The Top Twenty: Favorite Video Games

After talking about reviving my writing (as well as this blog) almost two weeks, I told myself that I'd get working on a brand-new Top Ten list and have it up here within the following two weeks. It's just about now officially that deadline, so I figured I'd get to work on it. And after two six day's two weeks' worth of typing, searching the web for good photos to use for this entry, and getting distracted by clicking fifteen thousand too many links on Wikipedia and TV Tropes, it's finally here! (Seriously this time.)

The last time I threw a Top Ten List on here was back in May of last year - roughly ten months ago. After noting that rather large gap, I told myself that needs to be patched up now. So, what to talk about? While there's plenty of subjects and plenty of lists I have compiled for just the occasion, I decided to go with a rather unique challenge: my favorite video games. I say "challenge" because this was honestly one of the more difficult ones to rate. There were so many games that made some kind of impact on my life, many more that gave me joy in my younger days, and still many that I have played altogether. So what to choose...?

Initially, my plan was to write a list of every game I remember playing to date that I love(d), narrow the selection down to ten games, and introduce a new "honorary mention" section alongside the list. Seemed really simple and easy on paper. When it came down to performing the task, however, I couldn't bring myself to thin the ranks. Many of the games I wrote down were games that I carry soft spots for, because they were the games I played as a child, a teenager, an adult. They brought joy, sadness, fury, understanding, clarity - and to deny the most influential games the right to have their name be heard? I couldn't.

So I decided to try two new tactics:

1. Narrow any video game series present down to ONE game.
2. Expand the buffer to twenty slots.

The end result is today's entry and the very first Top Twenty list featured on this blog. Now, I could pay my respects to all of the important games I've played and love(d).

Of course, one question remains to be asked: What twenty games made their way onto my favorites list? You'll have to read on below if you've any interest in finding out!





Before we begin, I just want to mention two things about this Top Twenty list:

1. All entries are accompanied by an original release date in which it first hit market shelves (or approximate date, if one doesn't exist). As most of the games listed below were released in Japan first before America, the dates displayed may not match what you remember. For your convenience, I've included the American release date as well (where applicable).
2. Games franchises are represented by one game only. For instance, while two or three Mario Kart games may technically have placed among this top twenty, I felt that I'd be repeating the game description and my reasoning behind liking each title. So, I took the top-rated game from the franchise (in this case: Mario Kart Wii) and had its position represent the series as a whole. As such, please don't think something like Time Crisis 3 could trump my love of Mario Kart 64 or Metal Gear Solid.

And now that that's out of the way, let's continue!


Josh Blanco's Top Twenty
Favorite Played Video Games

Man, does this game take me back...

#20: Star Fox 64
Released for the Nintendo 64
April 27, 1997 (Japan)
June 30, 1997 (USA)

Ah, Star Fox 64... one of the first games I had when I got my Nintendo 64.

I remember when I was much younger a time when the Nintendo 64 was the new up-and-coming console. I would see all these games and what not being displayed at all the stores that sold electronics and beg my parents to play the demos that were set up. Of course, this was normal - parents with video game-savvy children knew it was essentially a one-way trip the moment they set foot inside a Best Buy, Sears, Wal-Mart, CompUSA, Circuit City, or Electronics Boutique. (Yes, I'm old enough to remember the latter three stores.

One day in Sears, I came across the demo unit for the Nintendo 64 - and on it was the trial version of Star Fox 64. I instantly grabbed the controller and did what I could to try to complete the mission that was being featured. For those of you knowledgeable about the game: it was the first mission, set in Corneria. For some reason I could never get myself out of the city - I'd hit the checkpoint with about half health, then Falco gets ambushed and I can't save him. Meanwhile I was ignoring my Arwing's own condition (at this point, the ship was on fire and I had lost at least one wing) and as such got shot down before exiting the limits of Corneria City.

Peppy's widely-known tip of advice seems to be a tad... hare-brained if you know your combat flight maneuvers.

Despite this, I found myself fascinated by the rail shooter, and when a Nintendo 64 came to me as an early-birthday present, my dad made sure that Star Fox 64 was one of the games I got during my birthday. For the first month afterwards, I still had trouble with the game (I improved my status from "crashing and burning inside Corneria City" to "limping my way to Meteo"). I watched my dad play, and was amazed at how he was able to save Falco and go to Sector Y instead of the asteroid belt.

As such, I practiced and practiced until I got to a point where my dad's skill in the game were outclassed by my own. I began winning medals in-game for achieving high scores and eventually unlocked Expert Mode, which made the game much more difficult (and therefore challenging). I managed to triumph over that, too (though I will admit that it took forever). Of course, emulating this again on Star Fox 64 3D will be difficult, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.

While Star Fox 64 is by no means my favorite game, it did help establish a love for gaming that I'm grateful for today. For that, it earned a spot here on the list.

One man. Two screens.

#19: Fractured Soul
Released for the Nintendo 3DS
September 13, 2012

Fractured Soul should sound familiar to those who've kept up with my blog over the past two years. The part-platformer, part-shmup 3DS e-Shop exclusive has earned a spot on this list primarily because of the inspiration and entertainment it has given me as a gamer.

Navigating platforms to get from point A to point B hardly seems like a challenge these days - at least to the gamer who grew up with games from the Mario or Sonic series. Similarly, shmups shouldn't be a problem for people who've played any kind of Contra, Gradius, or Metal Slug game or the like. But when you combine that action and spread it all across two screens that you'll have to navigate simultaneously? Ooh, you're in for a fun treat, then. Endgame Studios did a pretty superb job, and it shows in Fractured Soul.

For those of you who've never heard about this game (and don't care to look it up or read that other entry I posted a link to just now) here's the synopsis: you have to guide the cybernetic protagonist from start to finish. You're armed with a simple plasma gun (and in some instances, you're in your own spaceship), but your soul is somehow phased between two dimensions. As such, you're able to switch worlds (or in our perspective: 3DS screens) and use this ability to help navigate to the finish or kill a boss. If it sounds complicated, it's not that difficult. (At first.)

Have fun fighting and maneuvering through that mess.

Whenever I don't feel like playing any of my DS games but feel like playing something challenging, I load up Fractured Soul. Like I said before:

Most gamers out there grew up playing at least one platforming game in their childhood. Fractured Soul not only brought that young nostalgia back, but it also gave it a few interesting twists that challenges us (casual-)hardcore players and provides a challenging-yet-fun experience for any gamer who decides to pick it up.

And it delivers in spades to the point where the leaderboards are still providing competition. I'll be honest - there's NO way I'll be able to top any of those records (I'm a self-described "casual-hardcore gamer"), but it's fun wondering how these guys got there and attempting to emulate their skill. As such, it only felt right that a little title such as this one be placed here on my list. Congrats, Fractured Soul. =D

As for the inspiration I mentioned earlier? After an hour-long playthrough of Fractured Soul, I'm inspired to load up some old-school games (like Super Mario World or Super Metroid) and see how fast I can clear the entire game. Again, it's not world record material, but anyone who watches me would seem mightily impressed.

Action!

#18: Time Crisis 3
Released to arcades on 2002

There were times where I got to head to an arcade center as I was growing up. With the sad decline of arcade halls over the last decade, these trips became less frequent, but I do remember the joy I experience whenever I get to go inside one of these now-mythical locations. In my younger years these arcades would be at large pizza halls, roller-skating rinks, and the local Chuck E. Cheese's (where I got to experience games such as Mortal Kombat, Darkstalkers, Metal Slug, and that one Jurassic Park game where you got to "ride" in the jeep), while my older years of youth would find me at Las Vegas casino arcades.

Time Crisis 3 happened to be one of the games I got to see in my adolescence, and the reason I picked it was because it was the one game I was able to beat in any arcade setting.

A grand and intimidating army... of mooks.

As a gamer, I find this to be a hollow "honor" of sorts. While Time Crisis 3 is by no means my top favorite in the series (for me, it goes 2, 4, the original Time Crisis, and then 3)*, it was my first arcade victory. Not Metal Slug (that would happen two weeks and $20 USD in quarters later - an investment I will to this day vehemently argue as "worth it"), not Mortal Kombat (frak you, Goro!)... not even Jurassic Park (my parents would tell me that we were leaving Chuck E. Cheese right in the middle of the last section of the game).

* = This is an interesting order of preference, because if you were to reverse the numerology and apply it to the Metal Gear Solid series, you'd get my favorite for those games in the correct order.

Not like it matters, though - it's still a fun game - and it's better if you're playing with a friend. It's even dorkier funnier when you're actually attempting to dodge the incoming shots by ducking when you take cover in-game. Yes, I do that - which makes any group trip to an arcade worth it if I'm there and any iteration of Time Crisis is in the house. I make a fun game even funner!

A little gem of a DS game. Good luck finding it.

#17: Radiant Historia
Released for the Nintendo DS
November 3, 2010 (Japan)
February 22, 2011 (USA)

Remember how you were supposed to remind me to post some kind of review about Radiant Historia? Of course you don't! No one reads that far back. While this isn't the review my copy of Atlus' Radiant Historia deserves, it's still something to help you consider getting this game and trying it out. (If you can find it, that is.)

Radiant Historia's story centers around Stocke, an intelligence agent who comes across a mysterious tome called the White Chronicle that allows him to cross time and space. Using this tome he must go about a journey laden with many choices - each of which open up various timelines that can either lead to disaster or advance the story.

The classic party of Stocke, Raynie, and Marco - a solid party.

The reason why this game ended up placing on the list is because my repertoire of completed games doesn't have a whole lot of role-playing games on it. If I were to make a list of these completed RPGs, it's look like the following:

• Super Mario RPG (SNES)
• every Pokémon main game I've touched save White Version
• Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (GBA)
• Radiant Historia (NDS)

As can be seen, the list isn't comprised of many games. The list of played RPGs (non-completed) is only slightly bigger - mostly because while I'm engaged with the story or the characters, the game itself doesn't grip me like most other games would.

Radiant Historia (along with the others on the above list) differed because it was one of the few RPG games I played that had an interesting storyline, fun characters, and gameplay that I found interesting enough to keep doing all the way to completion. I actually had the desire to finish the game... to see the characters through their journeys and to possess the satisfaction that I finished a fun game.

Barring the Pokémon games, Radiant Historia gave me a lot of satisfaction when I finally defeated the game. I had actually done enough in-game to receive the golden ending, and I'm happy that I actually got that far on my own. Definitely an RPG that's worth playing if you have some kind of Nintendo DS.

Deathmatch, anyone?

#16: GoldenEye 007
Released for the Nintendo 64
August 23, 1997 (Japan)
August 25, 1997 (USA)

If you had a Nintendo 64 as a child/teen, then the odds are you had a few amazingly entertaining games for it. Some people had Mario Kart 64; others had Super Smash Bros.; still others had The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. While each and every N64 owner has their personal favorite, they all know one game definitely earned a spot in their "N64 favorites" list: GoldenEye 007.

The famed first-person shooter developed by Rare became a milestone in the history of the FPS genre. Most games at the time followed the lead of Doom or Quake, but the developers decided to make GoldenEye 007 different. They succeeded by introducing game elements that - at the time - were avant-garde: elements of realism, stealth mechanics (quite uncommon for shooter games), and the creation of a variable-zoom sniper scope were a few of the mechanics the game pioneered.

But perhaps the thing most critics, fans, and Nintendo 64 owners lauded over the most was the highly-engaging multiplayer, where up to four players could duke it out in varying modes of play. At the time, most multiplayer shooter games were exclusively for the PC. The release of GoldenEye 007, however, said to the gaming community that console gaming can do shooters and multiplayer deathmatches. Since then, countless FPS games have been released on consoles - and it's probably safe to say that the owe their console existence to the success of the video game based off of the James Bond movie.

A rocket launcher used at this close proximity? This may bite you in the ass...

All of what I stated contributes to GoldenEye 007's placement on this list. I've had many fond memories playing this game (especially the multiplayer deathmatch) and having many a fun time with friends. There was no way I couldn't include this game here - to do so would be criminal. And the last thing I'd want to happen to me is to get dropped off an antenna cradle to fall countless feet to my death due to someone's vengeance.

For England, readers? *tilts head*

Post-apoc strategy... with TANKS!

#15: Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
Released for the Nintendo DS
January 21, 2008

Normally, I'm not up for turn-based strategy. Barring chess, I found the genre to be quite unrealistic. Of course, this was when I was younger and more of a douche not-so-open to the idea of "other fun things aside from things I find fun" - so I guess you could say I suffered a bit. I scoffed at the idea of taking turns between attacks, having your KO'ed party get revived, DoTs, or the like.

Of course, this was also at a time where the only strategy game I played was StarCraft. Don't get me wrong, the game's totally fun - but if that's all I had for strategy, what would happen if I wanted some strange and craved a different kind of strategy. So sometime after I graduated high school, my friends at the local GameStop encountered a bored me who wanted some strange and craved a different kind of strategy. That's when they suggested that I get the then-new release that is Advance Wars: Days of Ruin.

Oh, that's not going to end well...

The rest, as they say, is history. Barring my Pokémon games, the Nintendo DS game that had the highest amount of playtime was this turn-based strategy game here. After I began playing, I noted how simple yet oh-so-interesting it was. Use earned money each turn to build up an army to either conquer your opponent(s) or complete your mission objectives... wow. Each unit had its own advantages and disadvantages (just like a balanced real-time strategy game), and depending on how the battlefield layout was, you had to make sure you were able to send an intimidating offensive team while keeping the homefront safe and secure (just like a balanced real-time strategy game).

Wow. I felt like an ignorant putz for ignoring games like this. It made me wonder what else I was missing in my life of video gaming, and so I guess you can say I went on a search for those games. One discovery was the franchise that would end up fielding the next entry below...

Meet the game that'll make you want a 3DS.

#14: Fire Emblem Awakening
Released for the Nintendo 3DS
April 19, 2012 (Japan)
February 4, 2013 (USA)

It only seems fitting that a recently-released game would make its way on here. While this list is essentially the high points of my gaming history thus far, the newest addition to the Fire Emblem series has gone above and beyond. Playing it didn't just give me a "whoo, new fun game" experience - it became something that I actually want to spend time playing even after I already beat it weeks ago.

Like most American fans, I first learned of the series' existence when Super Smash Bros. Melee introduced Marth and Roy as unlockable characters. As such, like most American fans, I was first exposed to Fire Emblem only recently (read: after I graduated high school in 2007). It wasn't until a friend let me borrow his copy of Path of Radiance sometime in 2008 that I began to immerse myself in the series.

For those of you unfamiliar with the franchise, Fire Emblem is a fantasy-based tactical role-playing game series developed by Intelligent Systems. The games are well-known for the surprisingly-developed mass of characters in each game and the fact that death for any character is permanent. That - combined with the styles of both Eastern RPGs and Western medieval lore - make the games quite interesting for RPG and strategy fans alike.

Chrom and the Avatar lighting the competition on fire.

Fire Emblem Awakening is the latest addition in the series, having been released in the United States a little over a month ago. The story follows the journey of Chrom, the prince of the Halidom of Ylisse. As the threat of war looms over the horizon, he (assisted by your player "Avatar" character) leads his personal force of soliders - the Shepherds - to hold the peace in his land.

After playing through the game, I knew that if I made a "favorite video game" list, I had to include Awakening. It's not just me - a lot of review sites have showered nothing but praise on this title. In the other games, I usually pick a few characters whose personalities and/or stats stood out amongst the others. With Awakening, however, practically all of the characters have showcased their potentials - both in the battlefield and with their personalities. (This will actually be the subject of a later entry. Heh.)

If you have a 3DS but have yet to try this game, I highly suggest you download the free demo on the Nintendo e-Shop right away and have some fun with it. (I'd suggest this game even if you're nor normally interested in strategic RPGs.) Once you give it a shot, you'll probably see why this game not only trounced the other Fire Emblem titles I've played (Path of Radiance, Sacred Stones, Radiant Dawn, and Shadow Dragon), but also why this game rocketed its way onto this list.

"Willkommen. Hier findest Du nur Dein Grab."

#13: Einhänder
Released for the Sony PlayStation
November 20, 1997 (Japan)
April 30, 1998 (USA)

Not many people out there have heard of this side-scrolling shooter made by Squaresoft. (Yeah; back when it was still known as that. I feel old.) I'm not surprised - everybody knows Square for other famous games such as the Final Fantasy and Chrono series. So whenever this game is brought to attention, most of the people hearing the name for the first time are surprised to learn that the famed RPG-spewing company produced a surprisingly well-made shoot-em-up - a dissonant cry from the cash cow role-playing games they're more famous for.

While it had a limited release in the United States and didn't reach the high pedestals its RPG siblings made, Einhänder nevertheless became a popular game. Original copies of the game are quite rare these days (with "unopened" U.S. versions currently running triple digits on average on eBay) and used copies are all but non-existent in non-online stores that sell used PlayStation games.

Set in the distant future, you play as a military pilot from the lunar colonies who pilots a bizarre-shaped aircraft named "Einhänder" (German for "one-handed"). Your objective? Decimate the enemy forces stationed on the Earth sector you're deployed to.

I think we're going to need a bigger gun.

Longtime readers of my blog are probably familiar with this game by now. I listed a bit of the music in some of my "Current Music" sections. Einhänder's also been featured in some way in two prior Top Ten lists - once in a combat music list; the other when discussing my favorite video game bosses. Now the game gets recognition in its entirety as it deserves.

Back when I owned a PlayStation as a kid, there were a few games I played the most, and Einhänder was one of them. The game first caught my attention when I was at a babysitter's. He was playing it in his room and decimating the opposition, and I was rather impressed with the side-scrolling shooter. I had him tell my dad what the game was, and he subsequently bought a copy (albeit on the condition that he play it first - apparently he was also impressed with it). For some time this title would become the one game where my dad was able to outdo my skill - it would take me years for me to finally outdo his scores.

While the gameplay is fun and the now-dated visuals still impress me, Einhänder earned a spot on this list for a different (yet contributing) reason. I'll admit I was a sheltered child, and I was only exposed to what we would call "mainstream" music and what not once I became a teenager. Before this time, I would only listen to the mostly-lame stuff that blared on Radio Disney (yeah, I was that sheltered, but that wasn't my dad's fault).

Playing Einhänder helped change that - the eclectic techno-based soundtrack pulsated in my ears for many months to come, influencing me to check out other video games for their tunes. By doing so, it helped forge my love for video game soundtracks and my desire to spread the influence to my friends all over. In a way, I guess you can say that this game helped shape me into the person I am right now. I owe it my thanks for influencing my musical tastes, and placing it here on this list is just a small gesture of acknowledgement.

There is no cow level.

#12: Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
Released for the PC
June 27, 2001

Diablo II was a game that consumed much of my nights during my senior year of high school and the two years afterwards.

That is part of the reason why its expansion Lord of Destruction is on this list. The other part: it was partly responsible for my future immersion in World of Warcraft. Seems fitting that a Blizzard game would eventually aid in making me try out WoW. But I'm just getting carried away.

When I was gifted a Diablo II battlechest, it was so I could be my friend's reliable leveling partner in the game. I had tried out the game on his computer and found myself hooked to the Assassin class. I've always preferred the fragile speedsters in role-playing games - they may be weak defensively, but buff their defenses somehow and you'll have someone who can kill the opposition long before they realize they're under attack. So after installing the game to my laptop, I created an Assassin and bullrushed her into Nightmare mode as fast as possible. Several weeks passed. I now had a Lv70 Martial Arts Assassin (because Trapsins are for noobs) and began making multiple other characters in an effort to see what classes I liked the most.

And this is why Summonmancers are fun to play.
(Yes, that's my army of (un)death.)

At the peak of my Diablo II career, I had quite a few characters I got over Lv80. My personal favorites among the list?

• a Lv91 Sorceress with a rather odd specialization that centered on Frozen Orb and Enchant
• a Lv89 Summoner Necromancer (pictured above) - those armies wreaked havoc on everyone
• a Lv83 Martial Arts Assassin - the very one I started with

While I don't play the game any longer, I still keep it on my laptop for nostalgia purposes. Of course, this may pay off considering how Diablo III isn't doing so hot (it's not bad enough for everyone to revert back to II, though). Maybe I'll start up some new characters and just have fun again. Who knows?

Want a trip down nostalgia lane?

#11: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Released for the Super Nintendo
November 21, 1991 (Japan)
April 13, 1992 (USA)

I can see some The Legend of Zelda fans already beginning to gripe. They're beginning to understand how this list is working, and seeing A Link to the Past has got their blood boiling. Don't get me wrong - most other Zelda games are pretty cool. The thing is, the sole Zelda title for the Super Nintendo was the first one I ever got my hands on. It was also the first one I finished as well, so as such it's got a bit of an edge when comparing my preference for the other games.

From the start of Link's journey inside Hyrule Castle to the end when he faces off against Ganon, the game provided nonstop entertainment and an adventure that I always wanted to come back to. Even after I defeated the game there were still many secrets and bonuses for me to discover and access. Alternative routes to get items earlier than normally conceived? Secret rooms full of rupees to help my "buy Zora slippers" fund? Getting a fourth bottle? The things I missed just begged me to redo the game so I could complete it "properly."

If you know which dungeon this is, you've played this game too much.

Regardless of your opinion of which Zelda game was "the best," we can all agree that A Link to the Past was by far one of the best games for the Super Nintendo. And you can't go wrong with the Super Nintendo.

Great; now I'm wanting to load it up and start over again. If you'll excuse me...

Cue the Gregorian choir.

#10: Halo: Combat Evolved
Released for the Microsoft Xbox
November 15, 2001

Anyone who was around when the Microsoft Xbox was one of the big things in gaming knows about the Halo series. For those who somehow don't: humanity is waging a losing war against an alien organization known as the Covenant. During a fracas one human ship and its attackers find themselves next to a ringworld known as "Halo." Players take control of a genetically-enhanced super-soldier known only as Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 - and the mission he's given? Kick the Covenant's ass and figure out what exactly Halo is.

After its release, Halo: Combat Evolved became known as one of the Xbox's signature games. With its powerful gameplay, a fantastic story , and a very entertaining multiplayer, it became a "must-have" game for anyone getting an Xbox. At the peak of the console's career, I knew that I didn't want one (I'm a Nintendo fanboy, remember?), but I had to admit that the science-fiction first-person shooter was something I would love to play.

WHO LET THE FLOOD OUT!?

I got that opportunity when they launched Halo: Combat Evolved for the PC at the end of September 2003. Fresh with some birthday money that still needed to be burned and dying to get a new game for my computer, I bought Halo PC, which was a port of the legendary game. I loaded it up and as I made my way through the game, I got to say "hello" to the Covenant with the only human way possible: with a gun to the face. It was great - and I was happy!

And then my sense of joy turned into fear when I first encountered the Flood. (Honestly, who saw that one coming?) That stunning plot twist (and the nightmares that both literally and figuratively followed) had me checking every direction in fear and sweating bullets whenever more than six red blips showed up on my motion tracker. Sheesh. Anyone else freak out in that level? When the elevator took us lower into the depths of Hell? I couldn't sleep that night. (Thank goodness it was a weekend...)

My memories of having the Master Chief blast his way through Halo are one of my happier moments. I had a first-person shooter game on my laptop that I was actually proficient at (I did well in Counter-Strike, but not as well as Halo). I got to experience an Xbox sensation without having to buy one of the consoles. And most importantly: I beat it on Legendary. It was tough-as-nails, but I was able to get it done on my old tower. Now to do that again on this lappy...

For Gallia!

#9: Valkyria Chronicles
Released for the Sony PlayStation 3
April 24, 2008 (Japan)
November 4, 2008 (USA)

If you haven't heard of Valkyria Chronicles, go outside, get a PlayStation 3 (if you don't have one), get a copy of this gem of a game, and play it. I'm not kidding. Do it - and you won't regret doing so after you're done.

Why's that, you ask? Just play. What follows will prove that a tiny nation can best a military giant. These events will tell a story of tragedy hidden in the mists of time. A story of courage and of trust, of persecution and hate, and of love blooming - even through the flames of war. (Gods, that track is just beautiful...)

Set in an alternate Earth during the year 1935, the story focuses on the tiny neutral principality of Gallia, wedged between two grand factions involved in a great war. When the Autocratic East Europan Imperial Alliance decides to take Gallia's vast deposits of ragnite (their world's version of oil), the country scrambles to war and calls in every able-bodied person they can. The game follows the military campaign of the Squad 7 Militia and its soldiers as they fight to defend their homeland.

Rosie charging through rapid gunfire like a boss.

Those who know me know what gets my attention in video games: the music and the stories. Valkyria Chronicles' story definitely got me hooked (the history and technology in-game reminded me of a mash up between the actual world wars of our world - and I'm a bit of a buff for the second war). The music composed by Hitoshi Sakimoto not only captured the chaotic cacophony of war (and all the depression that goes with it) but also instilled a sense of patriotism and military pride that seemed to carry Squad 7 through thick and thin.



Thing is, while the story and music did their part, the graphics engine is what also got me to try this game out. Watch the above video (which is the introductory scene that plays when the main menu's left idle). Almost looks like a painting in motion, right? In doing so, we got to focus on the characters and the story as opposed to the aghast nature of warfare that we're so used to - which is what the developers were aiming to do.

As such, Valkyria Chronicles definitely earned my vote, which is why the game's here for us to look upon. It's a must-play for any gamer and definitely is something every PS3 owner should own in their library.

power overwhelming

#8: StarCraft: Brood War
Released for the PC
November 30, 1998

I'm getting flashbacks from my youth again, and they're full of aliens - ravaging assimilators from Hell and technologically-superior telepaths. Alongside them are humans (mostly rednecks) trying to hold their own in the galaxy in a losing war. And with the three species comes a highly popular multiplayer game that supports up to eight people online. It's the stuff of legends - and according to me, much more proficient at teaching me how to type than Mavis Beacon ever was.

For those who've lived under rocks bigger than mine, StarCraft is a classic computer real-time strategy game developed by Blizzard. The game is set in the distant future in an area of the galaxy known as the Koprulu sector, where conflict seems to be the meal of the day. Waging war are the three following species:

• the Terrans: descendants of human prisoners exiled from Earth,
• the Protoss: psionic aliens with superior technology, and
• the Zerg: insect-like xenomorphs bent on assimilating and mutating other species.

Initially perceived as "Warcraft in space," the developers took aim at developing the three races. Rather than a pseudo-chess match as seen in the then-released Warcraft games (where only two factions existed: the humans and the orcs), the game now forced players to adapt their strategies based on what they were and what their opponent(s) was/were.

Unless those two Zerg broods are allies, this is going to get very bloody very quickly.

To this day StarCraft is noted as a milestone in the world of strategy games. Despite its age, it's still played quite frequently around the world, and its success is often seen as a standard that real-time strategy games are compared to. South Korea took it one step further and adopted it as their national e-sport. If that doesn't say anything about the game's impact on the world, then I don't know what will.

Its legacy can easily be seen in my gaming history. After first seeing the game being played at a babysitter's, I made it a rule that all computers I would own in the future be loaded with a copy of StarCraft. And yes: I have a copy loaded on my current laptop. The graphics may be dated, but the gameplay and the sheer fun factor haven't aged away yet (and won't for quite some time, I reckon). Though I don't play online as much as I used to (I play it for AI skirmishes and when a group of friends and I decide to face off against one another), I still keep it close to home. It's a game of tactics and strategy I dare not lose.

Start your engines!

#7: Mario Kart Wii
Released for the Nintendo Wii
April 10, 2008 (Japan)
April 27, 2008 (USA)

Ever since I got myself into video games, I craved competition. To me, the desire to be better than the (wo)man next to you seems to be human nature. Sports stars compete not just for their team but for the chance to be recognized as a hero and legend in their field. Military personnel in wars want to kill the enemy and take the spoils of war to prove that they were the better conqueror. As for gamers? Well... each gamer wants to outdo the other player(s) next to them.

And very few game franchises have allowed me to compete as excellently as I have in gaming than the Mario Kart games. ever since I discovered Super Mario Kart, I had the desire to be the top dog in the game and beat my opponents to the finish line (which is highly ironic considering how much I suck in it). And while I began to practice, out came Mario Kart 64. It was my first game on the Nintendo 64 (I had gotten it - along with the console - sometime before my eighth birthday as an early birthday present), and as such I spent much time practicing my technique and racing skills. I had to - like most amateur gamers, I sucked.

During that summer in 1997, the neighborhood kids were my primary competition, and I drilled vehemently until I got everything right. When it came time to show those fools who was boss, I finally delivered. Matter-of-fact, I delivered to the point where I was nigh unbeatable. It was at that point that I realized something... that one of my wishes had finally come true.

I was good at video games. (Better yet, I was good at Mario Kart.) And if anyone dared to challenge me, I knew my go-to series of choice to thrash at the competition.*

* = Please don't pick Super Mario Kart or Mario Kart Super Circuit. I'm something terrible when it comes to those two. *whimpers*

Daisy drifting her Standard Kart M through Daisy Circuit.

Mario Kart Wii makes the list due to how much of a competitive feel this game exudes. While I look at the other Mario Kart games favorably (especially 64 - I drilled like crazy in that game to nail my drifts and SSMTs), it's with the Wii incarnation that I found my skills hitting their peak. My training has hit the point where I only know a handful of people in real life who can beat me. Even then, that's a stretch. I'd say we're on the same par level, because in extended Mario Kart Wii sessions, I'd win some and lose some, and so would they.

Bragging about being good on Wii and 7 requires some kind of innate skill - because the two latest titles in the series have been cited to have ridiculous rubber band AI (7 more so than any other game before it). It takes a special kind of talent to face off against an honest artificial intelligence whose skills and talents (apparently) rival your own and then shove those cheats in the computer's face afterwards.

Mario Kart Wii also places on the list primarily because it's my go-to game whenever I need to get my Mario Kart fix sated. Before my current scenario I used to practice religiously - I would dedicate at least one hour a week to keep my skills sharp and see if I can trump any of my time trial records. (I still occasionally do.) If you're able to beat the AI at its own game, then you know you got talent in the series - and I hunger for a challenge.

The game that helped pave the way for e-sports.

#6: Counter-Strike
Released for the PC
June 19, 1999 (Original Mod)
November 8, 2000 (Retail 1.0)

Any gamer who grew up in the early 2000s knows of Counter-Strike. Originally released by Minh "Gooseman" Le as a mod to Valve's famed first-person shooter Half-Life, it quickly became a popular multiplayer sensation. Two teams - terrorists and counter-terrorists - are pitted against each other in various maps, where the objectives can range from "eliminating the other team" (the most common method of victory) to "planting a bomb" or "rescuing captured hostages."

So popular was the game that players began competing in professional leagues. With the help of this popular FPS game, it was only a matter of time before the first instances of cyberathleticism began blooming. The Cyberathlete Professional League and Cyberathlete Amateur League rose in the ranks as numerous youths across the globe (myself included) competed in the chance to showcase how good we were at scoring headshots or working as a team.

fy_pool_day - a classic, fast-paced map... and one of my personal favorites.

Counter-Strike ended up scoring a high spot on my list primarily because its peak of popularity coincided with my adolescence. I grew up with this game - I had friends in high school who played this (and some were actually quite good), and this became a subject of discussion during the many LAN parties we attended. It reminds me of good times, all-nighters spent over the weekends or summer, eating nothing but chips, Hot Pockets and downing cans of Mountain Dew (and Bawls if we got our hands on any), blasting each other's faces in, yelling profanity and praises alike across the monitor-lit room.

Playing this game takes me back to those days, when the only worries I had involved breaking curfew or doing well in school - simpler times. Hence, whenever I play it nowadays, I get a sense of joy - not because I picked off that camping AWP-whore with an MP5 and a flashbang, but because it lets me relive the days where I had the most fun during my youth.

Oh, and it's damn good fun.

For the Alliance!

#5: World of Warcraft
Released for the PC
November 23, 2004

Considering how this game has the most tags out of all the video games I've featured here, it's kind of a no-brainer that the MMORPG shows up here.

When I first started my World of Warcraft account in May 2009, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. My experience with MMORPGs was quite slim, and the only experience I had with leveling characters, equipping weapons and gear, using the best spells and attacks, and what not came from Pokémon and the few RPGs I tinkered with beforehand. Those skills became useless as I immersed myself into Azeroth for the first time, not quite knowing what to expect. (I got a welcoming committee to show up once - although the party they had planned for me wasn't one I enjoyed...)

Cut to the present. After fighting through multiple mobs, fighting with and against other players worldwide (at least in the realm of people playing on the US servers), role-playing with some of them, I had a bunch of characters I loved playing as.

This is more filler text for the first section of words to follow after the title of the game is introduced. After you find out what to say, feel free to erase this paragraph as well and replace it with words you'll actually use for the entry, mm'kay, Josh? Mm'kay. Now be sure to put those cover sheets on those TPS reports - didn't you get the memo?

If it takes seven minutes to solo through the first group of trash mobs, maybe I should get better gear...
(In my defense: tanks have pretty low DPS... and those Lava Spawns would NOT stop splitting!)

I've loved every single moment playing this game. Honest truth. Sure, I have to pay $15 USD a month to do so. Sure, I play as a backstabbing rogue whose killing policies seem to look more like the UN defense policies as opposed to a bloodthirsty killer. Sure, I haven't played in a while (damn you, life and your forcing me to "prioritize my spending"), but I still try to keep up with the game. (Apparently patch 5.2 came out, and it's looking sweet so long as you're not a mage.)

I'm going to be honest: there was a time where I acted a bit derisively when I heard someone mention World of Warcraft. Matter-of-fact: I was one of those poor, blind fools that I hate - the kind of people who think negatively about every single thing they come across and shoot down anything/anyone without giving it/them a chance. (Hell, I still am like that - but I think I toned it down somewhat. ...don't give me that look.) If past me were to look at this entry (or anything in this blog)... I think he'd have a conniption.

Well, I'm going to go figure out what to do since I need to get money to play again! *zooms on*

Cue the famed "Korobeiniki" arrangement.

#4: Tetris
Released on June 6, 1984

If anyone here is going to start an argument on why this game shouldn't be on here: get the frak out. It's Tetris - how can anyone hate Tetris? That doesn't seem physically possible!

*clears throat* Digressing.

Developed by Alexey Pajitnov in the mid-1980s, this simple game of falling tetrominoes took the world by storm. Still lauded by both casual and hardcore gamers alike, the puzzle game is one that everyone will look back at fondly.

While many variants exist on many different consoles and computer systems, the one I had the most familiarity (and love for) with was the version released for the Nintendo Game Boy, originally released in Japan on July 14, 1989.

Now cue the original "Korobeiniki!"

There are many reasons why Tetris ranked very highly on my list. The ones I'm going to cite?

1. The Game Boy variant alone has sold more than 35 million copies. If those sheer numbers alone don't say anything, I'm not sure what will.
2. North America received the Game Boy variant in August 1989 - the month and year I was born. In essence, the English version of the game is just as old as I am! No wonder it was one of my first games!
3. Alexy Pajitnov prefers the Game Boy variant. The iconic version of Tetris that most gamers think of? The one for the Game Boy.
4. IT'S FRAKKING TETRIS - HOW COULD I NOT!?

Meme. Gene. Scene.

#3: Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Released for the Sony PlayStation 2
November 17, 2004

Terrorists kidnapped some Russian rocket scientist and they're gonna blow everyone up! Reader, get in there!

Just kidding! First, I'm going to talk about the Cold War for seven minutes while you jump out of a plane!

To be frank: placing a game from the Metal Gear Solid series was a tough task to perform. While I knew the games were some of my all-time favorites, it was difficult to choose one game to represent the franchise as a whole. It all boiled down to a near-coin toss between Snake Eater and the original PlayStation classic - and in the end, we can see which title prevailed. Snake Eater was chosen to represent the Metal Gear games because storywise, this is the one to set off the entire timeline. (That, and it's my personal favorite one to play out of all of them. The original is a very close second, followed by Guns of the Patriots and then Sons of Liberty.)

It's no secret that I love this series. Gamer friends of mine who've never really experienced it properly usually get some kind of lecture from me saying they should (re-)experience the tactical espionage action games from Konami. There's good reason for that. Between the Hollywood-esque style that the games are presented (think of them as "interactive movies"), the superb voice acting behind each game, and stories and character personalities that will confuse you (if you don't pay enough attention) and drive you to tears (of both the manly and depressing varieties), I couldn't think of a reason why I shouldn't place the games here.

Snake makes excellent use of camouflage to hide from his enemies.

Now, I could go on and state the many reasons why Snake Eater made the list. However, I'm not going to this time - partially because I'm frazzling myself out with trying to come up with things to say for all of these games I've talked about today, and mostly because I've already talked about these games enough. (Warning: potential spoilers in some of those links.) As such, I'd like to end this entrant's quip with these words:

In memory of a patriot who saved the world.

If you don't know anything about this game, you're uncultured.

#2: Super Mario Bros.
Released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
September 13, 1985 (Japan)
Late 1985 (USA)

I remember when I was about seven years old. It was the summer of 1996, and I was just a kid in Marietta, Georgia. In that regard, I was probably the only Filipino-American (or Asian-American, for that matter) in the neighborhood. The only video games I had exposure to at the time was Tetris for the Game Boy, some pinball games loaded on my dad's Windows 95-running computer, and the then-existing digital variants of chess.

One day during that sweltering summer, my dad was getting ready to go provide maintenance work for the upcoming summer Olympics when he stumbled across his old Nintendo Entertainment System (apparently purchased long before my birth). He had some time before he actually had to be there, so he took the time to set up the video game system and promptly woke me up to showcase it to me.

Now, I was familiar with video games at that age. The daycare I went to had a communal Super Nintendo set up, and I had built up a reputation for being adept at most of the video games they had (except for Battletoads & Double Dragon - I somehow sucked). But apart from that (and the previously-mentioned games), I had no other experiences with games, nor did I actually own a system. (The Game Boy didn't really count - it was my dad's, and my mother his ex-wife tried in vain to hide it from me at all times.)

And so the quest goes on...

As I walked into the living room, the television came to life and displayed the title screen (the first one accompanying this list entrant). I read the title, looked down at the dusty NES on the floor, and looked at my dad, who immediately tossed the P1 controller at me and told me to hit "START."

I did. For the rest of that day all I could remember was joy, bliss, and the feeling of triumph as I got into World 8-4 for the first time that night. (Since then, I've yet to replay the experience - World 8-2 has become my problem world and has negated about 83% of my subsequent playthroughs) And while I had access to a good selection of titles (1942, Duck Hunt, Excitebike, Gradius, and The Legend of Zelda are the ones I remember seeing in that dusty box), that day's memories seem to showcase Super Mario Bros. the most. The rest is history.

While I consider Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario 64 among my favorite Mario platformer games, the original Super Mario Bros. was chosen as the series' representative because of how influential that game (as well as that day) was. I don't think I would've gotten into video games as much as I would have had it not been for that dusty NES being unveiled to me that day. As such, it's only fair that this game be on here - and on such a high rank as well.

I was really excited when I got this game.

#1: Pokémon: Diamond Version
Released for the Nintendo DS
September 28, 2006 (Japan)
April 22, 2007 (USA)

Seeing a Pokémon title on here doesn't seem all that surprising when one considers my gaming history. (Even if you don't know it, it shouldn't be a surprise at all - I was talking about Pokémon here and there throughout the entry.) Gamers who have been friends with me since high school will remember my free time in class being used up on a Game Boy Advance, trying to breed the perfect Pokémon for other friends and trainers to use for their own teams.

However, Diamond Version takes the cake - primarily because of how much time I've spent on it. While most Pokémon games of mine have the dubious "honor" of holding at least 200 hours of my life, I learned that the game stops recording time spent playing after 999 hours and 59 minutes. By my estimate, I've probably given over 1700 hours of my life to Pokémon: Diamond Version.

Pokémon planning was apparently serious business when I was younger.

When I got my copy of Diamond, I instantly popped it into my DS and began my training. A little less than a week later, I defeated the Elite Four and unlocked the National Dex, allowing me to begin capturing a plethora of the Pokémon available (and this was when the number of Pokémon species was at 493 - it's gone up since then) and augment the teams I was working with.

Of course, my friends who picked up their copies of Diamond and/or Pearl were left in the dust, but I helped them out. I gave advice, worked on getting them much-needed TMs (through the use of a GameSharked copy of Pearl* I bought at GameStop), provided advice on which Pokémon would best be suited for their teams, and other things that I as the self-crowned "local Pokémon expert" would provide assistance for.

* = My view and policy when it comes to cheating in video games looks like this: cheat only after you've beaten the game yourself so you have the satisfaction of being an honest winner. While Diamond and Pearl are technically the same game (considering how the only difference between the two is the availability of certain Pokémon), I decided to play it fair. I transferred any valuable Pokémon and items over (yay for a free Master Ball) to Diamond, reset the game and beat it using the knowledge attained from my first playthrough. Afterwards I hooked it up to a GameShark and used one code only - and after that I had 99 copies of every fourth-generation TM. No other cheats were used because unlike the common whelps playing the series nowadays, I know how to play the game. The TMs just helped with breeding and team training.

The biggest request, however, was breeding. I had already proven that I had the know-how (and more importantly, the patience) necessary to cultivate future superstar Pokémon. So, when the orders came in to breed various species with various movepools, I set myself to work. While breeding in itself is a relatively simple process (stick two compatible Pokémon in the daycare, bike around as the two act our your favorite sexual euphemism, come back to pick up a Pokémon egg, and bike around some more until said egg hatches), breeding to make sure the correct moves, stats, traits, and abilities are passed down to the offspring is a whole other ball game.

Pokémon party: ASSEMBLE!

Breeding aside, the time I spent playing Pokémon: Diamond Version was very fun for me. The combat changes made during the fourth generation opened up new possibilities for tournament-capable entrants that were previously ridiculed, mocked, and/or underpowered. As a bit of an underdog supporter, I took great pride and joy in breeding Pokémon I had sadly ignored in past generations due to their mismatched stats and type placements. The teams that resulted from my efforts were some of the most notorious hard-hitters I ever had the honor of training.

Also, with the exception of three games (one of which was lost in a moving van; the other two were given to cousins) the Pokémon franchise as a whole is the only one whose games I never plan on trading, selling, or losing in the future. Random fact, yes - but I think that kinda says something about the games. As a result, it strengthens its position here as number one.





Well, there you have it. I sure hope that me making you wait for ages was worth it - here's praying that you enjoyed reading this as much as I (sorta) enjoyed typing it!