Cliff Bleszinski picks favorite games, what are yours?

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Home Gears of War

1:20 PM on 11.24.2009, Nick Chester

191 comments | 4305 views

Cliff Bleszinski picks favorite games, what are yours? photo

#Cliffy B #Gears of War

Industry Gamers recently caught up with Epic's Cliff Bleszinski and asked him the dreaded question -- what are your favorite games of all time? Cliff picked ten, later lamenting on Twitter that he wished it had been 20.

Here are his choices in what appears to be no particular order:

GoldenEye/Halo
Contra
Grand Theft Auto III
Tetris Attack/Pokemon Puzzle League
Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Super Metroid
BioShock
Super Bomberman
Doom
Half-Life 2

As a gamer (and someone who writes about games full time), I get this question all of the time, and I hate it. "What's your favorite game?" It's a tough one, because it's hard to narrow down what games had the most impact on me, both at the time and even 15 or 20 years later.

But I'll give it a shot in the comments, and it would be great if you could do the same. I asked some of the Dtoid staff to pitch in to get it started; now let us know what you feel are your ten favorite games of all time. (Hint: There are no right or wrong answers.)

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189 comments | showing # 1 to 50

Jonathan Ross

My top ten, in no particular order except for the game at the top...

Chrono Trigger
Final Fantasy VI
Super Mario 3
Final Fantasy Tactics
Diablo II
Marathon II
Team Fortress 2
Myth II
Link's Awakening
Earthbound

Brad Nicholson

(1) EarthBound (2) Morrowind (3) Quest for Glory: So Do You Want to Be a Hero? (4) Secret of Monkey Island (5) Dragon Age: Origins (6) Final Fantasy VII (7) Ghost Recon [and Island Thunder by extension] (8) Oblivion (9) Rainbow Six: Black Arrow (10) Mass Effect

I'm probably going to regret this list.

Dale North

* Xenogears/saga series
* Lunar series
* Unjammer Lammy
* Persona series
* Bust a Groove I and II
* Silent Hill everything
* Fatal Frame everything
* Hot Shots Golf everything
* Super Mario Bros 2
* Dig motherfucking Dug

Colette Bennett

Wow, how hard. I can't name them in order but I can name them:

Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy VII
Chrono Trigger
The Legend of Zelda
Fatal Frame
Silent Hill 2
PixelJunk Monsters
Puzzle Quest
Diablo II
Persona 4

Nick Chester

This feels incomplete and wrong, and I'll change my mind in an hour:

Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario World 2
Metroid
Tetris
Street Fighter II
Mrs. Pac-Man
God of War II
Rock Band
Half-Life
Punch-Out!!

Brad Rice

Well shit. This ain't easy. I've got my top 10 anime/manga down, but games? Here's a crack:

*Final Fantasy Tactics
*Silent Hill 2
*Super Mario World
*Taiko Drum Master
*BlazBlue

...and I'm out there. I've got about two-dozen titles fighting it out in my head, and I can't decide. NICK CHESTER, WHY DO YOU MAKE ME DO HARD THINGS?

Ben PerLee

1) Price of Persia: Sands of Time 2) Gladius 3)Rock Band 2 4)Super Smash Bros. Melee 5)Lumines 6)Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker 7) Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan! 8)Left 4 Dead 9)Paper Mario (although all of the Mario RPGs) 10)Harvest Moon 64.

This is probably not exactly my true list, but is pretty accurate all the same. Maybe FF Tactic Advance in there somewhere....

Joseph Leray

There's no way. This is going to be wrong on so many levels, but fuck it:

Final Fantasy IX / Shadow of the Colossus / BioShock / Super Mario Bros. 3 / Vectorman / Earthworm Jim / Secret of Mana / Persona 3: FES / Half-Life 2 / The Legend of Dragoon

Jordan Devore

Donkey Kong Country 2
Yoshi's Island
Pikmin 2
Banjo-Kazooie
Resident Evil 4
TimeSplitters 2
Metroid Prime
Mega Man X
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Batman: Arkham Asylum

Conrad Zimmerman

*Megaman 2
*Maniac Mansion
*Culdcept
*Shadow of the Colossus
*Alundra
*Super Bomberman
*M.U.L.E.
*The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
*Geometry Wars 2
*Ninja Gaiden (NES)

Chad Concelmo

I will save my Top Ten for when I can think about it more, but I know my #1: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past ... and Super Metroid ... and Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island ... and Final Fantasy VI ... and Mother 3 ... and Half-Life 2 ... and Super Mario Galaxy ... and Shadow of the Colossus ...

MY GOD THIS IS HARD! :D

R3Y GUTI3RR3Z

These are in perfect order, but not complete. I've got eight so far. My guaranteed eight.

Metal Gear Solid
Mass Effect
Knights of the Old Republic
Rez
God of War
Super Mario 64
Star Fox
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

Topher Cantler

Ugggh, not easy:

Ikaruga
Moero! Justice Gakuen
Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
Street Fighter series (yes, I cheated, this is hard)
Metal Slug 3
ICO
We <3 Katamari
Dead Rising
Gokujou Parodius
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

Josh Tolentino

It's not easy when I have a poor memory, so I'm going to cop out and name multiple games in the same franchise:

*Persona 3:FES
*Persona 4
*Metal Gear Solid 4
*Sakura Taisen 2
*Baldur's Gate 2
*Planescape Torment
*Final Fantasy Tactics
*Final Fantasy XII
*Suikoden II
*Suikoden V

Niero

In no particular order:

Phantasy Star II
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Rhythm Tengoku
Mega Man 2
Ninja Gaiden 2 (NES)
Mass Effect
Final Fantasy II
Half Life 2
Rock Band 2
Radiant Silvergun

timtheterrible

I think my favorite game is Don't Be an Obnoxious Asshole Whilst Being Interviewed By Dale North, but Cliffy B may have found it a bit too difficult.

grafkhun

Well I don't know about ten, but I can give you five; Zelda: A Link to the Past, Odin Sphere, Viewtiful Joe, Contra III, and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow.

Locke

Wow he completely missed a lot of good games like:
- thief 1
- planescape: torment
- deus ex 1
- UT original
- company of heroes

I guess as a "gamer who writes about games" he doesn't play any PC games... seems like a beaver w/o a tail.

i mean super bomberman was cool and all...

worldagainstjose

In No particular Order:

Resident Evil 4
Final Fantasy VII
Legend of Zelda: The Windwaker
Metal Gear Solid 3
The World Ends With You
Bioshock
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
Valkyrie Profile: Silmeria
Uncharted 2
Pokemon Blue

Topher Cantler

Your list of your own favorites is WRONG

Nic128

Well,

Zelda Oot
Tales of Symphonia
Golden Sun 1 and 2
God of war 1
Banjo-Kazooie
Zelda Minish Cap
Resident Evil 3
Zelda MM
Zelda WW
Tales of Vesperia.

Mark Oleski

OK

Final Fantasy X or XII
God of war 2
Okami
Uncharted 1 or 2
Gran Turismo 4(YEAH THATS RIGHT FUCKERS, 4!)
Marvel Vs Capcom
Rock Band 2
Metal Gear Solid 3 (i'd say 4, but 3 was my introduction into the series therefore a larger impact on me then 4)
World of warcraft(unfortunatly i have to say it, cause it has such a negative yet at the same time posotive impact on me)
Shadow of the Colossus

I wish it coulda been twenty too...

darkhamsterlord

In no real order. I'm also only picking one from each franchise, otherwise this list would be all Metroid, MOTHER and Zelda. (With the exception of Mario RPG, since it's so radically different than your average Mario game)

Banjo-Kazooie
EarthBound
Super Metroid
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
Super Mario Bros. 3/Super Mario World (I can never decide which one I prefer)
Mega Man 1
Wild Arms 2
Kingdom Hearts
Super Mario RPG
Kirby Superstar

Stevil

Silent Hill 2
Sam & Max Hit The Road
SOS: The Final Escape
Hellnight aka Dark Messiah
Killer 7
Blade Runner
Steambot Chronicles
Gregory Horror Show
Max Payne 2
Forbidden Siren

Something like that anyway.

killerpickles

10 favs in no order...

Xenogears
Persona 2 Innocent Sin
Suikoden 2
Silent Hill 2
Shadow of the Colossus
Uncharted 2
Braid
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Metal Gear Solid 3
Final Fantasy 6

Volomon

Chrono Trigger
Shadowrun (Sega)
Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past
Doom
Final Fantasy VI
Ultima Online
Half-Life
The Secret of Monkey Island

Messer

Earthbound
BioShock
Final Fantasy III/VI
Brutal Legend
Half-Life 1/2 + eps.
Might & Magic 6/Heroes of Might & Magic 2
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (the night is still young, let's go out for pleasure)
Grand Theft Auto 4
River Raid
Soul Calibur

YEah!

Fiat Mediocrity

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Metal Gear Solid: Tactical Espionage Action
Half-Life 2
Unreal Tournament
Final Fantasy Tactics
Gears of War
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

And last, but not least:

Working for Blizzard as a WoW GM after having played WoW since release day. It pretty much changed my life.

Carlton Banks

Super Mario Bros.
Ghouls N Ghosts
Phantasy Star 2
God Hand
Parasite Eve 2
SotC
Okami
God of War 2
Beyond Good and Evil
Grim Fandango
Maniac Mansion
Uncharted 2

iconsam

Hard to have my favorite top ten, but these are the top 10 most meaningful games to me. In no particular order:

Super Bomberman
Starcraft
Final Fantasy 4
World of Warcraft
ICO
Super Mario Bros. 3
Valkyria Chronicles
Resident Evil
Persona 4
Street Fighter 2

Jumbo

"Favorite" is always a tricky term. Not to be confused with "Best".

Super Mario World
Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past
Street Fighter III: Third Strike
Pilotwings
SimCity 2000
Warcraft II
Jet Grind Radio
Earthworm Jim
Ikaruga
Xevious
NBA 2K-series

Tha Meat

PunchOut!!
Castlevania: SoTN
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: The Arcade Game
Final Fantasy VII
Metal Gear Solid
Resident Evil 2
Shenmue
Zone of the Enders 2
Shadow of the Colossus
Xenogears

MisterGrieves

No particular order... kind of.

Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
Mother 3
Earthbound
Super Mario World
Super Smash Brothers Melee
Golden Sun: The Lost Age
Metroid Prime
Metal Gear Solid 2
Resident Evil 4
Shadow of the Colossus

Uh, I'm not sure if those are my ten favorite games ever or if it's just ten games that I really like. Seriously, how do you go about choosing any number of favorite games?

You're right, this question sucks.

sauceatron

Counterstrike 1.6
super Mario world
Zelda: link to the past
Zelda: links awakening
assasin's creed series
life force
contra
team fortress 2
batman arkham asylum
syndicate

No particular order. Ha I played syndicate on my mac after it came out for pc like, three years prior or something stupid like that.

ygro wok

Half-Life 2, Shenmue, Indigo Prophecy, Shadow of the Colossus, Twinsen's Odyssey, Deus Ex, Sonic 1 & 2, House of the Dead Series, Fallout 3, and Timesplitters 2.

The end.

Mojiebhoy

Resident Evil
Halo 2
Half Life
Fifa 96(thought it might have been 98. Had Son 2 by Blur as the title song.)
ISS Pro
Demon's Souls
Killzone 2
Oblivion
Championship Manager 98
Mortal Kombat

Johntyboy

Tomb Raider 2
Mickey Mouse: Castle of Illusion
Metal Gear Solid
GTA: Vice City
Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1
Streets of Rage 1
Uncharted 2
Re-Loaded
Sonic the Hedgehog 1
V Rally

reindall

Chrono Trigger
Fallout 2
Planescape: Torment
System Shock 2
Deus Ex
Grand Prix Legends
Civilization
Ultima Online

Those are the single games I have a habit of replaying or going back to. And I'm in a fucking shock that nobody mentioned Civilization.

laika one

too hard, but here it goes...
Fallout 2
Shadow of the colossus
System Shock 2
Chrono Trigger
Ranger X
The Curse of Monkey Island
Persona 4
Super Mario Bros. 3
Starcraft
Theif: the dark project.

GoldenGamerXero

I wanted to stop my list from being so Nintendo heavy but hell what's the point if I'm not honest.

Earthbound
Mother 3
Team Fortress 2
Pokemon Crystal
Metroid Prime Trilogy
Super Mario All stars
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
Portal
Super Smash Bros. Brawl

@timtheterrible

Since no one has said it yet:

C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!

bloodylip

Super Mario World
Link to the Past
Final Fantasy Tactics
Ikaruga
Garou: Mark of the Wolves
Super Metroid
Chrono Trigger
Pac-Man CE
Half Life 2
WINDJAMMERS

iconsam

Wow really? No one else thinks WoW is top ten material?

MisterGrieves

I left a lot of Zelda games out for the sake of variety. Top ten lists are hard.

Bigmoose85

Final Fantasy 6
Actraiser
Chrono Cross
Mega Man X
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 with Knuckles
GTA Vice City
Street Fighter 3
Mortal Kombat 2
Super Mario Bros World
The Legend of Zelda: A link to the past

Volomon

Oh I remember my other two:

Buldar's Gate II
Lightspeed

Wexx

No real order here. I love them all equally.

Half-Life 2 (including the episodes? if not Episode 2)
Shadow of the Colossus
Final Fantasy VI
Left 4 Dead
Quake 3 Arena
Braid
Megaman 2
Katamari Damacy
Warcraft 3
Metal Gear Solid 2

akathatoneguy

Off the top of my head, in no particular order!

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Fallout 3
Gladius
NHL 94
Tetris (played this for hours on the original Game Boy...still my fav. version!)
GTA: Vice City
Mass Effect
Kung Fu
Bases Loaded
Mike Tyson's Punch-Out

@ Ben PerLee- Awesome to see someone else mention Gladius! If I had done mine in order, it would be in the top 3 or 4 for sure.

the barking dog

Hands down, all-time favorite? Ms. Pac-Man. I could play that every day and not grow tired of it. I have it on my iPod, I have it on my iPhone, MAME, Namco Museum discs, I play it in arcades whenever I find it. It's wonderful.

Current-gen? Fallout 3. I put at least 100 hours into it.

Volomon

Oh shit, I forgot Daggerfall...damn this is hard.

Bigby

Oh man, I do so hate lists as I can never be sure I am remembering the right things.

Half-Life
Half-Life 2
Final Fantasy VII
Team Fortress 2
Frogger
Super Mario World
Sonic 2
Warcraft 2
Resident Evil 2
Metal Gear Solid

Man, I just now notice how many of them are sequels. Odd.

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