Enjoy some complimentary music that I love from the game!
The Never-ending Story
The age-old question always comes into play when discussing your all-time favorites for something. Why do you love it and in this why do I love video games? I could sit here and probably type out the longest and most incomprehensible post possible if I wanted to truly tackle all the emotions and ideas at play for why I feel the way I do about something. In truth, there really is no succinct and comfortable way to accurately break down my experiences with words alone, as something will always be lacking that I just won’t be able to convey. That being said, what I do want to touch on, and have mentioned numerous times throughout my entire countdown to this point, is my favorite thing in all of video games. A sense of adventure being blanketed over me that creates pure unrivaled kid-like joy in my heart at the very prospect of the possibility alone. This almost abstract, but seemingly tangible euphoria consumes me wholly as I experience media that deftly slaps me across the face with it. No single piece of media in any shape or form defines this quite like The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker for me.
Just a boy on a boat with the wind at his back. It’s novel sure, but the effectiveness is grandiose. The humble beginnings of starting on your island, as an unassuming sleepy head who gets whisked into a story of trying to save his sister from peril. The journey commences with a personal stake at hand, and as you see more of the world, you learn of many others who have faced similar struggles. In essence, from the get-go, The Wind Waker wants you to see the world, explore at your own leisure, and really understand the vast sea all around you. As you travel from key location to key location, you learn about new cultures, save those who need your aid, and grow stronger. All the while, still being just an ordinary boy who wants to simply be brave and help those he cares about. Wind Waker is straightforward, and simple in that regard, and quickly lands the player in a world of possibilities that empower and excite. Do you decide to go straight to your goal or instead go off that beaten path and find some untold treasure that benefits you? It really is up to you as you slowly become accustomed to the shadowy outlines of islands miles in front of you, and plunge forth upon the Great Sea.
The Legend of Zelda as a franchise is one of the, if not the best video game series at forging a believable and palpable sense of adventure through its world and characters. This especially became noticeable with the leap into 3D. Things such as Hyrule Field in Ocarina of Time, or the complex interwoven schedule of the denizens of Clock Town make for such a wondrous experience. This idea that you can go out into the world and know not of what you might come across, yet you can bet it will be something worth talking about later to someone else. Zelda has always managed to make finding treasure a rewarding time or discovering some oddball person a defining and memorable experience. Wind Waker takes the blueprints established by its predecessors and goes another step forward into crafting a rousing time for players as they discover new places and people. Places like Wind Fall island feel even more like a real-life town than anything we had seen before, and the massive ocean filled with sunken treasure and small islands is a bounty of treasure never seen on that scale. All of it culminates in the most lifelike and charming world of adventure that titillates the curiosity of the mind almost endlessly.
Treasure Island
You know, the sense of constant and enticing adventure is surely present, but how does it function within the gameplay loop itself? Quite wonderfully if you were to ask, this totally unbiased person right here. The slow and steady hype built upon gaining new techniques and skills as you discover new lands and eventually try and conquer their dungeons is ever-present. Thanks to the improvements of the Gamecube hardware, Wind Waker is able to perfect the classic Z-targeting camera, and lock-on system originated from the 64 games. No longer are you constrained by slightly stiff camera issues and animations. Instead, the combat is as smooth as it can possibly be, and this would be the basis that all future Zelda games would use for their own 3D combat styles and variations. Dungeons are more distinctive than ever as well thanks to the crisp and gorgeous cel-shaded art style. They create dashes of timeless visuals and colors that make the dungeons feel more ominous and memorable than the older hardware was capable of. The gracious technical improvements use what already worked so fantastically and elevate them to new heights because of it. This allows Wind Waker to truly feel like a timeless game in game feel and audio/visual design.
I rather love the dungeons themselves as well. While not quite as challenging as the 64 games at some instances, more often than not it wasn’t due to a lack of design toughness. The older games were a little more tedious to traverse and harder to make out what was useful so more trial and error took place as a result. With the far clearer and cleaner cut of rooms and key interactable objects, Wind Waker makes for a smoother and generally more enjoyable puzzle-solving experience. While not my all-time favorite in the franchise, I do find them undeniably enjoyable on every revisit, while I can think of one dungeon in almost every other 3D game I always groan at having to go through it again during my replays. The items you gain within the dungeons also are far more useful than prior games in just general play and combat. The Deku leaf itself is maybe the best traversal item ever created in Zelda, and it was fully perfected in the most recent game to show why. Many side items or masks just weren’t worth using over your sword in the 64 games, but ever since Wind Waker each Zelda game tends to give the player more options for movement, and combat than ever creating a more robust and varied experience depending on player preference. Although, I do miss rolling around like a Goron and Zora swimming, so I wouldn’t mind seeing those come back with modern tech Nintendo!
At its core though, this is a Zelda game through and through. You take on evil by getting a variety of weapons, and you solve puzzles as they block your path. Bosses are epic set pieces and usually fairly easy to take down, but super enjoyable nonetheless. I will say though, this game has my favorite incarnation of Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf. I find their personalities to be the most enjoyable and it comes down to the expressive art style and nuance in parts of the writing. This is a surprisingly dark game despite the joyful art direction. Ganondorf is almost Shakespearean in philosophy, and it makes it a truly interesting antagonist rather than just a big scary bad man with a little bit of a past. Whoever helped write Mask Kid in Majora must have played a part here as well, because both of them are tremendously interesting characters with how they are presented. Zelda or Tetra in this case is just a true scamp throughout the duration of the game, and her snarky but lovable persona is something that makes her stand out from her fellow princesses. I do wish we got more of her in the last leg of the game, but she is still present way more often than any other incarnation of Zelda and her relationship with Link is sweet. Link is just a goofy kid with funny expressions, so that’s why I like him more. His connection to his sister and Grandma make him feel like he has truly lived a life before the events of the game, and the people you meet along the way like Makar or Medli feel like true friends as you grow close to them. The make for a captivating trio of the triforce, and the best group of 3 in the entire franchise for me.
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea
Harboring back to the beginning of it all, Wind Waker is more than just the perfect adventure. It is the game that made me fall in love with my favorite hobby. Before playing Zelda, I had never experienced anything that would impact me in even close to the same way. Much of what I am today stems from the things that put me on that path to start. The Wind Waker is the icon of that idealogy, and one of the reasons, even to this day, I am always searching with deep-engrained passion for the next video game to truly shake my very soul. It doesn’t happen all that often, but the adventure that is diving deep into the complex spiraling world of games is just too exhilarating to step away from. This hobby has become one of my very own great stories to tell, share, and compare with others. Like the Wind Waker was and still is for me, this hobby has transcended just being a trivial usage of my time to pass the hours for a little spare entertainment. It has become so much more, and it beckons me to endlessly discover the next surprise.
That would be my best attempt at conveying even a micro-sliver of why I love video games. Wind Waker opened all the doors, and I’ve not yet found a reason to keep going through them all. I’m happily unsatisfied with being drowned with options for continuing my adventure. Wind Waker was not the first game I ever played, but it was damn well sure the most defining of them all. A story of cycles endlessly at play, and you are the chosen hero to break that and create something new for the future. What you make of that future is an endless flowchart of choices, none of which are wrong. The greatest adventure we all embark on is life itself, and to enjoy it to the fullest we need to find elements to incorporate that make the best of it. Our hobbies are one of the possible keys to that lock, and if you can open it up nice and cleanly, a bountiful future awaits. Video games are definitely a massive boon to personal happiness levels, and Wind Waker is the game that created that part of me. I love games, I love Wind Waker, and I love the fact that while that adventure is closed, mine is still being written. I will find the strength to persevere through the hardest obstacles before me. I will gain much wisdom through the collective experiences I go through as I age. All I need is the courage to believe that everything I want is possible and that I will achieve it. After all, I’m just an ordinary kid too, so why not just be brave and try my best if nothing else? I may not be the chosen one of legend, but I am able to choose what I make of what I do have.
That’s number one finished!. Huge credit to my Raphael for producing the drawing used as the cover picture. He did so so so so much for this overall last leg of the project, and I will be eternally grateful for all he contributed. That’s all for games for now though everyone! Look forward to early December time for the November Challenge post and some lists coming your way!
In 2020 I reached a benchmark I had long wanted to reach. I beat my 500th game in my lifetime, and with that, I decided it was time to organize and make a list of my favorites. To commemorate and really feel satisfied with this idea I wanted to share my list with the world. So on my social platform of Kitsu, I decided to make a post one at a time about each and every game on my list. These are those posts migrated over here for you all to read. Once I make the Top Ten though, all of those posts will be wholly unique and curated for here. I plan to update this list every year, but for now, until I reach the end of my countdown, please enjoy my current Top 100 Favorite Games of All Time! Any questions or concerns, let me know in the comments below, but as always thank you for reading my little gaming wanderers! Here’s to video games and my lifelong passion for them, shared with you all!
20: Hollow Knight
Played on: PS4
Year Released: 2018
In every medium, you come across a similar phenomenon. Something that is so highly revered and praised, you almost are as excited to try it out yourself, as you are scared to possibly not enjoy it as much as the rest of the world. There are video games that have definitely earned such praise as well. One such title in recent memory is that of Hollow Knight. If you are talking indie games in the past 5 years or so titles such as Undertale, Celeste, and Hades would join that company of massively beloved modern classics. So, even though it is pretty obvious by its placement, does Hollow Knight stand up to those high claims and laud? It crushes them with tenacity and a little grace at that.
It’s always fairly intimidating to play something like this. So many lists call it the best game of this genre, or of all time. And normally while hyperbole exists to help get clicks, I do think many times it is also a genuine reaction to how people feel. With that being said, I can’t tell you how good it feels to have a similar experience in some way. Hollow Knight is in fact what you have heard it is. A dark depressing work of art that blends a line between Metroidvania for gameplay and the Souls franchise for deeply rooted lore that further connects the whole experience. However, I feel it outdoes both of the best of those groups. I find it a more complex and rewarding Metroidvania than anything I’ve ever touched, and I find its lore easier to grasp and more enjoyable than the souls game. It takes the best from the concepts, makes its own identity out of them, and elevates them to more powerful places. Hollow Knight as of now is my definitive Metroidvania experience that I recommend to people who haven’t played it.
From the moment the gorgeous soundtrack bellows over your ears and the painted art style invokes feelings of sadness and intrigue, Hollow Knight is a game that hooks you. What starts off in a mush of solemn grays and blues, shows rich colors of greens, vibrant oranges, and completely dead browns as you dig further into the Hollownest. Trying to figure out what mystery brought this world to desolation, and ruin, you are armed with a nail that functions like a sword. You use it to dispatch foes in your way alongside navigating an intricately developed world that is interconnected all over. The game is full of everything from hidden secret pathways, to equippable charms to fully personalize your character on the fly, to brutally clever bosses that block your way forward. This game is what you would expect it to be, but manages to capitalize on that by doing it all just so cleanly. Upgrades naturally make exploring more enjoyable and unlock paths previously inaccessible. Bosses are tough challenges that test your skill and also serve as excellent set pieces on top of having heavy lore context. Each and every map is given a specific design in mind of the world’s history. The few NPCs you do meet are engaging and flesh out the world nicely as well as give you a sense of comfort amidst all the lonely death that surrounds you. Hollow Knight is a culmination of inspiration that is never short of rewarding content.
Hollow Knight is a game that really does keep on going. It has the secrets of Super Metroid, but with the length and design ideas of Dark Souls. Clocking in at around 40 hours, this game for a full run will showcase how far you can stretch those ideas to their maximum. It’s neat having the simplicity of a Castlevania is combat, but with the customability of an RPG with the movement of something like Ori and the Blind Forest. This is a game that has earned its praise and then some. Everything I love about exploring in games gets satisfied here. Finding new charms that excite me for later stuff, or taking on a secret boss I stumbled across. My mind is filled with memories that were so enjoyable as I played this game by myself without anything but my mind running with ideas on what to do next. The thrill of beating Nightmare Grimm for the first time is as great as your first foray into the City of Tears. This game is two parts that come into perfect cohesion for me. It was my GOTY in 2019 when I played it, and it’s something I really have almost nothing but praise for. It’s what I want games to achieve and it does just that. Welcome to the top 20 where I mostly just gush without as much criticism because these games afflicted me on a different level than others.
19: Metal Gear Solid 3 HD
Played on: PS3
Year Released: 2011
I’m still in a dreaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam…SNAKE EATER!! From the moment you boot this game up and the opening credits hit with this bombastic song akin to the Bond films of the 70’s you know you are in for a treat. Easily one of my favorite memories is my great friend Vanhook starting the game up on my system, and literally singing along word for word passionately to this song. Equally hilarious to impressive, it gave me an understanding of what this game meant to him. And well this was the game that started the conversation between me and him with MGS as a franchise. I may have played them in order to experience the mechanical improvements between entries, but the reason I did that was to fully see what this title was meant to showcase when it launched. His favorite game of all time, something I try to never take lightly when I play it for someone. I want to get in a headspace as best as possible to fully grasp the totality of what makes the game so special to those players. And if I had to say one game is the best in the biz at stealth espionage nothing comes close to Metal Gear Solid 3.
It blows my mind when I realize this came out in 2005. Not only because how good it looks but just for some of the innovations it incorporated. It was already insane some of the mechanics placed on MGS2 Sons of Liberty existed, but this game took it even further. Intelligent A.I. is one thing, them being able to recognize footprints, weird sounds, or out of places objects, but the survival aspects that intertwine with your stealth gameplay are a whole other level of impressive. You must scavenge, hunt animals, treat your wounds, pay attention to your surroundings, change your clothes to match the camo, all to aid you in not getting caught and taken down. This game takes the aspect of a lone man in the jungle with only his wit and tools literally, and it works so damn well. The player is tasked with responsibilities that don’t feel burdensome, but rather crucial to victory and satisfying to manage. You walk through a dirty river, check for leeches, you fall really far down a cliff, you might need to splint your leg, for the time being, hungry kill a snake and eat it for nutrition. If you don’t take care of these things Snake will lose health, move slower, have his stomach growl from hunger giving away his position, the game wants you to treat life as precious. Don’t waste what you kill, and don’t forget to take care of yourself.
As with the other entries of the series this game has a bonkers plot filled with crazy plot twists. Instead of clones or anything completely sci-fi we have a more grounded base of stopping nuclear war and your former boss. Aptly named the Boss, you are code name Naked Snake, as you have nothing but your basic toolset to proceed upon. This story not only shows you the origin of how Naked Snake turns into Big Boss later on, but it has huge whiplashes that cause the entire rest of the MGS franchise as chronologically this is the first game of them all. All in all, while I do love the melodramatic movie long cutscenes of MGS 4 and how they wrap up the franchise so nicely, something is hard to beat about the heart of this story. Hunting your mentor you respect and love without understanding why they defected. And when it all comes together it’s pure magic. Few moments in all of gaming are as powerful as what they ask you to do at the end of Snake Eater. Something that could be cutscene but deliberately made a gameplay mechanic to add weight, consequence, and a feeling of uncertainty.
After I wrapped up the main 4 games of MGS, me and my buddy went to dinner and the entire meal all we talked about was MGS 3 and its story and plot. We stayed at the restaurant for probably around 2 hours or so. Discussing everything from the bosses, their themes, and how brilliant they are to the heavy plot twists. I mean imagine a game where you can avoid a major boss if you are lightning-fast and sniper him in the one chance for a few seconds early on in the game. The amount of detail and craft that went into making this a true spy thriller with the same crazy MGS characters without making it sacrifice anything is astounding to me. That same night we hung out for hours longer and even stayed in his car for like 3 hours in front of my house talking more about MGS 3. We must have spent almost 5-7 hours talking about just it that night and everything it did. I would say it was the most enjoyable game discussion I’ve ever had in my life, and it not only gave me full understanding of why he loved it so much but why games are so special. I already knew deep down, but having reminders to show me why games impact the way they do is how I never forget why this is my favorite hobby and past time. MGS 3 is a terrific sequel, amazing experience, and the best damn stealth game I’ve ever played.
18: Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong’s Quest
Played on: SNES
Year Released: 1995
Have I mentioned I love Donkey Kong yet? As you have no bet figured out, I like two things. A solid platforming adventure and I like Donkey Kong. So of course when the best of the best exists I can’t leave it off my list. As much as I love what Retro managed to with the Returns series in the past several years, there is something that is clear when I go back and revisit the older DK games. And when that clicks with me, I can see why on their own I find the last two games of the trilogy to be some of the most impressive games of their time, and yet they hold up just as well as things that came out 20 years later. While the 3rd game isn’t on this list, I do want to commend it for the same thing that made DKC 2 such a special adventure. Something that lacks in the first game, and that was never fully captured in the later titles despite their excellent design.
The creativity of the level design. I didn’t notice it the first time playing this game, but on several replays, anytime I would get stuck at this part or that part something started to become really apparent. In this game, almost no two levels play the same. While yes the idea is, you platform from right to left, I’m not kidding when I say that almost every level in this game has a unique method of making you traverse its level that no other level uses. It could be using gators to launch yourself over lava or a balloon you control carefully. Or maybe they make you do a Squawks level that is more of a maze with lots of tights dead ends and traps and then on the other hand they make an obstacle-filled race to the finish with a massive open level with him instead. They constantly reinvent how they make their levels. Hot water, cold water, being chased by water upwards, this game is consistently fresh with ideas and no level feels like any other in the entire trilogy. I really applaud that as one of my favorite reasons this game is so impressive to me.
Top that sort of excellent creative mindset with the excellence of platforming design that could rival Mario any day of the week, and you have almost a pitch-perfect game. I certainly could complain about the odd saving system, but I do think it incentivizes players to explore the challenges of the games and to improve their skills and they are placed frequent enough that nothing will stop gap you forever. Otherwise, I have very little complaint to be had. I love the unique art style, the phenomenal ost, and thrilling final clash with K. Rool. This game has it all. Couch co-op, animal buddies, tough and creative level design, and banana boomerang Dixie Kong. It’s hard to really nail every aspect without writing an individual praise post on every level in the game and how it challenges the players with new concepts without diverting too far from the core. For me, it’s easily the most satisfying game DK has been in when I look at the level design and gameplay loop. I’ve played it co-op a handful of times like the other games, but my favorite experiences this time were my solo adventures where I got to truly appreciate the finer points of design that make this game such a treasure. While it’s not my favorite 2D platformer, it’s pretty damn close, and I go back and play it fairly often and get in my DK groove before too long and become addicted all over again. For pure straightforward experiences of this genre, it’s hard to beat the best of the bunch.
17: Pokemon Heartgold
Played on: DS
Year Released: 2010
We have arrived at the best Pokemon game. The Gen 2 remakes in the Gen 4 engine. Gotta love explaining how all that works to people who don’t play the games at all. I grew up playing Pokemon from the start, and that was no different when I had the original Gold version on my Gameboy Color with my Brother having Silver. So, as I approached my Senior Year in high school I was absolutely thrilled to see a full-fledged remake of the classic game from my childhood. Seeing stuff reimagined in Firered was neat, but this was a complete and utter step up in tech possibilities. And they went ahead and made the best Pokemon game(Crystal) even better. Everything that makes Gen 2 special was here and better and smoother than ever before with the remake. Even old stuff you might miss like the original OST was something you could unlock in-game as a treat to enjoy if you wanted to experience the 8-bit versions of all the songs.
It was sort of wild how I came to fully experience this the first time. I hadn’t picked it up yet when it launched in the Spring, and my friend’s family was planning a trip to the beach. They said my friend Nelson and his brother could both invite one friend each. I was the lucky chosen one, and I went on an adventure free of all costs for a whole week to a hotel that was beachside for a whole week. On the way there we stopped by a mall and in the GameStop within it, we decided to see if they had Pokemon in stock. They in fact did and we both bought our respective copies and it became our nighttime ritual throughout the trip to play the game together. I had a detailed memory of most things and was helping my friend when he couldn’t find stuff, and on my end was re-experiencing my nostalgia in all the remake glory. I’ve replayed my copy close to ten times at this point and seen all sorts of stuff. Getting Pokerus for the time in a Nuzlocke of all things, random shinies when I had no pokeballs to catch them, and you know just the whole total package the game offers.
It’s hard, to sum up why this game is so special. While it’s not on my list at all, I do have a strong backing for Gen. 5 having the best actual plot, but I think this game is the best adventure. The scope of a full-fledged Pokemon experience, and then you get basically a bonus post-game of seeing the whole original Kanto region too!? As a kid who was highly familiar with Gen. 1, this was incredibly cool, and it’s neat to see how the region had changed and stayed the same in some aspects. While Kanto doesn’t roadblock you like Johto and every other Pokemon many plots does, it gives you an almost open freedom to explore the old region with new eyes. I like this sort of open-ended playstyle in postgame because you can personalize it so much, and see things in so many random orders from it. Then when you finish you go up to Mount Silver and the true final Boss is basically Ash, it’s just fanservice at its finest. And none of it is done without effort. It all feels rewarding and pays off as you play through the game.
I think that’s why I love this game so much. It’s got the stellar core experience of stopping the bad guys, catching fun/cute Pokemon, and trading/battling with the A.I. and Friends, but it also lets players get so much bang for their buck. Well at least before it became the rarest DS pokemon game haha. This game has two campaigns, hundreds of Pokemon naturally available to catch, and all the up-to-date tweaks that Pokemon had at the height of its best mechanics. You mix Pokemon’s best adventure with its tightest gameplay loop and you get basically Pokeperfection. The game has plenty of small issues, but what doesn’t? If you want a truly special Pokemon game, this is in many regards as good as it gets. If you own it and haven’t somehow played it, you probably should. If you don’t, well I’m sorry used game markets make playing old stuff such a pain in the ass. I hope someday you can enjoy this glorious remake. And if not, at least the fantastic originals are easy to get a hold of!
Oh also…this game lets your pokemon follow you! Just like Pikachu in Yellow version. That alone makes it good right?
16: Kingdom Hearts 2
Played on: PS2
Year Released: 2006
“A scattered dream that’s like a far-off memory. A far-off memory that’s like a scattered dream. I wanna line the pieces up—yours and mine.”
Dearly Beloved starts playing in my head.
Nostalgia plus the pure adulation of the experience culminates in a special feeling that is my love for Kingdom Hearts 2. Being the age that Sora was when I first played this game made such a special bond of empathy like none other. I wanted to save the world from the darkness, save the girl I had a thing for, and just felt like I was on an epic journey. Kingdom Hearts 2 is where the story started to get a little complex, but it stayed in just enough of a sweet spot that it wasn’t a sore subject by the credits rolling. While I have more than a few gripes with how the franchise has been handled since then, I will not lie when I admit this game is something I love with all my heart.
This is the pinnacle of gameplay in the series, so that might be one reason why it’s a fan favorite. Crisp and snappy action gameplay that fully maximizes the ability and magic system. Multiple drive forms that give you new skills for standard fighting, and completely change how your style of combat flows. Reaction commands that keep battle unpredictable, and reward timely actions with huge net gains like massive damage or perfect guard. A.I. companions with incredibly flashy skills that compliment your needs and wreck house. This game takes the best of the ability system from FFIX and mixes it with a fast-paced action game creating one of the more fun action RPGS I’ve ever played. You can really customize how you want your Sora to be, and I feel that part of the RPG feeling stays true to the Final Fantasy roots, while all the colorful charm and what not suits the Disney side of things. Epic boss battles, creative mob fights, and fighting alongside companions like Simba and Auron, this game gives full respect to both properties while making the KH saga fully fleshed out on its own.
And you know even though the story isn’t my favorite with the confusing start, and context from two side games really help fill in that gap, I do think the game stands on its own just fine. The emotional wave that crashes into you while the gorgeous OST supports all the wacky plot is hard to describe, but it defined a generation of gaming for many people, myself included. This was one of the most moving games of its time, and I always eagerly looked forward to playing through it again to experience it all over again. So many moments just stick with you. Things like Mickey Mouse saving your ass while Xaldin stomps all over you, and you get to shove it to him as the King himself? Absolutely incredible. When the full context of Axel’s and Roxas and their relationship meant, and how their stories individually end? Moving as hell. How the game wraps up with a perfect and happy ending, creating one of the most rewarding conclusions I’ve ever had, but with a mystery to be excited about to the future? Legen……wait for it……………………dary!
I think this game has probably been praised by people smarter and more articulate than myself. A lot of this game’s big attachment for me does come down to when I played it, but honestly even as I get older, every time I revisit it, I have a blast. This game strikes a sweet spot with me. Tons of memories baked together into a pie that I gladly ask for another slice of. Many of my favorite Disney properties are represented in fun and enjoyable explorable worlds. The Final Fantasy characters I have come to love were first introduced to me within this series. And of course, the main characters Sora, Kairi, and Riku are just near and dear to my heart as the cornerstones of what make the emotional highs of KH 2 so invigorating to experience. Nothing can take away all the fun I gather from the world-traveled escapades of Sora, Donald, and the Goof. And nothing can replace the feelings that arise within me as I close in on the climax of the narrative to get to that juicy and satisfying conclusion to it all. It’s a special game in its own right, but furthermore by how it feeds into the old, gave me things to discover, and altogether made me feel so happy whilst playing through it. It’s not as simple or clean as the first game, but when I go into the second title I feel like it’s my own personal sanctuary to covet.
I ought to play final mix one of these days! Just more of what I love is awaiting me.
15: Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Played on: Wii
Year Released: 2008
My favorite Smash, tripping and all. I think if you are a long-time fan of the Smash bros franchise you tend to either love Brawl or hate it. That mostly comes down to pretentious competitive players who want to suck all the fun out of Smash by making it a super serious game versus those who just want a fun party game that they can make serious if they feel like it. I’m the latter because unlike most gamers, I actually want to have fun in some way. Brawl was the pinnacle of it for me too. I think at this point I’ve pushed nearly 1500 hrs into it and because of that, I’ve not only spent an unhealthy amount of my time with it but also gained a massive appreciation for how enjoyable it is. I’m fairly certain, with no exaggeration, this is the single most played video game in my entire life. From the moments I first picked up from a packed Gamestop on launch day to my regular play sessions at my friend’s place with one on one battles of skill. This game has got a lot of mileage out of me, and I am incredibly fond of it.
While I’ve always preferred the event mode of Melee over Subspace Emissary, I won’t like that it’s a really fun experience to run through. So this game has all the classic modes from older smash games with a campaign, boss rush, huge cast(laughable with Ultimates standards), custom stage builder, and even demos of old games that were unlockable to play a portion of. This game created a huge checklist of things to do as well. Hundreds of mini-goals to work towards, and I’ve done them all but two. Screenshot functionality, pictures you could share with friends, this game is the gift that keeps giving. I think the amount of content here makes this game stacked with fun stuff to do outside just the main smash modes that we already came to know and love. Later games have carried on this tradition but I guess as I get older I liked the solid complete feel of Brawl with the list it layed out before me.
Even though you can argue that Ultimate is mechanically the most sound and best playing smash, I do have a fondness for the more loose feel of Brawl. Characters have distinct weaknesses so it was fun trying to beat friends with characters who were harder to win with. Showing the viability and fun factor of each character was an obsession of mine, so I spent dozens of hours learning to play everyone equally so I could play any character at random and possibly win with them. I found it fun and super rewarding to be setting my own small goals, and just smashing them one after another. Few games have engaged me for as long as this did, and I guess that’s why the series constantly gets people to play with each generation since it has existed. Melee was my childhood but Brawl was my deep dive delve. It even got me good enough to play competitive smash for a few tournaments. I eventually dropped that to just focus on the more enjoyable aspect of the franchise, but I can confidently say I’ve experienced pretty much everything this beast of a game has to offer. Hearing people’s smash stories has always been something I enjoy, and while I don’t go and revisit the series or even Brawl itself much these days, I can’t erase those thousands of matches I invested within its addicting crossover world. I don’t have much else to say, because I mean come on, It’s Smash, either you love it or you don’t, and when you do, it’s usually because this is a huge celebration of gaming in an incredibly charming package.
14: Persona 3: FES
Played on: PS2
Year Released: 2008
It was love at first butterfly. Back in 2011 I was looking for something unique. I wanted to try out a game with dating mechanics but wanted something more than just a simple visual novel. I wanted something with substantial gameplay. After doing a few hours of research I narrowed down my possible candidates to two games. Sakura Wars, So Long my Lost Love, or Persona 3 FES. Based on the art style and more direct look of the combat I was more interested in Persona just a smidge more and so I bought the bullet and went forth with my experiment. The first night I played it alongside my sister watching, I explained what little I knew of it, and we made jokes galore. Oh, that butterfly is gonna show me who to love! Oh, I’m gonna date that girl! Which ironically the first person I said that about was Yukari, who I did end up dating funny enough. I played for about 2 hours, got a little taste, and was good for the night. The next day I figured I’d play a little outside that introduction and before I knew it 9 hours had passed on my save file. Welp….I guess there’s more to this than I thought!
Which is 100% true. I came for the unique concept and stayed for everything else on top of that. This was the beginning of my love affair with the Persona franchise over the past decade. Two other mainline games, and like a half dozen spin-off games that involve, dungeon crawling, fighting, and even dancing. It all started here, and honestly, I have a nostalgic feeling about it now that over 10 years have passed since I first played the series. I was enthralled by the day-to-day beat of the game. It caused me to want to spend hours getting to know the characters of the SEES dormitory and the high school. And at the same time, there was a mystery causing people to lose all hope and be filled with apathy alongside a terrifying massive dungeon filled with monsters that were seemingly endless that seemed connected to it all. Persona is basically the reason I branched out to try other series with time management as well such as the Atelier franchise. It also gave me everything I wanted out of an epic large JRPG story with lovable relatable characters, and plenty of nice twists. I fun and engaging take-turn battle system that requires plenty of planning and managing of your supplies to win in the long run. Persona 3 had everything I loved about the genre, but with a mature storyline, and new mechanics I had yet to come across elsewhere.
Now, some of you long-time fans might be wondering why it’s higher than P4 or P5 though. As those games objectively improve the dungeon design and battle mechanics for the better of the series. They also expand the Social link system into a robust mixture of character progression and battle rewards. They obviously are released afterwards too, so better presentation comes alongside that forefront, and even more side content that even before. It really comes down to three simple things. The characters, the story, and originality. These 3 features are the stand-out features that put Persona 3 ahead, alongside it cultivating the relationship I have with the series in general.
I personally like this cast the best. I do love all 3 mainline games I’ve finished in terms of their overall cast, I still sit with Persona 3 having possibly my favorite of the bunch. It’s close between it and 4 and P5 definitely has the weakest cast of the bunch. It’s not a huge margin by any means, but big enough. The biggest factor of the 3 I named is definitely the story. P4 is a mystery that unfortunately drags its feet a little too long and basically makes the answer to your questions too obvious by the end. And P5 is fun, but most of its story doesn’t lend well spaced out formula like the previous two games, especially when they show you the baddie’s point of view for most of the game, so being in wonder isn’t really gonna happen. P3 on the other hand has a deliberate reason for why the cast must wait to take action in relation to the full moon, and when you get pushed to the late portions of the game poses a lot of heavy questions that don’t actually have real answers to them. That and there are legit consequences that are permanent in P3’s story that are far more impactful overall. Lastly, I might as well mention the originality remark. P3 created the day and night balancing of relationships and dungeon crawling, the social link system, and the wildcard persona collectathon. Most of what makes Persona 4/5 better as sequels are improvements on a very solid framework that wouldn’t exist without P3. It was the game that was bold enough to try out these systems and if it didn’t do it really well, they wouldn’t have remained integral portions of the design. I always tip my hat to something that creates an idea with risk involved versus just improving what is already there. No disrespect as you can see how highly I ranked the others, but that’s mostly my reasoning for those curious.
I think this post has gone on long enough, but if you want two more reasons this game is the best Persona I have them. You get party members that are a robot and a dog. What else could you want? If I can kick ass with a waifu toaster and Hachiko then I’m a happy guy damn it. Now if we can Atlus to understand the worst thing that happened to the franchise is how overlooked Koro-chan is. Why in the fuck was he not in the dancing game? Mona can be, but not him!? I want a break dancing Koromaru! IS THAT SO MUCH TO ASK FOR!?? Let the good boy have his time to shine damn it!
13: Batman Arkham City
Played on: PS3
Year Released: 2011
Did I mention I like Batman? I remember the day this game came out. I bugged my friend to let me ride with him so I could go pick up my copy. When I got home I booted it up and played for about 8 hrs nonstop. Then I ate some dinner and picked it back up and continued that night til I hit the credits. It’s one of the only times in my life I’ve beaten a game that isn’t meant to be beaten in a single sitting as such. I was consumed with the world Arkham City built, and the narrative it presented to me. I will go as far and say that this is the best superhero video game that exists as of today. Everything done so well in Asylum was perfected to a formula in City. The combat, the stealth, the story, the atmosphere, this is all top-notch Batman content. Growing up with the animated series and getting to finally experience something that even transcended that for me, well it’s hard to put into words.
This game really just nails what I loved about the original while expanding it in many ways. Combat is far more robust and allows for so many creative ways to fight while making the player stay focused. Predator sections aren’t as easy to abuse this time around, requiring creative environmental problem solving from the player. And while the tight paced Asylum wins out in pure design, the City is compact enough to remain engaging and is filled with tons of mysteries and the fun of soaring through the sky with your cape feels incredible to do. The only major thing holding back the first game was how it played itself quite safe and the ending was lackluster, to say the least. The follow-up gives a showcase of what was possible. A huge array of famous members of the Rogues Gallery such as Two-Face, Penguin, and Ra’s Al Ghul make incredible use of their screentime alongside other classics from the first game like the Joker. Nothing is more powerful either than the way this game ends. Absolutely brilliant I must say. Few times have I ever been in such awe with the delivery after the setup in the world of games. Usually, when I’m awestruck it’s because a happy ending gets me good, but Arkham City pulls the god damn rug from beneath you to land a momentous occasion. I respect the hell out of it, and it still ranks as one of the most memorable game endings of all time for me.
While this game is more of the same in some ways, I love what they gave me. I really thought you couldn’t improve on the original formula, but as Arkham City and Knight showed you can totally add more without ruining it. I mean heck Spider-Man borrowed the skeleton and completely reworked it into the best playing game of that franchise as well. Nothing beats the feel though of being the Dark Knight. Scaring the shit out of thugs and picking them off one by one as their fear grows. It’s incredible to behold when the power is put in your hands. You feel like the night that stalks them, unrelenting and pure fear in physical form. I adore this, and it’s a big part of the mythos that Batman has with thugs. Getting challenged to be smart was so cool too. On the hardest difficulty, you basically have to use the area in many areas or you will fail. The A.I. is smart and will make sure you can’t camp out in one place. You must be quick, swift, and precise to make sure you can keep the pressure on them. Probably why the Mr. Freeze boss fight on hard mode is one of my all-time favorites too. You literally have to come up with close to 8 different take-down methods as he takes the area away from you. You are the stalked, but you must take him down first.
Everything I want in a Batman experience is here basically. Tight gameplay that mixes badass combat, and stealthy goodness. Tons of mysteries to solve that makes you feel like a detective as you work through not only the main story but all the Riddler challenges. A satisfying story that is equally dark and well told in comparison to some of the Bat’s best. A huge variety of references to known and lesser-known Batman characters, that showcases all the love and detail of this world of Gotham. And of course Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamil duking it out as the best duo to play the Batman and Joker ever in one of their best performances ever. I can’t ask for more than this. This game removes the bad from Asylum while expanding itself, but doesn’t succumb to being too big for its own good and Warner Bros nonsense like the follow up(Well aside from the Catwoman thing being a preorder bonus. That’s some real shit there.). It finds the nice middle spot and makes the best of both worlds to become my favorite Batman media of all time.
12: Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Played on: Wii
Year Released: 2006
If it wasn’t already entirely obvious from the other games being on this list, I really love Zelda. As my favorite gaming franchises, I would be remiss if I didn’t have several entries find their way onto it. Twilight for me is one of the most special games of them all though. Funny enough though it’s because of my second playthrough, not my first time running through the game. While my first time was incredible and I look back fondly on it, nothing can replace my second playthrough and what it means to me in my life. Everything I already loved was maximized through that experience.
So, the second time I played this game was in 2009 during the summer. I had just undergone my second abdominal surgery for a really long named tumor. For those curious, they haven’t resurfaced since that second time, and they were benign. After my surgery, I had to recover and I had a lot of time on my hands for the next 7-14 days with nothing else to do. I got my ole waggle mote from the Wii ready and embarked on my first replay of this fine adventure. It had been a few years since I played it, and I was eager to get back. As it had become a tradition, my sister wanted to watch me play through it again. I wasn’t gonna argue or complain since I just wanted to recover and play through my comfort zone. Ironically she started her very first menstrual cycle of her life. So we were comrades in arms. Both bloodied, achey, and in need of something that was a source of enjoyment. Nothing can really replace the memories of us playing and talking during the second adventure like we did. Trying to remember the puzzles, story beats, and just awe the game put us in at different points. It’s not the greatest memory I have in all of gaming with her, but it’s pretty close all things considered.
Twilight Princess is the Zelda that I will throw down as having the best in two categories. It has the best dungeons, and it has the best companion character in Midna. She is arguably the best character in the entire franchise, but that is a discussion for another post. Twilight is a game that pays homage to Ocarina of time in many ways while taking on a new identity. The sense of progress and growth just feels nice throughout the adventure, and finally getting to take on the Mad King Zant is exhilarating. If you know Zelda, you know why people love it. A fun adventure with cool gadgets, and you get to be the hero who saves the wacky world of inhabits that are being hosted there. Zelda always keys in on a feeling of rewarding adventure. You grow stronger, solve many problems, and take on evil forces. It’s a classic bit at this point, and Twilight sticks to the formula about as faithful as you can in most regards. It’s the consistent air of quality care that makes it never feel dull nor lacking though. And while some folks don’t like the new stuff, I did personally. I think being a wolf is super fun and a nice way to break up the standard swordplay. The game is dark, yes, but I think it finds the balance that Zelda always does with keeping hope installed in the player’s heart. I truly adore this game as a Zelda game and think it is one of the most enjoyable in the entire catalog.
Who knows, maybe even over time it will rank even higher? It’s certainly climbed steadily over the years in my heart. I’m sure we all have media that does this. The combination of what you already would have loved in a game in tandem with memories that create a feeling of warmness in your heart. If that isn’t the basis of what makes me love gaming as a whole I don’t know what is. I always hope a game will give me this chance, and while many don’t when I do have the luck of building this sort of relationship with a game, I never forget that feeling and hold on tight.
11: Night in the Woods
Played on: PS4
Year Released: 2017
It might be odd to some, but this will be one of the shortest posts I write about my favorite games. It’s been a while since I mentioned it, but I do honestly feel like some games are better to not oversell or talk up hype for. This and when games are on the shorter side and primarily focused upon their narrative, it’s hard to focus in on something without revealing too much of its’ hand. Night in the Woods is exactly that type of game to me. I prefer telling people as little as possible. That way when they play it hands-on, all they might know are basic information, and that people do in fact enjoy it.
I played this game without knowing a single thing. My buddy Connor bought me a code for it and said to enjoy. When I asked him what it was about, he didn’t tell much if anything. He tends to be like me, and understands the value of letting the media do the talking itself. If it is going to resonate with you, then it will do so if you just play the damn thing. I respected that notion and decided to ask no further questions. All I knew was the game was about an anthropomorphic cat who was in college. Nothing more, nothing less.
If I had to say the reason this game clicked with me on such a deeply personal level, well I’d have to spoil all the fun huh? I’m not going to do that, but I can say that the game keyed in on some things that I find deeply relatable and moving. Few pieces of entertainment have struck a chord with me quite like this game. I leave aside all its popular selling points that strong-willed internet folk feel the need to shove down people’s throats, and just say this was a game that was special for me. Will it be for you? Possibly not, but all I can say is that the story of Mae Borowski in her hometown with her friends and loved ones are up there as one of my favorites of all time. If you ever play the game and have your own personal journey with it that means something special to you, then I’d encourage you to message me, as I’d love to hear all about it. Otherwise, in the meantime, I’m just gonna hold this one close to my heart and keep it all to myself.
Any other gaming related posts you would like to see! Let me know in the comments below! I just might make the post just for you if you really inspire me to do so! I want to post content for you folks here, so let us work at that future together! Until next time, stay same my little wanderers!
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