My Top 25 Games of All Time (Part 2)

"Sir, I think that nice man just lost his arm."

 

(20) Killzone 2(PS3): This is one of those games where I was doing anything to buy. There was this one time when I beat up a kid with the banhammer for his lunch money, but that’s a story for another day.  To be honest, I didn’t enjoy the original Killzone but Killzone 2’s trailers really caught my eye.  The gritty atmosphere, the oppressive lighting, those ominous red eyes.  No video game has created a hostile world like Helghast.  I can go on for ages talking about the atmosphere and ambiance of this game, but in the end it all came down to the amount of fun I was having.  Killzone 2’s multiplayer ended the Call of Duty 4 Dynasty in my gaming life.  The organized clan menu’s and statistics welcome competitors like me with open arms. There are so many small things that set this game apart from your every day shooter and along with these things come many great memories.

 

"Terrorism has never been more fun!"

 

(19) Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2(PS3): Sure this game managed to get boring after a while (unlike its predecessor), but the path to boredom was sure as hell an enjoyable one.  The campaign seemed like a page ripped from a Michael Bay script, throwing away complexity in the storyline for pure entertainment.  The Special Op’s modes where a nice little distraction, but I could never get into them that much.  The beef of this game, as expected, was the multiplayer.  Everything seemed like the Call of Duty 4 I was used to,  but all of these little tweaks and changes really made this game memorable.  Ran out of ammo? Throw a knife.  Want to strategically adjust your kill streaks? Go right on ahead buddy. There is a big argument over whether this game lived up to the hype or not… but in reality none of this matters.  This game is a blast, but sadly does get boring after a while.  Personally, I think the reason it got boring for me is because I played it on the PS3, where I have 0 real life friends to play with.  On the Xbox I used to play Call of Duty 4 with friends from school for about  1 and ½ years. If I picked this game up for the Xbox 360, its rank would probably have been higher.

 

"Friggin banshee noobs."

 

(18) Halo: Combat Evolved(Xbox,PC): This is probably the only game on this list that I haven’t completed the campaign … to this date.  But how can you blame me? The online multiplayer was so damn fun.  This game introduced me to online games.  The game isn’t the most proficient shooter I played, in fact it felt more of an arcade kind of shooter… but it was one of the best times I have had gaming.  There really isn’t a lot to say about Halo… everyone has played it and it’s a great game.

 

"In 2004, those graphics blew my mind."

 

(17) Unreal Tournament 2004(Xbox): Wow, you guys must be bored with all these shooters, especially the old school ones.  Unreal Tournament is one of those rare gems that I still remember when I get a headshot or any other kind of sweet kill in any other shooter.  Just like Halo: Combat Evolved, this game’s multiplayer was simply astonishing, and just like Halo there isn’t much to say about.  It’s a fun, fast paced, shooter that I have spent countless hours on.  Happy?

 

"B:AA"s the Joker is probably one of the most interesting video game characters in recent history."

 

(16) Batman: Arkham Asylum(PS3): Raise your hand if you have played a video game based on a movie/comic.  Good. Now raise your hand  if that game was any good.  It’s okay, I have time.  All humor put aside, Batman: Arkham Asylum breaks this long running trend.  The first thing you will notice is that the graphics look kind of poppy, almost as if you were drunk.  The artistic style lets this game have impressive visuals, and also keep that comic-y feel. Now, when you purchase B:AA, you are actually purchasing many different genres of gaming at once.  I felt that the one thing this game succeeded above else is mixing in different genres, seamlessly.  You will encounter sections where you can’t use your handy Bat-gadgets to climb, so you will revert back to platforming. Feeling like beating the crap out of some thugs? Go right ahead since this game has many situations where you are ambushed by dozen of unarmed goons. The combat feels very smooth, and flows very well.  The part that I enjoyed the most is the stealth.  You will enter a large room containing  X amount of armed thugs who are searching for you. You will have to grapple to large gargoyles, glide around the room, or tactically sneak in shafts and take them out one at a time when no one else is looking . The best part about this is when you take out one of them, everyone else runs to the knocked out body  and you can tell they start freaking out.  By the time its only you and one other thug, he is completely terrified up to the point where he is shooting his rifle aimlessly in the air. You will have to strategizes for these encounters, because even though you are Batman a single clip will pretty much kill you. All in all, this is the best action adventure –strategy-platforming-beat-em-up I have played.