Top 100 games poll

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andyp3001
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Top 100 games poll

Post by andyp3001 »

This is a tad concerning. I have just read that The Edge magazine is to list the top 100 games of all time, according to a load of "people" in the industry. I don't know the full list, but here is the "Top 10":

1. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina
2. Resident Evil 4
3. Super Mario 64
4. Half Life 2
5. Super Mario World
6. Zelda: A Link to the Past
7. Halo: Combat Evolved
8. Final Fantasy XII
9. Tetris
10. Super Metroid

What is going on? I don't know if Dungeon Master or CSB is in the 100 list, but the fact they aren't even in the top 10 shows that something is wrong, and the people they have asked obviously know nothing about gaming history apart from MegaDrive, Nintendo or Playstation.
I am amazed that even other classics like Cannon Fodder or Sensible Soccer aren't mentioned. What a shallow poll that must have been. :!:
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Post by Trantor »

I really wonder who made this list. The readers? Software developers of the industry? Anyway, it seems odd that there are only video games with the exception of Half Life 2 on there. If it weren't for Half Life 2, I would be sure that this list would be video games only.

Anyway, I can agree with several of the games listed, though not with all of them. My thoughts on these games:

1. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Hailed by many as THE best game ever, I am still not quite sure why. Sure, it was probably the first 3D game that really had a good camera system, but still, 70% of the game was just Zelda 3 in 3D. Still, a fantastic game without any major flaws, but best of all time? Hm.

2. Resident Evil 4
With this I can agree. It's still by far the best game I played in the last 7 or 8 years. Incredible atmosphere and presentation, and simple, but inexplicable awesome gameplay. A milestone.

3. Super Mario 64
For me, this game was a major letdown. The camera and the controls were wonky. Sure, the game had some nice ideas, but it didn't feel well-developed to me. No idea why so many people love this game.

4. Half Life 2
I haven't played it, so I can't comment. However, I didn't understand why Half Life 1 was so well-received...

5. Super Mario World
My personal favourite of the Mario games and definitely one of the greatest games ever. Still, one could argue that Super Mario Bros 3 would be more deserving of a spot on this list, as it had far more innovations.

6. Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Great game, no doubt, but I never quite got the hype around the Zelda games. As good as it is, it's certainly not Top 10 material in my book.

7. Halo: Combat Evolved
Never played any Halo game.

8. Final Fantasy XII
Now this is a surprise. I really wonder what this game is doing here. Maybe because it is new, or because it demonstrated a MMORPG-feeling could be evoked in a single player game, I have no idea. Not the game is bad, it is certainly very good. But it wasn't as groundbreaking as FF6 or FF7.

9. Tetris
It's really hard to argue with this one. Rarely has a concept this simple been so much fun - over and over and over again. Though it's not quite my cup of tea, it is probably THE most addictive game for all those typical non-gamers.

10. Super Metroid
A very pleasant surprise. The game is certainly a personal favourite of mine and in my opinion the best 2D action-adventure ever made. I'm very glad that this is on the list and that Metroid Prime crap isn't.


Now, about DM, I am not surprised at all that it isn't on the list. As successful as DM was back in the day, it hasn't aged very well in the public's eyes. Many feel it was later made obsolete by games like Ultima Underworld or Lands of Lore. From today's standpoint, the step-by-step movement and 90° turns probably feel "dated" to many, while the games on the list have another form of timeless-ness. Obviously, I don't agree, as I still think that DM was the most innovative and just best game ever created.

But as always with such lists, they are highly subjective. Don't feel offended or misunderstood. Enjoy the games you like on that list. I know I feel glad to see RE4, Super Mario World and Super Metroid on this list.
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andyp3001
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Post by andyp3001 »

No offence taken, Trantor! I just think that, as you mention, the games should be judged on their innovation, impact and gameplay at their time of release and subsequent play. I suppose I am from a different era of gaming, all the way from starting with the humble Sinclair Spectrum to (briefly) the PS2. The people questioned about the list probably haven't had the pleasure of loading games for five minutes from cassette! I take your point about the Resident Evil game though, forgot about that one. Anyway, to show my gaming age, this is my personal gaming top 10. This is only personal opinion, before I get hacked down to size with the Diamond Edge!

1: Chaos Strikes Back (ST)
2: Dungeon Master (ST)
3: Speedball (ST)
4: Cannon Fodder (Amiga)
5: Sensible Soccer (Amiga)
6: Quazatron (Spectrum!)
7: Flashback (Amiga)
8: Tomb Raider 2 (PS1)
9: The Sentinel (ST)
10: D/Generation (ST)
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Post by PadTheMad »

Dungeon Master always makes it into someone's favoute's list in EDGE. They bloody love it.
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Post by Sabreman »

The list was compiled from months of polls from readers, industry people, etc.

I think it's a fairly decent top 10. I don't agree with all of it personally but I understand the quality of the games. I don't like Resident Evil 4 much, for example, and I've never been a huge fan of Zelda games. Final Fantasy XII is obviously a premature addition based on its current success (even though I do think it's the best and most revolutionary in a long-running series).

Dungeon Master will be in the 100 - it always is and was the last time they compiled such a list (though if I recall correctly the last one was a closed poll of journalists and developers).
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Post by Tom Hatfield »

Outcast is never on any top lists. In my opinion it's the best computer game ever made, from both technical and design standpoints. (If they don't go in hand, neither matters, which is why cleverness on its own will never make a "best" game, despite how interesting it can be.) It isn't perfect, of course, but my complaints are absolutely minimal, and it still impresses me to this day how much they crammed into what is essentially a mind-blowing, bug-free masterpiece (except for the Twonha riding bug, which only shows up on fast computers).
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Post by Sabreman »

Well it looks like I spoke too soon. The list has been posted on the Edge forum. Whether it's the true list isn't certain yet, but it's incredibly heavy on relatively recent console games. It seems that most gamers have a very short memory.

100. Crackdown
99. Psychonauts
98. Sensible Soccer
97. Tekken 3
96. Wipeout
95. God of War
94. Gitaroo Man
93. Paper Mario: Thousand-Year Door
92. Resident Evil
91. Super Smash Bros Melee
90. Devil May Cry
89. Tomb Raider
88. Sega Rally Championship
87. Mr Driller
86. Outrun 2006 Coast 2 Coast
85. Silent Hill 2
84. Phantasy Star Online
83. Nights Into Dreams
82. Lemmings
81. Robotron 2084
80. Virtua Tennis 3
79. The Secret of Monkey Island
78. Doom 2: Hell on Earth
77. Football Manager 2007
76. Ikaruga
75. Burnout 2: Point of Impact
74. Thief: The Dark Project
73. Puzzle Bobble
72. Killer7
71. Ninja Gaiden Black
70. Ridge Racers 2
69. Pilotwings 64
68. GTR - FIA GT Racing Game 2
67. Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
66. F-Zero GX
65. Darwinia
64. System Shock 2
63. Lumines
62. Jet Set Radio Future
61. Manhunt
60. Pac-Man VS
59. Star Fox 64
58. Tempest 2000
57. Soul Calibur
56. Guitar Hero
55. Counter-strike
54. Chrono Trigger
53. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
52. Disgaea: Hour of Darkness
51. Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire
50. Shenmue
49. Animal Crossing
48. Puyo Pop Fever
47. Far Cry
46. Quake III
45. Company of Heroes
44. Super Monkey Ball
43. Bomberman
42. Rome: Total War
41. Gran Turismo 4
40. Warioware, Inc: Minigame Mania
39. Secret of Mana
38. Virtua Fighter 5
37. StarCraft
36. Battlefield 2
35. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
34. R-Type Final
33. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
32. Project Gotham Racing 2
31. Katamari Damacy
30. Shadow of the Colossus
29. Deus Ex
28. Perfect Dark
27. Rez
26. Advance Wars
25. SimCity 2000
24. Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
23. Metroid Prime
22. World of WarCraft
21. Okami
20. Civilisation IV
19. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
18. Final Fantasy VII
17. Goldeneye 007
16. Street Fighter Anniversary
15. Pro Evolution Soccer 6
14. Super Mario Kart
13. Ico
12. Grant Theft Auto: Vice City
11. Yoshi's Island
10. Super Metroid
9. Tetris
8. Final Fantasy XII
7. Halo: Combat Evolved
6. Zelda: A Link To The Past
5. Super Mario World
4. Half-life 2
3. Super Mario 64
2. Resident Evil 4
1. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
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Post by Adamo »

there were so many games created so far, that maybe we should make two lists: for older games (say, before 1998) and for modern games (say, after 1998)? That would have more sense. A lot of *very young* players simply didn`t have a chance to play it, because there weren`t born yet or were too young to play! That game was made 20 years ago! (and yet we play it; another prove that this IS historical!) I, for example, spend my time designing DM based custom game, wchich is my hobby.

Same thing happens with a best-whatever-of all the time lists: books, films... best 100 films of the 20th century for example. There are a lot of shit on the list and a lot of many valuable films is missing. Same with any other list. So, really, there is always a reason to complain for someone and I don`t get excited a lot because of these classifications. I never believed in all these list based on a subjective human feelings. DM had one of the greatest "market penetration" of all the time (number of computers VS games sold). THIS is a list of classification (for computer games) I really believe.

Besides, DM had so large number of (far worse) imitations, that we can compare it to the Doom game (which had a lot of imitations and is still first and unbeaten in his class, IMHO).
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Post by Trantor »

If readers had a word in this list, I'm rather surprised to see so many old games so high up - like the two Mario games, Tetris, or Super Metroid. The average gamer is rather young, under 20 at least, so it's absolutely not surprising to see so many new games up there.

Adamo, while I agree with you that both DM and Doom are still the best of their kind (and DM will never be surpassed since the genre is dead), I don't think the ratio of sold games to sold computers is a good criterium. Piracy was and is far too prominent. Take M.U.L.E., for example. Everybody had it, everybody loved it, and as far as I know, it sold about 1000 copies worldwide. Yep, that's it, the game was illegally copied like few others.

Oh, and Sabreman: Thanks for the list!
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Post by Adamo »

speaking of M.U.L.E. - there is an interesting, but sad story about its creator and tries to re-awaken MULE from the grave
http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature ... index.html
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Post by Sabreman »

I can't get past the feeling that alongside the age factor Adamo mentioned, there's also a strong conformist mentality at work in these lists. A lot of games getting nominated because of their importance in the industry, or worst of all because people expect them to be there, and want to be seen as part of the crown that put them there.

I've been guilty in the past, when thinking of such lists, to place very highly games that I've enjoyed intensely for a certain period. When I'm completely honest though I have to admit I've moved on from them and have no desire to revisit them regardless of my great memories. The 'best' games have to have a special kind of staying power, I think.

I wonder how many people are enthusiastically replaying Ocarina of Time almost ten years after it came out? The mark of a true classic and favourite for me is a game that - like DM - you're still happily playing about with 20 years after you first loaded it up, and still loving every moment as if it were new.
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Post by Parallax »

Meh, I think you're giving these rankings way too much importance. "Best games" means nothing or anyhting, for a given value of 'best', and "of all time" is just a hyperbole for "that I have played."

Who cares about lists and rankings and all that crap. There are MMORPGs on that list, along with RTS, platformers, turn-based strategy games, sport simulations, adventure games... Of course it's a ridiculous, biased mess.

You could make a list of 'most popular games' by running a poll where every participant fills in the titles of their 10 favorite games, in no particular order. As long as the contributions are kept secret until the final list is released, you'd get a list of Most Popular Games Among The People Who Could Be Arsed To Fill Out Our Survey, Provided Not-Too-Much Ballot Stuffing Occured Among Fanboys. Doesn't quite have the same ring to it, though, and it's a lot more effort than making a list of the First 100 Games Titles I Can Remember Off The Top Of My Head.

And anyways, if we're going to rank games according to how much total time they've run on people's computers, I'm sure Minesweeper and Solitaire should be the top 2, so there. :p
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Post by Adamo »

Terminator 2029. Do you remember this old PC DOS game from 1992 (well, 31dec`92, so 1993)..? Was it flip3D-like?
http://www.ag.ru/screenshots/terminator_2029
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