Want to Play
There a lot of games I just read about and enjoy. This is satisfying for me and, quite frankly, saves me a lot of money; video gaming is not a cheap hobby. However, there are some games out there so good that I want to try my hand at them at some point in my life. Here are just 10 of the many games that I want to experience directly rather than through my researching.
I like brazen assassinations. I like free-roaming exploration. I like the Renaissance. I enjoy great eyecandy. I would love to own a villa. These 5 are just a basic summary of what I can expect in Assassin's Creed 2 but, to me, they are a very enticing lure. If I had to, I would stomp an entire litter of puppies to death while eating fried kittens from a bucket if it meant that I could get my hands on this godsend. It fixes the many problems of its predecessor (namely, repetitive mission structure and inane enemy AI) while keeping or improving every good aspect of it. It continues the tale of Desmond Miles as he continues to live the lives of his ancestors through his "genetic memory" (it's as awesome as it sounds, trust me). This time, he plays the life of Ezio Auditore di Firenze, a man whose familial honor is betrayed by the ruling families of Italy. What makes this tale of vengeance interesting is that, unlike other games, part of the fun is watching Ezio grow up from a powerless boy to a feared reaper. In all, this is a well-constructed game that truly lets the gamer experience something unconventional yet feels so very right.
The Sims series is one of the best-selling series for the PC, selling 100 million games. It is an interesting series, given that it does away with the standard gaming mentality of playing to win. No, in these games, you control the lives a virtual family (or virtual individual, depending on how many people you want to control) and just enable them to live how you please. That's it. You can be as horrible as you want or as saintly as you want, and the game will not directly punish you for it. Sims 3 is the latest entry in the series and, given how each successive game adds more and more, I have positively wet myself at the prospects now available to us humble gamers. It offers so many possibilities, so many "what if?" scenarios. The mere thought of even trying to accomplish them all sends me salivating with glee! It also has a very detailed house-building and character design system, adding even more possibilities to the mix. Without a doubt, Sims 3 is the only game that I could imagine who allows me to use my imagination (and practically nothing else) to play the game.
I freaking love the Castlevania series on the Game Boy Advance. They each offer great gameplay, outstanding gothic environments, excellent role-playing elements, and satisfying challenges. Like the Sonic the Hedgehog series, it is a series that seems to thrive in the 2-D environment while suffering in the 3rd dimension, though the Castlevania series has not outright failed as badly as the Sonic series has. Nonetheless, I watch each new 2-D Castlevania game carefully and, after much consideration, I think I have fallen in love with the newest Castlevania game on the DS. It offers the same solid gameplay as its handheld predecessors on the Game Boy Advance and the DS, as well as offering some new things to the series. There are now over a hundred attack combinations to be made using the Glyph combat system, and the addition of side-quests gives it a less linear feel than the other games. The Castlevania series has never been heavy in the story department, and, although I do not expect Order of Ecclesia to fare that much better, it does offer more characterization this time around. By all accounts, it runs smoothly and takes full advantage of the DS's visual power, making it a sexy game to look at. The fact that you're now a hot woman rather than a testosterone-loaded beefcake might also help.
Want to play a watercolor painting? If so, then this might be the game for you! Valkyria Chronicles was a bold attempt by Sega to create a quality game among the ho-hum masses for the Christmas market, and they have succeeded. Its characters and environments are almost like living watercolors, setting it apart from every other game that I could think of (save maybe Okami). That's not all, though. It offers challenging combat scenarios, a large but carefully constructed cast of characters, and some interesting character customization. The game follows the Federation's 7th Platoon as they battle through a fictional continent at war, reminiscent of 1930s Europe. Its soundtrack was composed with this setting in mind rather than using generic music content, setting Valkyria Chronicles as a package that, quite literally, has no equal. The voice-work is superb, and, due to all these elements working together, it becomes hard not to care for your characters and playing to see what happens to them. This is strategic combat made beautiful and memorable!
The Metroid Prime series has been one of the premier series in both the 6th and 7th generation of gaming. All 3 games offer the 2-D Metroid experience in 3-D without losing its trademark combination of exploration and explosive combat. Each game also pushes the graphics engine of their respective systems, and their deep, haunting symphonies are an example of how gaming music can really set the mood. Although it doesn't really affect the gameplay, Samus Aran is the heroine of the games and, although she looks great, her selling point is her quality games rather than her sex appeal. ] In other words, she is not (only) a sex object (unlike a large majority of today's gaming heroines, sadly enough). So, you have Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. What can be better than 3 of the best games on the planet? How about 3 of the best games, rolled into one? The Metroid Prime Trilogy is exactly as it says on the tin, offering re-vamped gameplay for the 3 Metroid Prime games in one convenient disk. I do not exaggerate when I say the awesomeness contained in this one disk is almost too much for the world to handle.
It is an oddly titled visual novel with an odd story. Guess what? By Western standards, it also is fairly pornographic. However, it takes more than pretty characters and hot nubile action to attract me to a game, and this game delivers it in spades. It has an epic story involving the summoning of heroes, well-crafted fights towards a reinterpretation of the Holy Grail, and a large cast of well-designed characters (both literally and figuratively). Although reviewers note that its erotic content is superb, it is all too common that people ignore this content to see how its well-crafted story plays out. Its soundtrack is very emotive and extensive in its scope, and it is by far one of the most replayable visual novels out there due to having multiple convoluted scenario paths. Interestingly, there is a lot of mythology to be learned from this game, with its mythologically-based character and mythologically-based scenarios. It is, without a doubt, one of the best visual novels ever published. I know this seems like a strange entry in the type of list I made, but I will not deny quality when I see it.
The Legend of Zelda series is a respected gaming series that is commonly acknowledged as the best, and it is for good reasons. Its music is an industry standard for all adventure games and its open-ended design is practically the basis for all exploration games nowadays. Although it has never been known as a graphical powerhouse, the series has always had unique and memorable artwork. It has an old-school feel to it thanks to its voiceless interactions, but their gestures and actions tend to speak far more than words ever could. Without speaking a word, people often find themselves relating to the protagonist Link as he sets off to save the day once again. This game is the latest entry on the Wii and it holds all these traditions proudly. Brimming with new items, better dungeon designs, and a greater landmass for the kingdom of Hyrule, Twilight Princess is not content to just sit on the tried-and-tested formula. Throw in what many consider to be one of the most developed characters in a video game ever (the Twilight denizen Midna), and you have yourself a playable fairy tale.
It is bloody, crass, and convoluted, and never have I felt so much at home. No More Heroes takes away the traditional stoic hero with good motives, and throws you into the shoes of Travis Touchdown. He is a shallow human being with a pathetic life and a loud, obnoxious attitude, colorful with his words and erratic with his actions. You'll grow to love him not as a character, but as something that is interesting to look at and listen to. That is more than I could say about many other protagonists in this kind of setting. The gameplay consists of many bloody and hectic fights, with an almost artistic use of blood and a strange penchant for wrestling moves. To keep you in the game, there is a strange story of killing all the top-ranked assassins and only listening to the questionable instructions from a cute-looking girl. I guess it is considered a hack-and-slash with RPG elements, but I think neither fully conveys the sheer crazy-awesomeness of this cult-building Wii game.
I have reservations about games based on licensed properties because of their typically poor quality. However, Batman: Arkham Asylum shatters all expectations and promptly punches in me the face due to my lack of faith. Critics rave over it as 2009's Bioshock, and it is for good reason. First of all, it is perhaps the most lovingly crafted superhero game ever, putting in every detail they could think of from the Batman universe. Very competent voice actors were hired and the entire plot was constructed by veteran comic book writers. Next, instead of just straight-up fighting like most superhero games, Rocksteady Studios has integrated several different gameplay elements to create a third-person action-adventure game. The fighting system is revamped from previous Batman games to make it far more fluid, and its stealth elements make the character actually feel like Batman. The artists also went nuts, painting and detailing the dreadful Arkham Asylum in all its unsettling glory. Despite my cynicism for games based on licensed properties in general, I think I will make an exception for the Dark Knight.
Flower is not so much a game as it is an experience. Do flowers dream? If you play this game, you would think so. The entire game is based around guiding a petal in the wind, somehow changing the world as you pass by. Slowly, the dreary creations of man are stripped away as the glory of nature takes over once more. It is a surreal experience, an uplifting tale from nature's point of view. In this list, it will perhaps be the one that provides the simplest yet most heartfelt pleasures. On the more technical side, it fully utilizes the Playstation 3 hardware and it is one of the few games I could think of that is able to properly use its Sixaxis functionality. I have also heard that some people cried when they finished playing the game, overwhelmed by what they had seen. Yes, I believe this is definitely a unique game that is worth a look.