Justin's Top Games List

While Otis is constantly keeping his top ten games of all time in his head, I
rarely think of them in any order. I generally rank games by how much I get
excited when someone mentions them by name. But maybe this will be a fun
exercise while I kill some time at work (gasp!).

• Myth: The Fallen Lords - Mac
  
  The only realtime strategy game that I ever thought was worth finishing.
  Great characters, great graphics, and easy to use and understand controls. I
  really enjoyed the narative throughout the game as well.
  


• Star Fox - SNES
  
  The FX chip one. Not the GameCube one. It was the first time I felt home
  console graphics had gotten anywhere close to arcade graphics.
  


• Street Fighter II: Tournament Edition -
  SNES
  
  4-5 special moves and really different fighter techniques.
  


• NBA Jam: Tournament Edition -
  N64
  
  Over the top slams. That's it.
  


• 
  Shadow of the Colossus - PS2
  
  18 giant bosses stand between you and resurrecting your dead girlfriend. You
  have a sword, a bow and arrow and a black horse. Go for it.
  


• 
  Myst - Mac
  
  For the puzzle lover in me. I totally immersive game with the lights off.
  


• 
  Burnout 3: Take Down - Xbox
  
  Insane crash effects. Insane speed. The only game I've ever appreciated
  online.
  


• 
  Tetris - NES
  
  This game brought our family together during long snowy winters.
  


• 
  Yars Revenge - 2600
  
  I blame my parents for who I am today. Twitching and all. What a
  highscore-fest of a game.
  


• 
  Katamari Damacy - PS2
  
  Wacky, wacky, wacky. And catchy songs!
  


• 
  SSX Tricky - PS2
  
  A trick system that made it fun to rub off your thumbprints. Hidden items
  kept this game in the PS2 for a long time.
  


• 
  Super Mario Kart DS - NDS
  
  All the good things about all the Mario Kart games in one package. We'll
  forgive the awfully limited online system.
  


• 
  Metroid Prime - GCN
  
  Deep. Beautiful. Immersive.
  


• 
  Halo - XBox
  
  Not the greatest FPS by far, but XBox system link made it a winner for our
  crew.
  


• 
  Perfect Dark / James Bond 007 GoldenEye -
  N64
  
  Sorry, they had dual guns before Halo. And awesome bots! BOTS!
  


• 
  Gran Turismo 1 - PS
  
  The first taste of customizing regular cars with truly great physics. Where
  did GT go wrong...
  


• 
  Forza Motorsports - XBOX
  
  A perfect blend of simulation racing, tuning, and aftermarket modding.
  
  


• 
  Resident Evil 4 - GCN
  
  Hands down the best scary game I've ever played.
  


• 
  Zelda: Link to the Past - SNES
  
  My first taste of the SNES. My first real Zelda game too.
  


• 
  Zelda: Ocarnia of Time - N64
  
  The best 3-D adventure game so far. Hands down.
  


• 
  Zelda: Twilight Princess -
  GameCube
  
  The deepest, most immersive Zelda ever as the last great GameCube game.
  


• 
  Super Mario 3 - NES
  
  The elusive Tanooki suit didn't do much, but the games levels really made it
  worth it. Super Mario World only bested it with graphics in my mind (Yoshi
  helped too). The king of the 8-bit era.
  


• 
  Super Mario 64 - N64
  
  "It's a-me, Mario!" Everyone else follow the master of 3-D platformers. And
  annoying voices.
  
  

Okay, I originally wanted this to be a top 20, but we're talking about 30 years
of games here, so it's a little tough to be choosy. My list does look a little
on the Nintendo side of things, but I have to give them props where they are
due. Plus, I didn't get a PS2 or Xbox until well after having the GameCube.
Updated (8/17/06): Shadow of the Colossus was so good, I had to extend my
list. Updated (3/16/07): Zelda Twilight Princess Updated
(4/29/07): Forza Motorsports