What's with the "Citizen Kane of videogames" thing?

I just watched Citizen Kane after hearing this phrase from Ryan and the other Bombers, but I still don't understand where this phrase comes from. Could someone explain?
 
Great movie, though.

Citizen Kane is often regarded as the greatest movie ever made, and comparing something to it is seen as a great complement.  

But I thought Twilight was the best film ever made.

Which game did they refer to as ''The Citizen Kane of videogames'' anywhoo?

I have always said that we need a videogame adaptation of Citizen Kane.  That way we could have something with the honorific of, "The Citizen Kane of Movies of Games of Movies"

There was a rather bizarre segment on ABC News (I believe) a while back where a game critic unilaterally declared Metroid Prime as the Citizen Kane of video games, to which the rest of the world watching responded with, "wat."
 
It's been a running joke ever since.  Metroid Prime is a classic, no doubt, but it's not that easy to pinpoint any specific game as having advanced the medium in the ways that Citizen Kane is credited for advancements made in film.

Braid?
 
*Hides from flaming* ;_;

Citizen Kane video game sounds awesome. Hammer X to trash ex-wife's room. Enter Rosebud for an extra life.

" But I thought Twilight was the best film ever made. "

So now that we've answered his question, let's get down to the important one, what's the real CK of vidja games!? 
 
To me it's clearly Duke Nukem 3D, or maybe Limbo... either one.

It's part of a discussion about the validity of games as an expressive (dare I say artful?) medium, and not just "some toy that stupid insecure nerds use". 
You see, the thing Citizen Kane did for film was something a bit similar. Because of it's use of cinematography, script, story, characters, etc, the way it pulled all these strings together, and let them be expressive by themselves, but also come together as a whole, the images "telling stories", the use of different angles to reflect status, the red herring of Rosebud. It basically cemented the film medium to the general (mainstream) public, and, some would contend, changed the 'official' perception of film.
So, as the affectionate nerds we are, sometimes we want to make that happen for games as well. And that's when corny, hyperbolic terms gets thrown into the discussion. I believe that it is very possible that games will get that sort of gratification one day, but at that point, no one is doubting wheter or not "THIS IS IT", it just is.
 
Also, IGN kinda set this flamewar ablaze: 
http://wii.ign.com/articles/103/1033302p1.html
 
Destructoid responded: 
 http://www.destructoid.com/why-comparing-metroid-prime-to-citizen-kane-is-ludicrous-151465.phtml  

Also also, in the same way of thought, the guys at Giant Bomb are sometimes referenced as the Pauline Kael or Hunter S. Thompsons of games. You are free to google these names if you like :)

The correct answer is Duke Nukem Forever. Just you fucking wait and see.

Usually means a game that comes out and progresses the genre in a huge way, making a stake as a definitive answer to the 'are games art' shit. Mike Thomsen used it to mean a game that used mechanics and aesthetic to reflect the emotional state and history of Samus and the environment, rather than a more basic definition that I described. 

I'd call Zelda ocarina of time this.

I personally thought the way Red Dead handled its plot made it the Citizen Kane of gaming stories. Those three endings and that final title card were effing brilliant.

Buncha people never seen Citizen Kane.

Ah right, I get it now. So it's just like "hey this game is expressive and cements videogames as a storytelling medium"? I guess having seen a bunch of movies made after CK meant I didn't realise what CK had done for movies. 
 
Aren't we well beyond that point though?

" Which game did they refer to as ''The Citizen Kane of videogames'' anywhoo? "

" Ah right, I get it now. So it's just like "hey this game is expressive and cements videogames as a storytelling medium"? I guess having seen a bunch of movies made after CK meant I didn't realise what CK had done for movies.  Aren't we well beyond that point though? "

I would say that games can be a true work of art,first thing comes to mind,at least for me is Grim Fandango, now that game,was a fucking masterpiece.

"

"

" I would say that games can be a true work of art,first thing comes to mind,at least for me is Grim Fandango, now that game,was a fucking masterpiece. "

" Which game did they refer to as ''The Citizen Kane of videogames'' anywhoo? "

" So now that we've answered his question, let's get down to the important one, what's the real CK of vidja games!?  To me it's clearly Duke Nukem 3D, or maybe Limbo... either one. "

I don't believe there has been a "citizen kane" of video games yet. You'll know it happens when across the world as a whole video games are looked at and it is said "The reflection and story brought to us by this production truly quatifies it's art form and changes how we see video games forever." It won't literally be said, but it will be understood.
 
As much as we can look back fondly on our games of choice, none of them have done this yet. Sometimes I wonder if they can- they do come very close sometimes, though.
 
I say this having read and seen OP has gotten an answer already and I find this discussion intriguing. Just my thoughts on it.

" Citizen Kane is widely regarded as the greatest film ever made.  It also revolutionized how movies were filmed with it's camera angles, lighting and lens focus.  So when someone refers to "the Citizen Kane of video games", they mean a revolutionary video game that will be regarded as one of, if not the greatest video game of all time and how it pushes video games further as an art form. "

" @GunslingerPanda said:

" Ah right, I get it now. So it's just like "hey this game is expressive and cements videogames as a storytelling medium"? I guess having seen a bunch of movies made after CK meant I didn't realise what CK had done for movies.  Aren't we well beyond that point though? "

Its not even that. Citizen Kane didn't invent storytelling. It basically was the first english speaking movie to hit a movie milestone so that's why we remember it instead of M, or Metropolis, or Nosferatu as THE milsetone even though those other films were arguably larger milestones. By that same token, we'd have to wait for an American or UK developer to hit a milestone to call it the next Citizen Kane. So Mario 64 doesn't apply, nor does Super Mario Bros. How about Wolfenstine, there's your english language gamechanger. "

Citizen Kane is considered to be one of the best films ever made despite and because the fact that it was made at 1941, what they ment at the podcast is that despite the fact that Bomberman is an old game it still works great by todays standards and it's still fun to play.

" There was a rather bizarre segment on ABC News (I believe) a while back where a game critic unilaterally declared Metroid Prime as the Citizen Kane of video games, to which the rest of the world watching responded with, "wat."  It's been a running joke ever since.  Metroid Prime is a classic, no doubt, but it's not that easy to pinpoint any specific game as having advanced the medium in the ways that Citizen Kane is credited for advancements made in film. "

It's a really good movie, too.  The people on this site should see it if they haven't.  At the very least, you'll understand more of the references in the Simpsons. 

Citizen Kane of the Games = The most overrated, overhyped game ever.
 
GeoW, maybe?

The Citizen Kane of video games is obviously 50' Cent: Blood On The Sand.  
Fifty. 

" Buncha people never seen Citizen Kane. "

It's because people feel like they need to equate mediums and also feel like it'll legitimize video games as an art form.

I dont think there's ever been a video game quite THAT influential... but if I were to pick something close, I would say Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. 

In terms of storytelling important and specific to the medium of games, I'd say Bioshock got closest, but the ending might have ruined that.  As a whole package, probably Ocarina of Time.

I've heard Ocarina of Time being called the Citizen Kane of video games before and I wouldn't disagree.

No other game I can think ofof still has some many gaming systems still being used by newer games.

" It's because people feel like they need to equate mediums and also feel like it'll legitimize video games as an art form. "

" I dont think there's ever been a video game quite THAT influential... but if I were to pick something close, I would say Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.  "

Citizen  Kane of video games? Another World, that game introduced a whole bunch of story telling techniques that where revolutionary for its time and still find its use today, which given that it is nearing its 20th Anniversary is quite remarkable. Other then that, Super Mario 64 certainly comes close, as it completely revolutionized 3D gaming as a whole (look at early Saturn titles to see the contrast). I wouldn't put Zelda:OoT into that category, while its lock-on certainly was revolutionary, it didn't really do much else that hasn't already been done in 2D before. But as Carbon  already said, there are to many genres of games around and games are still evolving pretty rapidly. At this point it also seems we are down to a whole lot of incremental improvements instead of getting a single game breaking new ground across the board.

They should just make Citizen Kane the videogame based on the movie and be done with it. Then we can all say Citizen Kane the Game is the Citizen Kane of gaming.

I thought it was because IGN was dumb enough to compare Citizen Kane to metroid.

I am the Citizen Kane of Video Games.