What are the greatest games of the 21st century?

[OctoberRaven]

1) Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. Absolutely groundbreaking game that was forced into cult classic status solely due to a lack of marketing. I consider their failure to market the game Nintendo's biggest non-Virtual Boy blunder and proof why Nintendo really fucking needed Reggie in the early 00s.

2) Telltale Walking Dead Season One. Best zombie game of all time. Nothing else even comes close.

3) GTA. While one can argue that other franchises have built on the GTA formula and improved on it, the fact is that the sandbox genre as we know it was built on GTA's success.

[MDK]

5 hours ago, Rocky said:

3. GoldenEye (N64): I still play this occasionally to this day. Just for sheer multiplayer mayhem with friends growing up was intense.

Mate, so many hours spent on that game. My favourite memory of that game was when I was playing multiplayer with two of my closest mates. 'twas a match set in the facility, you know those three rooms that are separated by bullet proof glass? Well, we were in one room each and I managed to get a double headshot with a magnum. Greatest day of my life.

And another mate would come round occasionally and play but he was pretty much the whipping boy. We'd even let him play as Oddjob he was so shit. One time he got so cross he had to leave because he got killed by slaps while he had an Uzi or whatever it was. But then he went to Spain to see his family and played Goldeneye with his cousins and completely dominated them because of all the tricks he picked off of us. He said he never felt so good.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Goldeneye's from the '90s though...

[DFF]

Mass Effect 2

/thread.

 

But yeah, it's pretty much the pinnacle of the Action RPG genre. The story is engaging, the characters are well written (as well as being balanced in funky ways allowing you to fight through the levels/missions in different ways). It's basically the perfect sci-fi tv series but in game form.

I'm not sure I've ever been quite so emotionally invested in a game as ME2. I wanted the characters to survive the final mission because I cared about them.

[MDK]

28 minutes ago, ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster said:

Goldeneye's from the '90s though...

... shut up.

[Azazel]

Skies of Arcadia is my all time favorite game it it came out in 2000.  Time Splitters: Future Perfect was another massive favorite to me.  I play a lot less games now then I did when I was young and most of them were 90's RPGs.  Suikoden 3 isn't usually looked as the best in the series but it has always been my favorite.

[Cymbols]

On 05/03/2017 at 15:38, Liam said:

There will be people who come in here who care more about games and have more of a knowledge than me, but I will just posit one suggestion - The Sims. In terms of sales, wider interest, etc etc, it is definitely at least one of the biggest franchises that has ever existed. Whilst I don't know which game would be best to put forward, as I never personally liked it, I though suggesting it might give someone who knows a bit more about the quality of each release to potentially further my suggestion.

Seconded. 

The Sims is fucking tremendous, and it played a huge part in my life growing up. Along with Harry Potter LEGO, it was one of the few things I'd ever play with my sister.

I was a bit young for The Sims, but we definitely had a couple of the expansion packs, and I remember my sister recreating my family, and then killing me off 

Over the years, we ended up with every expansion for The Sims 2, and probably most of the stuff packs too (I think my parents were willing to buy the expansions because they liked us getting along for once  ). I has Veronaville and my sister had Pleasantview, and we did our own thing on it. Eventually my old man sold them all at car boot, and a few years ago, I decided the re-purchase all the fundamental expansions...University, Nightlife and Seasons (and Open for Business - but only because I bought a bundle off ebay). Between my A levels and starting Uni, I absolutely binged on this game and it was fucking awesome.

Bought The Sims 3 on release, and it just wasn't good. I think the later expansions improved it somewhat, but it just felt empty, and a chore to play. In theory, the idea of other houses/families progressing in the background is neat, but I'm a total control freak so that wasn't the most fun thing in the world.

Sims 4 is fun, and more like the second instalment than the third. Adding new technology and emotions in is a nice touch, but this time, the world feels too small. It's strange because, I enjoyed playing it, and yet I only played it twice after buying it. I always just gravitate back to Sims 2.

It's just something for everyone though isn't it. Like I know people who play it just to design houses and towns that look aesthetically pleasing. Then there's people who just create loads of families and then don't ever really play them. Then there's weirdos like me who try and advance every family the same amount of days before switching to the next to ensure that everyone is progressing at the same speed.

And now I really want to play it again. Which isn't ideal because my Sims binges are intense, and really counter productive.  

 

[Benji]

18 minutes ago, Cymbols said:

Bought The Sims 3 on release, and it just wasn't good. I think the later expansions improved it somewhat, but it just felt empty, and a chore to play. In theory, the idea of other houses/families progressing in the background is neat, but I'm a total control freak so that wasn't the most fun thing in the world.

Oh God this. I was so disappointed with Sims 3. I liked planning every family drama and treating it like my own personal soap opera. In Sims 2 I even got a game editor to have Bella Goth come back to life (complete with fixing her family tree which was somehow broken) and save Mortimer from marrying Dina Caliente (or whichever Caliente sister he was into), imagining she had faked her own death to save Mortimer from something else.

I had set rules for each neighborhood, so the sci-fi one was the only one where supernatural stuff could occur too, to keep every game unique. I made sure that every family was played the same amount (one week, and in later expansions one season, at a time).

Sims 3 was just a "well you have one family and everything is done at our pace, deal with it" and I just despised it. Plus like you say, it felt so empty because all the expansion packs had basically been taken away.

Also, the College and Seasons expansions were amazing. I remember spending a grossly uneven age on the College one because I never wanted someone to grow up in a false pace to the "regular world".

[Cymbols]

5 minutes ago, Benji said:

Oh God this. I was so disappointed with Sims 3. I liked planning every family drama and treating it like my own personal soap opera. In Sims 2 I even got a game editor to have Bella Goth come back to life (complete with fixing her family tree which was somehow broken) and save Mortimer from marrying Dina Caliente (or whichever Caliente sister he was into), imagining she had faked her own death to save Mortimer from something else.

I had set rules for each neighborhood, so the sci-fi one was the only one where supernatural stuff could occur too, to keep every game unique. I made sure that every family was played the same amount (one week, and in later expansions one season, at a time).

Sims 3 was just a "well you have one family and everything is done at our pace, deal with it" and I just despised it. Plus like you say, it felt so empty because all the expansion packs had basically been taken away.

In my game, both of them 

I tend to do like 2-3 days at a time per family, so a shorter run than you I guess. Then two semesters of uni thereafter, because those took forever comparatively. But yeah, completely echo the soap opera sentiment. 

[RPS]

It seems like we've got a lot of consensus towards something from GTA and the Sims. I've put up a poll to see what we should include from GTA and whether the Sims is worthy to be on the list. 

I have seen a whole lot of recommendations for Minecraft, so if it seems like maybe Minecraft should be on the list, we can put it up for a vote. 

Keep talking about your favorites and we will see what else we include. Passionate pleas for games is encouraged. 

[Benji]

2 minutes ago, Cymbols said:

Then two semesters of uni thereafter, because those took forever comparatively. But yeah, completely echo the soap opera sentiment. 

Hah, I literally edited in a note saying the same as you put that

I still remember the first time I played Brandi Broke and got that nice "surprise" that with one wayward son, one smart but struggling son, and a dead husband, she also was pregnant and it only showed after a day. I almost gave up on that family there and then >_>

[MDK]

Not that I like the game or anything but maybe Angry Birds or something like that should be thought about. Mobile games exploded years ago and got people playing games when they wouldn't normally. 

[Cymbols]

1 minute ago, Benji said:

Hah, I literally edited in a note saying the same as you put that

I still remember the first time I played Brandi Broke and got that nice "surprise" that with one wayward son, one smart but struggling son, and a dead husband, she also was pregnant and it only showed after a day. I almost gave up on that family there and then >_>

I think they might be my favourite family to play as actually, just because you can sort of turn their fortunes around with a bit of work. If the teen quits his job, he can stay happy enough to get good grades and go to uni. And as soon as the toddler becomes a child, you can just about get Brandi a job that doesn't leave the kid unsupervised. Then boom, instant maternity pay. I remember in my longest run the kid came back from uni and ran off with Jennifer Pleasant, whilst Daniel Pleasant ended up with Brandi. It was a bit fucked up. 

[VerbalPuke]

This one is probably just going to be me, but The Warriors.

Games based on movies often suck. The Warriors was not the case, not only did they make the game fun, but they actually did a great job creating a backstory for the characters and the other gangs not featured prominently in the movie. The story was simple enough, the rise of the Warriors and then the movie scenes (with creative liberties taken to make for fun gameplay). Game play was simple, plenty of moves but not too complex or clunky, plenty of weapons, and generally a great job at the Beat Em' Up genere that has sadly been the ignored on Next Gens. There were also a nice variety of game modes with gang fights 1 on 1, battle royals, and weird little games like wheel chair racing. Oh and of course the bonus of Armies of the Night, a true throwback to side scrolling Beat Em' Ups. 

Hopefully Rockstar does another game like this. Even as a PS2 game this handles well and doesn't feel dated.

[MDK]

1 minute ago, VPNutsRoastingOnAOpenFire said:

This one is probably just going to be me, but The Warriors.

Games based on movies often suck. The Warriors was not the case, not only did they make the game fun, but they actually did a great job creating a backstory for the characters and the other gangs not featured prominently in the movie. The story was simple enough, the rise of the Warriors and then the movie scenes (with creative liberties taken to make for fun gameplay). Game play was simple, plenty of moves but not too complex or clunky, plenty of weapons, and generally a great job at the Beat Em' Up genere that has sadly been the ignored on Next Gens. There were also a nice variety of game modes with gang fights 1 on 1, battle royals, and weird little games like wheel chair racing. Oh and of course the bonus of Armies of the Night, a true throwback to side scrolling Beat Em' Ups. 

Hopefully Rockstar does another game like this. Even as a PS2 game this handles well and doesn't feel dated.

That is the kind of game I miss, a good old fashioned beat em up. And I thought The Warriors was a really fun game.

[Benji]

6 minutes ago, Cymbols said:

I think they might be my favourite family to play as actually, just because you can sort of turn their fortunes around with a bit of work. If the teen quits his job, he can stay happy enough to get good grades and go to uni. And as soon as the toddler becomes a child, you can just about get Brandi a job that doesn't leave the kid unsupervised. Then boom, instant maternity pay. I remember in my longest run the kid came back from uni and ran off with Jennifer Pleasant, whilst Daniel Pleasant ended up with Brandi. It was a bit fucked up. 

Oh yeah, I loved the challenge, but they were the first family I played as, so it was jumping in at the deep end (and since this is the Sims - without a ladder).

I set up Brandi with Darren and had them as a struggling pair of lovebirds, him pursuing his passion of art, her pursuing her cooking, and just kept Dustin as a total tearaway. Beau went through the classic "child genius" crisis of just being an average fish in a larger pond, which I thought was a decent enough trade off. Can't remember what happened to the baby or Darren's kid tho.

I'd kill for another great beat 'em up of any kind. I can't remember the last one I genuinely loved.

[Cymbols]

4 minutes ago, Benji said:

Oh yeah, I loved the challenge, but they were the first family I played as, so it was jumping in at the deep end (and since this is the Sims - without a ladder).

I set up Brandi with Darren and had them as a struggling pair of lovebirds, him pursuing his passion of art, her pursuing her cooking, and just kept Dustin as a total tearaway. Beau went through the classic "child genius" crisis of just being an average fish in a larger pond, which I thought was a decent enough trade off. Can't remember what happened to the baby or Darren's kid tho.

I'd kill for another great beat 'em up of any kind. I can't remember the last one I genuinely loved.

Too soon man, Skip Broke died in a tragic, but suspicious pool accident after all. 

[Red Devil-Taker316]

Super Mario Galaxy 2, Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask and Arkham City

Galaxy 2 set a new standard for 3D platforming, somehow even surpassing Galaxy 1 (which was great as it is). 

Majora's Mask did a lot of things that showed new potential in video games (for example, the game keeping track of many different events whether or not the player was present at the time).

Arkham City was just an incredible game that went into incredible detail.

[maddog]

35 minutes ago, VPNutsRoastingOnAOpenFire said:

This one is probably just going to be me, but The Warriors.

Games based on movies often suck. The Warriors was not the case, not only did they make the game fun, but they actually did a great job creating a backstory for the characters and the other gangs not featured prominently in the movie. The story was simple enough, the rise of the Warriors and then the movie scenes (with creative liberties taken to make for fun gameplay). Game play was simple, plenty of moves but not too complex or clunky, plenty of weapons, and generally a great job at the Beat Em' Up genere that has sadly been the ignored on Next Gens. There were also a nice variety of game modes with gang fights 1 on 1, battle royals, and weird little games like wheel chair racing. Oh and of course the bonus of Armies of the Night, a true throwback to side scrolling Beat Em' Ups. 

Hopefully Rockstar does another game like this. Even as a PS2 game this handles well and doesn't feel dated.

I played the warriors so much. I had no idea about the movie at the time, after playing through I watched the movie. Then went back and played it through another half dozen times. Game ended up lost in a move, so sad.

[apsham]

I know it's really soon but I think that Breath of the Wild has a really strong chance of topping a lot of lists. The elements of what make it amazing are the same elements that made the original Zelda and then every revolutionizing entry into the series amazing, just modernized.