History Gush / Videogames

* Gush/ValveSoftware

* Gush/NamcoBandai

* [=BioWare=]

* Gush/BioWare

* Gush/BioWare

** Mass Effect is amazing. It's awesome for female videogamers like myself... not the least because FemShep has some of the funniest lines in the entire game. (seriously, is there any female gamer who can resist the renegade interrupt on that idiot merc on Omega?) But aside from that, it's just a brilliant game in all respects. Sure, it's imperfect (playing inventory shuffle gets old fast in the first game, as does planet scanning in the second, and the open world aspect means it has a very jerky pace, going from exciting and fast-paced to "eh, let's go survey some planets for a while"), but who cares when you can blow the head off a merc from a hundred meters away with a well-placed Widow shot?! I adore the world of the game (and sincerely hope ME3 isn't the last game in that world), I like most characters' characterization (consider Miranda—I loathed her at first, but slowly I grew to like her over the course of the game... exactly as they'd planned), and the games are just plain fun.

Gush about VideoGames here.

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'''Creators with their own pages'''
[[index]]
* Gush/{{Atlus}}
* Gush/BioWare
* Gush/{{Capcom}}
* Gush/{{Konami}}
* Gush/NamcoBandai
* Gush/{{Natsume}}
* Gush/{{Nintendo}}
* Gush/{{Sega}}
* Gush/SquareEnix
* Gush/ValveSoftware
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!!Others:
* Gush/VideoGamesAToF
* Gush/VideoGamesGToP
* Gush/VideoGamesQToZ
[[/index]]
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[[/index]]

* With all the uncreative generic space marine or modern soldier FPS games being made these days, this troper has been fondly recalling Duke Nukem. While being unable to recall much of a story, this troper rather fondly recalls the game's humor and the interesting weapons and power-ups. Jetpack? Freeze gun? Pipe bombs? A plasma cannon that shakes the screen while its charging? Hail to the king, baby!
* The [[http://www.aksysgames.com/bittripbeat Bit]] [[http://www.commandervideo.com Trip]] [[http://www.explorethevoid.com Series]] for WiiWare. These gems combine wonderful retro-styled visuals, {{Ear Worm}} music and stupidly addictive points-based rhythm-action game play. Buy any one of these games and you won't need another game for months. They may be {{Nintendo Hard}}, but the feeling of pure accomplishment you get when you master them is the pinnacle of gaming for me.
* I really like ''MechWarrior 3''. It had great graphics for the time (but still look good), a compelling story, and you really felt like you were stomping around in a 90 ton machine of destruction.
** MechWarrior 2 was the first computer game this Troper ever bought, and still plays till today. The entire BattleTech universe has a magnificent storyline, and the game has great gameplay and use of tactics. The graphics are extremely obselete for now, but at the time they were great. This is all topped off with a CrowningMusicofAwesome.
* When I played CompanyOfHeroes, I felt like it was a completely different game from the AgeOfEmpires series and ''VideoGame/AgeOfMythology'' RTS games that I played (I still love em') and it completely blew my mind. It felt realistic (in retrospect it technically just ''felt'' realistic, there was much about it that wasn't - it still does remain that way in feeling to me, however), which was a big jump from the aforementioned Age of-s I played. I'd feel the same about DawnOfWar 2 with it being similar to CompanyOfHeroes RecycledInSpace (or, you know, {{Warhammer40K}}. I like {{Warhammer40K}}'s setting.), aside from Games For Windows Live disconnecting my Xbox Live Silver account all the time in multiplayer and some balance problems that are being ironed out.
* ''DwarfFortress'' is amazing. It's hard to believe it was basically made by one guy!
** It's getting better all the time too, which may well be crazy for some.
*** 1.0 Will bring upon us The End Times.
* [[SuperlativeDubbing Paging Doctor Bats...]] [[MarkHamill Paging Doctor Bats...]] [[BatmanArkhamAsylum IS THERE A DOCTOR BATS IN THE ROOM???]]
* No mention of ''BetrayalAtKrondor''? 'Tis a ''crime''! The game is awesome. The graphics are immersive and functional despite their age. The characters make you care about what happen to them, the characterisation is built up subtly and gradually. Gorath is quite simply the coolest dark elf in the history of fiction, EVER. You come to cherish every little detail that's revealed about the world. And, ''gods'', the ''ending''. It may not be a happy ending, per se. But it's a true ending. That's how it often is in life, and coming to realise that, you'll be able to cherish everything so much more while it lasts.
* I wish more people know about and play ''CityOfHeroes''. The character creator alone is worth the subscription fee.
** Agreed. The only thing that would make it better is if they included options for MagicalGirl costumes... what? I want my [[ElegantGothicLolita poofy dresses]].
** Thirded to the ultimate power. Even though I had to stop at some points, and at times even went to TheDarkSide (i.e., WorldOfWarcraft), I've always come back to this game. The recent sale of the IP to NCSoft seems to have made the game even ''better,'' in that the devs are finally focusing on making a game that is just plain ''[[RuleOfFun fun]]''!
*** Hell, use the forums. The devs ''themselves'' are pretty awesome to begin with. I still remember when Positron and Cuppajo showed up in-game to a mock wedding ceremony for two people getting married in real life.
** The world is relatively small, compared to some other [=MMOs=], and the chat and search interfaces aren't terribly complex. Add the relatively low penalty for dying and the aforementioned costume generator, and you have an MMO that (aside from the occasional [[StopHavingFunGuys user]] [[{{Jerkass}} conflicts]]) makes teaming not just rewarding, but easy.
** (There was some villainous anti-gushing here, but Troperman swooped in and saved the day)
** Fifthed (?), [=CoH=] is an amazing game with lore that stretches back thousands of years and over multiple realities (and just keeps growing), continually compounding customization ([[AddedAlliterativeAppeal See what I did there]]?), a dedicated (and friendly) staff of devs, and the ability to team and solo with ease. I wouldn't trade this game for anything.
* ''EuropaUniversalis Rome: Vae Victis'' is beyond amazing. How can a simple expansion pack make a game that sucks into something that's not only playable but one of the best (and most addictive) things ever released on PC?
* {{Halo}} has everything a great first-person shooter needs - an epic, well-crafted story with some great characters, absolutely gorgeous graphics and scenery, and most importantly, ridiculously fun gameplay. I can play for hours, both online and offline, because shooting Brutes and Grunts in the head, blasting an opponent with the shotgun, blowing shit up in a Tank or Warthog, and sticking someone ''never gets old.''
* I'm going to say this out loud. I. Love. VideoGame/{{Borderlands}}. You can say what you want about the ''plot'' but everything else is ''absolutely perfect''. Perfect controls. Perfect gameplay. Perfect [[RPGElements RPG Elements]], for christ's sake! ''Gearbox have taken everything good about an FPS and transferred it into this game''. And the thing I love most? The thing that I absolutely ''adore'' about Borderlands? ''It has a sense of what is fucking fun.'' FPS's today (I'm looking at you, ''Modern Warfare'') have gotten ''far'' too caught up in making things ''gritty'' and ''realistic'', well let me put this in ways you can understand, ''Infinity Ward''. FUCK. THAT. SHIT. When ''I'' play an FPS, I don't want it to simulate ''realistic combat''! That's just boring. I. Want. To. Have. A. Revolver. That. Shoots. Alternating. Elemental. Effects. On. Each. Bullet. Terrorist plot? FIRELIGHTNINGACIDEXPLOSION, ''MOTHERFUCKERS''! I want a reference to ''nearly every work of note in the last hundred years'', all with quests and red text! I want to have a person over my intercom, not shouting "''Ramirez! Take down that AC-130 with your knife!''", but instead informing me that "''SWEET JEESUS TITTY CINNAMON THAT IS A MAWN-STER! THIS IS GON' BE SWEET!''". I want to be informed by the ''final boss of the next DLC'' via ''Twitter'' that my player character should "Dude, ''eat something.''" I want a game that, specifically, does ''not'' feel like a chore to play. And I think that every single game developer out there can learn something from gearbox: Realism does NOT always equal fun.
** Even when Gearbox does go to the realistic side of the spectrum, they're still amazing. The Brothers in Arms series is mentally taxing to play, because it puts you right in the action, makes you care about the characters, and provides the most realistic combat I've ever seen in a video game. No Call of Duty run-and-gun tactics here, just use your cover and find, fix, flank, and finish. The storylines and characterization is simply stunning, too.
** In all fairness to ModernWarfare, it's not nearly as realistic as the mainstream media wants you to believe. Its tactical FPS fore bearers - like the original RainbowSix, DeltaForce and GhostRecon games; all of those series' first installments released before the PS2 era - slanted much further in realism than any of the Modern Warfare games. In fact, a late 2011 issue of GameInformer brought up several realistic PC FPS games as an antithesis to ModernWarfare3, just to dismantle this myth. Hell, even ''VideoGame/{{Counter-Strike}}'' has more realism than ModernWarfare, and no one mistook that game as anything beyond a more arcadey RainbowSix. ModernWarfare is more MisBlamed than anything, thanks to its [[ItsPopularNowItSucks popularity]] pigeonholing it into TropeCodifier territory for gritty, realistic FPS games, even though this clearly isn't true. Sure, the ModernWarfare series has plenty of legitimate faults, but being too realistic ain't one of them.
* [[{{@/Matrix}} This Troper]] loves GuildWars! It has beautiful graphics, especially in Pre-Searing! The gameplay is also fantastic! Plus you have a bajillion skills to choose from, so you can make pretty much anything you want. Oh, and with max armour ratings for each profession type and max base damage for each weapon type, it isn't based on "I beat you because I have the InfinityPlusOneSword!" Thus, the stuff that costs a lot are weapons with rare skins, not weapons that can one-shot other players. They do the same damage as other weapons. But they do it more prettyfuller! And, PvP is separate from [[PlayerVersusEnvironment PvE]]. I love this, since I don't have to have my [[PlayerVersusEnvironment PvE]] characters PvP-ready and such. And also, all this actually has lower specs required than you'd expect, and the memory it takes up on your computer is a lot smaller than you'd expect, too! Oh, and I like how each campaign and the expansion have a story to them, like a single-player RPG, instead of the "yeah just wander around a bit and kill stuff, do some quests, whatever" that you get in most online [=RPG=]s. And... Best of all... IT'S FREE! No subscription required! Just buy it, install it, update it, and you're set!
* Not only is the above all true but the story is both funny and interesting, and even after four years and a squeal in the making the staff at Arena-net have devoted a small team into making sure people who still play it are entertained and the bajillon skills are relatively balanced and are one of the most open and honest (within Reason) bunch of developers you'll find. Nt only that but in Guild wars you don't -have- to spend every day on it, you can take a break for however long you want and then come back whenever you want.
** Going on just about 5 years now and [=ANet=] is STILL adding new content to the original Guild Wars even as they continue work on Guild Wars 2. Last year (2009) they did a huge update at anniversary time which added a new NPC (Nicholas the Traveler) who asks for a certain "collector's item" (obtainable as drops from defeated enemies) every week for which he will give you gifts in return, including rare weapons and "miniature pets". Also in 2009, "Zaishen Missions", "Zaishen Bounties" and "Zaishen Combats" were added for which you can earn various denominations of coins redeemable for rewards which can include backpacks (to provide extra storage space on your characters) or elite tomes (for acquiring elite skills). The addition of "Zaishen Missions" and "Zaishen Bounties" did a lot to revitalize the game because it gave players additional incentive to do various missions and quests. Now, in 2010, with the game's 5th birthday coming up, something just about as big seems to be in the works. ThisTroper doesn't know yet exactly what's going to happen, but from advance hints being dropped it's possible that a Factions-style system is going to be set up in Prophecies where you can take the side either of the White Mantle or the Shining Blade. If you've finished both Prophecies and Eye of the North, this means the area in the Prophecies campaign known as Kryta is likely to get much more interesting, and much more challenging!
** I have to say, I like WoW much, much better. I haven't played Guild Wars in something like 6 years, but the biggest problem with it that I had was the 8 ability maximum you could have on your bars. Nothing sucked quite so much as getting an awesome new ability and realizing that you had no room on your bars for it. I'm the kind of person who loves having a ton of options, and GW just wasn't working for me with the extremely limited bar space. Honestly, if it wasn't for that, I would have loved the game.
* No matter what the haters say, {{Spore}} is awesome. Nothing beats the joy of watching your little fishy cell thing eventually grow into whatever bizarre creation you want, and then eventually wear clothes and build cities to your liking. This even makes it fun to come back to it again with a different kind of creature, a different story, and overall a different experience. And the space stage is huge. Really huge. I can't even comprehend how long it would take to finish it. Yes, the individual stages aren't all that sophisticated, but that's what dedicated-genre games are for!
** Agreed. Its only crippling flaw (apart from that one thing that [[InternetBackdraft we don't talk about]]) is that [[TheSameButMore it could have been better]].
*** And that is what expansion packs are for: to supply the "better".
**** Except when the expansion packs are made up of things that was taken out of the main game before release. The only thing that stops Spore from being one of the best games of 2008 is all the [[ExecutiveMeddling meddling]] on the part of EA. This Troper can't understand the reasoning behind screwing around with such an awesome game.
*** This troper agrees. Although it isn't mind-blowing, the Core game is a nice distraction. The real appeal of Spore, however, is the Creators, especially the Adventure Creator. You wouldn't believe what kinds of things people have made in that game.
** Its spinoff, ''Darkspore'', is pretty decent too. You can even turn off the blood in the settings so that the kiddies can play. Even though the creature designs are preset, you can still use paint and detail parts to make them more or less unrecognizable. And it has the CatharsisFactor!
* All 3 of the Fallout games are so dang awesome.
** Let me elaborate. Fallout 2 is one of the best gorram games I've ever played. If other games "engross" you, it actually SUCKS YOU INSIDE. The music is hauntingly appropriate, the gameplay is simply superb, and the humour is about as black as the event horizon of an anomaly. I used to play it so much, THE CD BROKE INSIDE THE DRIVE.
*** I loved Fallout 3, among many thing for the fact that i walked post-apocalyptic world in first person. And as much silly things may have appear, it does not changes the atmosphere. I loved it.
* To play ''LaMulana'' is not just to play a game. It's to go on an epic adventure.
* ''DarkCloud 2'' is one of the most fun and adorable games ever. Though the storyline can get cheesy at times, the breathtaking visuals (that look ''hand-drawn''), the easy but entertaining gameplay, and expansive world more than make up for it.
** The sheer fact that you get a fully customizable RobotBuddy (even giving you the ability to give the robot a voicebox) is all sorts of awesome. Not to mention that the custom parts range from water gun CANNONS to samurai sword arms to having the body being an OLD REFRIGERATOR. ''Ridepod Drive-Bys'' people!
** Holy crap. I thought I was the only person who played this game. One of my favorite [=RPG=]s of all times, despite its flaws. Also that boss battle music is killer.
* {{Red Dead Redemption}}. Rockstar did it. They made a game genre that was rapidly dying out and made an amazing, wonderful game out of it. The story, the characters, the dialogue, the gameplay, it's all been perfectly implemented into simply the best Western game ever made. It can be, in turns, [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome awesome,]] [[CrowningMomentOfFunny hilarious,]] [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel terrifying,]] [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming heartwarming]] and [[TearJerker incredibly sad.]] The dialogue is always witty and frequently poignant, and the music is unparalleled. Whether riding through Mexico listening to [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IkvAb6THQY Far Away]] and feeling like king of the Goddamn world or watching the end credits while [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkAvVqjbUG8 Deadman's Gun]] plays in the background and actually ''feeling'' for the main character, which so few games manage to do, what with silent protagonists and all. The gameplay is as smooth and elegant as activating Dead Eye, lining up a bunch of headshots and watching the fireworks, and to top it all off, [[spoiler: the most wonderful, beautiful [[DownerEnding downer ending]] you could ever have hoped for.]]
* ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic II'' is one of the best [=RPG=]s I've ever played, and my hat goes off to Obsidian. Even ''without'' Team Gizka's restoration project.
* There are no words to do justice to the old-school awesomesauce that is ''TIEFighter'', so I will merely point out that [[MagnificentBastard Thrawn]] is your boss, and ''DARTH VADER'' is your ''wingman''.
* ''IWannaBeTheGuy'' is just plain neat. It's this brilliantly insane nostalgia-fest packaged in a game that challenges you like no other. It's packed with neat tributes and Easter eggs ("It's dangerous to go alone! Take this." "[[spoiler:You jumped into a sword. You retard!]]"), not just to the old standbys but to games that for the longest time I thought I was the only one to have ever heard of, and did I mention it's hilarious? The entire game is basically one giant CrowningMomentOfAwesome with a generous sprinkling of CrowningMomentOfFunny.
* The ''{{Suikoden}}'' series. Sure, it's not as graphically flashy as the ''FinalFantasy'' series, and when its bad it tends to ''really'' suck, but when it's good, it's like {{Shakespeare}}. Rarely is there a game that let's you invest so much into your characters or which lets you feel just how high the stakes are when you're fighting a war. This game does ''not'' pull its [[PlayerPunch Player Punches...]]
** Indeed sir indeed! Seconded most emphatically! The fact that every game is set in the same continuity with a plethora of little easter eggs for the committed fan is merely icing on the cake! It's the closest thing to an interactive fantasy book, which in my mind is a strength of the series. The story telling is refreshing as well, no saving the world from evil gods here, its plots are grittier and more down-to-earth then the surface appearance would have you think.
* I will maintain until my death that ''{{Thief}}'' - the whole series - has the greatest stealth gameplay there has ever been, and that Looking Glass Studios were geniuses [[TooGoodToLast gone far too soon]]. Nothing else captures both the tension and the exhilaration that are vital to a stealth experience so perfectly, the sound and lighting are both wonderful and ''necessary'', and the whole thing is brought together by the dark fantasy/steampunk twist, portrayed with storytelling devices unique to games. And Robbing the Cradle is, bar nothing, the greatest level design and horror storytelling in a single game level - nearly equaled by House of the Widow, a mission based around grief that [[TearJerker succeeds almost too well]] in evoking it.
* NetHack. Not many games can become ''more fun'' every time you die less than 10 floors down. What is possibly the most expansive free game ever is done entirely with keystrokes on your keyboard (actions '''and graphics'''), proving that good graphics are not the biggest deal in the world. And it's funny, too.
** Complete agreement on this one. In addition to Nethack proving graphics aren't all that important to a game, Nethack ''also'' proves that minor things like characterization, story, and a learning curve are ''also'' not important in making an amazing game. Nethack ftw!
* The TotalWar series is one of the finest PC game series around. The strategy involved in real time battles with thousands of units is fantastic and the campaigns are seriously addictive with a lot of options, not to mention the graphics for both have been pretty darn impressive in the later installments. And the latest installment will finally allow naval battles as well. It is going to be awesome, even though the earlier games are already awesome. The development of your faction characters through your actions is great as well, with a hugely diverse bunch of traits, negative and positive, that can occur through inaction as well as action.
* [[{{@/Cherry}} This troper]] is completely obsessed with RaidouKuzunohaVsTheSoullessArmy. It's not perfect, but then again, who wants perfect? She found most of its imperfections to be quite charming. The main character is a silent protagonist with at least three character interpretations for each action (The fourth bullet in the random thoughts section on my contributor's page has the implied interpretation as well as being possibly his brand of humor - sort of a "I wonder how she'll react" form of amusement.), thus giving him character while leaving it open for the player at the same time. The [=NPCs=] are far, ''far'' from the WelcomeToCorneria types, having full-blown character development while at the same time providing information, and sometimes-painful LampshadeHanging (The Daidouji butler, Nakamura, says at one point that he "must have fainted from overwork" and he "would be ashamed to face the spirits of the Daidouji ancestors", which jars rather lightheartedly yet painfully with the conditions of game over.) There isn't a character in the game I dislike (even those I don't ''like'' I feel would detract from the game if absent), and each location has its own charm. I seem to find something new every time I pick up the game. On top of all that, the 20's-style localization is very charming - I would take it over Atlus's normal honorific use any day. ...Sorry, did I gush a bit too much? My page has more, even...
** Hey hey hey! As the [[{{@/Cybele}} troper]] who created the Raidou page, I agree with you on all fronts--I have yet to play a Megaten game that disappointed me. Matter of fact I'm playing it again cos of the save bonus that will be featured in ''King Abaddon''. I appreciate what you've done for the page! Nothin' wrong with spreading the Megaten love. ^_~
* ''VideoGame/CaveStory'' proves that some of the best video games are free. Plus, you have to admire the five years of effort put into it and its development team consisting of just ''one person''.
** Indeed. In fact, allow me to elaborate: Cave Story has the ''best'' stage design in a {{Metroidvania}} game ever, bar none. The feeling is not that you progress in the game, but that the game flows around you when you move. The music is about the pinnacle of 8-bit tunes - as was said in the CrowningMusicOfAwesome article, if you don't like the Outer Walls tune (Moonsong is its title), you should visit your local priest, because you're suffering from a serious lack of soul. And the characters are just awesome. HUZZAH!
** You said it! Cave Story really stands alone as one of the most memorable and polished indie games. Unfortunately, its 'indie' status means not nearly enough people will get to experience it (unless Nicalis hurries up with that port...).
* ''StarTrekStarfleetCommand'' is a brilliant game that makes SpaceIsAnOcean ''awesome''. There's an absolutely [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome teriffic soundtrack]], too.
** ''[[StarTrekVoyager Star Trek: Voyager - Elite Force]]'' deserves special mention. Despite being based on the underdog of the StarTrek verse, it manages to include a compelling plot, top-tier graphics for its era (which are still visually impressive even today), and was very well received. All this, and it was a Star Trek ''FPS''.
* Another example of awesome freeware: ''Cho Ren Sha 68K'', a [[ShootEmUps scrolling shooter]] originally developed for the Sharp [=X68000=] computer. Barring the same background used for every stage (save for Stage 0), the game combines tense wave-based enemy action with some elements of BulletHell and has an absolutely killer soundtrack. Sadly, his new, piece-of-crap computer can't run it at full speed.
* Pretty much any game by {{Infocom}}. They revolutionized the InteractiveFiction genre, proving once again that the best graphics are the ones you create inside your own head.
* Thank you MightAndMagic for providing [[strike: 9]] seven games of role-playing bliss. The series is great, the plot arcs are great, and it's always lots of fun to play. This troper still gets replay value from them despite the fact one was made in 1986. That is a compliment.
** Oh come on. Eight was brilliant. How many other games let you recruit dragons as party members?
* Any game Tim Schafer has made:
** ''GrimFandango'': a film noir/black comedy set in the Mexican afterlife, and a puzzle adventure game to boot? Kickass! Wonderfully scripted,challenging puzzles, masterly atmospheric, and beautiful graphics... this troper could go on and on.
** ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'' was the best game never played. An epic, original adventure with colorful levels so awesome you actually want to ''not'' save so you can play through them again and again. Not only that, it presents a lot of deep and scary themes most other writers won't even ''think'' about touching (animal cruelty, burning orphanages full of children, maternal suicide, etc.).
*** The thing this troper finds most impressive about it? It's one of the most irreverent, darkly-humored, hilarious, not-a-moment-of-it-too-serious-for-its-own-good games ever... and it manages to pull off one of the most genuinely moving and [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming heartwarming]] game endings this troper's ever seen. It beautifully subverts one of the [[DeadHorseTrope more overused]] plots (and itself!), and does so in a way that perfectly fits both Raz's character and doesn't break the tone of the game. It's kind of funny that it's not a kid's game, because its [[AnAesop aesop]] wouldn't be out of place in one. [[spoiler: Y'know, even when your parents punish you and "stop you having fun," and even if they make mistakes, they still love you to death. They're probably ''not'' evil.]]
** Seconded. Tim Schafer is a genius. Every single one of his games is gold. (well, I haven't played the Monkey Island series or Full Throttle, but I know they're good) Psychonauts, Grim Fandango, and Brutal Legend are my favorites though. My least favorite would have to be Costume Quest, but I still enjoyed it nonetheless.
* There's a damn good reason [[@/FreezairForALimitedTime this troper]] {{Entry Pimp}}s ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil''--it's frickin' amazing, and, like ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'', is one of the best games never played. On a technical level, it's a really fun, heavily experimental, and really short, ActionAdventure game--but it's all the ''details'' that wowed her. [[YouALLLookFamiliar Each NPC being completely unique.]] The [[CanisLatinicus really real Latin creature names]]. [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome The epic soundtrack.]] And the ''characters!'' The three main characters are wonderfully realized, with fantastic, unique, likeable personalities. Their relationships are excellently written, too--the love between Jade and Pey'j doesn't need to be an InformedAttribute; it's undeniable and obvious yet never {{Anvilicious}}. And the growth of friendship and trust between Jade and Double H is organic and touching, culminating in the [[TearJerker tear-jerking]] TakeMyHand and "lighthouse" scenes.
* ''VideoGame/{{Braid}}'' is absolutely amazing. The innovation in game mechanics is... dare I say it... equal to ''Portal''. It makes you think, and it makes you feel like a total genius (or a total idiot) when you finally figure out the puzzles. The world needs more games like this.
** The final level of the game, World 1-1 or "Braid," is one of the most mind-blowing moments I've ever experienced in video games, [[EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory without even getting into all of the implications and undertones involved]]. The entire time I [[spoiler:held the rewind button, realizing that that was actually making time go forward and the princess was ''running away from Tim'']], I was thinking "oh my god, this is insane. What is going on? I ''know'' what's going on, but ''[[MindScrew what is going on?!]]''" [[SmallNameBigEgo Whatever the size of his ego,]] kudos to Jonathan Blow for creating such a powerful moment in video gaming.
* On a related note - ''VideoGame/AmnesiaTheDarkDescent''. ThisTroper, who's fairly hardened when it comes to Surv-Horror games, had to take a half-hour break after the infamous water section.
* ''DynastyWarriors'' is the poster child for CapcomSequelStagnation, and has an AI that's retarded, but its also hack and slash taken to its core. Its your army vs the enemies army over a thousand people want you dead, the way to gain horses are always fun, the secrets are great, and the characters are always well designed. When you do a crowd clearing move the enemies are sent flying by the strokes of your weapons. Also its got ancient chinese laser beams, and ancient chinese flamethrowers in the form of wooden tigers. How awesome can this series get? The Nanman fight on Elephants! You get to use one as a mount! Its the most cathartic game series of all times, just turn on the game choose a level and start killing people without all the hassle of wanted levels.
** Oh God yes, so much. After a long, hard, annoying day at work, these games are seriously better than booze for taking the edge off. And the ''DynastyWarriorsGundam'' series allows you to do the same thing [[RecycledINSPACE WITH GIANT ROBOTS IN SPACE!]]
** This game often gets flak for being a hack and slash game, but that's kind of, you know, the point of being a hack and slash game. If you want strategy, go look at the Romance of the Three Kingdoms titles. These games personify the fun value of pulling an absurd amount of {{Foe Tossing Charge}}s, and there's nothing quite as delicious as setting the difficulty on Easy and simply ''mowing everyone down.''
* ''JohnMaddenFootball'' was what got me into football. Say what you will about EA, but these games are almost consistently fun, innovative, and allow those of us too lazy or frail to experience the joys of physical competition.
* ''SuperRobotWarsOG'' is the most amazing and badass strategy game ThisTroper has ever seen, every playable character does something awesome, every playable character gets developed, you have romance, you have drama, you have comedy, you have a character who wants to make love to two robots! The plot is deep, the enemies characters don't all meld together, the plotting makes sense, the character designs are varied so even with a huge cast its easy to tell characters apart. That's not even getting started on mechas, even the grunt suits are badass, the Gespenst Mk II M is more badass than most protype mechas in other series. Then we have the music, the sheer amount of music you get is amazing, I love the themes for the characters like Sanger, and Lune, and with each new game they just keep adding them.
** Best of all... between the good guys, there are no [[TheScrappy Scrappies]]! Those who are obnoxious usually mends their way in the end (most of the time), or just join the bad guys. How can a cast of LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters be so lovable while delivering an epic cliche done right?
** And then, of course, there is the main series. Each game is an expertly crafted MassiveMultiplayerCrossover with well done FixFic pieces. Good shows are cherished, bad shows are RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap, and obscure shows get that much needed ColbertBump. Simply put, every ''SuperRobotWars'' game is a CrowningMomentOfAwesome.
* Attention, [[ShootEmUps Shoot Em Up]] fans: Go play ''Mars Matrix''.
* LucasArts [[AdventureGame adventure games]]. ''MonkeyIsland'', ''IndianaJones and the Fate of {{Atlantis}}'', ''SamAndMax Hit the Road'', ''Day of the Tentacle'', ''GrimFandango'' are all absolutely amazing. It's the perfect blend of humour and puzzles.
** The same goes for Telltale adventure games.
* This Troper loves the {{Lunar}} games. Lunar 2 Eternal Blue Complete is to this day still this Troper's favorite game. The strongest point of the games are the characters who you just have to love.
** This troper prefers the original Sega CD release, because it's [[Main/ComedyThroughSuperiorFirepower even funnier]] than the "enhanced" remake.
** The ''Lunar'' fanbase considers ''Lunar Legend'' the black sheep of the three versions of ''Silver Star'', yet it's this editor's favorite RPG on the Game Boy Advance. The music is incredible and the story is just beautiful.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Tetris}}: The Grand Master'' series takes the most popular puzzle video game in the world, reinvents it, and makes it new, innovative, and addicting once again...but NO, [[ExecutiveMeddling The Tetris Company]] decided this was evil, and now TGM will never see a console release. What's TGM ACE?
** The Game Boy versions too. I've owned Tetris DX for over a decade and it still gets playtime. And then you've got Tetris DS's Catch, Mission and Touch variations on the formula that open up even more possibilities.
* You owe it to yourself to get ''Ikaruga'' for the 360, if you have one. Awesome music, great mechanic, beautiful design, all-around awesome. My only complaint is shared with other games of this type, like ''TriggerheartExelica'', namely that you can't rotate the screen and remap the stick, thus getting full screen, if you can't rotate your TV. Patch please!
** I actually miss that game. Hey, Nintendo! Get on a Virtual Console release of EarthBound! Great humour, a nice and simple battle system, and some moments that are genuinely freaky.
*** There's no way a game as deep in legal crap as Earthbound can ever be ported without changing a whole bunch of stuff within it. Sorry.
* PlanescapeTorment is one of the few games that can be thought of as literature ''and'' visual art. It's like what would happen if Neil Gaiman and Guillermo del Toro got together and made a game. It's disturbing, it's moving, it's hilarious. It's absolutely beautiful.
** I daresay that this is one video game that everyone, and I do mean ''everyone'' needs to play. It's something that challenges the boundaries of what video games are, with absolutely masterful writing on par with some of the best novels in existence. More than a video game, it's a beautiful, amazing, heartrending, moving story told in an absolutely unique format - and more than anything else, it has sucked ThisTroper in, moved him to [[CrowningMomentOfFunny laughter]], [[TearJerker tears]], and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome cheering]], and left him, in the aftermath of the fantastic ending, absolutely stunned from the brilliance of the concept and its flawless execution. No, he isn't even exaggerating. ''You need to play this game.''
** Thirded. My favorite game of all time. You can play it five or six times over and still find something new, some revelation that was hidden just out of the corner of your eye or some obscure dialogue path that leads to something you never suspected. It was the game that finally convinced me that games could become an artform the equal of any other.
* ''GuitarHero'' and ''RockBand''.
** ''Rock Band'' advanced this troper's interest in and understanding of music a hundredfold. It showed me how the different instruments fit together, and it made me ''want'' to learn how music works. That, and it's the perfect stress reliever: it being a music-playing-simulator-thing (with music I'm actually ''familiar'' with, an attribute that most rhythm games cannot claim) makes it more engaging than any fun-but-insubstantial casual game, so it actually holds my interest, but quickplay mode requires no commitment to a larger goal, so there's no pressure. [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking Also it has a nifty character creator.]]
* ''Sega Genesis Collection'' is quite possibly one of the best values per gaming dollar ''ever''. The titles on the disc would cost over $100 on Wii's Virtual Console. ''Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection'' (''SEGA Mega Drive Ultimate Collection'' for Europe) is poised to actually beat it by dropping another dozen+ titles (in 720p hi-def, yet!), including the much-demanded ''StreetsOfRage'' series.
* The ''{{Burnout}}'' series (''3'' and ''Dominator'', in particular) is perfect for taking your road rage out in.
* ''[[SystemShock System Shock 2]]''. I played this before VideoGame/{{Half-Life|1}} -- I couldn't be bothered beyond the part with the stacking-crates 'puzzle'; [=SS2=] had spoiled me. Why would I want to be limited to standard weapons when I could have PsychicPowers AND three[[spoiler:/four]] different types of weapons? Why did I have to be left to work out "stack crates to reach a ventilation shaft" when my mysterious MissionControl or a log or a ghost could have told me? Why couldn't I upgrade my abilities to hack the security system or improve my weapons? Where's my inventory with all the items with funny and plausible descriptions? Is the BigBad just going to wait there until I get to it? What it had over its contemporaries,more than anything else,was ''atmosphere''. The story (your character has no other clues apart from the logs of the vanished crew; superlative voice acting and sound editing),the soundscape (the everpresent hum of the ship,the skin-crawling chittering of the spiders,the unnerving whir of a security camera) and the not knowing what was behind the next corner all conspired to reassure you that they '''were''' out to get you and ''you were never safe'' (see [[NightmareFuelUnleaded its entry in Nightmare Fuel Unleaded]]). [=SS2=] just had ''more''.
* ''SimCity 4 is the best of the SimCity games ever! I mean, check [[http://nycj.blogspot.com/ this out!]]
** ThisTroper couldn't agree more; for those who want visuals, the buildings have very realistic designs to them, plus you must not forget being able to see them at night. For those who want to know about the challenge, there's plenty. Also, with the help of Rush Hour, the expansion pack, you can do more to enhance your cities and even drive in them.
*** Don't even get started on all the building mods you can find out there; there's just simply some amazing work...
* {{DOOM}}! Good Romero, where do I begin? The game has the most memorable enemies of all time, the best atmosphere, the most imaginative and well-designed levels, the best soundtrack (save for Nobuo Uematsu-made ones), the best fun/challenge ratio and the most awesome weapons! The only things it lacks in are bosses and plot, but nevertheless it easily claims my personal "best game ever" award.
* Death Gate is one of the best adventure games never played. It deserved a lot more recognition than it got and is easily four times longer than Legend's more famous Shannara. Which is also awesome.
** For this troper Shannara and Death Gate wiped out all the other competitors for my personal "best game ever" award. I can't make up my mind on which one do I like more, Shannara or Death Gate. Both are awesome.
* ''{{Wild ARMs}}''. A Japanese RPG series set in TheWildWest. And although there are typical fantasy-style tropes involved as well, it was probably the fact that the protagonists are more likely to wield guns than swords that drew me to the series in the first place. I can't even describe what it is about the games that I love so much, as they are, for the most part, rather typical Japanese [=RPG=]s. It's likely because the story draws me in every time, and the characters are some of the most memorable in history - every single party member undergoes a huge amount of CharacterDevelopment. If nothing else, the series invests a huge effort into making the player love the characters, ''and by god do I ever.'' The fact that [[TheGunslinger most of them use guns]] and [[BadassLongcoat several more have cowboy motifs]] is icing on the cake.
* ''{{Civilization}} IV''. Only three words are needed: ONE MORE TURN!
** Tell this troper about it. She started playing on a Sunday morning and the next thing she knew, the sun was up and it was time to go to work!
** How about ''Civilization V''? I know a lot of people [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks bitch about it]], but I can't think of any other game I've played where I log in for a few minutes, then finally log off about half an hour after I'm normally in bed.
* ''WorldOfWarcraft''. No other game has kept me entertained for four years. Especially the expansion pack worlds are so incredibly varied and beautiful that sometimes I just want to move permanently to Nagrand or Terokkar Forest.
** And, say what you will about [=MMORPGs=], it's just an excellently built rpg. The one to entertain the most players ever. The one to achieve an unprecedented level of immersion. Just. Plain. Fun.
*** Over the past 8 or so years, I've played 3 {{Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game}}s, Guild Wars, WoW and City of Heroes, and WoW is by far my favorite. I started almost exactly 5 years ago and I'm still going strong, a core raider in my 25 man guild in ICC, and I just love everything about the game (well, most of it). The thing I love best is how Blizzard really does listen to its player base.
*** I liked Warcraft itself, and when i found out about the WoW i was more than happy. But what takes the cake is that you can jump in this game XD
* ''Hearts of Iron'' is like ''playing history''. And it is ''glorious''.
* ''{{Warcraft}} II'' is one of the most atmospheric games ever, with its awesome music, fantastic voice acting and compelling (for it's time) plot. ''Warcraft III'' is the best RTS ever made, with the greatest story ever told in a videogame. The only reason [=WC1=] is not here is because I've never played it.
* ''[[SailorMoon Sailor Moon: Another Story]]'' is, in an era where licensed games were [[Main/TheProblemWithLicensedGames not exactly very good]], a very addicting, compelling RPG with its own story that doesn't try to hijack old plots, but still manages to include old favorite characters. In addition, it also manages to mesh the continuity from both manga ''and'' the anime without utterly wrecking both.
** I played this on a SNES emulator. It made me interested in the anime. Really well-made game.
* ''TouhouProject'' is a great series, especially considering that nearly everything is made by just a single man. The gameplay is simple to learn, yet takes immense skill to master. The multitude of characters are all charming in their unique ways, the spellcard patterns and backgrounds are gorgeous (if distracting) to look at, and the music is simply fantastic. The fandom is bustling with vitality and creativity, and the many unofficial Touhou spin-off games like Megamari and Touhoumon are a treat to play as well. So, despite the countless times I've been frustrated on my 1CC attempts, this troper can't help but gush about Touhou.
* Likewise, I cannot stress it enough whenever bullet hell is mentioned: ''DoDonPachi''. ''Play it''. Especially if you are new to the subgenre.
* If we can list online games here, let me say that ''[[http://neutralxe.net/esc/vision_play.html Vision]]'' is the absolute best "escape the room" game on the Internet. It's got beautiful graphics, puzzles that are actually ''logical'' and solvable without a walkthrough and make you feel like you've actually accomplished something when you've worked them out, a satisfyingly long playing time that throws {{Chekhovs Boomerang}}s at you very effectively, and almost no {{Pixel Hunt}}ing (you just have to remember to search the tops of furniture and the gaps between them). Even if you don't like the escape-the-room genre, this one is well worth playing through, and has [[http://jayisgames.com/archives/2008/02/vision.php a lovely hint-through at Jay Is Games for those who need help but don't want to be completely spoiled]].
** I played through Vision almost a year ago with a couple friends. Best. Night. Ever. (okay maybe not quite) Every puzzle presented is completely legitimate and engrossing, and when I finished I could only stare at the final image contemplating the game I'd just played.
* [[http://www.pastelgames.com/ Any adventure/escape game]] made by Mateusz Skutnik is made of awesome. I just re-played the [[http://www.pastelportal.com/stories/dmt Daymare Town]]series again for the umpteenth time and the the dreary, disturbing and downright claustrophobic atmosphere still gets to me. There's at least one moment in both games guaranteed to make you jump. The [[http://www.pastelportal.com/stories/the-submachines Submachine]] games are a masterclass of atmosphere, storytelling and puzzle design.
* The online [[http://eyezmaze.com/ Grow games]] take an unique concept and make it utterly cute and fun. {{Grow}} Island is probably the best out of them, but {{Grow}} Cube and RPG run a close second and third. Did I mention that the game animations are so cute and fun to watch, even if you get the order of things all wrong?
** There is a new game that is a SpiritualSuccessor of sorts to {{Grow}} Island, called ''{{Grow}} valley'', it is just as epic or even more epic than Island.
* [[GodOfWar God. Of. War.]] The biggest, baddest, most epic blood-and-guts-Roy-Harryhausen-if-the-censors-were-not-admitted Ancient Greek pile of badassery ever. A rare case where linear gameplay turned out to be a blessing; the entire thing is like playing a movie ([[SceneryPorn and a really good looking movie too]]). Also; [[http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=RUHpZaUUoGA&feature=PlayList&p=614EEFC26BB435CD&playnext=1=39 the soundtrack]].
** But the second game... Ooooh baby. Everything got bigger, but not just that - the game served you up a who's who of the best opponents possible from Greek Mythology and had you rip them limb from limb, the extra weapons leading to different playstyles, the time distortion, just improved on everything
** But that its all that, plus a deep and meaningful exploration of guilt, rage and revenge, of mans own bestial nature. That it can be both fun as hell gore fest as well as deep and meaningful at the same time, just shows that it is truly the greatest action series ever made, ever.
*** Where to begin with God of War 3? Ah yes, the most Epic beginning to any game EVER. From fighting on top of Gaia to spilling a centaur's entrails to killing FUCKING POSEIDON, through HIS EYES. All set to an even MORE epic sountrack than the other games.
* I don't care how stupid, clunky, simplistic, cheesy and eye-searing it is, I love and will always love ''Space Channel 5''.
* The [[JakAndDaxter Jak series]] is the greatest series of platformers [[{{@/RandomFanboy}} this troper]] has ever played. DarkerAndEdgier done ''right'', funny jokes, great story, fantastic graphics that stand up to this day (The Palace sequence high up above the city in the second one still takes my breath away), and best of all, brilliant platforming, which is a rare thing these days.
** You forgot to mention the interesting, well-developed characters! While ''TPL'' didn't have the most original story, it was the characters (specifically, Daxter) that made me fall in love with the series. Later characters were also interesting and had HiddenDepths! Sig, despite being the [[TokenMinority Token Black Guy]], has real depth and likeability, being a [[BruiserWithASoftCenter gun-toting mercenary on the outside and a cuddly teddy bear on the inside]]. Tess, the DumbBlonde, is also a [[GeniusDitz talented gun designer and loyal freedom fighter]]. MsFanservice Ashelin is one of your [[ActionGirl more competent allies and can hold her own in the fight]]. The gruff, initially-suspicious RebelLeader Torn cares very much about the Underground and his men, but he cares just as much, if not more, about Ashelin, leading to a SadisticChoice that affects the outcome of the story. Veger and Praxis are generally unlikable douchebags, but they mean well on some level, making them more rounded than the villains whose motivations are "take over" and "kill shit".
* [[BioShock Bioshock.]] No other game so perfectly balanced gameplay and story, and the whole thing is just so well presented. The beautiful character design. The amazing twists. The wonderful dialogue. The brilliant subversion of mindlessly following orders in videogames. The most [[MagnificentBastard Magnificent Bastard]] ever, in Andrew Ryan. And the most philosophically relevant game I have ever played. All together now. A Man Chooses. A Slave Obeys.
** Bioshock 2 came out recently. Holy shit. Let me explain: Bioshock 2 is better than it's predecessor in every area. Better characters, better ending, better storyline, dialogue that's just as quotable as Bioshock 1, if not more so (But the parasites say no!), better graphics, more choice, better gameplay (Incinerate 3 + Machine Gun + Armour-Piercing Rounds = I CAN TAKE ANTHING YOU CAN THROW AT ME, LAMB, BRING IT THE FUCK ON), and to top it all off, the multiplayer. Jesus Christ, the multiplayer. There were so many different ways they could have gotten it wrong, and 2K avoided all of them, and made a multiplayer experience that works just as well as the single player campaign. There is only one complaint I have with it, and that's that it seems much shorter than the first game. Buy. This. Game.
* Personally? I'm extremely fond of an entirely-forgotten SNES game, Ardy Lightfoot. Despite the unmoving backgrounds causing some confusion at points, the title character always had a cute, scruffy charm to him, Pec was just adorable (and deadly...), and the gameplay was awesomely fun. The story didn't always make sense, but to this troper, anything else can be excused solely on the merit of its [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome soundtrack]]. Go play it.
* Elder Scrolls, guys, ''Elder Scrolls''! Especially Oblivion, which, just...wow, I don't know where to start. They really nailed the wide open fantasy world setting with that one. My brother and I spent hours, literally hours coming up with characters and exploring and doing quests when we got that game, and they are all implemented fantastically.
* ShadowOfRome, an underappreciated gem of the 128 bit generation. Sooo many people bashed it for the stealth segments in between the gladitorial matches. Never mind that the stealth segments were very short and easy, (dumbest guards in history, knock a guard out and he's out forever) and the ratio was something like "3-4 arena stages, 1 stealth stage." And SHOCK...I actually liked them. Having Agrippa rip apart gladiators for a few missions and then sneakily guide his friend Octavanius around to help uncover the conspiracy was a satisfying way to do things, like The Hardy Boys with decapitations. And the arena missions were incredibly fun, with a scoring system not based on combos but on the myriad horrible ways to maim and kill enemies (something like 150 different ways) it's one of the ONLY action games I've ever bothered to go back and get a pefect rating on every stage, it is just that fun. AND the story is damned good, with some great twists and epic boss fights. What more can I say about a game where there's a score bonus for killing an enemy while he's pissing himself with terror?
* In a world where most first-person shooters are realistic and tactical, ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament'' (emphasis on ''Unreal'') stands counterpoint. This troper's personal favorite in the series is ''VideoGame/UnrealTournament2004'', but the others are certainly worth a look. Lightning-fast action, ridiculously awesome weapons, humongous battlefields, full bot support, a metric ton of excellent ''and free'' user-made content, and several wildly diverse game modes make this a truly [[JustForPun Epic]] [[EpicGames game]].
* ''TimeSplitters 2'': Everything you love about GoldenEye, TurnedUpToEleven combined with RuleOfFunny.
* ''MafiaTheCityOfLostHeaven'': Still stands as a masterpiece. Fantastic touching story, well written characters and great performances. Some of the levels will never go away. Also has among the most alive and realistic cities in a videogame.
* Currently, [[{{@/Cybele}} this troper]], is completely ''infatuated'' with ''{{Gungrave}}''. The bizzaro tale of a murdered man now called "Beyond the Grave" raised from the dead and given the chance to go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against his former comrades, including the man who murdered Grave in the first place. While the games do not have the combat depth of DevilMayCry (it's all about shoot, shoot, shoot some more)--honestly that's all I need, as Grave is basically a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot purple-clad undead cowboy assassin]] that carries a coffin that doubles as a weapon of mass destruction and wields GunsAkimbo and [[DieChairDie blows everything in his way up]], in the most over-the-top ways simply because it's ''[[RuleOfCool cool]]'' (really, the series gets quite OTT) And in ''Overdose''? You get to choose between the original hero, the Blind DualWielding Swordsman, or the Rockabilly Ghost Who Possesses His Own Guitar That Shoots Lightning. And the ability to [[BulletTime slow down time]]. I've just watched the entire anime series and it was just as awesome--and bought the artbook. >.> <.< * goes to look up that Brandon Heat bobblehead on Ebay* To quote from the NinjaPirateZombieRobot page, ''"Did I mention it's all designed by the creator of ''TriGun''?"''
** Never mind the bobblehead, I want Grave's [[http://i20.ebayimg.com/02/i/001/22/f2/6788_1.JPG Nice Hat]]!
* ''TheElderScrolls: Oblivion'' expansion ''Shivering Isles''. This seemed like a complete turnaround for Bethesda's game quality. Morrowind and Oblivion weren't bad, but also not above critique. But the Shivering Isles were a beauty in visuals, sound, storytelling, voice acting, sheer insane fun. A lot of heart went into this, and the voice actors had great fun with it, ''and it showed''! For the price, it added a great amount of game hours, and had a satisfactory ending (though it ended on an ill-advised ContinuitySnarl that Bethesda will have to painfully swallow later.) The excellent work here leaves them even less excuse for their handling of ''FallOut 3'', though...
** Tell me where else in game you must contract a fatal decease and then turn it into a blessing and a weapon? Morrowind made me shiver when i saw what can ''Corpurus'' do to an ordinary human.
* ''{{Iji}}''. probably the only game I didn't ''want'' to complete because I knew I'd miss the characters and would never have that experience again. now that's good characterisation.
** But if you don't complete it, you miss the most utterly heart-rending and devastating ending a game ever had. It reduced me to tears the ''second'' time I played when I already knew what was coming. Now ''that's'' good characterisation.
** It's the only shoot-em-up game where to truly win you don't kill ANYONE. More than that, you save people who you have every right to kill. Oh then you figure out how to get the Scrambler... and you spend the next playthrough cracking up with laughter every time someone speaks!
* How did StarCraft miss this page? For competitive play alone it's so good it became a national sport (in korea). For custom play, there is a mapmaking community that is still churning out new and occasionally unique gametypes, let alone maps and sequels within them, to this day. Best RTS ever? certainly gets my vote.
** I always thought that Blizzard could never make a game better than Starcraft. Enter StarCraftII
* [[SoulSeries Transcending history and the world, this is a tale of souls and swords, eternally retold...]] Soul Calibur (all of them) are easy some of the deepest fighting games I've played. I love weapons-based fighters.
** Seconded. Not a fighting game fan, but any game where [[StarWars Darth Vader]] fights ninjas gets a pass from me.
* ''BioShock'' is diabolically creepy fun, and looks and sounds ''sumptuous'' to boot. And the good ending is nothing short of [[TearJerker heartbreakingly beautiful]].
* You wouldn't believe me, but ''GearsOfWar'' is one for me. The music is astounding, the plotline is done beautifully, and dear god, I cried so hard when [[spoiler: Tai killed himself, and Dom euthanized Maria.]]
** Gears of War is one of a select few modern series that makes absitively, posolutely no apologies for being a testosterone-filled killfest. Intricate, physics-based puzzles? Nope, too busy blasting monsters into chunks with an ORBITING SPACE LASER! Sympathetic, deep characters? Sorry, I can't hear your boring backstory over the sound of my FREAKISHLY HUGE MUSCLES! Creative weapons that require finesse and skill? CHAINSAW BAYONETS!
* {{Axelay}}. It combines the best things about the 16-bit era into a [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome Crowning Game of Awesome]]. It's a visual showpiece, and a treat to listen to, especially if you like jazz. (Yes, jazz in a [[ShootEmUps shmup]].) Case in point: Stage 2. You start by flying into a space station from space. The whole station rotates, and at one point, you can see your home planet, poking through an opening in the walls. Then it goes away. All the while, a piece of music fit for a {{Determinator}} swells in the background, building to the point where you see the planet in the background. Finally, you reach a part of the space station that appears torn and blasted apart. Then the music changes to a panicky electronic beat. At the end of the tunnel is a {{Humongous Mecha}}, with a distinct {{Robocop}} style, and gorgeously rendered. As the fight continues, the music from the first part of the stage breaks out of the beat, and the robot starts using a big charging crush laser. Now imagine this, plus five other stages of {{SNES}} shmup glory. Words cannot describe how great this game is.
* {{Red Steel}} 2 can be best described as a roller coaster, while the ride is kinda short, it´s one of the most exciting and funtastical things on the planet, and after it´s over you´ll definitely want another ride,and another, and another...
* ''FreedomForce'' from Irrational Games: A celebration of all that is gloriously, goofily lovable about Silver Age comic books... the ridiculous alliterative exclamations ("Rings of Rexor!"), the brilliant eye-popping color, the delicious gooey melodrama of the origin stories, the good-hearted but somewhat softheaded patriotism... and all held together with the most elegant, stylish premise I've ever seen for superheroes on Earth. See, what happened is, a deranged alien king has decided that it would amuse him to watch Earth destroy itself, so he arranges to seek out the most depraved and vile humans and grant them... "the awesome power of Energy X!" To say more would spoil all the wonderful twists and turns that manage somehow to be both familiar and surprising... and the ending! Oh, man, the ending...
** And the gameplay! I cannot even describe how much fun it is, hurling cars, swinging lampposts, punching people off of rooftops, running into the middle of a group of enemies and blanking their minds or driving them berserk, launching chain-lightning balls that may very well arc back and hit you (luckily, you * gain energy* from incoming shock damage, don't you?), raining down fireballs as you hover cockily just out of enemies' range, making fire hydrants detonate as your enemies run past them, shooting beams of radiation which phase through walls, using superspeed to outrun bullets, turning into an entirely different hero with complementary powers (two heroes have to share the same body... it's complicated), I could go on. So I will! The enemies! The man with the cloning gun who creates evil copies of himself.. or your heroes!... the Commie-spy-turned-frozen-nightmare Nuclear Winter (still the * best* supervillain name I have ever heard)... the hard-skinned, hard-headed, hard-hearted gangster Pinstripe... oh, and of course, fuckin DINOSAURS! and MINOTAURS! Did I mention the minotaurs? YEAH! THOSE MINOTAURS'LL KICK YOUR ASS! DINOSAURS AND MINOTAURS'LL MESS UP YOUR DAY, HERO!... ahem. Sorry. But it really is that good.
** And wait till you start creating your * own* heroes...
** The sequel, Freedom Force Versus The Third Reich, is also amazingly brilliant, but the writing and story cannot match the first... however, the gameplay has somehow been made even better (although it's a shorter game and doesn't offer as much variety). Not many games could pull off a title like that, but [=FFvtTR=] does it with aplomb.
* This troper finds CallOfDuty: World At War underrated... some sections aren't that great but there are some scenes in that game that are just awe-inspiring. The others are good, too - but WAW is my favorite. (Keep in mind that I'm talking about the campaigns, as ([[YourMileageMayVary YMMV]] here) online games with constant battling bore me - not that I'm knocking those, I just don't enjoy them - but that's neither here or there.)
* This (lady) troper admits to first playing Modern Warfare 2 for one reason, and one reason only... Soap [=McTavish=]. He's hot, bad ass, and has a sexy accent. However she found that the story was awesome too! Lots of people knock the story, but it makes perfect sense once the end is revealed.
* Unfortunately, FFVII has lost its appeal to this troper, due to the fact that it overshadowed the gem of LegendOfDragoon. Epic story? Check. ''Great'' graphics (for the time) - check. Intuitive, inventive, and engaging combat sequences? Triple-check! Yes, it has its share of [[http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Narm narm]], but that doesn't prevent it from being one of the most engaging stories that came out in the new millenium - that and Lavitz' death effected me ''far'' more than Aeris', since he was used more in the party.
** How could FFVII overshadow a game that came out four years later?
* {{Banjo-Kazooie}} took what [[SuperMarioBros Super Mario 64]] invented for 3D platforming and perfected it. I've never played a better game in my life. The worlds were beautiful and imaginative, the characters were funny, and the gameplay was easy yet magically fun.
** Its sequel Banjo-Tooie is just about as much fun with bigger levels, better moves and more transformations. Plus you can turn Kazooie [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotAwesome into a dragon!]]
*** Even the smaller GBA game Grunty's Revenge was decent. With a lineup like this [[@/FalconDoveowl this troper]] cant imagine Nuts and Bolts being as bad as {{Fan Dumb}} makes it.
*** It's not. It's different, sure. But the game has an absolutely ''brilliant'' sense of humor, poking fun at just about every single videogame trope ever, and the vehicle-creation system truly encourages you to think out of the box. The game asks a lot of its audience, and because of that audacity, too many people dismissed it out of hand, which is a bloody shame. If you approach the game with a creative mind, if you're willing to break the rules, and if you're willing to ''stomp on the competition with a {{Dakka}}-loaded HumongousMecha'', ''Nuts & Bolts'' is a bloody fantastic game.
* {{Shadow of the Colossus}}. Where to start. Epic Boss Battles, Epic [[{{Crowning Music of Awesome}} Soundtrack]], insanely well done [[{{Scenery Porn}} Scenery]] that one could get lost in, a very well developed world, a hero given a sword at the beginning and, for once ''isn't'' an InstantExpert with it upon acquiring it, well done bosses that make her quiver in both being in the shadow of pure awesome, and seeing a creature so massive, that it could possibly knock over the [[HubLevel starting shrine]] with ease, 'victory' music that makes the players think 'Dear God what have I done?', a plot that runs deeper than the game itself... [[{{ArsonMurderAndJaywalking}} Oh, and a loyal horse]]. [[{{@/Serenade}} This Troper]] would like to know one thing. ''How has this not been gushed about yet?''
** * Whistles* Agro!
** ShadowOfTheColossus will always be [[{{@/Thebazilly}} this Troper's]] favorite game of all time. No matter what.
** Am I the only one who HASN'T played Shadow of the Colossus? I just can't find that game ANYWHERE! AAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!
* And what about its SpiritualSuccessor {{Ico}} (Well I guess if you want to get technical, Ico came before Shadow of the Colossus, but whatever...) It's radically different from Shadow in terms of gameplay, but no less awesome--when you bond with a character that you can't even understand what they're saying. While this troper personally thinks Shadow is better, Ico is amazing in its storytelling, puzzels, and that feeling of aloneness that carried over to Shadow of the Colossus.
* Say what you will about it. Say that something missing, a class is messed up, the system is outdated, the graphics are bad, etc. [[@/ShadowStainedSky This troper]] still enjoy playing {{World of Warcraft}}. The regions each have a different personality and section of lore, where any adventurer/myth-fan/histroy-fan/general wanderer could simply lose themselves in. The water-ways of Howling Fjord? The Shimmering Flats at night? ''[[GhibliHills The Hinterlands]]''? It all seems beautiful. The playable races have their own part of lore and own culture. Playing as a Troll ''is'' more fun. This Troper ''enjoys'' making new characters and going through those 80 levels again. (He does groan when it comes time for Outland, but that's a different story)
* No NipponIchi yet? You people make [[{{@/EtherealFrog}} This Troper]] sad. All Disgaeas feature witty characters, an enticing storyline, and a fantastic battle system. PhantomBrave's lack of a grid and method of unit deployment makes it one of the most unique [=TRPG=]s out there. I have yet to play MakaiKingdom or LaPucelle, but I imagine they're just as good.
** NipponIchi is just so awesome.
* BRICKS by Andreas Rottler. Best. Klotski. Clone. Ever.
* NoMoreHeroes. I don't know a single person who can't resist the sheer bloody madness of walking around with a beam katana and slicing people open, only to hear them scream "My spleen!" as they die. Plus the graphics are pure cell-shaded orgasm. It's just a great game. It's why I bought the Wii, actually. (And while we're at it, let's throw in MadWorld for the heck of it.)
* ''Repton'' series, especially number 2. Best puzzle games ever. (Twenty-four years old and still going strong.)
* ''MagicalStarsign'' is THE best RPG ths troper has ever seen. The Plot's suprisingly well done, the characters and [=NPCs=] are hilarious, AND it doesn't take itself too seriously! Everything is this game is great. [[spoiler:Except the Epilouge. Pretty much everyone agrees that it was epic fail.]]
* ''CommandAndConquer'' is my SugarWiki/MostTriumphantExample of RTS, with a [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome kick-ass soundtrack]] to boot. And ''Red Alert'' is even better, taking everything good about the original, turning it UpToEleven and adding magnificent amounts of {{LargeHam}}-osity. [[GushingAboutCharactersYouLike And don't even get me started on]] [[MagnificentBastard Kane]]...
* ''BatmanArkhamAsylum'' will forever be remembered as the game that broke the notion that [[TheProblemWithLicensedGames licensed games have to suck]] (it's been confirmed by Guinness World Records, really!): it's an incredibly well-made, atmospheric dive into the world of Batman; it boasts a fun-and-easy-to-execute-yet-still-awesomely-flashy combat system that flows extremely well; you've got tons of Batman's infamous gadgets and techniques at your disposal, and they make you exercise your mind and study the scene the way Batman does; and that's not even ''mentioning'' all the fanservice and [[AndTheFandomRejoiced Fandom Rejoicing Triggers]] they whipped out, like Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill as Batman and the Joker, plus all the bonus material that delves into the characters and history of Batman. I wasn't even a major Batman fan, I just liked the DarkKnightTrilogy along with everyone else - but this game has converted me!
** TL;DR version: You. Get. To be. BATMAN!
** ''BatmanArkhamCity'' isn't even out yet, but looks to be an amazing game from the gameplay trailers and viral stuff. Specifically, the game also seems to be shaping up to be one of Hamill's best performances as TheJoker. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awf2DgSt1qQ Just check it out!]] (Spoilers)
** ''BatmanArkhamCity'' actually manages to outdo its predecessor in almost everyway and take the throne as the greatest superhero game of all time. It's got a complex and really enjoyable story (sometimes a little overly crowded but it works), spectacular design, loads of sidemissions and Riddler puzzles, brilliant gameplay that expands on the original in every aspect, great music, and incredible voice acting across the board. I expected a great game. [[SoCoolItsAwesome What I did not expect was one of the finest action/adventure games ever made.]]
* BlazBlue is not just a good fighting game. IT'S AWESOMENESS INCARNATE and everything in the game just OOZES STYLE. No main character plays the same as another, everyone has their own unique abilities and the designs in this game are nothing short of excellent--even the menus are a gorgeous sight to behold. Let's not forget the rockin' soundtrack and surprisingly good dub as well as storyline. And the ''Teach Me Ms. Litchi!'' segments are pure comedy gold. ''The Wheel Of Fate Is Turning...''
* This Troper is a huge ''CrashBandicoot'' fan, and not only does he love all of Naughty Dog's originals, he also loves Traveller's Tales' Crash: Twinsanity and Radical Entertainment's current line of games, which, although very different in style and gameplay, are very fun to play and brought the series back to just Crash fighting evil scientists and mutants in his islands.
** This Troper would like to add that Crash Team Racing was just as good as Mario Kart, if not 500 times better.
** Oh God, ''Crash 3: Warped''...
* I don't care how bad it is or how little sense it makes, ''LegendOfMana'' will always be one of my favorite games ever. To say nothing of the friggin awesome soundtrack, regarded by even the composer herself as her best work.
* This troper recently got an arcade stick. Specifically, the ''Street Fighter IV'' FSTE, a stick that uses ''real arcade parts.''[[hottip:* :Which means if the stick or one of the buttons breaks, they can be replaced with replacement arcade cabinet parts.]] It has got to be one of his best videogame-related investments in a long time; playing 2D shooters on a keyboard or even a Sega Saturn pad has got ''nothing'' on playing them on an arcade stick. It does take time to get used to playing on one, but once you do, dodging all sorts of crap becomes a lot more fun.
* Where to begin with ''BrutalLegend''? You play as a Heavy Metal Roadie who uses ThePowerOfRock to defeat an evil army of 80's Hairbangers, Emo Goths, and Sadist Demons, with Jennifer Hale and JackBlack, and all sorts of Metal Gods including ''[[Music/BlackSabbath Ozzie Motherfucking Osbourne]]'' voicing the main heroes with TimCurry as the Villain, all the while being the most badass motherfucker in a Medieval Fantasy Metal setting that is completly fucking awesome. And not only that, the gameplay is incredibly satisfying as well, with brutal gore in the melee combat, and surprisingly well done RTS gameplay. Oh, and not only that, but this game is also freakin' hilarious. Oh, [[OverlyLongGag and not only that]], but it's soundtrack is the most METAL THING IN EXISTENCE!!!!1!
* [[{{Arutoa}} This troper]] will likely be killed for saying it, but BobsGame. The game AND the forums (which count as the Third Game, which is the site) With the game's dark humor, fun minigames, and CrowningMusicOfAwesome, and the forum's lack of [[FanDumb rabid fans]] and general niceness, it's hard not to like it, unless you were fooled by the viral and STILL hate Robert for some reason.
* VideoGame/DeusEx. No other game has kept me three weeks playing straight, with it's immersive world of world-spanning conspiracies, military bases that were difficult yet satisfying to infiltrate, [[WhatMeasureIsAMook strangely sympathetic enemies]], tactical stealth and action, and replay value.
* Ninja Gaiden Black. It's got a lame story, even by Excuse Plot standards. However, it's got one of the most complex combat systems out there, with it's only present rival being Devil May Cry (Bayonetta may become a new addition). The enemies are more vicious than any I've ever encountered in my gaming life, who throw Mook Chivalry into the winds, and are smart enough to use various strategies that keep a player guessing their move(sometimes they attack you all out, sometimes they defend and wait to counter, other times they will have their buddies attack you, and when your vulnerable after blocking a strong attack, they'll strike). On harder difficulties, every mook is a boss and every boss is accompanied by extra mooks. And you know what? It manages to throw all that at you with no Fake Difficulty. This makes it a hundred times more satisfying when you win because you know that it's because of actual skills you had to take time to hone. The best feature (which I am infuriated that no developer ever copied) is when you up the difficulty, the enemies don't just get more health and hit points. They get whole new abilities. This forces the player to change their playstyle, and it plays like a whole new game, and fresh. Ninja Gaiden Black. It is win.
* AssassinsCreed was both one of the most frustrating and one of the most mindblowing games I've ever played. Even with the repetitive combat and the stupid flaghunt minigame and the non-ending, the story (including the framing story) and the core gameplay mechanics were so well-thought-out, so clever, and so much fun that they made up for it -- and that's without mentioning the sheer beauty of the game, or the innovative setting. Not many games are set in the real world's past, and AssassinsCreed made me wonder why -- climbing a building to get a proper view of the gorgeous scenery surrounding you gives you an extra kick when you realise that the building you're climbing is ''the al-Aqsa Mosque''.
** And for those who gave up because of the repetitiveness and ambiguity of the first game: the sequel is one of the very few cases in video game history where the developers managed to keep everything that was great about the original game (parkouring and climbing over real-world cities), discarded that which didn't work (collection sidequests with no rewards, repetitive missions), and expanded upon the experience with new features (the economy/villa-building sidequest, inventory management, tombs and catacombs). ''Assassin's Creed II'' sets the bar for what a sequel should aspire to, and it deserves several accolades for stepping out of the long shadow cast by its predecessor's flaws and rising on its own to become a well-made game in its own right.
** Plus, it's extremely awesome to leap off a rooftop and simultaneously stab two fully-armored guards in the face.
*** Not to mention cathartic.
* ''[[PrinceofPersia Prince of Persia: Sands of Time]]'' was the best, most touching and beautiful Literature/ArabianNights fable I ever played.
** @/Tombcannon: Seconded. I have never been so willing to overlook game breaking glitches as I have for ''Sands of Time.'' Restart the entire game because somehow Farah didn't register as being with me, ending in an automatic game-over five seconds after starting? Well, since it's ''you'', Sands of Time... Such a pity that the sequels didn't keep the same tone.
* ''Mushihhime-sama Futari''. A great ShootEmUp with amazing graphics, bullet patterns that are challenging enough to make you sweat (but most of the time are fair enough and have a way out of them if you play your cards right), and very fun scoring systems. Every time I play, I find or learn something in the game that makes the game even more awesome, whether it's learning how scoring works in Maniac mode, or the unique Arrange mode, Black Label's God mode (which manages to be HarderThanHard while still being actually fun and reasonable), or even the stress reliever that is Novice Ultra mode. And the 360 port is ''region free''. I paid $85 for the game ($70 for the game itself, $15 for the Black Label ExpansionPack), and with an arcade stick, the port is worth every dollar. All I'm missing now is a rotated TV so I can play the game the way it was meant to be played.
* TheWitcher. It was one of the few games when I really had to think about my decisions as the main character. I literally spent 5 minutes thinking about who might be right at the end of the first arc, leading to a very satisfying scene when I learned that the decision was right (but others can find the other choice to be equally satisfying...). Also the BigBad had the most convincing arguments I've ever heard in a video game.
* The ''{{FEAR}}'' series manages to hit every single one of my personal favorite things in video games, from a compelling story to outright horror to a [[TheWoobie sympathetic child-like villain]] to cyberpunk trappings and FacelessGoons and semi-plausible, near future technology and laser beams that blow people into skeletons and flying double kicks to the face and ninjas and giant robots. It's a series that combines ''everything awesome.''
* Why isn't ValkyriaChronicles on here? The game is incredible! Awesome plot, quirky characters, and unique gameplay are an understatement.
* OdinSphere. So. Amazing. This game is a 2D side-scrolling brawler that takes place inside a book, in the words of Penny Arcade. The graphics are gorgeous, hand-drawn. The game play changes with each of the five characters you play and love and cry for, learning more about the sinister plot that will bring about Armageddon. And you eat fruit that grows from souls and grow sheep fruit. Need I say more? You don't want more than sheep fruit. ...fine. You also get to fight as a gliding Valkyrie with a spear, a Pooka Prince who does spin attacks with a powerful sword, a black knight who can do massive damage within a second with his sword, a flying Fairy who uses a crossbow that shoots energy, and a last Princess who uses chains to swing around and bash her enemies with tons of amazing combos and ways. This game. Is. Amazing.
* {{Uncharted}} whats not to like about gorgeous jungles, tall mountains, deep caves, paradise on earth, and exploding your way through it? Seriously, train level=best game level ever, better then my long time favorite Stone Tower Temple in Majora's Mask. It combines gorgeous visuals, incredible soundtrack, and a fight to the death with an attack helicopter over a Himalayan valley. Incredible.
** Hopping around Tibetan mountains to search for a lost city with a couple of intelligent and insanely hot ladies, solving ancient riddles, gunning down evil mercenaries, and cracking hilarious jokes throughout? Hell yes.
* ''TheNeverhood'' competes with ''VideoGame/{{Psychonauts}}'' for best game never played. Extraordinary puzzle game, with ''100% clay animation''. The music is strange and funky and absolutely perfect. It's a wonder to behold, and is a true gem in the genre. It even has it's own lore, [[TakeYourTime if you have a spare three hours to read it in]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Prototype}}''. Just freaking Prototype. I don't know why, but I just find it so enthralling. Randomly blowing stuff up in helicopters, sneaking about bases eating everyone, and running around the place and flying around firing blood out of your wrists like a demented emo jet...Who could say no to all that?
* {{Bayonetta}}. I have no doubt that the only reason this game wasn't already here is the fact that everyone else who has a copy (at least of the 360 version) is too distracted to post it. It is, though, the distillation of an action game, then turned up to 11. There is nothing that it doesn't do in excess to the point of parody, from violence (such as beating a boss just to summon a giant demon made of hair to eat it), to violation of physics (Yay for treating walls as floors as a common game mechanic, and things like the sequence where you ride a motorcycle up the side of a skyscraper-turned-rocket as it exits the Earth's atmosphere, even jumping between the stages as they separate), to fanservice (really, in that regard, the game footage speaks for itself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NaUVRwAky4 ). Add to that a pretty cool (if slightly repetitive) soundtrack, and you get an awesome game which never takes itself particularly seriously, and is tons of fun to play.
* {{Myst}}. This series of games is masterful, every installment is brilliant (yes, [[{{@/Sylocat}} This Troper]] even likes Myst IV), with wonderful puzzles and absolutely stunning visuals, threaded together by a very creative storyline and charming aesthetics. These games are awesome.
** Oh yes. [[Tropers/BentusiAvatar This troper]] remembers playing the original Myst as a kid, back at the beginning of the millenium, upstairs, in the dark, and never managing to get far past Sirrus and Achenar's books because they would scare me off, but still loving the freedom of it. Coming back to it years later and managing to get through the whole game, then moving on to the rest of the series: perfect. I still think the first one may be the best, simply because of how completely alone you are: it IS the indirect TropeNamer for BeautifulVoid, after all, and boy is it beautiful. Don't forget Robyn Miller's [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome Crowning Music of Haunting]]. You can just sit somewhere, stare at the world and hear whatever sounds it's making, and be totally at peace...
* {{Spelunky}}. Beautifully 8-bit graphics, the randomiser, and some of the ''catchiest music ever''. Awesome.
** Hell yes. It's amazing how coherent the level design manages to be while still being randomly generated. Not to mention getting to [[spoiler: The City of Gold]] makes for an awesome challenge while never feeling too frustrating... well, unless you get really close and then die, but that's to be expected. The sheer number of things to do and choices to make is awesome, too, and never feels artificial.
* ''[[http://www.glumbuster.com/ Glum Buster]]''. Just... ''Glum Buster''. This game is pretty much a dream in video game form. The backgrounds are jaw-droppingly gorgeous, the soundtrack sets the atmosphere perfectly, and the gameplay has just the perfect amount of surrealism. One of the things that sets this game apart is that it only gives you the most basic of tutorials and lets you figure out the rest as you progress. Because of that, most of the puzzles rely on HowDoIShotWeb, which leads to some surprisingly difficult parts. Even so, it only adds to the dreamlike experience. Best of all, Glum Buster is charityware, with most of the proceeds going to [[http://www.starlight.org/ The Starlight Children's Foundation]]. This troper intends to [[EntryPimp write a TV Tropes article for it]] in the near future, because this game ''definitely'' NeedsMoreLove.
* {{Robopon}}. A {{Mons}} series with robots that manages to be highly entertaining and playable. I still love my good ol' Golden Sunny from the first game. And it had an awesome villain in Dr. Zero!
* {{Myth}}: The Fallen Lords, by Bungie. Even though the game is 14 years old, [[@/AngryBob This Troper]] maintains that it's the best realtime tactical game ever made. It's challenging and awesome while remembering to be actually fun. Soulblighter may not have been as good, but Bungie packaged the tag editor for the game with it, and there's an active online community for 3rd party material even to this day.
** It boggles the mind that these games never became more popular. Not only was there awesome multiplayer, but the entire campaign was available for co-op! I can't tell you how many times I tried to beat the level "Gate of Storms" on legendary difficulty with all my buddies, only to get to the end and accidentally blow up my entire army with the explody spell. Casualties.
* ''{{Grim Fandango}}'' wins off the cuff by having what is probably the single most creative premise in the history of video games; a travel agency in the 1950's Aztec afterlife and all the insane corruption that surrounds it. And to stack all the great plotlines, memorable characters, funny lines, top-notch voice acting, and inventive puzzles on top of that is almost disquieting.
* VideoGame/EtrianOdyssey. This game made me realize something. What a game seeks to achieve is immersion. Its ultimate goal is to suck you into the world. And while a lot of games can do it with engrossing, sprawling plots with a healthy dose of gorgeous cutscenes, and it does work, this game manages to do it with just one thing: the feeling of exploration, of adventure. It's all about the experience and not the destination with this game. You don't feel compelled to grind and hurry through everything to advance the plot, but you are absolutely captivated and motivated to explore each and every cranny, just from the sense of adventure it gives you. And it's a lot of people's complaint about the game, about it having no plot, but firstly, that's not true. It comes in late in the game, when you don't even expect a story. It's simple, but very effective. It heigtens the sense of mystery and exploration in the labyrinth, and that is what the experience is all about, not a Let's Save the World kind of plotline. One last thing, it has made me notice the importance of difficulty regulation. Although it slips up towards the end, the merciless difficulty in the first and second strata is so carefully and deliberately callibrated. It is a CrowningMomentOfAwesome when you meet the [[FanNickname Rapelope]] and get your ass handed to you so hard. You sit there shell-shocked, before slowly realizing: this is going to be AWESOME.
** Seconded. This troper bought the game for the very fact she could spend time simply exploring without the plot determining a specific path. For her, the necessity of accurate map-making (not even kidding) was only more of a bonus for the sense of exploration and satisfaction Has yet to finish the final levels (and the main game took months), but will do so no matter how many times her party falls through the floor of [=B27F=]....
* ''HeavyRain'' is brilliant. A bit cheesy, but it is a pioneer in interactive storytelling, the narrative is amazing, it dares to traffic in unbelievably universal themes, and it goes places no game before it has dared to. It's not ''BioShock'', but it is undeniably a step forward in the artistic development of the medium.
** I don't find the game cheesy at all. I find it very exciting, thrilling, moving, and emotional.
* {{The Sims}} Pure crack in video game form, and it's so fun in the process. Sure, the constant line of expansion packs are annoyingly expensive and the game's glitches can drive you crazy, but there's something just so fun about guiding a pack of computer people into a happy life (or ruining it, if that's your thing...). You really get attached to these guys, even when they do the most phenomenally stupid stuff.
* [[{{@/Albertosaurus}} This troper]] used to love the original ''{{Rayman}}'' game so much that he played it from start to finish ''sixteen times.'' While he still enjoys it, he doesn't love it quite as much these days - but he sure has warm and fuzzy memories of the time it was the greatest game ever.
* No matter what you say, there's ONE Call of Duty game you will LOVE from both Treyarch and Infinity Ward. Despite the acid reaction to Modern Warfare 2, this troper (Also a Tom Clancy lover) absolutely loved it. Black Ops will probably be the Treyarch favorite (Again, Clancy lover seeping through [read Without Remorse: They plan a mission that's on-par with Black Ops that [=CoD:BO=] might cover]).
* Where the heck is ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore: Master of Arena''!? You have many Ravens to fight, all ruthless and hell bent on killing you, Customization for your mech, as with the satisifaction of winning ''every single Arena'' and Killing [[ThatOneBoss Nine-]][[BestBossEver Ball]]. It is ''the'' greatest Mech Game This Troper has played.
** Hear, hear. This Troper was a big fan of the PS1 era ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' games, but feel they are surpassed by ''Armored Core 3'' and Silent Line. While the series hit a bit of a roadbump with Armored Core 2 and Another Age, it more then made up for it with Armored Core 3 and Silent Line. Armored Core 3 took the best aspects of previous ''VideoGame/ArmoredCore'' games and combined them with the PS2's superior power which made it better then Armored Core 2 and Another Age by leaps and bounds. While Silent Line, besides the graphics, was even better in every respect, with a staggering number of parts, a highly diverse set of missions, and reintroduced two-on-two and custom AI arena modes. While the rest of the AC games for the PS2 didn't nearly match up (Ninebreaker probably being the weakest overall), this Troper still has a soft spot for Last Raven for it's sheer difficulty compared to the rest of the series (being that it's possible to fight an AC for every mission during the single player campaign) which makes truly becoming the "last raven" feel like a real accomplishment amidst the apocalyptic setting that brings the PS2 AC era to a conclusion.
** Armored Core 4 is, and will be until the day I die, my favourite game, EVER. Armored Core: For Answer was almost as good, but it didn't have quite the same feel to it that AC4 did. Complain as much as you like about its RealIsBrown graphics, but I found that they suited the game perfectly I also spent hours upon hours just messing around on the missions, thinking quietly to myself. I personally found it to be on of the greatest, most (both graphically and setting-wise) beautiful games I've ever played.
* Ah... This Troper is shamelessly bragging about IrisuSyndrome, and how great the game itself is. You got Great (not to mention [[{{Moe}} cute]]) Characters, a shocking and subtle Story, addicting Gameplay despite being NintendoHard, and best of all, Irisu Herself. Then you have ''Metsu'', in which there is great quality in music, and creates a (even more) well developed storyline, which explains what motivations the Characters have. You have to keep reading the text files to understand the entire plot, but once you do, you'll be treated to an amazing storyline.
* This troper absolutely loves UmJammerLammy. The game is incredibly addicting, and even though I got frustrated with it sometimes I never gave up because it was so fun. And plus the music is awesome, too.
* {{Gothic}} 1, 2, and even 3 to an extent are all under-known gems of a today forgotten era of [=RPGs=]. The expansive worlds (2, with the addon, came with 3 distinct worlds!) to explore, the characterization of the main cast, the real sense of character progression that most [=RPGs=] lack, make the series one of the best RPG experiences around.
* The MySims series. The characters are adorable and amusing, and the building and customization is fun for my creativity.
* Screw the segue about being disappointed that {{Ratchet and Clank}} isn’t here, yet—I’m glad to have the honor of adding it myself! The early games were awesome in their own rights, but the Future trilogy never fails to bring out the squealing fangirl in this troper. Tools of Destruction was an absolute joy when it first came out and hasn’t gotten old, yet. Quest for Booty was short, but it carried the fans over until A Crack In Time, which would have been worth the wait, even without QFB. It’s hard to decide what the best part is: characters or story. Tachyon, Sigmund, Orvus and Alister were all ''great'' characters, but if [=ACiT=] is, indeed, the last Ratchet and Clank game we’re going to get (barring spinoffs and crossovers) the series ended on a [[{{CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming}} perfect note]].
** Hey, at least we get the comic books!
** This has been one of {{this troper}}s favorite series for as long as I can remember. The weapons are unparalelled, the sstory is epic and the characterization is amazing. All hail the R.Y.N.O (and II, 3, IV, V) weilding lombax.
** Here's the first poster back to add more to the pile: as someone who had been around the media block a few times, I was automatically suspicious of Azimuth, and expected him to pull a FaceHeelTurn or die. Upon going through the game again, it's only ''just'' occurred to me how ''brilliantly'' [[spoiler: the predicted face heel turn]] was carried out. I was watching that lombax like a hawk the entire time, and [[spoiler: simply let my guard down after defeating Nefarious, assuming ''him'' to be the final boss and, by extension, expecting the game to end directly after his not-quite-death.]] The fact that they managed to surprise even a few of the (slightly) GenreSavvy players makes it even ''more'' awesome than it already was.
* Proud to complete the triad of Sony mascots (the others being {{Jak and Daxter}} and {{Ratchett and Clank}}), the ''SlyCooper'' games are amazing. The characterization is deep and complex, the heists are a joy to pull off, and I love the the intro and outro scenes for every level. Add it all up and you get my most favorite game series. The only problem is the fact that development on ''Sly 4'' is indefinitely postponed.
* Metroidvania. Metroid for it's ambience, it's bajillion powerups and new abilities, and it's cool bosses, and Castlevania for it's rpg depth, whips, subweapons, dracula, and all that good stuff. The MetroidPrime games and the DS Castlevanias are just bliss.
** YES!!! I've played many of the games from both series, and they remain my favorite games even after I've played hundreds of other titles.
* ''AlanWake'' is one of the most original games this troper has played in a while. One of the really good things about it is that the well-written story is ''always happening''. Thanks to its TV series setup, each level has its own little mini-story, ensuring that something is always going on. The landscapes are breathtaking ''and'' accurate, and you frequently see your goal in the distance, and think, "I've got to go ''there''? This is going to take forever!" and then you suddenly realize, "Wow, I'm there." without any loading screens. It's fun to have a ThirdPersonShooter that doesn't rely on cover, and while you do the same thing over and over, it never feels repetitive. It'll occasionally throw you a gameplay change, such as fleeing from cops without weapons. The atmosphere is solid, giving decent scares without blood and guts. And finally, what other game (besides ''Left4Dead 2'') has you defending a concert stage, with pyrotechnics being viable weapons, in a setpiece that's so awesome that even the ''characters'' have to comment on its awesomeness? And "Children of the Elder God" is an ''amazing'' song.
* This troper's first game was the original ''SpyroTheDragon'', and after all these years it's still fun. That has to count for something.
* ''{{Meteos}}'' and the Xbox 360 sequel ''Meteos Wars'' are, without doubt, [[Tropers/PL7764 this troper's]] favorite Falling Block games. ''Meteos'' was great not just because it was thoroughly entertaining, but in that it was one of few games I found that utilized the DS's touch screen as a primary control mechanic without it feeling like a stupid gimmick. ''Meteos Wars'' has been my newfound addiction, in addition to rediscovering the original. The lack of a touch screen actually doesn't hinder the game too much - the button controls don't take too long to adapt to, and overall it's easily as fun as the original. It's well worth the money-price and time needed to adapt to the 360 controller if you loved the original game, as this one includes loads of throwbacks to it, including many of the original planets (or ''all of them'' if you get both DLC packs), a handful of which include their entire original soundtracks remixed to reflect the 360's higher operating output. The rest all have [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome absolutely superb]] and [[EarWorm satisfyingly addicting]] new audio to go with them. The game does have its flaws - the controls can stick sometimes, and if you're just a little colorblind (like me) then differentiating between similar pieces on certain planets may be tough on a SDTV. But it's certainly not deserving of the flak that it gets (most of which is directed at its lack of touch controls and lack of being on a Nintendo platform).
** How more shall I second the awesomeness that is Meteos? Shall I describe thee as the greatest puzzle block game since Tetris and the most frantic upon frantic of multiplayer experiences? Shall I expound upon thy incredible variety of planets and harmonic music? Yet only those who have played thee know thy greatness; only those who have saved the alien races from extinction upon thy screen would eagerly await the announcement of your return as 3DS sequel, which would bring forth such awesomeness indeed.
* The quality can vary from AWESOME to DarthWiki/SoBadItsHorrible, but I have to raise my glass and cheer the fans who make {{Fan Sequel}}s and {{Fan Remake}}s of {{Sierra}} games. They do this on their own time, their own money, and face everything from [[StopHavingFunGuys lawsuits]] to people flaking on the project to real-life getting in the way. In particular, I have to toast VideoGame/TheSilverLining team for their perseverance and Tierra / AGDInteractive for taking what is possibly the most frustrating, non-sensical, SolveTheSoupCans entry of the KingsQuest series and making it into something that is awesome on every level - voice acting (including Josh Mandel reprising Graham!), music, puzzles, and STORY.
* VideoGame/{{Machinarium}}. The most beautiful indie adventure game I've ever seen, with a touching storyline and puzzles the equal of any Lucasarts point-and-clicker. Everything about this game is fantastic. The built-in walkthrough that also has a built-in deterrent from using it. The animated memory/thought bubbles. All the character designs are unique and delightful! See also {{Samorost}}, the previous game made by Amanitas Design.
* MuramasaTheDemonBlade is quite possibly [[@/SuperFush This troper]] considers it to be THE best game on the Wii, and one of the best games to be made in the past five years. Between utterly gorgeous visuals, interesting, cool, well-voiced, well-designed, badass characters, incredibly fluid and epic battles, and a soundtrack to die for, this is one hell of a game.
* This troper would like to nominate {{Marathon}} as the best sprite-based First Person Shooter ever. It's storytelling was simply unheard of then and even now, with a richly crafted sci-fi world and believable characters. The text-based terminals combined with stellar shoot-em-up gameplay captures the essence of both genres, imploring the player to use his/her imagination. The result: a world that truly seems breathing and believable despite (and perhaps because of) the simplistic technology. Marathon proves that you can don't need amazing graphics for an immersive experience. Frankly, it deserves much more attention than it has.
** I absolutely agree, especially with regards to the story. Forgive me if this sounds too grandiose, but the Marathon storyline is my favorite fictional story EVER, of all time, in any form of media. I truly think of it as my LordOfTheRings in terms of how it impacted my life. It was the series that introduced me to the entire concept of WildMassGuessing (ok, actually {{Halo}} was, but they were both made by Bungie, and Marathon as a story has aged better in my own humble opinion). My mind was set on fire by all the "nonsense" terminals, the weird, surrealistic subplots, and the fact that Bungie didn't try to spell out everything, instead keeping everything vague and leaving the true meaning of the games up to the players. These games are not for people who demand answers. They are for people who love mysteries. And all this was done BEFORE Half-Life came along, mind you, during a time when most other [=FPSs=] were still about mindless carnage and not much more. These games never get the credit they deserve. (Btw, if anyone cares, check out [[http://marathon.bungie.org/story/ the Marathon's Story page]] for hours upon hours of story dissection).
** I would also like to add that Rubicon is one of the best fan sequels ever made, period.
* {{Diablo2}} is the greatest hack'n'slash rpg ever made. I played, replayed and re-replayed it so many times with every character cheating the hell out of it because it awesome. When i gotten to fifth act, the game was so heated that not one but TWO different [=CDs=] broke inside of my CD-rom. One of them killed said CD-rom. I just hope that third game will take it beyond the impossible and be even more awesome.
* VampireTheMasqueradeBloodlines is another gem, one of very few games where you can take a role of the Vampire, drink blood, lurk in the dark and kill other vampires. It has amazing story too. I wish there were more games about vampires.
* The {{LegoAdaptationGame}}s. Yes, this troper knows he's too old for them, but they're done so well! I got hooked starting with Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, and I even played the original. I logged many, many hours on both of those games, trying to reach True Jedi, collect every minikit and Gold Brick as if my life depended on it, as well as unlocking all the characters, even if most of them are either carbon copies with different faces or completely useless. Then came Lego Indiana Jones. This troper rented it during arguably the roughest summer of his life, but couldn't put it down, even when his stepmom was telling him to get ready to go out to dinner. Again, every Gold Brick, Red Brick, Minikit, et cetera. Then Lego Batman. I got it for the DS, and even if it didn't have those awesome Lego cutscenes, the comic book visuals weren't bad, and it was pretty much the same game, same collecting shit. This troper has just recently received Lego HarryPotter for Christmas, and he's spent the better portion of his days just wasting away at them. The lack of dialogue in the cutscenes is interesting. It's more of a "seen but not heard" type of thing. Even if there's some cheap slapstick thrown in here and there, I don't care! This troper, despite being [[SoOkayItsAverage not very fond of]] the PiratesOfTheCaribbean series (except for the first one. [[Sequelitis Not so much the others]] ), the announcement of that series being LEGO-ized is pretty cool. If only we could see LEGO {{Rocky}} or LEGO DieHard, or better yet, LEGO BackToTheFuture... that would rock! Especially seeing that the last one is having a video game made out of it. LEGO {{Terminator}}? Nah, that's pushing it.
* Even though it has been years, [[RagnarokOnline Ragnarok Online]] is still my first love in [=MMORPGs=]. It's the game that popularized the genre here in my place, and Myung-Jin Lee's artwork amazes me until now. Moreover, SoundTeMP's soundtrack is thoroughly underrated.
* Excuse this troper for stating the obvious, but...EpicMickey is ''epic''.
* This Troper was shocked that ''[[{{DrawnToLife}} Drawn To Life]]'' Wasn't on here. She likes the [[RidiculouslyCuteCritter Raposa]] [[CutenessProximity way too]] [[CutenessOverload much]]. And even though [[spoiler: All the Raposa scraficed themselves to save Mike]] in the ending, she still likes it. Of course, she has a fondness for [[spoiler: Death Tropes]], manly because [[spoiler: Raposa Angels are just cuter!]]
* Halo. Just... HALO. I know that it's cliched, but the story is cool, and you can't help but like some of the characters.
It also change FPS games, and started the trend that video games aren't just for geeks.
* ''CrimzonClover'' is by far the best shmup since sliced ''{{DoDonPachi}}''. And that's saying something, considering it's '''{{doujinshi}}'''--developed for 5 years mainly by one person, with a little outside assistance and another peson doing the music. As for the game itself, it puts as much emphasis on [[StuffBlowingUp destruction]] as it does on [[BulletHell dodging]], [[SuperMode BREAK MODE]] and [[UpToEleven DOUBLE BREAK MODE]] are hilariously fun, and the stages are intense, ''especially'' starting with Original Mode Stage 4. The game in general is just so polished that you'd be forgiven for mistaking it for a commercial game (although it being a PC game kinda gives away the fact that it's a doujin game).
* I know it's the popular thing to gush about {{Minecraft}} these days, but honestly? It deserves it. There's something strangely addictive about Minecraft. I don't know if it's the heady rush of pure creation, the excitement of discovering new worlds, or what, but it is FUN. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to building my to-scale recreation of the Death Star out of obsidian...
** This needs more gushing. In what other game can you make a city entirely out of wool, dye it all the colors of the rainbow, burn it to the ground, make a diamond monument that spews out lava in memory of the city, blow it up with tnt, and replace it with a minecart system? Granted, it takes a lot of time, but it is awesome.
** It's wonderfully addicting, suitable for all ages, and can be played any time. Have your parents grounded you from the internet? Play Beta offline. Bored at work? Build some structures on Classic. The game also has a lovely soft piano soundtrack.
** Say what you will about the graphics, but everything else is awesome. Even the HighOctaneNightmareFuel is so perfectly done that this troper finds himself deliberately looking for it. Wow
* This dates back quite a while, but [[Tropers/DeathToSquishies this troper]] has always been fond of the original ''PerfectDark'' for the {{Nintendo 64}}. The music, the multiplayer, the weapons, the story, the levels, just about everything was as Perfect as the title would lead you to believe. It's just such a shame that it wasn't as widely acknowledged as VideoGame/GoldenEye1997, and part of me thinks that it only became known because of the prequel released on the Xbox.
* TheLongestJourney / Dreamfall, anyone? I love it. I love it so much. The characters are incredible, the music is wonderful, and the scenery makes me want to cry tears of joy. It is the most immersing quest I have ever played.
* X-Com UFO Defense (or Enemy Unknown, depending on where you're from) is one of the greatest games of all time. It was released in 1993, and it is still regarded as one of the best PC games ever. Everything about it is ahead of its time: fully destructible terrain, complex stats for your soldiers, awesome base building, etc. Also the research system is impressive and it is very fun to see what cool new weapon or device your scientists have unlocked now. The best part is that X-Com delivers an incredibly enjoyable challenge, and is very difficult at times, but it manages to be fun enough to prevent you from smashing your computer in frustration, and instead to keep trying different tactics until you win. It's a shame that there have been no remakes of this game that fully capture its glory.
* RuneScape is easily this troper's favourite game. Yes, really. It has the best quests of any MMORPG, and they are my favourite part of the game. The quests are funny, awesome, heartwarming, (often in rapid succession), and the team making them obviously ''cares'' about them. No quest is just a half-assed thing thrown together in 10 minutes, requiring you to kill a bunch of monsters or collect a bunch of items. Even the quests explicitly about killing monsters in their names (Dragon Slayer, Vampire Slayer, Demon Slayer) have a story, and the content of them isn't just 'go kill the dragon/demon/vampire'. And these are just the low level starter quests. Some of the tougher quests can get to the degree of immersion that you react and feel as your character does. For example after the [[BloodKnight War God]] that the cave goblins used to follow announces that he will destroy them utterly, I felt a real sense of urgency as I went around their city, collecting things to put in a time capsule so that some remnant of their civilisation survives. The entire time, the music playing sounds so urgent (and it's called Demise of the Dorgeshuun (the name of the cave goblin people), no less), really adding to the atmosphere. When I was done with that, I teamed up with Zanik, the [[ChosenOne Chosen Commander]] of the War God to [[ScrewDestiny fight against him]]. In the throne room of the Big High War God, he gave her, (and by extension the entire Dorgeshuun people,) one last chance to join him or die. She denied him, and then the obligatory boss fight started. We slowly whittled down his health, and just as she was about to fire the crossbow that would disrupt his divine energy flow (effectively banishing him), he broke it with his mace, and as she tried to gather up the pieces, the [[UpToEleven statues themselves]] came to life and attacked us. I kept fighting the War God, hoping she would be able to fend off the statues and reassemble the crossbow. [[OhCrap Then her health bar hit zero and she keeled over.]] Despairing, I killed the rest of the statues, picked up the pieces of the crossbow and remade it, got the War God's health back down to zero, and as he gloated about how easily he had defeated the Chosen Commander, and I stood no chance, I fired the crossbow at him, banishing him. Easily the most intense (in-universe) boss fight I've ever had. And Zanik was still on the floor. [[OhCrap I tried talking to her, but she gave no response.]] I selected the 'wait' option in the dialogue options box, and eventually she woke up. I told her we had won, and she destroyed the pendant that gave him power on our plane. We left the Throne Room though the portal, back to the goblin city, and were hailed as heroes as the TriumphantReprise / CrowningMusicOfAwesome played. An amazing end to an amazing quest series.
* Christ on toast, ''LiveALive''. I had to emulate it, of course, and after spending some time with it, I don't regret it at all. It's just ''adorable''. The first scenario I played, the prehistoric one, was very innovative in conveying the story without dialog. I am only about halfway through the game, but I think this is one of the most fun games I've played in a while. They don't make 'em like this anymore. The game is like a hybrid of a more-functioning ''VideoGame/SagaFrontier'' and a less-overexposed ''ChronoTrigger''. If you don't have any moral qualms about emulating older games(and let's face it, who does?), then run, don't walk to your nearest computer and get the fan translated ROM from one of those less skeevy emulator sites (I suggest Cool {{ROM}}s) to get your hands on ''LiveALive''!
* ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}''. [[Tropers/BentusiAvatar I]] grew up watching my dad play this (one of the few games he would ever play), so I'm probably a little biased, but still. Quite likely one of the best real-time strategies ever made, got at least one game of the year for 1999, and the first (and one of the very few) strategy game to use 3-D models and motion tech for actual gameplay instead of just eye candy - which it had more than enough of anyway. The ships look simple now, but they're still beautiful, and the backgrounds as well. Paul Ruskay's [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome wonderful soundtrack]] communicates the emptiness of space just as well as the rush of fleet-to-fleet battle, blending in Middle Eastern sounds perfectly before BattlestarGalactica ever did - and their use of the Agnus Dei, given context and how awesome the song itself is, is perfect; [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIUxwEJ-GXI their rendition of it]] remains this troper's favorite. The storyline, as well, is as grand and epic as any other SpaceOpera while maintaining a sense that it is racial myth, a long-held history. And it is dark, and [[TearJerker very sad]]. The multiplayer is so well made that there are still players, 12 years later. In short, this game is made of concentrated awesome. The sequels aren't that bad either. Do yourself a favor, get this game, and try not to read or watch anything to spoil it. It's worth it.
* The ''{{Rance}}'' Series. Let's see, the titular [[DesignatedHero "protagonist"]] may be a [[LoveItOrHateIt polarizing]] [[HaremSeeker serial]] [[RapeIsLove rapist]], but CrazyAwesome and insanely BadAss. Many characters of the Rance World are likable or at least [[CompleteMonster memorable]] and avoid falling into cliche. The Rance World itself is a FantasyKitchenSink WorldOfBadass. The plots of the games themselves are [[BetterThanItSounds actually pretty good]] and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome emo]][[TearJerker tio]][[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming nal]] even if they don't usually take themselves [[RapeAsComedy serio]][[DeadBabyComedy usly]]. The gameplay [[EvenBetterSequel (especially in the later installments)]] itself is good enough to [[IReadItForTheArticles justify playing the games for the gameplay]] (though no one will believe you if you use that excuse). Lastly, in what other videogame series, HGame or not, can you [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotAwesome rape women to]] [[AwesomeMusic A ROCK REMIX OF]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knMIWcJSEWY EAST GERMANY'S NATIONAL ANTHEM?!?!]]
* ''EndlessOcean'' is a wonderful game, especially the sequel. In a world where VideoGames are largely made up of guns, explosions and gore, it's refreshing to see a game that you can play at your own pace, devoid of any negativity or blood. This game makes you appreciate the simple, sublime beauties of nature that you'd normally ignore in your everyday life. You'll lose yourself in the serene, visually-stunning environment as you go around finding treasure, discovering new fish and searching for the ever-elusive Legendary creatures. It's a great way to relieve stress, especially if you don't like the CatharsisFactor. And finally, the game has a lovely soundtrack of Celtic folk music!
* ''BattlefieldHeroes'' is great fun. What other game lets you snipe people from a plane, run people over with a jeep and wear a King Cobra on your shoulder, all in the same game? It deserves more popularity. The battles are perfectly-paced, lasting reasonably long without dragging on forever. Having a customizable hero is always great, too. And the theme is [[EarWorm incredibly catchy]] without being annoying!
* ''VideoGame/{{Recettear|AnItemShopsTale}}'' - You know those JRPG's where you go to item shops in further cities to beef up your stats? You're one of those shopkeepers, and you get to gouge the customers for what they got and can allow, and you can even commission an adventurer too. This game has charmingly funny moments, plenty of replayability after beating the main story, and [[{{Woolseyism}} a top-notch localization by Carpe Fulgur]].
* I put forward the criminally under-rated RPG ''ArcanumOfSteamworksAndMagicObscura''. Detailed world, fantastic story, fascinating characters. I love it and you all should too. Oh, and it still has a marginally active community.
* I've never been a big ''MortalKombat'' fan, until ''9'' kame out. I got it as a graduation present, and it ended up replacing ''Marvel vs Kapcom 3'' as my fighter of choice. It has an impressive kast of klassic kombatants, all of which are reasonably balanced ( save for Kung Lao ) and fun to play as. The story mode was the most well done story mode in any fighter I've played ( save for maybe BlazBlue ). It really says something about the game when even people who don't like MK will admit that they respect how much effort NRS put into it.
* A few choice exceptions aside (''[[FalloutBrotherhoodOfSteel Fallout: Brotherhood Of Steel]]'' and to some, ''{{Fallout 3}}''), the whole series is enjoyable from start to finish, being stocked to the gills with hilarity, tearjerking moments, and things that may haunt your nightmares for ages. The voice acting is incredible (including MICHAEL DORN as 2 characters: an intelligent super mutant who you can get as a companion, and a mutant cyborg schizophrenic serial killing psychotic secret service agent in powered armour), there's almost never a dull moment, I just can't do it justice...
** The expansion packs for ''FalloutNewVegas''. ''[=Dead Money=]'' is the perfect SurvivalHorror experience, in the {{Fallout}} universe with amazing characters, an interesting locale, and [[{{TearJerker}} heartbreaking events]]. ''Honest Hearts'' gives us one of the most {{Badass}} [[TheAtoner Atoners]] gaming has ever seen, and a great new area to explore. ''Old World Blues'' is the series' trademark Mad Science humour, set in a WorldOfHam with a cast of colourful characters. And ''Lonesome Road''... It's a journey through a DeathWorld with only one living character, but it manages to be an awesome, [[{{Tearjerker}} sad]], open-ended conclusion to the MythArc that was building up across the previous three add-ons. When else has DownloadableContent ever rivalled the main game like this?
* MirrorsEdge. Because it was fun to be a modern-day Ninja in a [[SceneryPorn strangely beautiful]] police-state. [[ItsShortSoItSucks If only for a few hours]]. Here's hoping the rumored sequel gets made, so [=DICE=] have a chance to crank out the EvenBetterSequel the franchise deserves.
* The Hitman series of games. There are just so many ways of completing each mission and so many [[SelfImposedChallenge Self Imposed Challenges]] to try out. This troper will never get bored of the Hitman games.

* ''JadeEmpire'' needs more love. Sure, the combat system's really easy and the game's pretty short, but the sheer level of world background, not to mention the incredibly impressive effort the designers went to to get their Chinese legends ''right'', is worth the price alone. The characters are also really interesting and in the case of the Black Whirlwind or Henpecked Hu, really funny. And [[CrowningMomentOfFunny Minister Sheng]]...
** And how about that XanatosGambit? Holy shit, that's impressive. Master Li made [[KnightsOfTheOldRepublic Malak]] and [[MassEffect Sovereign]] look like amateurs with that stunt.

* {{Red Dead Redemption}}. Rockstar did it. They made a game genre that was rapidly dying out and made an amazing, wonderful game out of it. The story, the characters, the dialogue, the gameplay, it's all been perfectly implemented into simply the best Western game ever made. It can be, in turns, [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome awesome,]] [[CrowningMomentOfFunny hilarious,]] [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel terrifying,]] [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming heartwarming]] and [[TearJerker incredibly sad.]] The dialogue is always witty and frequently poignant, and the music is unparalleled. Whether riding through Mexico listening to [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IkvAb6THQY Far Away]] and feeling like king of the Goddamn world or watching the end credits while [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkAvVqjbUG8 Deadman's Gun]] plays in the background and actually ''feeling'' for the main character, which so few games manage to do, what with silent protagonists and all. The gameplay is as smooth and elegant as activating Dead Eye, lining up a bunch of headshots and watching the fireworks, and to top it all off, [[spoiler: the most wonderful, beautiful [[DownerEnding downer ending]] you could ever have hoped for.]]
* I might not be much of a StarWars fan, but KnightsOfTheOldRepublic is simply awesome. Strolling through the plains of Dantooine is one of the more relaxing and generally pleasurable experiences in the video game world.
** Definitely. The characters are stunning, the voice acting was some of the best I've ever run across. Even the minor [=NPCs=] are written and voiced with care. BioWare games are also great for female gamers. I never feel like a second-class citizen or an afterthought when I'm playing one of theirs.
** ''KnightsOfTheOldRepublic II'' is one of the best [=RPG=]s I've ever played, and my hat goes off to Obsidian. Even ''without'' Team Gizka's restoration project.
** There are no words to do justice to the old-school awesomesauce that is ''TIEFighter'', so I will merely point out that [[MagnificentBastard Thrawn]] is your boss, and ''DARTH VADER'' is your ''wingman''.

* ''Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn'' is my favourite game of all time. The sheer size of the game world, the immersion, the characters, the sprawling plot and interconnectedness of the side-quests, they all add up to make a game you can truly lose yourself in. And there's so many ways of playing it through; with a differnt PC, with different [=NPCs=], taking different quests and different alignment choices. I must have played it from start to finish about ten times at least. And the villain! I'll just say that Jon Irenicus ties with the Operative and Ozymandias for my favourite villain in all media.
** Dude, you took the words straight out of my mouth. The fact that the series is 10 years old and still has an active modding and playing community should say something about its quality.

* ''Neverwinter Nights'' - I've been playing this game for five years and I'm still not tired of it. Just when I think I'm over it I find a new module set to enjoy. The community around the game is greater than any other game community I've ever seen. The official campaign and expansions are good, but it really gave builders a chance to shine, and they have, from the Dreamlands to A Harpers Tale, to Penultima City, and many others I'm forgetting. Thank you Bioware, and thank you to everyone who made an adventure I could enjoy.
** Second that! But i must say that i played it without modules simply because i wanted to experienced its Love Story once again.

* MassEffect. There has never been another game that I've devoted so much time to, and me liking a shooter is very rare. Nonetheless, MassEffect delivers everything in ''spades''.
** And the sequel manages to be even better, in a lot of ways. When MassEffect 3 comes out, that's going to be awesome, playing them all through one after the other. Repeatedly.
** Definitely. MassEffect2 is ''awesome''. You have to play as [=FemShep=]: Jennifer Hale's voice acting is simply to die for. And both Renegade Shep and Paragon Shep are terrific. Play it both ways and see.
** I concur, but seriously, don't let people tell you [=FemShep=] is automatically better. Mark Meer is just as good a voice actor as Jennifer Hale, so pick whichever!
** Why is it such a great series, one may ask? The dialogue system is a cinematic work of art, even for an RPG. Combine that with the ThirdPersonShooter to make an ActionRPG, the multitude of ''series''-changing decisions you make, and there's something for pretty much everyone!
** Not to mention the subtle innovations the sequel brought. Bioware says, "Let's innovate dialogue!" Everyone else says, "Talking is talking, it can't be improved." Bioware says "O rly?" and brings in interrupts. Much [[Awesome/MassEffect awesome]], [[Funny/MassEffect hilarity]], and occasionally [[Heartwarming/MassEffect heartwarming]] ensues.
** And they have the guts to allow the death of the PlayerCharacter - in the ''second'' part of a ''trilogy''.
** And the story and characters in both games are so remarkable. I dare say, they're about as good as the story and characters in some of the best films out there now. I've created such an attachment with the universe, characters and my ''MANY'' Shepards (primarily female Paragon Shepards).
** MassEffect is amazing. It's awesome for female videogamers like myself... not the least because [=FemShep=] has some of the funniest lines in the entire game. (seriously, is there any female gamer who can resist the renegade interrupt on that idiot merc on Omega?) But aside from that, it's just a brilliant game in all respects. Sure, it's imperfect (playing inventory shuffle gets old fast in the first game, as does planet scanning in the second, and the open world aspect means it has a very jerky pace, going from exciting and fast-paced to "eh, let's go survey some planets for a while"), but who cares when you can blow the head off a merc from a hundred meters away with a well-placed Widow shot?! I adore the world of the game (and sincerely hope [=ME3=] isn't the last game in that world), I like most characters' characterization (consider Miranda--I loathed her at first, but slowly I grew to like her over the course of the game... exactly as they'd planned), and the games are just plain fun.
** On the topic of Mass Effect: "Lair of the Shadow Broker". ''Flying car chase scene''.
** With the unfortunate exception of the last ten minutes of a 40+ hour game, ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'' is pure brilliance. Until that ending, the entire game nailed every point: an excellent storyline, great and memorable characters (new and returning), giving Commander Shepard a great deal of emotional depth and [[WarIsHell through that taking a heartbreaking look at how war takes its toll on people]], the gameplay was excellent, the voice acting, particularly from JenniferHale and MartinSheen (even Mark Meer greatly improved and sounded great), was superb and I don't think I've ever played a game that emotionally moved me as much as this one. With the exception of those last 10 minutes, it lacked any major flaws.
* While we're on the subject of [[BioWare Bioware]], this fangirl needs to squee about ''[[DragonAgeOrigins Dragon Age: Origins]]''. Here's a game that took everything cool about BaldursGate and [[UpToEleven cranked it to eleven]]. And it took the few dumb things about it and fixed them (I maintain [[MrFanservice Alistair]] is a massive, much-appreciated and long overdue apology to dude-fancying fans everywhere for [[TheScrappy Anomen]]). I can't remember the last time I played an RPG where every single party member was someone I loved to pieces. The combat was fast-paced, tactical and fun, and the character development system deep and engaging, despite some of the bugs. And the writing--dear god, the writing. Always the shining point of a Bioware game, but this just might be one of their best. Tropes lampshaded, deconstructed and played straight for much win and awesome, some of the funniest goddamn dialogue ever in video games (anything involving Zev, Oghren, or both), plenty of heartwretching moments, pants-crapping NightmareFuelUnleaded, probably the most realistic portrayal of religion in a video game, passing Bechdel's test six ways from Sunday and arguably having the most gripping RP experience come with playing a female PC...Andraste's knickers, I could go on for days. Most of all, it is truly an RPG for grown-ups, and say what you will about the now-classic Bioware formula, ''it just works''. This game is the best damn fantasy Western-style RPG of its generation, and arguably one of the best {{RPG}}s ever made. Seriously folks, if you call yourself an RPG fan and haven't played this game by now, your life is much poorer for it.
** Oh, my god, so much yes! I'm new to video games and Dragon Age has single-handedly turned me into a fanatic. I'm generally not even the type to read a book or watch a movie a second time, but I've almost finished playing the game through once and I'm already excited to start it ''again''--let alone how excited I am for the sequel. The one downside? Dragon Age is one of the first video games I've ever played--and it seems as if I will be disappointed with most games I discover after this because of their failure to measure up!
** Agreed. Having just beat the game for the first time about 10 minutes ago, I need to comment on the ending (the one my choices led me to, at least; others' endings may vary). Seeing my [[SquishyWizard squishy mage]] rush the [[BigBad Archdemon]], picking up a sword along the way, slit its throat lengthwise, and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome decapitate the Archdemon]], [[spoiler: [[HeroicSacrifice sacrificing his life]] [[DyingMomentOfAwesome to kill it forever,]]]] was ''amazing''. It also provoked a strong emotional response: [[spoiler: it's one thing watching a likable, relatable character die, but it's another entirely to see [[PlayerCharacter your character, whose appearance, personality, abilities, and name you dictated]], die.]] In addition to the ending, I loved how detailed the world of Thedas was and how much humor was mixed in with the death and tragedy. I ended up liking Dragon Age: Origins way more than I thought I would when I bought it.
** I agree as well, regarding everything about the writing and the combat tactics and the amazing detailed world (and Alistair, possibly the most lovable video game character ever), and I would like to gush about ''DragonAgeII'', the sequel. It will break your heart and punch you in the gut over and over, but it's awesome. It's a brave game, not afraid to delve deep into darkness and moral ambiguity and full of situations where there's no right choice, but full of wit and humor. The three-act structure with an unreliable narrator lets you see the consequences of your earlier decisions as the game develops, and strings together sidequests into coherent storylines that also intersect with the main plot (often as [[ChekhovsGun Chekhov's Guns]]). The visuals are atmospheric and often gorgeous (how I wish my computer's graphics could measure up). The combat is nicely balanced. The main cast voice acting is superb, just as in Origins, and the music is lovely. And the characters are flawed and fascinating people; often I want to punch them one moment and hug them the next. (I'd also like to express appreciation for giving us fangirls the amazingly sexy voice of Anders. Ahem. And for Merrill...imagine [[BuffyTheVampireSlayer Willow]] as an elf with enormous green puppy-dog eyes and you'll have some idea of what a BadassAdorable woobie she is.)

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[[folder:Nintendo]]
* ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' is an awesome game that doesn't get enough love. The game mechanics such as the flutter jump and the revamped "health meter" (which, aside from possibly one bonus level, practically prevents you from dying) really makes the game unique and enjoyable, and the multiple collections present an excellent challenge for HundredPercentCompletion. Some may say that the game is [[NintendoHard cruel at times]], especially in its sequel on the DS, but for me, it makes beating the game 100% all the more enjoyable.
** ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' has one of the best soundtracks in the history of video games. There is simply no argument.
** ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' could be considered the series CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming
** Yoshi's Island is such a cute game. One of my favorites on the SNES. It's just so cute, sweet, heartwarming, and downright FUN, but it does have a few gross-out moments too (like the Frog boss). But overall, it's just a great game.
* The 7th ''Fire Emblem'', the first to be released in the US, is also one of the best video games this troper has played in recent years...on the Gameboy Advance and any system period.
** ''Fire Emblem: Sacred Stones'' is my personal favorite because it's the first game I played from that series. Excellent plot and characters!
** Fire Emblem 5 and 9 for this troper. ''Thracia 776'' is rich. Just rich. Developed characters whose relationships form a complex weave. A wonderful story that really involved the characters, even the minor ones you thought wouldn't show up again. The chapters even integrate the plot into your battles in interesting ways. And it's a challenge to boot. ''Path of Radiance'' is my favourite video game, hands down. It is like Fire Emblem's renaissance, an effective mix of old and new. Clearly a spiritual successor to ''Thracia''. It's fantastic to play and to watch the characters develop with the story.
** This troper loves 10 dearly. The character availability issues can become annoying, but on the other hand, they also allow you to get really attached to people on every side of the conflict, which makes having to pit your various parties against each other later that much more heartwrenchingly awesome. (Although this troper is also part of that tiny minority of people who genuinely love the Dawn Brigade, which probably helps...)
** This troper absolutely loves FE 4. Jugdral is a wonderful balance of a typical medieval fantasy and dark political intrigue, its characters are wonderfully complex, and the gameplay is actually quite nice once you get used to it. And the unofficial mangas are amazing.
** Gotta fill in the gap and gush about [=FE6=]. It's quite difficult, but that just makes getting the good ending all the sweeter. It was also the first in the series to introduce supports, which is in itself pretty impressive: a 50+ cast of characters where everybody gets a chance to shine. And there is just something simultaneously badass and adorable about pitting little Roy against a giant friggin' dragon... and watching him win.
* ''GoldenSun'' and especially its sequel is the best GBA game and quite possibly the best game alltogether, that [[{{@/Smokie}} this troper]] has ever played. Let's start with the extremely interesting plot and the likable characters. But that's not even where it starts! I always liked the PointOfView change between the 2 games, where it is revealed that the villains were actually trying to save the world from collapsing and in the second game, the protagonists more or less team up with the new bad guys. The game itself has a [[AwesomeMusic/VideoGames crowning soundtrack of awesome]] and is graphically stunning (Just look at summons like Catastrophe and Iris). The character class system is also extremely deep and leaves space for all kinds of combinations. And overall, it never stops being an epic story (in the real sense of the word epic). I can't help but love this game to no end.
** Yes! Yes! Yes! These games are mere Gameboy Advanced games, yet they still have loveable characters and an excellent plot. There's TONS of extra stuff to do (especially in The Lost Age), and the summon secuences are just full of awesome. Heck, the plot is a mere "four elements" plot, but it's handled in a way that makes it seem refreshing. THIS IS MY FAVORITE VIDEO GAME SEIES EVER!
** When she found both GBA games second-hand this troper thought she was being sensible by only buying the first ('what if it's no good?'). She is now kicking herself months later having not been able to find 'Lost Age' since. The first game manages to feel substantial even when it becomes clear that it is, literally, only half of the story. Puzzles need to be put alongside [=RPGs=] more often, because it gave a refreshingly different aspect to the genre, and the dijinn combinations only added to that; the scope was there for a straight-forward party, or a more unusual one. The potential breadth was the beauty of the whole thing, because it didn't get bogged down in details. And on that point, the story was typical yet still somehow compelling.
* [[{{Tangent128}} This Troper]] has played every Mario RPG except for the first one, and is eager to play it as soon as he can because the rest are ''so awesome'':
** ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' was the first I'd played, and remains classic. It just had that perfect sync of great music, great villains, great side characters, a neat battle system... and so much variety! Flower Fields was the closest to an "off" chapter it ever got.
*** ''Paper Mario 2'' kept the standard- an even awesomer battle system, still tons of location variety, and so may subversions of the normal chapter structure... the Glitz Pit, the [[strike:end]] of the Twilight Town chapter, the Excess Express...
**** As a Mario fan and fan of playing video games in general, PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor is my favorite game of all time.
** ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi Mario & Luigi]]'' was portable, comedy gold! E.Gadd's guest starring, the pratfalls, appropriate music, and a plot that kept revisiting older places (going back into previous games!).
*** ''MarioAndLuigiPartnersInTime'' had decent music, and over-the-top Bros Items.
*** ''MarioAndLuigiBowsersInsideStory'' not only provides several Crowning Moments of Awesome for Bowser, [[VillainDecay a character seriously in need of such moments]], but is the funniest, most well-made game in the ''[[VideoGame/MarioAndLuigi Mario & Luigi]]'' series yet. Not to mention how '''''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df-mjdvdeuI&fmt=18 unbelievably ridiculously awesome]]''''' the final boss theme is!
**** Well its by made by Yoko Shimomura, what you expect?
** ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario''... Goes against the original Paper Mario for best I've played... such great writing... all the tear-jerking and heartwarming scenes! Count Bleck was such a sympathetic antagonist, and had such a great musical theme. And all the fourth-wall bending and inside jokes made this (male!) Troper squee.
** ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG''. That is all.
*** Oh god. VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG. Possibly my favorite game ever. It was actually the first RPG I ever played (my brother and I both thought RPG meant "really powerful graphics" hehe), and it introduced me to what's now my favorite genre of video game. I love this game so much.
** Out of all the Mario [=RPGs=], this troper has only played the Mario and Luigi trilogy (she wants to play the Paper Mario series and Super Mario RPG), and she loved it.
* Despite all of it's flaws, ''Super Mario Sunshine'' is still a game worth playing. It has beautiful scenery, catchy, upbeat music, exellent challenge, and best of all, despite all of the changes, it kept the core gameplay the same.
** Seconded ''so hard''. Perhaps it's all the LeParkour you can perform with side somersaults and wall jumps in conjuction with the Hover Nozzle, or just how [[SceneryPorn astonishingly beautiful it looks]]. It really captures the feel of a tropical locale. And being tropic-based, of course, the water is pretty awesome-looking, perhaps even moreso than in Galaxy.
* ''SuperSmashBros''... You know what? This troper's monopolized enough gushing.
** Then this one will take over. All of them are the purest celebration of Nintendo's long and illustrious history and a love letter to the sheer joy one can find in silliness. ''Brawl'' especially with its "Subspace Emissary" story; I mean it in the best way possible when I say it's the best crossover CrackFic I've ever seen. Seriously! Anyone who wants to write crossover crack ''needs'' to at least watch the cutscenes. It's funny at times, to be sure, but it's also tense, heartwarming, and [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome triumphant]]. Thank you, Nintendo, for reminding us that it's okay for games to be silly.
** This troper isn't afraid to say that the confirmation of Sonic was one of the greatest thrills I got that year. Seriously.
*** The music, the [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome muuuusiiiic...]] *JOY*
*** Seconded. I get squeegasms from hearing gems like the Zelda medley or Ridley's awesome remix, and occasionally head over to YouTube for precisely that purpose.
*** Thirded. I think the reason all those songs were cut was because otherwise the sheer awesomeness would melt your brain the second you went to the Sound Test mode.
* People have called ''TheLegendOfZelda: Ocarina of Time'' the greatest game ever, and that opinion is 100% RIGHT! The haters are deluding themselves; THIS is how you make a video game, end of story.
** Seconded. This troper replayed it recently and, in his honest opinion, it holds up wonderfully. The music, the dungeons, the boss fights, the sidequests...even the aged graphics have a certain charm to them. ''Majora's Mask'', ''Wind Waker'', and ''Twilight Princess'' are all awesome, but it has to be said that they all owe their existence to ''Ocarina''.
*** The worst part about ''Ocarina of Time''? '''Finishing it.''' No matter how many times you replay it, you can never get back the sheer joy and exhileration you get when you explore it for the very first time.
**** I'm gonna commit the cardinal sin of Ocarina of Time here - I like the Water Temple. It gets a lot of hate for being too long, or too confusing, or just frustrating, but... it's really fun! More than any dungeon up to that point, you get to explore an interesting dungeon, with one of the best boss fights in the game (hell yeah, Dark Link!) AND the Longshot, which is one of my favourite items. It can seem daunting when you start out, but after picking up the map and compass, you can start to make sense of it and it becomes much easier and much more fun to navigate. Even if you DO find it difficult, there's always a great sense of achievement when you complete it. I'll even go so far as to say that in OoT, the Water Temple is probably one of my favourite dungeons, only losing out to Ganon's Tower. Yeah.
* ''TheLegendOfZelda: Majora's Mask'' is [[{{@/Sylocat}} this Troper]]'s favorite game of all time. It's not just an excellent break from the main formula, it also pioneered the WideOpenSandbox genre and the TimeTravel mechanic was handled excellently... but what really sets it apart is the story, and the characters. There is just so much going on, so many characters with their own stories to tell, so much to put right... it's just sheer brilliance.
** This troper does love ''Ocarina of Time'' more, but considers MM a strong second. It's one of the most beautifully emotional games ever, despite having no voice acting, cheesy polygon graphics, and other artifacts that one might think would make it {{narm}}ful. It's made her cry than any other game has to date, closely followed by the second ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' game and ''VideoGame/BeyondGoodAndEvil.'' It remains to be seen how ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}'' ranks up.
*** This troper agrees, but her love for Majora's Mask runs deep... and often reduces her to [=OMG ANJU + KAFEI=] OTP [=SOB SOB.=]
** ''Majora's Mask'' actually re-opened my mind to the possible existence of {{God}}. No, really. In a godless universe, nothing so absolutely perfect could conceivably exist. The music (including the Ocarina stuff, ''especially'' the Song of Healing) is, in a word, beautiful. The characters are some of the most memorable in gaming. The gameplay, taken right from OcarinaOfTime, is perfect. Every dungeon is fun and engaging, yes, even [[ThatOneLevel the Great Bay Temple]]. When a Zelda game can make a staunch atheist reconsider and eventually believe [[HeelFaithTurn and be good]] again, you know the series is SoCoolItsAwesome, and the game itself is the best thing ever.
** This game is possibly THE game I would choose if I could only play one video game for the rest of my life. The story is deeper than [[OcarinaOfTime OoT]] and the [[GroundhogDayLoop time travel]] allows you to go through the entirety of the game over and over, trying new things each time. The sidequests serve as a great example on how to do them right while providing a challenge to find every single last [[HeartContainer piece of heart]].
* ''Twilight Princess'' was this troper's first Zelda game, and one of my favorites. Beautiful scenery, good casual gamer bosses, characters I'd love to know (Midna anybody?). Not to mention a sense of urgency about the encroaching wall of Twilight. Twilight was itself one of the most thought provoking environments I've ever experienced. See FridgeBrilliance for my theory.
** I frankly prefer Twilight Princess over Ocarina of Time. [[PerverseSexualLust Midna]] might be part of the reason. It could also be [[SceneryPorn the beautiful environments]], the cool, creative equipment, the fantastic music, and the fact that Link could turn into a [[BigBadassWolf wolf]].
* ''TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' needs more love! Even though it may seem a bit childish at the very first glance (and just the very first) It has the most interesting characters in the whole series (except Midna from TP, of course), the graphics are fluent, beautiful and make you feel good just by looking of them, the facial expressions are perfect and often nail the mood of a scene to the tee, the story rivals that of ''TwilightPrincess'' in terms of depth and intensivity, the dungeons are great fun to play and even the sailing doesn't have to be grating, if you take your time and look at all the beautiful effects around and on your boat... Then the fact that Link, [[OcarinaOfTime once]] [[MajorasMask again]], manages to be cute and [[{{Badass}} awesome]] at once!! This game is at least as awesome as ''TwilightPrincess'' people just don't know, because they didn't play it (to the end), since prejustice or the few flaws (which are a real pity) chased them off. That's kind of sad.
** I know! WW is my absolute favourite Zelda game, bar none (yeah, it even beats [=OoT=]--maybe it isn't BETTER but I like it more). It sucks that people don't give it a chance because of a few minor things. Link's design is flipping adorable too, which DOES help...
** I for one (or apparently at least three) LOVE the sailing. There, I said it, and I'd say it again if I had to. I FREAKING LOVE THE SAILING!
** Fourth'd. I really liked the general style of ''Wind Waker'', from the art to the story telling to the humorous interactions of the characters. The only problem I really have with the entire line of WW-esque games is that the DS hasn't been able to perfectly replicate the cel style used in the original, which detracts from PH and ST a bit. They're still good, however.
** [[Tropers/{{Blazichu}} I'm]] right there with you guys-- with the possible exception of [[RatchetAndClank Tools of Destruction]], Wind Waker is the only game I've played more than a dozen times-- and it still hasn't gotten old. We've already covered gushing about the graphics and storyline, but I have to add that the soundtrack may be the series' best. From the title theme to the epilogue, every track was unique to the island/dungeon it was found in, and suited perfectly to that purpose; this means that, even if you don't know the name of what you're listening to, you're still perfectly capable of identifying the track. On top of that, it was also the debut of [[CaptainObvious WW]] [[GushingAboutCharactersYouLike Link]], who stands apart from all of his counterparts: a BadassAdorable... who also happens to be a KnightTemplarBigBrother, [[TheUnchosenOne and initially had no intention to save the Great Sea]]. His semi-frequent ButtMonkey moments (on top of being [[CrowningMomentOfFunny hilarious]]) just make his [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome awesome moments]] even better. The very best part: his method of dealing with [[spoiler: Ganondorf]]. Unprecedented in a Zelda game, and only attempted once since.
* If there's one Zelda game that needs more love, it's [[PhantomHourglass The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass]]. This game just doesn't seem to have any fans, even compared to Zelda II-- or, dare I say, the CD-i games--, which is ridiculous; I finally got around to finishing it after playing off and on for the past few years because I kept getting distracted, and I just love everything about it. Linebeck is one of my favorite characters in the whole series, the bosses feel new and refreshing (especially Eox, holy shit), and even the Temple of the Ocean King... Never in my life have I seen something ''so hated'' that i just can't disagree with more; it's like Metal Gear Solid had a baby with Metroid/later Castlevania and left it on a Zelda game's doorstep. The controls are spot on, the items are great and have new creative uses, and the whole experience was just grand. It's definitely one of my favorite games in the series.
** Yes! I agree 100%. I absolutely LOVED Phantom Hourglass, and it seems to get a lot of unwarranted hate. Linebeck is one of the greatest characters in the series! And it bothers me to no end that everyone complained about PH when it came out, but all seemed to praise Spirit Tracks...which, to me, felt like a cheap rehash of PH.
* TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast. The mythic awesomeness of that incarnation of Hyrule really paved the way for the 3D wonders to come. From the very beginning, when Link is awakened by a psychic plea from the titular heroine, to the claiming of the [[SwordOfPlotAdvancement Master Sword]], to the rescue of said heroine, to the final showdown with the [[LargeHam Pig of Evil]] himself, it's all fantastic. And then there's all the smaller moments: the ShipTease between Link and Zelda, the poignant moments at the end of certain sidequests (you remember how you got the flute, right?), the pwnage of Blind when you outwit him...this was epic storytelling back when consoles were still struggling with storytelling at all. And of course, the gameplay is still unique and well-done. Overhead 2-D gaming was pretty much all shooters and turn-based RPG adventures...and Zelda. The formula was attempted by a few gutsy developers, but on one ever really managed to capture the magic. And this troper doesn't have the nostalgia filter on -- I first played LTTP on VirtualConsole fifteen years after the game was first released. Even after the rightly-beloved Ocarina, there are fans who still believe that Link to the Past is still the best Zelda ever. I may not be one of them, but it's definitely one of the best ''games'' ever, period.
* This troper finished ''[[TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' this morning, and this game made him clamoring for MOAR! The romantic dynamic between Link and Zelda is so good that an almost-claustrophobic feeling creeps up when the game ends, when you know logically there can't be any more story and, thus, more of the [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming heartwarming]] interactions that follow beyond well-placed implication.
* Pokémon. This troper did a quick calculation and found there's about 14,357,588,953,446,649 potential party combinations for a playthrough of Pokémon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum, or just for late/end game, if you've got another cart to trade between. And that's almost definitely an underestimate too...
** Ah, yes! I remember the serene joy of playing ''Pokémon Gold''...riding around on my bike, wasting money on Repels, catching Ho-Oh, beating the Elite Four...sadly, ''Pokemon Gold and Silver'' cartridges have an issue with the clock system that eventually [[LostForever wipes your game...]]
*** And that, my friend, is what the wonderful device known as a Mega Memory Card is for.
*** [[VideoGameRemake Or the HeartGold/SoulSilver remakes for the DS.]] {{Squee}}!
*** The death of my Crystal version signalled the end of my [[OneManArmy Thunderpunching Typhlosion]] and [[AudibleGleam purple Quagsire]]. But they live on through [=HeartGold=] and emulators! The series that convinced me to start using {{ROM}}s is instant win!
** On that note: [[PokemonMysteryDungeon Explorers of Time and Darkness]]. You have to love an [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar E-rated game]] that winds up on the HighOctaneNightmareFuel article, and also anything that can make you cry like a kindergartener even as you mutter, [[LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt "Like you were really going to do it."]]
*** And the story is pretty deep for Pokémon, since most of the main series games tend not to be plot-driven. The Mystery Dungeon spinoffs also tend to be more difficult than main series games, especially in post-credits dungeons, though it's usually not so hard that you want to tear your hair out in frustration. Plus, it's so much fun to actually ''be'' a Pokémon. And you can't tell me you've played ''Time and Darkness'' and weren't moved by any of the events in Chapter 20.
*** ''Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky'' has got to be one of the most beautiful and moving games of this generation. There's just... something about it; no matter how corny it gets, no matter how awkward the translation is at points, it ''shines''. With tears and sunrises, it shines. We need more truly family-friendly games like ''Explorers'' - games that both kids and adults can enjoy, games that aren't afraid to be cute, scary, sad, and triumphant all in one package.
*** Agreed. [[{{@/Arcadiarika}} I]] love the main series Pokémon games, but ''Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky'' has a little something that sets it above the rest. It's like reading a good book: you can't put it down no matter how long you've been playing/reading it. And I certainly can't forget Guildmaster Wigglytuff's words about existing near the end, and ''[[TearJerker this was the very first game that made me cry in the first ending!]]''
** I likes me the Battle Factory. Renting some awesome, random Pokémon, making the best of the hand you've been dealt. And then I get sad because I can't keep them all. But I know they are in good care. The Factory staff seem nice and competent. Oooh, I want to work at the Battle Factory! So much!
** "Right, all boys leave home some day..." That day was over 10 years ago. In the time I've poured into the Pokémon games, I could have built the Great Wall of China out of straw. Twice. This game is almost my entire childhood. And those seven words still survive today to remind us Pokémon fans of our past and our mission to enjoy the moments in which we "Gotta catch 'em all", and to never forget our lifelong friends. No matter how many times we start a new game, no matter how many additional games get made, it will never be the same, not the same as the very first time we played. Back then, every kid played Pokémon, everyone's ambition was To Be A Master. Pokémon music was the soundtrack to our very childhood. It makes me miserable that, for the people who call ''Diamond and Pearl'' their first Pokémon games, they just don't get it. To some of us, this is more than a game. It is a wonderful moral, memory, and a beautiful dream filled with the colors of Red, Blue, and Yellow.
** What Barry (your rival) says in D/P/Pt really gets to me. "There's no end to Pokémon! That's what I'm saying!" He's right. No matter how old the series gets, I will play every game. No matter how many new Pokemon are made, I will love each and every one of them. No matter how "lame" people think Pokémon is, I will shove them into the infernos of their hatred and keep playing. Been playing since 1998, and have no plans on putting a halt on my love for Pokemon, be they 8-bit or in 3D.
** I can understand why people would dislike Ruby and Sapphire versions, but as the games that made the biggest jump in improvements to the series, they deserve a mention. So many unique mechanics were added such as growing and watering berries, special obstacles that can only be crossed with a bike, and of course double battles. This troper still carries the Swampert he chose in his first run of Sapphire, over seven years ago.
* ''VideoGame/{{Mother 3}}'' is, without a doubt, awesome. But not just the game--full MadeOfWin points must also be given to the folks at Starmen.net, who turned out a majestically professional, funny, touching, fun-to-read fan translation that puts a lot of ''official'' game scripts to shame. But to the game itself. The ActionCommand[=/=]combo system is ''brilliant--''lots of people already press buttons to the tune of the game music, so making it an official part of the game was a fantastic idea. And what music it is! The soundtrack blew this troper out of the water, and it's remarkably high-quality for a GBA soundtrack. The graphics are slick, colorful, and pretty fantastically animated for their simplicity. It's also ''fantastically'' emotional, being laugh-out-loud funny, [[TearJerker tear-jerking]], shocking, and lots of other big words, even in the tiniest moments. The optional scene you see if you [[spoiler: return to Wess with Duster in your party]] moved her more than something that out-of-the-way ought. And it's a nicely paced RPG to boot, and manages to avert the "everyone's levels are diiiifferent!" problem that plagued ''EarthBound'' and--well, pretty much every other RPG ever.
** Much like the troper below, [[{{@/Electrosa}} I]] could not agree any more. VideoGame/MOTHER3 is the best game I have ever come across - it even beat out Ocarina of Time for me. No other game has gone straight to my heart like VideoGame/MOTHER3 has - it's just... amazing, and that's not even a strong enough word. It's really changed how I see the world. Shigesato Itoi, you are a god.
** [[@/LKArtillery This Troper]] agrees so much, she doesn't think it's even possible to have any further feelings of agreement. This game is a [[spoiler:''fucking'']] masterpiece. Strange, funny and heartrending, indeed. I smiled, I teared up, I gasped, I laughed, I was awed, I felt determined, I felt odd, I yelled, I danced, I felt nostalgia, I despaired, I cried sissy tears, and finally, I felt resolve. In that order. There's so much to this game... While EarthBound was one of the greatest old-school games, Mother 3 is the indomitable master of mood whiplash, and it works! It just does! You, reading this now, you need to get the most readily available translation and just ''play it''. [[spoiler: Also, for those of you who have only played Brawl, you will feel like horrible, horrible people for calling Lucas a cry baby. Seriously. He's the Woobie to end all Woobies...]]
* [[{{@/Outsyder0486}} This guy]] has lost around 45 pounds - and counting - with the help of Wii Fit. That's all I need to say.
** [[@/WildKnight My]] mother has gotten her ankle back into working order so well she can do a 5K run. Just last year, she couldn't walk around for extended periods of time without having to wear a brace. What happened in the interim? Wii Fit and its yoga/strength exercises. I'm not making this up, ''Nintendo saved my mother's legs.'' Screw all the FanDumb about how Nintendo's ignoring the "hardcore" gamers, Wii Fit is a damn spectacular piece of software, and I will forever swear by that statement.
* The original ''EarthBound'' had its haters, but it was truly one of the most underrated games of its time. A fun, innovative game, a quirky storyline, and lots and lots of humor.
* The Metroid games are incredible, hands down. Super Metroid is probably one of This Troper's favorite games, even if he never could get past [[ThatOneBoss Ridley]]. That same boss is probably one of my favorite video game monsters of all time, and each game is enjoyable in its own way. I haven't played the Prime games yet, but that will probably change this Christmas...
** This troper has, and is happy to GUSH about them (I'm surprised no one else has yet?). They're beautiful, beautiful games and wonderful to play. The environments are creative, detailed, and very immersive, (oddly, something that seems particular to American games). The gameplay is great and the controls are smooth, especially with Corruption on the Wii. Heck, Corruption, the last in the trilogy, did more than trump the other two. In the first moments of the game you as Samus pulls of many [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome bad ass]] stunts, such as that boss fight against Ridley while falling down that shaft. But one of my favorite things about the series is Dark Samus, who connects all the games together. Her whole story and true origin is never flatly stated in the games but left for you to piece together yourself.
** Despite its flaws, OtherM is this troper's favorite {{Metroid}} game to date. It has beautiful designs, intricate puzzles, intense boss battles, and well-designed characters. And not only does it manage to keep the feel of the original 2-D side scrollers, but it also provides some long-overdue characterization to our favorite {{Badass}} BountyHunter. Sure some parts can be a real pain, like the {{Pixel Hunt}}s and the initial lack of a Varia suit, but I think that other parts, like the dodge mechanic and concentration, more than make up for them.
** This troper considers Metroid Fusion to be one of his two favorites of the series (along with Super). It's quite defining of the alternate style of Metroid. Though the linearity may have turned some people off, I felt a sense of accomplisment when reporting back to Adam with each mission. The environments are all lush despite taking place in a space station. The boss fights were pretty enjoyable, and the atmosphere was still there.
* ''Super Mario Galaxy'' reaches ridiculous levels of awesome. It is everything that was great about ''Super Mario 64'', only ''more so''. I want Red Stars of my very own, and the soundtrack is one long CrowningMusicOfAwesome.
** Seconded. Also, it manages to balance Nintendo Hard and fun all but perfectly. There's a reason every magazine I can think of has given it a perfect score (or the highest score given, anyway).
*** The gameplay is fun and simple, the music is brilliant, the visuals are gorgeous, the challenging parts are indeed challenging, Rosalina and the Lumas were likable, and the bare bones of a storyline was done well. And then came SuperMarioGalaxy2, which is pretty much the first game, but on steroids in all the good aspects of the original. Maybe a bit less story, but still handled in a way that was interesting.
* ''EliteBeatAgents'' is the best game I've ever played in my life! I say a good game is measured by fun, immersion, enjoyement, and...hell, just getting happy emotional responses from the player. That so, this i the best game I've ever played in my life!
** While not that much with me, it's fun as hell, and despite how silly it all is, it's hard not to get wrapped in some parts. I keep choking up playing "You're the Inspiration".
*** Oh man.. I just teared up seeing that level mentioned. It's something special.
*** Ditto, Games shouldn't be able to make me tear up like that!
* ''Starfox 64'' is lightning in a bottle. Especially its voice-acting. Seriously. Every character has like, only 10 lines, but they are ALL memorable enough to become a meme.
* The ''{{Kirby}}'' games are pure awesome from start to finish. The copy abilites, the stories, everything.Even the spinoffs have [[@/DrPepper42 this troper]] coming back for more time and time again. SugarBowl or no, you can't deny the fun Kirby provides. After you see Wham Bam Jewel for the first time, you'll never be saying it's kiddy again. Then we get the two best games I have yet played on the NintendoDS. Kirby Squeak Squad, with the best story ever, involving cake, theives, and treasure, and then Kirby Super Star Ultra, which is Kirby Super Star, [[TheSameButMore but a whole lot more.]]
** ''KirbysEpicYarn'' is a '''masterpiece''' if you're looking for a fun and easy game.
* [[SuperMarioBros SUPAH MARIO BROTHAHS]]!!! It's THE game that started us down the path to awesomeness and a life-changing experience in and of itself!
** ''Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels'' is one of the great video game challenges. It tests your brain about as much as your thumbs, which is impressive for an early Mario game.
** This troper considers Super Mario Bros. 3 to be the greatest game ever created.
** While this troper doesn't consider it as good as Mario 3, Super Mario World is easily one of the best games in the series. It has nice control, nice stages, and neat power-ups. The introduction of Yoshi definitely elevates it, I felt that this Mario expanded the control from the previous games to make it a more enjoyable experience.
** While Super Mario is rare in that the main series has no bad games at all, [[@/DrFurball This Troper]] believes that it doesn't get enough credit for its main character. For someone just starting out in gaming, Mario's cheery, friendly personality is perfect for welcoming someone into the medium. And for those familiar with him, Charles Martinet's voice acting constantly reminds us that Mario's having just as much fun as we are. The greatest gaming character ever.
* Okay, so we've gotten this far, and the only reference to [[TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]] is one comment claiming that it's a rehash of Phantom Hourglass. ''How have we accomplished this?'' Not to knock on PH or anything-- [[Tropers/{{Blazichu}} I'm]] one of the tropers gushing about WW/PH Link, after all-- but even ''I'm'' not willfully blind enough to overlook some of the flaws, and and I definitely fit into that particular branch of FanDumb. Spirit Tracks fixed almost every one of the issues that people had with Phantom Hourglass, like the Temple of the Ocean King-- and did it in a ''very'' troper-friendly, BetterThanABareBulb way. ''Everything'' in the standard Zelda formula is [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] or subverted. Princess get kidnapped? Well, yes [[spoiler: but that doesn't mean she's a useless DistressedDamsel]]. ClothesMakeTheLegend? Yeah, but-- as was the case in Wind Waker-- Link doesn't like them, either, and the logic behind wearing them is completely reasonable. There's more to say, but I have other angles to gush about. Like the music. How can you go wrong with [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iscr5Bx__3c tracks]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArYATx19u0I like]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk_xjIFlfZA these?]]
* SinAndPunishment will always be this Troper's favorite game. Despite the confusing plot and the fact that no one seems to have heard of it, it'll always be on her top ten list. The sequel managed to somehow make the game even better, with more characters, longer gameplay, and a slightly less confusing plot. Everything from the giant monsters to the fast and furious BulletHell gameplay style just makes this Troper squee forever.
* ''VideoGame/MarioKart, dangit''. I can play the Time Trial mode in ''Double Dash'' and ''Super Circuit'' again and again. And then you've got Battle Mode, which is one of the best multiplayer experiences in video gaming.
* Nintendo in general. Screw everyone who says they only make kiddy games. There is no other company that has provides this much consistant quality.
* DonkeyKongCountry. This was the first game this troper seriously got into and is still today one of her favorite game series. Everything about them is awesome. The music, the levels, and just the overall feel of the games makes them super fun and replayable.
** Seconded. The second game was probably [[Tropers/DeathToSquishies my]] favorite game of every SNES title, despite [[NintendoHard its difficulty.]] Remember, you can't have Bramble Blast without having a Blast. The [[AwesomeMusic/DonkeyKongCountry music]] probably trumped most of the ones in the other games, too. And the whole Lost World ordeal really gave you a sense of accomplishment when you finished it. ''Especially'' [[ThatOneLevel Animal Antics]].
** DonkeyKongCountryReturns: Never before have I been blessed with a sidescroller platformer brimming with pure creativity in each level.
** This is probably really silly...but besides these, I also grew up playing Donkey Kong 64. And I absolutely love it!
* Screw [[FanonDisContinuity what supposed 'fans' say]], ''VideoGame/StarFoxAdventures'' is this troper's favorite quest game. Great visuals, a cohesive, complex, yet easy to follow plotline, puzzles that are challenging but not frustrating, developed characters, fabulous worldbuilding, and great voice acting in a series that's not exactly known for it. This troper has played it the whole way through multiple times without getting bored. Plus, ''dinosaurs''!
** [[Tropers/DeathToSquishies This troper]] seconds that and raises ''Assault''. It does get flak for deriving from the formula that 64 set (such as with on-foot missions), but all in all, it is still an awesome title. The orchestrated music really pumps you up, especially Space Battleground, the atmosphere is generally beautiful, such as in the Aparoid Homeworld, and let's face it, it keeps the StuffBlowingUp aspect we've all come to know and love.
** [[Tropers/DemonFiren This one here]] believes VideoGame/StarFox1 and VideoGame/StarFox2 are by far the best in the entire series, mixing nostalgia goodness with [[AwesomeMusic/StarFox a truly stunning soundtrack]]. Add to that the fact they're DarkerAndEdgier than all sequels made up to this point, and you've got something truly lovable.
*** And then there's the Star Fox comics in Magazine/NintendoPower, ''especially'' those revolving around the old games. Who'd thought Nintendo would be GettingCrapPastTheRadar or add some ParentalBonus in there? Not to mention, it turns the games' ExcusePlot into a thoroughly awesome tale, with fitting characters to back it up ([[BadassDamsel FARAAAAA]] [[LeeroyJenkins PHOOOEEENIIIIX!]]
* KaizoMarioWorld is a pretty decent game. Sure, it has enough floating munchers to give SMW Central cancer, but it's fun to play, gives you something to do and is a great challenge.
* ''{{Pikmin}}'' and its sequel. Does this even need an explanation?
** It doesn't, but I'm going to give one anyway. There's plenty of games with depth, but none with this much ''surprising'' depth. Not just in the gameplay (it gets pretty damn tactical at times), but also in the characters. Every Pikmin death crushes your soul, I assure you.
* I love everything about AdvanceWars Days of Ruin. First of all, it had the balls to deconstruct a trope it ''pretty much created''. Second of all, it is possibly the best subversion of CerebusSyndrome I've ever seen. It manages to have a post-apocalyptic setting that manages to have both sad, touching scenes and laugh-out-loud silliness ("Sweet corn casserole! They've got freakin' ROCKETS, man!!") without feeling forced. Not to mention completely revamping the combat, making air combat and naval combat a lot more interesting and fun, and having a lot of variety in the ground combat instead of just having 1,564 different kinds of tanks.
** AdvanceWars Black Hole Rising deserves just as much recognition. Between the excellent [[BestLevelEver single best final CO]], the hilarious dialouge, entertaining characters, and [[AwesomeMusic horribly addicting music]], the game never gets old. It's currently the first game I'd like to see an updated release of, just to include Days of Ruin's experience system, naval combat, and map system...but they're all just minor points. Even just a graphics update would make it amazing.
* [[{{Chibi-Robo}} Chibi-Robo]] is an overlooked gem for the [[{{Game Cube}} Gamecube]] which provides a quirky artstyle and a fun world to explore, definately worth it if you happen to own a Gamecube or Wii.
* ''VideoGame/PunchOut''. NintendoHard as it might be, it's nonetheless a very fun and addictive franchise. The Wii version gets special mention for its novel modes, in particular Title Defense and Exhibition, which increase the replay value considerably.
** I was blown away from the get-go by the incredible update that the Wii version brought to the Punch-Out franchise, one that had previously never held my attention. The outstanding character (re)designs and voicework, the honest difficulty in puzzling out every match - and, yeah, the completely unabashed ethnic stereotypes. I'm so glad they didn't shy away from the ever-greater threat of ValuesDissonance and instead polished those embarrassing old concepts into an entertaining product.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Square-Enix]]
* ''KingdomHearts'' has its flaws. I won't deny that- heck, even I'm getting frustrated with SquareEnix for not being consistent with the canon. But the series has still been fun to play for me, and even though the retcons get irritating and the Nobodies needed to be explained better I even enjoy the story. It's Disney without being overly kiddy (definitely a dose of sugar and light, yes, but not overly dumbed down or TastesLikeDiabetes) and that makes my inner child {{squee}}.
** ... Plus, Riku was one of my first [[PerverseSexualLust fictional crushes.]] So that's got to count for something.
** The thing is, Disney's brand of feel-good ''isn't'' the TastesLikeDiabetes kind, really, and the fact that Mickey Mouse works so well as a BadassLongcoat proves it. The ''KingdomHearts'' franchise reminds us all of why we like Disney movies in the first place.
*** Yeah, I know. Bad wording on my part-- what I meant was more of a TakeThat to the people who expected it to be kid stuff all the way through because Disney was involved.
**** Fair enough. It still bears repeating: Disney =/= TastesLikeDiabetes. [[HighSchoolMusical Most of the time.]]
**** As an old-school Disney fan, I was delighted by the care and research they did for the old Disney films. Some of them were genuine NightmareFuel (the whale from Pinocchio, Malenificent and the Queen from Snow White), and the bittersweet aspects were played for all they were worth. You could tell they genuinely loved these films, and wanted a new generation to see them with fresh eyes. The last thing I expected was for "Final Fantasy meets Disney" to actually work, but it does and beautifully.
** I also love the ''KingdomHearts'' games. The new games coming out might be iffy (due to Square messing up canon) but the first ''KingdomHearts'', ''ChainOfMemories'', and ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' are pretty much the most amazing games ever made! They combine the Disney of my childhood with stuff I'm into now almost perfectly. Major awesomeness!
*** Birth By Sleep! I'm happy that you're becoming the new [[ConfirmationBias sacred cow]] of the series and [[KanyeWest imma let you finish]], but for this troper, Chain of Memories was the best KH game of all time!
**** Nah, the original KingdomHearts will always be the best KH game of all time for me. Everyone knows that the FirstInstallmentWins.
** Kingdom Hearts was the very first video game, or the first ''thing'' I ever really got into. My first taste in fandom, my first cosplay, my first... well, let's just say it made me into the huge geek I am today. Everything about it provokes an emotion in me; I can't not smile when I hear ''Simple and Clean'' or cry when I think of "It looks like my summer vacation... is over..." Replaying the games, I won't deny they're flawed, and of course I'm frustrated by the inconsistencies, and the NoExportForYou stuff, but... Regardless! Just typing this has cheered me up from that stupid Darth Wiki!
** I just loved the magic-based puzzles in Kingdom Hearts(the first), though many were optional they were fun to find and only required common sense to complete(like using thunder on the broken wire in Traverse Town, or casting stop on the Big Ben to halt Phantom's doom spell). And magic was so well detailed in a subtle way, like using it on the fireplace in Cid's accessory shop(while the fireplace didn't actually affect anything and wasn't even a puzzle it could still be lit by fire or put out by blizzard and the smoke stack would either release smoke when you went outside or not accordingly).
** The Organization is one of the greatest band of antagonists of all time. Despite not having a lot of screen time development or individuality, their personalities still come across. They have diverse & interesting fighting styles, & battling them is as much a blade-crossing frenzy as it is a puzzle. Marluxia's plot also proves that they aren't the cliche group that's united in wringing their gloved hands in concern of your every move. Plus, the series even makes you question just how [[AntiVillain evil or heartless]] they really are.
*** Which unfortunatley leads to DracoInLeatherPants for the FanDumb. Ignore that and yeah, they're bloody awesome.
** The music is beautiful, the characters are amazing, the story is both tragic and uplifting... It sounds weird to say it but I have a huge passion for Kingdom Hearts, and it makes me more emotional than any other game. I love everyone in it and almost everything about it. And I admit, I fangirl some of the characters too. Sometimes I wish that all the characters could have happy endings...
*** YMMV but...BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor there....
** Playing Kingdom Hearts was like my childhood manifested into one video game. I have to thank Kingdom Hearts for not only reviving my love for Disney, but also for getting me through some tough times when I first played it. The first game was pure, good-hearted magic and the second game was an epic adventure in a world I didn't want to leave. It's amazing how the game expanded from a simple adventure game to a vast universe of its own without losing much of the charm that made it popular to begin with. This isn't my favorite video game series for nothing!
** I'm not exaggerating when I say that Kingdom Hearts may be the one thing that helped me the most develop as a person. Before I left for college, I was in a serious funk, not knowing really who I was. My dorm's lounge had a PS2 bolted to the floor, and after watching some friends play [=KH2=], I thought I'd give it a try. I ''LOVED'' it. By the time I had finished, I was no longer ashamed of my love of Disney or video games. Before, I was very "closeted" about my hobbies and my nostalgia, but playing [=KH2=], with my friends watching and cheering me on, made me much more open about them and ProudToBeAGeek.
* The opera scene (the one where Celes sings) in ''FinalFantasyVI'' is quite possibly the most beautiful, most seat-of-your-pants exciting sequence in all of Final Fantasy. You may call this troper a pussy for saying this, but I cry tears of joy every time I play it...
** ''FinalFantasyVI'' is one of the most beautiful games ever made. And I'm not disowning any other games, I'm just saying that people who think the FF series is about girly men with huge swords should try this one.
** [[@/RiL This troper]] has yet to play a video game that can match the power, depth, and sheer beauty of FFVI. The ending almost brought me to tears. (ManlyTears, even, and I'm a girl!)
** On the other side of the mood spectrum, ''FinalFantasyVI'' has the greatest villain hands-down in the entire series. Kefka's over-the-top flamboyancy and the fact he stands in stark contrast and even [[{{LampshadeHanging}} lampshades]] the heroes' angst and posession of ThePowerofFriendship stand out in this series. Sure, he's an evil, AxCrazy homicidal maniac, but you can't fault a guy for having astronomical job satisfaction, can you?
*** Especially not when he has possibly the best final boss music in the ''FinalFantasy'' series.
** It wasn't the opera scene that got me... it was the Falcon rising out of the sea in the World of Ruin. I was a complete RPG virgin when I played this game, and so I was ''completely'' not expecting all the events that unfolded around the halfway point - the ColonyDrop, the world ending, the Light of Judgment, the complete helplessness of having all but one character flung to the far corners of the planet. After all that, to finally achieve the first true moment of hope and triumph, seriously made me cry. It's been more than 10 years since I played this game, and I '''still''' get goosebumps when I hear the opening chords of "Searching for Friends."
** This is the game that proved to [[{{@/Fishsicles}} this troper]] that video games are an art form. I hold every other RPG to ''FinalFantasyVI'''s standards, and find myself frequently disappointed. It was not in the awkward graphics era of ''FinalFantasyVII'' or ''FinalFantasyVIII'', had some of the best characters in [[FinalFantasy the series]], and [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome Terra's Theme]], the "[[OverclockedRemix Freebird of video game music]]". Everyone on the planet should play this game, (and then listen to [[OverclockedRemix Terra In Black]], for extra credit) and try to say, with complete sincerity, that it is not awesome. This is quite possibly one of the greatest video games of all time, and one of the defining points of the genre. [[SophisticatedAsHell I AM NOT FUCKING AROUND WHEN I SAY THAT]].
** [[{{Tropers/Serperoth}} This troper]] is a fan of ''FinalFantasyIX''. The entire game is simply STAGGERING. Gameplay that combines simplicity with depth, breathtaking visuals, a story which is comparable to a Shakespearean tragedy (I'm not exaggerating much), and some of the most relateable characters in video game history., not to mention all the in-jokes, large or small ("No cloud, no squall shall hinder us", Doga and Une, Bobby Corwen...). Kefka is still my favourite villain, but you have to give credit to someone who can appear threatening while wearing a thong, a bra-like creation and a cape. Further Final Fantasy fans, feel free to fortify my favouritism. I'll just add something about the music. IT'S THE BEST MUSIC FROM A VIDEO GAME. Each and every song both fits the scene it plays in (You're Not Alone, Freya's Theme), and is FANTASTIC to listen to. My father, no "deaf, dumb and blind kid", heard that. It remains to this day the only good thing about video games he'll concede to. Nobuo Uematsu toured Europe to gain inspiration for the soundtrack, and only now is he recovering from having overworked himself. 'Nuff said (although feel free to elaborate, of course).
*** Also, Memoria is the coolest final dungeon in the series, hands-down. The sparse, but numerous cutscenes make you feel like the story is really coming to a head, and the music is easily one of the top five tracks in the series.
* ''ChronoTrigger'' is worth buying again on the DS. So very very worth it.
** Square-Enix has just been bringing the VideoGameRemake love lately. ''FinalFantasyIV'' just rocks the house in it's new form. They actually ''made it better''. I'd have sworn it couldn't be done. Do ''VI''! ''[[{{Keet}} Do VI!]]'' And for the love of all that's reasonable, do ''VII''. It's a license to print money, for pete's sake!
** This troper wouldn't neccesarilly ''mind'' a VII remake...but ALSO for the love of all that's reasonable, ''please'' don't retcon stuff or tie it into the [[FanNickname complication]], Square!
*** So they should do a remake, but should ignore everything that came after it even though most people would familiar with those games and movies and would be expecting them to appear...makes sense! This troper actually liked most of the Compilation...
*** Can't let anyone forget VIII and IX, now!
**** IX? In HD? My my that sounds like the best idea I've heard all day. The reasons are obvious (at the very least: [[EvenTheGuysWantHim Zidane]] in HD), I just have one thing to ask. DON'T CHANGE ANYTHING. AT ALL. Except maybe hire the leading orchestras of the world to co-operate in re-recording the score. The game is brilliant as it is, but an enhanced "perspective" so to speak would bring it over the top and unto video game theosis.
** ''ChronoTrigger'' is a case where I don't know where to ''start'' gushing. The fact that it's a time travel story that [[FridgeBrilliance mostly stands up to logic]], the tragic aftershocks of what happened in Zeal kingdom, the music that's [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome heartbreaking and badass and gorgeous]] as the scenes demand, the friggin' awesome combo attacks, the way every time period had a unique and striking color palette...
** One of the absolute greatest [=RPG=]s ever made.
*** Hate me for saying this if you like, but FanFic/CrimsonEchoes is full of awesome too.
* ''DragonQuest'' is popular in Japan for good reason. The games have great music, unique graphics and most importantly, the ability to stick to tradition without going stale in the gameplay department.
** DragonQuestV is by far one of the greatest games of all time. Despite being released in 1992, the game's story has aged ''amazingly'' well and the characters are so endearing. Unlike most silent protagonists, you actually FEEL like you're the main character and what makes the story so amazing is because its not an epic quest to go killing monsters, but a more personal one. It lacks the recognition and fame it truly deserves. Hell, it's Yuji Hori's favorite Dragon Quest!
* ''FinalFantasyV Advance''. [[http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i212/Kerrah_photos/V92.jpg Best]], [[http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i212/Kerrah_photos/P.jpg translation]], [[http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i212/Kerrah_photos/D.jpg ever]].
** Bartz + pirates = [[CrowningMomentOfFunny epic, epic hilarity]].
* ''SecretOfMana'' has been touted by numerous players and reviewers as a pinnacle in gaming design - the ring system, the well-developed characters and motivations, the ''non-silent'' protagonist... hell, it's one of very few ''multi-player'' RPG's to come out pre-MMO! Someone else take over, since there's ''far'' too much greatness to mention about this game in one sitting!
** BEST RPG EVER!!!
** The sequel ''SeikenDensetsu3'' is one of the more unfortunate examples of NoExportForYou. This game has excellent replay value. There are six heroes to choose from and three possible final dungeons and {{Big Bad}}s depending on your choice, and each story is well presented. It has twenty-four final classes and makes them all viable by averting the AntidoteEffect. The music is also great, with a South Asian flair on several tracks.
* ''FinalFantasyIX''. If this game was a woman, I'd make sweet love to her. If it was a man, I'd tearfully tell him what an inspiration he has been to me ever since I got to know him. If it was a child, I'd adopt it and treat it with all the love it deserves, and more. But since it's a videogame, I'll stay content with calling it the best part of the series and the best RPG ever made by anyone, with one of the most touching plots and some of the most sympathetic protagonists. ''Dreadfully underrated'' does not even begin to describe it.
** Agreed! it remains this one's favourite ff game, for it had the most moments that moved me to tears. The music is also this one's favourite of the whole series, what with its melancholy medieval setting and all. AND Vivi need more love <3
** Agreed as well. Even if the characters, story, setting and gameplay don't do it for you, if you don't like the music you have no SOUL. And Nobuo Uematsu is coming back for XIV, which is going to be MMO... Ho boy...
** This game was my first for a lot of things. My first Final Fantasy game, which made me absolutely in love with the entire series (and of course, it's still my favorite). The first RPG that I beat by myself. The first game where I realized that magic users are amazing. The first game where I was utterly in awe at the cutscenes. The first game that I played that had a real, deep, heartwrenching story. And the first game to make me want to be a better piano player. When I discovered the sheet music online for free, I instantly printed out Melodies of Life and tried to learn it. I wasn't very good at the piano, but that opened up an entirely new genre of music for me to learn. Around 8 years later, and I'm a damn good piano player, with video game songs making up a large portion of my collection (in fact, I'm learning Eternal Harvest from FFIX right now, and it's tough but incredibly fun to play). This game impacted my life much more than I thought any game ever could.
* No mention of VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou? You guys are [[MemeticMutation so zetta slow.]]
** This troper loves TWEWY for many reasons (its characters and capacity for self-parody, etc.) but particularly gushes over its style: from the music to the stat-boosting items to armor to the cellphone-menu to monster designs to the pins as weapons to the character designs, everything worked together to form one seamless urban fantasy aesthetic. It's a thing of beauty.
** Insert shriek of glee here. Definitely one of the most thought provoking games I've ever played, and one of the first games where I actually ''cared'' about the characters. Even if Neku was a bit of an emo prick. Plus, some of the most gloriously human villains I've seen in a video game in a good long while. Too bad there's never going to be a sequel. We'll miss you, Minamimoto.
** TWEWY is the only game this troper has ever pulled a 100% percent completion on. He easily spent 100+ hours on that game, more than he did on KOTOR, [=KOTOR2=], FFIV or Chrono Trigger. The only one he might have spent more time with is Fallout.
** Another 100%-er? Right on! TWEWY is easily one of the best games I've played or will play. It has the quality you expect from a big name like Square, but it pushed boundaries and is one of the few games in the current market that was ''new'' and ''fun'' and wasn't just another FPS or a rehash of an old success. It has high production values, an excellent soundtrack and voice cast, a distinctive art style, clean animation. A lot of heart and soul went into this game, and it comes out in the characters and in the atmosphere. Not to mention the revolutionary battle system and the one big enormous lampshade that is the ''AU bonus chapter''. There's nothing I don't love about this game.
* FinalFantasyVII. Look past the rabid FanDumb and [[PanderingToTheBase the compilation]], people. This masterpiece of a game well earned it's immense success and popularity! It's got a deep story, well developed characters, outstanding music, great gameplay, etc. It's simply got everything. ''Everything!''
** While I have no argument there, even the Compilation can be great. CrisisCore has a story almost as deep as the original, and it feels like the stage is being set for a rather epic story that can diverge from the original, include elements from it, and still turn out okay.
*** Heavily disagree on the story in CrisisCore being on the originals' level (it could've done without the Project G/cloning stuff) but the gameplay is excellent. Fighting enemies in CrisisCore is even more fun than fighting in the original!
**** Say what you will about the Compilation, the ending to Crisis Core is one of the best moments in the whole series. It was playing Crisis Core that introduced me to he world of Final Fantasy VII and got me interested in playing the original game.
** Furthermore, Sephiroth. Greatest. Villain. Ever. Say what you want about him, he absolutely ruined Cloud. You know you're a great villain when you can completely break the hero. He was regularly screwing over the protagonists, tossing them about like rag dolls, & manipulating them for no reason other than the fact that he could. He also had the first well-explored backstory of any main villain in the series. His plan would have worked if he hadn't been so busy messing with the heroes, & ''Advent Children'' had him soar to further MagnificentBastard levels by conquering death & ressurrecting himself via Geostigma & mere fragments of Jenova. He was a rather unique mix of CosmicHorror, SerialKiller, FallenHero, & some parallels have even been drawn between him & Satan. Every piece of this character is extremely thought out. His name, his themes, his demeanor, everything.
** Off the subject of Sephiroth, I found the materia system to be absolutely brilliant. Abilities weren't Gotta Learn 'Em All, the focus was on setting up strategic combinations that would also keep your stats in balance. The way it was reintegrated into Crisis Core was just beautiful. You CAN go through the whole game just button mashing, but if you want to get through the missions, you'll have to try a variety of materia & stat-balancing.
** Dirge of Cerberus is another "say what you want about it" moment. I normally hate shooters, but found myself thoroughly enjoying the gameplay. While the story was the weakest in the Compilation, it was still decent, & every single Tsviet is a derivation of Vincent's characteristics. It also added a nice touch to the mysticism of the Lifestream, making it almost analogous to the human body. Now light was good & dark was evil--but those were rather arbitrary distinctions, & the forces could be manipulated by the other characters, as they were all parts of nature.
* ''FinalFantasyVIII'' will be loved by me until I die and [[TheSpoonyExperiment Spoony]] and the rest of the {{Hatedom}} can take a hike. I love the love story, I love the non-traditional concept of a main character (he's not "I'll just go and save the world now, tee-hee!"), and I love the character-driven story. I love the Junction system too.
** I am with you all the way!! See this one was my first FF and still remains my alltime favorite, I loved everything about it--over-the-top special attacks, magic and breathtaking summon spells, the bittersweet story, the characters, the whole enchilada. I spent YEARS trying to get HundredPercentCompletion on everything (though the whole pocketstation thing made that near impossible). I hate to say like this but...the Spoony One can suck it. This game is fantabulous.
** Same here, that was honestly the first time I was involved in a story and it inspired me to be a creator and write my own stories. Seriously it is my dream to become famous someday for a story I will write and when they hand me an award for Game of the Year, the only words in my speech will be FUCK SPOONY.
* ''FinalFantasyX''. This was my third favorite Final Fantasy. The cast was one of the best, & you could really see how they developed. Wakka got over his hatred of the Al Bhed, Yuna learned that self-sacrafice wasn't the only way to help Spira, etc. Plus, there's Auron. Need I say more? And while Seymour wasn't my favorite antagonist, he had understandable motives, & a well-covered past. He managed to be both menacing & sympathetic. Lastly, there's Sin, who became my favorite non-human enemy in the series. This thing could kill you. It could create monsters that killed you. Monsters would follow it around to kill you. It emitted a substance that messed with your head. It could even fly with gravity magic, & recover within a few minutes of having its arms chopped off, which were the source of its entire locomotion.
** Or how about the battle system? A relatively new spin on turn-based [=RPG=]s, the battle system of FFX allowed you to focus on strategies, and the box that shows the turn order allows you to have some insight as to the consequence of the next action you will take and what you should do with your current turn.. Boss turn coming up? Let's bust out those protective spells. A decisive character's turn coming up? Time to buff him up. A summon's overdrive resulting in massive turn delay? Okay, better not do that. I've played through five different FF games, and FFX's battle system remains as my favorite.
** Ya'll got the characters and the battle system, but what about the soundtrack? It is easily one of the most gorgeous soundtracks for anything I've ever heard; I seriously never get tired of listening to it. Each track amplifies the beauty of the environment of Spira. That's another thing!! The world of Spira was just incredible, from its tiny seaside villages to its scorching desert island to its lonely, snowy mountain that shrouds a city dead for 1000 years. Everywhere you went was like an orgasm for your eyes. Also, the story was amazing. It weaves in so many different things so well and integrates action, romance, suspense, and surprise twists into a nice little package. And the story and the characters in it really make you feel what they're going through. I've never played a game that made me feel so angry or happy or sad or ANY emotion. Easily my favorite Final Fantasy, AND GAME, of all time.
* ''FinalFantasyTactics'' didn't have the best cast ever. However, it had an amazing story of medieval political intrigue, an ominous group of antagonists in the form of the demonic Lucavi, & just a breathtaking battle system, that relied upon strategic moves in 3D environments. "Extreme Chess," as I like to call it. Furthermore, the way it was set up eliminated any possibility of having a general strategy, reliable for every battle, until you got Orlandeu.
* ''{{Terranigma}}'' is a truly amazing game that sadly gets far too little recognition. The story is great, the gameplay is enormously fun, the music is excellent, and it has possibly the most touching BittersweetEnding of any game out there.
* FinalFantasyX2, I don't care if you call it {{Fanservice}} incarnate or CharacterDerailment, I truly deeply love this game! It has it all. [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome And]] I [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome mean]] [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming all!]]
* ChronoCross is definitely one of my favorite games and the shining example of EvenBetterSequel in video gaming, ChronoTrigger. First off, the battle system is unique from anything I've seen in any other RPG while still being fun in its own right. The characters manage to be mostly unique and interesting (though, I am a sucker for RPG with [[FinalFantasyTactics large casts]] [[{{Suikoden}} of characters]]). The backgrounds are, in a word, stunning and the art style is one of my favorites in a game. The music, if anything, is even better than Chrono Trigger's. I literally cried when I first heard [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome The Stars, Wind, and Waves]]. In fact, the ''only'' major criticism for this game I can think of is the plot, which is endlessly confusing and has some pretty big plot holes. Still, Chrono Cross remains one of my favorites.
* Haters gonna hate, but I ''loved'' FinalFantasyXIII. The music (not Uematsu, but still good), the story (confusing but epic once you get into it), the character development--holy hell, the ''character development''--the top notch voice acting, the absolutely obscenely gorgeous graphics, the fun and challenging battle system... Heck, I even think the linearity is a great change. The main characters feel like an actual [[{{Nakama}} family]] for once, something the FinalFantasy games consistently have difficulty achieving. The ending makes me cry every time I watch it.
** I'll admit that I hadn't played a ''FinalFantasy'' since [[FinalFantasyIV IV]], but I too loved [[FinalFantasyXIII XIII]]. Especially the soundtrack. Oh good gods, the soundtrack... And the characters! And, and, the plot! ''And the soundtrack!'' * flails arms*
** Late to the party, obviously, and in spite of all the flaws that I can see and the fact I'll probably get stoned to death, {{Final Fantasy XIII}} is my first true love. It is not the first great game I've played, but I have a completely irrational love and attachment to the game. I love the world, the music (THE MUSIC! To me, Masashi Hamauzu is more than a worthy successor to Uematsu), the characters (even if there was potential for more development) so much. Special mention to the game mechanics - I love the Paradigm Shift system, especially all the names they give to your paradigms, even the roles themselves. Even if and when a better game comes by, it will be fondly rememberd as my first love, and nothing will ever change that.
** Oh yes the battle system was amazing once I got used to it, and what is a first for me I loved all the main characters (even if Hope did annoy me at first) and it's just so incredibly beautiful to look at. Screw what the haters say about it's linearity, I thought it was incredible. Edited to add: I have hesitated in making my opinion because it is pure FlameBait, but: FFXIII has the best FF soundtrack ever. The incredible quality and sheer DIVERSITY of the music is amazing. There is dance/J-pop {{EarWorm}}s, beautiful orchestral music, interesting and layered electronica, awesome Jazz to go with EnsembleDarkhorse Sazh and the best arrangement of the the chocobo theme ever in Pulse de Chocobo. There's even rock and BLUES. Plus the masterful use of the piano as Masashi Hamauzu's signature instrument, it's not just good VGM, it's just plain good, nuanced music that sounds all the more amazing on your stereo system. Hats off, Mr. Hamauzu.
** Story-Wise, I was really skeptic about ''XIII''. ''Reaaaaally'' skeptic. Since the series shifted from the medieval, steam punk settings for futuristic ones, I thought the overall plots had taken a dire hit. I was very surprised when I realized that... I ''really'' liked ''XIII'''s story! Sure, it isn't the ''best'' plot of the series, and it takes some cues from past games and all, but it is well done. For example, after [[spoiler: the first confrontation with Barthandelus]], where the BigBad explains lots of things to the main heroes that supposedly he ''shouldn't'' be telling then, I was ready to cast the "bad story telling" stone when, gasp! [[LampshadeHanging The characters themselves addressed this fact]]! And those who played the game will understand the reasoning behind this. In any case, I support the above tropers' opinion wholeheartedly.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Valve]]
* I love the fact that things taken for [[AcceptableBreaksFromReality granted]] in most video games have a plausible reason in ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'', even if it isn't explicitly mentioned. Tutorial? You're there to test the gun. Respawning? [=GlaDos=] has your [[BrainUploading brain scanned]]. [[FollowThePlottedLine Following the plotted line]]? [[http://www.game-ism.com/2008/04/13/the-clone-the-cube-and-the-construct-part-1/ [=GlaDos=] wants you to kill her]]. It's a [[MindScrew Mind Heavy Petting]], and I like it.
** This. A million times this. Er... Except maybe the bit about her wanting to die, but yes. Anyway, ''Portal'' is made of awesome and win and ''creativity''- and the last part isn't something you see so much in the games industry anymore.
*** One of the best things about Portal is that it isn't afraid to be a 4 hour game. There's so much padding and repetition in modern games because a game can get crucified for being less than 20 hours long. Portal doesn't overstay its welcome. It does everything it set out to do and departs with one of the best video game songs in recent memory.
*** Oh, and [=GlaDoS=]. Just...[=GlaDoS=]. Oh, look at us still talking when there's science to do...
** After FinalFantasyVI, VideoGame/{{Portal}} comes as [[{{@/Fishsicles}} this troper]]'s number two favorite game. The gameplay is intuitive but not overly simplified. The core mechanic is brilliantly done, a highly original idea not diluted with overuse; the introduction of new mechanics, such as the cubes and energy balls, seems perfectly integrated with the central idea. To top off the excellent puzzle-platforming was amazingly-written dialogue, rife with [[BlackHumor amusing and yet disturbing]] tirades from the resident [[AIIsACrapshoot evil computer]], [=GlaDoS=]. Sorry, [[TwoThousandOne HAL 9000]], you are no longer my favorite evil computer.
* The work of absolute, inarguable genius that is the ''VideoGame/{{Half-Life}}'' series.
** Oh, I agree so much! VideoGame/{{Half-Life 2}} was the first full-length "real" video game I ever played (VideoGame/{{Portal}} was the first, but it's much shorter) and... it was absolutely awesome. The entire Half-Life series is amazing, but [=HL2=] is hands-down my favorite. There's an {{Adorkable}} old scientist with big glasses and a pet headcrab, a giant robot "dog", the two most fun weapons ever (the gravity gun... and the ''blue'' gravity gun! The crossbow and pheropods should be on the list too...), an incredibly fun airboat, and one of the best female video game characters of all time. Seriously, Alyx Vance is my hero. She's smart, funny, can kick your butt, and looks good while doing all of the above. Is there really any criticism that can be made of this game?
* VideoGame/{{Half-Life|1}}. The first one on PC is one of the best first person shooters ever made! It was this troper's first FPS, and at 5 years old, no less! It had some of the best levels, best enemies([[GoddamnedBats Stupid headcrabs...]]), enviroments, music, sound effects (Yes. Those brilliant beeps when you scroll over those brilliant shades of orange are awesome as well.), and my god. [[MemeticBadass GORDON FREEMAN!]] One of the most famous {{HeroicMime}}s ever! Oh yeah, he's also a [[BadassNormal PHYSICIST.]] And the second game... this troper found a PS2 port of Half Life 1 and bought it and played it, and it is STILL one of the best first person shooters ever made IMHO! Except for [[ThatOneLevel Blast Pit...]]
* ''Team Fortress 2'' has to be one of my favorite games ever. To me, it's the best multiplayer [[FirstPersonShooter FPS]] I've ever played in my life, and especially the best class-based shooter. Each class is so lovingly designed to fit its role. Hell, it's almost like you can play a different kind of game just by changing your class or your loadout. You can sneak around as a spy, build strategic defenses as an engineer, ambush as a pyro, set traps as a demoman, you name it. The development team is awesome at working out bugs and adding new content without destroying the game's balance. Even if the balance does go to hell, Valve is right on top of their game, ready to fix it at a moment's notice. Honestly, I've never seen such good developer-community interaction in my life. Not to mention 2fort2furious is probably the best server I've ever played on, but that's another story. Another cool part about the game is that the developers brought the Team Fortress series back to its class-based roots. The original game was turning into a huge StopHavingFunGuys marathon, with physics glitch-abusing and grenade-spamming becoming the standard. I'm pretty sure that [=TF2=] alone has made me a Valve fan.
** [=TF2=] is my favorite game right now! What gets me is how often they update a game that's MORE THAN 2 YEARS OLD!!
** [=TF2=] is an amazing game. Those were 9 years well spent to put this together: the mechanics, the details, the various character personalities and backgrounds. Valve might troll every so often, but this pales in comparison to the love they lavish on this creation. But what possibly even better than the game is the {{Fandom}}. The ratio of good to bad games I've played definitely tips towards the positive side. So many people know how to just roll with the game, having fun by either working together to complete a mission or to just dick around doing silly things. And even outside of the game, so many people have shown their love for it by cobbling together some of the [[WMG/TeamFortress2 most hilariously awesome fan-theories]] or making some great {{Cosplay}}s. It's so cool how this whole enterprise has held together for so long.
** Oh man, this has got to be the best online FPS game ever made. I love the concepts of the teamwork and communication based gameplay it has on display as well as how they're executed. The teamwork comes from all of the separate little things that you don't always notice, but are still important to the game. Every class has it's strengths and weaknesses, as well as a goal they are meant to be working towards in the map. This means that you need to communicate with other players in order to have them cover your weaknesses and have you cover theirs. When 2 or more classes combine their strengths and cover each other's shortcomings, they can do some serious damage in the map, much more than either of them could have alone. Another factor that makes it my favorite game is that the game has probably the best sense of humor I've ever seen in a game. Everything about each character is funny, interesting, clever and unique. From their exaggerated visual designs to their ridiculous and purposely fake accents to their over the top and hilarious dialogue ([[MemeticMutation SPAH SAPPIN MAH SENTRY!!!]]). Just watch some of the Meet the videos Valve has released on the [=TF2=] blog or listen to some of their domination dialogue on YouTube. If they don't at least get a chuckle out of you, you must not have a sense of humor. There's so much self consciousness and [[BreakingTheFourthWall 4th wall breaking moments]] in the game that it's almost as if it's a parody of an FPS than an actual FPS. I love how the Sniper drives a "Camper Van", and how Scout tells someone that he just killed to ragequit, like the characters know that they're in a video game. The icing on the cake [insert bad ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'' joke here] is the added fact that Valve still consistently updates and gives constant attention to the game! For FREE! after 2 YEARS! IN A CAVE, WITH A BOX OF SCRAPS! When anyone asks me why I like Valve so much, I point them to this game
** [=TF2=] convinced me that not only online FPS, but also FPS in general, is fun.
* VideoGame/TeamFortressClassic. [[Tropers/DemonFiren This troper]] believes in the power of DarkerAndEdgier, and in the power of [[GatlingGood Fully-automated rotary]] [[ShotgunsAreJustBetter shotguns]] - thanks, Heavy.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Capcom]]
* The ''AceAttorney'' series is brilliant even though it's totally unrealistic. No, it's brilliant ''because'' it's totally unrealistic. It has a superb blend of hilarious comedy and affecting drama, and applying your own deductive logic is intensely satisfying.
** ...The ''AceAttorney'' series has logic? When did this happen?
*** Screw logic, we have pretty men in cravats.
**** Characters! You can't forget the characters! The ''AceAttorney'' cast is the best. Even in the most frustrating and plothole-riddled murder cases, the characters were outstanding. When even ''the office's resident houseplant'' gets a name and a ''justified'' fan following, you know you're doing something right.
***** "One fan"?''Mister Charly'' has his own Fan-thread in the court Records forum. And Godot knows that his Leafiness deserves it.
*** Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations is perhaps the pinnacle of the series with a tight narrative full of old favorites, it brings comedy, and drama in a perfect blend and has one of the most mind-bendingly awesome murder plots in the series. The finale brings in and redeems some fan favorites like Franziska Von Karma while being suitably emotionally poignant for all involved with one of the best villains of the series and one awesome exorcism. Add a very feel-good ending that ties together all the dangling plot-threads of the Phoenix triology, and, again, Trials and Tribulations is perhaps the pinnacle of the series.
* I love ''{{Okami}}''. The gameplay, the graphics, the story, the emphasis on nature, it's just a great game. I remember playing it for the first time, and just being in awe of how pretty everything was.
** I beat it just yesterday. I didn't even bother turning the console off, I just started up the new game plus. "{{Okami}}" is _awesome_ and you should all feel ashamed for not buying it. The Spirit Bomb at the end had me cheering for Issun out loud.
** Okami just needs more love all around. It's an awesome game, with a good story, excellent gameplay, and a gorgeous art style. I nearly burst into tears at the end of the game, and had to pause for a bit while fighting the final boss to regain my composure.
** Is it odd that throughout the whole game, I steadily fell in love with Amaterasu, so much so that I want her as my own? She's just so damn ''cute''...
** It's a truly charming and adorable game, especially the little things you can do for the villagers (draw a circle around them and they run over to pet/play with Ammy). Awww...<3
** I paid 50 euros for Okami, and after I finished it, I promised myself I would never pay that much for any other game ever again, because none could measure up.
** Okami is [[SincerityMode one of the best games that I've ever played]]. The gorgeous artwork, unique gameplay, captivating story and unforgettable characters are just the tip of the iceberg.
* {{Okamiden}}, while not as on much of a grand scale as the original, captures the feel of it in many ways. The continuation of the story is handled well, perhaps with a bit of a commentary on people and their faith in deities (in terms of gameplay, it's mainly a reason for you to need praise points, but it still works). The touch screen (it's a DS title) makes drawing more accurate, there are two new techniques, the soundtrack is as good as ever (partly helped by keeping the same themes for lots of occasions), and the world itself is largely faithful to the original.
* ''DevilMayCry''. The Main/{{Camp}}, cheese and Main/{{Narm}} of the one-liners form part of the series' charm, with the rest being the OTT action. Yes, there are severe Main/CutscenePowerToTheMax issues, but there's still plenty you can do with the combat system, especially with the refined systems in the third and fourth games. Pulling off a complex combo - or watching someone do so - never gets old. The original effectively brought free-flowing fighter-style combat to the 3D era. This party's getting crazy!
** Wootness all around! The original game holds a special place in this troper's heart, as it was her first PS2 game and the only one she had for a while. The badass action, badass main character, crazy combos and weapons....yeah! ''I'm absolutely crazy about it!''
* [[Mega Man]], one of the most enjoyable platforming/shooting game series ever. The weapon system is so incredible it inspires [[MegaManning its own trope]], the boss fights are incredible, and each series is great in its own way.
** ''Mega Man 9'' came along to remind us why we game. 'Nuff said.
** This troper hardly played ''Mega Man 1'' through ''6'', and he loves ''Mega Man 9''.
** I love the ending. Snarky Megaman for the win!
** It may not be the original 8-bit variety that most Mega Man fans know, the ''Mega Man Legends'' series absolutely deserves a mention. The story is incredibly unique and interesting, the cast of characters are extremely diverse and highly likable, awesome music...everything about the series is great. Sadly, a Mega Man Legends 3 is looking less and less likely every year...
*** [[AndTheFandomRejoiced Guess what? There ''IS'' going a Mega Man Legends 3!]] It's gonna be on the 3DS, but still...
** All this time and still no mention of [[MegaManX the X series?]] [[WhatTheHellPlayer What the hell, guys?]]
* ''StreetFighter IV'' is mega-win. It takes everything that has made ''SF'' the definition of the 2D fighting genre and adds to it. Add to that the fact that you can fight online, and the kickass soundtrack, and you have the total package.
* VideoGame/{{Breath of Fire II}}. Full. freaking. stop. Not only was the first game [[@/ThatOneGuyNamedX This Troper]] played, it was one of the most tearkerkingly awesome ones too. The setting, the characters, the surreal amount of [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar Crap that got Past hte Radar]]... is delightfully beautiful. and {{Needs More Love}}, too. Damn you, {{Capcom}} for terminating the series'
* [[MemeticMutation OBJECTION!]] How can this page be what it is without [[AceAttorney Phoenix Wright]]? You get to be a lawyer without all the boring parts. Add in the writing, the humor, and giving Ensemble Darkhorses their own spinoffs, and you get a heck of a series! So TAKE THAT!
* VideoGame/{{Marvel vs Capcom 3}}!! It is one of the greatest and fun fighting games in recent years. Where else could you pair [[MegaManX Zero]], [[ResidentEvil Wesker]], and [[DevilMayCry Dante]] on one awesome [[PlanetEater Galactus]] murdering team? No where else, that's where! And it is just plain awesome. Oh, [[DistractedByTheSexy Hello,]] [[MsFanservice Morrigan]]... [[MetaPhorgotten Where was I?]] Oh yeah, one more thing...[[DeadPool I'M]] [[NoFourthWall IN THE GAME]], [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch BITCHES!!!]]
* ResidentEvil4 is, in this troper's opinion, the best thing Capcom has ever pushed out of its doors. It is possibly the greatest example of a sequel ignoring the traditions of previous games in its series, despite the risk of huge [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks fan outcry]], in order to improve itself and the series as a whole. And it certainly did that, along with being a spetacular game to boot. The controls aren't much different from the previous games, but with the camera positioned behind [[TheHero Leon's]] back, you could actually manuevour correctly, and the over-the-shoulder aiming worked so well that it has become an indensible part of a third-person shooter's design. The controls are still stiff, but instead of worsening the experience, it actually makes fights more tense, and you need to constantly be on guard; I've never felt quite so anxious in a game before. The game is endlessly creative, and from start to finish there's never a dull moment; you could be fighting a giant sea monster one moment, riding a cart in the next, and fighting amazingly designed bosses every half hour. I could go on forever, but really, the amount of praise and awards it has won speak for me.
* ''AsurasWrath''. Just everything aboout ''AsurasWrath''. Say what you want about the short length and rather basic gameplay, but this game has SerialEscalation to levels never before seen in a game of it's genre, manages to keep immense suspense with it's episodic nature and manages to make an Awesome interactive anime, with some of the best used ActionCommands and QuickTimeEvent[=s=] [[Tropers/{{Demongodofchaos2}} This troper]] has ever seen in his life. It's just an amazing experience and really NeedsMoreLove, as it somehow manages to [[UpToEleven COMPLETELY SURPASS]] {{Bayonetta}} in ridiculousness and scope of the action. Not to mention, Asura himself manages to be a much more likable character than [[GodOfWar Kratos]] could ever be. Seriously, you love Anime and Manga, as well as their tropes, try to buy at full price if you can. It won't dissapoint you, especially if your a fan of CyberConnect2.
* This troper never was a die hard lover of the "Beat 'em Up" Genre. You take your prick and walks a linear path fighting other pricks until you fight a bigger prick, rise, rinse and repeat until you either die or [[DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu punch out Cthulhu]]. I didn't ''hate'' the genre, I was just indifferent. That is, until the utter ''geniuses'' behind the [[TooGoodToLast departed Clover Studios]] came up with GodHand. I seriously believe this game is the best Beat 'em Up of all time (noting that games like DevilMayCry and GodOfWar are ''not'' Beat 'em Up's, but Hack 'n Slashers). It had an ExcusePlot that did not take itself seriously, full of snark and lighthearted humor, the fighting system was polished until ''perfection'' and, although seemingly complicated, very intuitive, the soundtrack was unique and good to the ears, and it was crammed to the brim with the best boss fights a game could have. No one can make me think that this masterpiece of the gaming market isn't the best of its genre.
** Seconded. It was incredibly hard without being "cheap", you had a wide variety of attacks that you could customize Gene as you see fit, and the game is utterly hilarious from beginning to end. Not to mention that it was filled to the brim with shout-outs, and yes, every boss fight is an AWESOME boss fight. ''Dragon Kick yer ass into the milky way!''
** Between the ridiculously over-the-top special God Reel attacks, anime {{Shout Out}}s, campy sense of humor, and tightly-programmed fighting, you'll be coming back for more even as the game keeps [[NintendoHard kicking your ass.]] And the sheer difficulty only helps to make you feel like an even bigger BadAss once you master the God Hand and its attacks. There are very few games out there that make you feel as awesome as when you pull off that brace and prepare to unleash an ''epic'' can of whoopass on your enemies. No gimmicks, no tricks, just your own gaming skills and reflexes versus an endless barrage of pissed off demons. Who cares about taking games seriously as art? Who cares about the plot? Who cares about the graphics and environment? I'M THE MOTHERFUCKING [[FistOfTheNorthStar FIST OF THE NORTH STAR]]!
* [[Tropers/RetroFriday For This Troper]], he can't help but gush about StarGladiator. Notable for being Capcom's first 3D fighter, Star Gladiator is literally Capcom's variation take on ''StarWars''. A unique storyline, a strong diverse cast of characters, great music, and fluid fighting gameplay makes me question on why Capcom hasn't made a new entry into the series since Star Gladiator 2 (Plasma Sword). C'mon Capcom! Give this underrated series a chance to gain some legacy in its own right.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Konami]]
* How can you guys not talk about ''Boktai?!'' For shame, people. This is one of the most ingenious games for the GBA, as it uses actual sunlight to influence gameplay via a solar sensor, so it makes you want to play outside. Not only that, it's just plain awesome and a genuinely amazing game. It has a capturing plot, vicious vampire baddies trying to turn the whole world into undead (Which they probably already had), wonderfully-composed 8-bit sounding music and memorable characters. However, it didn't sell well, making it obscure. Which is a shame, because everyone needs to play this while under the sun.
* ''{{Gradius}} Gaiden''. Thought ''Gradius III'' and ''V'' were good? ''Gaiden'', a game made seven years before ''V'' on a 32-bit system, blows these two games out of the water. What other title takes you through a junkyard of old bosses or a stage that looks like any other ''Gradius'' volcano stage...for a few seconds, [[Awesome/VideoGameLevels before getting sucked into a black hole]]? The ships have some great weapons too. Vic Viper's Double has undergone some un-sucking, Lord British's Disruptor pierces enemy armor, making it ideal for bosses who guard their cores heavily, Jade Knight has splitting Spread Bombs, and Falchion Beta has the forward-firing equivalent of a Spread Bomb. And you can rearrange your power meter, which adds another strategic element to the game; with a well-arranged power meter, you can make recovering out of a death (and by extension, [[ContinuingIsPainful "Gradius Syndrome"]]) much more managable. It will be a while before we get a ''Gradius Gaiden 2'' or something that will top ''Gaiden''...assuming of course, the series hasn't died yet.
* ''Pop'n Music'' is an example of why people who judge a game by its [[AnimationAgeGhetto kiddiness]] can suck it. There's music in almost every genre you can imagine, the larger button setup ensures that you won't get wrist or hand cramps from having your fingers so contorted (at least if you're big-handed, like this troper) like in other {{Rhythm Game}}s, the characters are beautifully drawn and animated, and it both for casual and hardcore players--the former have Enjoy Mode, and the latter have loads and loads of options for {{Self Imposed Challenge}}s.
* ''SilentHill'' and its sequels remain the only games that have forced me to stop playing due to something other than frustration or biological necessities, as it's rather difficult to operate a controller when one is shaking like a leaf in a gale. The most bizarre, unique monster designs in the medium, puzzles that only obey the logic of the warped reality into which you've stumbled, and the fact that the ''entire town'' wants to rape you to death, eat your flesh and wear your face as a hat (hopefully in that order) combine to create the most terrifying interactive experience ever. Rather unfortunate that there's only two sequels.
* [[MetalGear Metal Gear Solid]].
** Hell yeah! No other game has a plot and scenario that engrossing and (on at least two occasions a game) emotionally devastating. The wacky-but-effin'-badass characters, the overarching narrative that encompasses cloning, vampires, enormous mecha, ridiculous {{XanatosRoulette}}s, malevolent AIs, ghosts, psychic arms, international assassins, love, loss and battlefield philosophy while handling eternal themes like political corruption, the passage of time, war, the nature of death etc. etc...
** And it cannot be touched for epic moments - each game in the series culminates in several hours of distilled awesomeness, but once you're about 1/5th of the way through {{Guns of the Patriots}} Kojima pulls out all the stops in order to best conclude his epic. The nostalgic battle atop Outer Haven has GOT to be the greatest setpiece in gaming ever.
** The music! Themes like Encounter, Old Snake, Mantis' Hymn, Debriefing, the Main Theme from MGS 1,2 & 3, and the new one for MGS 4... They're all unbelievably exciting and moving.
** [[{{@/Fly}} I]] think ''MetalGearSolid 2'' was ludicrously ahead of its time, and ten years from now people will be looking back at it and realising it was incredibly underrated. Mind you, I also admit my favourite character in the game is Snake's butt, so who am I to judge?
** Hell, [[{{@/RandomFanboy}} I]] loved [=MGS2=] as soon as I played it (Granted, I played the game years [[ItWasHisSled after Raiden and the nutty ending became sled-worthy.]] I thought the over-the-top wangst, the increasingly insane plot and the utterly fucked up final cutscene were all done ''on purpose''. And it was hilarious and awesome. And yes, underrated.
** Even if you don't love the spy based gameplay (which is WICKED, BTW), you will LOVE the highly complex story told over all six games. Honestly, it has some of the best, most complex and sympathetic villains I've ever seen - many a gamer has shed tears at the {{Alas Poor Villain}} moments given to Sniper Wolf, Psycho Mantis and the rest, and that's not getting into the Woobies, who you just want to hug. The fact that there isn't even a truly evil enemy at the end was pulled off SO well it didn't feel like a rip=off - it ties in well with the themes. IT's amazing that such a highly complex story can be made with so few {{Complete Monster}} individuals involved (and the several present were hardly in their depth). Some of the battles are the most beautifully imaginative, scripted and choreographed ever - Psycho Mantis totally OBLITERATED the Fourth Wall, and The End is so unbelievably original. Of course, I also love the themes of war and peace, of tragedy and hope, and most importantly, of that little yet wonderful thing we like to call ''life''.
** Oh yes, yes, yes. This troper absolutely LOVES Metal Gear Solid. Ever since she first played [=MGS3=] (that was her first in the series), she has been in love. She has finished the games multiple times. [=MGS2=] and 3 are her favorites. (and [=MGS1=], too) No other story in gaming history can ever come close to topping the MGS series.
* This page needs more Castlevania! Especially, Symphony of the night.
* The freeware fangame [[http://horrorquest.altervista.org/ Castlevanie II: Dracula's Shadow]] is a strong candidate for most underrated game of all time. The author spent 5 YEARS on this remake, keeping all the good things about Simon's Quest, removing all the bad, and then adding so very very much more. Item crashes, 3 playable characters, a boss-fight at every levelup, and on and on. It's everything you ever loved about the NES castlevanias. If Dracula's Shadow had come out on the NES in the early 90s it would have been an instant classic, but released in 2005 for dos and windows it hardly made a ripple. Even after 5 years it's still obscure beyong all reckoning. A youtube search will turn up only a single ''LetsPlay'' and a [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QouE-JHDq0 parody/review]] both of which were posted within the last 4 months.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Sega]]
* Where the hell is Sonic 3? Yes, the other 2 were pretty good, but Sonic 3 is win. The art style is a subtle yet great evolution, the [[CrowningMusicOfAwesome music]] is excellent and memorable, it makes the Sonic universe deeper and more engrossing without an overkill of exposition and [[TheScrappy characters]], and the game perfects the Sonic atmosphere and embodies what is right with the series.
** Seconded. Sonic 3 is my 2nd favorite 2D Sonic game (my most favorite is Sonic CD). Sonic 2 was awesome, yes, but I never saw what made it "ZOMG BEST SAWNIK GAME EVA!!!"
** To me, Sonic 2 IS childhood. It's that simple. Every last sound or animated sprite or level feature in the game feels like a dip in the nostalgy pool.
*** Sonic 3 by itself was at times ridiculously buggy. However, Sonic 3 and Knuckles is AWESOME.
* ''SonicUnleashed'', its Sonic gameplay IS the revitalization of the series that Sega have been promising for years.
** Along the same lines, this troper doesn't give two figs about what anyone said about the 3D Sonic games post-Dreamcast, ''he enjoyed them, dammit.'' Except Sonic 2006. But even that had some good ideas (no, I'm not talking about the [[{{Squick}} hedgehog/human romance]], I'm talking gameplay-wise).
*** Heck, [[{{@/Sylocat}} This Troper]] even likes Sonic 2006, and is fully prepared to face the consequences of admitting that.
*** Some people say Sonic died a long time ago. This troper thinks he's still alive and strong, giving us amazing music and fun games.
**** My first Sonic game was Sonic Adventure 2 Battle. Via Demo at Wal-Mart and also the first one I owned. From there, I've liked most of he 3D Sonic games I've played. I have not played Sonic '06, but I will admit some parts look interesting and I wouldn't mind trying it... Specifically, I loved ShadowTheHedgehog, I'd even go so far as to say that it's the best of the 3D titles because you only play as a character that may as well be Sonic in terms of gameplay, which is what everyone's been asking for for so long without realizing that they have it. What can I say? The guns and vehicles were fun.
* ''Shadow the Hedgehog'' has a list of flaws a mile long, but the level where you're a bad enough dude to shoot the president is the most fun this troper has had with a ''Sonic'' game in years.
** ''Shadow'' is actually a fun game when you look past some of the flaws. Aside from suddenly starring an angsty EvilTwin that totes guns out of nowhere, it has its moments, from the attempted assassination mentioned above to running rampant through the base of operations for what is effectively S.W.A.T. Not to mention what a [[IncrediblyLamePun Chaos Blast]] you can have using Chaos Control to your benefit.
* ''VideoGame/SkiesOfArcadia'' is still the best turn-based RPG I've ever played. I think its upbeat nature, wide open world, depth of [=NPCs=], message of hope to the world, and FLYING PIRATES have spoiled me.
** By all rights, ''VideoGame/SkiesOfArcadia'' does not deserve to be so good. It's an extremely standard turn-based RPG that follows TheOneTrueSequence (or at least appears to) one hundred percent, none of the characters really undergo any substantial CharacterDevelopment, and the villains are some of the [[LargeHam hammiest]] {{Card Carrying Villain}}s ever. But it pulls off ''[[ClicheStorm every single one of those cliches and tropes]]'' so well that [[BetterThanItSounds the game is]] ''[[BetterThanItSounds far]]'' [[BetterThanItSounds more than the sum of its parts!]] ...Plus, yes, ''flying pirates'' are pretty damn awesome.
* The ''EccoTheDolphin'' games are really, really hard. At least for this troper; I'm actually not that good at even moderately hardcore action games. That said, the first two games are some of the greatest xenofiction ever told. The storyline makes the frustrating gameplay worth it!
* ''SonicUnleashed'' is, quite possibly, the single best thing to ever happen to the little pin-cushion since he entered the 3D era. The story, gameplay, and characterization are all leagues better than Sonic's ever been. The Werehog, while questionable, is the greatest genre change gameplay in the series. Best of all, the new Sonic Team has finally, finally learned not to add in [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters everyone and their grandma]] just to say they were in this game.
** I don't know about you but I also love how they decided to drop the whole {{Serious Business}} thing
** Seconded, thirded, fourthed, ''all the way up to infinity''. Unleashed was the game that finally convinced me to throw off the shackles of ReviewsAreTheGospel. There is ''no damn way'' the game deserves scores worse than Sonic '06. After all the vitriol being thrown at them, really, the nighttime stages aren't anything worse than SoOkayItsAverage, and at their best, they're actually pretty fun, with their [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome Crowning Moment]] coming during the Egg Dragoon fight. And the daytime stages? ''[[RuleOfCool Holy crap am I really going this fast in levels reminiscent of the old Genesis trilogy?!]]'' Sonic Team ''finally'' took a step in the right direction with Unleashed's daytime stages!
* I am ashamed nobody has put NiGHTS into Dreams up here. The first console game to ever use a 3D pad, the story that you could add to, the flight on rails, the dream archetypes... It's a racing game with a story and a real, pervasive presence in the minds of many people. Truly a game for the ages.
** And the second game in the series, NiGHTS Journey of Dreams, added a new dimension to the game and a really different point of view I quite enjoyed even for all its flaws. Still working on my Nightopian Garden and A-ranking everything!
** ''{{NiGHTS into Dreams}}'' is quite possibly one of my favorite games ever. Amazing level design, atmospheric music that changes depending on how well you interact with the resident Nightopians, unique bosses, and most important of all, it's just ''fun''. This is the only game that I can think off offhand that I care about one-upping my old high score, and one of the few that I had to force myself to put down because my thumb was in too much pain from working the controller.
* GHOST Squad! This is a little relatively obscure light gun game by SEGA for Arcade's and the Wii where there are so many Crowning moments of AWESOME that it gives you a complete sensory overload and totally makes up for their only being 3 levels. Oh, and did I mention that you give your character a panda suit and in the Wii version there are 2 bonus modes where in one all your enemies are chicks in bikini's and you use a dolphin shaped Water Gun and in the other every one's a ninja?! If you have a Wii this can all be yours for only 30 USD?!
* ''{{Ristar}}'' is a really amazing 16-bit platformer. It wrings out every bit of graphical and musical capability out of the Genesis. Completely forgotten because it came out in 1995 and was buried under the hype for the 32-bit systems, it became a forgotten gem. Great graphics(check out the lighting effects in the underwater stage!), awesome music you will remember for years, and a unique gameplay mechanic.
** It is amazing, i agree. But sequel never being made =(
* I love the Sonic games, and must say how silly I think the Broken Base is. After the Sonic Adventure games, people asked for the classic style back. They got it in Sonic Heroes, and then complained they wanted the Adventure style back. They got it in Sonic 2006, and complained... I, on the other hand, enjoy it all(Okay, not Sonic Labyrinth but what the hell). Shadow the Hedgehog, both character and game, are great. The game, it's fun. I enjoy doing Hero missions...and having Black Doom's Eye tag along. It's funny, making that asshole whine. Shadow himself is badass. And he seems to be mellowing back out. Here's an aspect from the old days I miss: Going Super in regular levels. That, I really want to have back. I love foe-tossing charges. And Hyper Sonic. The Hyper transformation was great, and imagine it in 3D. And Metal Sonic is one of the greatest Evil Counterparts ever. Because he can Actually. Measure. Up. Also, the Sonic series has one of the few non-sucky Video Game Based Movies. The Sonic OVA film was cool, drawing a lot from the games. It's the only adaptation to use Eggman's Genesis-era costume. And the battles between Sonic and Metal Sonic... Pure awesome. I think the Mewtwo vs. Mew fight in ''Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back'' contained a bit of homage. And Sonic 2006, the hatedom will remember that this is Sugar Wiki and hold their fire. A cool game. Heh. Silver's gameplay is interesting, because Silver isn't a super-runner like we're used to. Also, Amy pwning Silver when he tried to kill Sonic(Stupid Mephiles, but he gets his thanks to Shadow). There's a reason Amy's on the Beware The Nice Ones page. I like the more serious cartoons, including Sonic Underground (the Hatedom will again be reminded that this is Sugar Wiki). I think it fits. Sonic a rebel? Oh yeah. Sonic also a rock star? How the hell does that NOT fit? Sonic having known relatives, and siblings and one parent at that? Neat. Manic, the Surfer Dude with a Hover Board. I think that Sonic Riders was a bit of a Fandom Nod to lovers of Sonic Underground. And...Gosh, I can be rather long-winded when typing this stuff.
** I... have nothing to say. You've taken the words right out of my mouth. Well, perhaps BRILLIANT! is aplicable. Seriously, why does the fanbase hate all the new stuff? I can understand 06's hatred because of all the glitches, but even then, it's a decent game. Worst part is? Sega's going to release the first part of {{Sonic the Hedgehog 4}} (which contains no extra stuff, no other charactures, just Sonic and Robotnik [although he's called Eggman like in the newer games, but get OVER IT FANBASE.] duking it out) and the fans are planning to boycott it... because of such things as the homing attack's inclusion (a step in the right direction if you ask me) and the fact that THEY USE THE NEW STYLE FOR SONIC. When I heard of that, the first thing I said was "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR * cut out, kids might read this* MIND?" Here's hoping the boycott goes the way of Modern Warfare 2!
* ''Sonic Chronicles'' is amazing. It takes the stupidest combo ever- Sonic the Hedgehog and turn based RPG- and makes it ''work''. It's got a great, genuinely funny script, it manages to have an interesting plot ''without'' it making no sense or being too serious, and it takes the tell-don't-show approach of many of the games in regards to characterisation (Knuckles, Amy, I'm looking at you) and turns it on its head. (Seriously, they fix every complaint about how the characters act you could have.) And the battle system is genuinely good, too! BioWare, I salute you.
* ''VideoGame/SonicColors''. Just... ''VideoGame/SonicColors''. Take the best aspects of the already-good ''VideoGame/SonicUnleashed'', remove the worst parts of it, and add in exploration elements from ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehogCD'' and a powerup gimmick system that actually ''improves'' the overall gameplay, a lighthearted story with a hilarious script penned by the writers of ''{{Reboot}}'' and ''HappyTreeFriends'' ''and'' good voice acting, and you'll have ''the'' best ''{{Sonic}}'' game since [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog the]] [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2 Genesis]] [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles titles.]]
* This Troper will say it, I loved VideoGame/SonicHeroes when it came out, first there was the many levels that it had and even the hard levels aren't frustratingly so, long story short, I loved VideoGame/SonicHeroes.
** I'll step up to the plate and second that notion. I don't care what "they" say-- being able to play as whichever character you wanted for most of the gameplay rocked, and the music got stuck in my head for hours... [[TemptingFate and I just invited the Casino Park theme...]]
** The beauty of Heroes was really in the team mechanic-- you got to choose how to play the game depending on the character you chose. Speed characters were the best way to breeze through a level (possibly putting one's self in harm's way in the meanwhile), flight characters allowed you to hang back, stay safe, and enjoy the view/music... and power characters got shit done. [[StuffBlowingUp Oftentimes with several explosions]] [[CatharsisFactor and a definite sense of catharsis.]] [[FridgeBrilliance This is probably the way the main trio is viewed, to boot.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Namco Bandai]]
* VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia is definitely the best game for the Gamecube and one of the best games out there. Everything, the characters, the story, the gameplay, even the cliches, are awesome. The sequel is amazing too.
** One thing this troper loves about Symphonia over any other RPG she's played is the sheer number of named [=NPCs=] with just enough personality and backstory to be really interesting and lovable...while still leaving a great deal of blank slate even with ''major'' characters for FanFic to explore. Certain subsequent games in the series may have been shinier, but leaving so many loose ends and opportunities for AlternateCharacterInterpretation means that there's always more to discuss and develop in Symphonia.
** This troper, not meaning to discount the greatness of Symphonia, must also give a mention to its successor ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'', a game that I started playing (after a slow start) and then suddenly realized three weeks had gone by and I had experienced one of the wildest emotional roller-coaster rides ever. I sympathized (and, at times, empathized) with Luke the whole time. To this day, ''Abyss'' is one of my favorite Japanese [=RPG=]s.
*** This troper, while still not discounting the greatness of Symphonia or Abyss, needs to give a shout out to a lesser-known game between the two - ''VideoGame/TalesOfLegendia''. The brilliant story, coupled with brilliant characters, almost makes you look over the step back on the battle system and the [[LazyArtist lack of voicing in the second half of the game]].
** Same guy who promoted ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'', now back to promote ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'' (starting to think at some point we should just promote the ''entire'' TalesSeries). It's quite possibly the most well-made Tales game yet, with a whole slew of options for kicking your opponent's ass and the most comprehensive battle system in the series yet, allowing ''anyone'' to pull off spectacular feats. That's not even mentioning the well-told story with its fantastic English dub, or the fact that Yuri is quite simply one of the most awesome characters ever. It's the first, and so far only, Xbox 360 game for which I've gotten 1000/1000 [[CosmeticAward Achievement points]], and if the [=PS3=] version comes out in North America, I swear up and down I will buy the system just to play the game through again (well, and for ''VideoGame/{{inFamous}}'' and MetalGearSolid 4, but yeah).
* ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}'', despite the budgetless second disc, is one of the greatest stories ever told in video game format. I pity the person who has not experienced the awesome that is this game. It has everything, conspiracies, [[HumongousMecha giant robots]], [[MagnificentBastard magnificient bastards]], [[TropeOverdosed the works]].
* ''BatenKaitos Origins'' is nothing short of awesome. The visuals are just as good as the first game, if not ''better''. The character interactions are downright hilarious, especially when they involve Guillo, who is such a magnificent DeadpanSnarker that you can be assured there will be a CrowningMomentOfFunny ''every time Guillo speaks''. I can say without exaggeration that Guillo is better than [[VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss Jade Curtiss]], [[VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia Tenebrae]], and [[VideoGame/{{Portal}} GLaDOS]] '''''COMBINED'''''. Speaking of speaking, the voice acting in that game is absolutely incredible, especially after the [[Horrible/VoiceActing voice acting in the first game]] had me expecting very little. And then there is the plot. It doesn't seem spectacular at first...[[WhamEpisode but then you get about two-thirds of the way through the game]] and "[[HolyShitQuotient NO FREAKIN' WAY!]]" To top it all off, the soundtrack is ''even better than the one its predecessor had''. Seriously. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXe7TKScGmc&fmt=18 Just]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMIlxFS1LVc&fmt=18 listen]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUMfjKX867k&fmt=18 to]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfRJ-3tNnMc&fmt=18 a]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6BQv8litzQ&fmt=18 mere]][[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU5ekqBk1zE&fmt=18 fraction]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmG3f3g-AN4&fmt=18 of]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxCOV8DtYfs&fmt=18 it]].
** And then you get to the music. The freakin' battle theme is worth [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC2SDdMEGLE listening to.]] By itself. And that [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnsKxmpjqUs&feature=related doesn't]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_Lygkb2lCk&feature=related scratch]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0GtvWPF9zw&feature=related the]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqORLlPg-84 surface]].
** This troper honestly can't decide whether she likes Origins or Eternal Wings better - the two are currently tied as my all-time favorite video games. Both games have excellent stories that start out kind of simple, but get interesting really fast. They're satisfyingly complex, and both games have a [[WhamEpisode major plot twist or two somewhere down the line.]] The characters are interesting. Sometimes they fall into certain archetypes, but never entirely. They also change and develop over time, especially in Origins. The way that the games [[AnyoneYouKnow involved you]] was a cool concept, and it was pulled off really well. The gameplay was fun and original. The battle system was very different between games, but both times it was fun and kept the battles from getting all that boring. The world of the game is fascinating - it's the kind of place that I really wish I could visit. The visuals were beautiful and creative. I'd say that RealIsBrown was subverted, but the game was never really aiming to look realistic. Sure, the games have their flaws (especially Eternal Wings), but they still managed to work really well. And of course, the music is incredible. Look it up and you'll see what I mean. They're real underrated gems, and I really wish more people knew about them.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Xenosaga}}'' trilogy. Although ThisTroper doesn't find it as good as the first half of VideoGame/{{Xenogears}} in terms of story, she personally doesn't mind the long cutscenes because the lovable cast of characters easily makes up for it (sans [[TheWoobie Shion]]). And the music is absolutely gorgeous, 'especially' in the first and third games. The fact that my opinion of the series hasn't degraded in the slightest ever since I played Episode III is impressive, considering that my opinion of VideoGames tends to degrade over time. The only other [=JRPGs=] that I've played that come close are Persona3 and ValkyriaChronicles.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Natsume]]
* The ''HarvestMoon'' games are wonderful. They're this quiet, peaceful little domestic game that serves as a nice break from the endless guns and gray-a-thons of the video game world. They're among the most relaxing games out there.
** Seconded. Her friends and her mom tease, but this troper finds great comfort in watering little rows of virtual plants.
** To that troper - check out ''Plant Tycoon''. It's basically a virtual windowbox with soothing sound effects. The plants grow in realtime, and it's oddly nice to come home to see something's grown a new leaf while you were away.
** I enjoy playing the harvest moon games a lot. I think it's because it's the first real video game (read: not some cheep flash thing) that had a [[DatingSim dating element]] in it, and probably the closest thing to a full fledged DatingSim that will ever be released in America.
** This troper doesn't know what it is about those silly little games, but she'll pour absurd hours into each one, and she never seems to grow bored. They're the gaming equivalent of soul food.
** This troper is agreeing wholeheartedly with everything said above. She owns 12 Harvest Moon games. They just feel so nostalgic and sentimental that it makes you feel like one big ball of fuzz when something good happens in-game.
** This troper is a BOY, and even then, gets lost within the cute graphics of HarvestMoon. I'll even admit it, the romance-option aspect of the game is what drew me in in the first place. Everything in HM just blends so perfectly, good music, good graphics, and a ridiculously addicting game mechanic that leaves you begging "just one more day!"
** And then there's RuneFactory, which adds dungeon delving and [[HotMom Hot Mamas]] to the formula. [[RuneFactoryFrontier Ganesha's]] [[PerverseSexualLust got it goin' on!]]
* I'll take some heat for this, but ''LufiaCurseOfTheSinistrals''. They did change things from Lufia: Rise Of The Sinistrals (which also deserves a spot on this page), but I personally find it as a wonderful throwback to my childhood, but mixed with various things that have been picked up in the time between then and now. Don't jump to conclusions- the characterization is just as good as in the original version, if not even better, and all the songs are the same as in the original.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Atlus]]
* ''{{Persona 3}}'' and ''{{Persona 4}}''. [[{{@/Excel-2009}} This Troper]], normally impatient with [=RPG=]s, finds the plots, systems, characters (oh dear lord the characters), music, presentation, ''the entire package'' something that cannot be missed. Even though my religion finds everything about ''{{Shin Megami Tensei}}'' objectionable and my sensibilities rage at the [[NintendoHard difficulty]] being unreasonable (Two hour long final boss fights? Forget it), I can't turn away.
** I can't think of any other series that allows you to have Metatron, Shiva, Amaterasu and Cu Chulainn in one big party of kickassery.
** The most awesome characters ever like Aigis, Akihiko and Junpei, and damn, everyone is awesome after awhile. Most social links have downright heartwarming and redeemable backstories, like fascist dictator disciplanary man or elementary school kid Maiko. Hell, there are places where the game lags...that combat system is atrocious and the personas look like they fell straight off the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down. The boss battles are awful. I hate the use of Japanese suffixes in an English localization. But then there are moments like September 23rd when you take Shinjiro out to the Film Festival and it warms your heart that you guys just bro'd out and watched 2 hours of Little Pet Adventures. I can't say enough good things about this game. The characterization and overall feeling of immersion makes this one of the best [=RPG=]s ever.
** ''{{Persona4}}'' is such a happy game that the theme color is ''yellow.'' Like all of ''ShinMegamiTensei'' it has a ridiculously complex storyline but it manages to accomplish this without the usual "emo" mood. You will get so attatched to every character playing this game that you will want so badly either to live in their world or for them to be real just so you can be friends and hang out with them. Besides all the supernatural/heroic stuff, there are so many fun slice of life stories about you and your friends' adventures in ordinary life; cooking competitions, camping trips, shopping, and field trips. As mentioned above, it really feels like you are in the game.
*** ...And then there's Teddie.
** {{Persona 2}} is somewhat different in comparison with later Persona titles: Social links are nonexistent, the whole team thing works in a smaller scale, and yet you can't help but feel the same awe and wonder as Tatsuya and co. as they march for the truth, when they first summon their personae, and ''everyone'' has their great moments. Even ThoseWackyNazis, Nyarlathotep, the {{Quirky Miniboss Squad}}s...
** The whole series, both ShinMegamiTensei and Persona, are made twice as awesome with the intricate attention to detail Atlus gets for each game and make it awesome. And Kazuma Kaneko, Atlus' master artist, gets bonus points for having drawn and brought to life so many mythologies and pantheons with such care and details for years.
** DevilSurvivor, a relatively new spinoff, has some weird mechanics, but the result is par for the course for Atlus: they never settle for anything but the best.
* TraumaCenter deserves a spot on here. It's definitely a unique experience... instead of killing people left and right, you save them. Plus, Derek is adorable.
* [[@/DrZulu2010 This troper]] has played {{Catherine}} and swore to never remove it from his collection. The gameplay, albeit hard, was fun, the story kept me on the edges, the characters were fun and three dimentional and the voice acting was top notch. He never had fun with other games since this one and after a summer of disapointment (VideoGame/DukeNukemForever), he didn't regret his choice to buy it.
[[/folder]]

* ''SonicColors''. Just... ''SonicColors''. Take the best aspects of the already-good ''SonicUnleashed'', remove the worst parts of it, and add in exploration elements from ''SonicTheHedgehogCD'' and a powerup gimmick system that actually ''improves'' the overall gameplay, a lighthearted story with a hilarious script penned by the writers of ''{{Reboot}}'' and ''HappyTreeFriends'' ''and'' good voice acting, and you'll have ''the'' best ''{{Sonic}}'' game since [[VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog the]] [[SonicTheHedgehog2 Genesis]] [[VideoGame/Sonic3AndKnuckles titles.]]