Kids these days
Nintendo’s beloved RPG The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has topped a “favorite console games” poll held by Japanese TV network Asahi. The 2017 Switch adventure took the number one spot in the poll, which was voted for by an audience of around 50,000 TV Asashi viewers, none of whom were apparently born in the 1980s.
As you can see from the countdown below, the TV Asahi poll is a who’s who of video games from the last two decades, with appearances from multiple titles in the Final Fantasy, Metal Gear, Pokemon, and Super Mario series. Hell, Persona does not only appear multiple times, but both Persona 5 and Persona 5 Royal made the countdown. Also riding high are arena shooters Splatoon and Splatoon 2 — the latter of which takes a lofty fifth place. The fifth most loved console game ever, folks. Hope you like Dragon Quest, by the way, it’s almost a third of the entire poll.
I kid, I kid. Frankly, not too much stock should be put into TV show polls such as these. They’re voted for by a very specific demographic. I remember when the UK’s Channel 4 ran a similar poll that voted The Last of Us the best video game ever, while “Twitter” was also in the Top Five. It’s fluff, and perfectly acceptable fluff at that. And reading through the list does offer us a fun reflection on the many incredible video games that have blessed the industry in the modern age. As long as we all agree that any video game Top 100 that doesn’t include Time Gal is auto-invalidated.
Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto was super stoked with the lineup, even taking to Twitter to express his gratitude to the voters for their choices. “Thank you for voting for many Nintendo titles,” said the Legend of Zelda creator. “We will continue to create video games that will bring new experiences to everyone.”
Over 50,000 Japanese users vote for their favorite console games [Gematsu / Games Talk]
100. Persona 3
99. Pokemon Platinum
98. Persona 4
97. Super Mario World
96. Romance of the Three Kingdoms
95. MOTHER
94. Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War
93. Persona 5 Royal
92. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate
91. Street Fighter II
90. Final Fantasy VIII
89. Super Mario Galaxy 2
88. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
87. Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate
86. Monster Hunter
85. Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation
84. Final Fantasy XI
83. Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past
82. Legend of Mana
81. Dragon Quest Builders 2
80. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
79. Metal Gear Solid
78. Nobunaga’s Ambition: Zenkokuban
77. Mario Kart Wii
76. Kirby Air Ride
75. Animal Crossing: Wild World
74. Super Smash Bros. Brawl
73. Gran Turismo 4
72. Kirby Super Star
71. Dr. Mario
70. Monster Hunter: World
69. Super Mario RPG
68. Pokemon X / Y
67. Bloodborne
66. Ghost of Tsushima
65. Suikoden
64. Pokemon Heart Gold / Soul Silver
63. Final Fantasy III
62. Xevious
61. Super Smash Bros.
60. Pokemon Black 2 / White 2
59. Dead by Daylight
58. Animal Crossing
57. Super Donkey Kong
56. Super Mario Galaxy
55. Yo-kai Watch 2: Bony Spirits / Fleshy Souls / Psychic Specters
54. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
53. Tales of the Abyss
52. The Legend of Zelda
51. Final Fantasy IV
50. Pokemon Ruby / Sapphire
49. Kingdom Hearts
48. NieR: Automata
47. Final Fantasy XIV
46. Dragon Quest II: Luminaries of the Legendary Line
45. Kirby’s Return to Dream Land
44. Dragon Quest X: Rise of the Five Tribes Online
43. Xenoblade
42. Persona 5
41. Momotaro Dentetsu: Showa Heisei Reiwa mo Teiban!
40. Xenogears
39. Dark Souls III
38. Puyo Puyo
37. Final Fantasy IX
36. Pokemon Gold / Silver
35. Xenoblade 2
34. Final Fantasy V
33. Final Fantasy VI
32. Biohazard
31. Tactics Ogre
30. Apex Legends
29. Okami
28. MOTHER 2
27. Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age
26. Pokemon Black / White
25. Tetris
24. Pokemon Red / Green / Blue
23. Fire Emblem: Three Houses
22. Animal Crossing: New Leaf
21. Splatoon
20. Minecraft
19. Suikoden II
18. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
17. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
16. Kingdom Hearts II
15. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen
14. Pokemon Sword / Shield
13. Undertale
12. Super Mario Kart
11. Pokemon Diamond / Pearl
10. Super Mario Bros. 3
9. Final Fantasy X
8. Chrono Trigger
7. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
6. Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation
5. Splatoon 2
4. Animal Crossing: New Horizons
3. Final Fantasy VII
2. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride
1. Time Gal The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
