Hints for the next two games at the end as always.

#14
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Previous Year: #12

The best game in the entire Metal Gear-series. I was a relatively late to the series overall outside of the first MGS, which I did play in the late 90s, so I didn't actually play Snake Eater until it was released as a part of the HD collection. Regardless, the game's quality hasn't diminished at all over the years, as its story is easily the strongest of the entire series, as it's not weighed down by the overly complicated backstory of the later games. It's also emotionally the most powerful game in the series, with the final battle with the boss being one of gaming's best moments ever.

#13
Dark Souls II
Previous Year: #11

Something of a black sheep of the series, I still enjoyed Dark Souls II immensely, even if it's not quite as great as the first or third game. The world and lore of DSII is somewhat disconnected from the rest of the series, and unlike the closely woven, interconnected world of the first game, the world in this one branches out far from the central hub, which given the game a very different feel to the other games in the series. It may be the weakest in the trilogy, but I still think its one of the best games ever made without a doubt.

Hints:

#12: One of the generally less liked entries in this JRPG series. It had the unfortunate role of following the most successful game in the franchise which effectively popularized the entire genre in the west.

#11: The night of the hunt for those afflicted by a disease borne of blood.

#14 Kirby's Return to Dream Land

Being honest, I could fill half my list with Kirby games, is the most consistent Nintendo franchise, either main games or spin offs, not a single bad game, is up there with Super Mario and Zelda for me in terms of the best IPs Nintendo offers, but in this case, besides Air Ride, I'll only include my absolute favorite, its soundtrack, level design, minigames, the bosses, especially the final boss, which is one of my favorites of all time, I'm just very fond of this game.

#13 Super Metroid

I'll cop out my typing, other people have mentioned this game with more interesting things to say, so yea.

12: FFVIII?

11: Bloodborne?

Correct on both.

#12 Dark Souls

Why did it make the list?
Because it takes the gameplay of old school D&D and puts it into visually beautiful, modern 3D package.  When I talk about old school D&D, what I mean is that the game is at it’s best when you are in a deadly dungeon, but you are able to overcome the monsters, traps and other dangers if you are smart about it.  This is Dark Souls in a nutshell.  Yes, the game is very much trying to kill you in every encounter, but if you think and keep your wits about it, then you can also get through unscathed.

It may even be more accurate to say that Dark Souls is a modern take on what a roguelike is, because Dark Souls also lets you choose what kind of character you want to play through this game of death.  Do you want to be a slow tank, a fast and nimble melee fighter, an archer, a wizard, or some kind of hybrid between these types.  You choose how you want to play the game.  That is why Dark Souls is brilliant.  Yes, it is always trying to kill you, but it is also not afraid to give you plenty of tools and opportunities to overcome the game’s many challenges.

Original experience:
When I think of my original experience with this series, I am more apt to go back to Demon’s Souls, which is the first game like this that I played.  It was a really amazing game for me at the time.  I kind of felt that the teeth had been taken out of modern gaming, and I was glad to find a new game that was willing to put the teeth back in.

However after I played Dark Souls, I went back and tried Demon’s Souls and I realized it is kind of a bland game by comparison.  Dark Souls just has far more interesting environments and a lot more variety than Demon’s Souls had.  With Dark Souls they took a very good game and just made it so much better in every way. 

How does it hold up today?
It still holds up great.  However, it has been a few years since I’ve played it, so this may be a good excuse for me to go back and be sure. 😉

Nope.

#11: You draw maps in Brawl? Anyways, Brawl already was my #47. And you guessed it. But this one is something else.

#10: Wow, you guessed right. The first mission in this game is by the way, to get the plans for the Death Star.

#9: And correct again.

Two out of three!

I have to pick up this game at some point, given how much I like Demon's Souls. I currently wait if From Software announces anything for Switch, this would be my primary platform for it.

And if Dark Souls is like Demon's Souls, then the description as a roguelike has a lot going for it, although the randomly genereated levels and the permadeath are missing. But exploring the dungeon with traps and monsters, this is the roguelike-experience.

Time for more hints, entering the TOP 10 on the way.

game #11

Hint 1: Crossover of two well-known game-series that never before shared the same platform.

Hint 2: Draw the map on graph paper in your school notebook.

Hint 3: This turn-based RPG is very stylish and colorful.

game #10

Hint 1: This first-person-shooter is set in a universe more well-known for it's space fights.

Hint 2: The first mission in this game helps set the events of the first movie into motion.

Guessed by The_Liquid_Laser: Star Wars: Dark Forces.

game #9

Hint 1: You must leave the keep you were raised at the beginning of the game. You'll find more friends along the way, and have to decide which one travels with you and who will not.

Hint 2: This game changes a turn-based RPG-system in the backgrounds into a real-time game with pausing. This sort of gameplay was setting new standards for the time.

Guessed by The_Liquid_Laser: Baldur's Gate.

If you really like Demon's Souls, then you definitely have to play Dark Souls.  The gameplay for Dark Souls is almost the same as Demon's Souls, but I really had more of a sense of adventure in Dark Souls.  It feels like you are making your way through a rich and detailed fantasy/horror world.  The things you encounter in Dark Souls are more interesting in general.

And you are right that Demon's Souls and Dark Souls are not exactly roguelikes, but I feel like it appeals to the same type of person who likes roguelikes.  Dark Souls feels like a very forgiving roguelike to me.

I suspect my top 15 will be decently difficult to guess, I might do writeups for my top 10.

15 Hint 1: Features 12 different playstyles within 4 paths. One might get more resources from certain things or all buildings become free, or combat advantages or a special power.
Hint 2: Fight with Gigantes, Trolls, Jackals, or Colossi.
Hint 3: A PC RTS game, never had a sequel despite how great it was.
14 Hint 1: Turn based strategy game. There are many things you can do during the day like Pillage, Observe, Train, Buy items, Talk, Wait, Travel, Work.
Hint 2: During battle you can actually set the land on fire to really annoy the enemy.
13 Hint 1: Grid based combat. Outside of combat you can persuade people to join you or find secret items. Preparation is also very important with setting up each army with the appropriate Leader, Strategist, and Officer. You can send each army whichever way you want, and when defending, your army gets an advantage.