TOP 10 VIDEO GAMES OF ALL TIME
Coming up with the list of the best video games ever made is not an easy deal. Honestly, the only thing I, Personally love more than games is the act of arguing about games. Which made putting together this list of the Top 10 Video Games of All Time such a daunting, but ultimately rewarding experience.
There’s no limit to the amount of games that I’ve loved booting up and getting completely immersed in, but that doesn’t quite cut it for this list. For this, I had to figure out the best of the best. So Finally, I made my selections for the 10 best video games ever made.
10. Super Mario 64
Released Year: 1996
Mario games are synonymous with fun and innovation, and perhaps Mario 64 is the best example of the latter. It gathered the core elements of Mario’s best 2D, side-scrolling adventures and worked out how to translate them into a groundbreaking 3D world. It was still recognisably Mario – he collected mushrooms and ran and jumped his way to success, but he was forever changed. He could now long jump, triple jump, and backflip. While the underlying challenge remained the same and the locations were reassuringly familiar, the shift in perspective changed everything.
What’s even more impressive is that Mario did not simply enter a new dimension with ease, he did it with style that few games unburdened with such technical challenges ever achieve. Mario 64 might now look a little blocky but it remains bold and brilliant, too.
9. Red Dead Redemption
Released Year: 2010
If you're reading this list and haven't played Red Dead Redemption, go find yourself a copy of the game and the appropriate console to play it on. Right now. We'll wait the 30+ hours – this is important.
2008's GTA 4 may have been the reason that I bought an Xbox 360, but RDR is the reason I kept it. Not only did I get completely lost in the massive single-player world, to the point where I'd started talking with a bit of a drawl because I was so used to hearing it, but it also drew me into online gaming unlike anything I'd played before. Sure, CoD was fun for a bit and racing games were okay, but never before had I so successfully crafted my own stories and adventures (with friends and strangers alike) than in Red Dead's Free Roam mode.
It was the kind of game you couldn't wait to discuss with your friends the next day. "Did you save that woman on the train tracks?" "No, but I found this cabin that had, like, 1,000 cougars in it," "That's cool, but did you kill Sasquatch?" Everyone had their own amazing tales to tell about their time in the old west, and you were constantly making new ones every time you turned it on. The only real downside to Red Dead is that it never came out on PC – which is mostly sad because my 360 died years ago and I really want to play it again.
8. Half-Life 2
Released Year: 2004
When I think back on Half-Life 2, I think about three things.
First is that incredible opening, which immediately sets the tone for the dystopian adventure you’re about to embark on. Being told to “pick up that can” right at the outset in City 17 was a remarkable moment in gaming.
And then there’s the moment you first pick up the Zero Point Energy Field Manipulator, better known as the Gravity Gun. It’s hard to put into words just how remarkable Valve’s technology behind this weapon was back in 2004. Pulling, levitating, and then firing off objects in the environment provided a thrill the likes of which I’d never felt in games before. Which came in handy in the third thing I remember most about HL2, which was Ravenholm. The creepy mining town, now overrun by zombies and head-crabs, provided the perfect playground for you to try out your new toy.
Sure, we might never find out the end of Gordon and Alex’s story, but none of that can take away from just how special Half-Life 2 was, and still is.
7. Tetris
Released Year: 1984
The classic Russian title-matching puzzle game by Alexey Pajitnov blew my mind way back in the day. Even as a little girl, I was obsessed with Tetris. I’d never played a video game that mentally stimulating, let alone that addictive.
I still remember spending hours sitting in front of the TV with the Nintendo Entertainment System sitting at my feet, rotating brightly colored puzzle pieces as they fell from the abyss, attempting to arrange them into horizontal lines that when assembled correctly would disappear and cause me to advance to the next stage. It was crazy fun, even when blocks began to fall at an alarmingly fast pace and I fell into a frenzied panic. (I still remember how frustrated I’d get making careless mistakes that resulted in giant, pixelated Towers of Pisa.)
But no matter how many times I had to start the game over, it was just too much fun to stop. There was always the chance that this time I’d get the right puzzle piece at the right time and could move on to the next stage. I never got tired of it, and even now Tetris remains one of my favorite games of all time.
6. Super Mario Bros. 3
Released Year: 1998
As a
kid, I played almost any game that had a cool character on the box or starred
my beloved Ninja Turtles. But even then, although I lacked the vocabulary to
explain it, I knew that Super Mario Bros. was special, and better than almost
everything else. So when I received Super Mario Bros. 3 from Santa one year,
and saw on the back of the box that Mario could fly, I knew I was
in for something special.The game exceeded my every hope and wish
for it, and I spent hundreds of blissful afternoons defeating Koopa Kids,
rescuing kings, and discovering secrets strewn throughout Mushroom World. Mario
3 earned a place on my list of favorite games way back in 1990, and 25 years of
gaming progress have yet to dislodge it. Super
Mario Bros. 3 is a textbook example of how to make a perfect video game sequel.
It’s a mixture of the original’s best elements, combined with an almost
excessive amount of imaginative new ideas. So much of what we consider so
quintessentially Mario – the suits, the boos, the overworld – all actually
originated here.
5. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Released Year: 1991
The
Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link laid the foundations Link’s quest,
but it was A Link to the Past that built the land of Hyrule into a world. From
it’s unforgettable beginnings guiding a swordless Link through the rain, to the
final showdown with Ganon and utilizing mastery of sword and bow to defeat
evil, Link to the Past measured out a perfect pace of dungeons, exploration,
and a gripping narrative that was almost unheard of at the time. It’s open
landscape was always inviting but never felt aimless – striking the perfect
balance of freedom and purpose in your quest to save Princess Zelda.This
iteration of Hyrule was more than just moving between enemy-filled screens, it
encompassed everything an immersive experience should be: a vast open world
that teased you with secrets hiding just beyond your reach, begging you to come
back with new and inventive tools. Each zone – whether in the cheerful
overworld, dimly lit caves, or the intimidating Dark World – was brought to
life through a culmination of details like the sound of the Tempered Sword
cleaving the air, the catchy jingle of a puzzle well-solved, and the ambient tunes
of Koji Kondo’s score. This version of Hyrule more than any other before or
since, is the one I fell most in love with.
4. Super Metroid
Released Year: 1994
Super
Metroid’s minimalistic environmental storytelling set a bar, way back in 1994,
that I believe has still yet to be eclipsed. The planet Zebes is atmospheric,
oppressive, and extremely lethal. At first glance, there doesn’t even appear to
be any story. But then you start to look more closely. The parasite-riddled
dead soldier outside of an early boss room. The crashed, half-submerged alien
spaceship that may or may not be haunted. The techno lair of the space pirates
hiding under your nose the entire game. It’s brilliant and confident. It
doesn’t explain to you what each new area is all about. It’s all there, for you
to figure out (or ignore) on your own. But it’s Super Metroid’s ability to consistently invite the
player to be curious – and then rewarding that curiosity – that makes it one of
the greatest video games ever made. It’s not just that there’s secrets hidden
everywhere (although there are, and it’s awesome) – it’s that the game teases
you with tantalizing clues – items, always just out of reach. An energy tank
embedded in a seemingly impassable wall. A pair of missiles only obtainable
from the collapsing blocks above, leaving you no idea of how to get up there,
just with the knowledge that you can get up there. Super
Metroid is an impeccable action-platformer – that’s the “easy” part. What makes it truly special is its genius combination of puzzle-solving,
atmosphere, storytelling, exploration, game design, and gameplay. There’s
nothing else like it.
3. Portal
Released Year: 2007
Puzzle games can sometimes be a little dry – more concerned with logic, reason, and the elaborateness of their design. Portal was totally different. Its challenges were embedded in a much bigger story, filled with memorable characters and enduring moments.
Video games in general manipulate space and perspective better than any other medium, and Portal takes full advantage of that unique strength. Enter the portal gun – one of the great video game tools. Instead of firing bullets, it rips through space, allowing the player to traverse a level almost instantaneously. Sounds simple, almost like a cheat, but the intelligent design of each test chamber prevents players from making a beeline to the exit. Other variables, like velocity, also had to be considered.
Portal’s design remains exemplary and its humour, undiluted. Escaping Aperture Science elevated the puzzle genre beyond mere interactive conundrums.
2. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Released Year: 1998
Fans waited seven long years for their chance to return to Hyrule, and after numerous delays and development issues, Nintendo did not disappoint. The first 3D Zelda game revolutionized the way people thought about action adventures and 3D combat, earning nearly unanimous perfect scores and critical praise from every outlet. Mechanically,Ocarina of Time is a marvel; slowly introducing systems and increasing the complexity in such a masterful way that many of the elements from Ocarina of Time continue to be industry standards today. Narratively, it’s still one of the best stories ever told in a Zelda game as you seamlessly jump back and forth between timelines in a quest to thwart the evil Ganondorf and save Princess Zelda. It became the template for Legend of Zelda games for nearly twenty years, and is still regarded as one the greatest games of all time.
1. Super Mario World
Released Year: 1990
Super Mario World means so many different things to me. On a base level, it’s my personal favorite game in what’s probably my favourite series of games. It’s an incredible platformer that oozes charm, creativity, and challenge. It took what Nintendo built with the first three games on the NES, and cranked it up to the next level. Everything was bigger, brighter, and more complex.
But on a personal level, it’s the game that I associate with my introduction into thinking about video games on a deeper level. I was just absent-mindedly gazing at the television as my fingers adhered to years of muscle memory. Rather, I was looking past what was on the surface level, and really thinking about what went into the design of the game. I distinctly remember practicing with Mario’s cape for hours on end until I mastered the ability to glide across entire levels. In an age before the internet, I combed every inch of every stage, eventually finding every single secret exit and finally getting that perfect “96” next to my save file.
It’s still a game I go back to on a yearly basis, and I’m shocked that over 29 years later, gamers are still familiar with every little nuance of the game.
Simply put, Super Mario World is my favourite video game ever, and Gizmostan's pick for the best game of all time.
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