Best of 2000-2009
Best: My favorite games of the aforementioned time period.
List items
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When I first saw the graphics for this game, I thought it was a joke. I thought, "this can't be how it's going to look." But sure enough, it was to be. They ended up being perfect for the world within the game. Not only that, but they were just beautiful to behold. I'm still astounded by the quality of the visual presentation in this fantastic game. I also appreciated the fact that the story featured constant homages to Ocarina of Time. Hearing legends in one game about things you did in another game is strangely satisfying. The refreshingly colorful visuals, the engaging story, and the classic Zelda gameplay mixed together in one amazing package is what makes this my Game of the Decade.
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I had never heard of Metroid until I read about Metroid Prime in a Nintendo Power magazine. From that point on, I was interested. From the moment I put the disc into my GameCube, I knew this was a game I was going to love, and love it I did; this was one of the most atmospheric games I have ever played, and the amazing graphics didn't hurt either. It was also one of those rare games where the difficulty was just right. Not too difficult, not too easy; and I can really appreciate that. This went on to become the first game in which I've reached 100% completion.
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I knew nothing of the Resident Evil series until I somehow heard about this. I saw some videos online and I thought "this looks pretty good." It was also the time when I had just legally become able to purchase M-rated games. I rented it just to see if it would be my kind of thing, and boy was it! The graphics, the action, the non-zombies... it was all a concoction of awesome as far as I'm concerned. I finished it within the one week rental period, took it back and bought it. I still play it to this day.
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I was pumped about this one for months before it was released. I was counting down the days until October 28, 2008, when I could walk into the store and get my copy of the best game of 2008. It certainly did not disappoint. I loved every second of this wasteland paradise and I found myself playing it over and over again with different types of characters. In addition to the base game, the five expansions that Bethesda released throughout most of 2009 were fantastic and added even more to this already expansive game.
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I was kind of late to the party with this one, but before I bought it, I had heard great things about it online. I wasn't sure about it, but I decided to jump in with both feet. I went out and bought the Game of the Year Edition taking the gamble that it would be something I would enjoy. Well, my gamble payed off... big. The lush, colorful environments that contrasted the dark storyline were beautiful to behold and the ability to go and do whatever you want was really appealing to me. It became my favorite Xbox 360 game for quite some time, and it also became the first game for which I unlocked every achievement.
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While I had heard nothing but good things about this game since it's release, I didn't get it until April of 2009, simply because I was afraid to give it a chance. I had played Knights of the Old Republic and didn't much care for the combat. I was afraid Mass Effect would be the same thing minus the Star Wars theme. Well, I eventually broke down and tried it, and I loved it immensely. I loved the fact that it was a purely action RPG, unlike Knights of the Old Republic. That alone was good enough for me, but the characters who I developed a strange affection for and the interesting story came together to create one of my favorite games of the Xbox 360 generation.
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I came to this game having never played the original Paper Mario on the N64, but despite (or perhaps because of) that, I thoroughly enjoyed my first foray into that magnificent world. I love games that are colorful, so as such I was extremely pleased with the visuals in this game. I absolutely fell in love with the turn-based combat because it was just plain fun. I also enjoyed the occasional quick time moments in battles, where you would have to dodge audience members throwing things at you, or falling stage equipment. I also enjoyed the great variety of party members, who had unique abilities that were helpful inside of battle and out in the world. All these things came together to make the hands-down best RPG available on the GameCube.
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I can't even remember what possessed me to get this game way back when it first came out, but when I did it was the most unique game I had played at the time. Getting to know all the different characters that live in your town, doing mundane tasks, selling your unwanted crap to Tom Nook, doing favors for your neighbors, and more make this a game that has a lot of stuff to do. I have since "upgraded" to City Folk for the Wii, but the original is the one I will always remember with fond memories.
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My first experience with The Sims was the GameCube version of the original (which I loved). I then moved on to The Sims: Bustin' Out, and it was even better than the first. When the Sims 2 was released I knew I had to get aboard that train. I eventually did get it but it wasn't until 2006 that I had a computer that could run it competently. Since then I have had an admittedly on-again / off-again relationship with the game, but when it really comes down to it, this is easily my favorite PC game of the decade.
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I have never been Mario's biggest fan, despite my love of almost everything Nintendo does. However, this was one Mario platformer that I absolutely loved. I still believe that Super Mario Galaxy has the best graphics of any game available for the Wii. When I first played it, the graphics absolutely blew me away and I have yet to find a Wii game that comes close, even now. In addition to the stunning graphics, the game was also just plain fun to play, and that's all that matters, isn't it?
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My first time playing a Civilization game was when I played the Civilization Revolution demo on Xbox 360. I enjoyed it, but I wanted to see about the "PC version." When I played Civilization IV for the first time, it wasn't an instant attraction, but as I went on with it, I really began to enjoy it. The ability to play as some of the most well-known leaders of history, and the ability to alter history in any way you want it a real hook for this game. I had always heard people talking about how addictive this game is and I never understood all the "one more turn" talk until I experienced it for myself. I now understand that once you start a campaign in this game, you will NOT want to stop until it's over.
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I was excited about this game ever since it was mentioned in Banjo-Kazooie. I followed it online, read news stories, looked at screenshots, watched videos, and I could not wait for it to be released. I remember I got it Christmas Day 2000, and I was not disappointed. It was everything Banjo-Kazooie was and then some. The graphics were greatly improved, character movements were better, and Mumbo was a playable character (that was all I needed). The new transformations, new moves, new characters and new items all made this one game that sets the bar for what a sequel should be.
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Before this, I had only played the original Star Fox for the SNES; but the fact that it was made by Rareware was enough to get me to give this game a chance. When I played it, I noticed that it played a little bit like a Zelda game, yet it was still it's own game. The on-ground adventuring was my favorite part of the game, but I appreciated the flying missions that you had to complete in order to advance to the next section of the game. This was one game that proved that Star Fox could succeed as an action-adventure game.
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The Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal generation is my favorite of all the Pokemon games. It had it's own new world to explore with all new creatures to capture, and that was all before you went back to the original region for part two. Those games were like two games in one and it could easily take over 50 hours to complete the game from the time you begin your quest, to the final battle with Red. The Crystal version, however, was my favorite of that generation because of the fact that you could play as a female character (whose color was blue instead of red, which I appreciated), the various graphical improvements like moving pokemon pictures and the sign that pops up when you go to a new area, and because the legendary dogs were easier to catch in that version.
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I'm sure it seems strange that there's a James Bond game on my list for best games of the decade, but I had a lot of good fun with this one. The story mode was good and I greatly enjoyed it, but it was the multiplayer that caused me to invest hours and hours into this game. I played this with my friends when they were around and I played it with bots when they weren't. This was one of those games that I played just when I got the urge to shoot stuff or blow stuff up (I loved using the guided rocket launcher in multiplayer). The only thing that could have made me enjoy this game more is if Pierce Brosnan had actually provided his voice, but the sound-alike gets the job done.
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