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#10
As a lover of informative documentaries created by investigative journalists, it's only appropriate that I'd also love a game where I get to play as one. Jade is a compelling female protagonist at a time when that was much rarer than it is today. Her sidekick Pey'j isn't too shabby either. The world she inhabits is creatively designed, and I appreciated the game's take on stealth mechanics.
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#9
XIII brought the cell-shaded, comic book graphical style realness six years before Borderlands burst onto the scene. Underlying that gorgeous veneer was a solid FPS engine with responsive shooting and interesting weaponry. The game also featured a solid spy thriller story with corresponding tunes. Apparently a remake is on the horizon - I'll be curious to see how it pans out.
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#8
I haven't historically been the biggest fan of controlling a large squad of characters. I've always preferred Western RPGs to Eastern ones, and I tend to prefer to just focus on a single protagonist. However, when IO Interactive makes squad mechanics as intuitive as they are here, it's easy to get on board. A squad is absolutely necessary to progress through the game's more challenging sections, and you can easily direct them to follow, attack, or defend. The game also features a wonderful soundtrack by Jesper Kyd to get you in the resistance mood (my favorites are "Infiltrator" and "The Battle For Freedom"). Lastly, Freedom Fighters has solid mission design, where actions taken in earlier missions affect resistance encountered in later ones.
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#7
Warcraft III was the first RTS I'd ever played that featured "hero" units. I enjoyed this addition, and the extra layer of strategy it added to the game's skirmishes. The game featured Blizzard's trademark gorgeous cutscenes, as well as a diverse group of playable races and units. Fortunately, it dodged Warcraft II's problem of having two almost-identical sides.
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#6
Generals, on the other hand, was the first time I can recall getting extensive experience with commander "powers" in an RTS. Depending on the faction chosen by the player, the commander was given access to a wide, wide variety of abilities, from unit upgrades to airstrikes to paradrops and even to outright resource theft. Generals also featured solid music and diverse factions with differing playstyles. It had a little bit of a sense of humor, but it was no Red Alert. Regardless, I enjoyed my time with it.
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#5
Prince of Persia was a revelation. I loved the setting and environmental design, the music, and the mystical tone of the whole enterprise. I still fondly recall my delight at finding one of the tranquil fountains just off the beaten path that permanently increased the Prince's health. The Sands of Time was my first look at Ubisoft Montreal's cinematic and acrobatic platforming, and the much-lauded tutorial incrementally introduced the myriad techniques I'd need to traverse these crumbling and ancient temples.
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#4
First off, credit is due to Brian Cox for his excellent turn as Lionel Starkweather - what a depraved individual. Secondly, the game just had a great premise, with a unique VHS aesthetic. The stealth mechanics weren't the most sophisticated (it was sometimes difficult to tell exactly what an enemy could see), but they were sufficient to create tension and showcase the game's multiple "executions." Manhunt is a little gratuitous, but when I was a teenager I really went in for that sort of thing.
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#3
When I first composed this list, Max Payne 2 was quite a bit lower. I remembered liking it less than the first game, and even the first game held up poorly when I played it years after release. However, watching some gameplay footage really wised me up. I remembered the depiction of the bitter New York winter, Max's cinematic bullet-time dives, the distinctive piano music, and the dark, noir comic book-style panels that told the tale. I remembered following the bullet from an especially flawless sniper shot, and the way that Max never heals, instead opting to crunch ever-increasing amounts of painkillers. Max Payne is a mood, and it began my love affair with Remedy.
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#2
I think that my preference of Double Dash over previous Mario Kart installments had much to do with the Gamecube controller. I just always found it comfortable, whereas the SNES controller felt insubstantial and the N64 one felt unwieldy. Power sliding through Double Dash's well-designed courses was a breeze, listening to the always entertaining soundscape. I felt that the inclusion of a passenger was a stroke of genius. It made the game accessible to those that hadn't spent so much time perfecting their driving, and between item usage and the "bump" mechanic, it could be quite engaging. Although I played enough to become rather skilled with the driving mechanics, I never shied away from manning the weapons if the opportunity arose.
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#1
I actually didn't play Etherlords II until well after it released. I think I found it looking around for solid PC card games. Etherlords II is an open world-ish RPG, but instead of combat taking using the powers and weapons of party members, it takes place using a deck of cards you've constructed. There are a variety of different "races" in the game, and each race has its own campaign. Each race has access to different cards, although there may be a small amount of overlap (I can't recall). If a battle is lost, it can immediately be tried again, and certain battles require specific strategies to prevail. Although the final boss of the game is absurd, I became very engaged in learning what type of decks were wielded by various enemies, and how I could most effectively combat them. Etherlords II, in a way, reminds me of a single-player Magic the Gathering. Luckily it's not as expensive, especially now - it might set you back five bucks :)
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