Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

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msimplay
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Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by msimplay »

EDIT: To those posting lists without reasons why they defined your life please add the reasons to why they are important to you please that's what makes this thread interesting and better than the top 10s and of course you don't have to post 10. :D

Difficult to list just 10 but I guess the ones that are best to me are the ones I still remember despite having playing them a long time ago.
But I think this is just about it my whole history of games I've tried to list one per franchise and only the best ones that I devoted the most time to got on it but are on honorable mentions they were not good enough but were memorable

It has been said that this thread feels like a rehash of other threads but I don't see it as that at all
msimplay wrote: This thread is more about the thoughts you go through to get to a full top ten and honorable mentions would be those you wanted to add but just couldn't
  1. Street Fighter Alpha 2 - The best Street Fighter game bar none for me Street Fighter Alpha was the first game I considered to be a true sequel to Street Fighter 2 after all the minor updates it had.
    Officially it was a prequel but as far as chronology and I was concerned it was definitely a sequel only problem was it had a lack of characters and some stages were shared between characters.
    SFA2 came and righted all the wrongs of SFA1 with more characters, more music, more super moves and generally more of everything.
    While SFA2 refined what was in SFA1, SFA3 came and changed the game and while it was still a good SFA game it still had it's downs for one was the whole ISMS thing which I wasn't too keen on.
    SF3 was developed at the same time as Alpha series and changed the formula a lot so I still found myself liking Alpha better and then SF4 came and it felt weird when the characters jumped because they are in 3D I never did expect the jump physics to be perfect and they aren't.
    For these reasons SFA2 stands for me as the best Street Fighter game.
  2. Super Metroid - Enjoyed this game so much that I tried to find all of the items and complete the speed runs to clock in under 3 hours and 100% item collecting and it was the 1st game that got me into the 100% completion did it without a guide.
  3. Castlevania Symphony of the Night - I liked it because it was the same game as Metroid virtually great graphics 2d mixed with 3d effects and fantastic soundtrack the Castlevania I measure all others against.
  4. Super Mario World - I had played other Mario games before this one but not completed except Mario Land 1 but this game was head and shoulders above Mario Land one on the Gameboy. Mario Bros 3 was close but I played it after I had played the Snes game so I really appreciated how many improvements Mario World had. I also completed all 96 exits without a guide.
  5. Zelda a Link to the past - For me still the definitive Zelda game the one I measure all others against this was the game where Zelda felt fresh and all the classic puzzles were brand new.
  6. Final Fantasy 7 - The first RPG that got me interested in Final fantasy others will argue earlier installments were better but for me this is the one I measure the others against. For me it has / had the best battle system in the Final Fantasy series with the materia I powered my charachters up to the extreme plus the graphics were awesome way beyond anything else I had seen at the time.
    I don't even know how many hours I put into this game just grinding away to power my characters up.
  7. Sonic 2 - Still the best Sonic game yet with 3 they changed the formula but with 2 they built upon and improved everything that made the first great through fantastic level design and lots of speed.
  8. Mario 64 the best 3D platformer still which funnily enough I didn't like at the time because it wasn't like Mario world however later on I completed all 120 stars and I really enjoyed the game
  9. Daytona USA - This game has some of the best and most fun course designs ever and it was also the 1st fully 3D racing game I had played while others have said the graphics were sub par to the Arcade prior to the Saturn game I hadn't played it before to to me it was absolutely amazing.
  10. Soul Calibur 2 - The best 3D fighting game while Soul Calibur and Dead or Alive took Tekken 3 off the top spot Soul Calibur 2 beat out the rest and went on to be the favourite in my household
Honorable mentions - These games might not be good enough for the top 10 but still deserve a spot here because they meant a lot to me through history
  • Marvel Super Heroes Arcade/Saturn/PS1 I used to play Xmen COTA before this and it was great because it wasn't Street Fighter yet still felt familiar but taken over the top with completely different characters and moves.
    This game took XMEN COTA to the next level with new not seen before moves like AIR COMBO's and over the top Super moves. Still plays very well even today.
  • Xmen Vs Street Fighter The match up that was the 1st game to bring two of Capcoms best franchises in one which bought about the crossover franchise craze that is still going on today with the HD update to MVC2 and brand new games Tekken VS Street Fighter , MVC3 and so on.
    Man those times were exciting :D
  • Tekken 3 - While I could argue that Virtua Fighter 2 was on par with Tekken 2 gameplay wise this game beat Virtua Fighter 2 silly for me because it left Virtua Fighter 2 gathering dust in my house.
    I even preferred this to Virtua Fighter 3 which was supposed to come out on the Sega Saturn but later came to the Dreamcast.
  • Sega Rally - Everyone else had bought a Playstation and said the graphics on the Saturn were shit but then I pulled out Sega Rally which made me proud to own a Saturn. Was the 1st game to have these slidey physics and it took me a while to get into but I got really addicted to it.
  • Starwing Snes - I remember not liking it at first but everyone told me "the graphics are fantastic" but being a kid I thought the 2d graphics looked better by far.
    However it took me by surprise that after playing it properly I got very addicted to it.
    This game needs to be updated without all the crap they added to it in versions after Lylat Wars N64
  • Pilotwings Snes - The game completely took me by suprise couldn't stop playing it until it was completed.
  • Sim City Snes - The first game city building game I ever played took me a while to figure out what it was all about but got very addicting when I did.
  • Virtua Fighter 2 - Played it 1st in the Arcades and remember seeing it at home for the 1st time on the Sega Saturn and thinking amazing.
  • Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo - The best Puzzle game ever after playing Tetris which was good for a pack in but not something I'd like to play all the time.
    This game just beat Tetris silly IMO
  • Bust a Move 2 The game that was runner up to Puzzle fighter almost as good and worth playing because its different. Funnilly enough they still rereleasing the same game today with different levels.
  • Ridge Racer - Almost as good as Daytona USA but it's here because it was one of those games I played a lot and didn't get bored even until the very end.
  • Samurai Shodown - Absolutely loved this game on the Arcade and remember being very disappointed on the home conversions I waited for it on the PS1 and Sega Saturn but it never came out
  • Samurai Shodown 2 - Same as above except there was no home conversion.
  • Streets Of Rage 2 - I borrowed my friends Megadrive for this game and it was great. The Snes had a gimped version of Final Fight with no 2 player co-op and Streets of Rage 2 not only played better but it also had the 2 player mode plus it had fantastic music.
  • Shinobi - I played this game in the Arcades and I loved it I played it later on the Sega Master System and I recall loving it because I thought it was like the Arcades at home.
  • Eternal Champions - Played this game a lot as an alternative to Street Fighter because at the time Street Fighter was played out and this game was genuinely very different in how it played and this game is very underrated.
    From my perspective this game used the Megadrives hardware to great affect it had large sprites and good music I also preferred it to the Mega CD sequel which I felt lacked the same kind of strategy needed to win.
  • Golden Axe - gets a mention because when I first played it I was absolutely addicted a great hack n slash beatemup at the time with magic and while it has been surpassed by newer games it's still very memorable for me.
Last edited by msimplay on Wed Feb 02, 2011 3:22 pm, edited 5 times in total.
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BoringSupreez
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by BoringSupreez »

The games I have put the most time into and have meant the most to me are:

1. Medal of Honor (PS1). It got me into console gaming in the first place. An outdated game, to be sure, but it had a big effect on me.
2. SimCity 2000 (PC). This is third game I ever bought, but I still have it. It never gets old. Got me into the whole god-game strategy genre.
3. Command and Conquer Generals (PC). Helped keep me from switiching over to consoles entirely. I've probably played this for more than 200 hours.
4. Commander Keen Episode 1 (PC). This was the game that got me into retro stuff. Befor that, I just bought whatever was being sold at Walmart.
5. Medal of Honor Allied Assault (PC). Probably the shooter I've played the most times. It seemed so amazing back in the day.
6. KOTOR (Xbox). The first RPG I played. This is what made me a fan of them.
7. Goldeneye (N64). The first game I got for the first retro console I bought. Cemented my idea that old games are just as good as new ones.
8. Half Life (PC). I'd never played such a good shooter before. Showed me how much an FPS can accomplish.
9. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Genesis). The first console game I ever played. Let me know that good games exist outside of the realm of computers.
10. Metal Gear Solid 2 (PS2). The reason I own a PS2. 'nuff said.

Honorable Mentions:

1. Scooby Doo and the Cyber Chase (PS1). It's a rather mediocre game, but it introduced me to the platforming genre, which is still today one of my favorites.
2. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64). By the time I got this game, I was already pretty much fully developed as a gamer, but this game was just so much fun I had to mention it.
3. Splinter Cell (Xbox). Still one of my favorite Xbox games. This game started my love of more difficult, stealthy action games.
4. Ratchet and Clank: Up Your Arsenal (PS2). One of the funnest games I have ever played in my life. Part of what makes it great is that it doesn't try to be anything more than what it is: a game. Games who realize they are games and not movies are usually the best ones.
5. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (PS2). On the other side of the room from R&C3 is MGS3. Although "cinematic" games are usually full of themselves, and an inferior experience, MGS3 pulls it off, and it pulls it off magnificently. My favorite game in the series.
Last edited by BoringSupreez on Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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msimplay
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by msimplay »

Thanks for this it's very interesting to see how different gamers developed their tastes.
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by SwooshBear »

In no particular order:
1. Pokemon red/blue/yellow/gold/silver/crystal
2. Final fantasy 7
3. Super Mario world
4. Super Mario all stars
5. Star wars battlefront
6. Kirby's adventure
7. Mega man X
8. Mariokart (snes)
9. Tomb raider (multiple ones)
10. Donkey kong country

Honorable mentions:
Sonic spinball
Battletoads/double dragon
Doom
Tony hawk pro skater 2
Duck hunt
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dsheinem
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by dsheinem »

*sigh*

for starters...

http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=15436
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=6516
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=2654
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=10803

I guess these aren't about "defining your life"...but still...

Bah, I am in a bad mood today. Carry on and rehash what's been done countless times before and ignore me. I feel like the conversations around here are getting increasingly repetitive....
Czernobog
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by Czernobog »

dsheinem wrote:*sigh*

for starters...

http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=15436
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=6516
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=2654
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=10803

I guess these aren't about "defining your life"...but still...

Bah, I am in a bad mood today. Carry on and rehash what's been done countless times before and ignore me. I feel like the conversations around here are getting increasingly repetitive....
I'd call this one different enough from those and more interesting because it's "defining your life" which to me is quite different from favorite or top games. To me it's the list format which makes this thread feel like a re-hash.
Czernobog
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by Czernobog »

I'll bite:

The Legend of Zelda - NES - I grew up playing this game with my dad. We would take turns playing and he taught me all the tricks, where to buy things, when I should, where dungeons were, how to get through the lost woods, etc. when I was really young. Then we got to learn about and explore the second quest together for the first time when someone told us it existed. The game really holds a special place in my heart because of the memories attached.

Super Mario Bros. 3 - NES - I played this game all the time when I was a kid. If I pick it up now running through the levels getting a bunch of secrets feels and beating the game feels completely instinctive and ridiculously easy. This is the only console game I'm that comfortable playing.

Kirby's Dream Land - GB - I took this game everywhere with me and beat it more times than I can count. I just loved playing through the game whenever I had a chance, especially the end where you get to play through mini-versions of the previous levels.

Golden Axe - GEN - This was the first multiplayer game I really played frequently with friends and I'll never forget all the years of fun and screaming at each other whenever we accidentally drop kicked one another off cliffs.

Streets of Rage - GEN - Pretty much the same as Golden Axe above but not played quite as often. The 6-Pak was the first cartridge I had for my Genesis.

Guardian's Crusade (aka Knight & Baby) - PS1 - This was the first game that really got me into RPGs. It was a really simple game and when I look back at it not all that good but it had a fun-loving charm to it that kept me playing and really drew me into the genre.

Final Fantasy VII - PS1 - After playing Guardian's Crusade I went to the store to get Saga Frontier as I had played a demo I enjoyed but they were sold out, so I ended up grabbing FFVII on a whim. I fell in love with the game because at the time it was the most involved and biggest adventure I had ever been on in a video game and I genuinely enjoyed every minute I played. FFIII(VI) would later go on to eclipse it as my favorite RPG.

Silent Hill - PS1 - Holy hell. This game scared me. A lot. I love it and still do play-throughs to this day although that feeling of dread it originally conjured in me has mostly dissipated. Very few other games did so well at building atmosphere and tension brought on by the unknown. (I played the demo of Amnesia though and can't wait to do a full play through of that game because it's bringing back the feeling of dread SH once gave me.)

I'm not going to list all the way to ten games because these are the only ones that truly defined my taste in games as it evolved over time. (That's not to say it won't change in the future - it very well could.)

EDIT:

Shenmue - DC - I don't know why I forgot to mention this game as it is one of my all time favorite games, I spent countless hours playing it, and it helped shape my taste in games as well as solidified my passion for Sega.

/EDIT

My honorable mentions would be the rest of the games on the Genesis 6-Pak, the Gen Sonic games, the 8 & 16-bit FF games, and the Resident Evil games.
Last edited by Czernobog on Wed Feb 02, 2011 3:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
msimplay
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by msimplay »

dsheinem wrote:*sigh*

for starters...

http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=15436
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=6516
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... =15&t=2654
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15&t=10803

I guess these aren't about "defining your life"...but still...

Bah, I am in a bad mood today. Carry on and rehash what's been done countless times before and ignore me. I feel like the conversations around here are getting increasingly repetitive....
I seen all those but see the post itself it's about what made you a gamer stand as you do today.
I've included details about why I have my opinions those other lists are straight up top tens with no reasons as to why or how same as any random list.

This thread is more about the thoughts you go through to get to a full top ten and honorable mentions would be those you wanted to add but just couldn't
SwooshBear wrote:In no particular order:
1. Pokemon red/blue/yellow/gold/silver/crystal
2. Final fantasy 7
3. Super Mario world
4. Super Mario all stars
5. Star wars battlefront
6. Kirby's adventure
7. Mega man X
8. Mariokart (snes)
9. Tomb raider (multiple ones)
10. Donkey kong country

Honorable mentions:
Sonic spinball
Battletoads/double dragon
Doom
Tony hawk pro skater 2
Duck hunt
Any chance you could elaborate on why they are life defining for you ?
Last edited by msimplay on Sun Jan 30, 2011 3:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Bradtemple87
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by Bradtemple87 »

Sonic the Hedgehog - This was the game that came with my model 1 genesis, the first system I actually owned.
Streets of Rage 2 - This game is my favorite beat em up of all time but also one of my favorite game soundtracks. Yuzo Koshiro is the BEST at his trade!
Street Fighter II & Turbo - This game needs no introduction, but I will try to paint a picture for members that did not experience this game in it's prime. This game ignited the arcades and was all that everybody competed in. What xbox live has today started in arcades with this very game.
Super Metroid - This is my favorite game in the series but also one of the best the snes has to offer. The original gave us exploration while this game perfected it.
Castlevania SOTN - For similar reasons as Super Metroid, I have replayed this game a LOT.
YS (all pf them :P ) - The YS series gave me the action element that I wished the zelda series had and the music is metal brilliance.
Xenogears - I will be honest and say what I have stuck to in other threads. This is my favorite game on any platform. They complex story and developed characters will always stick with me. This game further cemented me as an rpg player for life. The battle system is also one of the most addictive I have come accross.
Front Mission 3 - I played this game far too much not to include it. Both stories included, this is an awesome strategy game.
Gitarooman - This game combines a quirky adventure with a fantastic playstyle to make my favorite music game on any platform, and definitely one of the top ps2 releases.
Ico - Ico may be my favorite game on the ps2. Shadow of the Colossus is fantastic in comparison, but Ico did something very different. Ico pulled on my heart in ways many games have tried. Escaping with Yorda from the queen leaves you feeling small and slightly above hopeless in a castle meant to seal your fate.
msimplay
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Re: Games that defined your life Top10 - With honorable mentions

Post by msimplay »

Bradtemple87 wrote: Street Fighter II & Turbo - This game needs no introduction, but I will try to paint a picture for members that did not experience this game in it's prime. This game ignited the arcades and was all that everybody competed in. What xbox live has today started in arcades with this very game.
Thanks for this one I have to say that nothing beats the feeling of playing at the Real Arcades.
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