Academic Must Play List for Game Industry Insiders and Enthusiasts

This isn't so much a best game of all time list as it is a list of games that are importent to game design history. If you want me to take you seriously as a designer, you need to at least have a good knowledge about why some people consider these games to be so great.

I know this list is lacking in early arcade and 8-Bit things, but back then games were either so simple that not much can be stolen from them, and the ones that were trying to be complicated just haven't figured it out yet. I also stopped at 9 not because i ran out of ideas but because I wanted to keep the list to absolute must, and not just probably should, by 10 I could only think of probably should.

List items

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  1. Deus Ex

  This is the prime example of how to make choices in a game not feel like a choice at all, but just an action. The game can play out so differently depending on how you choose to play too. Video gaming is all about the interactive element, and letting the player make his own actions, making this the game everyone interested in gaming history needs to play.

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  2. Planescape: Torment

  The best example of a story in video gaming. Stories in video gaming has never been incredibly strong, so the entire industry needs to look at the few games that would actually pass off as good in book form without any major additions or changes.

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  3. Metroid Prime

  This one is about level design and atmosphere. Environments add a ton of character to any game and Metroid Prime has done it the best.

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  4. Half-Life

  Half-Life 1 has taught the world how to tell a story with its scenarios and in-game scripting. Stories in an interactive media should avoid being told in a non-interactive way as much as possible, and Half-Life tells a very good story entirely without cutscenes.

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  5. Halo: Combat Evolved

  Halo is an example of how to do combat well. Extensive thought is put into what level setpieces are needed for a dynamic firefight experience, and the enemy AI is programmed to continuously trying to outsmart the player without doing anything to cheap, making the act of outsmarting them back one of the most fun experiences in gaming.

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  6. World of Warcraft

  World of Warcraft is all about find out how to psychologically reward the player constently in a way thats so intense that it ruins the lives of people every day. Rewarding the player for his actions is unique and nesissary in video gaming, and there's no better game to look at for that then WoW

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  7. Pokémon Red/Blue

  This is a prime example of giving the player a good amount of customization and progression, without making it too complicated. Absolutely anyone can play this game, but it still requires a bit of strategy to beat the game, and everyone's final party will be totally different from everyone elses.

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  8. StarCraft

  StarCraft has found a way to take 3 very different races of characters and balance them so well, that people still play it professionally to this day. Balence is importent to all games, not just competitive ones, and the history behind how StarCraft came to be so balanced should help any designer.

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  9. Shadow of the Colossus

  No other game feels like a piece of art like this one does. Art is about bring emotions out of people, and instead of relying on the more primal urges of fun and satisfaction, Shadow of the Colossus brings out the emotions of love, compassion, and sorrow and all through the gameplay itself.