So let's get something out of the way right now. I've been asked by some friends to try and do one of these weekly rant posts in a really nice way and not sound off too extremely as I've probably done in the past. So here it goes...
Normally around the end of the year, EVERY YEAR; every video game media outlet puts out a list of the BEST GAMES OF THE YEAR. Which seems to be an accepted tradition and sometimes can be instructive if the consumer isn't paying ANY attention to the games that have come out. Or perhaps it's to REMIND you of the good stuff that you might have missed.
Recently however, I've been exposed to various game magazines that are having X Anniversary and have decided that NOW is a good time to relate to their readers what the BEST GAMES OF ALL TIME are. The games by and large are hysterical and if you played all most any of them today; you would find them SORELY lacking.
When you are in an industry similar to the people who make televisions it's probably not a good idea to go too far back. No one would say that a television from the 60s is BETTER than a TV that just came out a couple of months ago. If we looked at the game industry the way that it seems that lots of journalists do(judging by the articles), we would have the following:
The GOLDEN AGE of VIDEO GAMES happened during whatever era that the particular person talking about was around 10 years old and these were the BEST GAMES EVER and then probably some of the games that came out last year would be included in the list at the VERY END. Also, once a game comes out whatever the review score claims about it, either makes it worthy of further mention or completely ignored(like just about everything that isn't Halo, GTA, Fallout, Starcraft, Tony Hawk, and God of War).
So what would MY BEST VIDEO GAMES EVER BE? Well, by the very nature of this article I shouldn't give you one but I will; just to show you how intrinsically biased.
1. Bioshock(PS3. XBOX360, PC)
2. Elder Scrolls Oblivion(XBOX360, PC, PS3)
3. Psychonauts (PS2, XBOX, PC)
4. Phantom Dust (XBOX)
5. Resident Evil 5 (XBOX360, PS3, PC)
6. Persona 3 FES (PS2)
7. Street Fighter IV(XBOX360, PS3, PC)
8. Call of Duty 4 (PC, XBOX360, PS3)
9. Demigod (PC)
10. Dirt (PC, PS3, XBOX360)
So do all of you agree with the above? Of course not, right? I left out some BIG GAMES right? Well, is this Best of based on sales, criticism, or personal opinion? They normally don't really explain except usually based on their impact on the market. So is the MODEL T the best car EVER because it was the first car and it set the standard for motor vehicles from then on? Of course not.
The general feeling of the video game media is that retro games and indie games are intrinsically better than ANYTHING ELSE. Which is comical. All of those games are fun for what they are; but I certainly would never want to play something like World of Goo for 20-40 hours. The game is wonderful but in short bursts, the above games are more long investment titles. I've seen indie folks say that a dark screen and three, three pixel characters as the greatest thing ever created.
I'm certainly not saying that there weren't ANY good old games. In fact, there are TONS of good games. But please, because the video game industry is EVOLVING rather than just expanding or changing. There REALLY can't be a list of the BEST GAMES EVER! Because if you play those games now, they are terrible. This isn't the publishing industry or the film industry where technology really doesn't matter. But in game design technology matters a great deal and the amount of experience people have playing games and designing games make a great deal of difference.
So even if games ARE HIGH ART, don't make jokes of your selves by saying that the original Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, or Pong as the GREATEST GAME OF ALL TIME! Please...
OK guys, let me know what you think? Am I completely wrong? And I'm not talking about my game list, so don't get confused about that.
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