Resetera's Essential Games

[Silky]

SNES

• Yoshi's Island: Super Mario World 2

I prefer Yoshi's Island over Super Mario World simply because of how fresh that kind of experience was for me at the time. It is still to this day a game whose aesthetics and gameplay didn't feel as oppressing as the first World title. Yoshi's platforming tools and mechanics made for something that isn't really replaceable or emulated even in modern titles today, and I would wholeheartedly suggest it over World as an essential SNES title.

• Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest

This is the best that Super Nintendo platforming will ever truly offer, from start to finish. A perfect mix of challenging and unique level design with some of the most cutting edge visuals that the game could produce. It's often times vibrant and electric where other times it's mellow and almost dark in it's presentation,

• Chrono Trigger

The definitive JRPG of that platform, and arguably of all time. Masterclass in storytelling, gameplay and a wonderful cast backs the entire package up. Iconic designs and music, an 'endgame' and ending routes that are just as satisfying to explore multiple times over. This is it. This is the best that this genre will ever be.

SEGA Genesis

• Sonic The Hedgehog 2

Obviously Sonic 3 is the better game, but I really prefer the zones seen in 2 over 3. It's an excellent, focused start to finish for anyone who wants to get familiar with Sonic. (Because honestly I wouldn't reccommend anyone playing 3&K together -- that's a long ass game.)

• Comix Zone

For the time, it had a unique visual presentation that was crazy for 16-bit titles but the real reason I chose Comix Zone was because of how deep Sketch's movelist actually goes. Sweep attacks, forward attacks, overheads and a bunch of other cool ass combos that really do make the most out of a super tough game. Howard Drossin's best soundtrack ever done.

• Earthworm Jim.

YES. Play the Genesis version over the SNES version. it's a twisted ride from start to finish, frustrating level design and strange objective mixups but it's all worth it for how tight Jim controls across all of the nonsense.

Nintendo 64

• Conker's Bad Fur Day

The best Adventure title that the N64 has to offer. It's a parody of the cutesy 3D platforming boom that even the developer was responsible of. Great satire of then-popular gaming tropes and other pop culture tidbits. (Secret best MP component of the console.)

• Tetris 64

This is an imported title but it's fully translated to English. If by any chance you land on this title, it's the best representation of the Tetris formula that gen had. It's damned good!

• Perfect Dark

Unrivaled level design, a multiplayer suite that's packed with cutting edge features most developers have yet to emulate TODAY, all wrapped in a slick cyberpunk foil. Rare's best game, and the N64's best game of all time.

PlayStation

• Ape Escape

A 3D platformer that posessed some of the toughest collection goals in the actual pickups. The Piposaru, like other enemy types all came with different affinities and traits that made chasing after each one unique in approach and execution, even with the myriad of gadgets you get. One half stealth, one half 3D platformer. Stadium Attack for the high-execution, speedy platforming. Absolutely my most favorite PS1 title.

• Resident Evil 2

Isometric Survival Horror. Exploring a whole city and beyond as an underpowered cop or student. RE2 has my favorite story in the series that released on the PS1 so I'll suggest it over the other two games. Not to mention it controls MUCH, much better than RE1.

• Tekken 3

This will probably be the only time I can suggest a fighting game be played on a console, Tekken 3's deep in gameplay with tons of unlocks and features to go around. Tekken Force and Tekken Ball, the multiple characters to unlock etc etc. The most important 3D fighting game I could even list up here.

 

[M1chl]

I've never heard of some of these games. Could you maybe tell us all a bit why you chose the less known ones?

Click to shrink...

That's going to be a long post, I am gonna edit my post, after I finish my work, sorry about just a list....

 

[cakely]

Gameboy Advance:

Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising

Click to shrink...

The Advance Wars series is a tactical gamer's dream. It combines the tactics of chess with simple resource management and mixes in a decent plot and an excellent variety of characters.

To put it simply... Advance wars is a fantastic series, and Advance Wars 2 is the pinnacle of that series. This game added only a few units, and a few new commanders, but it added balance and depth to the already excellent character roster, without adding any balance destroying features like Advance Wars: Dual Strikes "dual strike".

This is probably my favorite tactical game, on any platform, period. I can't praise it enough.

 

[Log!]

The original Quake: While its predecessors, Doom and Wolfenstein 3D helped popularized the first-person shooter in the 90s, with Doom's multiplayer being responsible for more loss of productivity than anything else at the time, Quake is the game that brought online multiplayer gaming to the masses. It was the catalyst for much of what we take for granted today, like server browsers (which got their start with programs like Quakespy and its successor Gamespy), a developer-driven mod community thanks to the development of Quake C to ease development of mods, even simple things like mouse looking was adopted by Quake fans looking to better their friends online. It also gave birth to one of the most popular mods of all time, Team Fortress.

Its single-player was less focused on overt innovation, and more on being just-plain awesome, thanks to the newfangled Quake Engine allowing for level design that was as disorienting, claustrophobic, and as dark as the Cthulhu mythos that inspired it.

 

[Arsic]

Metal Gear Solid . This is a game that has yet to be topped in interesting gameplay mechanics that break the third wall. Psycho Mantis fight remains to be an incredible achievement for its time and to this day I haven't experienced anything in the medium to do this kind of player immersion .

Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare. The game that took AAA gaming to a new level. Nothing sells more than CoD to this day , and this was the game in the franchise that helped put gaming to be even more accepted by non gamers or at least reach a wide casual audience.

Super Mario... any of them. This and gaming go hand in hand. Most people can recognize what he looks like and Mario paved the way for not only Nintendo being as big as it is , but to inspire a world of new visionaries to invest in this industry to pursue dreams.

The last of us . For showcasing that well done narratives can exist in games that appeal to a wide audience not just those who play games. The game excels in a variety of areas but this game has set a new bar on what to expect from this medium on we'll realized characters , their worlds , and the stories we go on with them.

Starcraft . The original e sport. A game that paved the road for an entire industry based around competitive video games being a thing and a lucrative one at that. League , dota 2 , Street Fighter , etc are bigger than Starcraft now but this game became a nations national sport and helped pioneer the idea of being played to pay games.

World of Warcraft . The biggest mmorpg ever and still to this day. Nothing will ever trounce this game and I would wager is the most financially successful game ever created. Mmos after try to mimic this formula and put their own spin on it but nothing has come close to the king .

Dark Souls. This is the hot stuff now for SP gameplay loop to copy. Souls like ? People pay attention quick . Dark souls set up a franchise , brought a studio to new peaks , and is a great showcase in atmosphere and world building not often seen in the medium .

 

[DJIncompetent]

Rez - The greatest mixture of sound and control

G-Darius - The greatest boss fights of all time

The Guardian Legend - Bonkers weapon systems and hybrid puzzle mazes of shooting.

Armed Police Batrider - Flashy STG with weapons of screen-filling awe, a menacing rank difficulty, and bosses of nope

Aliens vs Predator - Capcom beat'em'up with a sense of power and madness

Vidiot Game - Tolerable-ist Confusion

Geometry Wars 2 - The last great scorechase

Battle Garegga - Grungy STG with the deepest difficulty system of all time and the best Detroit Techno soundtrack

Mega Man 2 - One of the greatest run'n'gun obstacle courses

Mushihimesama Futari - The right balance of vibrant chaos in a STG. Multiple difficulties are radical reworkings of the game.

Chrono Trigger - It's the only RPG where I always know what I was supposed to be doing and I wanted to do it.

Gradius V - The greatest adventure of horizontal STG. Also bangin' soundtrack

Twinkle Star Sprites - Fighting STG of greatest chaining control

Salamander 2 - Hybrid orientation STG with great stage design, cool weapons setup, and an actual final boss in a Gradius game

Child of Eden - Astounding visual adventure

Marvel vs Capcom 3 - The finest-tuned 3v3 madness

Portal - FPS with the mind

Super Cyborg - The superior run'n'gun interpretation of Contra

Shadow of the Colossus - Boss rush with heart

Castle Crashers - The pinnicle of beat'em'up; deep fighting, content, creativity, and reasons to press on

Pinball Arcade - All of the pinball with expert tables

Nier Automata - The strangest storytelling and sound. How to end the earth twice

FTL Faster Than light - Rougelike Star Trek. The asshole of final bosses for greatest strategy

Metal Gear Solid 2 - Storytelling insanity; creepiest worldbuilding

Gokujou Parodius - A parody with more love, care, and features than official releases

 

[Aurica]

I'm really digging these arcade recommendations. There are some cool games I've never heard of.

 

[Deleted member 35204]

GameCube:
F-Zero GX - Stars aligned with this game, the director ended up being one of the most important people in modern Sega and with this he gifted us with an incredible arcade experience that works incredibly well as a console game too. Great graphics, great gameplay, great aesthetics and great challenge.

Soul Calibur 2 - Sequel of a gem on the Dreamcast, refined in every way and despite it being multiplatform i feel that the most loved version was the GC one also because of Link as guest character. Even if i can't explain it well why it fits the spirit of the console itself.

Zelda: The Wind Waker - Speaking of Link... whatever you love it or hate it this entry of the franchise is fundamental on how this series will go forward for tone, looks and i would say even gameplay and of course it's an essential game for the GC.

Super Mario Sunshine - Probably the least loved game in the 3d branch of the series, unusual in the setting but what it does it does really well, very upbeat in its atmosphere while also offering relaxing tones. Would have been essential even if it wasn't a Mario game.

Mario Kart Double Dash - Simply the most fun Mario Kart up until 8, the double characters per kart makes multiplayer a joy because of the added craziness.


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Nintendo 64:
Ocarina of Time - I really shouldn't say anything about this game but since the thread requires it i'll say that it's one of if not the most influential game of all time, it put the basics down for the 3d action adventure genre while also defining some trait on how a character should control in a 3d environment. Obviously all of this was packaged in a game that also had stellar story, graphics, music, cinematics and overall gameplay. Not essential to the N64 but essential for videogames.

Super Mario 64 - Again, one of the if not the most influential games of all time, unlike OoT which defined "some" traits on how to control a character in 3d space thanks to the N64 hardware this game defined the vast majority of them. Despite having more than 20 years it plays like a charm, the controls are incredibly tight and the level design is top notch. If you have ever played a modern 3rd person game that game has at least a little bit thank Mario 64 for being how it is. Like above essential for videogames as a whole.

Pokémon Stadium 2 - Pokémon in 3d? Check. Crazy fun minigames? Check. Being able to use Pokémon from your GB cartridge? Check. Actual challenge from the Gym Leader Tower and various Cups? Check. Being able to play your GB game on it? Check.

Mario Party 1-3 - The party game by definition, anything can happen with any of those games and you will love to hate them. Infinite hours of fun in multiplayer and every one is as good as the other.


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Super Nintendo:
Chrono Trigger - Touching jolly sad incredible experience. This game well incapsulates what Japan could offer at the times, they brought together the best of the best and this game is the answer of that union. True essence of japanese game development and of the Super Nintendo.

Donkey Kong Country - A weird mixture of cutting edge technology, experimental vein and solid gameplay, the result is a game that it's still looked on in this day and age.

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island - Technology at service of art. Most games even today wish to be as good looking as Yoshi's Island, even if being part of the main series it gave birth to a different branch of the franchise and could be categorized like so because of its quite different but still great gameplay.

Street Fighter 2 - The phenomenon itself unshackled from the arcade cabinets, if you played SF2 at home chances are that you played it on a Super Nintendo, if not you would have wanted to.

Super Castlevania 4 - Like others this is one of a series of games that was essentially a showcase of what the Super Nintendo could do better than the NES without reinventing the wheel , in a few words... Castlevania 1 on steroids.

EarthBound - A game more unique than rare, an atypical rpg with unusual setting but with deep undertones... hard to explain with words, it must be experienced to understand it. Absolute must have.

MegaMan X - another "NES game but better" type of game but this one excels particularly because it gave a much needed boost to a franchise that pletaued on NES, reinvigorates the series with (kinda) new characters, (kinda) new setting and (kinda) new gameplay. A New Beginning.

Super Metroid - For some still the peak of the franchise Super Metroid set a new standard for moody games, great gameplay (for the time imho) and design does the rest.

Super Mario World - Voluntarily put at the end of the list to show that despite all this 3rd party bonanza and all these experimental titles the classic Nintendo dna isn't lost on this console. Disputed with its predecessor to be the peak of 2d Mario games.

 

[Akela]

Metal Gear Solid
Half Life
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

These three games, all from 1998, ended up defining the modern 21st century gaming industry. None of these games invented the genres they inhabit, but they codified them, and while many of their ideas had been used before, these were some of the first games that combined many of these separate elements together in well rounded, influential packages. Games as far flung as Uncharted, Skyrim, Dark Souls, Call of Duty or Fallout owe some influence from at least one of these three games. And not only that, all three games continue to be excellent games today.

Metal Gear Solid defined the cinematic video game, with an engrossing, twist-filled story with more then 20 hours worth of fully voice acted dialog - which considering seeing any voice acting at all was still relatively new at the time, is a feat in of itself. Nearly every third person, story driven video game follows it it's footsteps.

Half Life defined the first person shooter genre in how it crafted a cinematic, immersive experience which never cuts away from the player, with a relatively grounded setting with levels that fit seamlessly (with load times) together instead of the completely separate, arcade style levels found in earlier games like Doom. It defined how to tell a story from a first person viewpoint.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time defined the third person adventure, solving many of the problems that plagued earlier games such a camera control, especially with melee combat, and player movement. It invented the concept of the "lock-on camera" that Action RPGs such as Dark Souls and Kingdom Hearts rely on today, and it's experiments in open world game design eventually evolved into the open world games of today.

 

[Bonfires Down]

SOMA

The best story I've experiences in video games, and puts almost everything else to shame. It's right up there with great books and movies. The fact that it's a video game is used in a very intelligent way, and creates an experience that can't quite be replicated in other mediums. The atmosphere is unique and oppressive and second to none. It has a few downsides – I wasn't a big fan of the monster encounters and there are a few too many characters that are hard to keep track of. Still an essential game.


The Walking Dead Season 1

One of the few games that can mostly keep up with SOMA in terms of story. While some parts drag on a bit, it's the only game that brought me to tears.


XCOM 2

Has the best game mechanics of any game, and gives you true choices and challenge. The series has pretty much ruined other TBS games for me, but that's ok since I don't see me getting tired of XCOM anytime soon. The cinematic clips that play during attacks make it a more intimate experience than many other turn based games, and the whole presentation puts it a notch above them.

Darkest Dungeon is a similar game that is also amazing, but it can be frustrating and I think it's harder to put it as a straight up essential game like XCOM is.


Grand Theft Auto V

The gameplay is good but not spectacular. The story is average, though Trevor is a big saving grace. It's the scale and detail of the world that makes GTAV something that everyone should play, and the fact that Rockstar managed to get the game working on last gen consoles is an incredible achievement.


After looking through other lists I realize that at least Witcher 3, Human Revolution and probably Yoshi's Island need to be on my list, and I might add these later.

 

[Aurica]

Surprised that a couple more posts came in. Still enjoying seeing all the different perspectives and the eras people are into.

 

[Deleted member 24118]

System Shock

Keeping System Shock memes alive in 2017
​

System Shock, if you don't know, is a 1994 FPS that's known for being one of the earliest shooters to inject some RPG elements into its gameplay. It's mostly overshadowed by its sequel and Bioshock and such, but it's not a game you should ignore.

- The level design is great. I don't think this is what an actual space station would look like, but it has a nice Metroidvania feel to it. The levels are massive and full of side-objectives like activating the resurrection chambers, and you can either explore around or just beeline straight for the objective. Many of the levels are nice and vertical (unusual in an era where most shooters didn't even let you look up), and you have to take it carefully to avoid ambushes. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it has my favorite level design of any 3D game.

I will say one problem with the level design is that the limited texture pallet can make it easy to get lost on certain levels.

Don't forget to look up​

- Cyberspace is a neat concept. The concept of a parallel cyberspace universe where you unlock doors and find keys is cool, but in practice the controls are rather clunky and it's difficult to navigate. This is something that Prey '17 handled better with its outer space segments.

Cyberspace can be disorienting!
​

The audio logs are best in class. Mainly because this is one of the few games where they convey objectives and such instead of being lore dumps. Listen closely!

There's a pretty slick physics engine. Hurtling off of ramps using jetboots is always fun. You can also set some pretty devious traps if you know where.

Cursing and fist-shaking ensues

SHODAN isn't the only one who can set up traps​

The soundtrack is fantastic




You can destroy the world.

Oops
​

Anyways, System Shock is a classic, and it always saddens me to see it mostly forgotten next to its sequel. The game is almost like Metroid Prime in 1994, so if you like that kind of game then I strongly recommend this.

Fingers crossed that the remake will be good!

 

[Aurica]

I finally got around to beating two often lauded games, Donkey Kong Country 2 and Ico, and perhaps it's a controversial opinion, but I didn't find either to be that spectacular. Likely because I played other games that are related, which I found to be superior in many ways. Tropical Freeze and The Last Guardian to me did a lot of what those two titles were respectively going for without nearly as much frustration.

About Donkey Kong Country 2
I felt that many levels were not really that interesting, and were a bit sadistic. There are really oddly spaced jumps that require the most precise movement and enemies that you can't really see coming after jumping through a dangerous area with nowhere to stop or figure out what's next, and that felt a bit cheap to me. I also felt that it was a bit random with the order of stages. Honey level, jungle, water level, more jungle, a level full of barrels and thorns, another honey level. It just felt like there was no real sense of building on the levels thematically. In addition, the music gets reused a ton, so I found that a lot of levels didn't really stand out. I can respect that many people love the game, but I would not consider it an essential game to beat. Maybe just check it out and play a few levels. I found it mostly frustrating.

About Ico
Ico, too, had a lot of frustrating designs. Many of the puzzles weren't interesting, and they ended up feeling arduous and more similar to errands than puzzles. It was often easy to comprehend what to do, but actually doing it was not very interesting. There are surely some cool moments throughout the game, but they felt too few and far between to really make the whole experience worth it. The combat is dull, and the encounters never really feel tense or interesting. It's pretty easy to win every single time. You get pushed down, get back up and drag Yorda out of the black pit.

The controls are very inaccurate, paired with a camera that has a mind of its own and sometimes gives you angles that make jumps hard to judge, all makes for a very frustrating experience with deaths that rarely feel like the player's fault.

The atmosphere is good, but many areas look too similar to others, which doesn't make exploring very fun.

The AI for Yorda is bad. She sometimes won't jump or follow for no reason, which is again frustrating. Once, near the end of the game, at this very long ladder, she was climbing down and decided to climb back up at the last step on her own for no reason. I stood there waiting after calling her just once, and she did this twice in a row. She had enough space to get off the ladder, too. She sometimes won't jump across a gap, even though she should, which leads the player to try something new, wasting time because she fucked up.

My favorite part of the game was probably the final boss fight. I thought that was very well done. Overall, it seems that most people love the atmosphere and tone of the game, which I respect. I don't think it's worth actually playing the game for that, though. As someone who really likes Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian, I'd recommend most people play those and skip Ico, unless they really think it's their kind of game.

 

[Alena_03]

Will this ever continue?

 

[takriel]

Will this ever continue?

Click to shrink...

It's been 5 years, what do you think?