"Trip Down Memory Lane: Top 15 Video Games" - December 18, 2008

As everyone is already very well aware of, I'm a ridiculously nostalgic person. A major part of my past, however far back that may indeed extend, would be video games. Talk about a central focus of my life for so many years. I'll always remember living in Chicago and going to a buddy's house to play Nintendo 64, which was typically the norm if you weren't out playing baseball or basketball. What's funny is, those were the days when beating Perfect Dark was the most difficult thing was going on in your life (which I need to buy on eBay).

I've worked on these "Top 15" lists in the past, did 'em seemingly religiously at the beginning of the year (before life started getting more in the way), and while I still have three finals to take tomorrow, I thought I'd ease myself of some stress with a trip down memory lane. Whether it be recent or from the past, these are games almost all of you should know, as these defined our generation and sometimes those after us. I can't make a universal "Top 15" list, so this is essentially my personal favorite 15 video games of all-time. Let's begin.

#1 - Goldeneye 007 (Nintendo 64, 1997) - Single-handedly the most addictive game I've ever played in my entire life. A game who's gameplay is so modern, who's graphics were stellar for the time, who made a first-person shooter more than just killin' bitches in your way. Find me one guy my age who didn't own and enjoy this game, I dare you. It's based on the 1995 James Bond film Goldeneye, and the game is ridiculously accurate toward the movie's storyline. 17 different levels (19 if you unlock "Egyptian" and "Aztec"), all of which maintaining different objectives to make each level more difficult than the last (my favorite being, easily, Statue Park). This game has been with me through everything, whether it be preparing for basketball practice or simply just using it to relieve some stress (recently, for example).

#2 - Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64, 1996) - This is a game that shouldn't be omitted from any video game list. It's a seemingly never-ending quest to find 120 stars throughout the game and defeat your enemy Bowser three times, first time Mario ever did it in 3D. Clever levels, interesting storyline, and complex challenges that no matter how many times you beat the game, always make you want to do it again.

#3 - Pokemon Red and Blue (Nintendo Game Boy, 1998) - Yeah, I know this is the "lame" answer, but back ten years ago, there wasn't a single person who wasn't playing one of these games. And they were always exciting: Say you beat the Elite Four, you still needed to catch more Pokemon. The game never ended, even though (by research) it's a fact that you can't catch every single one (unless one has a Gameshark). I recently broke out my Red version just for kicks and I swear I couldn't put it down! Gold was always my favorite, but Gold would've never existed without these two, which sufficiently held me over for a couple years before the release of Gold. Pokemon Stadium (N64, 2000) won't make the list, but deserves honorable mention. Great game as well.

#4 - Kingdom Hearts (PlayStation 2, 2002) - A game that I still think doesn't receive it's due from the public, I always thought it was brilliant. Not to mention, the shit gets REALLY hard after awhile. Hollow Bastion is probably my favorite level / world in ANY video game, because along with it's absolutely beautiful design, the story really starts to unfold. I spent DAYS trying to beat Riku, for Christ's sake! The game was always a challenge, I was lucky enough to beat End of the World with the Ultima Weapon after several tries. You know what? I haven't played this in awhile, actually...

#5 - Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex (PlayStation, 1998) - The sequal to the magnificent 1996 debut, the game seems more appealing solely based on the fact that the story is easier to understand and characters are given more interesting personalities. I couldn't tell you how many times I collected every crystal but could hardly get the gems, haha. Still, awesome game, still have it, too. May give that one a spin tonight.

#6 - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64, 1998) - Yes, I realize it's not #1 on my list, like it is everywhere else. But it's there, which in itself is impressive enough. I'd spent endless days in the winter of 1998 playing this one, and if I wasn't playing it, I was organizing my 1998 Collector's Choice baseball cards while watching my mother play it. What a fun game, easily the best of the Zelda series (coming in very close would be "Wind Waker). Got the GameCube version of it with Master Quest, which is hard as shit, but nevertheless, exciting.

#7 - Banjo-Kazooie (Nintendo 64, 1998) - Outside of Goldeneye this was the Rare corporation's shining moment. It's a stupid bear with an annoying, smart-ass bird in it's backpack who can fly both around at will. How brilliant is that? Not to mention, the storyline flows very well, for such a silly concept the game has moments that are just ridiculously hard. The game pretty much out-does any sequel made from it, hands down.

#8 - Spyro The Dragon (PlayStation, 1997) - People often overlook the Spyro series and I never understood why. It's this cute dragon with a vicious interior, kinda like that small dog or cat all of us had once owned in our lifetimes. Interesting plot, nice graphics for it's time. Basically all your doing is shooting fire at the asses of anything that gets in your way, and if you can't burn it, ram it! Great game, underrated too.

#9 - Final Fantasy VII (PlayStation, 1997) - I remember how difficult this game was being only five years old at the time of it's release, but in reality, after re-visiting it several times after that, I pretty much came to the conclusion that the game really does live up to it's hype. One of the best video game stories I'd ever experienced and possibly the most well-done RPG of all-time. No one should overlook this one.

#10 - Sonic Adventure / Sonic Adventure 2: Battle (SEGA Dreamcast / Nintendo GameCube, 1999 / 2001) - Sonic the Hedgehog is probably my favorite video game character of all-time. I remember playing the original game on Sega Genesis when I was at least four years old (still have the Genesis, no idea how to hook it up). We sold the Genesis around '96, but when I got the Dreamcast in 2000 it was a BLAST playing as Sonic again. Not to mention, it's a great story, easy to follow (unlike the latest installment, blech!), and the missions are pretty classic Sonic. Love this game, wish my Dreamcast hadn't crapped out on me. It's sequel was just as good, if not better, introducing Shadow Sonic and also focusing more on individual storylines.

#11 - Tom Clancy: Splinter Cell (XBOX, 2002) - I got an XBOX for Christmas 2002, and I remember instantly by dad bought this game for the both of us on December 26. At the time, there was no other game like it. It was much more than just a first-person shooter; it was a strategic, complex, and thusly, interesting game.

#12 - Halo 2 (XBOX, 2004) - Very fond memories of this game, clearly one of which playing it in my CCA class after every lesson with just about everyone there Freshman year. The Halo series defines this generation, much like Goldeneye did seven years prior, and anyone who hasn't played or owned one has really been missing out.

#13 - Super Smash Bros. (Nintendo 64, 1999) - Why not higher on the list? I'm well aware that it's a favorite of just about everyone I know, but frankly I've always been a fan of storyline-oriented games. Regardless, you guys have no idea how many sleepless nights I spent playing this one when it first came out. Melee and Brawl were great sequels, excellent even, but the first will always be the ultimate one. Awesome.

#14 - Rayman (PlayStation, 1995) - The oldest game to be on the list, and definitely deserving of it. Rayman is just a...weird...thing, who goes through ridiculously unusual obstacles in order to complete the game. I've never fully finished it, because sometimes it gets so bizarre you just kinda lose focus. I swear, someone HAD to be on LSD when they made this one, haha. Great game, though, and often forgotten due to it's subpar-to-awful sequels.

#15 - Yoshi Story (Nintendo 64, 1998) - My Nintendo history ain't as good as it used to be, but I don't recall any game revolving around the lovable dinosaur Yoshi. What a "cute" game, if you will. Interesting plot, with Yoshi inevitably having to defeat Baby Bowser at the end. It takes the form of a standard NES Mario game for the most part, just with 3D graphics, which is what makes it so interesting. Great plot, great game.

Games of honorable mention (due in part because I didn't want to add racing or party games) - Mario Kart 64 and Double Dash, Diddy Kong Racing, Crash Team Racing, Mario Party 1 and 2.

Now, I finished that list, but what I'm sure everyone knows about me is, I'm also an avid sports fan. Thus, I take a strong liking to sports games, as one is able to control the progress of a team in a season, franchise, or just an exhibition game. I'm going to list two games each for baseball, basketball, and football, just to balance it out. I could list many more, but don't see much sense in it.

Baseball:

Major League Baseball featuring Ken Griffey Jr. (Nintendo 64, 1998) - The simplest yet quite possibly the most exciting baseball game ever made. I love season mode where you can pretty much rape an opposing team 28-0, and how they would never sub out their pitcher anyway. I've probably thrown about ten perfect games (just threw one with Pat Hentgen last weekend against Texas), but only because I've played it so many times. This game's been through just about everything with me, and if it were on the initial list of 15 it'd probably come in at #2. Christ, I'd wake up at 5:30 in the morning sometimes, just to play this game.

All Star Baseball 05 (XBOX, 2004) - MVP 05 came out the following year and I have no problem admitting like everyone else it was probably the best baseball game ever made. That said, I've always had a soft spot for the ASB series (I own every game, except 99), and this game was the best of them all. Great graphics, excellent commentary, easy gameplay. I spent many mornings in the Summer of '04, counting the days before moving out of Chicago, playing this one in my basement. Shame this was the last of the series, they were really starting to make great progress with their games. We can thank Acclaim Sports for not paying their royalties.

Basketball:

Kobe Bryant's NBA Courtside (Nintendo 64, 1998) - Same creators as Ken Griffey Jr. MLB, ironically enough, and this game was just as great. Realistic gameplay, awesome rosters of the time (w/ player photos, something Griffey MLB lacks). I'll always remember Michael Jordan's player being listed as "Roster Player" with jersey number 98. Funny stuff. Excellent game.

The 2K Sports Series (Sega Dreamcast / XBOX, 1999-Present) - Very rarely would I single out one group, but these games always seem to be getting better, release after release. The game easily had the best sports graphics ever upon it's initial release in winter 1999, which added towards it's appeal. 2K sports hardly disappoints with their games, but the NBA series has probably been their most consistent.

Football:

Madden 99 (Nintendo 64, 1998) - I remember this one so fondly. I often recall going over to Sean's regularly and just churning this one out as long as we possibly could, until we had to eat or I had to go home. This is around when the Madden series was becoming THE series to play for NFL football games, and what a way to start. Always nice to play a throwback game at the Pontiac Silverdome or Old Soldier Field, eh?

ESPN NFL 2K5 (XBOX, 2004) - When baseball season ended and I wore out ASB05, this game took over. Almost every morning in the winter of 2004 going into 2005, I would play this game. The franchise mode was stellar, the graphics were so far ahead of their time, which added to it's appeal. Possibly the best "Swan Song" of all sports games, since after this one Madden bought out 2K Sports' NFL rights. Excellent game.

Honorable Mention: FIFA World Cup '98, the Tiger Woods golf series, Nagano Winter Olympics '98, Wayne Gretzky NHL Hockey.

There you have it, that was a fucking fun list to make! Talk about a trip down memory lane indeed, I'm gonna have to break out some of these this weekend. Any omissions on my end, let me know. I'd love to see what else you guys would add on to this.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed it, should hold over well until my New Years post.

-Zach