As this gen comes to an end and a new one is set to begin I started to reflect on my favorite moments of this gen and decided to make a list documenting my best experiences. Some absolute masterpieces were made this gen as games further begin to blur the line between games and cinema. There's around 20 to 25 I consider among the best but for the sake of brevity and diversity here is my Top 10:
1. The Last of Us - This masterpiece of modern gaming is devestating. Devastatingly emotional and immersive. Devastatingly beautiful and conceived. And devastatingly hard to let go or forget. A culmination of everything genius crew Naughty Dog has learned throughout this entire Generation put on magnificent display in what is without question the single most defining moment of gaming narrative. The shocking ending took balls to attempt and the glorious way this ending is expertly built up in both story and gameplay is for me the most accomplished moment in all of gaming history.
2. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves - The single most fun I've ever had playing a campaign in my life. It took the child-like blissful glee I remembered from playing masterpieces like Super Mario 3 and melded that fun factor with the presentation and quality of writing of the best and brightest Hollywood blockbusters. As an avid film buff an aspiring filmmaker myself this was absolute gaming Heaven. Every set piece topped the next even though you just uttered seconds before it "there's no way they can top that". Somehow they do. But the real reason it works so brilliantly is not because of the great action. It's the great and lovable characters who you grow to love on the journey. Drake is like the perfect video game protagonist. Witty, badass, an ingeniously self-aware that he is a video game character at times. And the comradarie he has with Sully and the romance he has with Elena are all well realized and utterly believable. It's like a digitized family reunion every time you boot the game up.
3. Red Dead Redemption - Before The Last of Us came along and shattered its already astronomical expectations, one game which beautifully and painstakingly realized the classic western had the best story told of the generation. The story was that of ex-outlaw John Marston. Who seriously gives John Wayne and Clint Eastwood a run for their money. The game was so true tO it's origins that at once I felt I had actually become John Marston. Just jumping on a horse and galloping through the desert was a thing of beauty. And also, hunting. Never have I ever had more fun doing something arbitrary in a video game before. I remember hunting for 3 or 4 full hours straight one time. That's almost half the time of some campaigns in gaming. Amazing. As impressive as that is what's most impressive is the 40 plus hour story this magnificent game tells. To this day I still consider THIS Rockstar's masterpiece. A mature, endearing, and mystifying telling of Western mythology that every gamer owes to themselves to witness.
4. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Partiots - Where do I start? I guess the fact that Hideo Kojima's Metal Gear Solid for PSOne is my favorite video game of all time would be a good place. Why? Because it was the first game that bravely announced that video games could aspire to be just as cinematic as films are. That the medium is an artform and not just some niche for geeks. From the amazing movie-like opening credit sequence that sets the tone for the brilliance to follow to the flat out brilliant car chase scene that ends the game. Kojima's masterpiece hady jaw on the floor the entire time. Everything that made game great was put on steroids in MGS4: for better or worse. The graphics: stunning. Do ahead of its time that even today, 5 years after its release only a small handful of games can say they are equal or better. The story: brilliant. Convoluted as all hell (it's Metal Gear people, convolution is king) but brilliant nonetheless. The toungue-in-cheek meta references to the relationship between video games and the gamer. Check. Epic boss battles? Check. Badass characters? Check (see Super Raiden for details). And the last fight between Snake and Liquid is still gives me chills to this day. One of the top 3 moments of the generation easily.
5. Grand Theft Auto 5 - No GTA5 believe it or not is not my number one game of the gen. But that doesn't mean it's not amazing--cause it is. Or that its not beautiful--cause it is. Or that the attention to detail exhibited by Rockstar's in creating this massive open world isnt something to be studied and borrowed throughout the industry--cause it is. It's a great video game. But for me the Grand Theft Auto series is just great mindless fun. I pick Em up I play em for hours I marvel at their beauty and scope I put Em down and I wait for the next one. They don't stay with me or resonate with me as much as other games do even though I can acknowledge that their technically magnificent pieces of work. I hated GTA4. Found it boring repetitive and derivative. GTA5 is no GTA4. It's a brilliant heist game at times. And unlike most GTA it's characters are fully realized and a blast to play as. None more so than the brilliant creation that is the absolutely insane Trevor Phillips. He is without question THE quintessential GRA character and a masterwork of character design. He elevated the game to Quixotic heights on several occasions and makes it unique even within the GTA universe. Must play.
6. NBA 2K11 - There is a moment in NBA 2K11 when you boot the game up for the first time where you're thrust back into the glorious heyday of the greatest sports athlete in the history of the world: Michael Jordan complete with his legendary Bulls starting lineup announcement and impeccable recreation of Jordan's revolutionary signature style of play. And not through cinematics or actual footage, but through in engine gameplay. It's wondrous to behold. And for die hard Jordan fans or fans of greatness in general it's enough to bring tears to your eyes. Sure got me. One of the finest moments of this console generation. Top 5 easily for me. But oh that alone isn't why 2K sports gaming masterpiece is on my list though. It was in this moment that 2K siezed and harnested every inch of creative brilliance it could muster and revolutionized sports gaming with visuals and gameplay sovlifelike it reminded you of the dreams you used to have playing Double Dribble or Tecmo Super Bowl on NES. And if the released gameplay from NBA 2K14 on Ps4 is any indication. That dreams lives on. In glorious 1080p 60fps beauty.
7. Batman: Arkham City - The best superhero game ever made. Being a Batman cinephile and an avid lover of Batman: The Animated Series this game was a cosmic wet dream. Running throughout Gotham as the gotdamn Batman and Catwoman in such astoshingly realized detail is something that will never grow old. Ever. My beloved voice actors from Batman: The Animated Series are back including legends Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamil and they both get a magnificent send off in a truly riveting Batstory that I found to be compelling, entertaining, and refreshing. The myriads of ways Batman's plethora of fighting techniques and gadgets are ingeniously used throughout the game feels like a full lecture on how to make the perfect superhero game. This is one of the best games ever made.
8. Mass Effect 2 - What a magnicent game. The story, the characters, the gameplay, the choices. It's like the best parts of science fiction lore digitally realized. I recommend playing the game with female Commander Shepard. Jennifer Hale is amazing as the lead and to me she IS Shepard. Which kind of equates to the brilliance of the game. Everone's story of Shepard is difference and unique--that is until the ending of Mass Effect 3 of course. Haha...sorry, I had too.
9. God of War III- The opening fight between Kratos and Poiseidon is the most epic moment in video game history for me. It's frickin' biblical. I thought I was playing the 10 Commandments with Moses reimagined as a bloodthirsty badass. Look up epicness in the dictionary, I'm sure the boxart for this game is around there somewhere.
10. Super Street Fighter IV - Quite possibly the game I've logged the most hours in all generation. SSF4 is bursting with depth and diversity of play so grand it's euphoric. Every time I play I learn something new about my main, his/her match ups, or the game engine itself and this is well over 200hours in. Amazing fighting game and easily the best pure fighting game of the generation. Though Mortal Kombat's brilliant storyline is worth noting as well.
Honorable Mentions - Uncharted 1/3, Heavy Rain, The Walking Dead, Demon's Souls, LA Noire, Beyond: Two Souls, Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time, Battlefield 3, Alan Wake, MLB: The Show 10, Little Big Planet, Journey, Dead Space 2, Persona 4: Arena, Mortal Kombat.
