People seem to like my lists so I have decided to try to do one a week.
This week is the best video games… Well at least for me personally, I’m sure I have missed a few but I though long and hard about this.
20. Assassins Creed II
I hated the first Assassins Creed, it was the same song and dance every single mission. Then came this little gem. I thought it would be the same thing… how wrong was I?
This game introduced the world to Ezio Auditore, one of the best Assassins the world has ever known. This game set up a three game story and in my opinion is the best. Ezio is more nimble, easier to control and way more brutal. The missions are varied enough to keep it interesting and I loved the story. I have a sneaky feeling Assassins Creed III will surpass this but this one will always be in my heart.
19. Super Mario Bros 3
I never actually owned this game but a friend of mine did and we played it for years. Out of all the Mario incarnations this was clearly the best, a pinnacle of Mario gameplay.
18. Comix Zone
Everyone had a Snes but me I had a Mega Drive and loved it. Yeah the games were a bit crapper but who cares with games like this.
Comix Zone took our main character, a comic book artist and transported him into the pages of his own comic. It’s a brilliant tale with loads of breaking the fourth wall. The characters special move was pretty much to draw characters out of the scene. You ripped pages in half and hopped over to other segments.
It was hard as hell and took me a long time to complete. It was released as part of the Mega Drive box set for consoles so shouldn’t be too hard to come across.
17. Infamous 2
Infamous was a great game, I really enjoyed playing the part of the super hero or super villain. Then came Infamous 2, it upped the ante on everything the first game done, the storyline was better, the powers amazing and the choices brutal. It also wasn’t too easy to complete, with harder enemies and crazy boss battles it’s just an amazing game. If only Playstation had more exclusive games like this.
16. Fahrenheit
Known as Indigo Prophecy in the states. I remember hearing nothing about this game until it hit the shelves. I picked it up and was amazed when I got home. It was like playing a movie and I was all the characters. I played this several times and recently picked it up again. It’s showing it’s age now but at the time it was cutting edge. The story is stellar and a bit weird but overlook that and you are in for a treat. The soundtrack has Theory of a Deadman which is never a bad thing either.
15. Resident Evil 2
I played Resident Evil 2 time and time again. I done every mode and collected everything. People will continue to say that Resident Evil 4 was the best but my heart lies with this one. I waited for a long time and finally it was out, I played it constantly and no other game could tear me away. The story is silly and cheesy but who cares. It’s our first introduction to Leon, an awesome guy with loads of potential and the two storylines were very different as opposed to the original.
15. Gears of War 2
The first Gears was groundbreaking, it showed the world what the Xbox360 was all about. I bought the console for this very reason. When Gears 2 came along it made the first game look like childs play. With movies sequels are usually awful, with video games the opposite could be said, it gives the developers a chance to work on what they have already created.
The world of Gears was moved on in this game and the stakes were never higher. The shooting was better, the weapons better and the co-op much better. I don’t think Gears 3 added much more than storyline, for me Gears 2 wins every time.
13. Alan Wake
I waited forever on this game, seeing the first trailer about 3 years before the game appeared. It was hyped in my head an destined to fail. To my surprise it didn’t fail, in fact it lived up to my over hyped expectations and more.
In the days where survival horror means action game, Alan Wake took it back to survival horror. Sure Alan has a gun at his disposal, but most of the time it isn’t even worth using. The storyline is amazing and the setting is beautiful. The soundtrack is immense, Nick Cave, Johnny Cash and David Bowie on the one game? Brilliant.
It’s a dig at the twilight zone and popular horror writers like Stephen King but it’s just awesome.
12. Uncharted 2
I remember being in the cinema and seeing the trailer for Uncharted 2, I said to myself ‘Damn I wish I had a PS3’, about a year later I did and this was the first game I had.
I didn’t play the first one until just last year but this blows it out of the water. Naughty Dog are a fantastic studio and do some stellar work. Nathan Drakes world is colourful and dangerous, its fast paced and beautiful. All the scenes are straight out of a summer blockbuster.
Its better than the first one in every way and has a better story than the third. Although it does have a ridiculously easy last boss but that can be forgiven.
11. Max Payne
Max Payne 3 is a better game with a better story but this just takes the biscuit. It was the first true pure high-octane action game. It came with a story, a great lead character and lots of blood and bullets.
Max is a man on a mission and he stacks up bodies higher than anyone else we know. He spouts cheesy one liners that seem to be straight from the pen of Raymond Chandler, this is hard-boiled video game noir at its finest. It looks awful now but who cares.
10. Grand Theft Auto: San Andres
I lined up first thing in the morning to get my pre-ordered copy, the woman asked for my ID and I presented it with glee. For the next few weeks I was a ghost, no one seen or heard from me I was just playing this. Only leaving my house to buy a new PS2 when my first one broke.
I have played this game so many times over the years, it is the pinnacle of GTA games, GTA IV was too serious for its own good, here we had storyline (stolen from blaxploitation films from the 90’s) and a little fun, there was customisation and silly jet packs.
I love this game and hope GTA V is more of this and less of IV.
9. Batman: Arkham City
Arkham Asylum was great, Arkham City was freaking awesome. You are Batman in all his glory, gliding over rooftops, taking on 20 guys at once, sneaking up to folk to take them out. It’s a storyline that could have been a great graphic novel, voice acting that is above awesome and character rending that is somewhere in the stratosphere.
I love this game so much, the side quests aren’t silly errands, they actually enhance the gameplay, introduce more characters and let you be more of a detective. Even the add-on was spectacular, putting you in the boots of the boy wonder Robin. If you haven’t played it then please play Asylum first, then this… it wont disappoint.
8. Silent Hill 2
This game is beyond creepy. The controls are horrible but the game just oozes horribleness. James is trying to find his dead wife who sent him a letter from beyond the grave. He has returned to their special place ‘Silent Hill’ to find her. So the premise to start off with is creepy. James meets some unsavoury characters and some horrible demons.
When those sirens ring and the world crumbles then so do you.
A game with multiple endings, all horrible. A scare fest that’s best played in the dark and up close. A game not to be meddled with. Will there ever be a greater Silent Hill?
7. Heavy Rain
This is more an interactive movie than a game. A noir murder tale that pits a loving but highly depressed father against a maniac to see if he is a worthy father.
If you play and a character dies, the story continues with that character dead. There are multiple endings and it really is worth trying to play them all.
A game that shows the power of the PS3 (something which very few developers can be bothered using), the people are rendered so well you will think they are real.
First time I played it I’ll admit I shed a tear, you probably will too.
6. Metal Gear Solid
It might be blocky and pixellated but it will remain one of the best games ever.
I wasn’t interested in sneaking before this game came out, I used to go in with my guns raised and try to wreck the place.
Solid Snake taught me that isn’t always the best approach (unless fighting a crazy cyborg ninja), I hid around corners, knocked on walls and shimmied under trucks. I shyed away from guards instead of directly fighting them, I ran away when they seen me.
Before playing this I never done anything of the sort, even now I tend to go in like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Snake games got better but this was the game that started it for me.
5. Call of Duty: Black Ops
If you asked me a month ago this game wouldn’t have even made it into my top 20. The thing is during that time I tried out the world of online gaming.
So my life has officially disappeared and now I sit for hours on end shooting strangers and hoping for a killstreak.
Black ops for me is the best campaign story in the Call of Duty world to date and also the best multiplayer.
A lot of people have moved over to Battlefield which I find too serious for my liking but I enjoy Black Ops and I’m looking forward to the second one.
4. Mass Effect 2
I was going to cheat and say the Mass Effect series but this game is clearly the best.
The best storyline, the best characters and just generally great.
This time Shepard dies, is brought back by a group called Cerberus and asked to hunt down the collectors. This game answered questions and kept us guessing. The score is wonderful and I listen to it in my car a lot.
Mass effect was awesome and Mass Effect 3 was great until the last 15 mins. Mass Effect 2 is where it’s at though.
3. Fallout 3
HELLO WASTELANDER IT’S ME THREE DOGGGGGG.
This game is just so damn good, my wife has played it about 400 times, me I think I’ve played it 3 times. The storyline is linear but this game is pure sandbox. I do love New Vegas but Fallout 3 changed the way I looked at games, its fun and looks amazing. Even now a few years down the line it still looks awesome. Add to that some great DLC and you have one long and great game that you should own.
2. Broken Sword
A strange one for the number 2 slot but I’ve owned this game on more consoles than I’ve owned anything else, the PS1, Nintendo DS, Iphone, PC, Wii and Game Boy advanced.
It’s a wonderful storyline with great characters and a beautiful setting. A detective point and click game I came across in a PS1 bundle with Myst and Road Rash. I love this game and even although I could complete it in my sleep I will continue to play it again and again.
1. Final Fantasy VII
Could there be any other number 1?
This epic took me months to finish and I’ve went back for more nearly every year. I’ve played it with my friends, solo and even watched YouTube videos of other people playing it. I would say it was my first proper game, something I really sank my teeth into. I love it and even today it’s still a great game. If you can find it then get it, you wont regret it.
News, reviews and recent views 
Interesting list, especially number two. Broken Sword so often overlooked by so many.