TOP 50:
- Spoiler: show
- Spelunky
- Super Mario Strikers
- Life is Strange: Before the Storm
- Super Smash Bros. Melee
- Bloodborne
- Thomas Was Alone
- The Talos Principle
- The Beginner's Guide
- Binding of Isaac Rebirth
- Rockband
- Donkey Kong Junior
- Doki Doki Literature Club
- Rainbow 6 Vegas 2
- Luigi's Mansion
- Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2005)
- Jamestown
- Minecraft
- Life Is Strange
- NightSky
- Overcooked
- Salt & Sanctuary
- Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
- Mario Kart 8
- Gears of War 2
- Hatoful Boyfriend
- Halo Reach
- Civilization V
- Call of Duty: Black Ops
- Sins of a Solar Empire
- Mario Golf Toadstool Tour
- Lego Star Wars The Complete Saga
- New Super Mario Bros. Wii
- Soul Calibur 2
- Halo 3
- Super Hexagon
- Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War II
- VVVVVV
- Super Meat Boy
- Transistor
- Dark Souls 2 Scholar of the First Sin
- Super Crate Box
- Flower
- Tearaway
- Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number
- Risk of Rain
- Hotline Miami
- On The Rainslick Precipice of Darkness Episodes 1 & 2
- Kirby Pinball Land
- Grand Theft Auto V
- Puzzle Quest 2
PROCESS
My process for making the list was first to consult my larger 100+ list, which is ranked (S through C), but not ordered individually. I took the top 50 or so of those, then added another 15-20 that I have been too lazy to add to the master list.
I started just trying to order the whole thing, but quickly ran into a problem with gameplay focused games versus narrative or experiential games. I love both categories for very distinct reasons, and pitting one against the other was too difficult to start with. So I removed the following games and set them aside:
Life Is Strange: BtS
Thomas Was Alone
The Beginner's Guide
Doki Doki Literature Club
Life Is Strange
Hatoful Boyfriend
Flower
There were a couple games, Talos Principle, for instance, that fit into both categories, but I erred on whether or not I would have gotten the impact of the story without being directly involved in the gameplay. Or something.
After this I organized the top 15 or so games, and got them into a fairly definitive order, they would still get switched up a bit more before the end, but it was a good place to start.
Next I tried organizing the everything else, but found it too daunting, so I created another small group, this time of multiplayer shooters. I would rank the following games against each other, then find where other games fit in between, above, or below them:
Star Wars Battlefront 2
CoD 4: Modern Warfare
Gears of War 2
Halo Reach
CoD: Black Ops
Halo 3
At this point I still had over 50 games total. around 57 including the story games I had pulled early on. I went through the list and found roughly 12 games that I decided could be cut. More on that later.
I got most of the games that come between and above the shooters pretty quickly, then took a bit longer sorting through what was left over below them. After this I took the 7 story/experience games that I pulled earlier, and placed them where I felt they belonged in the list.
INSIGHTS & STUFF
As with everyone else, this got difficult to cut and organize. I tried not to focus too much on nostalgia. Games that I haven't played in forever, or have and have had less of a fun time with, were not considered; games like Sonic Adventure 2 and Timesplitters 2.
I was extremely surprised how low the Hotline Miami games ended up being. These are games that I platinum'd, and bought the vinyl soundtracks for, as well as the collectors edition. I still certainly love them, but it has probably been at least a year, if not two, since I sat down and really connected with them. I'm sure in a few years they could be back among the top 25, or maybe won't be on the list at all.
Similarly, I cut Bastion and Arkham Asylum from my list. Two games that at one point I would have easily put in my top 10. Bastion I had played twice right after I bought it. What "ruined" it for me, I think, was going back and playing again when it was released on the Vita. I resonated less with the story, probably because I had already experienced it twice, and also didn't get along with the controls.
With Arkham, I think I have since tried going back to it, but again, the experience is no longer fresh, I've played other games that do what it does better mechanically, and as such I think the story has lost some of its luster.
There is another category of game that I had a hard time cutting, which are games that have been more inspirational to me than I enjoy playing. World of Goo and Viva Pinata are the highlights of this category. They have been very influential on my art and thoughts on games and gardening, but just couldn't make the cut in terms of fun and engagement that I have with them now.
I think the biggest factor in how things got ordered overall wasn't necessarily what games I think are
objectively better, but what I am mostly to want to play now. For example, I don't really enjoy Civilization V that much on its own, but I have great memories, and still greatly enjoy playing it with my brother and friends. It is a very relaxed, extended experience that I don't get with any other game on this list.
With some exceptional exceptions, I found that I favor multiplayer experiences over singleplayer.