I feel as though you can tell a lot about a person by what game he or she plays. In this case, I'd like to present you guys with my personal top ten games of all time. I am not saying these are the greatest games but am simply providing a list of the games that stuck with me the most and influenced me as a person and as a fan of the video games industry. Without further ado...
10. I remember this game so fondly. My grandparents had gotten my sister a new Dreamcast system complete with this wonderful gem, Sonic Adventure. I played this game so religiously in fact that my sister eventually forbid me from playing the game and sold it! I would some day get to experience it once more with Sonic Adventure DX on GameCube. Even so, it will never be the same as the first time I witnessed Sonics incredible speed as he fled from a giant killer whale. The game itself had its flaws but as a kid, it introduced me to one of my most cherished, well... adventures.
09. When my mom first got me the new DS Lite, I was so excited to play its games. The only problem was, I didn't have anything to actually play on it. Eventually, New Super Mario Bros. ended up being the first game I ever bought for the little handheld, alongside a fine game called Trace Memory. That summer we moved from my hometown of Rocklin, CA to Fresno, CA. I was homeschooled and didn't get out much that year. No, I was mostly playing this game, trying to find every single big coin in every level, slowly turning the DS into one of my favorite systems of all time. The then-new concept of giant Mario and the catchy music with dancing enemies. The first fresh, 2D Mario platformer in a decade. I was always an avid handheld gamer, but this solidified my love for it.
08. The Sega Genesis was the console my family owned throughout my younger years. The first game I ever played was Duck Hunt, but this was the first game that made me love games and it's called Sonic The Hedgehog. The first game that tried my patience, tested my skill, and demanded all my time. The Genesis had many great titles and this was, to me, the greatest. The music and sense of speed, the graphics and the edgy main character. Everything about this game brings back deep nostalgia and I am currently enjoying it, in 3D, on my 3DS. Despite the negativity found around his current games, his first outing is truly incredible.
07. I remember watching the reveal trailer for this game. I played and loved Fallout 3. The sense of exploration and danger and the choices you could make. Conversations that were lifelike. It all came to New Vegas and I was buying an Xbox just to play it, having played Fallout 3 on my cousins console. Everything was amped up in this game and was even better, surprisingly, than the last groundbreaking title. Exploring a savage wasteland and exploring the strip after nuclear war is quite a fantastical journey. I was so excited to experience this awesome game and I can't wait to see what's coming next.
06. Professor Layton is an amazingly crafted series of games and I even enjoyed the movie. Level-5 is one of my favorite developers nowadays and mostly thanks to this game, The Curious Village. When it was released I picked it up on a whim hoping for a fun and entertaining game. What I got was one of my favorite games ever created! Top notch visuals, writing, and clever puzzles kept me going for an entire summer. It has one of the most epic conclusions in gaming and some of the best voiceovers as well, along with a perfect soundtrack. Nice one, Professa!
05. Genesis gave me some cool games to grow up to. This is one that is perhaps surprising to a lot of you, Zombies Ate My Neighbors. It is also a game that introduced me to what zombies even are. Eventually I would become a fan of everything zombie; movies, games, and the like. I spent countless hours and days of my childhood trying to beat the levels of this crazy game filled with much more than just zombies. Swamp things, evil babies, mummies and more littered the landscapes. It was one of the only things that brought my dad and I closer as he would play as player two and help me defeat the never ending horde of zombies with our machine water-guns (I know right?). I'm still waiting for a virtual console release so I can relive this amazing game once again.
04. Simply one of the finest video games I've had the pleasure to experience. Neku and Co. are some of the best and most interesting characters I can think of in any media. Square Enix created a perfect game for the DS system and I can't help but smile and pray for a sequel whenever I think about The World Ends With You doesn't need a sequel though, as it is so good it'd be hard to outdo. The innovation is astounding and the art is fantastic. An addictive Beyblade-like mini-game, clothing and food mechanics, and a bustling Kyoto with constant parades of NPC's walking about. A varied, voiced soundtrack perfectly compliments this engrossing game and the battle system and story are expertly done. Do yourself a favor and find, buy, and play this wonderful game.
03. I adore the Zelda franchise. I love just about all games in this series and must give a nod to Wind Waker. But without a doubt I'd have to go with this beauty from Capcom. I played the Minish Cap a lot. A LOT. Most people don't care for the kinstone collection quests, but I absolutely loved finding them and seeing what secrets would be revealed in the expansive and amazingly crafted rendition of Hyrule. Vaati was a great replacement for Ganon and I actually look forward to his return someday. The shrinking mechanic in this game added a lot of exciting opportunities for boss fights and interesting gameplay. It' my favorite Zelda game of all time and my third favorite game in general. If you haven't gotten around to playing it, 3DS ambassadors, then do so! You'll thank me later.
02. This game changed me. I'm embarrassed to say how many times I've played through this absolutely perfect game only to play it again just as enamored as the first time, still finding secrets and different collectibles. Leon is the best Resident Evil lead character, hands down. Sorry Chris fans. The story here puts many movies to shame and is simply breathtaking how well done this title is. The voices all wonderfully acted and the set pieces wowing you one scene to the next. The attention to detail, for its time, was impeccable. The sheer terror I felt while playing it at some points left me unable to play this game alone. GameCube had officially shown up every competitor on its release, showcasing the best graphics and survival horror experience of its time. Resident Evil 4 is one of the greatest video games ever made, outshining even its sequels in every way.
01. Yes, I'm serious. No other game has ever truly captured my imagination and attention quite like Tales of Symphonia. I spent easily over 100 hours on this two-disc adventure epic. Yeah, the monsters were blobs in the over world, but so what? The battles that ensued afterwards were a beautiful sight to behold and the fluid 60fps was amazing to see. The addictive gameplay was second to what I think is one of the best stories out there, bringing up sensitive subjects like slavery and racism (albeit in a fantasy setting) and the repercussions of being adopted and more. The chosen ones journey between two worlds was a story I'll never forget and with the release of Symphonia Chronicles on PS3, I actually ordered a GameCube copy on eBay and plan to re-experience this masterpiece once again as originally intended. I love this game and it made me who I am as a video gamer and as a person as well.
Thank you for reading my personal list of favorite games. Below are some honorable mentions that I had to give up spots to the ones above.
~Kevin Phillips (Creator/editor @ NintendoRevU)
~Kevin Phillips (Creator/editor @ NintendoRevU)