Here goes my top ten list for games of the seventh console
generation. This includes the Wii, PS3, and the Xbox 360. Unfortunately, I don’t
own a 360 to play some of their titles. But enough of them were available on PC
or PS3 to balance that out so fuck off if that’s really a big deal to you.
Because it’s really not a big deal at all to me.
# 10 – Minecraft
- Regardless of how I talk about this, putting it at number ten is going to piss some people off. But Minecraft, while fun, doesn’t really mean as much to me as the rest of the titles on this list. That said, it offers a lot to video games that really has never been seen before. And, due to its success, we’ve seen a plague of imitators follow suit. Some of which, arguably, are better than the original concept. The point is that this is a game that gave players limitless options for exploration, creation, adventuring, and campaigning with friends. I’ve lost plenty of hours just fucking around in this game making stuff either alone or with friends. I’ve lost just as many hours testing myself to see how long I could survive on the harshest difficulties. Despite all that, I still haven’t really learned how to use red stone. All-in-all, Minecraft is that one unique gem from this generation we should all have at least tried once.
- Regardless of how I talk about this, putting it at number ten is going to piss some people off. But Minecraft, while fun, doesn’t really mean as much to me as the rest of the titles on this list. That said, it offers a lot to video games that really has never been seen before. And, due to its success, we’ve seen a plague of imitators follow suit. Some of which, arguably, are better than the original concept. The point is that this is a game that gave players limitless options for exploration, creation, adventuring, and campaigning with friends. I’ve lost plenty of hours just fucking around in this game making stuff either alone or with friends. I’ve lost just as many hours testing myself to see how long I could survive on the harshest difficulties. Despite all that, I still haven’t really learned how to use red stone. All-in-all, Minecraft is that one unique gem from this generation we should all have at least tried once.
#09 – PayDay2
- This could have been higher on my list but I got dragged down for a few reasons. One, I haven’t had much time to really play it. I’ve played a fair bit, sure, but not as much as I would have wanted by now. Partly because there’s a lot of games that followed it, and partly because the people I wanted to play with weren’t available or willing to play when I could. But this makes the list for so many reasons. First, a well-designed game through and through with a fun concept and great mechanics behind it. Second, it is basically a blueprint for how to market a game with a proper budget to maximize sales and player base. You don’t need to spend millions on ads on TV when you can just have your already established fanbase tell everyone how amazing it is or is going to be. Also, it shows what I consider to be the final chapter of this generation for games that started the whole co-op FPS trend. It started with Left 4 Dead (a game I wanted to put on the list but ran out of room for) and ends here. And while I’m hoping this isn’t a sign that the next generation will start to dump loads of this gametype everywhere (like we saw with COD clones and WoW clones) I do hope that we continue to see more games of this caliber coming in the future. And I also hope this pushes Valve to step up their game to give more variety and spice to the next Left 4 Dead game… assuming they can count to three.
- This could have been higher on my list but I got dragged down for a few reasons. One, I haven’t had much time to really play it. I’ve played a fair bit, sure, but not as much as I would have wanted by now. Partly because there’s a lot of games that followed it, and partly because the people I wanted to play with weren’t available or willing to play when I could. But this makes the list for so many reasons. First, a well-designed game through and through with a fun concept and great mechanics behind it. Second, it is basically a blueprint for how to market a game with a proper budget to maximize sales and player base. You don’t need to spend millions on ads on TV when you can just have your already established fanbase tell everyone how amazing it is or is going to be. Also, it shows what I consider to be the final chapter of this generation for games that started the whole co-op FPS trend. It started with Left 4 Dead (a game I wanted to put on the list but ran out of room for) and ends here. And while I’m hoping this isn’t a sign that the next generation will start to dump loads of this gametype everywhere (like we saw with COD clones and WoW clones) I do hope that we continue to see more games of this caliber coming in the future. And I also hope this pushes Valve to step up their game to give more variety and spice to the next Left 4 Dead game… assuming they can count to three.
#08 – Bastion
- Bastion was the first big indie game I tried out because its art style really drew me in. It was like a painting, something that just looked nice but didn’t sport the highest end graphics like many gamers seem to think is a requirement for games anymore and throw a fit when games with high graphics get a score below a 10. But Bastion was more beautiful than most any game this generation (with the exception of Dust: An Elysian Tale) and because it chose to focus on a well-designed aesthetic rather than trying to shove as many polygons into the game as possible (in your face David Cage). But, more than that, it was also fun to play. Simple, yet it had a lot of different ways to approach challenges and make them more challenging. The story was fairly interesting and it really had some touching moments near the end when you get to make a few big choices that help shape what ultimately happens. And it’s a game that sits close to my heart for a lot of personal reasons. Namely the final choice [SPOILERS] boils down to you deciding if you should go back in time and try to prevent the Calamity from happening or keep the world as it is and work to rebuild a new future and society. And, to me, this meant clinging to the past and trying to fix what’s broken or moving forward with life and trying something new. [/SPOILERS] There have been times in my life, recently in fact, when I wish I could have thought about my choices as clearly as I did here. And that’s kind of why it resonates with me so much. Why isn’t it higher? I dunno. I guess I just don’t feel like putting something this small and personal too high up.
- Bastion was the first big indie game I tried out because its art style really drew me in. It was like a painting, something that just looked nice but didn’t sport the highest end graphics like many gamers seem to think is a requirement for games anymore and throw a fit when games with high graphics get a score below a 10. But Bastion was more beautiful than most any game this generation (with the exception of Dust: An Elysian Tale) and because it chose to focus on a well-designed aesthetic rather than trying to shove as many polygons into the game as possible (in your face David Cage). But, more than that, it was also fun to play. Simple, yet it had a lot of different ways to approach challenges and make them more challenging. The story was fairly interesting and it really had some touching moments near the end when you get to make a few big choices that help shape what ultimately happens. And it’s a game that sits close to my heart for a lot of personal reasons. Namely the final choice [SPOILERS] boils down to you deciding if you should go back in time and try to prevent the Calamity from happening or keep the world as it is and work to rebuild a new future and society. And, to me, this meant clinging to the past and trying to fix what’s broken or moving forward with life and trying something new. [/SPOILERS] There have been times in my life, recently in fact, when I wish I could have thought about my choices as clearly as I did here. And that’s kind of why it resonates with me so much. Why isn’t it higher? I dunno. I guess I just don’t feel like putting something this small and personal too high up.
#07 – Bayonetta
- Had it not been for Nintendo, I never would have gotten this game and boy would I have missed out. Because of Nintendo’s lack of decent titles for the Wii, I bought a PlayStation3. And because of Nintendo saying they were getting Bayonetta 2 as an exclusive for the WiiU, I decided to try out Bayonetta (the first) to see if picking up a hot new exclusive would be worth my time. There are a lot of reasons why this game probably isn’t for everybody, but it certainly offers a lot where I would recommend it to anyone who likes video games. Specifically if you like bombastic action games with lots of character, colorful atmosphere, a sexual character who is ridiculously over-the-top, and one of the best soundtracks in gaming outside of my personal favorites Sonic & Mega Man. There is an air of the “it’s too Japanese” vibe on it, but if that’s really a problem for you, then you and I clearly have different ideas of what constitutes a good game. For me, games came from Japan as a kid and the best ones (for the most part) still do. Bayonetta isn’t the top because the game does have its bugs, like how the story is filled with more plot holes than the angels Bayonetta herself shoots up. The combat is good, but the camera didn’t always play fair. The music can get old if you get stuck on a fight for a little too long. But this game had one thing going for it that, again, most games have not touched on yet. That’s the idea of a lead female character that is a fun, confident, sexy character who is capable but not entirely perfect. We’ve seen sexy characters before. We’ve seen sexualized characters before. But Bayonetta, unlike them, was a fully realized character on top of that, and not just some cardboard stereotype. Something women in games have been general incapable of doing in any gaming market (east or west). That scores a win in my book.
- Had it not been for Nintendo, I never would have gotten this game and boy would I have missed out. Because of Nintendo’s lack of decent titles for the Wii, I bought a PlayStation3. And because of Nintendo saying they were getting Bayonetta 2 as an exclusive for the WiiU, I decided to try out Bayonetta (the first) to see if picking up a hot new exclusive would be worth my time. There are a lot of reasons why this game probably isn’t for everybody, but it certainly offers a lot where I would recommend it to anyone who likes video games. Specifically if you like bombastic action games with lots of character, colorful atmosphere, a sexual character who is ridiculously over-the-top, and one of the best soundtracks in gaming outside of my personal favorites Sonic & Mega Man. There is an air of the “it’s too Japanese” vibe on it, but if that’s really a problem for you, then you and I clearly have different ideas of what constitutes a good game. For me, games came from Japan as a kid and the best ones (for the most part) still do. Bayonetta isn’t the top because the game does have its bugs, like how the story is filled with more plot holes than the angels Bayonetta herself shoots up. The combat is good, but the camera didn’t always play fair. The music can get old if you get stuck on a fight for a little too long. But this game had one thing going for it that, again, most games have not touched on yet. That’s the idea of a lead female character that is a fun, confident, sexy character who is capable but not entirely perfect. We’ve seen sexy characters before. We’ve seen sexualized characters before. But Bayonetta, unlike them, was a fully realized character on top of that, and not just some cardboard stereotype. Something women in games have been general incapable of doing in any gaming market (east or west). That scores a win in my book.
#06 – Spec Ops: The Line
- The biggest point this game was trying to make does feel somewhat lost on me since I never bothered to play the Call of Duty or Battlefield games or any other game of the most overbloated and popular genre of the generation. Why? Because they all looked the same from what I saw, meaning they were all practically interchangeable brownish-grey blobs of bullet fests that focused on bringing you a more realistic experience. As you can see from most of my list, realism is irrelevant in my gaming choices as I prefer to enjoy or experience new worlds that AREN’T this one. Because that’s what games SHOULD allow us to do. But Spec Ops: The Line came around and did something I never expected a realistic game to do, be fun…. Sort of. It’s not that Spec Ops is the game you enjoy with buddies on a weekend. It’s more like that dark but beautiful novel that you read alone because the story is so engrossing and it holds a lot of unique ideas that nothing else in the medium has touched on to that level. A story of soldiers fighting a losing battle, of you (the player) being devalued by the game, and of how a soldier can go through PTSD and their world falling apart. It’s dark, it’s brutal, but it’s one of the best games of the generation for going to that level . There are moments where you may end up hating yourself for what you’ve done, but I think it’s an experience that will teach you about yourself and give you a better perspective about war in general. In war, there are no heroes or villains. All there are, are soldiers fighting big battles they may not even want to do or agree with. They may be forced into situations that normal people, like you and I, can’t really handle. The general attitude of Call of Duty or Battlefield, from what I’ve seen, has never given me the impression they convey that side of war. As such, It gets the spot for not only being good, but being a loud and proud response to the CODS and BF games out there.
- The biggest point this game was trying to make does feel somewhat lost on me since I never bothered to play the Call of Duty or Battlefield games or any other game of the most overbloated and popular genre of the generation. Why? Because they all looked the same from what I saw, meaning they were all practically interchangeable brownish-grey blobs of bullet fests that focused on bringing you a more realistic experience. As you can see from most of my list, realism is irrelevant in my gaming choices as I prefer to enjoy or experience new worlds that AREN’T this one. Because that’s what games SHOULD allow us to do. But Spec Ops: The Line came around and did something I never expected a realistic game to do, be fun…. Sort of. It’s not that Spec Ops is the game you enjoy with buddies on a weekend. It’s more like that dark but beautiful novel that you read alone because the story is so engrossing and it holds a lot of unique ideas that nothing else in the medium has touched on to that level. A story of soldiers fighting a losing battle, of you (the player) being devalued by the game, and of how a soldier can go through PTSD and their world falling apart. It’s dark, it’s brutal, but it’s one of the best games of the generation for going to that level . There are moments where you may end up hating yourself for what you’ve done, but I think it’s an experience that will teach you about yourself and give you a better perspective about war in general. In war, there are no heroes or villains. All there are, are soldiers fighting big battles they may not even want to do or agree with. They may be forced into situations that normal people, like you and I, can’t really handle. The general attitude of Call of Duty or Battlefield, from what I’ve seen, has never given me the impression they convey that side of war. As such, It gets the spot for not only being good, but being a loud and proud response to the CODS and BF games out there.
#05 – Batman: Arkham Asylum
- I debated between this one and Arkham City for a while. Quite frankly, Asylum gives me just a few more things that I want from the Batman-verse that City just wasn’t able to provide. First, Scarecrow, and lots of him. Big sections dedicated to the innerworkings of Bruce Wayne’s mind and getting to see firsthand how that fear toxin can works. It was reminiscent of how the game fucked with the player in Eternal Darkness, but less obvious about it. Second, a tight, linear story that has a reasonable pace and ultimately leads to a satisfying, but not necessarily perfect ending. The ending of Arkham City is, by far, better for what it delivers. But the road to get there was poorly paced because of the open-world nature of the game. I like open-world and I like exploration, but it’s hard to have that function well and still have a plot with events that give the impression that “TIME IS OF THE ESSCENSE”. There are some truly fantastic moments in Arkham City, but the story of Asylum was just better and more restrained. Lastly, Mark Hamill’s Joker… LOTS OF IT! If I could just recast the VOICE of Joker in every form of media to be Mark Hamill’s version of Joker, that would pretty much do it for me in terms of entertainment. Alas, he’s retired now, but Asylum is a great way to remember him by since he has so many different lines of dialogue. But on top of all that has been mentioned, this is one of the first games based on a licensed brand (BATMAN) that has done well in games. It has great mechanics, environments, voice acting, etc, and it has fucking Batman! I know it’s just Assassin’s Creed with Batman instead of Ezio (essentially) but fuck off because this is more entertaining to me.
- I debated between this one and Arkham City for a while. Quite frankly, Asylum gives me just a few more things that I want from the Batman-verse that City just wasn’t able to provide. First, Scarecrow, and lots of him. Big sections dedicated to the innerworkings of Bruce Wayne’s mind and getting to see firsthand how that fear toxin can works. It was reminiscent of how the game fucked with the player in Eternal Darkness, but less obvious about it. Second, a tight, linear story that has a reasonable pace and ultimately leads to a satisfying, but not necessarily perfect ending. The ending of Arkham City is, by far, better for what it delivers. But the road to get there was poorly paced because of the open-world nature of the game. I like open-world and I like exploration, but it’s hard to have that function well and still have a plot with events that give the impression that “TIME IS OF THE ESSCENSE”. There are some truly fantastic moments in Arkham City, but the story of Asylum was just better and more restrained. Lastly, Mark Hamill’s Joker… LOTS OF IT! If I could just recast the VOICE of Joker in every form of media to be Mark Hamill’s version of Joker, that would pretty much do it for me in terms of entertainment. Alas, he’s retired now, but Asylum is a great way to remember him by since he has so many different lines of dialogue. But on top of all that has been mentioned, this is one of the first games based on a licensed brand (BATMAN) that has done well in games. It has great mechanics, environments, voice acting, etc, and it has fucking Batman! I know it’s just Assassin’s Creed with Batman instead of Ezio (essentially) but fuck off because this is more entertaining to me.
#04 – Telltale’s Walking Dead
- I was never a big point-n-click adventure guy. But reworking the genre into the way that Walking Dead did it was probably the best thing for the genre to happen in years and it should be something other games follow suit with. It’s a genre that allows for a heavy focus in story telling, but still gives enough interaction to feel like you’re a part of the plot. It even upstages other games with the same QTE/puzzle based gameplay like Heavy Rain (complete garbage). And it doesn’t use the high end graphics to show the best game. It uses a cell-shaded art style based on the comic books of Walking Dead and it fits the game perfectly. And, guess what David Cage! They still express emotions WAY better than anything in your games ever did. Chapter one is a slow start because its function is to be a tutorial. But Chapter two really starts to show you how your actions matter and forces the tough decisions on you that really make you think about what you do, who you trust, and make for one of the most engaging stories of all time. I’m looking forward to the sequel this fall and if you haven’t played this game yet, you are a terrible person.
- I was never a big point-n-click adventure guy. But reworking the genre into the way that Walking Dead did it was probably the best thing for the genre to happen in years and it should be something other games follow suit with. It’s a genre that allows for a heavy focus in story telling, but still gives enough interaction to feel like you’re a part of the plot. It even upstages other games with the same QTE/puzzle based gameplay like Heavy Rain (complete garbage). And it doesn’t use the high end graphics to show the best game. It uses a cell-shaded art style based on the comic books of Walking Dead and it fits the game perfectly. And, guess what David Cage! They still express emotions WAY better than anything in your games ever did. Chapter one is a slow start because its function is to be a tutorial. But Chapter two really starts to show you how your actions matter and forces the tough decisions on you that really make you think about what you do, who you trust, and make for one of the most engaging stories of all time. I’m looking forward to the sequel this fall and if you haven’t played this game yet, you are a terrible person.
#03 – The Saints Row Franchise
- While this does include the first game, in a manner of speaking, it is the only one I never got to play. But having played all the others, I can say that Saints Row is the open-world game of choice for the generation. While the maps could be bigger like Just Cause or GTAV, they’re still sizable enough to give you the sense that it’s a real city without being so big that navigation is a pain in the ass. The combat could stand improvements to be more fluid and fun like Sleeping Dogs, but combat isn’t the purpose of the game; it’s causing chaos and senseless murder. In short, Saints Row is what GTA used to be, but more exaggerated and cartoonish. You know, the kind of zaney fun games used to be defined by which has been pushed aside for a focus on realism and seriousness. I’m not saying we can’t have a serious art game or a realistic game now and then, but that’s not what gaming is to me. Gaming is about having fun, getting some laughs, maybe having a good or at least intereting story to follow, and doing what you can’t do in real life. For me, that’s running around dressed like Robotnik smacking pedestrians with my giant floppy purple cock. No other game of this generation has delivered on the same level of nonsensical fun the Saints Row franchise has, and I feel Saints Row IV was the final chapter of that story. I’m looking forward to seeing where Volition goes with the franchise next because it was one of the best rides of this generation. Whatever they make, I will buy… just stop throwing out so much useless DLC costumes when you know all I want is more STORY content.
- While this does include the first game, in a manner of speaking, it is the only one I never got to play. But having played all the others, I can say that Saints Row is the open-world game of choice for the generation. While the maps could be bigger like Just Cause or GTAV, they’re still sizable enough to give you the sense that it’s a real city without being so big that navigation is a pain in the ass. The combat could stand improvements to be more fluid and fun like Sleeping Dogs, but combat isn’t the purpose of the game; it’s causing chaos and senseless murder. In short, Saints Row is what GTA used to be, but more exaggerated and cartoonish. You know, the kind of zaney fun games used to be defined by which has been pushed aside for a focus on realism and seriousness. I’m not saying we can’t have a serious art game or a realistic game now and then, but that’s not what gaming is to me. Gaming is about having fun, getting some laughs, maybe having a good or at least intereting story to follow, and doing what you can’t do in real life. For me, that’s running around dressed like Robotnik smacking pedestrians with my giant floppy purple cock. No other game of this generation has delivered on the same level of nonsensical fun the Saints Row franchise has, and I feel Saints Row IV was the final chapter of that story. I’m looking forward to seeing where Volition goes with the franchise next because it was one of the best rides of this generation. Whatever they make, I will buy… just stop throwing out so much useless DLC costumes when you know all I want is more STORY content.
#02 – Portal
- It’s hard to believe that Portal was actually a part of this generation, not just Portal 2. It’s hard to believe the generation began with such a simple game full of infinite and complex possibilities. It’s hard to think that a game from so early in the generation had such a deep level of writing from the dark humor to the memetic phrases spouted by one of the generation’s greatest villains, GlaDOS. It’s hard to not sigh with fond memories of using the portal gun to solve some of the most challenging puzzles I’ve ever seen in games. Portal2 was nowhere near the challenge the first game was. It wasn’t as quick-witted as the first game was. It wasn’t as carefully crafted as the first game was either. Portal did a lot for this generation, showing that FPS games don’t all have to be about fighting waves of dudes with a machine gun or just all about action. This was all about working around enemies and solving puzzles in a dark and twisted world. Portal 2 is still a great game and had Portal been out only for the Xbox, I would have put Portal 2 in this place instead. But only one gets to make the pass and Portal 1 is the winner. One of the best games EVER made and part of my top five games of all time, there is really nothing better than thinking with portals… but…
- It’s hard to believe that Portal was actually a part of this generation, not just Portal 2. It’s hard to believe the generation began with such a simple game full of infinite and complex possibilities. It’s hard to think that a game from so early in the generation had such a deep level of writing from the dark humor to the memetic phrases spouted by one of the generation’s greatest villains, GlaDOS. It’s hard to not sigh with fond memories of using the portal gun to solve some of the most challenging puzzles I’ve ever seen in games. Portal2 was nowhere near the challenge the first game was. It wasn’t as quick-witted as the first game was. It wasn’t as carefully crafted as the first game was either. Portal did a lot for this generation, showing that FPS games don’t all have to be about fighting waves of dudes with a machine gun or just all about action. This was all about working around enemies and solving puzzles in a dark and twisted world. Portal 2 is still a great game and had Portal been out only for the Xbox, I would have put Portal 2 in this place instead. But only one gets to make the pass and Portal 1 is the winner. One of the best games EVER made and part of my top five games of all time, there is really nothing better than thinking with portals… but…
#01 – Sonic Colors
- People who know me will shake their head in disapproval, knowing that the blue blur was bound to appear on this list somewhere. Those who don’t know me will probably rage about how I just trolled them or something along those lines and leave an angry comment. But I legitimately consider Sonic Colors to be one of the best games of this generation. Taking the old platforming concept and combining it with the 3D running aspect from more recent Sonic titles to create a more unique gameplay experience. You see, for me, the 3D Sonic games have all been one experiment after another to find the best way to make the best game for the hedgehog. There have been some successes (the Adventure games) and many failures (Shadow, Heroes, 06, Unleashed). But this generation started with the WORST game in the series, Sonic 2006, which I could spend a whole article writing about the problems (and I think I have twice now). And now we’re ending on a high note with Sonic Colors and its follow-up, Generations. Two beautiful games with some of the most fun gameplay I’ve seen for a Sonic title or a platformer in YEARS! I’ve always loved the Sonic series and it’s great to see that such a fun franchise is no longer on death’s door, but back on its feet and ready to enter generation 8 at full speed. You may not like Sonic. Hell, you may even hate Sonic. But there isn’t a game franchise out there I would play over this one… (except for Pokemon, but since they were all on handhelds, they couldn’t be included on this list).
- People who know me will shake their head in disapproval, knowing that the blue blur was bound to appear on this list somewhere. Those who don’t know me will probably rage about how I just trolled them or something along those lines and leave an angry comment. But I legitimately consider Sonic Colors to be one of the best games of this generation. Taking the old platforming concept and combining it with the 3D running aspect from more recent Sonic titles to create a more unique gameplay experience. You see, for me, the 3D Sonic games have all been one experiment after another to find the best way to make the best game for the hedgehog. There have been some successes (the Adventure games) and many failures (Shadow, Heroes, 06, Unleashed). But this generation started with the WORST game in the series, Sonic 2006, which I could spend a whole article writing about the problems (and I think I have twice now). And now we’re ending on a high note with Sonic Colors and its follow-up, Generations. Two beautiful games with some of the most fun gameplay I’ve seen for a Sonic title or a platformer in YEARS! I’ve always loved the Sonic series and it’s great to see that such a fun franchise is no longer on death’s door, but back on its feet and ready to enter generation 8 at full speed. You may not like Sonic. Hell, you may even hate Sonic. But there isn’t a game franchise out there I would play over this one… (except for Pokemon, but since they were all on handhelds, they couldn’t be included on this list).
There’s my top ten games of the seventh console generation.
You may not agree with it. But that’s because this is MY top ten list of games
I personally think are the best or most fun of the generation. Don’t like it?
Maybe ask about it in the comment section and we can discuss it further. As for
now, I’m getting ready for bed.
Loved reading this thank yyou
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