My 100 Favorite Video Games of All-Time: #40-21
We're getting into the meat of things now. Here are the games ranked from number 40 through number 21 on the list.
40. Gran Tourismo 2: Racing games aren't really my thing, for the most part. However, Gran Tourismo 2 is my all-time favorite in that category. Everything that it did appealed to me. The customization options were amazing. The graphics were really good. I also enjoyed the challenge of attaining the licenses to run the different races. Later versions never quite attained the level of this one for me.
39. Dishonored: I had considered buying Dishonored a few times before I finally pulled the trigger. I'm glad I did. It's a stealth game, which isn't necessarily my favorite type of game, but with great graphics and a brilliant back story, I found myself drawn into it quickly. It was difficult enough to give me fits, but it only made me want to finish it even more. I look forward to playing the sequel.
38. Mike Tyson's Punch-Out: It was silly and more than a little racist, but Mike Tyson's Punch-Out was a part of pretty much everybody's childhood from my generation. Each new fighter had a trick in order to beat them, and it was fun trying to get them all down. Naturally, the title character was nearly impossible to beat, but it was sure fun trying. Who didn't get a kick out of King Hippo?
37. Kingdom Hearts: Combine Final Fantasy and all the biggest characters from Disney into an action role-playing game, and you get Kingdom Hearts. I bought parts one and two together, and was hooked from the get-go. I still have my PS2 hooked up, and every now and then, I play these games over again, and I still enjoy it.
36. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time: The Zelda games are always a great deal of fun, but there was something about Ocarina of Time that made it stand out. The graphics were gorgeous, the exploration fun, and the story was outstanding. If this had been a game I had owned, instead of playing it at a friend's house when I could, it might have been higher on this list.
35. Grand Theft Auto IV: Every series should be able to take a step forward when a new system comes out. Grand Theft Auto did just that with part four. They took advantage of the Xbox 360's power and made a huge, graphically advanced game that had a fun story and a great deal of everything we love about these games. Niko was a great character and his interactions added much to the game.
34. Twisted Metal 2: The idea behind the Twisted Metal games is tremendous. You play as one of several crazy car/driver combos, each with its own special abilities, and try to blow up everybody else. Awesome, right? Well, add amazing, dark backstories and ending sequences for winning, and you get an all-time classic. My friends and I got our money's worth out of this one.
33. Batman: Arkham Asylum: The Batman: Arkham games are arguably the best superhero games ever. Arkham Asylum was the first, and introduced me to them with a bang. It was unique as not only a comic book game, but as a game, period. The story was fun and engaging. I played through this one quickly because I was so into it.
32. Far Cry 3: Ubisoft doesn't have the best reputation, and their games are often accused of just being repeats of previous games with small changes. That's probably true to a degree, but I don't mind when the game is good. Far Cry 2 was fun enough, and the third installment just improves on everything. The open world is huge, there are plenty of collectibles, and the main story is involved. Add all of the wild animals (especially the sharks and crocodiles, the unseen enemy is the worst), and you've got a game I can get behind.
31. Assassin's Creed II: The second Assassin's Creed game, like any other good series, takes all of the good things from the first one, and improves it. Here, we furthered the story of Desmond Miles, while introducing Ezio Auditore da Firenze, who is such an awesome character. The world was big, the action was fast, and the story was strong.
30. Final Fantasy X: I could probably just fill this space with the word "Square" over and over again, to be honest. This one, like each of the other Final Fantasy games, brought its own set of innovations, and a new, and terrific story. We were introduced to Blitzball as well, which was weird, but pretty fun. It was another homerun for Square.
29. Mass Effect: I was never a big fan of shooters, but decided to give Mass Effect a play because of the role-playing elements. It turns out I made the right decision. The two sequels improved on the gameplay, but it was this one that set the stage for Shepard, Garrus, Tali, and the rest of the crew. The first Mass Effect got me into a whole new style of RPG.
28. LA Noire: This was a game I discovered by accident, while browsing for other games. LA Noire is such a unique game, combining elements from Grand Theft Auto and all of those CSI games. You get to solve crimes as part of a larger story, but you also get to take emergency calls and do all of the driving and chasing that we love. A setting in the 40's gives the game a feel that is different from any other game I've played. I own it, and I love it.
27. Dead Island: While looking for some good RPG titles to play on my XBox 360, I stumbled across Dead Island, which combines survival horror and open world role players in a pretty awesome way. It had a ton of quests, several different locations, and a massive amount of undead. It wasn't as creepy as some of the classic horror games, but I enjoyed it a lot.
26. Star Ocean: The Last Hope: This was another game I discovered through the magic that is GameFly. It looked like a throwback to the RPGs of the PS1 and PS2 day, and that's exactly what it was. I hadn't really played anything but sports games for a few years, when I subscribed to GameFly to find some variety. This was the first game I tried in my return to RPGs and I couldn't have been happier.
25. Tomb Raider (Reboot): I really never got into the Tomb Raider games the first time around, but was willing to give the reboot a chance. It turned out to be a great adventure game with pretty amazing graphics and a very cool story. It was good enough that I fully intend on playing all of the games in the rebooted series.
24. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood: The Assassin's Creed series peaked, for me, with Brotherhood. It had the huge open world, plenty of new features, including the ability to recruit new assassin's to send on missions. All the familiar traits were there as well, and you still got to take out all the bad guys in a number of ways. I haven't played most of the more recent games, but I can't imagine them being better than this one.
23. Kingdom Hearts II: I love the Kingdom Hearts games. The second game had all of the awesome features from the first game, with new locations, and new characters to experience. Somewhere along the way, I let somebody borrow my copy of Kingdom Hearts II, and I never got it back. I'd throw it on and play it today if I had it.
22. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City: Vice City was my, and probably many others, introduction to the Grand Theft Auto franchise. It was a toss into the deep end. I was blown away by all the madness that was thrown in my face, and right away. The franchise is one of the most influential of any video game series in gaming history, and for good reason.
21. Final Fantasy XII: I have not played the newest one yet, but Final Fantasy XII was the last great game in the series, in my opinion. I've played through this one a few times, and it stays awesome. I didn't even mind having to unlock the different weapon and magics on the license board. The story, of course, is top notch.
40. Gran Tourismo 2: Racing games aren't really my thing, for the most part. However, Gran Tourismo 2 is my all-time favorite in that category. Everything that it did appealed to me. The customization options were amazing. The graphics were really good. I also enjoyed the challenge of attaining the licenses to run the different races. Later versions never quite attained the level of this one for me.
39. Dishonored: I had considered buying Dishonored a few times before I finally pulled the trigger. I'm glad I did. It's a stealth game, which isn't necessarily my favorite type of game, but with great graphics and a brilliant back story, I found myself drawn into it quickly. It was difficult enough to give me fits, but it only made me want to finish it even more. I look forward to playing the sequel.
38. Mike Tyson's Punch-Out: It was silly and more than a little racist, but Mike Tyson's Punch-Out was a part of pretty much everybody's childhood from my generation. Each new fighter had a trick in order to beat them, and it was fun trying to get them all down. Naturally, the title character was nearly impossible to beat, but it was sure fun trying. Who didn't get a kick out of King Hippo?
37. Kingdom Hearts: Combine Final Fantasy and all the biggest characters from Disney into an action role-playing game, and you get Kingdom Hearts. I bought parts one and two together, and was hooked from the get-go. I still have my PS2 hooked up, and every now and then, I play these games over again, and I still enjoy it.
36. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time: The Zelda games are always a great deal of fun, but there was something about Ocarina of Time that made it stand out. The graphics were gorgeous, the exploration fun, and the story was outstanding. If this had been a game I had owned, instead of playing it at a friend's house when I could, it might have been higher on this list.
35. Grand Theft Auto IV: Every series should be able to take a step forward when a new system comes out. Grand Theft Auto did just that with part four. They took advantage of the Xbox 360's power and made a huge, graphically advanced game that had a fun story and a great deal of everything we love about these games. Niko was a great character and his interactions added much to the game.
34. Twisted Metal 2: The idea behind the Twisted Metal games is tremendous. You play as one of several crazy car/driver combos, each with its own special abilities, and try to blow up everybody else. Awesome, right? Well, add amazing, dark backstories and ending sequences for winning, and you get an all-time classic. My friends and I got our money's worth out of this one.
33. Batman: Arkham Asylum: The Batman: Arkham games are arguably the best superhero games ever. Arkham Asylum was the first, and introduced me to them with a bang. It was unique as not only a comic book game, but as a game, period. The story was fun and engaging. I played through this one quickly because I was so into it.
32. Far Cry 3: Ubisoft doesn't have the best reputation, and their games are often accused of just being repeats of previous games with small changes. That's probably true to a degree, but I don't mind when the game is good. Far Cry 2 was fun enough, and the third installment just improves on everything. The open world is huge, there are plenty of collectibles, and the main story is involved. Add all of the wild animals (especially the sharks and crocodiles, the unseen enemy is the worst), and you've got a game I can get behind.
31. Assassin's Creed II: The second Assassin's Creed game, like any other good series, takes all of the good things from the first one, and improves it. Here, we furthered the story of Desmond Miles, while introducing Ezio Auditore da Firenze, who is such an awesome character. The world was big, the action was fast, and the story was strong.
30. Final Fantasy X: I could probably just fill this space with the word "Square" over and over again, to be honest. This one, like each of the other Final Fantasy games, brought its own set of innovations, and a new, and terrific story. We were introduced to Blitzball as well, which was weird, but pretty fun. It was another homerun for Square.
29. Mass Effect: I was never a big fan of shooters, but decided to give Mass Effect a play because of the role-playing elements. It turns out I made the right decision. The two sequels improved on the gameplay, but it was this one that set the stage for Shepard, Garrus, Tali, and the rest of the crew. The first Mass Effect got me into a whole new style of RPG.
28. LA Noire: This was a game I discovered by accident, while browsing for other games. LA Noire is such a unique game, combining elements from Grand Theft Auto and all of those CSI games. You get to solve crimes as part of a larger story, but you also get to take emergency calls and do all of the driving and chasing that we love. A setting in the 40's gives the game a feel that is different from any other game I've played. I own it, and I love it.
27. Dead Island: While looking for some good RPG titles to play on my XBox 360, I stumbled across Dead Island, which combines survival horror and open world role players in a pretty awesome way. It had a ton of quests, several different locations, and a massive amount of undead. It wasn't as creepy as some of the classic horror games, but I enjoyed it a lot.
26. Star Ocean: The Last Hope: This was another game I discovered through the magic that is GameFly. It looked like a throwback to the RPGs of the PS1 and PS2 day, and that's exactly what it was. I hadn't really played anything but sports games for a few years, when I subscribed to GameFly to find some variety. This was the first game I tried in my return to RPGs and I couldn't have been happier.
25. Tomb Raider (Reboot): I really never got into the Tomb Raider games the first time around, but was willing to give the reboot a chance. It turned out to be a great adventure game with pretty amazing graphics and a very cool story. It was good enough that I fully intend on playing all of the games in the rebooted series.
24. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood: The Assassin's Creed series peaked, for me, with Brotherhood. It had the huge open world, plenty of new features, including the ability to recruit new assassin's to send on missions. All the familiar traits were there as well, and you still got to take out all the bad guys in a number of ways. I haven't played most of the more recent games, but I can't imagine them being better than this one.
23. Kingdom Hearts II: I love the Kingdom Hearts games. The second game had all of the awesome features from the first game, with new locations, and new characters to experience. Somewhere along the way, I let somebody borrow my copy of Kingdom Hearts II, and I never got it back. I'd throw it on and play it today if I had it.
22. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City: Vice City was my, and probably many others, introduction to the Grand Theft Auto franchise. It was a toss into the deep end. I was blown away by all the madness that was thrown in my face, and right away. The franchise is one of the most influential of any video game series in gaming history, and for good reason.
21. Final Fantasy XII: I have not played the newest one yet, but Final Fantasy XII was the last great game in the series, in my opinion. I've played through this one a few times, and it stays awesome. I didn't even mind having to unlock the different weapon and magics on the license board. The story, of course, is top notch.
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