Skip to main content

A VMVT exclusive: Joe's 100 best videogames ever

Okay, so here is the list. 10 Games at a time for 8 days. The top twenty get their own post. Before I begin a few rules. This is my opinion. Mine alone.


-It is based on both how much I enjoyed the game AND how well made I think it is.

-Graphics will be judged relative to their time period.

-I hold different genres to different standards. I.E. The story is the most important part of an RPG, whereas it is insignificant in a fighting game


-I am not influenced in any way by popular culture or other lists. I read a similar list in a magazine some years ago and their number 1 game doesn't even make my list. In addition, I don't care what ratings games got.



-Sports games will be listed as series' rather than individual titles. I.E. Madden is simply listed as Madden, not Madden 02, Madden 03, etc.



-There will be spoilers.



-PS3, XBox 360, Will, PSP, and DS were not considered. I haven't spent enough time with them to really do so.




So, without further interruption...



100. Gauntlet Legends (Midway, N64)

The list kicks off with one of the most fun multi-player games of all time. The Nintendo 64's four controller slots made it easy for friends to pick up and hack their way through hordes of baddies. The game is so chaotic and fun that it almost always makes for a good time. The graphics aren't great and it loses a lot in single player but Gauntlet Legends is the perfect game to kill off all of those lazy nights
courtesy of gamershell.com






99. Jumping Flash! (Sony, PS1)

Jumping Flash! was quite edgy for a first person shooter. Of course, it was edgy because it eschewed demonic hordes and vicious monsters in favor of cuddly bunnies. You play as a mechanical rabbit who has to jump and shoot his way through trippy, colorful levels and it is awesome. One of the first Playstation titles, Jumping Flash! is proof that game play is what counts, not gore.

courtesy of gamespot.com


98. Parasite Eve 2 (Square, PS1)

Some fans were a little stunned when RPG giants Squaresoft took a shot at a survival horror title. The were relieved when the game was awesome. Its sequel is even better, with a better story and bigger monsters. Detective Aya Brea reprises her role as the lead character, and is thrust right back into battling gruesome monsters. The game itself is extremely unique, mixing traditional survival horror with RPG elements.


courtesy of flickr.com






97. Ape Escape (Sony, PS1)

Before Ape Escape, gamers were often left wondering "what the heck is the right analog stick for anyway?" After Ape Escape they had an answer. The game was revolutionary for it use of the right analog stick. Use it to steer a boat. Use it for radar. Use it to catch monkeys... in fact, who cares about the unique game play, spot on control and awesome level design, all a game really needs is monkeys.

courtesy of youtube.com





96. Digimon World (Bandai, PS1)
Yea, that's right, Digimon. You know, those tamagotchi like things that actually PRE-DATE Poke'mon (in the United States anyway). Most people who picked up Digimon world looking for an easy kiddie game were probably shocked at how challenging this game is. You raise your Digimon and take him through beautifully rendered landscapes. All the while, you must build up your town with other Digimon who have valuable skills to offer. Just don't get too lost...there is a huge world to explore.

courtesy of neoseeker.com




95. Fur Fighters: General Viggo’s Revenge (Acclaim, PS2)
This game got almost no publicity when it came out. Many reviewers bashed it, but few had good reasons. Cell shaded graphics were a huge gripe, but I thought they were excellent. The level design is some of the best I have ever seen. You play as five different animal characters, and you must use all of their unique abilities if you want to complete the huge stages. Mindlessly running through them won't work, because you are sure to miss something...kinda like the way I missed the boat on thinking this game was bad. Prepare to see it again in my "10 most underrated games" sidebar.
courtesy of gamespot.com





94. Tekken 3 (Namco, PS1
Tekken was another average fighting game series until its third installment. This game took the series to new heights with better graphics, more challenged, and better balance among its characters. It had so many hidden fighters and awesome extras to unlock it could keep you playing for hours. Despite all that the best part of the game was the most important...the fighting. The tighter controls made part 3 much less of a chore than its 2 predecessors.


Courtesy of baixatudogames.com




93. X-Men 2: Clone Wars (Sega, Genesis)
I must confess I was never a huge X-Men fan. When I was little and my cousin purchased this game I was a little upset. He WAS a huge X-Men fan, and I knew he would never give me a turn. He was nice enough to let me play since the game was two player, and I grudgingly accepted. We played for 8 straight hours, eventually falling asleep with the controllers in our hands. X-Men 2 has crisp graphics and awesome environments. The sound is outstanding, which was a rarity on the Genesis. You could play as all sorts of different X-Men with each with different powers. You really need to think about your decision though as levels throw different challenges at you. One level would be best suited to Cyclops' ranged attack, while the next would require a more "hands on approach" with Wolverine. All in all, a great side scroller.
photo courtesy of bingegamer .com





92. 3Xtreme (989 Studios, PS1)
Like X-Men, I never really got into the skateboarding craze. I did, however, get into this awesome racing title. You choose between bikers, boarders, or rollerbladers and compete against a whole slew of opponents. You can race to win or take your time and pull off cool tricks. There are also more unlocakbles in this game than you can shake a stick at. Add in awesome courses packed with shortcuts and you have yourself a great game.


courtesy of gamefaqs.com




91. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: the Arcade game (Konami, NES)
Speaking of things I wasn't a huge fan of...would mean I was in no way speaking of the Ninja Turtles. They were awesome. Their show was awesome. This game is awesome. You chose your favorite turtle and set out to rescue the kidnapped April O'Neal. Along the way, you fight through hordes of foot soldiers and other enemies. The graphics are excellent for the original Nintendo and the enemy A.I. is surprisingly good. All the challenge (believe me, there is a lot) leads up to an epic finale, a showdown with Shredder in his patented TechnoDrome.

courtesy of neoseeker.com


90. Fight Night Series (Electronic Arts, PS2)

We close out this installment with an awesome sports sim from EA. Around the year 2000, EA sports' "Knockout Kings" was a franchise in trouble. It was in need of a breath of fresh air and boy did it ever get it. EA ditched the traditional contols in favor of a bold new system. Players would manipulate the control sticks to make their fighters throw punches, block, and dance out of danger. The gamble payed off big time, and fight night was born. Add in the fact that players can both re-create classic fights and play as today's top pugilists and you have quite an expirience. "Fight Night" has captured the heavyweight championship of video game boxing titles and dosen't look like it will lose it any time soon. (Side note:I really wish Mike Tyson were in this game) courtesy of ing.com




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Lost Odyssey: Part 2

Last week, we started our look at Lost Odyssey, a title that seemed to break unwritten rules of gaming left and right. We have a traditional RPG, which is the brainchild of the creator of Final Fantasy, released for XBox, a console not known for the genre, at a time when said genre was at what felt like the absolute bottom of its popularity. We started with the story, characters and world, all of which I thought were really good to great. That's a great start for an RPG, where those aspects are very important. But all of that can be undone if the gameplay isn't up to par. It's critical in any generation, but this is an essential aspect to call out in 7th gen RPGs. There was a lot of experimentation going on in the genre at the time, a lot of which didn't yield positive results. I guess I get it, the genre wasn't doing well at the time and developers were trying to do anything they could to bring it back to relevance. Sometimes, that meant terrible gimmicks. Other ti...

The 10s: Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven

When I first started writing about games, I was very hesitant to include PC titles at all. As I've said numerous times before, it's just not something I've ever really felt qualified to talk about. There are so many iconic PC games that were just blind spots for me as I never really actively sought them out. If it didn't come on a PC Gamer demo disc or I didn't hear about it through word of mouth, I didn't know about it. Does anyone else remember those PC Gamer demo discs? I had as much fun playing with the UI on them as I did any of the actual demos. Maybe if I spent less time clicking around the secret underground club and more on actually playing the games, I would have had more PC experience. Eh, I'm okay with the fact that while Fallout and Diablo weren't nearly as critical a part of my early gaming life as Coconut Monkey. Even when I did play and enjoy PC games, it was typically because I played the console versions first. Games like Doom, Command ...

Terranigma

  As usual, it took way longer than it should have, but I did EVENTUALLY do exactly what I said I was going to. It's a year late, but I've finally made my way through the Quintet trilogy. Playing these three games became a stated goal of mine since I started podcasting last year. One of my earliest episodes covered Soul Blazer, the first title in the pseudo series. The second game, Illusion of Gaia, was also a landmark episode as it was the first one to include the intro song ("A Glass Half Full of Tears" by Aura Blaze, who's music you should check out here ). Both of them received pretty solid scores, though I didn't quite like the latter quite as much as a lot of people seem to. After all these years, I'm still surprised I never played these games when they came out. Both were definitely right up my alley and readily available to buy or even rent at my local video store, but I just never picked them up. It's a little more understandable that I had ne...