True story: I hate IGN’s lists. Top 25 Whatever, Game of the Year, and so on -- they are my least favorite part of the job, and I’ve had to share a hotel room with Colin.
The trouble is that lists are limited and awesome works get ignored. And, as the Top 25 PS3 list has proven time and time again, no matter how much explanation we put into an introduction like this, people will ignore it and flame in the comments.
This is a list of my favorite games -- not “the best games.” I’ve eliminated multiples of the same franchise (Otherwise, Metal Gear Solid would be No. 2.), and I didn’t think too hard. I kind of took the “clear your head, list your games” approach. As such, I’m sure I left off games I’ve ranted about on Podcast Beyond and stumped for on Game Scoop. Sue me. These are the games that have defined my life, and I love them.
Ghostbusters - SEGA Master System
One random morning decades ago, my mother took me to Toys R Us to search for new Real Ghostbusters figures, and she made a wrong turn down the video game aisle. As we passed, the the familiar “no ghosts” logo caught my eye. I planted my feet, and I slammed my pudgy finger to the glass case. “I want that for my birthday,” I told my mother.
She explained to me what a video game was and that I need a console as well as the game, but that didn’t stop my wish. Months later, my parents rewarded me for surviving another 365 with the SEGA Master System, Uncle Mike gave me the game, and I was lost forever to the world of video games.
Now, Ghostbusters is actually a pretty dope game. You get to drive the Ecto-1, purchase better gear, and bust ghosts. But it’s not solely the mechanics that put it on my list; it’s the memories. My dad coaching me on when to run the Ghostbusters past the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man guarding Dana’s building, me scribbling down codes so I could start at a better spot on my next playthrough, and the chiptune version of Ray Parker Jr.’s classic.
I fell in love with video games because of Ghostbusters on the SEGA Master System.
The Death and Return of Superman - SEGA Genesis
I’m a DC Comics fanboy, and for years, nothing went right for me. Marvel was always having better events, Superman movies were always getting announced and never happening, and I was pretty much used to only Spider-Man getting decent games.
Then, one glorious day, The Death and Return of Superman was announced for the SNES and SEGA Genesis. And, just like Ghostbusters, it changed my life forever. When the issue of GamePro came with a two-page spread on the game, I read the magazine cover to cover every night for a month until it dawned on me that someone got paid to create the magazine. I marched into the kitchen and told my mom that I’d decided what I wanted to do with my life -- write about video games.
I was in the fourth grade.
Eventually, I nabbed a copy of The Death and Return of Superman for my Genesis, and for the first time, I saw one of my favorite DC Comics stories come to life on my tiny TV. The battle with Doomsday, the debut of my favorite comic character ever (Post-Crisis/Pre-New 52 Superboy), and the return -- it was all here and I played it from the left side of my screen to the right. Just beating the hell out of any villain that made the mistake to get in my way.
Was it the best beat ’em up on the market? Nah, but it was the one that meant the most to me.
Lumines - PSP
When I graduated college and was about to start my first job, I knew it was time for a dumb purchase. That purchase was a PSP, Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee, and Lumines. I played my fair share of Hot Shots, but Lumines is what dominated those final hot and sticky Missouri days between being a college kid and a member of the workforce.
It was a bit ridiculous. My then-girlfriend and I would sit in the living room passing the PSP back and forth. One of us would go for as long as he or she could while the other watched whatever he or she wanted on TV. The blocks would fill the screen, and we’d switch. In silence. She wasn’t a gamer.
That’s the thing about Lumines; it’s so simple that anyone can become obsessed with it. Technicolor blocks fall with infectious beats, and you have to match them up. Get as many matches as you can before the line sweeps by, erases them, and gives you a point bonus. Set the high score, do it again.
This was before Lumines had online leaderboards. We just played and played because it was that good.
Mario Kart: Double Dash! - Nintendo GameCube
When Mario Kart: Double Dash! arrived in 2003, the collective GPA of my house took a nosedive. It was all we did. On a “huge” CRT TV in the living room, Mario Kart blasted from 9 a.m. until 3 a.m. just about every day. We were a house of seven plus girlfriends plus random friends. Pizzas came, Wavebirds went, and if you came in fourth, you passed the controller to the next person on deck.
We were obsessed. I saw blue shells and perfect Baby Park runs when I closed my eyes. I remember going to dinner with my then-girlfriend, both of us finishing the Chinese food in front of us as fast as possible, and then taking off to get back to the competition at home.
The GameCube was built for multiplayer experiences like Mario Kart: Double Dash.
Infamous - PlayStation 3
My love for Infamous and the emotions I have tied up in it are well documented on IGN, but I’m not going to miss an opportunity to tell you about how much I adore this game from Sucker Punch.
I’m a big ol’ comic nerd and a big ol’ video game dork, but the two don’t have a stellar history of team-ups. So when PlayStation said it was bringing a “choose-your-own-adventure” comic game to the PlayStation 3, I held my breath. But playing Infamous brought my dreams to life. Taking Cole from one end of Empire City to the other, arguing with Trish, making decisions that radically affected the ending -- it’s what I wanted out of a comic book game.
Lots of times, I talk about not being able to find a game to fit the particular mood I’m in, but Infamous fit the bill for the game I had been wanting my entire life.
Patapon 2 - PSP
I remember when Jeff Haynes dropped off a UMD for the original Patapon on my desk with little fanfare. That night I played it, and I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears. The game mixed adorable characters with infectious beats and really deep RPG mechanics. I was instantly in love, and when Sony rolled out the sequel with a more sensical leveling system, I couldn’t get enough.
I forget the hundreds of hours I poured into Patapon 2, but I know I loved every one of them. Forming my group, taking on monsters, and always looking for that next amazing weapon. Patapon 3 added online multiplayer and is undoubtedly a better game, but Patapon 2 gets the title of “my favorite” because it was so perfect at the time.
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception - PlayStation 3
It’s probably my most polarizing review at IGN, but I stand by everything I said about Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. It’s the perfect example of why I play video games. It’s pretty, it’s engaging, and it’s fun to play. I was grinning the entire time I was behind the sticks, and I was surprised over and over again.
That’s always my argument when people want me to justify why Uncharted 3 is better than Uncharted 2. I felt Uncharted 2 was predictable from beginning to end -- mainly because it was beat for beat Uncharted 1. That guy’s going to betray you, here comes Elena, and here’s the supernatural twist. Uncharted 3 doesn’t get the credit it deserves for focusing on Sully and Nate, throwing you the throwback curveball, and toying with what you thought was the supernatural stuff at the end.
In the end, every Uncharted game is an awesome time, but Uncharted 3 is the one I remember finishing, watching the credits, and grinning like an idiot.
Super Mario World - SNES
As I’ve said a few times in this list, I was a SEGA kid. Period. End of statement. So, when I spent a summer hanging out with Matt Noel, I picked up his worn SNES controller with a scoff and turned on Super Mario World ready to tear it apart.
Instead, I was floored. I played it everyday that summer, and when it was time to go back to school, I went to Funcoland, traded in a bunch of junk, and bought an SNES with Super Mario World.
The cape, the secrets, and colors -- I couldn’t get enough. I played it each and every night while listening to Weezer’s ‘Pinkerton’ on repeat. To this day, I can’t hear “Tired of Sex” or see Super Mario World without associating the other.
It’s probably the best game I’ve ever played from a gameplay perspective. Tight, responsive, challenging -- Super Mario World is so good.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Nintendo 64
A Blockbuster Video was going out of business in my neighborhood, and I saw a gold cartridge for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for, like, $5. I told my Zelda-obsessed friend, Mike, about it, and he chastised me for not picking it up.
I basically did it out of spite. Mike had been playing Zelda for months on his N64, and when I’d come over for ECW and pizza, I’d have to watch him fight some spider and argue with Jason about if it was “GanonDORF” or Ga-NON-dorf.”
I was sick of Zelda without ever picking up the controller. But finally, I let Mike lend me his cartridge and fell for his “Just try it.” The next thing I knew, it was 3 in the morning the day I needed to take the ACT.
The N64 was my first real Nintendo machine (I bought that SNES for Mario and never played another thing on it), so this was my first Zelda. I knew nothing of this legacy, and suddenly, I was in Hyrule field and writing college application essays comparing and contrasting Hyrule with and without those moaning zombies.
The story, gameplay and scope or Ocarina of Time blew me away and made me a Zelda a fan for the rest of my life.
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker - PSP
For years, Metal Gear Solid has been my favorite game of all time. It’s a game that came around right when I was starting to feel like I was “out growing” games -- that everything was just cartoony platforming. We rented Metal Gear Solid one night, and the production values and story showed me the power of video games and where the industry was going. Just like Ghostbusters and The Death and Return of Superman, Metal Gear Solid saved me and ensured that I wasn’t going anywhere but where games were going.
That’s a huge legacy for any game to overcome, but Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker did it. It took the feelings and love I had for the PlayStation One Metal Gear Solid, and built on it.
Peace Walker stripped away the nonsense that Metal Gear’s story had become and reminded me of how good Hideo Kojima is. You’re Big Boss. Your mentor might be alive. Go find out. That’s the story, and it’s awesome, but it’s mixed with amazing comic cutscenes, excellent voice acting, and plenty of secrets.
Plus, it was built for the PSP in every way. Long after I finished the campaign, I was still playing. I was pinging random wifi I passed on the train to recruit new soldiers to send out on Outer Ops missions, I was replaying boss fights to improve my personal Metal Gear, and I was trying to master every quest in the game.
Thanks to its story, art, mission structure, replayability, and so much more, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is my favorite game of all time. And I’m old.
All month long - our favorite video games of all-time:
Greg is a host at IGN. You can catch him weekly on Podcast Beyond and Up at Noon. Keep track of Greg's daily shenanigans on Twitter. Beyond!
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