defends the innocent from a nightmarish justice system. Where Ace Attorney tends to balance playfulness and gravity, Danganronpa acts as the cynical and edgy younger sibling.

The situation in each game is immediately dire. A high school class finds themselves kidnapped by an evil bear named Monokuma. Taking inspiration from Battle Royale, the class is forced to kill one another. Where it differs is that Danganronpa avoids a simple killing spree by shifting the focus to getting away with murder. To escape, a student must kill and then avoid being caught by their classmates during a class trial. Those who fail are executed in an excruciating and thematically relevant fashion.

What makes these games such compelling mysteries is the limited cast. By taking elements from the dating sim subgenre, you are given several opportunities to spend one-on-one time with characters between cases. Thus, these arent just random characters being brought in only as they become relevant. By spending the entire game with this same cast, every new death carries weight. With each new case knocking out both the victim and killer, the cast is ultimately reduced to only a handful. With such a colorful cast of characters, this can be devastating.

Danganronpa makes effective use of archetypes. None of these are ordinary teenagers. All of them have exceptional skills and have been granted the ultimate label. The protagonist here, Kaede Akamatsu, is the Ultimate Pianist. Others include the Ultimate Entomologist and the Ultimate Cosplayer. Archetypes allow the player to immediately get a sense of this gigantic cast. More importantly, stark archetypes leave room for striking subversions during the cases.

Danganronpa V3 builds upon the gameplay of the earlier games. Where the original is all about pointing out lies and the second introduced the ability to support claims, V3 introduces the option to tell your own lies. What differentiates this from Ace Attorney is that these are not true legal cases; the killer is already known due to Monokumas constant surveillance, so he is only looking for the class to correctly identify that person. In V3, the player must use whatever means necessary.

Additionally, these games are just stylish. Instead of the straightforward presentation of Ace Attorney, dialogue during the class trials is a chaotic mess. People speak over one another, and the difficulty of drawing attention to a specific statement involves literally shooting through the background noise. Even with unmoving sprites, the game manages a feeling of constant motion during the trials.

To discuss what makes this entry so grand involves going into specifics. Due to the nature of its plot, discussing anything beyond the introduction can spoil the experience. Being a mystery game, I heavily suggest stopping here if you have any interest - I will be spoiling everything.

Again, these following paragraphs will spoil everything, including a few references to earlier games in the franchise; mysteries like these need to be experienced blind (In fact, dont even look these games up I had the first game spoiled due to a simple search).

The Danganronpa franchise is built around the idea of a limited cast where literally anyone can die. While there may be shades of plot armor in the first game with two of the survivors being rather obvious, the second made sure to subvert those expectations. V3 does this immediately.

Earlier, I had to falsely claim the protagonist was Ultimate Pianist Kaede Akamatsu. Halfway through the first case, you are presented with the familiar option of choosing the killer. As you consider the options, the truth begins to dawn; she has been the killer all along. Once she accuses herself, the game shifts perspective to Ultimate Detective Shuichi Saihara. With the first victim having an unknown Ultimate ability, V3 dared to eliminate two of the most intriguing characters right off the bat. Anything goes.

In fact, V3 goes to great lengths to pull the rug out from under the player again and again. This is not limited to the mysteries. Where the previous execution scenes were largely playful besides the very first (a remnant predating the decision to make the series darkly humorous instead of bleak something like this would be nauseating with the wrong tone), Kaedes death is horrific. Besides the moments where you stumble across the body, the earlier Danganronpa games rarely try to disturb the player. There are moments in V3 which are uncharacteristically exploitative.

At the same time, theres something about V3 which feels too familiar. The middle cases seem to hit the same plot beats as the earlier entries. Even the subversive fifth case, the first in the series where Monokuma is as clueless as the rest of the cast and even the victim is unknown, revolves around characters in the same general roles as those involved in Danganronpa 2s fifth case.

This all leads into one of gamings most controversial endings (at least for those who have experienced it). As usual, the finale revolves around identifying the mastermind behind Monokuma. The revelation that Kaede actually wasnt the first killer is somehow immediately overshadowed by a bigger revelation; the mastermind actually says the title. Danganronpa is nonsense, translated as Bullet Refutation. It describes the series but never has reason to be spoken within the narrative. Never has a title drop been more jarring.

When the game was announced, V3 seemed a necessity to differentiate it from an anime sequel to the first two games titled Danganronpa 3. That, too, turns out to be part of the meta-experience the V is actually a roman numeral; this is the 53rd Danganronpa in the nightmare universe where this game is set. Instead of being a direct follow-up to the earlier works, Danganronpa V3 imagines a world where the Danganronpa video games became a bigger hit than The Beatles and evolved into an exploitive reality show. All of the characters are sacrificial actors with implanted memories.

This serves one grand purpose which is easy to misunderstand. Playing Danganronpa offers a macabre pleasure, and this fourth-wall breaking finale allows the characters to directly confront the player through their interactions with the shows audience. What sick monsters are we to enjoy repeatedly watching this same scenario play out over and over? Many reacted to this ending as if the game was pointing an accusatory finger; but we are not the same as this audience who devolved into demanding actual killing. The game never offers a firm explanation, but thats because we as the players should be able to answer ourselves.

So I should close this out by answering that question; if Im not some sick monster, why do I enjoy something as macabre as Danganronpa? Its the same reason I play any other video game, to face off against adversity in a controlled environment. Danganronpa specifically captures the feeling of loss in a safe manner. Due to its structure, the connections to these bizarre characters feel stronger than almost every other franchise. To play a video game involves being more than a passive audience. I dont play Danganronpa because I want to watch these characters die. I play Danganronpa because I want to help guide those remaining to safety.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

SeabassDebeste posted...

haven't played most of these lately, but i do like seeing SMB3 here

other than the lives system/lack of save (i believe?) it hasn't aged at all

I can't remember if it has saves either - the biggest challenge of this project is I haven't played some of these in over a decade now...

I also feel kinda bad about the exclusion of other medium-defining games. But if the choice is between a work which established something and those which perfected it, I usually lean toward the latter. Personally, I tend to view the pre-SNES era the same way I view pre-1920s cinema. The medium was being established and a few entries manage to hold up, but outright claiming these innovators are better than what followed is putting too much emphasis on history. The games I have played from the SNES era are legitimately as good as the indie games they inspired decades later, but most from the NES days were immediately outshadowed by their sequels in the next generation. That's not to say they don't hold up at all - but cracking an all-time top 100 requires an extra oomph.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Here's game of the year 2009



#72. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009)
Developed by Naughty Dog

Attempts to capture the magic of cinema in video game form have been around since almost the beginning. Many end up leaning closer to one of these mediums than the other. Early attempts such as Dragons Lair simply showed scenes while requiring sudden button presses to keep the scene going. A lot of other cinematic games grind to constant halts, forcing the player to drop their controller while a cutscene plays out. When all the awe and spectacle is limited to these moments, it can make the actual action disappointing. While Uncharted has never been free of cutscenes, the best moments are all part of the gameplay.

Lacking a better term, Uncharted 2 is one of the top examples of the setpiece action-adventure genre. Few games have such stunning openings. Nathan Drake wakes bloodied in a train, which he quickly realizes is dangling precariously over a snowy cliff. After falling to the railing at the bottom, the game immediately switches to the players control. You must guide Nathan Drake up the train as everything falls apart. Few moments in cinematic gaming feel so visceral; if this is where we begin, what other tricks does Uncharted 2 have up its sleeves? This is a game about constant escalation which dares to puts its best foot forward.

The inspiration is obvious Uncharted is essentially the Indiana Jones franchise in video game form. But plenty of games feature harried archaeologists running into thieves and waking ancient evils. What other attempts lacked was the ability to capture the extravagant situations Indy would find himself in.

Key to Uncharted 2 is the smoothness of its gameplay the first game set the stage, but combat was a clunky mess. The sequel throws a lot at you as it switches up the sets, but its never hard to transition. While several sets simply require climbing, the best moments mix navigation with a constant threat. One early highlight finds Nathan fleeing through a collapsing hotel while assaulted by a helicopter. Even when he finds brief cover from the copter, more enemies pop around the corner for shootouts.

The sequence leading to the opening train wreck (the first part of the game being the typical how did I get into this mess presentation) is just as exciting, requiring Drake to jump between train cars and fend off gunmen as hes carried from the jungle up to the Himalayas. Another highlight involves a tank. Uncharted 2 succeeds at making everything look impossible before offering a path to victory.

Even outside the big action sequences, Uncharted 2 has a compelling narrative. The characters are strong, with Nathan Drake being one of the better-defined video game protagonists. Hes always ready with a quip when things go wrong, but his close bonds reveal his heroic nature. The sense of escalation is matched by the unfolding plot, going places you could never imagine.

It is sometimes easy to mock a game for being too cinematic; after a certain point, it can feel like the developers only told their story in video game form because they couldnt get anyone to fund their movie. By so effortlessly integrating its narrative into the gameplay, Uncharted 2 set a new standard.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Today will be a continuation of yesterday, though I will submit whatever I have by the end of the day so I should be back to this project tomorrow

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

I have quite a bit to work on today, so there will not be any updates. I'm doing this project as I take an intentional break from working on my novel (it's easier to edit with some distance), but I'm also working with someone on shaping up my future query letter. They got back to me so now I'm working on another draft; trying to summarize a 90,000 word novel in 250 words is one of the hardest things I've ever done.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Dying Light

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#73. Red Dead Redemption 2 (2018)
Developed by Rockstar Studios

Where the Grand Theft Auto series has almost always descended into absurdity, Red Dead Redemption serves as its mature younger brother. RDR2 pushes certain elements of realism so hard that it almost reads like parody of the modern AAA open world game. Some of the choices seem detrimental to the experience. Not including real fast travel in such a massive world is absolutely bizarre. Despite open world games tending to lean toward endless possibilities, theres a specific way Rockstar wants you to engage with this game.

By pushing all these various elements, what Red Read Redemption 2 lacks in instant gratification is replaced by a sheer sense of scale. The constant retreading of the same roads helps form a familiar land, and theres always something just off the main path to check out. Additionally, I simply find riding horses over the land a fun experience. Where most open world games offer a land for the player to conquer, Red Dead Redemption 2 instead seeks to overwhelm. This world is not an endless playground but something which must be survived.

As far as gameplay goes, the dead eye mechanic is Red Dead Redemptions central selling point. Arthur can freeze down time and focus on a cluster of enemys, then unfreeze time and shoot them all at once. In addition to making massive gunfights more manageable, this is also a neat way of capturing the feel of old western movies. RDR2 also subscribes to Rockstars philosophy of including a little bit of everything; theres loads of minigames to play and devices with their own unique mechanics.

Acting as a prequel to the original game, the player takes on the role of Arthur Morgan. He belongs to a gang coping with the end of the Wild West. Theres no place in this world for these people anymore, so much of the game finds them constantly relocating. This aimlessness really mixes well with the world, with each act change truly feeling like a distinct moment. The slow rides across the land give ample time for long conversations. This band of outlaws really feel like an old team in the midst of falling apart. This is one of the great traditional narratives in gaming, and there are some shocking twists taking full advantage of the games realism bend.

These outlaws get up to a bunch of crazy schemes, and being able to play a part is a joy. This massive world is covered in perfect locations for its hundreds of shootouts. By always trying to include a little bit of everything, Rockstar ensures every mission has its own unique gimmick. From the classic bank robbery to train heists and hot air balloon trips, RDR2 keeps the player on their feet.

There are also loads of memorable side missions which have a tendency to go further off the rails than the main plot. During one memorable encounter, you meet a Nikola Tesla expy who recklessly experiments with new technology. Theres also dozens of oddities scattered across the land, from a house which has been struck by a meteor to various horror creatures. Hunting is highlighted by the inclusion of a bunch of legendary animals which offer great rewards; the variety of animals in this game is impressive. Theres always something to find.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is about as ambitious as video games come. The fact they intentionally avoided common quality of life mechanics while including almost everything else is a striking decision. Some people wont enjoy that tedium, but it results in one of gamings true epics.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

Here's Game of the Year 1988 (and only game from the 80s appearing in this list, so game of that decade as well...)



#74. Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988)
Developed by Nintendo EAD

As someone born in the early 90s who didnt really start consuming games in large quantities until the Gamecube era, playing anything from the early Nintendo consoles required intentionally going out of my way. Ive played pretty much all the classics at this point; Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kid Icarus, Dragon Quest, Castlevania, DuckTales, Ninja Gaiden, and so on. These games are largely pleasant enough, but most laid the foundation for even better sequels. Few are singular enough to be more than a historical experience; Mega Man 2, Tetris, and Punch-Out!! stand out, even to someone with no particular nostalgia for the era. Even modernized versions of those latter two are closer to variants than direct improvements. It only seems fitting that the cream of the crop was a sequel to the game that kicked off the era.

Likely due to the popularity of Super Mario Bros. and the simplicity of the genre, the NES era was dominated by the platformer. Thanks to a certain popular design philosophy, many of these were brutally hard, and the limits of the console produced some frustrating level designs. Few things will make me drop a game faster than enemies which immediately respawn combined with outrageous knockback. But Nintendo themselves have always been in the business of family friendly content, and the early Mario games always ramped up their difficulty smoothly.

The 2D Mario games are built around a certain simplicity. In general, you run from one side of the screen to the other, with most enemies able to be defeated by simply jumping on their heads. Even the original is still a great game due to the fluid controls, but Super Mario Bros. 3 built upon that with stellar level design. Where the original only offered a fireball upgrade, 3 introduced a slew of fun items. The highlight is the tanooki suit, giving Mario the ability to fall slowly, fly, tail whip enemies, and even transform into a statue for a ground pound attack and invulnerability. The later games would especially build themselves around various power-ups, but it all started here.

With improved graphical capabilities, this is where Mario truly comes into its own stylistically. The world is filled with more color, while the koopa kids offer a nice change of pace from simply jumping over Bowser like in the original. Where the original was limited to a few basic level designs, 3 offered more styles while also introducing auto-scrolling stages. These force a sense of urgency in an otherwise gentle experience. The addition of a world map connecting these levels added to the idea of progression.

Like many great games, the selling point of Super Mario Bros. 3 is the way it mixes simple controls with intricate level designs. Anyone can pick this up and play, but it takes skill to survive the later stages. The 2D platformer has always been around, and while there are constant innovations, nothing has outright replaced the simple charm of this early masterpiece.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

#75. Left 4 Dead 2 (2009)
Developed by Valve

With all our time waiting for any follow-up from Valve for most of their series, its hard to believe there was a moment where we collectively complained about them making a sequel too soon. Released exactly one year after the first game, Left 4 Dead 2 seemed unnecessary. A few new special zombies and weapons were nice, but did that really justify a full-priced sequel? Years later, L4D2 has now absorbed nearly every piece of content from the original. Between the first game being virtually reduced to a trap for the uninformed (why are these two games the same price on Steam?) and the sequel going from questionable to the definitive experience, there are few series with a more bizarre history.

Of course, people were willing to jump into the sequel anyway because the first game was that good; all these minor improvements only made things better. For whatever reason, video games built around cooperative gameplay are few and far between. There are plenty of team-based shooters if you want to play with friends, but the experience of fighting against AI feels a bit more focused. Where losing in something like Team Fortress 2 can be blamed on a skill gap between teams, failure in Left 4 Dead is almost always due to poor strategy and communication.

Left 4 Dead is built around an old horror trope. Well, theres zombies, obviously. But what I really mean is this obnoxious tendency for otherwise well-equipped characters to suddenly split up. Theres always some player who gets distracted while their teammates are charging ahead who then fails to say anything until a hunter has them pinned. In many ways, Left 4 Dead operates as a babysitting simulator. You must keep your eyes on your teammates at all times and hopefully convince them to do the same. While the logic could be to wait up for the straggler, the game is also designed to punish lollygagging. Large swaths of this game are best handled pushing forward as a cluster. Special infected simply dont have the numbers to stop all four players simultaneously. But getting people to understand the need for constant progression is the real challenge.

The game also wants to prevent that optimum strategy whenever possible, which is where the special infected come in. Despite having the least direct damage output, the boomer and spitter might be the most dangerous due to their ability to divide the party. Without quick reactions, the smoker, jockey, and charger will drag someone away. The tank simply knocks everyone about, and his ability to hit multiple targets forces the team to distance. But these are never insurmountable hurdles; enough attention to one another can mitigate their presence entirely. What can a hunter really do if everyone is in melee range of each other? This is a rare game where friendly fire is essential to the design, to put at least some risk in the dominant strategy.

The inclusion of various modes helps Left 4 Dead hold up as one of those infinitely replayable games. The basic campaigns are the central experience, with several levels of difficulty and each consisting of multiple levels to navigate. Valve clearly had a lot of fun designing these individual levels. From stealing a race car from a mall exhibit to a journey through a tunnel of love to a swampy shantytown, theres always some set which stands out. Additionally, several sections are perfectly designed to amplify risks. There are places where you must jump down with no way to return; someone lagging behind becomes easy pickings for the infected.

Just as essential is versus mode, where two teams switch between playing the survivors and special infected. Simply being able to learn how the special infected operate is a nice feature. It still offers largely the same experience as the campaign mode (as the goal is to get as far as you can on each level of a campaign; whichever team gets further wins) but hopefully with more logical infected. Strangely enough, playing as the infected can feel even more desperate. Despite their dangerous presence, they really cant do much alone. The game tends to cycle between a single Boomer or Spitter and three with pinning abilities a skilled team could separate the pack and take down most of the team at once, but that requires perfect communication and timing.

Left 4 Dead excels at cooperative mechanics. Many cooperative games can devolve into each player playing their own part, but Left 4 Dead forces so many dire situations that constant communication is an absolute necessity. While this may be frustrating, playing with enough inexperienced people offers one distinct benefit. The next time you see a horror movie where the characters inevitably split up, youll realize thats somehow one of the more realistic plot points.

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Film essays and reviews: https://www.youtube.com/c/foolfantastic
Board 8's Top 250 Games 2016 Edition: https://casanovazelos.wordpress.com/2016/04/26/b8top250/

A fourth of the way through; here's a recap:
100. Rock Band 3 (2010)
99. Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020)
98. Paper Mario (2001)
97. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (1992)
96. Devil May Cry 3 (2005)
95. The Walking Dead (2012)
94. Ikaruga (2001)
93. Shining Force II (1994)
92. Batman: Arkham City (2011)
91. Portal (2007)
90. Into the Breach (2018)
89. Devil May Cry 5 (2019)
88. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018)
87. Night in the Woods (2017)
86. God of War (2018)
85. We Love Katamari (2005)
84. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne (2004)
83. Star Fox 64 (1997)
82. Pokemon Black/White (2011)
81. Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
80. Shovel Knight (2014)
79. Tales of Vesperia (2008)
78. RollerCoaster Tycoon (1999)
77. Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (2009)
76. EarthBound (1995)

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#76. EarthBound (1995)
Developed by Ape and HAL Laboratory

If Super Mario Bros. was weird out of an aesthetic necessity, Nintendos Mother series feels like their attempt at being as intentionally chaotic as possible. Perhaps the most striking thing about EarthBounds style is the setting. Where most fantasy stories are set in distinct worlds with a tendency toward other technological eras, EarthBound is set in a modern bizarro version of America. Its surreal presentation of modern society makes it feel more alien than a traditional fantasy. We can easily accept combat when it features warriors and fantastical creatures. Seeing a kid in a striped shirt and shorts beating up on crows and hippies feels uncanny, simultaneously otherworldly and familiar.

Everything about this game feels like it was randomly generated. The overarching plot stays rather buried as Ness seeks out magical sanctuaries. Every location surrounding these sanctuaries feels pulled from another reality. Cults, evil circuses, a shadow city; everythings so consistently unconnected that it somehow starts making its own twisted sense. The game is dominated by goofy unease, which is not an easy form to maintain but EarthBound rarely falters. Theres moments where the game even teeters on the edge of outright horror. Tonal inconsistency is usually a bad thing, but EarthBound made it central to its identity.

Where most RPGs have some clear big bad to pursue, the lack of a clearly defined evil makes each area shine. You play this game less to advance the overall plot and more to see what the game will throw at you next; completely unpredictable, EarthBound is consistently fresh.

Despite being a turn-based RPG, theres something frantic about the games combat. The enemy designs are all insane and paired with psychedelic backgrounds and pounding music. HP loss rolls over like a gas meter, meaning mortal damage can potentially be prevented if the character is healed in time. This forces you to power through the battle menus, which itself can cause even more damage.

Really, the music deserves its own special mention. Few video game soundtracks are this good. Most of the battle themes carry a psychedelic jazz feel, but the game also has its moments of pure ambience, ranging from the peace of a safe location to the droning horror of the final battle. Im not sure the aesthetic oddities would work quite so well without such an intricate soundtrack.

Like other Nintendo JRPGs, EarthBound is disarmingly simple. But that does not mean battles are easy. This game can really ramp up the difficulty at times, and you must make the best use out of your limited abilities. Each of the party members have their own unique twist, meaning tactical consideration is key to successful boss battles.

The whole thing is great, but the ending deserves special mention. Theres a reason Giygas stands out despite barely having a presence throughout the game. He feels like a pure embodiment of evil, unable to truly be comprehended. The section leading up to him is just as dire. Adding to the cosmic horror is the battle ending in a truly jaw-dropping twist; the game plays a sneaky trick on the player that will hit like nothing else.

Infinitely clever and outrageously funny, EarthBound is a JRPG like no other.

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#77. Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors (2009)
Developed by Chunsoft

Mixing the visual novel with the escape-the-room genre, 999 is a game that works in ways you would have never imagined. The basic premise suggests something from the most macabre horror movies. Nine characters are locked in a sinking ship and told they must play a deadly game. Explosives have been planted inside their bodies. They can only proceed through doors which require certain combinations related to numbers on their bracelets. When one player races ahead in a mad frenzy and gets himself blown up, their situation becomes clear. Despite sounding like the video game version of Saw II, 999 transcends this to somehow become one of gamings most compelling narratives.

The doorways are an ingenious way of including seemingly innocuous choices. Each door has a number from one to nine. To enter a door, the characters must add up their bracelets together to reach that number; if they go above ten, they instead add the digits (so 17 becomes 8 the game luckily does the math for you). This results in only certain combinations being able to go through each door, with at least three being required. When you first begin and lack a read on any of the characters, whatever door you choose may as well be random. But the deeper you get into the game, the more you realize the need to learn more about certain characters. This, in turn, leaves another set of characters to their own devices in another room.

Unfortunately, the greatness of 999 is buried so deep within that its impossible to discuss much more without diving straight into spoiler territory. The escape room puzzles are fine, but this game achieved its greatness through the handling of its narrative if you are not familiar with where this game is headed and do not want to ruin the experience, I suggest stopping here.

Your first ending will come shockingly early. Most likely, some character will suddenly start picking everyone else off. Naturally, this is very unsatisfying. The game will encourage you to play again, so you try a different path. As you switch up the doors, you will stumble into another ending. Certain elements will click together (or youll consult a guide) and youll eventually reach one of the truer endings.

Somehow, neither of these paths are enough on their own; to actually finish this game, you need to learn a password in one and use it in the other. 999 taps into the meta in a very unique way; by playing the game over and over, the protagonist is somehow picking up on these alternate realities. This means, in the default state, survival is impossible by design. This also means all these other endings are semi-canon; they may not happen in the true ending, but Junpei has still experienced those realities. The fact the game ultimately offers an explanation for this is the cherry on top.

Video games have a hard time handling narrative; if its too straightforward, it sometimes feels like the game is randomly being interspersed with a movie. Providing alternate progression can shake things up, but finding the balance between excellent writing and true variation is quite difficult. 999 simply decides to have it both ways. What you learn down these stray paths is as key as the final result. This game is loaded with great characters opening up your mind to distinct possibilities, and the individual moments really shine. Strangely, despite being a puzzle game, the most memorable is the easiest thanks to its integration with the narrative.

Alongside the more popular Portal and Bioshock, 999 stands as one of the great late 2000s games which truly questioned what it meant to tell a story in this medium. With a twist that blurs the line between player and character while somehow treating multiple endings as interconnected, 999 offers an unforgettable experience - but its greatest trick is using all these stray elements to keep casting the same characters in different lights.

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SeabassDebeste posted...

for some reason i expected RCT to be in your top 10-20. i think you're the only person i'd ever seen with RCT ranked so high...

It's definitely the most nostalgia heavy inclusion. Can't imagine it resonating in the same way if I discovered it at any other time, but it being both actually good and one of the first I owned while also being infinitely replayable put it in a special position. What I neglected to mention in that write-up is that my childhood dream job was to design rollercoasters, so that also plays a part.

That dream faded when I realized I was afraid of heights...

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As I begin my next write-up, I feel the need to point out some of my dates might be...inconsistent. I have the Japanese release date marked down which is a year ahead of the US release, but I know other games have their US date marked instead. Oh well...

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#78. RollerCoaster Tycoon (1999)
Developed by Chris Sawyer Productions

Our first exposures to a medium can help shape how we process that medium going forward. Throughout my childhood, there was no game I played more than RollerCoaster Tycoon. I believe this had a strange effect. My attention was drawn to other simulators, but I couldnt quite wrap my head around SimCity 3000. And while the term existed before, the following years saw an uptick of games with tycoon in the title. Even as a child, I was wary of what that meant. While Pokemon had Dragon Quest Monsters to scratch a similar itch, RollerCoaster Tycoon stood alone. This time searching and failing to find something suitably similar must have influenced my current perception of art. Ive never been one to focus too much on one particular style; I want to get my hands into a little bit of everything. After all, theres no way of knowing where Ill find the next game to resonate to such a degree aside from two being in the same series, my personal top 10 games have little in common.

Though not quite an indie game due to being published by Hasbro, RollerCoaster Tycoon certainly operates in a similar manner. The game was almost entirely created by Chris Sawyer, with some help from artist Simon Foster and composer Allister Brimble. Even in 1999, the graphics were archaic, but that lent a simple charm to the experience. In fact, I think the simplicity is part of what makes scrolling over the park so fun. The sense of motion Sawyer managed to create is surprisingly smooth.

The game is straightforward in its purpose; you must run an amusement park for a few years and achieve a certain popularity. There are few bells and whistles in the basic presentation, which in turn draws more attention to your personal creations. The park management is fine enough (if a little too easy as an experienced gamer, though my childhood self never quite got there), but the draw is building bigger and better coasters. The grid-based system makes this a straightforward process with physical constraints being simple to learn; rides must be two solid steps above to pass over one another, getting over a hill requires either enough momentum or a chain, etc. Designing a great coaster requires just the right speed around corners and hills; the simple design makes it easy to pick out and correct the sections which arent working.

The park guests give an incentive to make various rides. Some are too afraid for even the most basic coasters, while others live for thrills within certain limits. Each ride has meters rating their intensity and their tendency to cause both excitement and nausea. Make a death trap and no one will ride it; these restraints are key in enforcing realistic designs.

The different parks which operate as the games levels do a nice job of emphasizing various mechanics. First level Forest Frontiers is situated in a narrow clearing, putting an emphasis on more compact rides - but theres also the option to buy more land for the park. Evergreen Gardens really ramps up the management game. If youre not paying enough attention, your park rating will dip as its sprawling paths will become a sea of vomit. Penultimate park Rainbow Valley completely prevents landscape changes; theres always something which sets these parks apart.

RollerCoaster Tycoon is simply a game which handles its concept very well. What the sea of imitators did not understand is that designing rollercoasters is a certain joy which does not really exist elsewhere. The selling point here was the rollercoasters, not the tycoon. Which is not to knock on RCTs management system; these two concepts played into one another, giving the player a reason to care about the quality of their rides beyond simple aesthetic pleasure. This game would have never had the same draw if it was a mere sandbox.

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#79. Tales of Vesperia (2008)
Developed by Namco Tales Studio

Tales is a messy series; as far as narrative JRPGs go, Tales tends to be filled with generic plotlines and annoying characters. Whatever benefit later entries carry is largely negated by drawn out nothingness. Breakout hit Tales of Symphonia avoids this with a few strong characters, but certain parts remain lacking. Tales of Vesperia was an outright improvement on everything the series had to offer, from a strong cast of characters to its subversive story to continued advancements on the gameplay. The only reason this game didnt ascend to classic status was some poor decisions during its release; Microsoft spent a few years trying and failing to appeal to a Japanese audience, resulting in a bunch of largely bland JRPGS being exclusive to the Xbox 360. Vesperia was the highlight of the bunch, but that did not mean anyone went out of their way to buy it. Most fans of JRPGs went with the other consoles, and Namco was pushing out enough Tales games that people could get their fix elsewhere. A definitive edition was finally released on all the major systems in 2019, but its legacy as one of the few great JRPGs of the seventh console generation is destined to be neglected.

Tales is one of those series JRPG fans wish was consistently better for one clear reason; instead of having turn-based combat, the series plays like a Smash Bros-styled fighter, where a simple directional input changes the attack. Each character is more than a new set of stats, coming with their own play style. This might mean little alone, but Tales is a rare JRPG series with multiplayer, allowing all four party members to be controlled by actual players. While there are plenty of online RPGs, theres something about the local coop in this style that stands out.

Even without the multiplayer, these mechanics provide an enjoyable alternative to navigating through menus. This would never outright replace turn-based gameplay (a few series do actually use it well, as rare as they can seem), but its certainly a unique twist on an otherwise traditional JRPG. For a series where the narrative is rarely above average, addicting combat was a necessity. Tales is always a pleasure to play, even if the urge to skip through cut scenes can be strong.

Vesperia, however, is great through and through. A lot of this relies on the cast; the grand narrative scope isnt the clearest, but the story instead sustains itself through smaller acts where we dive into Yuri Lowells mindset. Where the typical JRPG protagonist tends to be either annoyingly optimistic or brooding, Yuri is jaded but in a believable way. He has seen suffering and knows some problems wont disappear on their own. Most protagonists are taking fate into their own hands, but few act as straightforward vigilantes.

While falling into more traditional tropes, the other characters are simply handled well. Raven plays the failed Casanova, the detached type with a playful persona who must be hiding something. Ritas rude behavior plays well off the other characters. And then theres Redepe, a blue dog who smokes a pipe and fights by holding a dagger between his teeth. Whats not to love?

Despite its many flaws, Tales is a series where every battle is fun. Remove those flaws and you get an outright masterpiece.

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RyoCaliente posted...

I actually think on a gameplay level BW are some of the weakest Pokemon games, because they don't really add anything to the gameplay (except for Hidden Abilities, something you will probably never encounter as a casual player). It's not bad, but it doesn't revolutionize the series in that sense.

It's still my favourite generation though, for pretty much all the reasons you mentioned. While underused, I really liked the seasons mechanic as a way of changing up certain areas and making the world feel alive.

Even if it doesn't change things up, it still has all the positives of the previous improvements. Not every installment in a series needs to make big changes; the presentation in Gen V simply outdoes the surrounding entries. And calling the gameplay weak seems kind of absurd when it's the same system as in Gen IV and better than the previous generations. I believe Gen V also introduced multi-use TMs and a few alternative battle methods which later games dropped, such as rotation and triple battles. These were underutilized like double battles, but were still a neat feature when they happened.

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#80. Shovel Knight (2014)
Developed by Yacht Club Games

Even with a successful transition into 3D, the platformer saw more of a distinct split than an outright evolution. The slick gameplay present in 2D platformers simply cannot be reproduced with a third dimension. Unfortunately, despite remaining its own distinct genre, mainstream gaming continued marching on with its focus on new technology. The 2D platformer did not get shafted like the shooter, but the few throwbacks during the sixth generation rarely came close to the classics.

Thus, its no surprise that the indie game boom largely revolved around the platformer. Braid broke through with its mixture of platforming and unique time mechanics, while Super Meat Boy turned the genre into an absolute nightmare of precision platforming. A truly timeless genre, people were finding more and more ways for the platformer to evolve.

Out of all these great games, few balance the nostalgia with innovation as well as Shovel Knight. With Yacht Club Games largely limiting their presentation to what could be handled on the NES, an image from the game could easily be placed next to Mega Man or DuckTales and anyone unaware would believe they were from the same era.

Shovel Knight is a challenging game, but not quite to the level of something like Super Meat Boy or Celeste. Instead, its a fun take on Nintendo Hard, again calling back to its obvious inspirations which were designed to be impossibly challenging (which was in part to artificially increase their length). At the same time, Shovel Knight never punishes the player through the same methods like a total reset, offering more of a Dark Souls-like mechanic where you must recover lost money. This game blends retro and modern design philosophies seamlessly. This means, while replicating the difficulty, theres nothing artificial about its length; Shovel Knight is bulky for an NES-style platformer, and thats before getting into its several campaigns (an important note is that I played this game years ago without much research and never realized how expansive this game would end up; it is here based on that first campaign alone. If the other campaigns hold up to the first, then Im likely undervaluing the final product).

While discussing a relatively new medium, its easy to let certain things slide due to nostalgia. With something as complex as video games, certain genres attained their peak form sooner than others. The 2D platformer was one of the earliest to reach its heights, with the original Super Mario Bros. still being a seamlessly designed game. Something like Shovel Knight is less like an evolution and more of a refinement, a greatest hits of what made the NES era so important. Shovel Knight has it all and more, with intricate design offering a more fluid experience. Certain moments even invoke the hardware limitations of the NES, but as an intentional element of the design.

Plenty of games come along selling themselves on nostalgia, especially on Kickstarter. Some games like Mighty. No 9 and Yooka-Laylee exploited this desire with the involvement of people who worked on earlier successes like Mega Man and Banjo-Kazooie. Yacht Club Games understands theres more to a good nostalgia piece; a mere replication will never stand up to the original. Something like Shovel Knight only comes about with a generation who grew up with the classics, those idealistic kids who played the same games over and over again to the point they simply had to learn how to create their own take.

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#81. Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
Developed by HAL Laboratory

As much as the roster keeps increasing, theres something about Super Smash Bros. Melee that hasnt been outright replaced by Ultimate like its following two sequels. Part of this is certainly nostalgia, but theres something to be said about a tighter roster and Melees fluid motion.

When I finally got a Nintendo Gamecube, the only consoles I had owned before were a Sega Genesis, a Game Boy Color, a PlayStation 2, and a Game Boy Advance. Thus, my experience with Nintendo was largely limited to the Pokemon series and Super Mario Bros. Deluxe; there were certainly others I could have picked up with the handheld systems, but I had no one to push me in the right direction. Since I wanted this system to be able to play with more friends, my first games were Mario Kart: Double Dash and Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Beyond its (now small) roster, this game was loaded with Nintendo content. I could get lost in the trophies and their descriptions. With friends as clueless as I was beyond the colorful platformers of the time, this was my first real gateway into gaming at large. Melee guided me to Metroid Prime and F-Zero GX. Getting lost in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker in turn led me to discover GameFAQs on the final day of its third character battle, where Link himself narrowly defeated some obscure character named Cloud Strife. While my interest in those contests turned into my biggest gateway, it all started with Super Smash Bros. Melees celebration of its own history.

There are few games I have invested more hours in than Super Smash Bros. Melee; even after the release of Brawl, most of my friends preferred the feeling of Melee (which was then compounded by my Brawl disc inexplicably not working for a year before suddenly working again). Mario Kart was fine enough, Mario Party fun in its own stupid way, but Melee dominated all up until the Rock Band craze (which itself largely signaled the end of video games in my social life, replaced by board games as I entered college). My preference for games leans toward the single player experience, but Melee has always had its own special pedestal.

Part of the appeal over later sequels is the simplicity. Roster additions starting with Brawl felt more and more specialized (which is not bad, considering I place Melee and Ultimate on a near equal level). With only 26 characters and a few of those being clones, it was easier to learn how to fight with and against each potential style. In the end, if you mainly play with a few friends and those friends tend to stick to a handful of fighters at best, a larger roster does not change too much. I always preferred the frenetic feel of Melee, even as a casual player. Something about falling faster made every second more urgent.

So, yes, a large part of this inclusion plays into my nostalgia; but while compiling a work on the hundred games which influenced me most, it would be wrong to exclude something which dominated nearly a decade of my life. The simple fact that Melee vs. Ultimate is an argument at all is a testament to how much Nintendo got right all the way back in 2001. Even with the series pushing 80 characters, it is all based around Melees core design.

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