System Defining Games

[h2ohno]

NES: Super Mario Bros. The game that set the console off and arguably saved the console market in the US.

SNES: A Link to the Past or Super Metroid. These games are basically considered the pinnacle of 2D gaming and 16-bit design.

Genesis: Sonic the Hedgehog. The game that put Sega on the map.

Saturn: Panzer Dragoon. The first game I think of when it comes to the Saturn.

Game Boy: Pokemon. It's Pokemon, nuff said.

PS1: Either FF7 or Metal Gear Solid. These games personify the move to more cinematic games on the Playstation.

N64: Super Mario 64. It's been called the only launch title that truly showed off what the console could do for a reason. So much of the book for 3D game design was written by Super Mario 64. Shout outs to Mario Kart 64 and Goldeneye for truly pushing the 4-player multiplayer aspect of the console.

Dreamcast: Sonic Adventure. It would be Shenmue if that game came out earlier, but Sonic Adventure was a statement and its orca chase in the first level is one of those generation-defining moments.

PS2: GTA 3. Gaming was getting grittier and more mature, and this was the game that really established that trend.

Xbox: Halo. The game IS Xbox at least for that generation.

Gamecube: Either Melee or Wind Waker. Melee is by far the most popular game on the system, while Wind Waker exemplified a lot of what defined Nintendo in those days, making unexpected and risky changes while largely ignoring the more mature direction the other console manufacturers were going in.

GBA: Pass. I can't think of anything that stands out from the rest.

DS: Mario Kat DS. This game was a phenomenon and everyone was obsessed with it, plus it added online play to the series pretty well. Still considered a high water mark for the series as a whole.

PSP: Ridge Racer. The game that seemed like it was from the future.

360: Gears of War. The game that really showed what the system could do at the perfect time while popularizing a new form of action game and giving people the first real reason to get Xbox live that wasn't Halo 2. Call of Duty would supplant it in influence just a year later,but Gears gets the nod for being first and for being an exclusive.

PS3: Uncharted 2. Everyone's favorite Naughty Dog game except for maybe The Last of Us. I think it also marked something of a turning point for the system's fortunes, as it had been floundering for the first couple of years after launch.

Wii: Wii Sports. It couldn't be anything else.

3DS: Super Mario 3D Land. The game that showed how the stereoscopic 3D should be done and even used it to influence gameplay.

Vita: I can't think of games that came out on the Vita period.

Wii U. Super Mario Maker. A game the system was basically made for.

PS4: Again, hard to think of games that stand out. Maybe Horizon or God of War, but something that defines the system? Don't really see it. Same for XB1.

Switch: Doom. I know a lot of people will go straight for one of the big first-party titles, but to me Doom defines the Switch's mission statement of the same big console experience but on the go. All the impossible ports from Witcher 3 to Crysis are following on from what Doom did.

Last edited by h2ohno - on 31 August 2020