[yogibbear]

Okay well after reading IGN's top 25 PC games ever (don't read it, it's pretty average)... i think the only correct thing to do is try to make your own and then shuffle everything around and have a bit of banter between different contributors and nut out a more well thought and a better grammatically composed creation. It might just end the world or something if it's that good.

I'll start and then you can all criticize me.

Disclaimer: there's no rules. Multiplats are allowed. Mac-only, linux-only games are allowed. Facebook games are allowed. Whatever.

1. Half Life 2
2. Deus Ex
3. Fallout 2
4. Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
5. American McGee's Alice
6. The Witcher
7. System Shock 2
8. Planescape: Torment
9. KoToR
10. X-Com: UFO Defense
11. Thief: Deadly Shadows
12. STALKER: Shadow of Chernobyl
13. Max Payne
14. Baldur's Gate 2
15. Portal
16. Tribes 2
17. Mechwarrior 2
18. Age of Empires 2
19. Counterstrike
20. Gothic 2
21. Starcraft
22. Quake 2
23. Team Fortress 2
24. Beyond Good & Evil
25. Mass Effect (really torn between 1 or 2. Prefer 1's core game, yet 2's story more epic but core game worse)

Honourable (but missing) mentions: Morrowind, Rome:TW, Dead Space, Call of Duty, C&C: Tiberium Sun, Indigo Prophecy, Mafia, Crysis, Battlefield 2, Freespace 2, Hitman 2: Silent Assassinetc. ARGAHRGAHRGAHRGAHR! too many it seems... maybe i should have done a top 50?

Personal notes to my list: not going to include things like Secret Agent Man or Commander Keen or Doom purely because I wouldn't consider playing them right this very second. Whereas everything above i would consider playing if i felt like playing an awesome game. Tried as much as possible to minimise double counting sequels... e.g. not going to put in Half-Life despite it being AWESOME. Also yes TIE Fighter is not on my list as i haven't played it cause i am the second coming of jesus so shoot me.

[M.O.T.H.]

Not a big PC gamer...just wanted to comment on HALF-LIFE 2, which I'm currently playing on the 360.

Honestly, I just dont get the love at all. I didnt care for the original Half-Life, either. These games have bored me to death...I fail to see what everyone else sees in them. HL2 feels rather generic to me. The gravity gun is cool and the water effects are still excellent to this day, but other than that...I dont get the love.

I always hear how great the story is and the atmosphere...but really, there isnt much there, imo. You barely spend anytime with the NPCs and you spend a great deal of time, running through boring landfill looking areas and sewers. I dont feel all that immersed in the experience, either. The story actually feels rather bland and poorly told, in comparison to some other highly rated titles.

And as for Ravenholm, which I've heard so much about. It wasnt scary in the slightest bit, it was much easier than advertised, and just felt like any other generic level I've played in shooters. I just dont get it.

May be a tad blasphemous...but I find Valve to be incredibly overrated by the masses.

[Danzaiver]

Agree 100%

Half Life 2 is the best game ever and with all the cool mods, man it rocks. Portal also rules, Mass Effect also is really great even though I haven't played it yet.

Max Payne of course, it's Max!

Also Counter Strike and Age of Empires 2 are my favorite games on the PC.

[TannosukeGR]

Well my best 25 PC games are:

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Heroes of Might and Magic III
Half Life II
Neverwinter Nights II
Soul Reaver II
Max Payne
Doom 3D
Quake 4
The Witcher
Thief III: Deadly Shadows(Heard they're about to release the next Thief. YAY)
Baldur's Gate: Shadows of Amn(Still remember that badass bad character, John Irenicus)
Icewind Dale
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine
Goblins(point n' click adventure game. I'm sure you old dudes remember this)
Oni
Vampires: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
Warcraft: Tides of Chaos
Mass Effect I(Just bought the 2nd, but still to play it. )
Prey(Doom's lil brother)
The Suffering(Torq FTW)
The Last Remnant
Assassin's Creed(I liked it because of the graphic details)
Shadow of Destiny(Eike kustch FTW)
Advent Rising
Jade Empire

Wish to put in Fahrenheit and many more, but can't exceed the list.
Those games, I have played and assume you that they're only quality and ROOOOOCK !

[Morry]

To add other contenders to the list:

Theme Hospital, baby! The best sim ever created.
Wing Commander IV, as always (the most underrated and forgotten game ever).
Freespace 1 and 2.
Blood

[Zhinarkos]

Half-Life series - I think that given the current gaming industry situation all the games were ultimately on the same line in their time. Episodes included. They just seemed to be the top merchandise with all their flawlessness in gameplay and with their storyline. Not just THE story, but characters and other elements as well. I have a hard time mentioning games that would have had the same immersed feel in them. Those games were huge for me.

The Lord of The Rings - The Battle for Middle-Earth - Ah, my favorite strategy game. The best license game I have played. Oh the hours I have spend with it, and still going to spend....

Guild Wars - When choosing favorites about ANYTHING I usually try to recall not just the traits of what I am evaluating but also the experiences I had with it. The bare feeling of joy that I had for the first three months of playing Guild Wars is just unmeasurable. I can not recall a game with the same feeling of "must play" than Guild Wars. Other MMO players can say what they want, but I feel like Guild Wars really stands out from everybody else, especially with it's universe.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - My most played single player RPG. I've had five characters, of which all of them where over 25 level ones and two of them, over 45 ones. I think that about sums it up.

Max Paynes - They are in a quite high status when it comes to immersion in games for me. Max Payne is a great character, the gameplay works, the Theme in the number two is just epic. In fact, the theme is probably the most epic I have ever heard in a game. Even takes out Metal Gear, C&C, Half-Life and MDK

Assassin's Creed series - They had a real effect on me. I felt something that I had not felt in a long time. I guess it was something to do with the movie feel of the game.´

S.T.A.L.K.E.R games - Oh man. All the different experiences you can have in the zone. These games are one of those golden rarities that gaming world has blessed us with. And my god are they beautiful! The third one has one of THE MOST impressive light graphics I have seen in my life.

Burnout 3: Takedown - The best time I have had with a racing game ever. I played it so much. And I still do occasionally.

The Sims(especially the number two) - What can I say? I play a lot of simulation and strategy games. The Sims was a good invention, I can not deny it.

Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of The Earth - I played Amnesia. It is the closest thing I have come up with that bars with this game. CoCCoTE was a terrifying experience. And I never even finished it because of that stupid bug at the Hydra scene! Anyway, it is the best horror game for me.

Halo series - Beautiful games, with a great storyline. My personal favorite is the number two.

Monkey Island 3: The Curse of Monkey Island - I played it so much when I was younger. I love it. I have played the other parts as well, but the memories that I have from the third one are just irreplaceable. The comedy in them works, the art work in them is great, the puzzles are complex enough, the story works. There's so many other little things that I could mention, but it would take me so much time..

Dead Space - An excellent horror game. It was a fairly different experience than Cthulhu. But it truly had some uniqueness to it.

Duke Nukem 3D - I am not going to explain. You can decipher yourselves whether I am talking about experience or quality.

No One Lives Forever 2 - A great agent game. And with a woman as the main character. Nice... The game has a cool style and feel to it that made it stand out as a fps for me.

Tomb Raider series - It might seem to many that these games were quite simple when compared to other titles of their time, but I personally had the longest game playing sessions as a kid with these games. They just... seemed to work for me.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 - I guess I have to mention this too. It is so hard to find a flaw in this game. Perhaps the only real one is that there ain't nothing new in this. But the game has been done with great care. An excellent FPS.

Batman Arkham Asylum - Quality game based on a comic. Enough said

Company of Heroes - I don't like RTS all that much if I am quite honest. But the game has an immense quality to it. The story, the gameplay, the way how things feel fairly realistic, animations for instance... It is just a quality strategy game.

Command and Conquer - a same idea as CoH but with the main pros in the storyline and style. I am going to put Red Alert series in this as well.

Worms - Mainly the World Party one. Because it is the most played one. Excellent games for group play.

Far Cry 2 - my only experience of the Far Cry series. I felt it was a great FPS. Even though it had some really major issues. Especially with the fact that you were constantly jumping from one end to the other on the map.

Crash Bandicoot series - I can not leave them out. I have spend too much time with them to do that.

Jazz Jacrabbit 2 - I do not remember the first one, but I do remember the joy I had with the second one

Crysis - I was a bit unsure whether I should mention it or not. Truth is there is something really profound in this game that I JUST HATE. It's a beautiful game, but that is one of it's major flaws in a sense.

That is the end of my list. I have done it as well as I can. The games are listed in an order of greatness, but I have to admit. Some games are just hard to compare with others because they are so different with own gameplay elements.

I know that some of you may think I am crazy of not mentioning some of the big titles like Fallout 3 or Mass Effect. But I just haven't found the joy in some of the big titles of the game industry. Shocking fact for instance is that I had no interest on GTA what so ever. Never! I even tryed the third and the fourth ones but they just aren't the games for me I guess..

With humble pride this is the end of my judgement. I leave the next one to you. Just please don't butcher me because of my choices...

[M.O.T.H.]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morry

To add other contenders to the list:

Theme Hospital, baby! The best sim ever created.
Wing Commander IV, as always (the most underrated and forgotten game ever).
Freespace 1 and 2.
Blood

haha. Theme Hospital...twas a good game, indeed. I played in on the PSX, however. I actually just found a copy a few years ago and sent it to my sister, who was a big fan as well. Good times.

[yogibbear]

Oh crap... I forgot Descent!... Don't know what to sacrifice.

[Zhinarkos]

There's just too many games out there to remember. Only my the top 10 is pretty much as precise as it can be.

I am fairly certain that there are at least two sins of a gamer that I have committed by not mentioning a game that's worth mentioning.

So many games with so many differences makes it hard to rank them.

Thinking about ranking my top 25 movies would be just close to an impossible task

[yogibbear]

Quote:

Originally Posted by M.O.T.H.

Not a big PC gamer...just wanted to comment on HALF-LIFE 2, which I'm currently playing on the 360.

Honestly, I just dont get the love at all. I didnt care for the original Half-Life, either. These games have bored me to death...I fail to see what everyone else sees in them. HL2 feels rather generic to me. The gravity gun is cool and the water effects are still excellent to this day, but other than that...I dont get the love.

I always hear how great the story is and the atmosphere...but really, there isnt much there, imo. You barely spend anytime with the NPCs and you spend a great deal of time, running through boring landfill looking areas and sewers. I dont feel all that immersed in the experience, either. The story actually feels rather bland and poorly told, in comparison to some other highly rated titles.

And as for Ravenholm, which I've heard so much about. It wasnt scary in the slightest bit, it was much easier than advertised, and just felt like any other generic level I've played in shooters. I just dont get it.

May be a tad blasphemous...but I find Valve to be incredibly overrated by the masses.

Trying to be a discussion-worthy as possible:

So... i haven't seen what HL2 looks like on a 360 but i assume it could be pretty lame compared to playing it on a PC. (Not sure if they changed the FOV etc. to account for people sitting further away).

Generally i would say that every single game within the HL series has pretty much nailed story telling & atmosphere. To be honest i have no idea how people can claim otherwise. It sounds to me like as soon as you weren't fixed in one place due to it forcing you to have to stand around and listen to someone you simply ran off swiping away with your crowbar. (Which is fine to do if you're playing a game). But to then say that because that's what you did that there's no story is completely outrageous. Lots of the story is told by tidbits of information that are not obvious, not in-your-face, and not spelt out in lame cutscenes where you've already figured out what the <insert dumb voice actor> is going to say before they say it. It is one of those games that doesn't insult your intelligence, it assumes you generally have played all the other games in the series so it doesn't spell out all the intricate links between what you're doing now and how that relates to what you were doing back in Black Mesa.

About the only other game where this is remotely similar is when you play some parts of STALKER. (we're talking about the story telling). Despite the games being completely different in scope/presentation/story telling mechanism/atmosphere etc. etc. yet i find them quite similar in terms of how they make you think a bit about what you are seeing and doing and what the hell is going on.

I think what i'm getting at is that a lack of information is actually a story-telling technique that gets the audience thinking about the story and increases the immersion into that story. So you give out tidbits of info that only some players will come across. Then you let them think about it. E.g. end of HL1. (Especially when you look back at the transition between HL1 -> HL2 from Gordon (your) perspective on the matter).

I'm not saying that the story is some sort of secret or anything (it isn't), but it doesn't have stupid bits like say Assassin's Creed 2 where the story is spelt out to you so bad via people observing you while you're in the animus that it gets annoying. Whiny whiny voice of that girl off Veronica Mars and lame "ancient history/archaeologist dude" combining to explain things that you were just told/found out.

Them :"Oh gosh looks like they have a ball!"
Desmond: *Sigh*... Well Durr. i'm looking at him aren't I!...
Them: "Do you think this could mean that..."
Desmond: Shutup please.

I'm just not going to approach the rest as if you seriously think the gameplay is lacklustre then i honestly don't know what FPS's you've been playing that surpass it given it's actual release date/genre etc. etc.

[Zhinarkos]

What I can give against HL is the selection of weapons. This is a fairly UNFAIR judgement and is against every single piece of mind I have for Half-Life.

But besides gravity gun the selection of weapons isn't really all that interesting. Weapons work, sure, but compared to the 8 to 12 different types of firearms some games have the weapons selection of Half-Life isn't all that great.

But this is against all my beliefs, trust me. This is the ONLY even remotest thing that I can say against Half-Life. A reviewer said that with games like these you are forced to start looking unfair(at least to some extent) points of nagging, like for instance the amount it takes to install the game and such.

I do agree with yogibbear about the example of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Both games utilize a type of movie/book storytelling, where the more classic storytelling elements like "something lies beneath the surface" are used in a careful manner. Not quite as classic perhaps as some cliché shit that many movies do, but a fairly similar approach CAN in fact be seen in the games. There are so many unanswered unclear stuff in the games that you sometimes feel you are living in the story. A real quality story that is. You can keep wondering this stuff and never find an answer, even though it seems to be RIGHT THERE

Is this off-topic by the way? I am not sure how far can we go with the evaluation process

[AnttiApina]

Garry's Mod, Indie Games and Minecraft for me is what defines PC experience.

[yogibbear]

I actually played minecraft for about 10 mins. Built a worktable. Exited. Didn't inspire me at all. Well asides from fidning my first cave type thing... making my own exit into an infinite drop to a whole new area of the randomly generated map... gave up when some ninja sheep looking things attacked me.

[Maddieman]

Ski Free.

Nuff said.

[yogibbear]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maddieman

Ski Free.

Nuff said.

Oh DAMN! That yeti was my bigggest nightmare as a little kid...