40) WarioWare Inc. (Gameboy Advance)
One of the weirder games on my list, WarioWare was still great, addicting fun. Instead of being a collection of mini-games, WW is actually a collection of micro-games. These were tiny little games that would only last for about 5 seconds. Each one was incredibly simple and relied on good timing, or quick reflexes. One game might ask you to “Jump!” and you have to realize that you got to jump over an incoming hot dog car. Another might tell you to “Squat!” so you must push the A button a couple of times on your little Gameboy Advance until your character has beefy legs. It's a crazy game for sure, but what else would you expect from Wario and his strange friends?
What's great about this game is it's just pure fun. It isn't deep, and it doesn't have a long story, or much story at all for that matter. The thing is, WW doesn't need those things. It was fun and compelling, just based on its collection of micro-games. It had catchy music too, which always helps. There were plenty of sequels for this series, and they were all pretty nice. But none will ever be as memorable as this first option. Now then, get ready: “Read!”
39) Mega Man 10 (Xbox 360, hooray achievements)
In case you didn't know, I'm a pretty big fan of classic Mega Man. While I've played every single one of his games, only two of them are going to make the list, with this being the first. Now, Mega Man 9 gets credit for being gutsy enough to be a modern game made in 8-bit style. However, Mega Man 10 perfected that gutsy move, with great level design, and superior music. It also allows for up to 3 playable characters, each coming with their own style. Mega Man gets to shoot 3 normal bullets, and takes average damage. His brother, Proto Man, gets a shield that blocks damage, can slide away from danger, a charge shot, and completely bad-ace sunglasses. Sadly, he takes double damage.
Then there's Bass, Mega Man's rival. Not only does he get to shoot machine-gun style, but he can dash, making for fast gameplay, and clever shortcuts. I don't have much else to say. Mega Man 10 has tried and true gameplay, great level design, fun weapons, character choice, replayability, and good chiptune music. I can't really ask for more than that.
38) Katamari Damacy (Playstation 2)
This is definitely the strangest game on my list. In case you have never heard of this game, let me explain. The idea is to take this ball, and use it to roll up all kinds of junk scattered throughout the level. As you collect stuff, the ball will grow bigger. Once it does, you can collect bigger stuff. Once you get as big as possible, the level ends, and you win! Yeah, there really isn't another game like this (not counting the sequels, obviously). The concept is simple, but it's really fun and addicting. Don't bother trying to figure out why things work out the way they do. This is a crazy, obviously Japanese game, and it barely makes sense.
It has to do with some kind of kooky guy who looks like Galactus, who goes on a drunken binge and destroys all of the stars in the sky. This drunk, called the King of All Cosmos, sends his princely son down to Earth, to make katamaris. Then he takes these balls of junk, and makes new stars. It's a crazy idea, but it actually works. Since I've never played the sequels, I can't comment on them, or if they're better. But the first game in the series will always be remembered for its bouncy music, and highly unique gameplay.
37) Halo 2 (Xbox)
Halo is the best series of FPS, in my opinion. You're going to see most of the Halo games on my list, so prepare yourself. The biggest reason this one gets on my list is its legendary status of online multiplayer. Since I never was a PC gamer, I'd never played a game online before. That all changed with Halo 2. It was my very first experience with matchmaking, ranks, and frantic competition. And I loved it. I spent well over a year playing this game. Not for the campaign, mind you. No, I barely remember that thing. Not that it matters, it was probably the worst Halo campaign. The best part about campaign was probably the music, which is great in every Halo game.
But yeah, it was all about Xbox Live. It would be the first time I was forced to completely memorize each level, knowing where all of the weapons and vehicles were kept. I had to develop strategies, and gain a steady hand for aiming. Halo 2 wasn't perfect, but it was definitely great, there's no denying it. It helped me hone my shooting skills for the many years of FPS games to come. I can thank Halo CE for introducing me to the series, and for having great music. Besides that, Halo 2 was better in every way...and had online multiplayer.
36) Animal Crossing (Gamecube)
Ah yes, I remember this one. (Well, I remember all of these games...wait, what I talking about? Oh yeah!) If you could get into this game, and let it work on you with it's adorable charm, you could get sucked into playing it forEVER! You would start the game in your tiny little house, and you're just dying to make it bigger. Well, that requires money, and a lot of it! Once you finally got the giant mansion with 3 floors, then you couldn't help but complete as many sets of furniture as possible. Otherwise the house looked like a mess.
With Animal Crossing, it isn't just about the addiction to consumerism and material possessions (haha, it isn't as gloomy as it sounds). This game is genuinely charming, IMO. You've got these animal neighbors to talk to, and to help out. They were so friendly! Then there was all of the activities involved. There was fishing, bug-hunting, tree gardening, all kinds of stuff. You could design shirts, make songs, talk to strange camels about carpets, and more! This game was just so compelling. One of the best ways to get money was from hitting a rock, right? Well, this game got me so addicted, I found a new rock every day, and hit it. I literally did this every single day for over a year straight. How many other games claim to do that? The sequels certainly didn't, I was burned out by then. Besides, only the original had hidden NES games to play. That alone makes it superior.
35) Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)
SSBB is the best example of video game fan service I've ever seen (not counting perverted things like Dead or Alive: Extreme Beach Volleyball). I can tell you, if you like Nintendo games even a tiny bit, you will find something awesome or nostalgic in this game to back it up. This is because there are so many playable characters in this party fighting game. All of the important Nintendo characters are accounted for, and then some. 3 games later, and it still makes me all warm and fuzzy seeing Mario, Link, and Kirby together on one screen. Such awesome representation is only made better thanks to the best cutscenes Nintendo has ever made for any game. Is the story that the cutscenes present confusing, pointless, and bordering on fan-fiction? Absolutely. But it doesn't matter, because all of the characters get some screen time, doing things that they would logically do, and being funny/awesome the entire time.
However, to be honest, none of the above reasons describe why this game is on the list. You see, there is something that Brawl had that no other game had before, and no other game ever will: HYPE!!! Oh my freaking gosh, the hype for this game. Every moment between the initial announcement of this game and the second I finally got to play this game was pure. Agonizing. Torture. Nintendo made a website for SSBB, and called it the supersmashdojo. Every day, the creator of SSBB would post something revealing about the game. Sometimes, it would be a small news post. Sometimes, it would be big news, like the announcement of a new character, or revealing a new remix of game music. The entire experience was magical, and the final game could never live up to the hype generated up to that point. SSBB is a great game, but it has too many flaws and disappointments to be considered the absolute best.
34) Metroid: Zero Mission (Gameboy Advance)
I love the Metroid universe. I really do. Maybe it's because I've always been a big sucker for anything sci-fi. I would say that this universe is likely my favorite out of any universe Nintendo has created. More so than any version of Hyrule, or the Mushroom Kingdom, or other competing sci-fi universes, like the future cities of F-Zero, or the space battles of Star Fox. There something very exciting, foreboding, and exotic in this galaxy filled with these deadly floating life-suckers. You get that element of mystery with the ancient Chozo civilization, and that bit of conspiracy theory coming from the Galactic Federation. Then you throw in the rivalry coming from other bounty hunters, the Space Pirates, or their seemingly-immortal leader, Ridley, and you've got a winning combination, my friend.
Why is this particular Metroid game on the list, you might ask? Well, this is where the Metroid story begins. Samus's first mission is simple: Go to this planet, and kill the Metroids. Boom, bang, done. Other very likeable things about this game include the controls, the gorgeous amount of power-ups, and the quality and quantity of bosses. Speaking of power-ups, this game does a great job at hiding them. Getting 100% in this game seems almost impossible without the help of a guide. And the thing is, even if you know where a power-up is, it can be joyously confusing on how to get it. The exploration is paced well, and the music applied to each area is always atmospheric, and highly iconic. Metroid: Zero Mission is a quality game, that's for sure.
33) Portal (Xbox 360)
This game is a triumph. I'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS. It's hard to overstate my satisfaction. Hahahaha, ok, sorry, I just had to use this game's own song to describe it. But can you blame me? It totally fits! (If you felt like singing the entire song after you read the first few lines, congratulations, you get a thumbs up.)
At first, you wouldn't think much of this first-person game. It is very short (2 hours, maybe), it has only one gun (the portal gun), and there is very little story, or characters to observe. But it all makes for a tight package that totally works together, making for a short-but-sweet experience. Being a puzzle game, mainly, Portal makes for a great brain-teaser, all while maintaining a captivating atmosphere. Portal technology really hadn't been used to its full gaming potential until Portal came along, and it made the gameplay very unusual and interesting. That, combined with one of the best villains in all of video games (Glados, duh), is what makes the game so memorable. Glados has so many memorable lines of dialogue, it makes her infamous. Best of all is the surprise song at the end. It makes me happy to know that she is still alive, and makes me completely hyped for the upcoming sequel.
32) Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (Nintendo 64)
Here is my second-favorite Kirby game, and the game with the most variety out of the entire franchise. At least, as far as copy abilities are concerned. In the main adventure, these take center stage. The mechanic of combining two abilities together to make a fusion of the two was certainly compelling at the time. What could you do with Ice and Fire? Rock and Spark? Needle and Cutter? What about Fire and Fire? While the possibilities weren't endless, per se, they certainly allowed for a large amount of experimentation.
Once you found your favorite ability, you could really get into this game's aesthetic. While it may have been a little too cute at times, Kirby 64 had tons of great atmosphere and character. Something that I will always remember is the final level of world 3. Kirby enters an ocean, and descends all the way to the very bottom. You gain a sense of foreboding, balanced by a smothering of peaceful tranquility. It is a moment that is somewhat magical to me. I don't know if anyone else could ever feel the same way about it. Even if we can't agree on that, we can all look at the single player adventure, with it's crystal hunting, combined with the frantic, exciting multiplayer, and recognize Kirby 64 as a masterpiece of 2.5D N64 platforming. Slower pace be darned.
31) Mario Party 3 (Nintendo 64)
After the 2.5D N64 masterpiece comes the N64 party-miester! The bottom line is that the N64 was great at bringing people together for multiplayer gaming. No game embodied this attitude better than Mario Party 3, the best party game I've ever played. Some of you might look at the Mario Party franchise, and see an over-worked cow, completely milked of its potential, or any fond memories. You might be right, but so what? This was before Mario Party became a milked series that was a shadow of its formal self. This was before it had too many sub-rules, or before it made Donkey Kong a freaking event on the game board, instead of his proper place as a playable character. This was Mario Party when Mario Party was still cool.
This game had just enough advancements to propel it past the first 2 sequels, while still staying true to the core gameplay. You get 3 items instead of 1, and there's a lot more skill involved in winning this party. Something that always gets the focus of Mario Party are the mini-games. Well, the ones in this game were freaking brilliant, most of the time. Toadstool Titan involved everyone frantically busting open blocks until a mushroom came out. Once you get that mushroom, you get to trample your friends into oblivion! Who doesn't love that? Other stand out games include Merry-Go-Chomp (don't land on chomp), Slap-Happy (ultra-stress while waiting to click the right flower card), Locked-Out (punch the key out of your friend's hand), or Aces High (shoot those airplanes outta the sky). Putting all of this fun together in just one game is nothing short of amazing.
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