Your Favorite Video Games: Past & Present

[Dagger Dias]

As gamers many of us have grown up and seen many changes in the gaming industry. Several game series now have a long list of titles. There are 19 Super Mario series games, 18 Legend Of Zelda games, 14 Final Fantasy games disregarding spinoffs or games outside the main series, and the list goes on. Many consoles have come and gone. We have seen the NES, Sega Genesis, Game Boy, Game Gear, SNES, N64, Virtual Boy (although most may have tried to forget that one), PSX, GBA, Gamecube, PS2, Xbox, PSP, Wii, PS3, Xbox 360, PS4, Wii U, Xbox One, and more. Your own taste in games may have evolved over time as well. What I would like to do in this thread is look back on your life as a gamer. At certain points in time, what were some of your favorite games? Try to narrow it down to a specific favorite for each time-frame I list below, and for added fun I'd like you tell us why you liked these games so much.


What is your favorite game right now?, or a few of your favorites if you cannot pick just one, from the last couple of years? (No further back than 5 years ago on this one)

What were some of your favorite games 5 years ago?

What about 10 years ago?

What about 15 years ago or even further back than that?


If you do not have a favorite from 10 or 15+ years ago you do not have to answer those questions. If you are new to the gaming world then you may also ignore the 5 years ago question. There's nothing wrong with that, this is about your own personal gaming experience whether you only just started this year or if you were playing Mario Bros 1 on the original NES back in the 80's. Can't wait to see all of your responses. Remember to stay on topic and within the rules. Discuss!

 

[Reflection]

Nothing from the last 5 years... The last game I played was NFS: Carbon (released in 2006) which I still play at times, along with some other NFS titles from the golden age like Underground (2003), Underground 2 (2004) and Most Wanted (2005), all of which are damn awesome. Underground was a trend-setter; Underground 2 had the highest car customization features, along with a vivid city in free roam, and is my personal favourite game of all time; Most Wanted was the best overall; and Carbon's career mode was short and never got boring, and also the graphics were great without slowing down the computer.
Pocket Tanks Deluxe is a small but fun artillery game for the PC, which I'd recommend everyone to try out. There are hundreds of weapons to choose from; each duel lasts for only a couple of minutes, so it's very ideal for some quick time-killing, while waiting for the internet speed to pick up or a download to finish.
That's pretty much it in PC. The only other platform I've tried out is the NES/Famicom. Most of my favourites from there can be seen on my signature pic I was never a Mario, Zelda, Mega Man, Castlevania or Metroid guy; I was always a Contra, Double Dragon, TMNT, Cricket and Snow Bros guy. Some of the other games from the NES that I enjoyed are the two Chip n' Dale games, the pirated Street Fighter games, and World Championship Wrestling. I don't have a brother, so unfortunately I had to play these games mostly in 1P mode, but they were still good enough to spend many hours behind them

 

[M]

Right now I'd have to say The Last of Us is probably my favourite game. Everything about it I find pretty fantastic - except for the clunky as hell movement/aiming - but it's still the thing I chuck on when I have free time to do stuff and relax.

5 years ago I didn't have a PS3, so I was kinda stuck with playing my PS2 games over and over again. My favourite game of that era was Kingdom Hearts which I still maintain is the closest any game has ever gotten to being perfect in every way (only issue you could possibly have is the camera not being an analogue stick and still the R2/L2 buttons). I used to play through the entire game on weekends if I had nothing else on hahah.

10 years ago I didn't have my PS2, so I was playing my PS1 a ton (and a bit of N64 but I didn't like having people over so it became kinda redundant with its party game focus). Played a LOT of Crash Bash and Crash Team Racing, never got tired of either of those two games, especially the space bash level from crash bash. I'm one of the weirdos who likes Crash Team Racing over Mario Kart btw

I'm only 19 (20 very soon :'( ) but 15 years ago I played a ton of the old NES classics over and over again (didnt have anything newer) and I very distinctly remember Double Dragon III being my favourite game by a long shot. The first time I beat that back when I was 4-5 years old is still the only time I've ever beaten that in single player. Freaking unforgiving game that was.

Apparently even before that I used to bug my dad to let me watch him slaughter nazis in Wolfenstein when I was a baby - according to him "Wolfenstein" was one of my first words so chuck that in your "Fun Facts About M" book haha.

 

[WBL]

I find it very difficult to put out a pure favorite, because genres can be so starkly different that it's almost unfair to compare certain games to each other. So my favorites from some of my favorite genres are...

(These games are so old, BTW, that I don't believe it deserves a spoiler tag)

RPG: Final Fantasy VI. The last of the 2D Final Fantasy games, and a truly epic monolith in its own right. A fascinating cast of characters, and nearly every one of them gets explored really in-depth. An utterly engrossing story with tons of opportunities for self-exploration and storyline continuation. And one of the only games where the bad guy not only tries to destroy the world, but succeeds... and it's only the halfway mark of the game! After that, you can explore as little or as much as you need... you can just try to get a couple of aces together to storm Kefka's tower, or bring the entire band back together. This game is epic, legendary, one of the last truly magical outings from Squaresoft's flagship series. Forced to choose, I might go ahead and call this my favorite game of all time, hands down.

Action/Horror: Silent Hill 2. After the original really drew me into this alternate world of Silent Hill, the second one just bites you hard and doesn't let go. In fact, the game actually judges you while you play, as what you do and how you play, down to who you talk to and your constant level of health, are your way of judging James Sunderland, and end up with what his ending is through his interactions with a few fascinating characters. And the climax... I don't know if there were too many games that forced you to deal with the issue of euthanasia before Silent Hill 2. That was a shock.

Fighting: Last Blade 2. My favorite genre of game, hands down. I'm a fighting game fanatic. SNK was a creedo I lived by for a very long time. And of all the mountains of games I've played before, Last Blade 2 has to be my favorite. The art style is shockingly impressive for a 2d fighter, the characters are vibrant and varied, the gameplay is crisp and gives you a lot of options, the story is engrossing for what it is, and it's just all-around great to play. I just wish I had the means to play it legitimately. Does anyone have a cheap Neo-Geo CD? They must be cheap by now, right?

Wrestling: Fire Pro Wrestling Returns. I simmed out a whole original-character federation using tournaments and matches from this game. I kept it going from 2008 until my PS2 broke last year. Tons of options, about as much realism as wrestling gets, and a FAR more improved CAW mode than the original Firepro fare, which is really saying something. Plus... 500 CREATE A CHARACTER SLOTS. I'd had over 300 made before the system broke. This game has such a place in my heart that I still have the PS2 memory card with the saved game in it... somewhere.

Platformer: Super Mario All Stars. Now, obviously, the Mario games should be pretty high on anyone's favorites list. But Super Mario All Stars not only gives us the Japan-only real Mario 2, but even better, it fixes the one sin that the original games committed... YOU CAN SAVE. No longer having to beat the epic Mario 3 with whistles just to get where you were last time.

 

[Slash-LN]

Right now it's NHL14

Even though it's an awesome game on its own I really enjoy it because my 10 year old nephew is good at it so we can play it together. It's the only sports game I have that he is any good at and I like sitting down and playing it with him because he gets so excited about scoring goals and putting big hits on people. It doesn't matter if we're playing together against the computer, playing together online against a friend of mine or playing against each other. It's just a really good stress release for me. And yes he has beaten me at it and no I don't intentionally let him.

5 years ago it would have been Red Dead Redemption and Saints Row 2. Read Dead was just awesome from start to finish and was one of the few sandbox games that I actually played through the whole story instead of just running around and killing people. I didn't get all the side mission stuff done though.

Saints Row 2 was another one that I actually played most of the way through. I could never beat the mission where you're in the helicopter and shooting at the building though. I don't have it saved on my PS3 anymore and I can't be bothered to go back and do everything over.

Another one from back then would be Heavy Rain. I don't remember which ending I ended up with and I never went through it again to see the different endings. I do know that my roommate at the time got a different ending than mine though and he only went through it once also.

Falling in the middle of the years would have been Bully. Yet another game I played all the way through. I bought it the day it came out and instantly loved it. It was a game I continued to play even after I beat it.


Going way back there was this game that my mom picked up at Walmart for like 5 bucks called Combatribes. It's a game where you're beating up gangs and stuff. It was on SNES. A buddy of mine would come over and we would spend hours and hours trying to beat it. One night I fell asleep while we were playing and my friend finally beat the game. We could never get back to the end after that.

Also in the NES and SNES days I really enjoyed Excite Bike, Zombies Ate My Neighbors, Legend The Bruce Lee Story, Skate or Die and Paper Boy.

I feel like this is getting wordy so I'll just say that I also enjoyed the Resident Evil series up to a certain point, Mortal Kombat, Golden Eye 007 for N64 and a bunch of sports and wrestling games and also the Grand Theft Austo series starting with GTA2. I haven't played V yet and didn't like the one right before it.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

My favorite game is pretty much a coin flip between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II. I grew up a HUGE Disney fan from my family having virtually every single Disney film on VHS and a Disneyland trip at least once a year. Growing up with Final Fantasy of course and when Kingdom Hearts was announced as a crossover of Disney and Final Fantasy I was sold.

The Kingdom Hearts series is incredible and one of the only games I have ever gotten emotionally invested in. It's a classic tale of youngins feeling trapped in their regular day to day lifestyle and conversing about if there is something more out there and what their destinys could be if given the chance to escape. It does an awesome job of having so many characters but having every one of them play a vital role in something. The interactions with Final Fantasy legends such as Cloud, Tifa, Squall (called Leon in the games), Auron and even an extremely hard boss battle with the one and only Sephiroth are just awesome.

These are the greatest games ever made in my opinion. I don't need a debate about it because it's my own opinion and I stick by it.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Right now it's WWE 2K14.

The 30 Years Of Wrestlemania mode has its ups and downs, and I was disappointed by The Streak mode. I was hoping for something, where you could take control of Taker through all 21 Wrestlemanias to defend The Streak, or (after you unlock everything in the 30 Years Of Wrestlemania mode) pick one of Taker's opponents at Wrestlemania to break The Streak.

That, and well it's a pain in the ass to defend or break The Streak, because the difficulty level is amped up. As far as breaking The Streak goes, I was close with CM Punk a few times. I gave up on trying to submit Taker with the Anaconda Vice after a while. The last time I gave it a shot, Taker caught me in the Tombstone during a top rope attack, and I just said to hell with it.

But the WWE Universe mode is good mindless, autopilot fun for me. I finally have all my champions set the way I want it with Punk as WWE Champion, Lesnar as WHC, Lita as Divas Champion, Reigns and Ambrose as Tag Team Champions, Sheamus as IC Champion, and Christian as US Champion. I still get a kick out of the Elimination Chamber matches, but I always simulate the Royal Rumble, because I don't have the patience to sit down and play through it. Although, that backfires 99% of the time, because I'm looking at Zack Ryder VS CM Punk for the WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 29 now.

Five years ago I was replaying a lot of my PS2 games, and Rocky Legends was one of my favorites. It's a good nostalgia kick for fans of the films, but they throw a twist in for Ivan Drago's career mode, because his path to the top doesn't follow the storyline in 4.

Ten years ago I bounced back and forth with a lot of my old SNES games every now and then, and Clue (1992) was a favorite of mine. I watched the movie first, but when I tried the board game, I couldn't get into it. The game is fun, because you get to move around the house and put the pieces of the puzzle together, and you're actually watching the murder mystery unfold. When you finally catch the culprit, they show a little clip of the police arresting Mrs. Peacock, Mr. Green, Col. Mustard, etc.

If we're going back fifteen years, I was still messing around with my N64, but I loved Star Wars: Rogue Squadron. It's tricky to get the hang of flying the X-wing and the other crafts without crashing into anything, and you can only go so far with a limited amount of space before you're forced to turn around and return to the mission.

The Hoth bonus level is a massive headache. Trying to bring down the AT-ATs with the harpoon and tow cables takes a lot of patience, and you have to be precise on each pass, or you'll lose the connection, and you have to start all over again.

 

[Trill Co$by]

15 years ago, I was far more into gaming than I am now but I'd have to say that Legend of Zelda had my time. Obviously, OoT was the headliner but Majora's Mask also was a great portion spent. I loved the challenge that LoZ games gave me, and they just played the best. Honestly, I still play OoT whenever I can.

10 years ago I was playing Halo and then Halo 2 when it came out. I love Halo, always will and Halo 2 was even better with the clans, multiplayer, and just the overall level of fun that came with it. Really loved it. I can't wait for the Master Chief Collection to come out so I can play it again.

5 years ago, it was Halo 3 and Gears of War. And to be honest, this was my break into shooter games that I really ended up liking until it got too boring.

As far as right now, I've become more accustomed to MMORPGs, Wrestling Games, and Sports. I've been playing NBA games since 2k13 simply because MyCareer was a sweet addition. I also play Madden games religiously and happen to find Champions-Online as well as DCUniverse Online to be the best games out right now, but that's just my opinion.

 

[The Butcher]

What is your favorite game right now?, or a few of your favorites if you cannot pick just one, from the last couple of years? (No further back than 5 years ago on this one)

Madden NFL 15 and The Last Remnant.

'15 is the culmination of the last generation of systems' minor yearly tweaks, finally providing a total package. There are a variety of modes, along with significant gameplay improvements and presentation touch-ups. Arguably the best one yet.

After having a sort of reunion with RPGs in the last year or so, I sought out a new one recently and settled on TLR, which I borrowed a week or so ago. I'm not sure how old it is, but it's new to me. So far so good. It's got some irritating glitches and the story has been slow to develop, but the battle system is unique and the environment and graphics are nice.

What were some of your favorite games 5 years ago?

Batman:Arkham Asylum, Modern Warfare 2. If you played games in 2009, you played one of those games.

What about 10 years ago?

Halo 2, Burnout 3, Def Jam: Fight for NY. Those were lean years for me gaming-wise. I spent a lot of time with Halo 2 online, but for the most part my gaming habits from ten years ago involved beer and accessories like playing cards and ping pong balls.

What about 15 years ago or even further back than that?

Just from the PlayStation/N64 era in general- WWF SmackDown!, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, GoldenEye 007, MegaMan Legends, Final Fantasy VII-IX, and numerous other staples of late 90's gamerdom.

 

[Blade]

What is your favorite game right now?, or a few of your favorites if you cannot pick just one, from the last couple of years? (No further back than 5 years ago on this one)

I've only really been playing indie games over the last year or so just because they're cheaper. Five Nights at Freddy's is awesome. Battle Block Theatre is a delight to play And the Walking Dead game, which is amazing.. Apart from those two, though, nothing really stands out. Gaming is in that weird transitional period where nothing mind-blowing has come out recently.

What were some of your favorite games 5 years ago?

This is probably cheating a little bit because it's not quite five years ago, but it's the same general time period, right at the height of the last console generation. Mass Effect 2. Possibly my favourite game ever, after Ocarina of Time. It brilliantly managed to balance the epic set-pieces of the missions with the emotional intimacy of your interactions on the Normandy.

Honourable mention for Hitman: Blood Money. Ridiculously fun game.

What about 10 years ago?

Knights of the Old Republic. I mean, this game blew my mind when I was 12. It was the first game where the story gripped me more than the gameplay, and it really sowed the seeds that turned me into a writer. And that plot twist... Genius.

What about 15 years ago or even further back than that?

Ocarina of Time, Goldeneye, Mario 64, Lylat Wars, Majora's Mask, etc. etc. The N64 was easily my favourite ever console, and that still holds up. The PS1 may have had the quantity, but the N64 easily had the better quality games.

Further back than that? I have some great memories of my first ever console, the SNES. Super Mario World was the first game I ever finished. Good times. And the Donkey Kong Country series were the first games I became really obsessive about, trying to find all the little secrets and finish the game 102% (DKC 2 fans will understand that joke.") Also, DKC2 was the first game that really made me feel like I'd accomplished something because it was so damn tough to complete.

And an honourable mention goes to Pokemon, the game that defined my life when I was 9.

 

[CyberPunk]

It is very difficult for me to point out time lines or which game because frankly, I played games from different time to different time. I mean I played the NFS Carbon only last year, so that's what I mean.

Having said that, my latest favorite has to be Splinter Cell: Blacklist. It's the last game I played (don't really get a lot of time to play now) and despite the change in Sam Fisher's voice, I found it exhilarating. I have always loved my characters in games so this one stood out for me recently.

While this one is not 5 years ago, but Mass Effect 2 was the best for me in last 5 years. I do like to whole series but as I said, I like character driven games, this one gave me a lot of characters to invest in. Re playability of this particular game is off the charts because everytime I was able to do something that I hadn't done before.

10 years ago (or more), one game stood out for me and that was Deus Ex. That provided me some experience. It is truly a game for ages. Even to this date, I have it installed on my laptop and play it just for the story. I have played over a hundred times and even now I am able to find things I never saw before during me previous playthroughs. While I liked the recent DX Human Revolution, Deus Ex will remain as my all time favorite game.

Honorable mention to the Fifa series. I've played almost every FIFA game since 2003. As a soccer fan, I am a huge fan of this series and EA has been able to keep me interested in these games almost throughout.