My 15 Most Influential Games

The inspiration came across reading the blog of Brentalfloss, in which he was inspired by a note that circulated around Facebook (I need more friends like his.).  Now let me clarify that this isn't my list of my greatest games of all time, although some if not most might be considered.  Let me clarify that this isn't a list of games that influenced the industry today, but me as a gamer, although once again most of these games might qualify in that category.  This was difficult for me to choose and decided to grab my balls and rank them as hard as it might me.  In retrospect, I might change my mind and interchange my choices, but let's roll with this and what we have now.  Perhaps after some viewings and some healthy debate, some of you can change my mind.



Let's-a-go!


15. Super Mario Bros.
NES 1985
This is the Hulk Hogan of video games, it was huge in the 80s and paved the way for the rest of it's industry.  The original bar set for 2D platformers.  I have it so low on the list for two reasons. One, I wanted to get an obvious choice out of the way so it wasn't anti-climatic.  Two, because I can't remember the first time I played it as I as probably 3 years old.  The fact that I spent much of my life playing games could be attributed to SMB.  This is the earliest released game on the list (well that spoils it, the remaining 14 games are from the past 25 years.) The 2D platforming Marios from the main series that followed can be mostly agreed are superior to this one, I would agree with that too.  But something has to be the first.

14. Super Mario Kart
SNES 1992
Well I'm not much on racing games, maybe the RC Pro-Ams or Micro Machines of the old days, but I never got into the realistic ones.  The Mario Kart games are a different story however.  The SNES version is the one to start it all, and eventually the series became one of it's own instead of simply a gimmicky Mario spin off.  The controls were sharp and the learning curve was small, anyone could pick up and get started.  The inclusion of items to use to your advantage, is what gives the game an unpredictable edge.  And you can't forget the battle mode, which for what is worth is the more popular of the multiplayer options of the game.  Since then, I've picked up just about every version of Mario Kart and it never gets old.  Sure the frustration can be high, but that's part of it.  And winning gives you a genuine thrill of victory.

13. Street Fighter 2 AND Mortal Kombat (tie)
Arcade/SNES/Genesis 1991 (SF2) 1992 (MK)
This next entry is a tie, and would technically give me 16 titles overall.  So I cheated, sue me.  But let me explain the tie.  To me and perhaps several others these games are two sides of the same coin.  They both were released within a year and were popular during an arcade popularity in the early 90s.  SF2 came out first and people crowded to just get a chance to play.  I remember as a young dorky kid, finally getting my chance after waiting in line.  Having no experience or idea of how to execute moves or even play I chose based on who looked the coolest (Blanka).  Then I got my ass handed to me, but it was worth it.  Then came a time being excited to put some coins in SF2, but there was a crowd around a new game.  It was Mortal Kombat.  As I looked I seen blood drip from the bodies of the fighters then seen the player execute a move which had one ninja in blue pull the head off his foe with the spinal cord still attached.  Sound graphic? Well it was, and at that time it was edgy.  And as a young boy, that was AWESOME.  Eventually, both games were ported on home consoles.  Naturally, I got both for the SNES.  MK was disappointing because the Big N wanted to maintain a friendly image and removed the blood.  At least I knew friends that had the Genesis version (ABACABB, who knows what that is? And yes, that was from the top of my head.)  SF2 was the superior game overall, it didn't have the violence or the controversy following it.  What it had was a more solid foundation of a fighting game.  From the arcades to the home consoles to my heart, I salute both of these titles.

12. Resident Evil
PS1 1996
This game has the honor of being the first game to scare the shit out of me.  By today's standards this game did not age well.  But it has it's charm to it.  The dialog is notorious for being so bad it's funny.  The controls are clunky and ridged.  Back in it's release, it was effective... at least to a grade schooler.  This isn't the first game meant to haunting, but it's the game that gave life to the survival horror genre.  I'll never forget renting this game and traveling through the empty mansion with the eerie music.  With a limited amount of ammo you had to make sure you can take down the zombies placed all over the game.  The part that's burnt into my memory is when traveling through an empty hallway and a dog breaks through the window.  After that, there was two choices:  either find someone to watch you play or turn on the lights.  Because I wanted to play this game with dry pant.

11. Goldeneye 007
N64 1997
multiplayer FPS's.  This game is iconic, it probably holds the prestige of being the best game for the N64, it's easily the best movie based game, and it's probably the best local multiplayer game ever.  Odds are if you have an N64 you had this game.  You either had friends come by or you went to a friends house and you played this game for hours on end.  Every house had their own set of rules they liked to play.  Everyone had the maps in their heads and they knew the good points to place proximity mines.  I always remember how no one called the guns by their actual names (RC-Pro Am, DD Destroyer).  The game was remade for the Wii, and for what I know it did a good job being true to the original. But it wasn't the original.  The problem is that the original is owned by Rare, who know is exclusive to Microsoft.  I always said that someday Rare should once again release this exact game for download, but add an online multiplayer.

10. Pokemon Red/Blue
GB 1998
Go ahead, laugh if you want.  Pokemon wasn't just a game but an addiction.  This is the first and only game on the list to be on a handheld.  The drive to catch every Pokemon was enough to but some serious hours into it.  For those that played, you know what I mean.  They made you work beyond just playing it to actually get a substantial amount of Pokemon.  The further you progressed the more you would collect and the more powerful they became.  You got to customize your fighting team, even some of them evolved into more powerful forms.  The game in every generation was released in twos.  The first generation was red and blue.  Certain Pokemon were exclusive to a color.  To get those, you had to know someone that had the other color and needed to link your Gameboys and trade.  It's truly one of Nintendo's more innovative and profitable IPs.

9. Resident Evil 4
GCN 2005
This is the most recent game on this list and the only one from the new millennium.  This is now available on multiple platforms, but originally it was released for the Gamecube.  This is the second title from this series, and while it follows the same canon, this could not be any different from the this game's predecessors.  I'm not big on FPS games and I wasn't the biggest fan of the original RE game's tank style of controls.  RE4 created an over the shoulder 3rd person perspective of shooting, which has been becoming more relevant in this generation of gaming.  The original couple games were all about surviving on a small amount of ammo that's provided.  When you played RE4 you felt like fucking Rambo as you wiped out the hordes of crazies trying to rip you apart in pieces.

8. Contra
NES 1988
You want to talk about a game that made you feel like Rambo, then maybe you should play Contra. A truly premier co-op experience for me.  There was Bubble Bobble, but this game didn't make you feel as much of a pussy when you played it.  You would think that having the help of a second player would work towards your benefit, but unless you are both on the same wavelength then your teamwork might become your demise.  Missing a jump or being two fast might cost you or your partner a life (looking at you Waterfall stage.)  Lives are cost at the expense of the greed of being wanting the ever so dominant spread gun.  And there is nothing to stop your partner from stealing your lives when they just aren't good as you are.  Everyone is going to remember Contra for it's use of the Konami Code, or some might even call it the Contra Code new because it's synonymous with this title now.  Entering that would ensure that you got 30 lives, combined with 2 continues, which would equate to a total of 90 overall tries for both you and the second player.  If you can't finish the game after that, well you belong in the Glass Joe category.

7. Super Metroid

SNES 1994

This for what it's worth is one of the all-time great games.  It absolutely blew me away when I first played then completed it.  It didn't sell as much as it should have, but regardless the game is still considered a masterpiece.  This got the same face lift as Mario and Zelda from 8 to 16 bit that made those series true greats.  SM was set in the same planet as the first one for the NES, planet Zebes.  Nintendo really did a great job on giving the environment of the planet a personality.  The soundtrack complimented the areas well, from the fires of Norfair to the abyss of Maridia.  You had a true feeling of solitude, it was just Samus and the habitat and creatures of Zebes.  This is a great combination of exploration and action.

6. Metal Gear Solid

PS1 1998

This was the rebirth and the rise of one of the greatest stories ever told.  Not the first Metal Gear made, but for creator Hideo Kojima, a chance for him to restart on a clean slate on the PS1.  This was a game of stealth instead of firepower.  For it's time and even now, it's one of the finest works of voice acting in a game.  The characters were given a life that made you involved and want to continue to find out what happens next.  It was just like watching a TV show, you couldn't put the controller down.  Every turn there was a new twist that blew your mind or there was a new villain that intrigued you.  Psycho Mantis is still one of the greatest characters ever made, and his introduction and fight is unforgettable.  Snake is the definition of a badass and his voice work done by David Hayter is top notch and iconic.  Kojima was devoted to make this game feel not like just a game, but a cinematic experience.  Great gameplay on top of it is just a bonus.  The main Metal Gear Solid saga spans on 3 generation of consoles with 4 titles overall.  None of them disappoint.  If you are going to play MGS, play the PS1 version of it and not the Gamecube remake of it.  Despite the upgrade, this original is still superior.

5. Final Fantasy VII
PS1 1997
This game (along with the original Playstation) is and always will hold the title of the best Christmas gift I ever received in 1997.  I relate this game to ushering me into Sony's regime in the gaming world.  It convinced me that the Big N wasn't the only big dog in town anymore.  Not the first FF game I ever played, but to many it was.  It was the franchises true breakout title.  For it's time, the game's cinematic scenes were too good to be real.  Of course now they show their age.  FF7 sported a great soundtrack (as always with a Nobuo Uematsu composed game).  It used a great and simple battle system.  The story was great and emotional.  Hell, this is the game that popularized the term "SPOILERS".  Sephiroth is still an idol amongst nerds all over the world.  FF7 has spawned a couple spin offs and even a sequel in movie form, but fans are still hoping that a remake is in the works.  I don't think it particularly needs to be remade, but I'd also like to see it happen too.

4. Mega Man 2
NES 1988
Super Mario Bros was the original, Super Mario Bros 3 is considered the best.  I'm not going to disagree with that.  My childhood however was built on the memories of the blue bomber, Mega Man.  There was 6 of these on the NES, 10 overall now.  Mega Man 2 was the first one I played and it really captivated me.  It was a classic platforming game, but it used different elements that separated it from the rest and was also attempted to be emulated.  The best of series is either 2 or 3, which is always debated.  I always will have my bias towards this one.  MM2 was cool, because you were able to choose where you wanted to start.  Beating a stage gave you a new weapon that would be an advantage over another boss that you had to decipher on your own.  It's an advanced form of paper, rock, scissors.  If I were to give a newcomer a hint, it would be start with Metal Man, because his weapon is completely dominant.  And man, did this game have some kick-ass 8 bit music.

3. Super Mario 64

N64 1996

It's not the first game to enter the third dimension, but it's the game that transition the industry to the 3D era.  While Sony and Sega were trying to figure out how to make a great 3D platforming game, Nintendo was working on Mario 64.  When this game came out, it raised the bar high.  To this day, games still can't make a 3D game with controls as razor sharp as this.  I would say this goes in hand with the introduction of an analog thumb stick on a console controller.  No longer were we held down by 8 rigid directions, but now had the use of virtually an infinite amount of directions.  This was the missing link to the success of 3D gaming.  It changed the industry.  I could go on another rant about how many creations by Nintendo are now trends followed by other competitors.  Before anyone praises Sony or Microsoft, take notice of the analog sticks that are now standard on controllers for 15 years now.  And that's just one of several others, that's not this topic.  Mario 64 is a spectacular game on it's own.  It's change on the industry was felt immediately and any kid at that time wanted their hands on it.

2. Final Fantasy II (IV in Japan)
SNES 1991
Now to return to games that were influential to me as opposed to the industry.  When I was about 5 I had a strategy guide mailed by Nintendo Power for the original Final Fantasy.  Looking at it, it was full of cool monsters and weapons and I knew I wanted to play it.  I rented it and I thought it sucked, but I was also 5 and didn't have the attention span for an RPG.  Some years later my cousin rented Final Fantasy 2, and this time I thought the game was incredible.  It used the same battle system and had the same random battles, but this was different.  It had great music.  It had intriguing characters that you actually cared for. And it had a plot that you wanted to follow.  I have it at this part of the list because at my young impressionable age, I could of never played another Final Fantasy or RPG ever again.  Getting a second chance and playing this one made me not only become a fan of RPGs, but they became one of my favorite genres of games to play.  If it wasn't for this game, I'd never play any of the other Final Fantasy games, which are some of my all time favorites.  I would of never played Chrono Trigger.  I would of never played Earthbound.  I would of never played Breath of Fire, Super Mario RPG, the list goes on.  And for the record I went back and played the first Final Fantasy, and it wasn't so bad after all.

1. Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
SNES 1991
Here we are and a game that without a doubt deserves this honor.  Ironically, number 1 and 2 on this were both released in the same week.  Zelda games are an industry staple.  The NES game was good, but this was the one that I really think back on.  This is flawless as they come.  LttP was an epic adventure or everyone's favorite silent protagonist (which ones aren't though).  Much like how Super Metroid gave life to planet Zebes, LttP gave a life to the kingdom of Hyrule.  It even had a dark bizarro version of it.  The gameplay is fun, the dungeons are filled with puzzles that rattles the mind.  The exploration for new items to reach new parts of the map was always good fun.  The classic overworld theme is one of the most beloved tunes in gaming.  Once you defeat Ganon and save the Triforce, you can sit back and watch one of the most satisfying endings of any game and let it soak in.  I can't say anymore about this game that already hasn't been said.  Now my list is concluded.  I hope everyone enjoyed this and took a trip in memory lane.  And by all means, I hope you are inspired to make a list of your own.