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[ohlawd]

UHHHHHH I'm sorry Ani

This gen is so tough. Struggling what to keep in my top 10 and honorable mentions.

10. Trauma Team ; The last story arc destroyed me. I was distraught for a week or so. It's a game and all and it's got no basis in reality but man I wish surgeries were this fast and effective in real life.

9. Project Zero 2: Wii Edition ; Took some time getting used to the motion controls but it soon turned second nature to me. My favorite Fatal Frame game. Imported this classic for $33 CAD from EU and honestly that price was such a steal. Felt like I was robbing someone.

8. 999: 9 Hours, 9 Persons, 9 Doors ; I'm not even afraid to admit I got one of the bad endings and I decided to not sleep the rest of the night. Zero Escape peaked here.

7. Monster Hunter Tri ; Reeeeally got me into the series. Earned so much goodwill from me that unless Capcom screws up the pooch hard, I'll always be a MH fan. The action is top notch and the crafting system is unmatched.

6. Xenoblade Chronicles ; Now this is an open world game that succeeds at making the world come to life. Fantastic RPG and definitely worth the hype after NA didn't get this gem years after the fact.

5. Call of Duty: Black Ops ; Have about 30 days worth of playtime. The only CoD with good maps to play Domination in. Had a great time wrecking pubs with my two high school mates. I miss them.

4. Final Fantasy XIII ; Funnest combat in the series thus far. Made me realize most open world games are boring af. Linear games rule, I can spend 20 minutes in this game and know I definitely made progress. Had a lot of fun getting the Platinum. Took me 10 days from launch and it was oh so worth it. Lightning still my queen <3

3. Atelier Meruru: The Apprentice of Arland ; Still the best Atelier. There's something about the main character that is very endearing to me. She's a princess, but she's not spoiled and tries her very best to aid the people she rules over. So for me it was a joy to watch the ingame year fly by and watch the fruits of her labor bear fruit. Atelier's signature alchemy system was perfect here.

2. Super Mario Galaxy ; Slightly worse than #1.

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ; Best platformer ever made.

x. Donkey Kong Country Returns ; I was so frustrated in the last world that I couldn't play this game for months. No hard feelings though. Retro Studios' first foray in 2D platformers and they nailed it nicely.
x. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption ; The pointer controls are so freaking good. My go-to defense for motion controls.
x. No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle ; I remember playing the intro while my friend's dad was watching and uhhh yeah no words were said.
x. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword ; Say what you want about the use of motion controls here but they worked really nicely and elevated the game for me.

x. Ys Seven ; Party-based Ys is so much more fun than lone edgelord Adol Ys games.
x. Jeanne d'Arc ; One scene bothered me so dang much it's left an impression on me that I don't think will ever fade away.
x. Valkyria Chronicles II ; I liked this better than the first one, no joke. Nothing wrong with the high school setting, seriously. Cosette's hips laaaaaaaawd
x. Valkyria Chronicles III ; Best VC game.
x. Persona 3 Portable ; Definitive version of Persona 3. I'll take the QoL improvement of text-based game map over an explorable world any day of the week.
x. The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky ; The exposition goes overboard at times but the characters save it. Played it at a time where I was a bit more tolerant of slow going games but as the sequel proved, I just don't have the patience anymore.

x. The World Ends With You ; Has the most unique gameplay out of any of the games on this list. That "sequel" announcement triggers me even today.
x. Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey ; Dropped it once because I got lost and didn't know where to go. Started over years later with the intention that I take it seriously and make it to the finish line. The game never lets up and truthfully I'm glad it never did. I was very proud of myself after beating the final boss. One of Atlus' best games.
x. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Trials and Tribulations ; Best AA game. A real roller coaster of a read.
x. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ; The last few hours of the game are something special to behold. I think I held my head in disbelief multiple times at the sight of what I was playing.
x. Radiant Historia ; It's kinda nice when you've got a MC like Stocke so who is straight up real with their morals and values and stuff. Handles the multiple timelines well.
x. Pokemon Platinum ; I can't ever slight Pearl because that was my first DS game and I put in an unruly amount of hours into it in spite of the quality but Platinum redeems Diamond/Pearl in every way possible. Best game of 4th generation Pokemon.
x. Pokemon Black/White 2 ; I think above all else I was really impressed by how well it kept its quality from start to finish. Best 5th gen game and is an easy contender for best mainline Pokemon game
x. Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City ; On my first run I played in a way that most people saved for subsequent runs. Worth it tho. That final boss WHEW

x. Red Dead Redemption ; Last act really surprised me at how well it tied up all the events that happened at the start and middle acts.
x. Mass Effect 2 ; Enjoyed it when I played it on my toaster laptop but avg 20 FPS is not something I'd wish for my worst enemies.
x. Atelier Totori: The Adventurer of Arland ; After Rorona which seemed like a warmup for Gust, they went all out on the sequel. Bigger worlds, more elaborate alchemy, all culminated together for a grandiose adventure.
x. Ateler Escha & Logy: Alchemists of the Dusk Sky ; Needed this from Gust when I was a tad bit disappointed in its predecessor, Ayesha.
x. God of War III ; A stepback from II. Traded some substance for spectacle but it's cool. Every time I lent the game out friends would call and tell me they creamed themselves at the intro with Poseidon
x. Bayonetta ; At the time was the best character action game. Still up there almost a decade later.
x. Folklore ; Sooo underrated. Was the third game I finished on PS3 after God of War II HD and Enchanted Arms and I was impressed with the art design.
x. Catherine ; Katherine > Catherine. One of these days I'm gonna learn myself up on advanced techs and do the optional content.

 

[AniHawk]

I have to say I was dissapointed with this generation compared to the previous one, despite the graphical and animation improvements. One reason I stuck to indie games or middleware titles

1. Blackwell games
(Legacy, Unbound, Convergence, Deception)

Despite being a point and click adventure game following the 90s formula, it deserves to be in the all time classics. I do not include the final chapter which was released later. Story, characters, dialogues, humor, emotion were among the best I've seen, even surpassing million dollar productions. I'll never forget those games.

sorry, but you will need to make a choice on these. it'll have to be one or maybe all of them, but it can't occupy the same spot.

 

[Tamanator]

1. Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii) : The game that helped return my love of console gaming. Perhaps it was simply due to releasing at the right time in my life, but before Skyward Sword I had retreated from serious console gaming, sticking to online multiplayer PC games like WoW and StarCraft II. Looking for news of Skyward Sword is what led me to begin joining online gaming forums and served to expose me to many other Wii games that I had missed and ignited the growth in my games library. I would have never discovered Xenoblade Chronicles among other games that our now some of my favourite titles that I've played. So whilst I am in the minority that loves Skyward Sword, its impact to me spreads beyond its quality as a game.
2. Dragon Age Origins (PC) : The game that helped develop my love of RPGs, both Japanese and Western. I remain disappointed that in my eyes, Bioware has yet to replicate the heights they reached with Origins with its fantastic combat system together with its compelling narrative and interesting characters.
3. Xenoblade Chronicles (Wii) : The music, the narrative and world building all combine to create an experience that I will never forget. Whilst I am still yet to finish this game, a fact I hope to change with the 3DS version soon, Xenoblade solidified my return to console gaming that Skyward Sword began. Before playing it, I had an aversion to non-turn based JRPGs. However the game's combat system quickly became one of my favourites.
4. Rugby League 3 (Wii - PAL exclusive) : No doubt this will be the only mention of this game in this esteemed thread. As a sports title, it is the definition of low budget and lacking in features, yet my brother and I poured hundreds of hours into playing it. If we weren't diehard Rugby League fans I'm sure we would agree with the majority of gamers that its underwhelming but it still remains our favourite Rugby League game, not that there's much competition.
5. Darksiders (PC) : I picked Darksiders up not expecting much. I found it for a cheap price and had heard good things about it from Good Game (an ABC TV show that most Australians on here will remember). It proceeded to exceed all my expectations, reviving my love of Zelda formula after I was disappointed by Twilight Princess. That the franchise continues to exist after the death of THQ and the breakup of the development studio serves as a testament to the greatness of Darksiders.
6. Elite Beat Agents (DS) : This is a game that I never expected loving to the degree I do. I encountered a friend playing it on his R4 chip, and was intrigued enough to try it myself. I instantly fell in love with the rhythm genre after playing it. It is a game that I continue to pull out and play to this day. However, Jumping Jack Flash can go die in a fie.
7. Mario Galaxy (Wii) : What you expect from a 3D Mario game. A near flawless experience that grabs your attention and doesn't let go till you've completed the game.
8. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty (PC) : I was still in high school when Wings of Liberty hit, and it was a game that a large portion of my year level bought and played. I have many fond memories playing with friends from school, as well as friends from primary school that I hadn't been in contact for years. Not to mention the single player campaign, which despite its many detractors I enjoyed immensely.
9. World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade (PC) : For the majority of the early years the Gen 7, my gaming time was consumed by World of Warcraft. I have numerous fond memories with Burning Crusade, trying to gear up for heroics and then raids together with playing with people I befriended whilst playing Age of Empires II in the old MSN Zone days. The downside to this obsession is that for years after, I continued to return to WoW in an attempted to relive the glory days. Aside from a half a year during Wrath of the Lich King, I was never able to recapture the love for WoW I once held. It wasn't till Warlords of Draenor that I finally decided to stop trying to fall in love with it again.
10. Pokémon: Heart Gold/Soul Silver (DS) : Until Pokémon Sun this was my favourite entry in the series. The original Pokémon games played a large part in my early childhood, together with the trading cards and anime, so it would be difficult for me to have any top 10 list without a Pokémon game. Plus Heart Gold has Voltorb flip, what more do you need?

x. Battlefield: Bad Company II (PC): Bad Company II earns an honourable mention simply due to the fact that it remains one of my favourite single player campaigns in a first person shooter. It contains some brilliant set piece moments, whilst the multiplayer was able to hold its own. The last Battlefield game that I fully enjoyed.
x. Super Smash Bros Brawl: Until the release of Smash Wii U, this game was played ad naseum whenever I had friends over and went to a friend's place. Whilst mechanically melee may be superior, Brawl will always hold a place in my heart as I'll never forget the 10 hour play session I had with a group of friends when it first released.
x. The Witcher: After playing Dragon Age Origins, I was looking for another RPG to play. The Witcher, whilst paling in comparison offers an intriguing narrative that was worth experience, even if it had lacklustre combat. The game that started a phenomenal series that improved with every entry.
x. Alpha Protocol: My last honourable mention, Alpha Protocol is the James Bond game that I always wanted. Whilst it includes numerous bugs and was clearly rushed for release, what remains is a game that should be played by any James Bond enthusiast or those who enjoy spy thrillers. I'll never forget struggling to defeat one of the bosses in the game who was a Russian mobster. Despite my best efforts, I kept on failing till during by sixth attempt he got stuck in a wall so I was able to continue to shoot him until he died. Thanks Obsidian.

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

Where does The Orange Box fall in this? It contains three games from past gens, but Team Fortress 2 and Portal were specifically for that package.

 

[AniHawk]

Where does The Orange Box fall in this? It contains three games from past gens, but Team Fortress 2 and Portal were specifically for that package.

either one is fine, since each game was released separate of the orange box during the generation.

 

[chrixter]

1. Super Mario Galaxy ; My favorite game. Grand and magical.

2. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ; Improved level design - perhaps the best ever. Just not quite as epic an adventure.

3. Deus Ex: Human Revolution ; As my introduction to the immersive sim genre, it was a relevation in game design to me.

4. Dishonored ; Sublime supernatural stealth action. Essential DLC.

5. The Last of Us ; The best in cinematic storytelling that video games has to offer.

6. Kirby's Epic Yarn ; Its cozy presentation and easygoing gameplay melt my heart every time.

7. Portal 2 ; More elaborate puzzle design and sharper writing than the first. Superb co-op campaign.

8. BioShock ; Rapture is unforgettable.

Can't decide between my remaining favorites for the last couple spots. This generation was too great.

 

[petran79]

sorry, but you will need to make a choice on these. it'll have to be one or maybe all of them, but it can't occupy the same spot.

Done. I picked one game only

 

[Huge Succeeded]

Welp, switching out XCOM is going to be a lot harder than I thought.

I'm thinking I'll bump God of War 3 up to place 9, and sub in a game for place 10 that I genuinely believe sucks ass out of the box, but becomes transcendent with mods. That's fine, right?

 

[AniHawk]

Welp, switching out XCOM is going to be a lot harder than I thought.

I'm thinking I'll bump God of War 3 up to place 9, and sub in a game for place 10 that I genuinely believe sucks ass out of the box, but becomes transcendent with mods. That's fine, right?

you can also not list ten games. all i ask is really a minimum of three.

 

[AniHawk]

Done. I picked one game only

thanks - i added your list to the total!

 

[AniHawk]

This is way too tough. Luckily for me it's only DS and Wii. This list is in no way accurate in the sense that if I done it tomorrow the results will probably be completely different! Oh well here goes.

1. Pokemon White 2
2. Super Mario Galaxy
3. Super Mario Galaxy 2
4. Pokemon Soul Silver
5. 42 All Time Classics (Clubhouse Games)
6. Picross DS
7. Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow
8. Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney
9. Mario Kart Wii
10. Super Smash Bros. Brawl

6,7 and 8 are very special to me as they each got me into their series. I'd kill to have 5 on the Switch! How could I not put the best Pokemon game ever into #1?

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ;
2. Forza Horizon ;
3. Super Mario Galaxy ;
4. Portal 2 ;
5. Halo 3 ;
6. Bayonetta ;
7. Alan Wake ;
8. Dark Souls ;
9. Mass Effect 2 ;
10. Blazblue Calamity Trigger ;

To be edited

please be sure to include a reason for the games as mentioned in the op.

 

[AniHawk]

this generation started just as i entered college and was beginning to be replaced a few months before i found full-time employment. this is where i really started to understand my tastes better and as a result, i was more interested in exploring certain genres and more willing to let others slide (sorry, shooters). looking back, the political landscape of it was about as bad as i felt it was with so many studio closures and bankruptcies. however it's hard to deny the quality that came out during this period - a mix of ultra-refined games and experimental new games that hadn't really happened in a decade. all-in-all, this might be my favorite time for gaming.

honorable mentions:
x. Burnout Paradise ; this is more or less an action-adventure game with cars.
x. Vanquish ; vanquish was the bayonetta of cover-based shooters - making everything you did into an incredible spectacle.
x. Sonic Colors ; sonic rush and sonic advance are not bad games, but sonic colors for wii was the return to form the series needed that i was not expecting. it's been my measuring stick for sonic games since then.
x. Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time ; the end of the ratchet & clank series as far as i'm concerned. recent efforts to revive the series and keep it going have not been as strong as this title, which was sony's best release in 2009 by a good measure.
x. Portal ; i remember seeing portal in 2005 and thinking 'this is next gen'. the idea of being able to use portals like the original training video blew my mind, and the resulting game having more than just puzzles, but a story and a sense of humor and a sense of urgency was a real treat.
x. Rayman Origins ; michel ancel's return to rayman was completely unexpected but incredibly awesome.
x. New Super Mario Bros. Wii ; i just liked the level design a lot. i think if this was the first game in the series and not the unfortunately dull ds title, the nsmb series would have had a better reputation.
x. Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney ; early in the ds's life, games were weird. you had lost in blue - a survival game, yoshi touch & go - an endless runner, and then this thing - a lawyer game. i didn't know that phoenix wright was part of an already ongoing series in japan and that it was a port of a gba title, but to me i can't see it in any other way. even with its most recent release, i can't help but yell 'objection!' at the very end. unraveling tales of deceit and taking down villains in a logical, legal way is so damn satisfying.
x. Half-Life 2: Episode 2 ; this is the game where alyx vance got to shine. it also felt like half-life was really starting to go places. hey, maybe we'll learn more on the 10th anniversary later this year.
x. Sin & Punishment: Star Successor ; when your title screen fucking rocks, you know the game is going to be a good time. it's one of the 2010 crew that really shines.
x. NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits ; the music probably has a lot to do with it, but i loved this wii platformer a lot. like a lot of wii games, i was drawn to the pointer controls and their use with puzzles in combination with traditional gameplay.
x. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption ; by far the last of the trilogy.
x. Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia: more than the other castlevanias, this one really clicked for me. it was almost like a 2d bayonetta before there was a 2d bayonetta. or a 3d bayonetta.
x. Braid ; time travel and platforming: a winning combination!

the list:

10. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain ; i played this on ps3 and it was sort of my swan song for the generation. the game lets you listen to 'the heat of the moment' as you take down enemy camps. name another stealth game that is actually that good. it's not metal gear solid 4, a game i've never played, i'll tell you that.

9. Bayonetta ; i think bayonetta is one of those titles that helps define 2010 as one of those classic years in gaming. the control over how bayonetta fights was not what i was expecting out of action games, my most recent comparison being sony's god of war. it was shocking how good it felt to discover combos, with freedom given over what she held in her hands and what went on her feet, plus whatever moves you could unlock on top of that or what weapons you could pick up from fallen enemies.

8. Infinite Space ; this is like if someone saw gurren lagann and decided to make a game about it. except the game had compelling characters you cared about. even though it looks like a playstation game, and the gameplay is basically rock-paper-scissors, there's a lot of fun in building your space fleet, equipping your ship with upgrades, and putting the right crew in place. it also features one of the more gripping finales i've played in a game that resonates with me ten years later.

7. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ; it has a fairly rough start, but the dungeon design is fantastic and there's actually a surprising amount of things to do. playing this on the wii with the superiorest motion controls was a revelation, especially with the double-clawshots in the city in the sky.

6. Xenoblade Chronicles ; after a couple years of talking this game up as something fantastic, i wasn't expecting to love it so much. more than any other game this generation, this scratched the itch for a big explorable world that many people probably got out of skyrim and fallout. for me it was the level of detail in the battle system, social links, and equipment that kept me interested for 120 hours.

5. 999: Nine Persona, Nine Hours, Nine Doors ; hey everybody, here's how you use video games to tell a story. play it on the ds or 3ds if you want it done right.

4. Team Fortress 2 ; after about 500 hours on xbox 360 i put in another 1,000 or so hours on the pc during this generation. capture the flag and capture point (especially dustbowl) were a lot of fun, but payload really opened things up for me. this is the only multiplayer game where i've let myself get good at certain classes, and i could play a mean spy in my prime.

3. Valkyria Chronicles ; the actual real sequel to skies of arcadia that is definitely actually a sequel to skies of arcadia was a big surprise. sega hit all the right marks with this game, from a presentation that allowed the player to discover or skip the story as they pleased, to a new kind of japanese strategy rpg. it just feels good - pitting a small nation against a large one, making every battle feel vital and crucial, so that every win has weight and importance. rescuing downed friends in the heat of battle feels like a major choice, and running from unstoppable foes feels like desperate struggles. it's a real shame there was never a sequel released out in the west.

2. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ; smg2 feels like the full game to the prototype that was super mario galaxy. the challenges are more difficult and involving than its predecessor, and better yet, the green stars are more than just retreads with a different character. instead they challenge your knowledge of the level design and the skills you built in the first 120 challenges, turning the main part of the game into a tutorial.

1. Mirror’s Edge ; i love that the trends of the time don't dictate the flow of the game either. don't want to shoot people? you don't have to. don't like the story? skip as much as you like! this was a game that the more i played it, the more i liked. sure, i loved each level of the campaign, with the beautiful soundtrack by solar fields, but mirror's edge really improves when you get to the time trials, and discover how open the level design was and just how skilled you can become. by the time you return to the campaign, stringing together all the techniques and shortcuts you knew, it feels like a proper endurance test - a final culmination of all your new skills and knowledge. there wasn't a platformer like this in a generation of amazing games.

 

[haikira]

EDIT: Responded to a comment without properly reading it. Please ignore me. I'm dumb.

 

[neurosisxeno]

1. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3) - There is a lot that can be said about the Call of Duty series, but it wasn't always the annual punching bag like it has become, and that all started with CoD4. CoD4 completely revolutionized the way online FPS's were designed and played, and arguably was a massive leap forward in design. Every game since has taken a little bit from what CoD4 did, and some with great success. For me personally, it was the game that lead to me buying a PS3, because at the time it was all my friends played. I would go so far as to say that it was the game that really helped cement online play as the feature that would define the 7th Generation of console games. Yea, CoD4 might not have sold the most copies, or had the best review scores, or been the best game of the generation, but I think it was so successful in influencing the way other developers created games, that it really was the game that set the bar for the entire generation.

2. DotA 2 (PC) - The past 8-10 years have seen an absolutely monumental increase in the publicity and money invested in the world of Esports, and I like to think a huge part of that is thanks to DotA 2. In 2011 Valve kicked off the DotA 2 Open Beta, and tens of thousands of DotA fans got to work rebuilding a community that had been ripped to shreds by competing titles in the ARTS/MOBA space and outright sabotage. DotA 2 kicked off with The International 2011, which was a $1,600,000 tournament with a $1,000,000 grand prize. Since then DotA 2 has absolutely shattered prize pool records year after year, and has gone through hundreds of revisions, but it all started in 2011. DotA 2 is the only game on this list I still regularly play, and it has had a massive impact on the rabid growth within the Esports world.

3. World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (PC) - World of Warcraft in modern society is a very polarizing game, but around the time its first expansion--The Burning Crusade--launched it was quickly growing into the most popular MMORPG on the market. Few games have made the kind of in your face introduction that The Burning Crusade did. From the moment you stepped through the Dark Portal, you knew you weren't in Kansas anymore. You're immediately greeted by the twisted landscape of Hellfire Peninsula, with hordes of massive Demons fighting their way to the Portal, lightning crackling through the sky and chaotic meteors occasionally shooting across, and giant metal constructs stomping around ready to kill you in an instant if you get too close. The game oozed style, and it was not afraid to make you work for what you wanted and suffer through hours of grinding. But there was something very unique about TBC. Where Vanilla WoW was focused on Dragons and Elementals, TBC decided to go completely off the rails with a focus on Demons and Space Monsters. The weapons and armor were vibrant colors and often looked as though they had a mind of their own. Where Vanilla was very much focused on a Fantasy world, TBC wasn't afraid to take chances and shove you into a world filled with Demons fighting Naga fighting Elves fighting Draenei. TBC was chaos. At a time when MMORPG's were fairly rigid, WoW:TBC was not afraid to completely go off the rails, and it is fondly remembered by many to this day because of it.

4. Fallout 3 (PS3) - I feel like Fallout 3 was the game that sold people on the 7th Generation. There were a few impressive games here and there, but nothing made a huge splash until Fallout 3 launched. And it was for good reason, it was a fantastic game, and quite the return for a franchise that had been without a proper installation for 10 years. I would go so far as to say that Fallout 3 expanded the brand more than any game in the series, and brought it very much into the mainstream, and marked the beginning of an industry wide shift towards open-world 3D games with highly detailed environments.

5. World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King (PC) - Almost 2 years after the launch of The Burning Crusade, Blizzard launched its successor, Wrath of the Lich King. A return to Azeroth and finally a conclusion to the story of Warcraft III, lead to WotLK being the most successful WoW expansion by a fair amount. It also lead to the highest number of subscribers WoW has ever seen, and for good reason, WotLK was the complete package. TBC proved that Blizzard wasn't screwing around in the MMO space, and laid the groundwork and will probably always be fondly remembered by more people, but WotLK was a fantastic time to be a WoW player. WotLK brought us some of the most interesting and unique content WoW has ever seen, and it's mostly because WotLK was an expansion where Blizzard just would not stop experimenting with things. They introduced Phasing and Vehicles and tinkered around with Raid Sizes and Loot Lists, the tried having an entire Raid that took place in a single Arena, they had a capital city that floated above an entire zone and was so resource heavy it forced them to abandon planned content for that entire zone. WotLK is for all intents and purposes, a huge mess. But it brought a lot of features that people take for granted these days, both in WoW and in every competing MMORPG on the market. Add to all that a sense of conclusion for the story that started in WC3, and it's easy to see why WotLK was simultaneously reviled by some players but also the most played version of WoW to date.

6. Wii Sports (Wii) - Few launch titles have the kinds of impact that Wii Sports had. It was both incredibly simple and a ton of fun, while doing an amazing job playing to the Wii's strengths. It's probably the only Wii game that I really loved, and it's impossible to deny its significance within the 7th Gen.

7. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (PC) - Few games have the kind of success that Skyrim saw. It was an absolute phenomenal success, to the point where it is still being remastered and re-released on just about every system they can get it on. The combination of a detailed open-world and the introduction of Dragons succeeded in drawing people to Tamriel in flocks. Skyrim has a lot of short-comings, and the base game looks and runs pretty poorly, but the raw potential of the game was clear from day one, and no Elder Scrolls game has seen the kind of widespread success that Skyrim has.

8. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (PC) - The 2000's were absolutely dominated by Call of Duty, and the only series to give it a serious run for its money was Battlefield. The two have been compared more times than I care to admit, but the bottom line is, CoD was winning the popularity game several times over--CoD4 was a smash hit, MW2 was an absolutely massive success, and in the meantime Battlefield had struggled to find a place for itself. Then came BFBC2. It was the game that basically shut off my interest in CoD games. The team-oriented squad-based play, the impressive destructible environments, the huge sprawling landscape--BC2 was a very impressive game when it launched. It was the first game that, while having some similar systems to the newer CoD games, didn't feel like a mediocre copy of them. I have probably put more time into BC2 than any other Battlefield game, and it's for a good reason--it's a damn good game.

9. Demon's Souls (PS3) - I'm going to be honest, I want to say I hate Demon's Souls so badly. This game made me throw my controller in fits of rage and question if I was just bad at video games. It made me swear and yell, and I gave up on it more times than I can remember. That being said, I cannot deny that Demon's Souls was a very important title of this generation. It kicked off the Souls frenzy that is still going strong, and brought us some beloved titles which took the ideas from Demon's Souls, and fine tuned them into an amazing series of Action RPG's. But seriously, just remembering the time I spent playing this game raises my blood pressure a bit.

10. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3) - Where CoD4 revolutionized the modern combat FPS, MW2 mastered it. There's an argument to be made that MW2 was just more of the same, but I say it was more of a refining of everything that CoD4 introduced into an incredibly fun game. The campaigns on both games had their moments, but where both really excelled was the multiplayer, and It's tough to find a game in this generation that was as fun to play over PSN/Xbox Live.

Honorable Mentions:
x. Minecraft (PC)
x. League of Legends (PC)
x. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
x. Dark Souls (PS3)
x. Fallout: New Vegas (PS3)
x. The Last of Us (PS3)
x. Red Dead Redemption (PS3)
x. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (PC)
x. Crysis (PC)
x. Star Wars: The Old Republic (PC)

 

[AniHawk]

I'll be interested in seeing the vote between Trauma Center and Trauma Team.

so far no one's really voting for trauma team. there's a surprising amount of wii representation though.

 

[Darkstorne]

I can't possibly list 10. Not that there weren't that many amazing games, but that trying to create a hierarchy is impossible for me to commit to =P I value experimentation and evolution in games far more than polish, so this list might look weird to some people. Hopefully it'll make sense with the comments though, because even though there may be sequels to these games that improve on almost everything, it takes a lot more heart and guts to create something new and refreshing than it does to iterate.

6. Crysis ; This series lives on through Far Cry to me, and for the life of me I can't figure out why Crytek dropped the ball so hard and missed why people loved this game so much. Sure the visuals were insane and it was fun to benchmark, but the best part was the open world play-how-you-want gameplay that was so damn dynamic and interactive that it led to memorable set-piece quality battles that were completely unique to each player.

5. Mirror's Edge ; Absolutely amazing for trying something completely new. I'm still mad about the need to shoe-horn combat and guns into a first person game that really didn't need them, which is why this game isn't higher on the list, but I loved how great this game felt when you were constantly moving and flowing through levels. Art direction was top notch as well.

4. Assassin's Creed ; Yep, the original. Parkour in a video game? Grabbing on to any element of the environment that protruded more than two inches? Environments so rich and detailed that the game was practically historical tourism and encouraged players to learn about landmarks and historical events while playing? A (mostly) historically accurate story about defending the middle east from western religious terrorists, in today's political climate? That takes some HUGE balls to pull off. Makes me very glad to see a video game reminding people that anything that's happening today pales in comparison to the atrocities the western world inflicted on the middle east during the Crusades, all in the name of a god.

3. Skyrim ; Yep, okay, not a whole lot of innovation here, so this is definitely the odd one out. But there's still a huge amount of new work going on here that we take for granted today. Remember that old leveling system from Morrowind and Oblivion, where simply playing the game naturally would screw you over when you slept to level up for minimal stat gains? Remember a time in TES before you got to pick perks at every level up? Thank Talos those systems are behind us. And there's a lot to be said for how well the dragons in this game worked, offering set piece quality battles that all happened dynamically, which is something I hadn't experienced since Crysis. It's mainly here because Steam says I've logged around 900 hours into this beast, and I swear there are still dungeons I've never entered... I still haven't even begun the Dark Brotherhood quest line =/

2. The Witcher 2 ; This one is difficult to put into words. It's not just the maturity and complexity of the story that makes me adore this game for assuming I can use my brain, but the maturity of relationships as well. I can't think of any game that's handled them as well as TW2 did prior to this game releasing, and I'll bet it was a huge influence on how relationships and nudity were handled in Dragon Age Inquisition. Nice to see Bioware raising their game to meet the challenge. Most importantly though is the sheer amount of choices with meaningful consequences. The entire second chapter of this game (out of three!) can be different on a second playthrough. Different location, different cast, different story and side quests. That is absolutely insane.

1. Mass Effect ; I know a lot of people love Mass 2 for the characters and the combat, but Mass 1 did so many "firsts" that went on to become industry standards that I can't praise it enough. Those of you who were there to jump from the PS2 gen to this one, and knew what RPG dialogue and combat was like before Mass 1 will understand. The dialogue wheel (love it or hate it) was groundbreaking for keeping players engaged in the moment and keeping the dialogue flowing without awkward pauses while you read over all your options. The camera work was sublime, featuring shot reverse shot techniques that are so normal in games today you won't even notice, but for Mass Effect's time it just... didn't happen. Not in EVERY single dialogue scene in the entire game. And finding a way to make real time action combat with guns work in an RPG so damn well, even though it seems dated by today's standards, was damn impressive back in 2007. There's just a whole lot of things that Mass Effect did to elevate the RPG genre as a whole, and it really did set the benchmark for that generation's standard. It's the kind of thing The Witcher 3 has done for RPGs of this generation, and the kind of thing Andromeda failed to do (which was trying to be so much like previous Mass Effect games it forgot to try and be what made the series so impressive: breakthrough RPGs for a new generation, not just holdovers from the previous gen).

 

[Huge Succeeded]

you can also not list ten games. all i ask is really a minimum of three.

word. duh. lol

 

[Regiruler]

1. Sin & Punishment: Star Successor ; An absolute masterpiece combination of light gun and rail shooter gameplay with a euphoric onslaught of fantastic bosses and a superb soundtrack.
2. Space Invaders Extreme 2 ; The only complaint I have with this game is that it might be too good.
3. Sonic Colors (Wii) ; Addicting level design, a spectacular soundtrack, great visuals, and some hilarious writing makes this a much-deserved return to form.
4. Pokemon Platinum ; Absolute perfection in world design and content, with the greatest combination of the old and new.
5. Bayonetta ; An incredibly addicting action game with some superb songs and lots of love.
6. Super Mario Galaxy
7. Metal Gear Rising ; See Bayonetta, but with slightly more consistent art direction but less interesting weapons.
8. Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia ; The final Castlevania title is one of the greatest DS games of all time, with fantastic bosses, beautiful art, and great weapons. The downside is that some of the sidequests can get a bit grindy.
9. Naruto Shipp&#363;den: Clash of Ninja Revolution 3 ; The Clash of Ninja series, also known by the japanese name Gekit&#333; Ninja Taisen, was the last hurrah for huge, mechanically sound 3D fighters. Incredibly easy to pick up and play yet offering a metric ton of variety in the characters, with an addicting flow of unlocking characters and modes.

so far no one's really voting for trauma team. there's a surprising amount of wii representation though.

Because it had a killer library, duh.

I'll admit I've never played Trauma series though, even though I'm aware it exists.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

1. Tactics Ogre: Best game gets even better. Being able to skip around the timeline is awesome.

2. X-com - still a pale comparison to the original. You don't lose half your team on the 1st turn. It definitely scratched the itch though.

3. Dragon Dogma: You can basically play as Guts from Berserk

 

[whatever6352]

1. The Last of Us - My favorite game ever. Everything about the game was perfection and one of the few games that I still revisit yearly and love even more after every playthrough.

2. Batman: Arkham City - The best superhero game ever made.

3. Fallout 3 - The game that put open world games on the map for me. I remember thinking why is my guy so slow not knowing I was over encumbered until my brother went to visit me a week later and asked me how long I had been playing like that.

4. Grand Theft Auto 5 - Far and away my favorite Rockstar game. The trio of Trevor, Franklin and Michael are some of the best characters in video game history.

5. Gears of War - I really enjoyed the characters, gameplay, and the guns.

6. Far Cry 3 - Remains my favorite Ubisoft game. The setting, the story, everything about this game was amazing.

7. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - Remains my favorite Uncharted game and am currently on my 5th playthrough of the game. The game is still every bit as good as it was back then.

8. Halo 3 - While I'm tired of the Halo/Gears/Forza trinity from Microsoft, this game is still a joy to play and remains one of my favorite FPS.

9. Mass Effect 2 - I enjoyed the original Mass Effect, but much like Uncharted it was the sequel that made me fall in love with the franchise.

10. Dishonored - Not a big fan of stealth based games, but this game was the one to break that trend. I really enjoyed the world and all the different options at my disposal.

Honorable Mentions: GTA 4, Dragon Age: Origins, The Walking Dead, Fable 2, TES Oblivion and Skyrim, Journey, Red Dead Redemption, Xenoblade Chronicles, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, Tomb Raider, Spec Ops: The Line, Ni No Kuni, Sleeping Dogs, Infamous 2, Heavy Rain, Halo 4, God of War 3, Fallout: New Vegas, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Valkyria Chronicles and Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

 

[Waluigilicious]

please be sure to include a reason for the games as mentioned in the op.

I did..

 

[Mr. Patch]

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ; One of the greatest platformers ever made. Mario controls well. The levels continuously throw new ideas at you and are well designed. The game isn't super hard but provides enough challenge. The soundtrack is great.

2. Bayonetta ; Bayonetta was the first time I really sat down and took my time with this style of action game. This game is tough and it beat my ass on the first playthrough, but it made me better because of it. The action is fast, but the game is fair enough to give you time to read and react to enemies. It gives you a lot of freedom with your combos and weapon choices.

3. Mirror's Edge ; A first person platformer/parkour game. Sure you can use guns but that's no fun. The game thrives on the player's ability to run and keep their speed up while navigating through obstacles. Plus, the art style is the definition of clean.

4. The Orange Box ; Half Life 2 (and it's episodes)? Fire. Portal? Fire. Team Fortress 2? Fire. And you get it all in ONE PACKAGE.

5. Mario Strikers Charged ; One of the greatest arcade sports titles in my opinion. The first was fun, but this game made gameplay improvements that made it addicting. All the characters have defined roles to play with unique abilities. It makes good use of the Wiimote by allowing players the opportunity to stop up to six mega strike goals. The new stages have their own little gimmicks to add variety (with past stages returning as well). And did I mention you can bash opponents into an electric fence?

6. Sonic Generations ; After that GODDAMN DEBACLE of a game for Sonic's 15th anniversary, the fans deserved this. The game improves on the boost formula from Unleashed and Colors and brought back classic Sonic as a playable character. Every level is a beautiful remake of levels from past Sonic games and there are challenges to complete that add replay value.

7. No More Heroes ; The gameplay, while flawed, always seems to pay off. You fuck around in an open world for a little bit and then do some odd job minigames for cash. Get your money up and pay for the right to take on the next level. Go through and brutally slice a bunch of goons into a bloody mess (and throw in some wrestling moves for good measure). Then, you take a shit and save your game. Then, it's on to an intense duel with a character who has the personality to make you interested in their story but the game leaves out enough to keep an air of mystery about them. The great boss fights make this game what it is. There are also some neat uses of the Wiimote with the phone calls before each boss and the... charging...

8. SSX ; This game is underrated in my opinion. The Deadly Descents add a little bit of variety, but the game is still the SSX I love at it's core. Big air, insane tricks, and lots of speed.

9. MadWorld ; The name of the game is to find creative ways to kill. The more stuff you do to your enemy, the more points you get. The game has a unique, black and white graphic novel look. It also has a great hip-hop soundtrack, which is a rarity for games. And I'm glad Platinum made the choice to use hip-hop music over doing something cliche like using metal.

10. Beyond Good and Evil HD ; I feel like an ass for not playing this game when it originally released. It's a great adventure game with good storytelling and an interesting world.

x. Double Dragon Neon
x. Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon
x. Pokemon Platinum
x. Dead Space
x. Tomb Raider

 

[GunBR]

Just one game per series on my list:

1. GTA V - Not as good as San Andreas, but after 150h playing the 360 version (and less than 3h on the MP) I'm pretty sure that this is the best game of this gen for me

2. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker HD - For a franchise with an incredible and crazy, is actually strange that the game with the second weakest plot (V is the worst) became one of my favorites.

3. Fallout: New Vegas - This game alone made me a Obsidian fan. Probably the best WRPG of all time. So bad that we probably won't get another great Fallout as this one.

4. Call of Duty: Black Ops - The COD franchise died for me after Ghosts, but in the last gen I was a huge fan and BLOPS will always be the best one for me. The best characters, a great online (and you can play against bots for training), and the zombie mode.

5. The Last of Us - The gameplay, the story, the pacing. This game is only 5th on my list, but it's one of the only ones that I can remember anything that was bad on him.

6. Assassins Creed II - There was a time when AC looked an amazing series for me. It only lasted two games (this one and Brotherhood), but I will always have my time in Italy with Ezio

7. Dark Souls 2 - Odd choice I know, but I had more fun with DS II than I.

8. Red Dead Redemption - Another master piece from R*. And the second best MP of the last gen for me (after COD)

9. Batman: Arkham City - A little better than Asylum in some areas and a little worst in another ones, but still the best super hero game of all time.

10. Bioshock - Infinite had a better (and crazy) story IMO, but enter Rapture for the first time is magical. And the Big Daddies are the best "boss" battle that I ever saw in an FPS


x. The Witcher 2 - Best fantasy RPG of the gen
x. Heavy Rain - The second half of the game is one of the best experiences that I have in my whole life as a gamer
x. Dead Space 2 - The true sequel to RE 4 for me
x. Max Payne 3 - Probably the most underrated game of the last gen. Amazing gameplay
x. Tomb Raider - For me, way better than Uncharted 2
x. Portal 2 - Probably the funniest game that I ever played
x. Hotline Miami - This was the game that made me lose my prejudice about indie games

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

so far no one's really voting for trauma team. there's a surprising amount of wii representation though.

I ignored it back when it first started, but seeing that posts reminds me that it's a genre I never played before and looks really different. I would love to play it someday.

 

[mrpookles]

1. Mass Effect ; It's aged badly, but the defining game of the generation for me.
2. Red Dead Redemption ; GTAV is the better overall game to me, but I've just got so many great memories in playing this.
3. Assassin's Creed 2 ; Still the pinnacle of the series for me. One of only 2 games I've ever bothered getting a Platinum trophy for.
4. Fallout 3 ; Again, New Vegas is a better overall game, but this was phenomenal when I first played it. Hours would disappear at a time for me.
5. The Last of Us ; I grew to properly appreciate this with time and after playing it again on PS4, but this is a masterpiece.
6. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim ; I put 150+ hours into Skyrim and I still get the itch to jump back in.
7. Modern Warfare 2 ; My favourite multiplayer game of all time. It was unbalanced and broken at times, but nothing's come as close to the fun this gave me.
8. Mass Effect 3 ; Yes... the ending. But, I sort of look at the entire game as the ending and it was just a long, sad goodbye to my favourite characters and gaming universe.
9. Civilization V ; I'm a long-time Civ addict and this is as of right now, the highlight of the series (though, I'm expecting VI to topple it in the coming years).
10. Grand Theft Auto V ; It's still hard to believe this game was released last gen. Solid enough story, but the attention to detail and the freedom you're provided is scarcely believable.
x. Metal Gear Solid 4 ; Recency bias is probably the main culprit for keeping this off the top 10.
x. Bioshock Infinite
x. The Witcher 2
x. Fallout: New Vegas
x. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
x. NBA 2K13
x. Mass Effect 2
x. Dragon Age: Origins
x. Uncharted 2
x. Gears of War 2
x. Borderlands 2

 

[DealWithIt]

1. Dark Souls - It was like discovering the game I always wished for had actually been made.
2. Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty - God Awful Blizzard writing, but matchless gameplay, incredible online play and the greatest esports scene there ever was for those few incredible years.
3. Demon's Souls - What can I say that has not already been said?
4. Portal 2 - Took one of the most important games of all time and improved on it.
5. Fez -
6. Witcher 2 -
7. The Last of Us - A great achievement of game writing. I'm not sure the writing is "great" in the novel/movie sense, but it's a real landmark in the art form and I love the game.
8. Portal - Changed the world of videogames forever.
9. Witcher - Really remarkable for its time.
10. I Wanna Be the Boshy - I never even played this game, but watching it has given me a lot of joy.

x. Dark Souls 2 - A poor souls game, but still one of the greatest of all time.
x. Twilight Princess - gets too much hate for how cool it is. This was the Zelda Game I dreamed of as a kid.
x. Ni No Kuni - A great game to look at and charming to play.
x. Deus Ex: Human Revolution - I didn't ask for this.
x. Oblivion - the Better game than Skyrim, truth be told.

 

[AniHawk]

I ignored it back when it first started, but seeing that posts reminds me that it's a genre I never played before and looks really different. I would love to play it someday.

trauma team is all over the place. a lot of it is actual surgery stuff, but then parts are visual novel/adventure game style. the classic trauma center stuff works the best.

 

[Raw64life]

1. Super Mario Galaxy 2 ; Honestly hard to choose between 2 and 1. I'd probably have to play them again to come up with a definitive answer, but 2 is fresher in my mind. They're both all time greats IMO
2. Super Mario Galaxy ;
3. Dragon Quest IV ;
4. Dragon Quest V ;
5. Dragon Quest IX ;
6. Dark Souls ;
7. Dark Souls 2 ;
8. Ni no Kuni ;
9. Demon's Souls ;
10. Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword ;
x. Dragon Quest VI ;
x. Portal
x. Portal 2
x. Grand Theft Auto V ;
x. Mass Effect 2 ;
x. Super Smash Bros. Brawl ;
x. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ;
x. Pokemon Diamond ;
x. Punch-Out!! ;
x. Batman: Arkham Asylum ;
x. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow ;

You may notice a theme here. I consider myself extremely lucky that the first two videogames I ever played (Super Mario Bros. and Dragon Warrior) are still my two all-time favorite franchises, and 30 years later, games are still regularly being pumped out for them (although in the case of DQ they're often either not localized and take years to get localized).

 

[Version 3.0]

1. Dark Souls ; Far and away the best game of the generation. I played Demon's Souls when it was import-only, and didn't expect any game to top it. But Dark Souls went beyond expectations, adding a connected world, a more compelling back story, and game design refinements that went a long way, such as replacing the easily farmed herbs with limited Estus.
2. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption ; The eminently satisfying conclusion to perhaps the best trilogy ever. Its flaws (character acting) are all too often discussed over its enhancement (multiple planets and ship interaction).
3. Just Cause 2 ; The most engaging open world game I played up to this time. The combat / movement mechanics are so much fun, I spent countless hours earning as close to 100% as I could get in its meaningless quests.
4. Demon's Souls ; The obvious underdog winner of the generation, Demon's Souls is so good, it defeated region exclusivity, spawned a major franchise, and turned its studio into a superstar.
5. Portal ; So short, but so good. Not satisfied with making a fun only-possible-in-a-videogame mechanic into the best puzzler in years, Valve turned out the funniest game in years as well, and seated it in its existing universe.
6. Rock Band 3 ; This is here representing the franchise, which I played non-stop through the generation and into the next.
7. Red Faction: Guerilla ; A game built on its near-universal destructability, and oh how good it feels to knock stuff down.
8. Batman: Arkham City ; Probably the best superhero game ever, and as a huge Spider-Man 2 fan, it pains me to say it.
9. Earth Defense Force 2017 ; Goofy but good. There's nothing like fighting giant bugs and robots to make it feel like the future shown in early sci-fi films still has a place in media today.
10. Trauma Center: Second Opinion ; Wii IR pointer is awesome: the game. The DS game didn't hook me, but the combination of Nunchuck and IR pointer made this game perfect, and made me unstoppable at it.
x. Daigasso! Band Brothers (Japanese version) ; The only music game I know where you actually play the music, instead of tapping along with a pre-recorded track. I imported it on a whim, and it turned out to be the best import this side of Demon's Souls.
x. Wipeout HD ; The best Wipeout game since XL. 'Nuff said.
x. Kirby Canvas Curse ; My favorite touch-only game. Fans should also check out Ivy the Kiwi on Wii.
x. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light ; One of the rare co-op games that hooked my lady love. I had the rare enjoyment of playing all the way through a game with her.

This generation started out slowly. I remember asking a friend, almost 3 years in, whether he thought there were any games that could hold up to the prior gen's greats. He came up with the same answer I had at the time: the closest thing was Assassin's Creed (and the answer was 'no').

But it was also a long generation. And by the end, it was just fine, loaded with great games. As is always the case when I do one of these, I've had a hell of a time narrowing it down to 10. My first pass of top 10 contenders was over 30 games. And if I had to rank them again in a month, the list, outside of the top few, would undoubtedly be different.

Also of note: the only generation where I wouldn't have a Zelda game in my list (sad face). I consider Twilight Princess a Gamecube game, that being the superior version. And I only enjoyed Skyward Sword once I discovered cheat codes to speed up the interactions and muzzle Fi. So I disqualified it from contention. No game should be smothered by its user interface.

 

[Rapscallion]

1:Super Mario Galaxy 2- Just improved upon everything in the original while adding greater difficulty and interesting play mechanics.

2: Sonic Colors - Just one of the games I feel the urge to return to time and time again. Everything finally clicked into place with the Sonic franchise; the gameplay, music, pacing, etc.

3: Super Mario Galaxy 1: A phenomenal game all around that stands the test of time.

4: Uncharted 2 - One of the most cinematic games of all time, with some incredibly memorable scenes and segments. Probably the first ND game since Crash 2 that I felt they were at the top of their game once again.

5: Sonic Generations - As a long time Sonic fan, Generations felt like an apology for years of shit given to the fanbase. It's one of the best anniversary games of all time.

6: LOZ: Twilight Princess - Great all around game that tried to emulate a lot of the feeling of Ocarina of time. It feels empty in parts, but the the dungeons are some of the best in the series.

7: Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time - Could have gone with TOD, but Crack in Time felt like it hit a great balance between story and gameplay. Really one of the best ROC games of all time.

8: Ni No Kuni - Just an incredibly imaginative game that feels unlike any other.

9: Dragon Quest IX: One of the best portable handheld rpgs of all time. Maybe not quite as good as 8, but the game really does amazing as a mobile DQ.

10: Metroid Prime 3 - An amazing final entry into a stellar trilogy. Narrative wise, I think it's the best of the 3 by far.

Runner Ups:
X: Catherine
X: Skyward Sword
X: Sonic Rush
X: World Ends With You.

Catherine, Mario Galaxy 1/2, Sonic Colors, Sonic Generations, Uncharted 2, Twilight Princess, Ni No Kuni, Ratchet and Clank: Crack in Time, Dragon Quest IX

 

[Poimandres]

1. STALKER Shadow of Chernobyl; 2007 was a great year for first person shooters, but STALKER has ultimately gone on to cement itself as the most unique and memorable game of the bunch and indeed one of my favourite games of all time. The atmosphere is unmatched, the AI incredibly ahead of its time, the setting is one of the all time greats. I continue to play this series to this day thanks to excellent mod support. There's just nothing else like this out there, not even close!

2. Geometry Wars 2; This is my most played game of the generation. Specifically, Pacifism mode. The fact that an incredibly simple gameplay loop can keep me going for hundreds of hours is a testament to how perfect Pacifism mode is. Super simple one stick controls, tuned perfectly. Chasing a high score is super moreish, seeing the entire screen filled with angry geometry as you cross the billion mark hands shaking is one of the great gaming highs. I'd still be playing this now if it was ported to current consoles.

3. Dark Souls; Ah, Dark Souls. What a game. It's an absolute miracle this caught on and went on to become a great success. For the first 20 or so hours I kind of hated the game. I'd cut my teeth on character action games so adjusting to the slow methodical pace damn near killed me. I sucked hard at this game. But, it slowly seeped into my mind and I couldn't stop thinking about this game... And playing it. Defeating Smough and Ornstein solo is probably the pinnacle of my experience with the Souls series.

4. Ridge Racers; I picked this up with a PSP at launch and oh boy did it exceed my expectations. A great selection of tracks, amazing music, stupidly good visuals for the time. I was lucky enough to have a good friend to play system link with often, and those are some of the most enjoyable gaming times of my life.

5. Super Mario Galaxy; I was blown away by this game from the first time I saw footage. What a concept! I still think it hasn't been overtaken in terms of immediately impressive 3d platforming presentation. Just a nigh on perfectly executed platforming experience for me. The sequel and 3d World were sorely missing the sense of wonder and grandness from this game.

6. Super Meat Boy; Instantly one of my favourite platformers of all time. Perfect controls, hard as nails, bite sized levels urging you to play just one more. And of course the music!

7. Bioshock; This game consumed my mind like few others. Rapture is just such an intoxicating setting, brilliant art direction. Brilliant sound design and voice acting, and I was gripped by the story. Not perfect in the way it plays, but it certainly earns a place on this list by having one of the all time great game settings.

8. Halo 3; The last online multiplayer shooter I really got into. I had a strange relationship with this game. In some ways it's my favourite of the series, but it had a good deal of frustrations as well. But, ultimately the good memories outweigh everything else and this provided some outstanding multiplayer fun.

9. Street Fighter 4; Not my favourite in the series, but this was likely the last time a local arcade community was fully active around a fighting game. A real shame, but the prime time of arcades had long since passed when this launched so I made the most of this last hurrah. Having 2 arcade sticks at home led to some great tournaments as well.

10. Lumines (PSP); One of the great puzzlers, lifted up by an exceptional soundtrack. This game just makes me happy!

 

[RespectThySole]

1. Bayonetta ; Simply the best action game of all time. I've replayed it many times. It's just perfection.

2. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves ; Perfect pacing, outstanding and varied encounter design, incr double setpieces, likable characters, beautiful locations and a lovely soundtrack to boot. It's easily Naughty Dog's best game.

3. Dark Souls ; I honestly can't think of a game with better level design than this one. I also love the character building, lonely atmosphere and bosses.

4. Halo 3 ; This game was just the total package. It was a mainstay in my 360 for a long time. I have great memories of huge custom game lobbies with friends.

5. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings ; One of the most well written games ever. Loads of political intrigue and you can have completely different playthroughs depending on which faction you choose. Fantastic soundtrack and side quests as well.

6. Batman: Arkham Asylum ; The ultimate Batman game. Great metroidvania without the fat of it's open world sequels. Very atmospheric setting and Scarecrow's portrayal here was far superior to Arkham Knight's.

7. Demon's Souls ; Birthed a new genre. Not as good as Dark Souls but still amazing.

8. Super Street Fighter IV ; It revived the fighting game scene. Enough said.

9. Vanquish ; the best TPS ever made

10. Super Mario Galaxy ; platforming at it's finest

Will add honorable mentions later.

 

[NipplesAndToes23]

I just realized I have a month to play through my PS3 games again. I might just go ahead and cast my vote already. I'll probably only be able to beat two more games by then.

 

[AniHawk]

I just realized I have a month to play through my PS3 games again. I might just go ahead and cast my vote already. I'll probably only be able to beat two more games by then.

i did this for the gen 5 thing and panzer dragoon saga, which edged it in there at the end. that game lives up to the hype. there's a lot of love in that thing.

games i have but didn't beat for this gen were:

wii:
the last story
lost in shadow
the sky crawlers: innocent aces
pandora's tower

360:
dragon age inquisition
lost odyssey

ds:
dragon quest iv
dragon quest v
dragon quest vi
pokemon conquest

i do have an interest in clearing those ds games, but i don't know when/if i'll get back to the wii stuff. i forget that i even have a 360 sometimes.

 

[Ahasverus]

1. Red Dead Redemption. How can you even beat a tragic Rockstar open world game polished to the max. Simply unmatched in ambition and delivery.

2. Skyrim. Love it or hate it, Skyrim put fantasy and RPGs into the very mainstream in a time where the only game allowed to sell 10+M copies was Call of Duty.

3. Assassin's Creed 2. While the first game was a total dissapointment, AC2 is still one of the most "epic" games in the whole sense of the world, sprawling various locales and varied setpieces along with a mythology that used to be interesting to the Bone.

4. The Witcher 2. A game that brought mature storytelling, decision making and compelling sidequests to a very stagnant genre (Fantasy). The Witcher 2 was just short of being an all time masterpiece. Turned out that the team only needed 3 more years for that.

5. GTAV: While it's campaign was not as varied as one might have hoped, GTAV is still a technical marvel and a great return to form for gaming's greatest franchise. It's still selling loads these days. Deservedly so. An incredible immersive, fun experience.

6. Dark Souls: This one changed gaming forever. Hardcore never went away. It was just unserved. But FROM served, and delivered.

7. Arkham Asylum: Where would one begin? The game that made the Batman franchise a videogame flagship series, a playable love letter to a cultural icon done justice in an interactive medium. None of it's sequels captured the wholeness of Asylum, for good reason. It's lighting in a bottle.

8. Bioshock: When everyone though videogame stories were destined to be ridiculed forever, Bioshock gave the industry a new breath of fresh air in writing and storytelling.

9. Uncharted 2. Pretty much created the cinematic game template by itself. Perhaps too influential for its own good.

10. Minecraft. No explanation needed.

 

[AniHawk]

man, people really like dark souls

 

[jdstorm]

10.Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare; One of the best party games of last generation. I have never actually played through the campaign. Yet for the amount of multiplayer hours at friends houses. This game needed to make the list.

9.Rockband; Another local multiplayer classic.

8.Vanquish; One of the finest TPS games ever made. A joy to play and a ridiculous premise that could be ripped out of an 80s action film. Pure Fun

7.Split Seccond; It was a great generation for arcade racers, but this was by far my favourite. Flying around set tracks at high speeds, drifting to trigger explosions. This is a high octane thrill ride from start to finish.

6.Batman Arkham City; A true gaming blockbuster that combined the batman IP with the classic Zelda formula, state of the art graphics and a story designed from the ground up specifically for the game. Being Batman has never felt so joyous and free as in Arkham City.

5.Tomb Raider 2013; I'm not sure what it is about this game that draws me in so much. In many ways it feels like a Metroid lite game with Uncharted's showmanship and more heart then it has any right to have. It feels disengenious to say this but the tower climb leading into the final boss is probably my favourite set piece of gen 7.

4.Super Mario Galaxy; A truely original masterpiece in 2007 and it has only gotten better with age, thanks largely to emulation that truely brings out the incredible artwork. Although still chasing after a princess in another castle, Mario stumbles upon Rosalina's heartbreaking story, a cap that turns him into Superman and litterally saves the universe in an epic final showdown.

3.The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword ; Motion Controls were a huge feature of last generation, however no game got them as right as Skyward Sword. For all its flaws, its held together by brilliant dungeon design and incredible boss fights and a simple yet compelling fantasy narative. This narative gets me everytime especially that part at the end. You know the one.

2.Mirrors Edge; A hugely ambitious and revolutionary title that felt like it came from 10 years in the future, and wouldn't be out of place if you released it this year as a new game. This is a game that for me moves beyond the medium, evoking feelings of Joy and Freedom that are simply unparalled. This game for those skilled enough to be able to play it at a high level is the gaming equivalent of getting to act shakesphere or cover mozart. Its a game that doesn't just run you through set pieces, it guides you through sandbox environments where you write your own.

1.Mass Effect; it may be somewhat janky by modern standards, however this evolution of the Bioware formula is an incredible marriage of action game and RPG standards that hasn't been matched since. Not even by its 3 sequels or numerous spiritual successors.

Honerable Mentions
X. Uncharted Series ; If you had told me 1 year ago that not one of these games would have made my top 5 of all time, let alone last gen. I would have laughed at you. Then i played the Prince of Persia Sands series of games and suddenly they felt less special. I still love these games dearly (especially Uncharted 1)

X. The Last Story ; My favourite of the Project Rainfall games. Everyone needs to know how great of a game this is.

X.Rain; This Parisian inspired stealth puzzle game from Sony Japan was the reason i bought a PS4. I have no regrets.

X. Remember Me; Another take on the cinematic action game. This game is another that is elevated beyond the sum of its parts.

X. Yakuza 5; Its everything i love about the Fast and Furious series in a Openworld JRPG fighting game.

 

[petran79]

I changed my rankings, replacing #10 with another game and added few more honorable mentions. Last change I'll make but I remembered having loved that game a lot at that time.

 

[AniHawk]

I changed my rankings, replacing #10 with another game and added few more honorable mentions. Last change I'll make but I remembered having loved that game a lot at that time.

could you please let me know what you exchanged for what, and what you added?

 

[noquarter]

Alright, going to vote now so I don't forget so the list might not be as reflective as it would be in a month.

1. Bayonetta - one of the best action games I have played and like it more than Ninja Gaiden II, mainly for the nostalgia some if the levels brought and the outrageousness of it. Remember when it was being previewed being a little turned off thinking Sega/Platinum were going for fan-service and was glad to see it was far from that. It is also one of the few games I have played through completely multiple times.

2. Rock Band 2 - Guitar Hero was one of my top games on the PS2 and think Rock Band expanded on it the best ways possible. Two makes the list just because it set the expectations for follow ups in the series with being able to bring songs from the previous into the new on and all DLC being playable.

3. Alpha Protocol - don't really know what to say about the game. Shouldn't be nearlybas good as it is with the flaws it has, but it never frustrated me and tried something that doesn't get attempted enough. Heavy Rain tried and got nowhere close to being as good as Alpha Protocol.

4. The World Ends With You - one of the most original RPGs released last gen. Reminded me why I used to love Squaresoft games, not really knowing what to expect and having a blast playing them. Really wish the game would get a sequel.

5. Super Mario Galaxy - great way to do something different with Mario while retaining familiarity. Was nice being able to hand my daughter a Wii Remote and see her get excited at collecting star bits. Really need to open up SMG2 and give that a try.

6. Super Meat Boy - fast paced platforming. Lots of challenge and the world's were unique while expanding your skills. Is a great game to play in ten minute chunks or sit down and sink four hours into.

7. Catherine - really enjoyed the way the game seemed like it would be chill, just making your way up a wall and the way the game built up the stress in the levels. The story was actually better than it deserved to be and was fun to watch unfold. Should return to it to see if the story lines up like I remember or if my feelings have changed enough to change the story a lot.

8. Portal - nice short game that made me feel smart and laugh at the same time, two things that are pretty difficult to do in other mediums at the same time.

9. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare - first and last multiplayer shooter I really got into. The Xbox Live problems sucked, but I kept playing all year long.

10. Monster Hunter Freedom - my most played game on the PSP, got me into the series and was fun finding one other person that had it and wanted to play. Never tried to play online, but played tons single player.

Honorable Mentions:

X. Bioshock
X. Too Human
X. Mass Effect
X. Assassins Creed II Brotherhood
X. Mega Man 9
X. Disgaea DS
X. Banjo Kazooie Nuts and Bolts
X. Valkyria Chronicles
X. Damon's Souls
X. Warhawk

Lots of good games released in the past decade. Could easily add more to this list and it would probably look different any other day (except #1), with some not showing up at all and others being higher. Even while typing this I see I forgot Mirrors Edge...

 

[Morrigan Stark]

Omg this will be insanely hard. My entire list will be full of Souls. xD

Edit: wait, why is PC capped at 2011? Makes zero sense. Dishonored and Borderlands 2 came out for PS360 and PC in 2012 so they are not eligible unless you played them on console? Wut? I mean, I played both versions, but this is silly... please, reconsider this rule, it doesn't make any sense.

 

[AniHawk]

Omg this will be insanely hard. My entire list will be full of Souls. xD

Edit: wait, why is PC capped at 2011? Makes zero sense. Dishonored and Borderlands 2 came out for PS360 and PC in 2012 so they are not eligible unless you played them on console? Wut? I mean, I played both versions, but this is silly... please, reconsider this rule, it doesn't make any sense.

gen 4: 1988-1993
gen 5: 1994-1999
gen 6: 2000-2005
gen 7: 2006-2011

it might be easier to think of those games as crossgen titles, like twilight princess or persona 5.

 

[Lumine]

Oh wow. I clearly did not pay enough attention reading the OP. I knew next gen or previous gen ports were out, but for some reason I read past that 2011 cut-off for PC. That means I'll have to withdraw my vote as half of my votes are for the PC versions of these games. Sorry AniHawk, my bad.

 

[AniHawk]

Oh wow. I clearly did not pay enough attention reading the OP. I knew next gen or previous gen ports were out, but for some reason I read past that 2011 cut-off for PC. That means I'll have to withdraw my vote as half of my votes are for the PC versions of these games. Sorry AniHawk, my bad.

it's fine to have something as long as you have a minimum of three games for the generation.

 

[Arion]

1. Dark Souls ; The father of a brand new genre. It's hard to think of another game as influential as DaS released last gen. This is perhaps one of the most smartly designed games ever made. Every inch of the game's interconnected world is thoughtfully designed, filled with creativity and splendour. In a time when games became more and and more patronizing, DaS came along with a fresh take on challenge while also being very fair.

2. Metal Gear Solid 4 : Guns of the Patriots ; This was the first Metal Gear game I played. I had no idea what was going on with the story yet I ended up caring very deeply for it. The controls were also splendid.

3. Demon's Souls ; The grandfather of a brand new genre.

4. Bayonetta ; The pinnacle of action games right here.

5. Journey ; This game opened my eyes to what games are capable of beyond visceral joy. It has helped me with my anxiety on several occasions. Every time I play the game or even think about it I get a warm feeling inside.

6. Metal Gear Rising : Revengeance ; Another pinnacle of action games right here.

7. Super Mario Galaxy ; This game has a masterful sense of rhythm. Every level it introduces a new gameplay concept, builds upon it, twists it and then moves on to a brand new one in the next level. Every time I thought the game outdid itself, ten minutes later it outdid itself again.

8. Team Fortress 2 ; This is easily me favourite multiplayer game ever. I have poured nearly a 1000 hours of my life into it and it never stopped being amazing.

9. Vanquish ; The most satisfying and eccentric shooter ever made.

10. Mirror's Edge ; The core gameplay system, the music, the visuals and it's iconic heroine, all these things come together to make something very special. This is a true cult classic that will never be replicated again. Maybe.

x. Red Dead Redemption ; Rockstar's best game.

x. The Last of Us ; A fantastic survival horror with a lot of memorable moments.

x. Sid Meier's Civilization V ; Time vampire.

x. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ; The best DS game. Ingenious puzzles and great characters.

 

[AniHawk]

okay, i know that dark souls has a fervent fanbase, but i wasn't expecting it to be this big. if things hold up, it'll be far better represented than i think most people would have expected.

 

[kunonabi]

so far no one's really voting for trauma team. there's a surprising amount of wii representation though.

TT was an early pick for mine but it got edged out. I loved it and it's still the only Trauma game I think is actually worth playing.

 

[AniHawk]

TT was an early pick for mine but it got edged out. I loved it and it's still the only Trauma game I think is actually worth playing.

i got a little worn out on it actually. i wanted it to stick with a single genre to be honest.

 

[RespectThySole]

I edited my list. Swapped out Mass Effect for Demon's Souls.

Also added comments.

 

[not psycho]

Omg this will be insanely hard. My entire list will be full of Souls. xD

Edit: wait, why is PC capped at 2011? Makes zero sense. Dishonored and Borderlands 2 came out for PS360 and PC in 2012 so they are not eligible unless you played them on console? Wut? I mean, I played both versions, but this is silly... please, reconsider this rule, it doesn't make any sense.

Yeah, that rule needs to be changed. First of all, 2011 is too early for a hard cut off since PS4 and Xbox One didn't come out until the end of 2013. It could be a soft cut off with some guidelines on borderline games, but I think 2012 would be a more appropriate baseline.

It feels pointless for me to vote if Dark Souls and XCOM: Enemy Unknown are not allowed for me (having played the PC versions, which came out in 2012), while at the same time this is the gen most others will be voting for them.