What's your favorite gameplay experience?

If you had to pick a gameplay experience that you enjoyed the most out of all the experiences you've had playing games, what would it be? It could be mowing down soldiers in competitive fps games, grinding mobs in an MMO(if this is your answer I would be quite surprised), hunting gigantic monsters and barely making it back alive or just solving a really complex puzzle in a game like Fez.

My answer would be roaming an open world game with no objective other than exploring and improving my character. It feels like I'm going on an adventure that isn't scripted by anyone but myself and brings about a sense of adventure I feel is lost in most linear story driven games. The games of recent memory to me that I've enjoyed the most for this reason is Skyrim(obviously), Dragons Dogma, Dark Souls/Demon Souls and Blood Dragon/Far Cry 3.

So what is your favorite experience to be had in a game?

Wall running.

Existing in a world where legs and arms matter (react to the world around you, etc.). See: The Darkness, Far Cry 3, Mirror's Edge. Feeling like I'm connected to the world in a tangible way is incredibly important for immersion-oriented games.

Open-World games are probably my favorite GTA, Saints Row, Assassins Creed, Sleeping Dogs, Bully, L.A Noire just to name a few.

I really dig games in which your actions affect the story or the world itself. Even the little things help like helping the dog in Resident Evil 4.

Yup exploring open worlds. It could be an open world RPG, it could be an open world adventure game, it could be an open world shooter/action game. Doesn't matter. I love running around free with huge areas to explore.

Also, i really enjoy having choices in games.

So is Prince of Persia SOT your favorite game of all time? If not then it should be.

Dialogue in proper RPGs.

Give me 2+ opposing factions that i can talk and weasel around, playing both sides; branching significant choices; an enemy i can reason and argue with; a story i can change; and i'm set.

This is going to sound kind of general, but fighting bosses in jrpgs. Some have a really great blend of music, design, and combat that all comes together to be a memorable encounter. If I had to name a few off the top of my head, Lavos (Chrono Trigger), Seymour (FFX), Jecht (FFX), Kefka (FFVI), the final bosses of persona 3 and 4, Beatrix (FFIX), and Doom Dragon (Golden Sun TLA) are all pretty great.

Playing opponents who are equally skilled or slightly stronger than myself in a fighting game. It's especially enjoyable if my opponent is someone I have not played before. It's in these matches where I learn the most. I cannot autopilot to win. To consistently beat my opponent I have to go beyond what I already know. I am forced to innovate. Each loss is a learning experience, and each victory feels well-earned.

Oh man i can relate. I've avoided fighting games for ages, cus when i bought them as a kid, i'd always get better than everyone else and no one would play against me cus i'd beat them.

Recently i bought Injustice, the first fighting game i've gotten in over 6 years. It's been a blast. My brother (who's also my roommate weird? i dunno). is really good at the game too, so we have super fair matches which makes us both better at the game, the more we play against each other the better we get, its awesome.

I'm good with green lantern, green arrow, batman, and sinestro. He's good at superman, doomsday, aquaman and black adam. It's been surprisingly fun, like SUPER FUN. It's crazy how much fun we've both had playing against each other when i bought the game on impulse at best buy one day randomly.

@meganeagain said:

This and blowing s@#t up in Ratchet and Clank.

Well done haptic feedback. Nailing the trigger on Squall's Renzokukens feels great every time.

Another favorite is completely circumventing a game's predefined path. Say what you will about Deus Ex: Invisible War, the ability to flip the double birds to the story's railroading right at the end almost made the whole exercise worth it. That and learning what an arcology was.

Local co-op and local versus are the best ways to experience video games.

Pulling off sick combos and special attacks in SRW Endless Frontier.

JYAKKI GUN, OH~

I'd also say RPG's where you invest so much time into the world and your character. I also just played Portal for the first time and the puzzle solving in the game did a good job of being challenging and still making me feel smart.

Alternating between sneaking around the tropic Korean jungle, and going balls out and blowing shit up, in Crysis. That will always be my favorite game experience, it was so mindblowing and perfect :D

I know it's a boring answer, but fiero. Exploration is great, but finishing Super Hexagon or getting Dark Boy in Binding of Isaac is even better.

A very specific one that immediately came to mind was Vanquish. Basically everything about the gameplay in Vanquish but especially the rocket sliding into slow motion or kicks.