Shenanigans & Tomfoolery

A lot of these lists are going to start floating around soon and I don’t expect anything extraordinary in terms of video games out of the rest of December so I thought I’d join in on the fun.

To be included in this most prestigious list, a game must have been released at any point between January 1st of 2000 up until the date of this post and I must have played it beginning to end. No compilations or ports either.

Before I start and in no particular order, here’s a list of the games that didn’t quite make the cut: Batman: Arkham Asylum, Bioshock, Devil May Cry, Devil May Cry 3, Gradius V, The World Ends With You, No More Heroes, Rez, Rock Band 2, Mass Effect, Pikmin 2 and Dragon Quest VIII.

And so, off to numbers 10 through 6 in the list.

10. Team Fortress 2 (Valve – 2007)

Before Team Fortress 2, I would have laughed at the notion of an online, multiplayer only first person shooter turning out to be one of my favorite games of all time yet here we are. In development for a rumored 8 years, Team Fortress 2 is largely successful because of two things: 1) an excellent, infinitely replayable class-based multiplayer game that demands that you use your head as much as your gaming motor skills and 2) a flawless-in-its-execution presentation that adds a tremendous amount of life to the game (and that I believe could carry over flawlessly into an animated movie). Unfortunately, the fact that it’s multiplayer only also means it inherently lacks a lot of things that other games on this list provide (immersiveness, a strong narrative structure and atmosphere to name a few) and this prevents it from being higher on this list. Make no mistake though, this is a game that I still play today and, thanks to Valve’s continued commitment in periodically providing new content for the game, will continue to play for a long time to come. It’s that good.

9. Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar – 2008)

I never liked the PS2 Grand Theft Auto games. My experience with Vice City was wrought with glitches, frustration at the horrible controls and a general sense that these games were undercooked and needlessly bloated. I was completely baffled at the massive commercial and critical acclaim these games were getting. Eventually, Grand Theft Auto IV was released on next gen consoles and I gave it a shot. It was the first game in the franchise that I really enjoyed and, slowly but surely, it started to grow on me. I felt that it was the true realization of what the previous entries in the series were trying to do. The breadth of this game is quite possibly unmatched and, as a New York resident, it was an absolute thrill to drive through the streets of Liberty City. I think combat was a bit clunky (though still miles ahead of what was found in the previous games) and the new driving mechanics took a bit to get used to but I have nothing but fond memories of this game. There are many open world games out there and, without a doubt, Grand Theft Auto IV is the pinnacle amongst them.

8. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (Kojima Productions – 2004)

I had a hard time deciding between this and the much maligned Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (which I absolutely love) but ultimately went with the former just because of the much improved gameplay. That’s one of the things that the Metal Gear Solid franchise has been so successful at, each new iteration makes the previous one almost unplayable. The addition of CQC, some of the best boss fights in the series (The End!) and a gripping story with some truly fleshed out characters are but a handful of the things that made this game such a memorable one. I feel a little mixed about the eating and healing aspects of the game and the camouflage system is a little too cumbersome but these are small nitpicks to one of the most engrossing video game experiences in the last 10 years. Going for a No Alert/No Kill run really exposes the wealth of options in which you can accomplish things in this game and is about as fun and challenging as a any video game can get. This is a good time as any to mention that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots was a huge disappointment.

7. Fallout 3 (Bethesda – 2008)

Ah, Fallout 3. While not as massive an RPG as Oblivion, Fallout 3 is still a beast of a game and you will have spent over 60 hours trudging through the Capital Wasteland before you realize it, and that’s without counting the downloadable content. The game boasts a morality system done right with your actions having huge ramifications in the game which, coupled with the myriad of weapons, perks and attribute/skill point distribution, makes sure that no two people play the game the same way. The post-apocalyptic setting, moody atmosphere, beautiful graphics and dark humor are just icing on an already luscious cake. Fallout 3 is quite possibly the best Western RPG I’ve ever played and that’s saying a lot.

6.Half-Life 2 (Valve – 2004)

Two words: Gravity Gun. The single best weapon in video games, Half-Life 2 and the Gravity Gun truly revolutionized games by throwing in real world physics as an actual weapon. Why bother with ammo when you can throw whatever is lying on the ground at that approaching Combine? Of course, physics based gameplay is common in video games now but it’s worth noting that it all started right here. Throw in Alyx, gaming’s single best supporting character, and a cast of real, breathing characters on top of a story that is always shown through your eyes (never through a cutscene) and you get a genuinely compelling game. Some of the driving sections are a bit long-winded but that’s about the only complaint I can think of for this fantastic game. The finale in this game is epic unlike any other and, if you count the later episodic content, you’ll witness the most heart wrenching and accomplished narrative moment ever put in a video game at the end of Episode 2. Half-Life 2 is a pioneer of gaming and I can’t wait for future installments.

To be continued…

Related posts:

1. My Top 10 Video Games of the Decade – Part 2 of 2
2. My Top 10 Video Games of the Decade – Addendum
3. Settling the “video games as art” debate…
4. My Top 10 Comic Books of the Decade – Part 1 of 2

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