Behold! I have been tasked with creating a list of my 50 favorite games of all time.
Now, you should know that these are not the highest rated games. Instead, I have chosen the 50 games that have meant a lot to me for various reasons. You will probably have some issues with my choices (I will admit I chose some weird games), but that’s why they are mine. Trust me, I have my reasons for choosing these games.
With that in mind, let’s get this show on the road!
10) Star Wars Battlefront II
Battlefront II was the love child of Battlefield and Star Wars, and it was fantastic. It may not have had a real “story”, but the multiplayer levels were great. My mind was blown the first time I flew an X-Wing to a Star Destroyer, landed inside, and ran around killing Stormtroopers without a loading screen. More importantly, Battlefront II had a secret mode on Tattooine where you could play a massive battle featuring only heroes and villains.
9) Super Mario Bros. 3
Super Mario Bros. 3 was the best Mario game on the NES. There were so many leaps in gameplay that it was absolutely astounding. I mean, you could get special wings and just fly over an entire level without touching an enemy. On top of that, Mario 3 had warp whistles for skipping entire worlds, hidden levels, and awesome new outfits. I don’t think you could find anything cooler than Kuribo’s Shoe in any other game.
8) Uncharted 2
Uncharted 2 was my introduction to Nathan Drake and Sully, and it is the only Uncharted game that I have beaten multiple times (3 so far). I absolutely loved Uncharted 2, and I didn’t even mind the blue enemies.
I will never get enough of Drake’s Harrison Ford-like charm and the fantastic story. That train level was so entertaining.
7) Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
I love every Grand Theft Auto game that I play, but none felt as large or as in-depth as San Andreas. The mixture of three gigantic cities and wide open wilderness came close to blowing my young mind, especially when I was flying around listening to K-Rose. San Andreas had a massive world, an even larger story, and absolute ridiculous character/car customization options.
Sure, San Andreas hasn’t aged amazingly well in the visual department, but it’s still an absolute blast to play. Plus, you can find endless mods for the PC version that let you drive around Los Santos or San Fierro in the General Lee, Batmobile, and A-Team van.
6) Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga
I am an unabashed fan of TT’s Lego games, but my absolute favorite is Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga. Lego Star Wars was the OG of the licensed Lego games, but it only featured the Prequels. Lego Star Wars II made a game out of the much better Star Wars films, but some of the characters weren’t as effective as Darth Maul. So, TT Games combined them both into one massive game for the Xbox 360 and PS3 and called it the Complete Saga.
I have beaten Lego Star Wars: TCS multiple times, but I somehow always go back and play it more. The redone levels were fantastic, and you could play through them all with an unlockable Indiana Jones. There isn’t much better than that. Please hold, I’m going to go play Lego Star Wars: TCS some more.
5) Red Dead Redemption
Red Dead Redemption is the greatest game ever created by Rockstar. Yeah, I know that Table Tennis is pretty good, but it doesn’t have horses.
I grew up loving westerns—Silverado is my all time favorite movie—and I have always wanted a truly great cowboy game. I enjoyed Red Dead Revolver and Gun, but only Red Dead Redemption had the truly wide open western world (including a gorgeous version of Mexico). Most importantly, Red Dead had a phenomenal story featuring a character that I actually liked. I won’t say what the ending of Red Dead Redemption was, but I will say that it was devastating. I honestly believe that Red Dead Redemption was pure magic.
Besides, what other game let you jump off of a balcony and land on your horse?
4) The Saboteur
Wait…The Saboteur is rated in the top 5?
Yeah, I know that you think I’m crazy, but hear me out. The Saboteur is pretty dumb, but it was one of the most entertaining games I have ever played. I spent over 100 hours playing through the Saboteur twice, and only about 20 hours of that consisted of the campaign. I absolutely loved the black and white version of Paris that slowly regained color as you murdered Nazis, and I found it relaxing to wander through the city blowing up watch towers and tanks with my c4.
The Saboteur is also one of the only games I have ever played that had helpful glitches. Sometimes, I would be driving through Paris or the countryside searching for SS officers (the hardest enemies in the game), only to have them spontaneously explode as I got closer. These glitches saved me from having to search for a secretive method of attack and a potential firefight. That’s pretty awesome.
Oh, and The Saboteur had a dedicated “Smoke Cigarette” button that made you invisible to Nazis. Yeah.
3) Super Mario World
It seems a little strange to have multiple Mario games in the top 10, but I can’t deny the influence that these games had on my childhood. Super Mario World took the best parts of Super Mario Bros. 3 and added extra bits with the SNES’ technology. Super Mario World also improved the flying ability, while replacing the tail with a fancy cape. In addition, Mario added Yoshi as a companion to help Mario fly better, but Super Mario World wasn’t content with just one Yoshi. Super Mario World included multiple versions of Yoshi, all with their own abilities. Of course, the Red Yoshi who shot flames was the coolest one.
The other reason why Super Mario World was amazing was the fact that it was the first game I ever heard of with a new game plus mode. Granted, this new game plus could only be unlocked by completing hidden extra levels, but it was worth the effort. The new game plus replaced all of the normal Mario enemies with some weird-ass looking baddies that were harder to kill. This mode alone added many extra hours of game time to Super Mario World.
2) Borderlands
Borderlands may not be as technically advanced as Borderlands 2, nor does it have as deep of a story, but I don’t particularly care. I love Borderlands so much. I have put over 200 hours into Borderlands on multiple platforms, and I have beaten the main campaign 6 times so far (I’m replaying it for the 7th time right now). I never seem to get tired of the NPC’s or the missions, and I prefer playing as the original characters.
What else makes Borderlands my second favorite game of all time? CO-OP, my friends. My wife loves video games, and we love playing cooperative games as much as possible. Borderlands had a phenomenal co-op campaign, and the different character classes were made to enhance instead of hinder co-op. We worked extremely well together when I played as a hunter, and she played as a soldier. The bird/turret combo was unstoppable.
On a final note, Claptrap was terrible in Borderlands 2, but he was still adorable and entertaining in the first game.
1) Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Kart is by far my most-played game ever. The 200 hours I have on Borderlands seem like a Call of Duty campaign when compared to my time playing Super Mario Kart. There is something so addicting about racing around various tracks as random Mario characters while listening to that fun soundtrack.
Ok, I feel like this is a safe place, so I’ll admit something: I actually have all 8 original Super Mario Kart characters tattooed on my arm. That’s how much I love this game. Anytime I am having a bad day, I look down at my arm and smile. Then, I go home and race around Rainbow Road for the hundredth time. Man, Super Mario Kart is so good.
So…
That’s it, my top 50 games of all time. So, what did you think of the list? Am I bat crap crazy for putting The Saboteur in the top 10? Let me know in the comments, then go check out Robbie’s and Bryan’s top 50 games.
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