Captain Kinopio wrote:This is a really interesting list.
Would be good to get some thoughts on a fe of those and the compilation overall.
Sure! Added some quick thoughts:
Banjo-Kazooie
My favourite "classic" 3D mascot platformer, I'd personally rank this (quite easily) over Mario 64 or any of the later 3D Mario games. I have a lot of nostalgia for B-K, but even without that it's a very well put together game - the hub world ties everything together really effectively, the characters and worlds are all highly memorable (with well designed platforming and other challenges), and the music is top tier.
Celeste
The best game in the "twitch platformer" subgenre and for my money the best 2D platformer ever made. Very few games even try to marry their gameplay to their theming, while Celeste does it perfectly, which elevates the game into "art" status for me.
Fallout: New Vegas
I'm a huge post-apocalypse genre fan and New Vegas delivers fantastic player agency through its open world and branching quest design, as well as having genuinely a deep and interesting setting and lore.
Hollow Knight
I love metroidvanias (with the strangely notable exception of Metroid and Castlevania themselves!), and Hollow Knight is the best metroidvania ever made.
Hotline Miami
This was trance-inducing for me, the aesthetics combine seamlessly with a near perfectly refined core gameplay loop and I find it just totally absorbing - almost dangerous.
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy
Jak and Daxter is my favourite game series, rivalling Zelda, and TPL is endlessly replayable in its length - I know the game inside-out and regularly return to it, often in a single sitting. I can count on one hand the games I do that with.
Jak II
Meanwhile Jak II is my favourite in the series - I adore the setting, the story, the characters, the variety and execution in gameplay (with platforming still at the core), and also the challenge in the game's difficulty. The last point is what elevates Jak II above the sequel for me, although it's really not far behind!
Metal Gear Solid 3
I can't praise MGS3 enough - the James Bond pastiche and prequelness focuses it into a worthy standalone experience despite fitting well into the overall series, and the gameplay is so layered and well developed. Every time I replay the game I find something new, which is really impressive.
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
MGSV is the best playing third person shooter ever made, only slightly edging Ground Zeroes with some slight refinements and additional mechanics, but Ground Zeroes has the better and more focused sandbox for playing around in.
Monster Hunter Generations
Monster Hunter is one of my favourite series and I still think Generations is the peak with hundreds of hours of content. I could stay entertained for a long time with this game alone.
Mount and Blade: Warband
The perfect combination of immersive character-focused sandbox RPG and strategy game. This game is criminally underrated - even though it's still pretty well known and very well rated!
Skies of Arcadia: Legends
My favourite JRPG. I mentioned I love post-apoc fiction - well my other favourite setting would be floating islands and flying airships. Skies of Arcadia does that best.
Star Wars Battlefront II (2005)
The best Star Wars videogame, it's never been bested. The reboot of the series is worse in every way except visuals and sound.
The Last of Us
Post-apocalyptic and an incredibly presented and playing linear action game. When I got this on release I finished it in near enough a single sitting (only stopping for tea), playing through until 7am. Then I started it again the next day. I've never had an experience quite like it.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
BOTW is the opposite style of game - it's not about being cinematic, it's all about its unrivalled gameplay and systems. I'd objectively call it the best game ever made.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
My favourite game of all time!
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
It's incredible how good Ocarina of Time is, it's such an influential, landmark title and yet it still holds up and is better than most every game that has come since.
TimeSplitters 2
The best FPS and the best multiplayer in gaming. So much content, I could play it forever.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3
This is the peak of the series for me, and it's genuinely an incredible game. It's crazy that a skateboarding game should be held in such high regard but it was just gamified so well.
Uncharted 2
This is still the best "blockbuster" experience you can have while gaming, it's a non-stop thrill ride and I just find it stupidly enjoyable right up until the disappointing final boss! Individually there are better set pieces out there, but I think Uncharted 2 does such a good job of holding multiple great set pieces together.