Like quite a few of my generation video games have been a part of my life growing up and growing old. Not to go all old-timer on you but I was there when Atari Pong* was around and haven't gave up on video games since. At one time or another my family or myself have owned every console system* from the popular to the not so popular and have enjoyed countless hours playing on them all. So to say I have seen my fair share of video games over the years would be an extreme understatement, I have practically played them all*. So without further ado, my personal top five video games of all time.
#5 Dark Wizard: Sega CD. I don't know why, but as a youth I became addicted to this game to the point that I was sleeping during the day on days off from school just so I could use the family TV at night to play. The game isn't generally considered one of the greats like most on this list but for me it was engrossing. The game was a simple strategy game with simple graphics and simple game mechanics but I loved it anyways. You could play as one of 4 characters with unique role-playing attributes and actions to try and conquer a medieval type land. Fun for the whole family! I actually brought it out of retirement as recently as 7 years ago just to reminisce and still had a great time playing it.
Afterthoughts: I have never really gotten into strategy games whether they be real time or turn base. I have tried to capture the magic of playing Dark Wizard with other games like Command and Conquer or Age of Wonders but have never succeeded. I did enjoy the Final Fantasy Tactics series but for me that was a one 'n done affair.
#4 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas: PlayStation 2. For me, the pinnacle of the Grand Theft Auto series. Vice City had more fun than what should be legally allowed and the PSP "Stories" games were actually more than just interesting time killers, but San Andreas was and is the best over all game Rockstar has ever produced. The story takes place during the gangsta rap era* of California which happened to be when I was in high school here in the lovely Golden State. So even though I am the farthest thing from a gangsta there could be, the game still resonated with me. San Andreas took everything that worked from previous GTA games like over the top characters, customizable vehicles, glorified violence, and scores of anti-social behavior and took them up to the proverbial 11. All the things a guy in his 20's wishes he could do but knowing he could never actually get to a 6 star rating in real life. The game was immense at the time, covering an area that takes place in three different cities* plus the land in between them. The story was borderline outlandish, the music rocked including a country station for when you were going after the trailer park people, and Samuel L. Jackson as the main baddie. Just a perfect symphony of destruction.
Afterthoughts: I know GTA IV is more critically acclaimed and generally considered the better game but IV just didn't have the overall fun factor that San Andreas had. The characters were toned down, the streets(and sidewalks!) too congested to drive really fast through most of the time*, and the over all tone just a bit of a bummer. Realism in video games is fine but I prefer my GTA universe to be more open.
#3 Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater: PlayStation 2. Metal Gear Solid and its' various off-shoots happen to be my favorite game series of all time. I love the overall feel of science fiction with some magic realism thrown in. Snake Eater employs all the outstanding MGS elements into one superb game. The game takes place during 1960's Soviet Union in a remote jungle area with a plethora of unique and disturbing characters. The gameplay features new additions like a camouflage system and Close Quarter Combat which help evolve the game. Like most MGS games you can play either full on combat or go for the stealth route, each having their own satisfying styles and conclusions. I could of done without the frogs, but Snake Eater had two of my favorite boss fights of all time. The final against The Boss and the ultra-patient romp with The End.
Afterthoughts: Just like the previous entry on my list, Snake Eater is often overshadowed by its sequel, in this case Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. In most ways Guns of the Patriots is superior to Snake Eater in almost every way but I really got into the Snake Eater story and the mood it was trying to establish so to me Snake Eater narrowly beats out Guns of the Patriots.
#2 Final Fantasy VII: PlayStation. Oh yeah, the legend itself. The game that ruined my 1st PlayStation. The game that taught the world that despite what Nintendo says, sometimes the Princess dies. The game that caused me to forget what the outside world looked like. If there is any game that I wish could be re-released with modern graphics and sound quality, this is the one. The story and gameplay blew me away and kept me coming back for more. Cloud Strife destroyed the typical hero arch-type, he was a complicated mess of emotions, duty, and uncertainty. Plus he carried a big ass sword!
...and what is considered to be one of the most shocking scenes in video game history...Aerith.
Afterthoughts: The Final Fantasy universe is huge but VII stands out amongst it. The Final Fantasy games leading up to VII were good to great but they were standard RPG fare. VIII sucked. IX returned to standard fare(solid game) and X, X-2 were some outstanding games. XI was a MMORPG so I didn't play it. XII and XIII to me were disappointments. The characters were redundant to the point you only really needed a couple to play and beat the game. When all the characters can learn the same skills and with little to none differentiation then the game becomes a bore. I really liked the combat system of XIII but the game could of been more open in the beginning with more opportunity to develop the weapons and limiting the characters to only 2 paradigm roles instead of 3 would of forced you make more diverse parties instead of using the same 3 characters all game.
#1 Fallout 3: PS3. Simply put, the greatest video game of all time. Why is it the greatest? Was it the large and most diverse selection of weapons ever, ranging from rolling pins to shotguns to Gatling Lasers*? Could be. Was it the large and most diverse set of characters ever, ranging from the pure evil to godly good and everything in between? Could be. Was it the large and most diverse story ever, ranging from deciding whether or not to blow up a town with a nuclear warhead to helping a lovely old lady find some sheet music? Could be. Was it the large and most diverse set of skills available, ranging from cannibalistic nutrition to cyborg implants to having the ability to paralyze an opponent with just the palm of your hand? Could be. Or was it because Qui Gon Jinn played your Pops? Definitely could be it. But no, what made Fallout 3 so great was that the moment you stepped outside of Vault 101 for the 1st time the world kicked into gear and kept running whether you did anything or not. The whole vastness of Capitol Wastelands was open to you and the people and places that inhabited this area went on with their lives with or without you. No other game had been this wide open before, with random events happening all around you. You literally could not play the game the same way twice.
Afterthoughts: The 1st two Fallouts were forgettable. Fallout: New Vegas is a solid little time killer but I really hate the Factions game element. I had to restart a game because I decided that while visiting Nipton for the 1st time that Vulpes Inculta was too much of a jerk to let live so I offed him. So even though I left no witnesses I managed to anger all of Caesar's Legions with no hope of saying "sorry" until much later in the game. As a result I couldn't go more than 100 ft. without Legionary Assassins laying waste to me. I hope the Factions is gone or at least redesigned* for Fallout 4.
Final thoughts: The 1st thing most of you are going to ask is "Where is everybody's favorite plumber on this list?" This is my list, my thoughts, thus my opinion. I do not care much for platform games other than time killers so Mario and his minions mean little to me. Also you may of noticed a lack of 1st person shooters such as Halo. I am on of those who gets motion sickness from fast paced 1st person shooters. I'm fine with something I can go slow with like Fallout 3 or Borderlands* but for the most part I stay away from them. Just watching my brother play can cause me to get dizzy and nauseous. Sucks to be me. And finally most of these games are more modern. The classics are classics for a reason and I enjoyed playing in the 8 bit universe as much as anybody but those early games can't touch what is happening nowadays. Not just better graphics and sound but overall game play and story lines have grown well beyond what was capable of even 10 years ago.
Finally, currently I am playing The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim* and I find that I am really getting into the game to the point I have 9 different characters going at once. Even though it is too early to tell, Skyrim could be on its' way to a top game in my book. So far I am loving everything about it and haven't come across anything that has caused me to shake my head in disgust*. After I have thoroughly finished Skyrim, which could be a year or two from now, I might have to re-adjust my list. I also have an unopened Borderlands 2 which I have high hopes on.
*Atari Pong- I still have my original.
*system- Including Vectrex, Atari Jaguar, and TurboGrafx-16.
*played them all- During the 80's I played quite a bit on my old Commodore 128 but since then I have stuck mainly to consoles rarely if ever playing on my PC. Also, with game prices nowadays, it is hard to play them all.
*Gangsta Rap era- Think early 90's.
*different cities- The make believe cities were recreations of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Las Vegas.
*most of the time- Who at Rockstar thought it would be a fun game playing element to have to take a taxi to go anywhere?
*Gatling Lasers- My personal favorite. Mow 'em down kid, mow 'em down.
*redesigned- No witnesses, no crime! That's the way it should be.
*Borderlands- Came real close to making the list! Definitely top 10.
*Skyrim- It is made by Bethesda who also did Fallout 3!
*disgust- There are factions and crimes in Skyrim but unlike New Vegas; no witnesses, no crimes.
