Your Favorite Games of All Time - (AKA the Throughly Fanboying Thread)

[Cuyir]

It's impossible for me to rank my videogames of all time so i'll just mention a few and a blurb in no specific order.

Damn image limits. Really wish you could post more. Spent way more time than I should have looking for the perfect images only to be told ''NUH UH''.

Spoiler below!

Far Cry 2: great game with a great antagonist. Also love how the antagonist, The Jackal, could be Jack Carver from the first Far Cry. Loads of evidence about it. Also loved the reference to The Jackal in Far Cry 3. Great character.

[video=youtube]http://youtu.be/cCJBOZC7XdQ[/video]

Spoiler below!

The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and TLOZ: Majora's Mask: The universes of these games (different dimensions for each one, remember haha.) were so interesting and chock full of detail. The gameplay was fun and I remember being amazed by the whole experience. I was even moved to heavy FEELS during MM. Plus these two games have deeply ingrained memories of my childhood which i'll never forget.

Spoiler below!

Metroid Zero Mission: I'll be honest. I never finished the original metroid. It was too hard for me at that moment in time and never went back to it. Then Zero Mission released and gave me the original's narrative and experience and then some. Again, the scribes responsible of the Metroid games demonstrate how it is better to show than tell in a story. You get a cool little ''after original ending'' part that adds depth to the character and then you finish the game and see one of the most poignant images ever. In a corner of the mural at the last boss in the game, the camera zooms into it and shows a child's carving of two chozo and a little person. That simple little gesture made me feel more emotions than many bloated AAA games that are based around a story. Also when you connected Metroid Fusion with Metroid Zero Mission you'd unlock a gallery that shows Samus throughout her younger days and training, which was cool.

Spoiler below!

Super Metroid: Ahh, the old days of innocence. Always loved Metroid and this is one of my favorite ones. Just seeing the intro sequence and screens of it starts a chain reaction of nostalgia. Music is haunting too.

Spoiler below!

Metroid Prime: Probably my favorite Metroid game ever. The first person point of view was a genius choice. From blood, water and steam (amongst other things) drenching your visor and to the slightly claustrophobic feeling of being inside a helmet, this first person pov was done so incredibly well and nobody else has even come close. Being able to see Samus' reflection in the visor when looking at something really bright in front of her was also awesome. I could dedicate a whole city of text to just the pov so let me move on. The story and setting (which you found out through journals and whatnot) is also one of my favorite experiences in my gaming experiences. Having to SEEK out knowledge and information, instead of having it fed to you and narrated, was incredible.

Spoiler below!

Castlevania: Symphony Of Night: This game is special because it brings back many special memories. And the soundtrack and art were great too.

Spoiler below!

Castlevania: Lords Of Shadow: I was cautiously excited for this game When announced. It seemed to drop off the face of the earth at one point and I feared that it may have been going through dev hell. And then it released and I played it. Excellent, excellent, excellent game. Just excellent. The characters, the romanticized narrative, the art, the music,the universe, the journey Gabe makes. Just...excellent and incredible.

Spoiler below!

F.E.A.R 1 and 2: The first one was a pretty good and decently spooky game with really fun gameplay. What made it special was the narrative. Shooting up areas with the slow mo on was an incredible experience. And then the sequel released and blew everything up...literally. The atmosphere, the narrative, the characters, the gameplay, nearly everything was perfect. I had never been so attracted towards a pseudo horror/horror universe in my life (besides Lovecraft's works). Ever. All the detail the game has that it doesn't cram down your throat (a la Metroid Prime) and instead you have to seek it and pay attention. Just awesome. The hallucinations were intense (aural and otherwise) and when you replay the game you can pick out how Alma's behaviors changed and what it meant. Loved these games so much I bought them each twice (ps3 and PC). F.E.A.R 2 was also one of those rare ''Post Metroid Prime'' games that did the first person POV excellently.

Spoiler below!

The Elder Scrolls Morrowind and Oblivion: These two games have deprived me of hundreds of hours and have made me obsess over the universe and its lore. I still remember waking up early during weekends and such so I could play them really early. Morrowind's the more special of the two cause I was much younger then and thus brings that feeling of nostalgia (plus it was the clear better game from the two).

Spoiler below!

The Last Of Us: No words. Should have sent a poet.

Spoiler below!

Valkyria Chronicles: I love strategy rpgs (srpgs) like Final Fantasy Tactics/Advance, Tactics Ogre and such but this one was a great surprise. Instead of moving in squares, like most srpgs, you had a little timer that allowed free movement. The gameplay was well done and the setting and narrative was surprisingly good. What made this game pop, besides its gorgeous art direction, is how well written the characters were and how their strengths, weaknesses and past experiences had an actual effect on the game.

Example, my two favorite snipers, Catherine O'Hara and Marina Wulfstan, were incredibly different from each other. O'hara was a veteran of the first Europan War and thus was experienced but ever since she once ran out of ammo and had to watch through her scopes how her ally was killed she now fears running out of ammo. What does that mean? When you're using her and her ammo is completely used up she has a mini panic attack and her attack power is lowered. She's also a pessimist so when she's lost half her health her defense is lowered.

The other sniper was a loner and hates people. So if you place anyone near her her evasion goes down (because she's worried about being near anybody else) and if she's alone her evasion goes up.

This system was in place for EVERY single character in the game.

And in an odd turn of events, I liked the party members who weren't important to the story (ie didn't appear in the cutscenes). The main ones were really likeable but I just like others like Catherine and Jane (who was a pretty insane shocktrooper). The cast was filled with so much personality that also affected the game and it was such a great touch.

The character development, of both types of party members, was also great. And to sum it up, this game made me feel many emotions. From fear, loss, happiness, faith, hope, etc etc etc. SUCH a great game.

Spoiler below!

Demon's Souls and Dark Souls: great universes, pretty nice rpg systems, the lore is incredible. Oddly addicting.I'd need a ton more room to rave about the characters.

Spoiler below!

Star Wars: Republic Commando: Oh boy oh boy, one of the few games after Metroid Prime that did the first person pov well. Such a great game. Actually shows the darker and ''realer'' side of Star Wars, not the sanitized side shown in the movies. Another game i bought twice, shame the pc version doesn't run well and looks like crap. The ''commando'' novels written by Karen Traviss are also *really* good.

Spoiler below!

Star Wars: Battlefront 2: The first battlefront was the definition of fanservice. Which is why I quite enjoyed it, warts and all. And then SW: Battlefront 2 releases and blows me away. From epic dog fights in space to thrilling (mostly) land based battles, this game basically fulfilled the fantasies of many Star Wars geeks.

Spoiler below!

Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 1 and 2: Two of my favorite rpgs ever with some of my favorite characters of all time.

Spoiler below!

Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines: A shining example of how good writing and rpg systems can make even a very very very VERY aged game timeless regardless of when it's played. I was new to the whole pen and paper rpg the game's universe comes from dear LORD are vampires, werewolves and all sorts of legendary creatures in this universe incredibly awesome. In an age where the new generation (and part of mine) see vampires as shiny and brooding teens, going back and re-experiencing this game shows you why vampires and werewolves were awesome all those years back. Awesome stuff.