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30-26 for my list, on to the top 25 now!

30. The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)

I'll get this out of the way quick, I despise having to play that damned pan flute.  Aside from that this game is exactly what Phantom Hourglass should have been.  Whether you travel by boat or train the ability to explore the world without the sometimes annoyance of finding a path through the world works well.  The problems of having to redo parts of a dungeon are in the past but the hub concept is kept in a way that makes sense and ties your experiences together.  The items and dungeons are what make Zelda games, and this forgets none of that.  The level of simplicity in the items design is exactly the same thing that allows them to be so flexible and not fall into the predictable, use the item I just got pattern.

29. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3)

As far as story and sidequests go this Final Fantasy lacks but it makes up for it with the gameplay.  Coming long after XII brought an open world and on map battles, the battle system was completely reworked.  Instead of the focus being on selecting a command, the switch to selecting paradigms and largely encouraged use of auto battle introduced a different type of battle.  If you miss how much of the strategy is based on not only which paradigms you have available, but also how they combine and affect the stagger gauge you'll miss out on what this game offers.  Figuring out exactly how long to risk staying in an attacking paradigm can mean the difference between dying from a big attack, the doom counters in boss fights, or walking the line to victory.  Risks are both encouraged and rewarded, with the penalty being diminished due to the ability to retry a battle.  Not facing the prospect of grinding your way back through a dungeon takes out the frequent worries from other RPGs (oops I forgot to save).  In addition the battle system opens up nearly your entire skill set for the battle without worrying about running out of MP.  I've always wanted to avoid the standard overworld, attack attack attack battles and this was a nice way to do it.

28. Chrono Chross (PS)

The sheer number of playable characters in this game is remarkable.  Keeping the multiple endings like in Chrono Trigger and the deep stories that tend to come with time travel and parallel dimensions creates a game that you can thoroughly explore multiple times, learning new things each time.  The battle system in the game is at the same time familiar and completely new, making it a fresh experience compared to other rpgs.  The leveling system also eliminates the ability to over level by capping stats until certain parts of the game, which is nice.

27. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii)

The same old Zelda, done to near perfection is a good way to sum this one up.  There are plenty of sidequests to keep you busy and the main storyline leads you through just about every type environment imaginable.  The twilight realm was good if not beautiful although the wolf gameplay just wasn't as fun as the rest.  The enemies in this game feel more responsive in this game than before which is a welcome change.  In addition the puzzles in the game seemed to set themselves apart from other games, primarily due to items such as the spinner and double clawshot.

26. Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)

I don't think I've ever simultaneous enjoyed and hated a game so much at the same time as while playing this game.  Lets get the formalities out of the way; story, characters and annoyingly long dress sphere changes sucked.  Fortunately, the gameplay was wonderful.  Once again having the ability to choose your characters class was a major plus and adding in that you could customize how you switched between them in battle was fascinating.  The faster paced battle system that I usually dislike seemed to fit right in as well.  On top of that the airship hub which allowed you to travel where you want and create opportunities for exploration of a different side of the world from X was enjoyable.  Finally, they catered to my obsessive nature with a completion percentage for choosing different paths through  the game, which is something I probably shouldn't but celebrating.



Primarily an RPG player but have interest in any game that will make me think.