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Edge's Top 100 Games to Play Today

For Edge magazine's historic 200th issue a list was created which contained what Edge believes to be the 100 best games to play today. Since their list was assembled in 2009, it's now a little outdated in my eyes, so I've taken to a little selective editing. Games will be replaced with sequels, but only when the sequel is fundamentally the same game and is taken to now be the definitive game in the series. LittleBigPlanet 2 is a good example, it's fundamentally the same as the first game, but better in perhaps every way. When I can be bothered I've also been adding a little blurb to each game.

If I'm breaking any rules by posting this list on GiantBomb then by all means remove this list, but since it's freely available on the internet I don't see that there's anything wrong with this.

List items

1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Ocarina of Time, but I must confess I used a guide for much of it.
My problem was that without guidance I was spending a huge amount of time either with no idea of where to go next or spending hours trying to get through the wrong dungeons.
I'll concede that I'm not a fan of exploring to work out where to go next for myself, and for this reason I probably didn't enjoy OoT as much as it's possible to. Nevertheless it was still a hugely enjoyable experience.
2. Super Mario 64

As with the Ocarina of Time I had a huge amount of trouble in this game just working out where I was supposed to be heading next.
However unlike Zelda, when I cheated and looked at a guide I was kicking myself for not having worked it out myself rather than thanking my lucky stars I'd avoided barking up the wrong tree for hours at a time.
3. Half-Life 2

inc. Episodes
It may have since been outdone by the likes of Bioshock in its interactive storytelling, but there's no denying that Half Life 2 spins a yarn unlike any other.
The set pieces are fantastic don't get me wrong, but the moments of the game that really stand in my memory are those when you suddenly come across the remains of a resistance member, whose environment effortlessly tells you everything you need to know about their backstory.
4. Resident Evil 4

For the longest time I simply couldn't get into RE4. This was mostly due to it's controls, which even at the time felt out of step with where mainstream design philosophies were going.
I'm glad I stuck with it though, since after playing through its introduction it was hard to imagine how it would even be possible to do a thing such as shoot and run simultaneously. Small niggles stayed annoying for the game's length (why oh why doesn't the screen turn when the Wiimote reticule nears the screens edge?!), but the game's quality managed to overwhelm these, leaving me with one of the tightest games I'd ever played.
5. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
6. Super Mario World

Without a doubt the best 2D platformer of all time. It's almost unbelievable that this game was given away free with SNESs when it's of such unbelievable quality.
Less skilled gamers such as myself will find the save state feature on modern emulators invaluable with taking on some of the game's harder levels, but even then the game still manages to stretch your twitch reflexes to their limit.
7. Tetris

In an age of motion controllers, 3D, and high definition, it's crazy to think that it's still possible to see people playing Tetris on their phones.
The game is perfect in ways I can't even begin to wrap my head around. It may be confined to moments of boredom on the train nowadays, but even here it manages to be far more appealing than any other handheld game ever released.
8. Super Mario Galaxy 2
9. Halo 3

It may now live in the shadow of the Call of Duty behemoth, but Halo still provides the quintessential first person shooter experience on a console. It's tight, it's timeless, and even after all these years it's a blast to drop into a couple of games with friends.
10. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

It may not stretch your gaming skills in the way other Mario games have been able to, but there's an irresistible charm to Yoshi's Island that's hard to deny.
Haters may dismiss it as overly childish with it's crayon aesthetic and obsession with babies, but for a single shot of platforming joy it's really hard to turn your back on.
11. Grand Theft Auto IV

It's detractors like to claim the Grand Theft Auto series was at its best when it didn't take itself too seriously, but anyone who was willing to forgive the lack of jetpacks in GTA4 would have found a great deal more to enjoy in what is unquestionably the greatest open world ever constructed.
It may have fallen slightly flat in its third act, but GTA4 is at its best when you simply take the time to marvel at its world in all its grimy detail.
12. LittleBigPlanet 2
13. Super Street Fighter IV
14. Left 4 Dead 2
15. Rock Band 3
16. Super Metroid
17. World of Warcraft
18. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
19. Sid Meier's Civilization V
20. Super Mario Bros. 3
21. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Perhaps no other game has so completely encapsulated a point in time as Vice City. Even at its release its graphics were dated, but that didn't stop it from oozing a very specific atmosphere, with radio stations and car designs that seem so natural it's almost like stepping into the future when you turn of the game and walk outside.
22. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
23. Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown
24. Final Fantasy XII

All those time-intensive little tasks that can bog down your JRPG experience were eliminated with the twelfth entry in the Final Fantasy series. Finally the casual fans amongst us could focus our attention on the greater systems at work, and discover a whole world previously obscured by layers of complexity. Some have called it a misstep, others the series' best entry, but either way, when taken on its own merits it's still a fantastic game.
25. Medieval II: Total War
26. Mario Kart 7
27. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
28. Advance Wars
29. Company of Heroes
30. Bomberman
31. Team Fortress 2
32. Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
33. BioShock
34. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
35. Burnout Paradise
36. Fallout 3
37. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
38. Super Monkey Ball
39. WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!
40. GRID
41. Portal 2
42. FIFA 12
43. JSRF: Jet Set Radio Future
44. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
45. Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness
46. EVE Online
47. Final Fantasy VII
48. Rez HD
49. Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
50. R-Type Final
51. Fable II
52. Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
53. ICO
54. Pokémon Yellow: Special Pikachu Edition
55. Counter-Strike: Source
56. Deus Ex
57. Gears of War 3
58. Viewtiful Joe
59. Bust-A-Move

aka Puzzle Bobble
60. Robotron: 2084
61. Ninja Gaiden II
62. Lemmings
63. Puyo Pop Fever
64. Thief II: The Metal Age
65. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
66. Chrono Trigger
67. Shadow of the Colossus
68. Super Smash Bros. Brawl
69. Daytona USA
70. OutRun 2006: Coast 2 Coast
71. Frequency
72. Skate 3
73. Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords
74. F-Zero GX
75. Planescape: Torment
76. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
77. XCOM: Enemy Unknown
78. Pac-Man Championship Edition
79. Quake III Arena
80. Silent Hill 2
81. Sam & Max Hit the Road
82. Peggle
83. God of War
84. The Secret of Monkey Island
85. SingStar
86. Doom II: Hell on Earth
87. Tetris Attack

aka Panel de Pon
88. Final Fantasy VI
89. Braid
90. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
91. Animal Crossing: City Folk
92. Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence
93. The Sims 2
94. Space Giraffe
95. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
96. Football Manager 2012
97. Star Fox 64
98. Resident Evil
99. Far Cry
100. R4 Ridge Racer Type 4