While I think determining the greatest game on any criteria other than sales, as many in this thread want to do, is somewhat pointless; if you do want to dermine a subjective answer for the general population consider this.
- Wii Sports has circulated more copies than any other game in history.
- By the game's very nature most copies have been played significantly more than one person.
- It is still a pretty new game, and very much on the minds' of the general public.
If even 5% of the people who have played Wii Sports think its the greatest game ever, then in all likely a survey of the general public asking "What is the greatest video game ever?" would most likely put it first. The only game I could see having a chance against it would be Super Mario Bros (but it being a quarter century ago, and as such no longer on the brain of most casual gamers, would likely kill its chances too)
Just to beat home a point. If in 1998 you had done a survey of the general public asking what is the greatest movie of all time, I would guarentee that Titanic would have come out in first. No movie critic or hardcore movie buff would have put it there, but the same chicks who made it the highest grossing film would have voted for it in big numbers. And it wouldn't matter for a second that some hard core geeks (myself included) hated it for overtaking Star Wars as the highest grossing film of all time.
One of the truely odd things about all forms of art is that what satisfies the masses is rarely what satisfies the fanatic. But which is more important? While it is easy when one is the fanatic to discount the opinions of all others who are "beneath you", how can something that brings joy to millions be discounted? Why should their opinions not count?
