Games That Made Your Jaw Drop

Let's talk about those games that amazed you so much, they blew your mind.

That game for me was Super Mario 64. I remember being so excited to play it. I was 14 at the time, and was used to 2D games, so the rare 3D game I played, like Star Fox, was an awesome experience for me. But this game raised the bar in every imaginable way. Seriously, this game was groundbreaking. The graphics were phenomenal. The freedom to explore, to go anywhere I wanted, was unmatched. The level design, gameplay, the boss fights, the music, everything about this game was perfect. Still is, if you ask me. I was convinced that this was the future of gaming. A few back then what the future actually held, I would have been the world's most cynical 14 year old. This is still my favorite game of all time, and one that made my jaw drop.

I assume you're talking about non-story related things, so I won't go there. But I honestly can't remember ever having an actual jaw dropping moment from a game.

The closest I can think of would be when I played Uncharted 2 and being damn impressed with the visuals, especially on the Tibetan level. I haven't played a game to this day that I felt looked as good as the scenery in that game.

The moment I read your headline, one moment came to mind. I remember the opening cut scene from Resident Evil: Code Veronica on the Dreamcast really making my jaw drop. I was amazed by what I saw. I remember watching it multiple times, I was so impressed.

The original Max Payne. There was nothing quite like it back then.

@poisonjam7: It can be story related.

It's pretty recent but journey made me feel amazing!

No other game has ever given me this awesome feeling of companionship and accomplishment like journey did.

@phantommartyr: Your PC has a major adware problem, dude. I edited the malicious links out of your post.

Please address this problem before posting anything else on Giant Bomb.

Thanks

After playing on the Atari and Commodore for a while, the first time my brother brought home a famicom with Contra my mind was completely blown. It was so colorful, you could tell what the guys arms and legs were, it moved so smoothly and the music was amazing. I was quite literally entranced by what was happening on the screen and my love for video games really started at that point.

In more modern games - the first 360 game I ever bought for the system was Fracture which neither played nor looked very good. I was able to exchange that for Dead Space which I knew little about at the time but I thought anything will be better than Fracture. Man.. Dead Space was one hell of a game and looked really good too.

The "Did Somebody Say Yoga?" mission in GTA V is the most recent moment I can think of. It was only a few weeks ago.

God of War. The first one. I beat the Hydra and just reset the game so I could do it again. Then I did it again. Probably once or twice more before I got on with the rest of the game.

The best impressions I have from any game involves my intense and undivided focus. When I really and truly enjoy something (rarer than I'd like to admit) my mind is so lost in what's going on that I usually won't even notice the jaw hitting the floor. So it's kind of hard to get anything off the top of my head.

The original Crysis also most gun battles in F.E.A.R, GTASA seeing how huge the map was Mortal Kombat 2 arcade.

I distinctly remember walking that beaten path towards Vivec in Morrowind, seeing those strange, rectangular, gargantuan stones jutting from the sea all gold and brown as the sun set. Kind of moment that stays with you.

And this was playing.

Morrowind was SO good, you guys. So fucking good. (Cue my bitching about where the series has gone since.)

Journey was nothing but those kind of moments. I still go back and replay that thing every couple of months. There's some other great examples already in this thread, making me realize just how much I value some games looking back. Max Payne's certainly up there, Crysis, God of War 1. Dead Space. And I feel obligated to mention Planescape: Torment.

The last really strong visual impression I got was probably from Dragon Age. There are parts of that game that look unbelievably stunning.

Beyond that I remember being completely blown away by the opening few sequences of Alice: Madness Returns.

South Park The Stick of Truth. Last game to cause my jaw to drop.... as I was laughing. Did not eat as I played.

I'm having trouble thinking of anything. Maybe the first twist in Bioshock? Probably the endings to MGS2/3 also.

I guess I just tend to not be blown away by specific scenes or graphical quality or whatever. I remember thinking that both Gears of War and Crysis looked incredible pre-release, for example, but I wouldn't have described them as jaw-dropping.

There are moments here and there, but one recent example that sticks out in my mind was the whole Rapture sequence at the end of Bioshock Infinite.

Hmm. One that sticks in my mind was coming across the first enemy in Shadow of the Colossus. That music kicks in and then seeing it slowly make its way toward me... I think I dropped the controller!

Another one was playing Doom 3 with a full 7.1 surround sound system placed all around the room. At that point I'd never had a gaming experience quite like that.

Also at the time I'd never played a JRPG, and my friend let me borrow his copy of Final Fantasy 7. I was playing it for what seemed like ages, and I decided to call him up after I'd gotten out of the Gold Saucer section (and into that buggy) to ask him if I'd nearly got to the end of the game. He obviously laughed his ass off and told me I'd not even scratched the surface. And this.. blew my mind. How could a game be so long?!

Great choice.

Mine would probably be old PC games like that.

Other good choices for me would be Far Cry, which had a couple factors. I thought the stealth and AI was incredible and no game had done stealth like that. It essentially what Far Cry is still doing. And the other was the size of the areas and graphical fidelity. I still remember a boat sequence down a river. And a helicopter comes after you and if you shoot it, it breaks apart and falls to the ground in little individual bits. That whole part was crazy, but the game was in general.

I thought Battlefield 1942, as such a dynamic multiplayer game. Call of Duty, the intensity and scale it reached was beyond what started with Medal of Honor. Rome Total War was such a massive game, and how it was delivered in 3D, felt insane as a package when it came out to me.

This

This first game that comes to my mind (and it's kind of funny in hindsight) is Crazy Taxi for the Dreamcast. After playing it for a few minutes I picked up my phone and called my friend and said "You HAVE to come over here and check out this game!!"

Dyad. Especially the trophy levels. Just looking at that game is mind bending, but actually playing it is something else.

BioShock, the opening sequence. I would almost say the entire first level since it is mainly an extended introduction to the world and basic mechanics. But I remember first going into that lighthouse and traveling to Rapture in the bathysphere. I mean, it was breathtaking. I honestly don't think I've been as struck by a game moment since then. To dovetail with this, I think that the return to Rapture in Infinite was also fantastic. I have issues with that game, even though I liked it overall, but that moment was pretty much perfect for me, as a fan of the entire series.

Perhaps leaving the sewers in Oblivion comes close? I definitely found that moment to be pretty amazing as well. Not BioShock amazing, but still pretty cool.

Most recently...? Hmm.

Ground Zeroes. The opening was so cool I couldn't really handle it. Literally my favorite Morricone song.

Some of Max Payne 3 was so fucking awesome actually, that is one game where you actively think to yourself "I can't believe I am playing this right now". The way Max slides over objects, collides with them, the physics on all the reactions of the enemies, the graphics and the setting, it all just comes together in pretty spectacular fashion.

Dead Space for sure. That game was such a crazy surprise, looking back on it. I dunno what compelled me to buy it so early, but I did. Had no idea what I was in for and ended up playing the game twice in a row over a few weeks. I really do remember just feeling impressed the whole time I played that game. From the opening that starts with the long shot of your ship crashing to the menus to the limb shooting-off to the amazing stomp, just one great thing after another.

The last time was probably some of the fatalities in MKX lol.

Skyrim for obvious reasons, Last of Us, Bioshock Infinite, Uncharted 2/3, the list goes on and on. Video games rule.

Hmmm Skyrim with mods has some jaw dropping moments. Witcher 2, planetside 2, and guild wars 2 world bosses also come to mind. The very end of persona 3 is my story jaw dropping moment

Wii bowling, younger cousin accidentally hit me in the face when standing next to her when she swung. My lower jaw was pretty sore that week.

The first time I stepped onto Hyrule Field in Ocarina of Time, playing on a friend's N64, is one of my most cherished memories. That sense of wonder at the "massive" world laid out in front of me, the terror of the sun going down and monsters appearing to chase me, the loneliness of leaving the comfort of your village behind and stepping into the great, empty beyond. I feel like I'm still chasing that high, because that was the moment when I realized that all I wanted to do was explore virtual worlds and take in their beauty. I get flashes of that playing Team ICO stuff and Souls games. A little bit in atmospheric FPS like Half Life 2 or Bioshock, though usually the scale of first person games is such that it isn't quite the same thing.

I remember being pretty blown away by Mass Effect 2, GTAIII and Shenmue.

I probably suck.

The first time you realize you can travel between the Light and Dark Worlds in Link to the Past.

The first time you realize exactly how big and littered with caves and adventures the overworld map in Oblivion is.

Everything to do with the helicopter/hotel sequence in Uncharted 2. I've never had an E3 demo so effectively fulfill its purpose of getting me hype.

The moment when Morrigan reveals her reason for coming with you in Dragon Age made my jaw drop, but it was in furious anger at Morrigan for not informing me sooner.

Maybe first time I saw the bobomb level in Mario 64 and was like THREE DIMENSIONAL PLATFORMING OH MY GAWWW THIS IS THE NEW SHIT RIGHT HERE

I think the first game where I really said, "Wow, look at what is possible," was the original 1996 Tomb Raider. As clunky as that game looks now, back in 1996 that was amazing. You were running around a full conceived environment full of temples, wild animals, and mechanical traps that were more like the real world than Mario's candy-colored pipes and boxes.

I do have to say the next time I got that Tomb Raider feel was with Assassins Creed 4: Black Flag. The boat just sailing on those amazing active waves, with my men singing shanties; that experience just gave me a chill down the spine when I played it.

I think people put too much emphasis on, "did it hold up well?" Because honestly some things in life do not hold up well; but they can still be the most powerful experiences of your life. Did my first girlfriend hold up well? Hell no, we dated for 10 months and the ending was the typical bad breakup that in retrospect was very sad. She later married a lawyer, and moved to god knows where. That relationship, didn't hold up well. However, at the time, that was my FIRST girlfriend; so that was a first a lot of really powerful life changing stuff.

So no, that first TR game does not hold up, but at the time super- super important in a way that you just had to experience first hand to understand.

Seeing The Witcher 2's visuals made my jaw drop. Some great moments in Bioshock Infinite. I remember seeing a trailer or gameplay video of the first Assassin's Creed with the crowds and how much freedom you had that was insane to me.

Playing Half-Life in 1998 my jaw dropped when I got to that ledge on the cliff (was it after Black Mesa?). I actually got dizzy from that.

Going back it seems silly, I know

I guess this is cheating because it comes from a mod, but there's a scene in New Vegas Bounties II for Fallout: NV that totally shocked me (to the point of going back). It's right after you deal with the Red Bear part of that storyline and it's one of the best things I've seen from a mod.

@geraltitude: As a fan of old school industrial looking sci-fi like in Alien I really loved the aesthetic of Dead Space. I actually enjoyed solving the puzzles because I was just in love with all the machinery and the clever way your stasis and telekinesis played into it. All those little touches like no sound when you're in space except for your breathing, man. Also the little easter egg where if you take the first letter from each chapter title it spells out "n i c o l e i s d e a d" haha.

It's probably still the original Wing Commander from 1990 - if you failed multiple missions you didn't get a full on game over screen, instead you'd end up in a separate branch of the story where things were progressively getting more fucked and desperate, ultimately making a last stand in our solar system against overwhelming enemy numbers.

The tonal shift in the mission objectives and cutscenes just worked incredibly well, to the point that I didn't even want to see the game's actual ending, because the ending I got felt pretty much perfect.

Examples I can remember: SHORT SENTENCES ONLY.

• Forza Horizon 2 Demo: Going 200 MPH Through Tree & Shrubbery
• Withcher 2: High Resolution Stonework
• Dragon Age: Inquisition: Beautiful Forest of Lovely Green Trees
• WoW: First MMO - So Big World - So Many People
• Counter-Strike: FIRST ONLINE GAME. Real People Moving On My Screen
• TLOU - Joel Is Dying In My Hands (FEELING THROUGH CONTROLLER)
• Skyrim: Find Hidden Place - Feel SO SECRET and HIGH CEILING cave
• Amnesia: The First Big Scare GOT ME GOOD (Piano Room)

So many other I can't even remember, sorry to forgetting it. If you want more I'll think for that.

Uncharted 2, fighting your way through the collapsing building was pretty unreal. Still haven't really played a moment as gripping as that.

Inquisition also has left me pretty amazed how just how dense the world is.

Generally I am not too blown away by big graphical leaps. I appreciate good looking games, and the graphics of a game can even persuade me to get it but I rarely ever feel that amazed by them. The Order did make my jaw drop a couple times but that was largely due to the combination of technical graphical strength and strong framing and artistic design.

• Mario 64 (obivously)
• MGS2 (didn't think it could get better)
• GTA3 (instant classic)
• Uncharted 2 (remember the e3 demo jumping outta the collapsing building? it was the moment i felt like sony was finally living up to all the promise of the ps3)
• FFX (still my favorite game story)

and to lesser extent but still super impressed

• Bioshock (the world tickled all the right places in my brain)
• The Last of Us (haven't been that engrossed in a game in a long fucking time)

It happens several times. The last couple that jump into my mind are:

• The escape sequence in Bioshock Infinite
• The boss fight against the Underpants Gnomes in South Park

DooM

And in more recent times: Rage (visuals), Bioshock Infinite ending, Broken Age act1 ending.

I thought Heavy Rain was the most beautiful game I've ever seen.

It did not age well in any respect.

Gran Turismo 3 (PS2) and MGS4 (PS3)

Most recently was when Guilty Gear Xrd was revealed and they clashed and then the camera spun around AND THEY WERE 3D MODELS OH MY GOD WHAT IS HAPPENING OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Playing football in 3 dimensions for the first time with Madden '99 on the PSX absolutely blew my 8 year old self away.

... I was blown away again when my uncle and I went to GameCrazy and played a PS2 for the first time and played... Madden 2001. I didn't think it could get any more real than that. THEIR EYES ACTUALLY BLINKED YOU GUYS... I still play a lot of sports games.

Playing SOCOM for the first time (my first online multiplayer shooter, and that voice communication!)

Also when the Colonel went haywire in MGS2.

There are plenty more I'm missing, just a few that came to mind.

Learning I was Darth Revan all along.

If I wasn't constantly blown away I would not be playing video games. If a medium ceases to amaze me then I switch. Something weird that comes to mind is ME2, you don't often see people talk about the combat but the very first time I synergized biotics was absolutely awesome for me, totally caught me by surprise, I was probably about halfway through the game when I triggered it. Actually I think I stopped playing as that class and immediately restarted the game as a biotic.

I think honestly The Wonderful 101 had me agape more than once. That game is all sorts of crazy--maybe not Bayonetta crazy but it's definitely a Kamiya game if you get what I mean.

Same here back then.

For me, Halo CE too at that time. Oblivion had the same effect 4 years later because of its scope and world with so much to do and find.

More recently maybe Last of Us. The story, voice acting, and vibe was incredible. So griping and emotional.

Overall, Red Dead Redemption had a similar impact, especially the awesome ending.

The Mass Effect story between games and how they connected, and the effect of the decisions I made were pretty revelatory for me at the time.

A few that spring to mind, I'm sure there are more.

Hearing my uncle talk about playing this unbelievable game called EverQuest, then actually watching him play it.

Seeing Tomb Raider in action for the first time.

Walking out of the sewers in Oblivion.

A number of moments during The Last of Us.

Playing Shenmue for the first time.