If we're talking purely on the "influential" front, then I could rattle off a better list in my sleep. In no particular order (because all of these are/were highly influential, and ranking them on the basis of pure opinion is stupid):
Betrayal at Krondor
Rogue (and/or NetHack)
Might & Magic 6
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord
Baldur's Gate
Pokemon Red/Blue
The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall (or Arena, if you prefer)
Final Fantasy IV
Ultima III: Exodus
Lunar: The Silver Star
That original list is just silly as hell. The only thing that most of those games influenced was the collective pocketbooks of a small legion of otakus.
"'Casual games' are something the 'Game Industry' invented to explain away the Wii success instead of actually listening or looking at what Nintendo did. There is no 'casual strategy' from Nintendo. 'Accessible strategy', yes, but ‘casual gamers’ is just the 'Game Industry''s polite way of saying what they feel: 'retarded gamers'."
-Sean Malstrom
