A link to the past

In an attempt to make amends with the completionist and perfectionist in me, I shall now present thee a list of my favorite video games of all time! There is not a better time than now and I shall never be "finished" with anything in my life and therefore I cannot realistically hope to have played all the games I want to and then make an informed decision or the ULTIMATE LIST. I am now on sick leave, burned out, and have not played a single new game this year, as opposed to the hundreds of different games I've tried out last year, and the thousands of blog posts I've read concerning them. I must learn to like the here and now, mindfulness, mind you, and not to have lists of things to do which makes me unfocused and weary of how much I should learn and have the time to enjoy. Now is now. The 30-some page long treatise on the ontology of video games and my relationship to gaming in a world or rapidly changing actor-networks will have to wait, or better yet, just float out there in a sea of possibilities, with no rush or musts. Neither will I be able to make a list which makes sense at all times to me. Now is now. I shall make up with my past. HERE. Goes.


Honorable mentions first, numbers 10 to 1 afterwards. By year.


-1984

10 Solar Fox (Arkad)

9 Excite Bike

8 Pac Man

7 Galaxian

6 Millipede/Centipede

5 Boulder Dash

4 Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy

3 Pooyan

2 Robotron 2084

1 Jetpac



1985

Boulder Dash 2: Rockford's Revenge

10 Balance of Power

9 Bomberman

8 A Mind Forever Voyaging

7 Binary Land

6 Gradius

5 Field Combat

4 Ice Climbers

3 Space Harrier

2 Battle City

1 Super Mario Bros



1986

10 Alex Kidd in Miracle World

9 Solomon’s Key

8 Zanac

7 Adventure Island

6 Paper Boy

5 Balloon Fight

4 Bubble Bobble

3 Metroid

2 Legend of Zelda

1 Super Mario Bros 2



1987

10 R-Type

9 Zelda 2: Adventure of Link

8. Rainbow Islands

7 Bureaucracy

6 Nord and Bert Couldn't Make Head or Tail of It

5 Maniac Mansion

4 Castlevania

3 Mega Man

2 Tetris: The Soviet Challenge

1 Dungeon Master



1988

10 Snatcher

9 Space Harrier 2

8 Ghouls n’ Ghosts

7 Arkanoid

6 Bubble Bobble

5 Spy vs Spy

4 Ninja Gaiden

3 Mega Man 2

2 Contra

1 Super Mario Bros 3



1989

10 Dig Dug 2

9 Twin Bee 3

8 Blazing Lazers

7 Cobra Triangle

6 Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

5 R-Type 2

4 Adventures of Lolo

3 Prince of Persia

2 Dungeon Master: Chaos Strikes Back

1 Final Fight



1990

ActRaiser
Adventures of Lolo
Eye of the Beholder
Smash TV

10 Chip n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers

9 Castlevania 3: Dracula’s Curse

8 Super Contra

7 Ninja Gaiden 2

6 F-Zero

5 Mega Man 3

4 Loom

3 Lemmings

2 The Secret of Monkey Island

1 Super Mario World



1991

10 Mega Man 4

9 Another World

8 Sonic the Hedgehog

7 Super Ghouls n’ Ghosts

6 Ninja Gaiden 3: The Dark Ship of Doom

5 Monkey Island 2: Lechuck’s Revenge

4 Area 88/UN Squadron

3 Street Fighter 2: World Warrior

2 Super Castlevania IV

1 The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past


1992

Mega Man 5
The Legend of Zelda: Third Quest

10 Pocky and Rocky

9 Street Fighter 2 Turbo

8 Puyo Puyo

7 Jezzball/Maxwell's Maniac (Marjacq Micro/Dima Pavlovsky)

6 Sonic the Hedgehog 2

5 Super Double Dragon

4 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time

3 The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse

2 Super Probotector: Alien Rebels/Contra 3: Alien Wars

1 Super Mario Kart


1993

Jurassic Park
Shadowrun
World Heroes

10 Sonic the Hedgehog 3

9 Mega Man X

8 E.V.O: Search for Eden

7 Bart Simpson's Nightmare

6 Doom

5 Gunstar Heroes

4 Sam & Max Hit The Road

3 The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

2 Day of the Tentacle

1 Castlevania: Rondo of Blood


1994

Donkey Kong Country
Jazz Jackrabbit
Mega Man X2
Micro Machines

10 Cyberdogs

9 Super Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

8 Beneath a Steel Sky

7 The Great Circus Mystery: Starring Mickey and Minnie

6 Puzzle Bobble

5 Uni Rally/Uniracers

4 Lode Runner: The Legend Returns

3 Contra: Hard Corps

2 X-Com: UFO Defense/UFO: Enemy Unknown

1 Super Metroid


1995

19XX: The War Against Destiny
Discworld
The Dark Eye
Warcraft 2
Zoop

10 Micro Machines 2: Special

9 Diddy's Kong Quest/Donkey Kong Country 2

8 Full Throttle

7 Mega Man 7/Mega Man X3

6 Heroes of Might & Magic

5 Gunbird

4 Alien Soldier

3 Worms

2 Strikers 1945

1 Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island


1996

C-Dogs (Cyberdogs 2)
Dixie Kong's Double Trouble/Donkey Kong Country 3
Donpachi
Death Rally
Quake
Sengoku Ace Episode II/Sengoku Blaede/Tengai

10 Samurai Shodown 4: Yamakuzas Revenge

9 Metal Slug

8 Leisure Suit Larry: Love For Sail

7 Three Dirty Dwarves

6 Mega Man 8

5 Nights: Into Dreams

4 Mario Kart 64

3 Diablo

2 Soul Blade

1 Super Mario 64


1997

Diddy Kong Racing
Duckman
Mega Man X
Samurai Showdown 4: Yamakuzas Revenge

10 Dungeon Keeper

9 Blade Runner

8 Worms 2

7 Fallout

6 Hellfire

5 Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

3 Strikers 1945: Part 2

4 Starcraft

2 Dodonpachi

1 Final Fantasy VII


1998

Banjo Kazooie
Carmageddon II: Carpocalypse Now
F-Zero X
Gunbird 2
LSD: Dream Emulator
Medievil
Micro Machines V3
NHL 1999
Photopia (Adam Cadre)
Rockman & Forte
Sanitarium
Space Bomber

10 Liero (Joosa Riekkinen)

9 Fallout 2

8 Dink Smallwood

7 Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines

6 Hexplore

5 Starcraft: Broodwars

4 Grim Fandango

3 Baldur’s Gate

2 The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

1 Metal Gear Solid


1999

Commandos: Beyond the Call of Duty
Darkstone
Grandia
Guwange
Heroes of Might and Magic 3
NHL 2000
Roller Coaster Tycoon
Soul Calibur
Vib Ribbon
Worms Armageddon

10 Super Smash Bros

9 Castlevania/Legacy of Darkness

8 Final Fantasy VIII

7 Silent Hill

6 Unreal Tournament

5 Longest Journey, The

4 System Shock 2

3 Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast

2 Street Fighter 3: Third Strike

1 Planescape Torment


2000

Banjo Tooie
DX-Ball 2
Dragon Blaze
Galatea (Emily Short)
NHL 2001

10 Ricochet (Counter-Strike)

9 Escape from Monkey Island

8 Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2

7 Diablo 2

6 Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes

5 Elasto Mania (Balázs Rózsa)

4 Shrapnel (Adam Cadre)

3 Deux Ex

2 The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask

1 Baldur's Gate: Shadows of Amn


2001

Conkers Bad Fur Day
Devil May Cry
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
Final Fantasy X
Freak Out!/Stretch Panic
Frequency
Gothic
Jak & Daxter
Kingdom Hearts
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 2
Mario Kart: Super Circuit
Maximo: Ghosts to Glory
Pleurghburg: The Dark Age (Chrille Blomqvist)
Project Zero/Fatal Frame
Serious Sam
Super Monkey Ball
Super Smash Bros Melee
Zone of the Enders

10 Cyberd

9 Rez

8 Castlevania: Circle of the Moon

7 Luigis Mansion

6 Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil

5 Shadow of Memories/Shadow of Destiny

4 Max Payne

3 Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal/Ascension

2 Silent Hill 2

1 Metal Gear Solid: Sons of Liberty


2002

Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance
Noiz2sa (Kenta Cho)
Ratchet & Clank
Sly Raccoon
Super Monkey Ball 2
The Embodiment of Scarlet Devil (Zun/Team Shanghai Alice)
The Trials of Odysseus Kent (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)

10 Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem

9 Ketsui

8 Hobo Soccer (Magic Whisper)

7 Psyvariar: Revision/Psyvariar: Medium Unit

6 Pop n’ Music 8

5 Super Mario Sunshine

4 Ikaruga

4 Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3

3 Guilty Gear XX

2 Metroid Prime

1 Metroid Fusion


2003

Amplitude
Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
Dance Dance Revolution Extreme
Espgaluda
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Samorost (Amanita Design)
Soul Calibur 2
The Apprentice (Herculean Effort Productions)
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time/Master Quest
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 4
Warioware Inc: Minigame Mania
Zone of the Enders: 2nd Runner


10 Seiklus (cly5m)

9 Perfect Cherry Blossom (Zun/Team Shanghai Alice)

8 5 Days a Stranger (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)

7 Beyond Good And Evil

6 The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

5 Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic

4 Silent Hill 3

3 Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne

2 dodonpachi DAI-OU-JOU

1 Parsec47/rRootage (Kenta Cho)


2004

A Case of the Crabs (Pinhead Games)
Beatmania IIDX 8th Style
Glass Rose
Imperishable Night (Zun/Team Shanghai Alice)
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Psyvariar 2: Ultimate Final
Polarium
Tontie (Eyesmaze)
Tuboflex (Molleindustria)
Tumiki Fighters (Kenta Cho)

10 Levers (Patrick Smith)

9 Go go roppongi Stick!

8 Katamari Damacy

7 Cirque de Zale (Rebecca Clements)

6 Mushihimesama

5 The Apprentice II: Knights Move (Herculean Effort Productions)

4 7 Days a Sceptic (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)

3 Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines

2 Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

1 Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II - The Sith Lords


2005


Anna (Vince Twelve/xiigames)
Beatmania IIDX 9th Style/Beatmania IIDX 10th Style
Blue Wish (x.x)
Cedric and the Revolution (Bernie)
Conker: Live and Reloaded
Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat
Electroplankton
Espgaluda 2
Guilty Gear XX Slash
Gunroar/Val & Rick (Kenta Cho)
Ossu! Tatakae! Ouendan!
Pop n' Music 11
Soul Calibur 3
The Apprentice Deluxe (Herculean Effort Productions)
We Love Katamari

10 Cave Story (Daisuke Amaya)

9 Soviet Unterzögersdorf (Monochrom)

8 Resident Evil 4

7 Psychonauts

6 Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved

5 Experimental Gaming: Tower of Goo, On a Rainy Day, The Crowd, Gravity Head, Square Off, Attack of the Killer Swarm, Riff

4 Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence

3 Killer 7

2 Jade Empire

1 Pathologic


2006

Automaton (Mr Colossal)
Blue Wish Resurrection/Eden's Edge (x.x)
Hallway of Adventures (Mordalles)
La La Land 5/La La Land 4/La La Land 3/La La Land 2/La La Land (TheAnemic)
Museum of Broken Dreams (Jonas Kyratzes)
Mushihime-sama Futari
New Super Mario Bros
The Shivah/Blackwell Legacy (Dave Gilbert)

10 Torus Trooper/Titanion (Kenta Cho)

9 Within A Deep Forest (Nifflas)

8 Beatmania IIDX 11: IIDX RED

7 Pop n' Music 12

6 Sam & Max Episode 1: Culture Shock

5 Guilty Gear XX Accent Core

4 WarioWare: Smooth Moves

3 Spooks (Lively Ivy/Erin Robinson)

2 The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

1 Trilby's Notes (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)


2007

Beatmania IIDX 13: DistorteD
Blackwell Unbound (Dave Gilbert)
Feed the Head (Patrick Smith)
Frozzd (Jesse Venbrux)
Game, game, game and again game (Jason Nelson)
Knytt Stories/Knytt (Nifflas)
La Croix Pan (TheJBurger)
Mountain of Faith (Zun/Team Shanghai Alice)
Murder In A Wheel (Renzo “Eshaktaar” Thönen)
Nelly Cootalot (Alasdair Beckett)
Pacman Championship Edition
Rorschach (Collecting Smiles)
Samorost 2 (Amanita Design)
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
Trilby: The Art Of Theft (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)

10 Garden of Coloured Lights/Excellent Bifurcation (Linley Henzell)

9 Sam & Max Season 1: Cont’

8 The Witcher

7 Mondo Agency/Mondo Medicals/Clean Asia (Cactusquid)

6 Mass Effect

5 Super Mario Galaxy

4 Bioshock

3 Passage (Jason Rohrer)

2 Portal

1 6 Days A Sacrifice (Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw)


2008

Achievement Unlocked
Aether (Edmund McMillen)
A Second Face (Jospin Le Woltaire)
Blue Wish Resurrection Plus (x.x)
Des Rêves Élastiques Avec Mille Insectes Nommés Georges (Deirdra Kia)
Do-Don-Pachi Dai-Fukkatsu
Fallout 3
Free Culture Game/Queer Power (Molleindustria)
Gateway II (Anders Gustafsson)
Geometry Wars Evolved 2
How Many…
Little Girl In Underland (Lively Ivy/Erin Robinson?)
Psychosomnium/Seizuredome (Cactusquid)
Virtual Silence/Seven Minutes (Tuukka Virtanen)

10 Rescue: The Beagles (Nenad Jalsovec)

9 The Witcher: Enhanced Edition

8 Self-destruct/Xoldiers (Terry Cavanagh)

7 Nanobots (Lively Ivy/Erin Robinson)

6 Karoshi 2.0/Execution/Pazzon/Torque/Karoshi/Karoshi Factory/Karoshi: Suicide Salaryman (Jesse Venbrux)

5 Gravitation/Police Brutality/Between/Perfectionism (Jason Rohrer)

4 Dear Esther (thechineseroom/Dan Pinchbeck)

3 World Of Goo (2d Boy)

2 Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriot

1 Braid (Jonathan Blow)


2009

!, Robot/Shifters Box (Ben304)
4 Minutes and 33 Seconds of Uniqueness (Petri/Kloonigames)
And Yet It Moves (Broken Rules)
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Au Sable/All Our Friends Are Dead (Amon26)
Backup/Bars of black and white (Gregory Weir)
Chaser (Connor Carpenter/shadestorm)
Devils Tuning Fork (DePaul Game Elites)
Eden’s Aegis (x.x)
Evidence of Everything Exploding (Jason Nelson)
Play: Free Will - The Game (raitendo)
Gravity Bone (Blendo Games)
Harpooned (Conor O’Kane)
lose/lose (Zach Gage)
Mental Repair Inc (Renzo “Eshaktaar” Thönen)
Nestlings (Lewis Denby)
Repent (Aaron Oldenburg)
Silent Hill: Shattered Memories
Small Worlds (David Shute)
Spectre (Vaguely Spectacular)
Super Karoshi/Focus (Jesse Venbrux)
Takishawa Is Dead! (Andrew Brophy)
Today I Die (Daniel Benmergui)
The Company of Myself (Eli Pülonen)
Windosill (Patrick Smith)


10 Everyday The Same Dream/Kosmosis (Molleindustria)

9 Time Fcuk (Edmund McMillen, William Good & Justin Karpel)

8 The Marionette (Team Effigy/Auriond)

7 Korsakovia (thechineseroom/Dan Pinchbeck)

6 Radiator 1-2: Handle With Care/Radiator 1-1: Polaris (Robert Yang)

5 Tales of Monkey Island

4 White Butterfly (Linley Henzell)

3 Judith/Don’t look back/Pathways/Bullfist (Terry Cavanagh)

2 Dragon Age: Origins

1 Opera Omnia/Home/Therapy Game/Mirror Stage/The Black Yeti/Signifier (Stephen Lavelle/increpare)


2010

...But That Was [Yesterday]/Together (Michael Molinari)
After (Aaron Oldenburg)
Alan Wake
Beautiful Escape: Dungeoneer (Nicolau/calunio)
Blades of Passion (Drew Wellman)
Crimzon Clover (Yotsubane)
Conquer the Shadow World/Lackadaisium (Ultimate Walrus)
Covetous (Austin Breed)
Cow Clicker (Ian Bogost)
Depict1 (Retro Affect)
Digital: A Love Story (Christine Love)
Dual Transform (Andrew Plotkin)
Eternally Us (Ben304)
Feign (Ian Snyder)
Frenzy Defense (Jan Willem Nijman)
Hero Core (Daniel Remar)
Hoosegow (Ben Collins-Sussman and Jack Welch)
Howard Glitch Game (Robert Allmand)
Leaky Worlds: A Playable Theory (Molleindustria)
Limbo (Playdead)
Loved (Alexander Ocias)
My First Quantum Translocator
Norrland/Gamma4 (Cactusquid)
Octodad (DGE2)
One Chance (AwkwardSilenceGames)
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX
P0nd (Peanut Gallery)
Puji (Alexander Jhin, Matt McKnett, and Pat Kemp)
Puzzlebots (Lively Ivy/Erin Robinson)
Super Crate Box (Vlambeer)
Super Meat Boy (Team Meat)
Super Street Fighter IV
suteF (Ted Lauterbach)
Symon (Singapore MIT Gambi Game Lab)
Technobabylon - Part II/Technobabylon - Part 1 (James Dearden)
The Arm/Refus Q. Jibberjabber's Day Out/Flin McGraw's Last Day (tipp)
Tower of Heaven (askiisoft)
Which (Mike Inel)

10 Dragon Age: Awakening

9 Life Flashes By (Deirdra Kia)

8 Snakes of Avalon (Igor Hardy/Ascovel & Baron/Alex Van Wijst)

7 A House in California/Hummingbird Mind (Jake Elliott & friends)

6 The Dream Machine (Erik Zaring & Anders Gustafsson)

5 The Journey Down: Over The Edge (Theodor Waern)

4 Mass Effect 2

3 VVVVV/Phobiaphobiaphobia (Terry Cavanagh)

2 Looming/The Day/Narthex (Gregory Weir)

1 Treatise/Hush/Modernauts/Primitive Pattern/Starfeld/100 Names/Queue/The Rose Garden/Catalan/Cascode (Stephen Lavelle/increpare)