GVGOAT 34 - 25

A few comments before continuing the list....
1) Thank you so much for all the comments on the list. Wait...strike that. There's been almost none. Just gimme a little sugar, that's all I ask!
2) I apologize for the delay between the last two installment. It's been an interesting week.
3) The list becomes very difficult from here on. In fact, the top 25 was nearly impossible to dissect. So, I tended to heavily weigh replayability for the overall factor along with my own personal obscene knowledge of that game. Trust me, it'll make sense. Here we go!


34) Super Mario 64 (N64)
A lot of lists will have this game much closer to the top. Personally, I don't agree. But, it's high regard, coupled with incredibly solid game play earn is a spot in the top 35. The game did have a very nice "feel" to it and really explored the early space of the 64 bit console.




















Above: 8 bytes of Mario

Fun Fact: No matter how many times I see it used in a platformer, the "stinky butt-drop" move is always enjoyable.




33) Asteroids (PC)
Spin, click, shot. A simple idea, a great game. The single thing that set this game apart in those early days was the ability to go off the edge of the screen, and come out on the other. Well, that, and the fact it seemed to have a physics/momentum engine built in. The movements were much more fluid than even some games are today.













Above: Uhhhh....I think one of those things is an enemy craft. Maybe?


Fun Fact: The mouse pointer used by every computer today is modeled after the ship in Asteroids.



32) Gran Turismo 3
One of the most hyped titles to be released for the PSII, it's graphics certainly disappoint. I'd actually call the game's handling too realistic if such a thing is possible. It provided enough cars and add-ons to keep any gear head occupied plus enough tracks and difficulty for even a casual car person. It's full replay mode was the one thing that separated it from the rest and REALLY let it showcase it's graphics.















Above: Mizer driving around campus. Look out for the 4-0 Dewwie Retardo!!!


Fun Fact: The game was pretty tough....until you got that first race car. Yet, having an open-wheel indy car crush a Miata was still fun. Suck on it computer!




31) Test Drive 3 (PC)
This game was probably the first one I ever played that had the "sandbox" ability. Granted you were supposed to do this mission and that mission, but if you wanted, you could drive down the railroad tracks as long as you wanted. Back in the early 90s, this type of thing was simply unheard of. In fact, the more I think about this game, it could have been a bit higher, but there's no way I could drop anything else down. A victim of circumstance, just ask #30, you're coming up on the list.













Above: Your car was always driven by the invisible hand.


In a way, it was really the precursor to GTA. You could ram other cars, be chased by cops, and the sandbox idea are all themes used by GTA. TD3 did this all back in the day. One of the best.

Fun Fact: I'll always remember how cool it was to see rain on the windshield of your car. We've come a long way baby.




30) Super Bomberman 2 (SNES)
While compiling my list, having to rank this game outside of the top 20 was questionably the biggest surprise of the ordering. While one of the greatest and easiest multiplayer games ever, I had to bump it down for it's TERRIBLE single player mode. Honestly, has anyone ever played it? Just gawd-awful. Gawful? Unlawful?...it probably should be, it's that bad.


















Above: Stage 1 of 10

However, the MP mode is gospel. You only needed really one button (2 if you had a glove to throw bombs), but it still required strategy with a wonderful array of powerups. Simply fantastic.

Fun Fact: One of the powerups was a skull. It would be a random power, that sometimes would even hurt you. To this day, we all know what bomb diarrhea can do.




29) Madden (the whole friggin series)
Madden '93 changed my life. The graphics, the gameplay, the creepy music. Then about "the year 2000", the game transformed itself into an institution. It's more than a game, it's part of our mainstream culture now. "Madden Day" is a widely accepted practice. That's all you need to know. That, and Steve Young in Madden 95 threw the hardest pass in video game history.


















Above: Those were the days.

Fun Fact: I once got 102 yards with Thurman Thomas on a single drive. There were no penalties. I think that's a record.




28) Chronotrigger (SNES)
Of our loyal readers, I bet maybe 1 of you has even heard of this game, let alone played it. So, I'll spare you the details and just let you know it was one of the best RPGs ever.















Above: A sleepytime explosion?





27) Street Fighter II (Arcade, SNES)
In the day of side-scrolling fighting games, there were two. For me, I preferred the other one more, and it's yet to show up. You know what it is. I will say I think this game had better overall characters. But the MKII was just cooler overall.


















Above: Simmer down Ryu. It's just a chick.

Fun Fact: Street fighter gets bonus points for JackFu and I turning the characters screams to match names of north campus streets. "IIIIIIUKA", "Summit BOOM", and "Waldeck Fire" (just go with it) always hold a special place in my heart.




26) The Sims (PC)
Here's how much our lives suck: We'll spend our worthless time watching virtual people do the same things we don't want to do. I love our species.























Above: "No, Mom, I can't take out the trash b\c I'm busy making sure my virtual self does so."

For me, the highligts of this game were 2 fold. First, making every male character make out with the other male characters. Secondly, I tried to find any way possible to kill people. My favorite was getting someone in a swimming pool then removing the ladder.

Fun Fact: The easiest and more boring add-on to this game was "The Sims: Alter Boy Challenge". You spent 400 game hours praying, then "won" after being sodomized by Billy Graham. What? Too Soon?





25) Mario Kart 64 (N64)
The game also gets points for being equally enjoyable on the gamecube. And props to the cube peeps for not attempting to totally redo an already fantastic game. However, the 64 version was the real groundbreaker. A totally fantastic multi-player experience, coupled with a decent single play mode.















Above: The lightning bolt awaits to make you travel-size

Using the well established gaming protocol of skinny vs fat is acceleration vs speed, the game made great use of all the great mario characters.

Fun Fact: In order to balance out the greatness of Mario Kart, they created Mario Party to prove a fact that a game with all Mario characters could, in fact, royally suck.