Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/09/23/the-best-video-games-of-this-y.html
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I’m surprised they omitted Team Fortress 2. Not because it’s necessarily an amazing game but because it popularized and even originated a lot of the features that for better or worse became endemic to FPS.
I also feel like F.E.A.R. deserves at least an honorable mention. Sure it was quickly forgotten, but that’s just because it was some impossible scary shit to play.
I’d say RTS is underrepresented, but there’s a reason we still play the RTS games from the 90’s.
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I was honestly expecting Fortnite here …
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No Hearthstone on the list? I’m rather shocked.
And World of Warcraft is way too low. It should be top 3, arguably number 1 in my book.
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Braid.
Here’s a case made for its historical importance, but I don’t care. I care about the art, the music, the story, and most importantly, the puzzles.
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Morrowind should be in there too; especially given Skyrim lurking near the top ten. That said, I was surprised recently how badly it had aged when I gave it a whirl for the first time in 15 years. It’s one of those games that memory silently upgrades–or forgets how much DIY upgrading you did with hacks and plugins back in the day.
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It seems like entire categories of games have been overlooked to fit in more third person action games.
- Puzzle games
- Tower defence
- Card-based games
- Metroidvanias
There’s only one rogue-like, and maybe that can be justified given there’s only 50 slots, but I can’t imagine putting only one rogue-like (out of thousands) while you put in two soulsborne games (out of six) no matter how great soulsborne games are.
I’ll admit if I were going to make a list it would include some things that obviously shouldn’t be one it (Sandcastle Builder!) but it seems like the point of the list was to make sure there wasn’t a single game anyone hadn’t heard of on it. If we’re going by the popular achievement of the game then you have to include Candy Crush. If we’re going by some measure of innovation or artistry then I don’t understand how La-Mulana isn’t there.
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I just picked up the “remastered” Skyrim for PS4, and realized that it’s going to do a sneaky trick on my memory–because it looks the way I remember Skyrim feeling when I first played it back in 2011, but I know the resolution is so much better. Nevertheless, in ten years when I remember it again, I’ll be picturing those lovely PS4 landscapes.
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The list is very solid, but highly skewed toward big-budget action/adventure type, with very few indie games that I can see. Both Braid and Undertale are hugely influential and should be included.
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Kind of shocked Cuphead isn’t here either. It is a surprisingly fun game and reinvents side scrollers with some pretty great graphics.
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If we are making a list: I’d consider Hollow Knight to be the pinnacle of Metroidvania.
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What(,) are The Guardian’s p(r)icks?
Prey 2917, obvs.
Just how original it was, I think katamari damacy shouldn’t be forgotten about.
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I guess it’s not amazing to see my own mental list of games that should have been on there pop out of other people’s mouths. Others I think that should have made it but appear to be in genres that just weren’t considered include Path of Exile, the Binding of Isaac*, Super Meat Boy, and I Wanna Be the Guy**.
* Honestly this just seems unquestionable to me
** There are literally thousands of fan-games for this.
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This is an amazing time to be alive for those who enjoy video games. There are so many indie games, various platforms, etc.
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Agreed – and it’s #49 on the list.
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No space for Monument Valley?
Not a big game player but I did like the graphics.
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Character Creation is the Whole Game, presumably? 
ETA: If we’re doing “Why isn’t X on the list?” then I just want to say, “Why isn’t XCOM on the list?” (in one of its variants, probably XCOM2)
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This list is pretty short on indie titles and pretty long on games that haven’t aged well. Maybe replace ‘best’ with ‘most well-known’ because I’d be pretty embarrassed if CoD was anywhere near the peak of the medium.
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I just realized they put GTA 4 and GTA 5 on there. If I thought two soulsborne games was stretching it, two GTAs is nothing but the author of the list saying “I really like GTA game, though.”
Also, among all the other complaints, is there a single RPG on there? FFX came out in 2001 (I understand why 12, 13 and 15 weren’t going to make the cut even if I loved them).
To pick a few nits, I’d have picked Silent Hill 4 over Silent Hill 2, but probably would have left them off entirely to make room for more important games. Pretty sure they only put Silent Hill 2 on because they weren’t allowed to put on the original. But also, since we’re picking sequels that surpass the original, INSIDE should be on there rather than LIMBO. That’s the only game that has ever horrified me (i.e. not just raised by blood pressure with a jump scare).
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