Snakester's 10 Favorite Video Games

Videos games have grown from a geeky obsession into a multi billion dollar industry. Console and game sales continue to rise every year almost holding up our economy it seems. They are a big part of pop culture and a big part of my life from my childhood on. I read Game Informer Magazine which futures a small section each month where someone from the industry and a reader both list their top 5 video games. I have always thought with each month that I read them what mine would be. Well, we are taking it a step further and here is my top 10 favorite video games.

10. Earthbound (SNES): The graphics were cartoonish but the story was immense. This is not a very well known game but anyone who has played or seen it will be able to share their story of strife trying to complete this monster. I have never been a big fan of RPGs but this one struck a cord with me. It isn't the normal fantasy fair that usually comes with these games. It is an adventure of a boy named Ness who discovers a meteor has crashed near his house where a bee creature from the future instructs him to go on this quest. The game was sold with the strategy guide. That should tell you something right there to the size and complexity of the mission. It took be several long winter and spring months after receiving this one for my b-day in order to complete.

9. Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64): This one is aided just by the fact that finally on the N64 you could play with four players! It was as simple of a racing game that could be made and that added to the fun of getting everyone involved. The thrill or despair (depending on which end you were on) of the leader of the race getting wiped out by a turtle shell just before they would have won the race. That was always fun.

8. God of War (PS2): This is one of the most perfect games I have ever played! The graphics are amazing even on a standard definition TV and the gameplay was smooth & flawless. You play as Kratos, a spartan warrior, who is enlisted by the gods of Olympus to help them betray the god of war, Aries, who has become power hungry. The story is the most amazing part of this game and the way they reveal the back story of Kratos from how he became indebted to Aries to the point where we finally find out why he is soul is so tortured & is skin as white as a ghost. The fighting style is amazing, the graphics are bloody and the puzzles challenge yet delight. Still, the first time through seeing the scene on how Kratos evolves in the Ghost of Sparta is truly amazing and saddening at the same time.

7. Faxandu (NES): My uncle gave me this game after he had beaten it during his service in the Marines. I would consider this a cult gem from the glory days of the NES. This dark fantasy adventure had some truly weird looking monsters and a very challenging code system for continuing games. I remember being very frustrated when I couldn't get my codes to work until I could finally tell the difference between a script O and 0. You return from a long trip to your elvish town at the bottom of the World Tree to find it partially destroyed and overrun with dwarves. An evil as inhabited the World Tree poisoning the water supply and mutating dwarves into evil monsters. The original play took me several months but after I knew where I was going it could be beaten in about 3 hours. Which was very useful considering how hard it was to decipher the script code.

6. Metal Gear Solid (PSOne): I would describe this as a 4 hour movie with a game built into it. This series has been know for long cut scenes telling an amazing story. Some of them have gotten a little out of hand as it has gone on (I read somewhere a cut scene in MGS 4 is 90 minutes long!). This one had just enough back story from the original Metal Gear games on the NES to give it some depth before we dove into the Alaskan tundra as Solid Snake infiltrating a terrorist base. This is the ultimate espionage, sneaking game. The focus is always on hiding and avoiding conflict rather than just blasting everyone as in most games. This gave it a more realistic feel and made it more of a puzzle to try to figure out how to sneak through hangars without being seen. The many plot twists throughout can leave your head spinning.

5. Guitar Hero (PS2): I like to think I was an early adopter to this now craze. I remember reading about it as kind of a novelty in a magazine and knew I had to try it. I still remember the most songs from this one including No One Knows & Crossroads which I was never able to 5 star even on Medium. I remember practicing more than I ever had when I tried once to learn how to play a real guitar. The characters were cool and the songs were a good selection that introduced me to some new favorites. Whenever I hear them I can still see those notes flying at me and the way I had to move my fingers to play it. The series adds things with each installment and adds to their song catalogue, but the original will forever remain dearest in my heart.

4. Super Mario World (SNES): All of the Mario games have been great (except for the weird Mario's Time Machine). But this one always stands out to me because I spent alot of time finding all the hidden levels and learning how to fly with a cape. I remember the Star Road that lead to the hard levels called Tubular, Awesome, etc. It was the first Mario gave that could actually save your progress in order to alleviate those gruelling game play session where beating Super Mario Bros was more a test of endurance then game playing skill. The addition of Yoshi was the coolest thing to me and probably any other kid. This one also got my dad back into playing Mario with me, at least for a little while.

3. Red Dead Revolver (PS2): I don't think I have replayed a game as much as this one. I remember a long time ago seeing a commercial for it long before I even had a PS2 and I said I wanted that game. Well if you don't know by now, I am a western fan (see earlier posts). This was an old Clint Eastwood spaghetti western come to life, right down to Red wear a poncho and barely talking. The showdown sequences are wicked fun, staring down your opponent and then flicking the controller sticks to draw and hit the sweet spots. The story is well crafted and reveals enough of the past as you go. Riding the horse to run down and attack a train full of Spanish soldiers is the highlight for me, every cowboy's dream sequence.

2. NWO Revenge (N64): For me, this was the greatest wrestling game I ever played mostly for its simplicity. It was from the height of WCW's popularity before its inevitable collapse. The character models were still crude and the game fairly rigid, but it was still better than anything else we had ever played. The title challenges are the most gruelling test of gaming I have ever seen. You could not save and you had to win 7 matches I think before you got the title shot. The tag team title took literally 4-5 hours easy! All to just have your initials on the screen and your team wearing the belts in the exhibition matches. Still four wrestlers in the ring at one time was a big treat over anything else there was out there and it made the player be more creative in our match structure. It was pretty much all I played for about 2-3 years.

1. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64): Really I just wanted to say the whole Legend of Zelda saga but realized that would be a cheap way out and I didn't want to flood my list with the original Zelda & Link to the Past from the SNES so I have chosen the best. Just the fact that you start out as young Link and the game is in 3D make it one of the best. The adventure is pretty massive, the story is solid and the puzzles are very unique. I never got tired of replaying this game and just riding the horse across Hyrule field watching the sun set. This game had two unique features for its time in the concept of time passage from day to night and the different characters and monsters that were in the fields during those times. Also further into the game comes the object of time travel as Link is teleported into the future ruin of Hyrule as an adolescent. Then of course the puzzles that come with jumping back and forth in time to unlock dungeons etc. I would still challenge anyone to debate on a better adventure game than this one.

Honorable Mention:
Gears of War - Xbox 360 : beautiful game and fun gameplay
Warcraft II - PC: got me started on war strategy games
Manhunt - PS2: kind of scary how much fun killing people is
Tecmo Super Bowl - NES: the real football game
Donkey Kong Country - SNES: a good time with lots of secrets
007: Goldeneye - N64: fun gameplay and 4 person mutliplayer