Leftwich's Top 100 Games of All Time

[JBregz]

How is Bully not on this list yet?!

[Leftwich]

How is Bully not on this list yet?!

Cause that game sucks.

[JBregz]

Cause that game sucks.

Bully was an awesome game.

[EmpireWF]

One of the best threads on VSN...love the trip down memory lane.

[Bmore]

It's the second best Resident Evil and well worth the money for the HD edition.

First thing I have to disagree with you on.

1. Resident Evil
2. Resident Evil 2
3. Resident Evil 4
4. Resident Evil 5
5. Resident Evil 3 Nemesis

Dead Last. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City

[Leftwich]

First thing I have to disagree with you on.

1. Resident Evil
2. Resident Evil 2
3. Resident Evil 4
4. Resident Evil 5
5. Resident Evil 3 Nemesis

Dead Last. Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City

I seen you playing that. I heard it sucks epic cock. But I'd put 3 over 5 and code veronica over 3.

[Bmore]

I seen you playing that. I heard it sucks epic cock. But I'd put 3 over 5 and code veronica over 3.

Operation Raccoon City has got to be the worst resident evil made.

Its like playing Splinter Cell but without the Stealth and including Zombies.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it may be the first Resident Evil with human enemies who are equipped with guns. The entire time I played it felt like I wasn't even playing a RE game.

They throw in some Leon Kennedy, Jill and Claire cameos and expect it to be considered apart of the RE lore.

[Leftwich]

14

Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune



Platform: Playstation 3

A lot of you guys who are fans of this series will agree with me having this game so highly on my list. Uncharted, in my opinion, was revolutionary for the platforming genre. Not that they did anything new but they revitalized an almost dead game style. It also helps that I’m a history buff and the whole story, which is incredible, is based around the journeys of Francis Drake and our hero, Nathan Drake, trying to uncover the buried secrets.



Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is the first of the Uncharted Trilogy and one of the numerous exclusives of the Playstation 3. Uncharted is an action-adventure mixed with a lot of platforming. The game is done in a third person perspective. Nathan Drake, our main antagonist, uses guns and his close quarters combat to subdue enemies. The Melee can be as simple as punching and kicking but can get more in-depth as you unlock combos and chain attacks. If you can time your combos and chain attacks correctly you can deal massive damage to a single foe or a group of enemies. The combat works perfectly and with the addition of a cover system; you can strategize before your next move in a fire fight. As you play through the game you will gain new weapons although you are limited to a pistol, a rifle and grenades. So you have to think if you’d rather take a Mossberg shotgun or an AK-47. Something I also really enjoyed about Uncharted was the scarcity of ammunition. Sometimes in long gun fights you will use up a lot of your ammo and you can collect from fallen enemies it still becomes frantic as you look for a new clip. Not only can Nathan fight but he can jump, swim, climb ropes, and swing on ropes and scale ledges. Those platforming elements work very well although there are times I couldn’t clearly see where I was going and would sometimes find myself falling off a ledge and having to do everything over again or just simply falling to my death. Not a major problem because platforming is mostly trial and error. To keep with the cinematic feel of the game there is no health bar so when you are getting pelted with bullets your screen will slowly turn black and white and it’s of your best interest to find a place to hide until you can recover your health. Uncharted also gives you some unique vehicle levels. You’ll ride in the back of a jeep with a mounted machine gun as you take down truck loads of enemies or you’ll be in a jet ski trying to make it safely through a sunken city. They are a nice break from the norm and keep the game from feeling monotonous. There are also numerous hidden treasures to collect that will help unlock extras such as new costumes and making of videos. I personally never collected everything but I did get enough to get some new costumes which made my second play through kind of fun.



The story of the game is very Indiana Jones like. The game starts out with our hero, Nathan Drake, on a deep sea exploration. He is looking for the coffin of Sir Francis Drake who is a distant relative. He is accompanied by series mainstay Elena Fisher. As they uncover the coffin and open the cover they discover the coffin is empty but contains a diary full of writings and pictures. As if things couldn’t go any better the two of them are attacked by pirates. This is a great way to start the game as you are learning the controls while you are being bombarded with bullets. It’s a very high adrenaline moment and really gets you into the swing of things quick. Luckily Nate and Elena are saved in the nick of time by Sully. Sully is Nate’s left hand man and pilot of a plane that lands on water, I can’t remember the name of it but you know what I mean. So after looking through the diary, Nate sets out for El Dorado, the lost city of gold. That’s as far as I’ll go with the story. If it doesn’t interest you then I don’t know what to tell you because this is one of the finest stories in a video game I’ve ever played. Sure there are parts I don’t like about it, mainly about ¾ of the way through. It’s a little unbelievable for my tastes but it really doesn’t hurt the overall feel at all, if you can just look past the unrealism. What really pulls the story together is the beauty of the setting and the absolute top notch voice acting. The game itself is one of the most beautiful games I’ve played in my life. The next two games in the series get better graphics wise but Uncharted really is a breath taking game and the lighting is probably what does it for me. Ok, I lied, when you go in the water your clothes get wet and they stay wet, a small detail but it shows that Naughty Dog wanted this game to be very detail driven. Finally the voice acting is better than any game I’ve ever played in. It feels movie quality and the writing is anything but cheesy. I can’t quite explain how good it is unless you play it for yourself.



This is one of those games that defines a console and it did a damn good job of selling from Playstation 3s. If you are a fan boy of the Xbox and don’t even care about this game then I feel bad for you son. Xbox can’t hold a candle to this game and if you don’t believe me then watch the video and see what you’ve been missing.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aWUO_AvXHxQ"]UNCHARTED: Drake's Fortune Gameplay - YouTube[/ame]

[Jmiles]

This game came out when I lived in the dorms in college... My roommate would wake me up playing this shit at 4 am. For that I hated this game, as far as graphics and gameplay though, its fun as shit. Good choice!

[JeremyHight]

Uncharted and Ratchet and Clank are the two best reasons to buy Ps3. Good choice.

[Leftwich]

13

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves



Platform: Playstation 3

Look what we have here a sequel comes in after the original on this list. I did this semi purposefully. I didn’t really know where to put this on the list because it was better than Uncharted but not as much an impact as the next game on my list. I think Uncharted 2 is the rightful heir to the 13th greatest game on my list. If you haven’t read the Uncharted 1 synopsis then read it before this one if you’ve never played the game. As for the rest of you guys here we go. *Note* before you read further, I have Uncharted 3 but because my gaming backlog got so large, I never got a chance to play it. Maybe if I do a list of the best games I played this year then it will definitely be on the list.



Uncharted 2 is the best game I’ve ever played on the Playstation 3 and just so you know this is the highest rated game I’ve played on the PS3 so don’t expect to see anymore Playstation Exclusives on the list. Anyway, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves came out in the fall of 2009 and received universal praise. I mean this was probably the best game to come out in 2009 and you know what, I don’t think this game gets the credit it deserves. Unfortunately for you guys this review will be a lot shorter than Uncharted 1 because in the single player the gameplay is basically the same but what I can talk about is the very cool multiplayer Naughty Dog added. I’m assuming that Naughty Dog was going with the plan that Gears of War laid out and apply that as best they could to Uncharted 2. The result was nothing short of outstanding. I’m not gonna build it up like it’s the best multiplayer experience on the Playstation 3 but with the co-op and the competitive multiplayer, Uncharted 2 really hit a home run. With co-op you could have up to four players to take control of Drake and 3 other companions as you collect treasures, jump crevices, shoot AI enemies and more. The co-op alone makes the multiplayer very fun but competitive is where the real badass fun happens. The game included Deathmatch, Plunder, Elimination, Turf War, King of the Hill and Chain Reaction. Deathmatch is your standard kill as many players in the time limit or reach a certain amount of points. Plunder is basically capture the flag but with treasure instead. Elimination is basically a last man standing. Turf War is what is sounds like and you hold down your turf and try to keep the opposing team from taking yours while you try to do the same to them. King of the Hill is self explanatory and that leaves us with Chain Reaction. Chain Reaction was my favorite because it’s like turf war but you have to capture the points in a certain order and it was basically organized chaos. Character customization for multiplayer is rather shallow but who cares because most everyone buys this game for the story anyway.



Finally I can get to my favorite part. Uncharted 2’s story is UN FUCKING BELIEVABLE. It is probably one of my favorite next gen stories as well. I didn’t think the writers would be able to outdo how good of a story the first Uncharted had but I was wrong and damn glad I was wrong too. First off the story is no longer about Sir Francis Drake but rather about Marco Polo. Basically Marco Polo had a fleet with him leaving China and when he finally made it back to Persia, only one ship remained. That alone is one of the biggest pieces of the plot and builds up for an amazing game. The opening of this game is fantastic. I can tell you because its not really much of a spoiler. Drake wakes up all fucked up in a train hanging off a snowy cliff. It’s a frantic and tense opening to a game and it made me feel like the developers at Naughty Dog wanted to throw me in the fracas right away. I wasn’t expecting it when I first popped my disk in and surprises make this game. As you continue through the story familiar faces return with the same incredible voice actors as well as new faces with even better actors. If there is one thing Uncharted 2 does well is telling a great story with great characters and voice actors. Uncharted 2 did a great job of really sucking me into the story and keeping me guessing what’s next all the way till the end. From start to finish, this may be one of the greatest action adventure stories ever told.



Uncharted 2 was an instant classic in my book and getting game of the year recognition still isn’t enough to prove how good this game is. Watch the video below to see for yourself.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPp9_ye5Fhc"]Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Review - YouTube[/ame]

[Swarley]

Uncharted 2 might be my favorite game of all time. Such a fun and damn good looking game. These Uncharted games bring as close to a movie quality story as you're going to find in gaming, on top of some of the most gorgeous graphics on a console.

[Leftwich]

12

Super Mario Kart



Platform: SNES


Super Mario Kart deserves a lot of praise. This game is 20 years old and did one thing that a lot of racing games couldn’t do. Nintendo brought racing to the casual gamer. A lot of gamers back in 1992 never really had a worthwhile racing game to play until Super Mario Kart made it to shelves. Now all these years later, Super Mario Kart is one of the most popular spinoffs of the Mario Franchise.



Like I said before, Super Mario Kart came out in the Fall of 1992 and as a game that is almost 20 years old, is still one of the most fun games you’ll play on the SNES. Although the game only featured eight characters from the Mario series it was still good enough to have fun. Every driver felt different which was something I could honestly say was revolutionary from at least a strategy standpoint. Mario was a good all around driver, Luigi had more speed but less handling, Donkey Kong had great handling, good speed but bad acceleration and so forth and so on. I was always a fan of using Koopa Troopa because he was better rounded in the way that I raced. The viewpoint you get is almost directly behind your racer and there isn’t a way to change the camera but there really isn’t a need to change it because you can see everything in front of you and most everything right behind you. If you’re playing by yourself you can see on the bottom half of the screen a map of what the track looks like and where the other racers are in relation to you. I rarely used the map unless I was on a tough track that I wasn’t too familiar with. The tracks are also littered with floating question marks that feature power ups such as shells, stars and banana peels. The shells can be used as projectiles to take out other drivers, Stars grant you invincibility and a boost in speed and the banana peels are to make other drivers spin out. There are more power ups but I can’t remember them right now. Usually if you are hit by a shell or run over a banana peel you will spin out but if you collect coins as you race you will lose coins instead of spinning out. I can’t count how many times this has saved my ass. There are also more advanced techniques such as power sliding and hopping. Both are to help with cornering but can have adverse effects on your performance. Too much power sliding will cause you to spin out while hopping at the wrong time will cause you to lose a great deal of speed. As you play the game more and master the art of sliding and hopping you will realize when it is and is not an appropriate time to use these techniques.



Super Mario Kart is not just endless single player racing, there is a career mode. The career mode is called Mario Kart GP and is broken up into 3 different difficulties, 50cc 100cc and 150cc. The difference in skill of the computer controlled drivers is very noticeable from the jump from 50cc to 100cc and then to 150cc so if you’re not a vet, I’d stick to the 50cc. Anyway, the Mario Kart GP is broken up into the Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup and Special Cup which all feature different tracks. Mushroom Cup features easy tracks such as Mario Circuit and Bowser Castle while on the total opposite spectrum the hard tracks belong to the Special Cup like Rainbow Road. I cannot count the amount of times I’ve gone flying off the edge of Rainbow Road when I was close to the end of the race. It was probably the most frustrating track I’ve ever played in a racing game but when I beat the track I feel like I’ve really accomplished something. Before I move onto something else, I am undefeated at Choco Island 1. I have raced many people and have never lost. Just thought I should put that out there incase we’re measuring dicks. In the Mario Kart GP mode you race against seven other computer controlled racers and you play 5 tracks per cup. The goal is to get the most points and finish first in the standing. So technically you could finish 2nd every race and still come out on top. Graphically the game is very good for an SNES game. Every character is instantly recognizable and the quasi 3D design they were going for works very well. It is in no way the prettiest game but it isn’t bad and doesn’t detract from the gameplay. The sound is also very well done. Banter from racers, the roar of the engines and all around sound effects and the soundtrack work well and set a fun mood for the game.



Super Mario Kart was a gamble by Nintendo but paid off. The Mario Kart Series has spawned numerous sequels and remakes. The Nintendo 64 version is often called the best but in my honest opinion how can you deny the greatness of the original? If you’re a younger gamer and never got to experience this gem of a game then what the hell are you doing and watch the video.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efatwF2CKyQ"]Super Mario Kart (SNES) Special Cup pt 1 - YouTube[/ame]

[SethMode]

Will always be my favorite Mario Kart.

[FirstTimer]

I always liked the N64 version better...but nothing wrong with the homage to the original and it being here. You coul dhave put either here and it would have been good.