Deciding on my favorite video games across all platforms was no simple feat. I really had to think about what I find really important in gaming. It’s funny how you can easily pop off a few titles when someone asks, but when you have to choose 10 titles over 30 years of gaming, wow. I am still sitting here wondering if I made the right choices, especially at the bottom of the list.
Ultimately, the winners on this list all had significant replay value and had some significant impact on my life in some way (challenged the way I look at the world, inspired change in my life, or just really, really fun to play (still meaningful)).
I plan to revisit these games and determine if the replay value still holds (watch for future blogs). Thankfully, most of my old consoles still work, and the older PC games are playable thanks to sites like gog.com.
So, off we go…
10. Raiders of the Lost Ark (Atari, 1982)
Ok, so this one is probably going to get some eye rolls, but before you stop reading, hear me out. Raiders of the Lost Ark may have had its flaws, but it actually had a lot of innovative and entertaining features.
First off, the character actually resembled Indiana Jones and you even had a whip, by Atari standards anyway. Second, it loosely followed the story line of the movie. Spoiler alert for anyone who hasn’t seen the movie (if someone like that even exists); the game has you gather equipment, track down a map room, find the location of the ark, and dig for it. Sure, it had some weird alterations from the plot (who is the guy in the black, what the hell is with those damn tsetse flies, and parachuting into the ark?really??), but by gaming standards of the time, it was about the closest any game had ever gotten. We won’t even talk about the Atari E.T. game that may or may not have killed the console.
This was also one of the first adventure genre games, which are my favorite style of console video game (spoiler for the rest of the list). I didn’t even mind that you needed two joysticks to play (one for moving Indy and one for inventory). When you finally beat the game and saw Indy reach the Ark at the end, you had a real sense of accomplishment.
This is hands down my favorite Atari game and deserved a place on this list. It didn’t hurt that I loved the Indiana Jones movies to the point that I convinced my parents to buy me a bullwhip for my birthday one year. I didn’t injure myself too badly with the whip, and it energized my passion for adventure, similar to games like this. If you happen to have a working Atari, I strongly suggest you find a copy of this game and give it a try. Just thinking about it makes me want to fire up my Atari and see if the magic holds.
9. Tomb Raider Series (Sony Playstation, 1996-1999)
Anyone who grew up in the 90s and had a Sony Playstation likely played at least one Tomb Raider game. I played them all, but haven’t played a Tomb Raider Game since. I couldn’t choose a favorite from this batch, so they were ranked as a series.
For me, like many others, this was my first time playing as a female character. This may seem strange to younger generations, but prior to Tomb Raider, game companies did not believe male gamers would identify with a female character, thus significantly hurting game sales. They couldn’t have been more wrong.
I don’t even remember how many hours I spent playing this game. The combination of puzzles, combat, and changes in location made for a mesmerizing game. Not to mention it was one of the first 3D games that actually had a camera that seemed to work…most of the time. I think my favorite part of the game was watching her draw and holster her weapons. I used to sit and repeat this action over and over for, well, let’s just say a while. Swimming was also pretty novel and I almost forgot it was part of the game until I saw the image below.
Of course, the game did have a few glitches, including the ability to get stuck in the background forcing a reset. This could get really annoying since the PS1 took forever to reset (I lost so many minutes of my life, so many). The AI of the opponents was atrocious and then there was Laura’s disproportionately large, triangular chest. This prevented some kids from getting to play the game, but I guess it was one way to ensure male gamers might give it a try.
I still own all four of these games because I couldn’t let them go. I still remember the terror every time a T-Rex would show up.
8. Star Wars Rogue Squadron II – Rogue Leader (Nintendo GameCube, 2001)
Hands down, the best Star Wars game I have ever played. For those of you lucky enough to own a GameCube, you may have also experienced this masterpiece. It seems like every Star Wars game that followed was a huge disappointment.
Like so many other kids, I grew up fantasizing about piloting an X-Wing down the Death Star trench, or a snowspeeder taking down AT-AT walkers. I had the toys but this game brought it all to life. The controls were superb and you could replay the best missions over and over again without replaying the whole game. I remember this game being particularly satisfying after the disappointment of Jar Jar Binks and the prequel launch.
There really isn’t much else to say about this. It was just one damn good game.
7. Uncharted Series (Sony Playstation 3/4, 2007-2016)
,Another game series that deserves to stand together, probably even more so than Tomb Raider since the Uncharted games were somewhat episodic. I don’t have a lot of new game titles on my list for a variety of reasons, but the Uncharted series has just enthralled me for years. As I have become more of a casual gamer over the years (gasp), finding games I really enjoy for my limited gaming time is a challenge. If more games were like Uncharted, though, I might not be quite as casual a gamer.
This game has an excellent story combined with smooth combat controls and quality Non-Player Character (NPC) Artificial Intelligence (AI) that improved as the game series advanced. They even threw in a mix of puzzles and enough plot twists to make for a great movie, I mean game. In a way, it feels like a more advanced Tomb Raider, but with a far better storyline, amazing soundtrack, and finely tuned gameplay.
This game brings back the thrill of wanting to be a treasure hunter. Too bad treasure hunting in real life isn’t quite the same. People also tell me that being an archaeologist doesn’t require a whip and doesn’t involve narrowly escaping death as you run from a large boulder or people trying to rip your heart out. Fantasy destroyed. Anyway, Naughty Dog supposedly isn’t making any additional Uncharted games, and this makes me sad. Their other game, The Last Of Us, just hasn’t filled the void for me.
6. Final Fantasy VII (Sony Playstation, 1997)
Seeing Final Fantasy VII in this list shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who has played the game. This is frequently the highest rated Final Fantasy game to date and has even spawned a recent remake.
For the unfamiliar, Final Fantasy games are turn-based RPGs (Role Playing Games), similar to Dungeons&Dragons. RPGs aren’t for everyone because they often have long periods of conversation in towns and you need to build skills by gaining experience points in order to advance in the game. This often results in significant hours of gameplay that can get tedious and sometimes boring if the game isn’t developed well, but games are continuing to improve on this.
Final Fantasy VII was the first game of memory to make significant improvements in console RPG gaming. The game is excellent at cycling between combat and exploration and provides smooth transitions between each, not letting either drag on for too long. The transition to the Playstation allowed for some stunning cut scenes at the time. The story was a finely crafted piece of art with a plot that is still relevant today (evil corporations, e.v.i.l…..), with one of the best villains of all time, Sephiroth.
This game made me a fan of the Final Fantasy games and stories. I even got suckered into playing Square Enix’s Kingdom Hearts series. To this day, I still remember how devastated I was by the plot twist about a third of the way through the game. If you played, you know what I am talking about. I think I cried a little. I hope the remake lives up to the original.
5. What Remains of Edith Finch (Sony Playstation 4, 2017)
In the past decade, I have probably played more Indie games than AAA games (large studio games), and What Remains of Edith Finch by game developer Giant Sparrow is my favorite. Indie games are more artistic and I feel they usually have either a stronger story/message or better overall gameplay, but that is a conversation for another post.
What Remains of Edith Finch is the story of a girl trying to understand her cursed family legacy by visiting the family home. Inside, she experiences the life story of multiple family members dating back to the early 1900s, each told with a different innovative style of gameplay. Each story is incredibly gripping and could be a stand alone adventure and when combined, sent me on a roller coaster of emotions.
Games like this are the reason I continue to play video games. So often, I will try the next big blockbuster title, just to be disappointed again and again. Then, when I am about to throw in the towel, a game like this reminds me of what gaming is truly capable of in the right hands. It is no wonder this game gets 10/10 reviews and over 97% likes on Google. Giant Sparrow produced another great title, The Unfinished Swan, which I also recommend playing, and I can’t wait to see what they do next.
Pictures won’t do the game justice, so here is a short video instead.
4. The 7th Guest (PC, 1993)
What was once hailed by Bill Gates as “the new standard in interactive entertainment,” the 7th Guest was one of the first CD-ROM games ever developed. In fact, this game helped drive CD-ROM drive sales when most people were still using floppy drives. I know this will be hard to imagine for anyone under 25.
In The 7th Guest, you play as an unknown character with amnesia trapped in the mansion of the famous toymaker, Henry Stauf. The game is played in the first person and you travel the mansion solving puzzles to uncover the mystery of the mansion and yourself. Each puzzle produces a new cutscene which was filmed and then integrated into the game. Having actor scenes in games may be commonplace now, but this was groundbreaking at the time. The puzzles were difficult, but not impossible, and I really felt pretty satisfied every time I would solve one.
This was also a game manufactured for and advertised to adults. It had adult themes and was one of the first games that really left you unsettled. This was particularly amplified if you played in a dark room. Robert Hirschboeck provided the most haunting voice for Henry Stauf that still sends chills down my spine, and the clown in the billiard room still terrifies me today.
There are so many memorable moments in this game. The acting may have been a bit cheesy (“you show me yours, and I’ll show you mine”), but there are still so many times I find myself quoting lines from the game. I made my girlfriend play the game just so she would stop looking at me so strangely when I would spout out a random line from the game. Yeah, I probably could just stop, but it was easier to have her play the game. And I’ll never forget the scream used when you decided to end the game. “Come baaaaaack!!!!!!”
The 7th Guest was such a huge hit, of course there was a sequel, The 11th Hour. Unfortunately, due to creative differences between the designers, it was severely delayed and the final product was underwhelming. The designers soon went their separate ways, and that was the end of what could have been one of the greatest franchises in history. Recently, some devoted fans obtained rights to make a new game that was set to take place immediately after the 7th Guest. It is titled the 13th Doll. I may have to check it out.
3. Resident Evil (Sony Playstation, 1996)
This game changed my life. It inspired me to work in the horror industry and 20 years later, I am still designing and working at haunted attractions when I have time. This was also the game that caused me to purchase my first non-Nintendo console.
I remember the first day I played this game. My ex-girlfriend’s brother had borrowed his dad’s Playstation and we went to Blockbuster Video to rent games. (Remember Blockbuster Video? I worked there, twice.) Resident Evil was one of the only games available. It didn’t look incredibly interesting based on the image, but we gave it a try. The image shown is the first cover art for the game which told you almost nothing about what to expect. You might be asking why is the box so tall. When Playstation first hit the market, the games came in ridiculously tall rectangular boxes which were trimmed within a year or two to the square CD cases most people are familiar with.
Once we got home, the three of us popped in the game and we were never the same after. Within three minutes of gameplay, you see a creature on the floor eating a dead body. What the hell were we playing? We start firing, but then we ran out of bullets. Who makes a game where you run out of bullets? Really? We ran. We ran like no tomorrow away from that room. Finally, things started to calm down and we started to search the mansion for answers, when three scarred dogs burst through the windows in a hall and started to attack us. I think my heart almost stopped and this is still one of the most traumatic memories I have in gaming. God I love it.
Resident Evil was the first game to be dubbed “survival horror” and spawned countless other games in this category. Resident Evil alone has over a dozen games and six movies in the franchise. I thought about including the whole series, but the effect the first game has had on me deserved placing it at alone at number 3. Resident Evil 2 is also an amazing game, spanning two discs and two characters point of view that you must play in entirety to truly beat the game. Capcom has recently released remakes of the first three games which I still need to play. Soon.
2. Sierra On-Line Games (1980-2002)
The absolute king of text-based adventure games, Sierra On-Line was a staple of almost any kid growing up in the 80s that was lucky enough to have a home computer. Lucky for me, my dad was at the forefront of technology in the day and we were early adopters. What happened, Dad?
Popular titles like King’s Quest, Space Quest, Police Quest, Leisure Suit Larry, and Quest for Glory. They even made games without Quest in the title like Manhunter, Gold Rush, The Colonel’s Bequest, Gabriel Knight, Phantasmagoria, and many, many more. These games inspired so many future game designers and the founders Ken and Roberta Williams have been honored for lifetime achievement awards on numerous occasions.
The first Sierra game I played was King’s Quest II: Romancing the Throne. I played the game in my best friend from elementary school, Nathan’s basement. I was in second grade, so I must have been seven or eight years old. Here we were, two kids trying to solve a game that was designed to stump adults, yet we did it. Ok, ok. We may have had a few hints along the way by calling the Sierra hint phone line (it was pre-internet, people). We died so many times in so many interesting ways along the way.
The following Christmas, my Aunt Shirley gifted me King’s Quest III: To Heir is Human. In this game, you are a boy enslaved by an evil wizard and you have to perform magic spells to free yourself. Magic spells. Written in the instruction manual. How freaking amazing is that? Needless to say, I was hooked on these games for the next decade.
Unfortunately, Sierra didn’t adapt well to the 3D era and was sold to a few different companies over time. They still did produce a few great games like Half-Life and Diablo before going under, but these were a far cry from the original text adventure games. Now that the original games are able to be played on current technology, I plan to revisit them one by one and play the games I never played as a kid. Hopefully, I still enjoy them and they don’t lose their ranking. Follow my blog and join me for the adventure.
1. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1992)
All of the Zelda games are great, at least the ones I’ve played, but Link to the Past is my absolute favorite. So much so that I used to play this game multiple times per year. At one point, I was able to beat the game in 3-4 hours. Not the fastest speed run out there, but pretty darn good.
I love just about everything this game has to offer. It really took all the best features of the original, fixed the problems (I hated that you couldn’t move diagonally in the first one, a lot), and enhanced the graphics with a stronger story. I still remember pulling the Master Sword out of the stone for the first time. The spooky mist, the escalating music, perfection.
This was the last top down, two dimensional Zelda game produced outside of handheld devices. I enjoyed playing the new games, but they never really felt like Zelda to me. There was something about the simplicity of the design in contrast to the complexity of the game that made the original and Link to the Past so wonderful for me. Maybe that is why I stopped playing the series after Wind Waker on GameCube. I’m embarrassed to say that I still have Twilight Priness in cellophane sitting with my GameCube in storage. One thing that bothered me about the new games was just how long it took to get from A to B without a horse, or a boat, or some other form of transportation.
The SNES allowed the bosses to be larger than the original, allowing greater contrast in size between Link and his foes providing for more exciting battles. The game includes just the right amount of challenge that frustrates, but doesn’t alienate the player. There is also just the right amount of conversation with NPCs (Non Player Characters) so that you don’t get bored. There’s even a witch that takes undesirable produce off your hands.
I’ve always had kind of a “white knight” syndrome, wanting to save the girl or village from some catastrophe, and this series never disappoints. In real life, I became a doctor and have yet to save a princess in distress. Hmmmm. Maybe I should have been an archaeologist. Or a plumber.
Well, that is my list. I hope you enjoyed yourself. I’m sure you probably have plenty of thoughts and would love to tell me how wrong I must be. Or, maybe you want to share your favorite Sierra game. Either way, feel free to leave a comment below. If you like what you read, then feel to follow me on Twitter to hear about future posts. Thanks for visiting and see you soon.