Top 10 Games of This Generation

We're over two years into this current generation of consoles, so surely we've had some games that stand out by now? 411's Derek Robbins breaks down his top-10 favorite games of this console generation.

Hello and welcome to the 10th hour. As always, there are a couple of things that I would like to touch on before I proceed.

-I'm so glad that Major League Baseball got the NL MVP award correct. Albert Pujols was better than Ryan Howard in almost every meaningful stat. I can't believe people are actually pointing to RBI total as a reason why Howard should have beat Pujols. God, what an archaic way of justifying an MVP selection. What is this, the 1940's? Howard wasn't even the most valuable player on his team. The fact that some people actually think that two good hitting months from a HORRIBLE defensive player such as Howard can neglect a whole year from other players is kind of troubling. I may not be worthy of voting for the year-end-awards but I can tell you right now, Howard wouldn't even have made my Top-10 this year. When I heard John Fricke (I think that's who it was, he was subbing for Big Ben Maller on Fox Sports Radio) stating Howard's RBI total as a reason he should MVP and the fact the Phillies made the playoffs, I almost threw a cement brick at my radio. I was not pleased. Seriously, if you're going by two good months you may as well elect Manny Ramirez MVP. He had a bit more than two GODLY months in LA. The Dodgers certainly wouldn't have made the playoffs without him. I'm just glad Pujols won, I just think it should have been unanimous.

-I just beat Banjo-Kazooie for the second time…and I think it's awfully sad that all those fancy Stop n' Swop items I collected won't do me a lick of good. I know that RARE refuses to say what their plans originally were (for whatever reason), but seriously…what harm could it cause? My quest for knowledge can't be satiated, I must know what the hell that ice key does!

-So Animal Crossing City Folk is apparently Animal Crossing: Wild World – WII edition? Color me shocked. People get on the case of shooting fans for buying the same damn game over and over again but my count this is the third Animal Crossing game that is pretty much the same game as was released on the Gamecube (With WW's online, of course). Perhaps it's just my complete and utter hatred of Animal Crossing, but give me a break Nintendo.

Reader Feedback

Well, I didn't write last week's column so I don't really get to respond to the comments list. However, let's see what my fill-in Chris (we have a lot of those don't we?) Lansdell wrote about his top-10 retro games that he enjoyed that you, THE READER, probably didn't. Let's see how many of these I have heard of…

10-) Formula1 Built 2 Win – Never heard of it.
9-) Super International Cricket – Wow, people actually like Cricket based video games? That's interesting.
8-) Championship Manager 2 – I loathe soccer. Now if this was Baseball Mogul, we could talk. Of course, that's not exactly retro is it?
7-) Top Players Tennis – I have heard of this one, but I've never given it a chance. Early tennis games were such a drag.
6-) Jackal – I've not heard of this one, it seems interesting though
5-) Ultimate Basketball – I rented this and played it with my Dad once. It was a lot of fun, but I remember getting frustrated because my Dad had the block dunk timed rather well. Obviously not as good as double dribble, but it's still fun.
4-) Apocalypse – I remember reading about this once and thinking it sounded like ass. It still does.
3-) Tecmo World Wrestling is a fantastic title. Is it better than No Mercy or Here Comes the Pain? No. But it's still fucking awesome.
2-) Knights of the Round – Back in the days when I was a lowly MAME user, I had played this game and enjoyed it. It's hard not to have fun with an arcade beat-em-up though.
1-) Bushido Blade – A really quality title. I don't see how anyone could dislike it, to be quite honest.

Well, good job Chris. You're a good man. I'll, er, supply the stuff we talked about at a later date. THIRTY of them.



Top-10 Games of this Generation

This week, I'm going to rank the top-10 games of this current console generation. This does NOT include the PC, so don't expect any high tier PC-exclusive titles to appear here. This includes PC games that were later released on console, such as Half-Life 2. Also, there is a cut-off date that you'll do well to know. Any game that was released AFTER the month of October in 2008 is not eligible for this list. So if you were looking for Resistance 2 or Gears 2 you'll be out of luck. Sorry.

As a rule, I also need to have played the game. The only title I can think of that this might affect would be Fable 2…which probably wouldn't have made the list anyhow. Other than that, all is eligible, so let's get this started. These are *my* (since apparently I have to clarify that it's just my opinion and nothing official) top-10 games of this generation.

Given that this is a highly opinionated list, I'm curious as to what you think the top-10 games of this generation are. Feel free to leave your lists for us to gawk at.

And before you comment with: "OBLIVION!?!?!???"…I want to say that I absolutely hate that game and it's not going to be on this list. Sorry:

10-) No More Heroes - Looking down this list, you'll see a trend. Several things that I have listed are a sequel of some sort. The art of the intelligent property is a dieing one. The gaming industry today is filled with sequel after sequel and to be totally honest it's sort of a sad thing. Sure, these sequels can be good games, but there just seems to be less of a focus on new IPs. Well, for this game at least, that doesn't seem to be the case. No More Heroes is a great, original game that really shows that the Wii can be a system that people who actually play games can enjoy.

What made No More Heroes particularly strong was the boss battles. I would argue that the encounters you go through in the game may very well be the most impressive boss fights in video game history. Theoretically, each of the bosses you fight could very well have landed a role in another game as a final boss. It's all rather impressive. When you get right down to it, each boss battle is a duel. When you're playing through the game and run into mobs of enemies, you rarely fight only one. It's you versus a score of them. When it's boss battle time, typically it's a one-on-one affair.You have to use every skill you know in each fight, and if you're playing on the right difficulty level it can get quite intense. You know this is a pretty intense title when the third boss, Shinobu, has the ability to hand you your ass.

The boss encounters aren't the only great thing about No More Heroes. There are several other things, perhaps more minor, that really leap out at me. It's not a game that's meant to be taken at face value. You're not watching some roided up freak spewing out moronic dialogue just because they can…you're watching a satire, and I kind of like that. It's sort of an artistic game, and it shine through. Be it through the art style, the story, or, well, even the music. Yes, like most games I praise endlessly, No More Heroes has a pretty impressive soundtrack. It has a lot of tracks that are worth listening to multiple times. You got to enjoy that.

No More Heroes may be a fun game that's, well, different than the slew of other games that we have on the market right now, but it's not like it doesn't have problems. The over-world for instance is, as a whole, pointless. There are NO enemies in the over-world. You will never run into someone else to fight…everything is done once you get to your location. Honestly, when it gets right down to it, you have a big city for no real reason other than to have a big city. Is it trying to point out that a lot of games have these big cities with nothing to do? Or is it just Suda 51 adding something that he thought would help the game sell better? I couldn't tell you.

I also dislike the grinding you have to do between quests. You need money to go to the next boss encounter, and usually to get the money you'll have to do some sort of job to get it. These jobs all make use of the wii controls and, while decent the first time, are annoying when done all the time. I found myself just not doing these to get money in the end and playing the assassination missions over and over again. It was the game's insanely fun combat, so you really couldn't go wrong. Again, this is just another feature I think they added just because they could.

Even though I am poking at a couple of flaws that this game has, that shouldn't deter your attention from it. No More Heroes is a unique game with a satirical punch that you'd be pretty loathe to miss. It may be short, but the gameplay of the game is amazingly fun. So fun, in fact, that you'll probably be back for more around the time you beat it. It's not a perfect game, but in a world where a lot of the games are just cheap copies of each other…you can feel comfortable in playing this rather unique title. Plus, I mean, Travis Touchdown rules.

- Of course...Sylvia is another reason I love this game.

9-) Little Big Planet - This is the game that Sony was hoping would step up as THE big game of the Holiday season. Sure, while Resistance 2 might be the game they have aimed at older games, LBP sort of has a universal appeal. People of all ages can play it. It's easily accessible to both hardcore gamers and casual gamers, and it really seems that it's about as sure thing a hit as you can get.

Little Big Planet's gameplay is pretty basic. If you've played a side-scrolling platformer, you essentially know what you're getting into. Yeah, there are other things involved – such as the ability to grab onto things – but as a whole it's pretty basic. Here's the thing though, in most games with basic gameplay you'll come up with a pretty average game but this one goes beyond that. The single player levels are very well designed and creative making use of the gameplay in new and different ways. It may feel like something you've played before, but once you get to the core of the game it feels quite refreshing and you can really dig that.

The gameplay experience doesn't just end with the single player campaign though. LBP ensures replayability for as long as you desire by incorporating a fairly intuitive create system. It's not the most complex thing in the world, but if you really tinker with it, you can come up with some pretty ingenious creations. Don't believe me? Hop online with LBP sometime and see some of the levels that they have for offer. While some of the cooler ones, such as that one God of War level, may be gone now…the original creation levels are spectacular to say the least. World of Color, for instance, is extremely unique and shows a ton of creativity. If the userbase for the game can continue creating games like that, this is something I can see myself playing a couple of years down the road.

I usually have something to say about the soundtrack here, but it's usually not a statement as strong as what I am about to say. Little Big Planet's OST is probably the best in a game that I have heard since Chrono Cross came around to rock everybody's world. The songs are both soothing and catchy. Normally you would associate a game that appeals to kids and adults alike to have sort of a run-of-the-mill soundtrack but this one is really impeccable. Go to the levels situated in Mexico and tell me that it doesn't sound fantastic. I dare you.

LBP started its life with a share of problems. You know what I'm talking about – servers always down, lots of lag, etc – and that's a pretty big problem. Can you see Microsoft having a shitty launch for such a high caliber title? Can you imagine the frustration if Gears 2 had been released with internet issues? LBP had those problems. It was darn near impossible to consistently play online worlds the first couple of days. That's been fixed now, but I'm still waiting for the ability to make levels with friends online. Once that has been patched in, perhaps the game will rank higher with me.

Little Big Planet is a creative, original title that deserves a world of praise for what it does. It may not have the most in depth gameplay, but it makes use of what it has which is more than what can be said for a lot of other games out there. As far as I am concerned, Sony's big blockbuster for 2008 is a success.



8-) Call of Duty 4 - I like Call of Duty 4. It's a fun shooting title that is probably worthy of the praise that it gets. If you take it online, it's damn near impossible not to have fun with it. That said, I still don't think it's as fabulous as some make it out to be. It's fun, but it really doesn't make my world go ‘round, you know? I would be just plain dumb not to at least include the game on this list though, it's a quality title that I am going to recognize.

Perhaps my biggest problem with the shooting genre is addressed here. How many times do I have to go through Normandy? How many times must I liberate the French? How many times must I win World War II for the allies? Well, these pressing issues are no longer a concern here because, what a novel idea, Call of Duty 4 takes place in modern times! Thank God. This alone makes the game a million times more bearable to play. It has the same squad based AI gameplay you've come to know and love but THIS TIME IT TAKES PLACE IN THE GLORIOUS PRESENT. Thank God.

Adding to this modern package – which world at war lamentably decided to turn its back on, I assume because they are being made by different companies and we just desperately needed another World War II game – would be the multiplayer gameplay. As hyped up as Halo 3 was when it came out, CoD IV was played over LIVE more. That just tells you how impressive the multiplayer was. It takes the same formula that you typically would play the game with, but adds a bit of a twist, the level up system.

As an RPG gamer, this system is something that I embrace whole heartedly. Indeed, the idea of experience points gets me frothing at the mouth! When I first heard of this system though, I was a tad bit skeptical. "Oh," I said to myself, "I bet it's just another word for ranking like with what Halo has." I was wrong, I admit I was wrong, and I apologize for my mistake. As you level up, you can customize your characters class in the game. You can also gain access to new weapons and an assortment of other stuff. You gain EXP from completing various missions or winning in online battles.

This system even has something special for those of you who like to show everyone online how badass you are. Once you reach the max level, you can play in prestige mode. In this mode, you revert back to level 1, lose all your neato privileges, but you gain a special insignia that you can show off to people. That's right! People will know that at one point, YOU were level 55! IMPRESSIVE. You can do this up to 10 times with a new insignia being displayed each time. That's right, you can have your World of Warcraft in your CoD.

Sure, online combat may end up just being a grenade dodging experience…but that experience is pretty enjoyable. I missed out last year when I decided to not play CoD 4 because of my pre-conceived shooter hatred. I was wrong about the game, and since I probably won't be playing CoD 5, I see this one lasting me quite a while. Good job, guys. This is the last game I expected to praise.



7-) Super Smash Brothers Brawl - I am a huge fan of the Smash Brothers franchise and have been ever since the original game launched. It's been a fun party game that I would say is very easy to enjoy with people who may not play many games. It's so much easier to convince someone who has no gaming experience to play a game with Mario and Pikachu than to try out one with a hulking space marine. Smash Brothers Brawl took what made Melee such an impressive game and really expanded on it.

That's right, shockingly enough Smash Brothers Brawl is not Melee 2.0 like many figured it would. Coming with it is a whole new physics engine that makes it feel like a different game. Yeah, the characters control the same but the way you play needs to change if you wish to succeed. The same "tournament" moves that worked in Melee won't work for you in Brawl, so you need to adjust. I quite like that. Brawl may be a slower game than Melee, but it is able to get the job done.

The whole Brawl experience isn't simply about the gameplay though. Included in the package is what one could assume is a love letter from Nintendo. "A love letter?" you make ask. Well, what else can you say when Nintendo thrusts a soundtrack at you which is over three hundred songs deep? I don't care how hardcore of a Nintendo fan you are, there had to be something on there you hadn't heard for the longest time that gave you a nostalgia rush upon hearing it start up. The soundtrack isn't where it ends though, Nintendo also threw in a bunch of trophies and stickers, so you can look at their rich history more closely.

You think that's not enough though? Is this Nintendo self-masturbation not getting you off? Well that's not all they threw into the game. Returning are event battles, the classic and arcade modes and even a brand new story based single player mode. Now, a lot of people have shat on this mode, but in my opinion it's a pretty fun experience that I would liken to Kirby. If you play with a friend, I guarantee that you will have a good time. I'm not sure where all the ire is coming from, but in my opinion the story – which plays out like some sort of Nintendo fanfiction – is fun and worthy of play.

Is Smash Brothers Brawl perfect? Of course not. Sakurai was rushed in development. I'm pretty sure Nintendo just said: "Fuck it, just release the game already." There could have been more characters, there could have been a significantly better online mode, there could have been more gameplay features (For instance, where were the little awards after you finish a level in single player mode that have been in every Smash Brothers game ever? I really miss seeing stuff like JUDO MASTER – 1000 PTS on my screen!) , there just could have been more…

Even with that complaint, Smash Brothers is one of the most fun games you can play on your Wii. It is something that can entertain a group of people for hours at a time. It may not be the most original playing game of this generation, but as far as replayability is concerned I can almost assure you that by the time this generation is complete, Brawl will be my most played game. Some people don't like it as much as Melee, but I assure you that it is worthy of standing shoulder-to-shoulder with its older brother.



6-) Grand Theft Auto IV - There have been two trends in gaming that I have noticed as of late. Whenever someone praises Shadow of the Colossus, I read/hear them saying: "Look at me, I'm a hardcore gamer and I play hardcore games. I like Shadow of the Colossus like every hardcore should." Hey, lool, that game is FANTASTIC…but people are making it out to be the second coming of Jesus Christ. It's not. It's not even as good as Ico. The second trend I noticed is that everyone seems to be hopping all over GTA IV. People are criticizing it left and right for pretty much no good reason. Some even call it a bad game. Why is this? I'm not sure. I wouldn't say GTA IV is the best in the series – San Andreas is better – but it's hardly a bad game. Quite the contrary, it's a great game.

What makes GTA IV so great? Well, the first thing that jumps out at me would be the story. As a story, I would say that GTA IV is the best in the series without question. Nico Bellic is by far the most likable lead that the series has seen. The story of him pursuing the American dream is an extremely interesting one…and one I wanted to see through to the end. I mean, come on, if you've played the game you KNOW you've shouted: "NICO! CAHSIN!" multiple times. Riddled through the story would be satire. Liberty City is one big satirical city, and looking at the game like this I can really respect it. Are there some crude jokes that anyone can get? Sure. The net cafe is called TW@T for goodness sakes. For every joke like that though, there is a lot of substance and I can quite appreciate it.

Going along with the improved story would be the improved gunplay. No longer is the auto-targeting system a hindrance. You can actually wield a gun with authority, aim it, and do a pretty damn good job. I would say that they put considerably more focus into the combat of the game than any other facet. It just feels really tight. I think if the PS2 Grand Theft Autos had a combat system half as competent as GTA IV's, they would have been held in even higher esteem. Can you believe that?

Perhaps my favorite thing about the game though would have to be the city. Usually in a game, the background is just there. In an RPG, the NPCes all say the same thing and it appears that the world totally revolves around the player. In GTA IV, it just doesn't feel like that. You look around the massive city, and every single citizen has a life of their own. News events happen in the city, crime still happens, everything goes on whether or not you want it to. I think that is really cool. Want something fun to do? Choose a random citizen and tail them for a while. You'd be surprised as to what you might find.

Does GTA IV do some things wrong? Absolutely. They took out the more sophisticated character tweaking that you could find in GTA San Andreas. I love Nico, I do, but I really would have liked to alter him as a character. Do I want him to be a morbidly obese Czech running around picking up hookers? You bet I do. I figure they took this out because more casual gamers found it too hard to deal with, which is kind of a shame. Another thing they could have improved was the driving. I get it, it's supposed to be more realistic. I have to be honest though, even if it's "realistic"…it takes away from the fun. If realism cuts from the enjoyment that can be had, I would just say knock it out. Driving around the city in San Andreas is much more enjoyable. This felt like a title where the words "Grand Theft Auto" were out of place.

I don't understand how people could dislike this game so severely. No matter how I twist my head and gaze at it, I still see a pretty polished product. Hell, even the newly revealed DLC looks pretty interesting. GTA IV isn't a perfect game, is it only receiving hatred because it got perfect scores? I have no idea, but I do know that it's one of the must play games of this generation.



5-) Bioshock (There are spoilers in this one, read at your own risk) - Do you like atmosphere? Do you like impressive story telling? Do you like 50's music? Well have I got a game for you! Bioshock very well be my favorite first-person shooter title in the longest time because it does everything right. The problem I have with shooters is that they all seem to run together. I can't tell the difference between like Call of Duty 2 or any Medal of Honor game. They all feel the same. Bioshock though is something different entirely. Like System Shock 2, which many consider its predecessor, the game is all about atmosphere.

You're stuck under water in what was meant to be an ideal society. Obviously, something went wrong and as you progress your way through the story, using audio logs, you slowly figure out what's been up. This sort of reminded me of Doom 3. In that game, when you came across a log you would usually hear a person during their last moments of life desperately saying something. It really enwrapped you into the experience and in Bioshock it does the exact same thing. I was really interested in what was going to happen to Jack.

Speaking of Jack, Bioshock has one of the most interesting twists ever. Jack was apparently born in Rapture two years ago and was genetically modified so he would mature quickly. He was also modified in a way where if someone were to use the key phrase "Would you kindly", Jack would obey that person. So basically, as long as someone could utter these words…you were under their control. Ryan, who to that point you assumed was the main badguy, orders you to kill him. This is when you realize that your assumed friend, Atlas, is actually the badguy who had you altered – Fontaine! He had been telling you to do things by using the phrase: "Would you kindly?" It may seem kind of confusing when I type it out here, but when you actually play and see it happen, you'll be quite impressed with what you see. It was one of the first times I was caught totally unaware about the on-goings in a game.

So we've established that the story is good, we've established that the atmosphere is good…but how about the gameplay? I like it quite a lot to be honest, it feels like I actually have to ration my bullets and what not to survive – but, it's not like I'm armed only with bullets. You also get to use plasmids, a sort of psychic maneuver, to get things done. Really, this is just like getting a fancy gun that does really odd stuff, but the differences in power is pretty neat. I like shocking or freezing my enemies, what can I say? It's a came that can be both creepy and fun, which is a challenge for atmospheric games.

Bioshock has a lot of things going for it, and luckily it is now available for the PS3, 360, and PC so even more people can enjoy it. I assume a lot of PS3 fanboys had been dissing it while it wasn't available on their console of choice…but now that it is, I ensure you, this is a gaming experience that you really need to visit. Rapture is such an interesting city, the gameplay is so engrossing, you really would be missing out.



4-) Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (Spoilers here too) - This was probably my single most anticipated game of this generation. A lot of people may absolutely loathe Metal Gear Solid 2, but I've never played a Metal Gear Solid game that I've hated and given the strength of Metal Gear Solid 3, my excitement for this title was pretty high. After all, it promised to end the story of Solid Snake. I wanted to see what would happen because, to be honest, Snake very well may be my favorite character in gaming. Surpassing even my beloved Vivi. SHOCKING!

Obviously the most important thing about Metal Gear Solid is the story. Without the story, you just have a fun stealth game. With the story you have Metal Fucking Gear Solid. So how was it? Well, it was pretty damn good. It offered closure to Solid Snake's adventures, it told us who the Patriots were, and it even supplied one of the most memorable moments in gaming history where you control Snake as he crawl his way through a room, his octo camo giving out due to the pure heat of the room, and a cutscene going on above your action. It was nice. Hell, it even helped pave the way for one of the coolest boss fights ever. So as an ending, it was satisfying…but I do have one complaint. If the game had just ended with Sunny asking if Hal was crying, it would have been perfect. I would have been perfectly pleased with what happened. No, no, they decided to bring Big Boss back and confuse the fuck out of everyone at the end. Look, the Big Boss stuff was cool and gave insight to the Patriots as an organization, but prior to that moment I was damn near in tears. I thought Solid Snake was dead. When all is said and done? He's still alive. It just wasn't the same. The emotion of the scene before it was erased. Even with those complaints, the story was still satisfying. Was it as good as MGS 3? No. It'll work though.

The story isn't the only reason to play the game though. After all, if the title wasn't at least fun, Metal Gear Solid would be much more serviceable as a movie. The game is still fun, and from a gameplay standpoint I'd say it's easily the best in the series. Gun play is heavily improved, stealthing around takes more finesse, it just feels like it's been pretty heavily tuned. That's not to say that Metal Gear Solid 3 didn't play well, but when comparing it to MGS 4 it feels awfully last gen. Unfortunately, that gameplay improvement doesn't extend to the bosses. While some of the encounters are pretty intense, I really don't think MGS 4's bosses were as interesting as The Cobra Unit. Some had really sad stories, but from a gameplay standpoint it just wasn't quite up with the predecessor. That's not including the final boss though. The encounter with Liquid Ocelot in the end felt right. It's what I was hoping for since Metal Gear Solid 2 concluded and the way the executed it was satisfying in every single way. Perhaps I was just high on the emotion, but that encounter was just excellent.

Speaking of excellent, the soundtrack in Metal Gear Solid 4 was also up to snuff. Old Snake, Theme of Love, and "Here's To You" are all very excellent songs. I would imagine that Old Snake is the title theme because it's the one that plays during the fight with Ocelot. It's a very fitting theme and if you haven't heard it, I would recommend you go to youtube and give it a listen. It's pretty special. Of course, I say that about every soundtrack ever it seems, so be a bit wary.

I'm not sure what else can be said about Metal Gear Solid 4 that hasn't already. Salmella had a big blowout on the Metal Gear franchise as a whole and if you feel like brushing up, I'd say that you should go check those out. It's just fantastic and even if you don't own a PS3, torrent the cutscenes or something so you can at least see how everything plays out. You won't regret it.



3-) Fallout 3 - It's a well known fact that I loathe WRPGs. If you place one in front of me, odds are I'll simply turn my head and stick my nose in the air. When a game offers you so many options but only one true ending, it just isn't my cup of tea. For instance, look at Oblivion above. I mentioned how it wouldn't make this list because I irrationally hate it. I thought Fallout 3 would be much the same, after all it's being made with the same engine and by the same company…but for whatever reason I absolutely LOVE the game.

That's right, I have found a WRPG that's not named Knights of the Old Republic that I like. Isn't this a shocker to you? I guess the setting really helps though. Something about a post-apocalyptic world really turns me on. Perhaps it's the thought that something like that could happen someday, so the possibility that it's KIIIIIINDA possible, really helps me along. Or perhaps it's the fact that it's fun. The thing with WRPGs that I've played is that they are just not fun. Period. I had to force myself to play through Oblivion, but I actually WANTED to play through Fallout 3.

Why is that though? Well, the gunplay actually helps. I like the shooting and I love the VATS system. VATS, if you're wondering, is a system where you can slow down the world around you and shoot the opponent in an area of opportunity. This takes about no skill to pull off but it looks damn cool. I mean, you know, injuring body parts? The opponents favoring that part of the body? That kind of thing is really cool to me. I also like that instead of finding all the badass weapons towards the end of the game, you can find a lot of broken super powerful weapons early on. For instance, about five hours in, you're given a mini-nuke. Five hours! It really helps things feel more realistic as opposed to: "Oh hey, you made it to a new area…magically everything is more powerful!"

Now going back to the story, it's pretty good. The writing is impressive and you'll feel compelled to see what happens. You can also, as is a staple of the genre, play in multiple ways and what I like is that there are varying degrees of bad and good. You can be saintly as all hell, you can be a decent guy, you can be a bit of a jerk…or you can be a downright ass. You want some examples of this? Harold the Tree man, a returning character from Fallout 2, requests that you put him out of his misery. You can kill him painlessly by simply stabbing him in the heart or you can cause him a lot of pain by burning him down. He pleads for you to not burn him down but you CAN dammit. It's interesting, to say the least.

The only real complaint I have about Fallout 3 would be the ending. It's putrid, it's something that I feel let down with, especially after playing so many hours to finish the game. Have you ever heard of an ending so putrid that people actually want Bethesda to patch THAT out? Well, now you have. I noted earlier in the year that Fallout 3 was supposed to have multiple variations on the ending, and while it does…most of those "endings" are just small changes in dialogue. That's cool and all, but they could have done better.

Fallout 3 is pretty much a complete package though. From the story, to the awesome music, to THREE DOG (AWOOOOOOOO), to the gameplay…everything about this game is great and is, in my opinion at least, the leading contender for the 2008 game of the year. I suppose the new Prince of Persia might have a say in how things turn out…but if the year ended right now, Fallout 3 would be the best game of the year. It's just damn good.

Or maybe I'm just super high on it because it's brand-spanking new.



2-) Super Mario Galaxy - You might be asking yourself why this is ranked number two while Smash Brothers is ranked seventh. Especially considering on the wii list I had SMG behind Smash Brothers. The thing is, my opinion on which I prefer varies, seemingly, from week to week. Right now I think Mario Galaxy is the more deserving title, so it gets the higher ranking. Of course, it's obvious that I'm a huge Mario fan. After all, my debut column in the gaming zone listed my top-10 favorite Mario games. Mama mia, what a mind numbingly average list that turned out to be.

So what makes Mario Galaxy so good? What makes it so interesting that it deserves mention? Haven't we already played as the plumber to death? Of course we have, but the thing is Mario continues to pump out quality title after quality title and this game is no exception to the rule. Super Mario Galaxy plays a lot like Super Mario 64, but with a few differences. Mario has a few more abilities than his 64 version and also the majority of the game takes place in space where the gravity is totally different. It helps each level feel unique, which you may not have expected given that every world takes place in cold un-embracing space.

I figure the return to fashion was due to the less than favorable reception of Super Mario Sunshine. Honestly, I'm still puzzled as to why people shat all over that game. Was it the lame final boss? Was it fludd? Was it the fact that it dared to be different than Mario 64 (AKA The Majora's Mask/Zelda II curse)? Normally I am fairly critical of moves like this…but in the case of Mario 64, I'm glad it went back to something more simple. It felt like a pure platforming experience and it was something the Wii desperately needed last year. Honestly, last year's Wii line up would have been damn near "disasterriffic" if it weren't for Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3, and possibly the Wii's Fire Emblem.

So looking beyond the gameplay, what else made SMG really stand out? Surprise, surprise, it's the old 10th hour standby: THE SOUNDTRACK WAS AMAZING. "Derek," Nanette Manoire you'll say, "You say everything has a great soundtrack!" No, but, for real this time! Super Mario Galaxy had one of the best OSTs of last year, highlighted by the superb remix of a Super Mario Brothers 3 song: Sweet Sweet Galaxy. Shit was rocking.

I declared this my 2007 game of the year wayyyy back on December 21st of last year. Looking at the number one game on this list, it appears that I had a change of heart as to what the best game of 2007 was. That doesn't change what I wrote back then though Amazing, amazing game and no matter what side of the console war you sit on…you need to play this. I honestly think the only people who don't like it are either A-) People who just hate videogames or B-) Biased towards Microsoft or Sony to an insane degree. Put your biases aside and just game!

…Says the Sony Reporter.



1-) Portal - The single best game out of the single best compilation package ever (well, I mean, it's right there with Mario All-Stars if it isn't) tops this list. It was my number two game of 2007, but time has proven kindly to Portal and it jumps to the number one spot as the best game of this console generation. Yes, a game with very little hype that's only three or so hours long manages to be the best game of this generation. You might think this is a bad thing, but the thing is – Portal is just that damn good and worthy of all the praise.

First, let's start with Portal's writing. It is pretty darn good. Portal's antagonist GLaDOS says some of the best dialogue in gaming. Now, Portal has gotten kind of popular since the last time I wrote about the game and certain phrases get repeated over and over again to the point that it seems kind of like "random humor." You know, THE CAKE IS A LIE. Yes, yes, good line. I'm not sure how that line caught on when there are significantly better lines in the game. I guess it's just sort of recognition that you did, indeed, play the game. Despite the perpetuation of that one line, the writing is simply fantastic and worthy of praise. Plus, it has a tie with God Hand's theme as the best credit song of all time. I don't care what you say, Still Alive is a good listen.

Of course, good writing only goes so far. If I wanted good writing, I would read a book (with pictures?). Portal also hits at home with the unique gameplay. You do everything through the first person perspective and your only "weapon" is the portal gun. You use this gun to set different portal openings for your character to step through. It seems simple, but as you get into the later stages of the game it gets more complex. You have to use the portals in innovative ways, such as jumping off the edge into the portal and having another portal shoot you out. After all, you just fell. Just because you went to another area doesn't mean your momentum stopped. It's a pretty neat usage of physics and I quite enjoy it.

Portal was such an interesting game that I'm not sure if a successful sequel could get made. Don't misunderstand me, I bet that the gameplay would be just swell…but how could you recreate the sense of humor the game had? It'd be a difficult task. Of course, I do want to see more games like Portal. I don't think we've had enough of the gameplay style. It'd be nice to see it replicated or straight up ripped off. The thing about a sequel though? I'm just not sure that I want to see it.

It's amazing that of the Orange Box, many people claim that their favorite game from it was Portal. The Orange Box was an amazingly good deal…and essentially the thing everyone was raving about was the thing most people were billing as a tech demo. If you know what you're doing in Portal you can beat it fairly quickly, but even so, the game is still replayable. If you haven't played it, go buy it. It's the best 19.99 you could spend.

Or, you know, pick up The Orange Box and also play the excellent TF 2 on steam with me. Your choice!



Honorable mentions: Gears of War, Dead Rising, Metroid Prime 3, Uncharted

Well that's it for this week. As always, if you wish to give me any feedback simply enter a comment down below or send me an e-mail at Dragonmaster_Alex_158@hotmail.com Your choice. Even if your comments are negative, I appreciate them as it feels it makes me better at what I do. So please tell me what ya think!

Before I go though, let's take a look around the game's section: express style. I'm running low on time.

Theo Fraser writes the Nintendophiles

Vincent Chiucchi inducts Total Recall into the Hall of Shame

He also writes the Select and Start News Report

Chris Vicari writes The PC Spotlight

Chris Evans writes his final PC-Centric Extravaganza. You did a good job at writing, and your column was worked hard on each time out. I wish him the best of luck. I am proud that you are wishing to spend as much time with academia as possible! You'll be missed.

Drew writes Coming Attractions

Rod Oracheski writes Coming Attractions

This is last week's 10th hour by Chris Lansdell. I just wanted to link to it because he did a good job. Here it is

Jordan Williams wrote this Working Title last week, but I'm linking it because he's been on a role lately.

Joe Roche writes The Full-Circle 360 News Report

AJ and Mike Minotti do the Exploding Barrel Podcast. They are coming up on their 60th podcast, so give them some love.

Well, that's it. I'm out.

'til the crossroads