I've tried to add the heaviest hitters of the last 30 years or so (as I see them). I may have overlooked your favorite series. That is what the "Other" button is for. You will note single entry games are not included (sorry, Planescape Torment). This is for series, and series only. Try to be as objective as possible. If you vote for something because it's the only thing you've ever played, that's okay. If you'd like to make a little argument about WHY you think your choice is the best, instead of just clicking a poll option like an ingrate, please do so.
This list is going to be PC centric, as I'm a PC Gamer, and will not include our friends the JPRGs, because...I'm a PC Gamer. If you think your magnificent console series is being unfairly snubbed by me, you need to say so, because odds are I've never played it, and possibly never heard of it.
As the Poll only allows for 8 options because it's a stupid jerk poll that smells, I'm going to put in the seven *I* feel are the most prominent, along with "Other". And if you don't like it that way then tough! Make your own poll! So I can come, and make snide comments about it. Like "Oh, only eight options? How quaint".
Without further ado, the nominees (descriptive text lifted from our mutual friend Wikipedia, because there are a lot of nominees, and I Am Lazy):
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Bhaal
The Bhaalspawn Saga Series were developed by Canadian game developer Bioware for Personal Computer. They use the Infinity Engine, the same engine that would power Planescape: Torment and the Icewind Dale series. The games largely follow Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Editition rules, but eschew the turn-based system for pausable realtime gameplay. The first game and its expansion are set exclusively in the Western Heartlands, whereas its second game and its expansion are set exclusively in Amn and Tethyr. The series was critically praised and, (along with Diablo), is credited with revitalizing the CRPG genre.
RANDOM PRAISE
Baldur's Gate II was met with worldwide acclaim upon its release,[4] with Metacritic listing it as the 6th highest scoring PC game on the site as of July 16, 2010. Computer Gaming World's reviewer said, "I think of this as Game Of The Year or even Hall Of Fame material [...] it certainly ranks up there with greats like Fallout, Planescape: Torment, and Betrayal At Krondor".
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Bard's Tale 1: Tales of the Unknown
Bard's Tale 2: The Destiny Knight
Bard's Tale 3: Thief of Fate
Based loosely on traditional Dungeons and Dragons gameplay and inspired by the Wizardry computer games, The Bard's Tale was noteworthy for its unprecedented 3D graphics and animated character portraits. The Bard was also an innovation: "The Bard was author Michael Cranford's contribution to the genre, a character who casts spells by singing one of six tunes."
RANDOM PRAISE
The game was reviewed in 1986 in Dragon #116 by Hartley and Pattie Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers rated the game well, concluding that "Bard?s Tale, a game of high adventure ... is one we recommend for your software library." The game was revisited in Dragon #120. In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age is a role-playing video game series created by BioWare. The first game, Dragon Age: Origins, was released in 2009. Dragon Age II, a sequel to Origins, was released in March 2011. The series' fantasy setting has also been used by a variety of other media, including books and tabletop games, and the two main games have been joined by a variety of downloadable contents add-ons.
RANDOM PRAISE
Kevin VanOrd of GameSpot reviewed the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 versions separately. The PC version was given a score of 9.5 out of 10, plus an 'Editor's Choice' award. The game was described as "that kind of game, so rich and involving that you are powerless to resist its wiles and whims, so touching and triumphant that your mind and heart will be moved... Few games are this ambitious, and even fewer can mold these ambitions into such a complete and entertaining experience. You might spend 50 or more hours on your first play-though, but there are so many paths to follow, so many details to uncover, and so many ways to customize your party that you'll want to play again as soon as you finish the first time."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Fallout
Fallout 2
Fallout 3
Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout is a series of post-apocalyptic role-playing games (RPGs) published by Interplay Entertainment and later by Bethesda Softworks. Although the series is set during the 22nd and 23rd centuries, its retrofuturistic story and artwork are influenced by the post-war culture of 1950s America, and its combination of hope for the promises of technology and lurking fear of nuclear annihilation.
RANDOM PRAISE
Fallout was named #4, #10, #13, #21 and #7 on the list of best games of all time by PC Gamer in 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010 respectively. It was ranked #5 on IGN's list of "Top 25 PC dGames of All Time" in 2007, and #19 in 2009. It was ranked #55 on IGN's "Top 100 Games of All Time" list in 2005, and #33 in 2007. PC Zone named it #21 on its "101 Best PC Games Ever" list in 2007.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Pool of Radiance
Curse of the Azure Bonds
Secret of the Silver Blades
Pools of Darkness
Gateway to the Savage Frontier
Treasures of the Savage Frontier
Champions of Krynn
Death Knights of Krynn
The Dark Queen of Krynn
Gold Box is the name for a series of computer role-playing games produced by SSI. The company won a license to produce games based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game from TSR, Inc. These games shared a common engine that came to be known as the "Gold Box Engine" after the gold-colored boxes in which most games of the series were sold.
RANDOM PRAISE
The first game produced in the series was Pool of Radiance, released in 1988. This was followed by Curse of the Azure Bonds (1989), Secret of the Silver Blades (1990), and Pools of Darkness (1991), the games forming one continuous story rooted in the once-glorious city of Phlan and later encompassing the entire Moonsea Reaches and four outer planes. The original four titles were developed in-house at SSI, and were the best selling Gold Box games. Their success spurred an era of rapid growth at the company.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Gothic
Gothic II
Gothic 3
ArkaniA: Gothic 4
Gothic is an action role-playing game franchise, created and owned by Piranha Bytes.
RANDOM PRAISE
The game has received generally positive reviews from game critics, scoring an average of 79.35% on GameRankings and 81/100 on Metacritic. IGN concluded that "Gothic is a solid role-playing experience" and Eurogamer said that it is a game that "developers should look to as an example of how a role-playing adventure should be done".
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Knights of the Old Republic
Knights of the Old Republic 2
The Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series, often abbreviated as KotOR, is a comic book and RPG video game series based on the fictional universe of Star Wars by George Lucas. The first video game installment was developed by BioWare, while the second was done by Obsidian Entertainment per LucasArts' request, and they were both published by LucasArts. The comic series was published by Dark Horse Comics. This series acts as a prequel to the films.
RANDOM PRAISE
The general critical response of Knights of the Old Republic was overwhelmingly positive. KotOR won numerous awards, including Game Developers Choice Awards' game of the year, BAFTA Games Awards' best Xbox game of the year, and Interactive Achievement Awards for best console RPG and best computer RPG. KotOR has seen success as the game of the year from many sources including IGN, GameSpot, Computer Gaming World, PC Gamer, GMR Magazine, The Game Developers Choice Awards, Xbox Magazine, and G4TV. Interactive Achievement Awards awarded it for best story and best character development. IGN gave KotOR additional awards in Best Sound (Xbox category), Best Story (PC category), Xbox RPG Game of the Year 2003, PC RPG Game of the Year 2003, Xbox Game of the Year 2003, PC Game of the Year 2003, and Overall Game of the Year 2003 across all platforms. G4TV's game review show X-Play picked KotOR as the second "best game ever" since the show began. The game is also part of the Xbox Platinum Series/Classics for sales in excess of one million units. In 2007, a story twist within the game was ranked number two in Game Informer's list of the top ten video game twists of all time.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Mass Effect
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect is an award-winning, bestselling series of science fiction RPG third-person shooter video games developed by the Canadian company BioWare and released for the Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and, from the second installment, for the PlayStation 3.
RANDOM PRAISE
Since the beginning the series has been a major critical success. Both games have received critical acclaim for their storyline, characters, romances, voice acting, choices, tolerance of diversity, and the depth of the galaxy. Video game website GamesRadar called Mass Effect the best new franchise of the generation, saying that the galaxy was so well-constructed that it felt like a decades-old franchise and that it represented "a high-water mark for video games as a story-telling medium."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Might and Magic: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum
Might and Magic II: Gates to Another World
Might and Magic III: Isles of Terra
Might and Magic IV: Clouds of Xeen
Might and Magic V: Darkside of Xeen
Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven
Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor
Might and Magic VIII: Day of the Destroyer
Might and Magic IX
Might and Magic (MM) is a series of role-playing video games from New World Computing, which in 1996 became a subsidiary of The 3DO Company. The producer of the series was Jon Van Caneghem. Might and Magic is considered one of the defining examples of early PC role-playing games, along with the Bard's Tale, Ultima and Wizardry series.
Modern commentators acknowledge MM1 for the immense scope of its world, for its freedom of exploration and for pioneering aspects such as incorporating player characters' race, gender and alignment into the gameplay. The Apple II version of the game was reviewed in 1987 in Dragon #122 by Patricia Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. Lesser stated that "This adventure is awesome in its scope, completely fascinating, graphically pleasing, and one of the top five games ever produced for a computer." In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars. Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser reviewed the IBM version of the game in 1988 in Dragon #132, also giving it 5 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the MacIntosh version of the game in Dragon #140, giving the Macintosh II version 4.5 stars, and the Macintosh Plus version 3.5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Sega Genesis version of the game in Dragon #175, giving that version of the game 5 out of 5 stars.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Neverwinter NIghts
Neverwinter NIghts: Shadows of Undrentide
Neverwinter NIghts: Hordes of the Underdark
Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir
Neverwinter Nights is a series of video games developed by BioWare, Obsidian Entertainment and Cryptic Studios, based on the Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The Neverwinter Nights Series is a follow-up to the Savage Frontier (series) which introduced the city of Neverwinter.
RANDOM PRAISE
In general, Neverwinter Nights met with positive reviews, receiving "universal acclaim" according to Metacritic. GameSpot referred to it as "one of those exceedingly rare games that has a lot to offer virtually everyone, even if they aren't already into RPGs", and praised it for its campaign, its Aurora toolset, and its graphics. PC Gamer US called it "a total package ? a PC gaming classic for the ages", and said that its "storyline [is] as persuasive as any I?ve encountered in a fantasy roleplaying game"
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
The Elder Scrolls: Arena
The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall
An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire
The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard
The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
The Elder Scrolls (abbreviated as TES) is a role-playing video game series developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The world of The Elder Scrolls is known for its attention to detail, attempted realism, and the vast number of names, dates, and places that constitute its history and the interconnected structure of its various societies, cultures, and religions. There is no one compilation of all information pertaining to the Elder Scrolls world, and, within the games, historical references are often vague or unclear. Players are encouraged to draw their own conclusions about situations and events for which the records are sparse, contradictory, or incomplete.
RANDOM PRAISE
IGN gave the game a rating of 9.5 out of 10, stating "It's a mesmerizing game that draws you into a finely crafted fictional space packed with content that consistently surprises... playing Skyrim is a rare kind of intensely personal, deeply rewarding experience, and one of the best role-playing games yet produced. Destructoid gave the game a 10/10 citing that "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is every single reason to love a Western role-playing game, condensed into a single comprehensive experience with nothing lost in the conversion process."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
The Witcher
The Witcher 2:Assassins of Kings
The Witcher takes place in a medieval fantasy world and follows the story of Geralt, one of a few remaining "witchers" ? traveling monster hunters for hire, gifted with unnatural powers. The game's system of "moral choices" as part of the storyline was noted for its time-delayed consequences and lack of black-and-white morality.
RANDOM PRAISE
Critics generally praised combat mechanics, customization, graphics, environments, immersiveness and storytelling. The game garnered a number of perfect scores, with GamePro saying that "The Witcher 2 embodies everything that's good about PC development, and everything that makes it, in my mind, the best platform out there."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Akalabeth
Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness
Ultima II: Revenge of the Enchantress
Ultima III: Exodus
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar
Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny
Ultima VI: The False Prophet
Ultima VII: The Black Gate
Ultima VII: Serpent's Isle
Ultima VIII: Pagan
I refuse to acknowledge Ultima IX may your black souls rot in hell EA rowlowrowowl...
Worlds of Ultima: Savage Empire
Worlds of Ultima: Martian Dreams
Ultima Underworld
Ultima Underworld II
Ultima is a series of fantasy role-playing video games from Origin Systems, Inc. Ultima was created by Richard Garriott, a.k.a. Lord British. Several games of the series are considered seminal games of their genre. Many innovations of the early Ultimas - in particular Ultima III: Exodus (1983) - eventually became standard among later RPGs, such as the use of tiled graphics and party-based combat, its mix of fantasy and science-fiction elements, and the introduction of time travel as a plot device. In turn, some of these elements were inspired by Wizardry, specifically the party-based combat. Exodus was also revolutionary in its use of a written narrative to convey a larger story than the typically minimal plots that were common at the time. Most video games - including Garriott's own Ultima I and II and Akalabeth - tended to focus primarily on things like combat without venturing much further. In addition, Garriott would introduce in Ultima IV a theme that would persist throughout later Ultimas - a system of chivalry and code of conduct in which the player, or "Avatar", is tested periodically (in both obvious and unseen ways) and judged according to his or her actions. This system of morals and ethics was unique, in that in other video games players could for the most part act and do as they wished without having to consider the consequences of their actions.
RANDOM PRAISE
The Black Gate was critically and commercially successful, being widely lauded as a high point in the series and as one of the best isometric RPGs ever created. In an interview with GameSpot, Richard Garriott stated that Ultima VII "was the most masterfully executed of the Ultima series." He has also often stated that the game was, along with Ultima IV, his own favorite part overall.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord
Wizardry II: The Knight of Diamonds
Wizardry III: Legacy of Llylgamyn
Wizardry IV: The Return of Werdna
Wizardry V: Heart of the Maelstrom
Wizardry VI: Bane of the Cosmic Forge
Wizardry VII: Crusaders of the Dark Savant
Nemesis: The Wizardry Adventure
Wizardry 8
Wizardry began as a simple dungeon crawl by Andrew C. Greenberg and Robert Woodhead. It was written when they were students at Cornell University and then published by Sir-Tech. The earliest installments of Wizardry were quite successful, as they were the first graphically-rich incarnations of Dungeons & Dragons-type gameplay for home computers. The release of the first version coincided with the height of D&D's popularity in North America. Wizardry inspired many clones and served as a template for computer role-playing games. Some notable series that trace their look and feel to Wizardry include The Bard's Tale and Might and Magic. Wizardry also established the command-driven battle system with a still image of the monster being fought that would be emulated in later games, such as The Bard's Tale, Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.
RANDOM PRAISE
Wizardry became an instant classic, with publications like Computer Gaming World praising it as "one of the all-time classic computer games"; complex yet playable. With no major faults, the only minor one described in the review is the ease with which parties can initially be killed. The game eventually led to a series of eight games spanning twenty years, and helped set genre standards with its intuitive layout and interface.
The game was reviewed in 1982 in The Dragon #65 by Bruce Humphrey. Humphrey stated that "There is so much good about this game, it?s difficult to decide where to begin", and concluded by describing it as "not easily beaten or solved, I recommend it to anyone tired of mediocre programs and ho-hum dungeon encounters."
EDIT: Planescape: Torment, while undeniably one of, if not THE finest CRPG ever made, is a single game, and not a series. Stop voting for it! Stop it right now!
EDIT 2: Added Might and Magic.
This list is going to be PC centric, as I'm a PC Gamer, and will not include our friends the JPRGs, because...I'm a PC Gamer. If you think your magnificent console series is being unfairly snubbed by me, you need to say so, because odds are I've never played it, and possibly never heard of it.
As the Poll only allows for 8 options because it's a stupid jerk poll that smells, I'm going to put in the seven *I* feel are the most prominent, along with "Other". And if you don't like it that way then tough! Make your own poll! So I can come, and make snide comments about it. Like "Oh, only eight options? How quaint".
Without further ado, the nominees (descriptive text lifted from our mutual friend Wikipedia, because there are a lot of nominees, and I Am Lazy):
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Bhaal
The Bhaalspawn Saga Series were developed by Canadian game developer Bioware for Personal Computer. They use the Infinity Engine, the same engine that would power Planescape: Torment and the Icewind Dale series. The games largely follow Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Editition rules, but eschew the turn-based system for pausable realtime gameplay. The first game and its expansion are set exclusively in the Western Heartlands, whereas its second game and its expansion are set exclusively in Amn and Tethyr. The series was critically praised and, (along with Diablo), is credited with revitalizing the CRPG genre.
RANDOM PRAISE
Baldur's Gate II was met with worldwide acclaim upon its release,[4] with Metacritic listing it as the 6th highest scoring PC game on the site as of July 16, 2010. Computer Gaming World's reviewer said, "I think of this as Game Of The Year or even Hall Of Fame material [...] it certainly ranks up there with greats like Fallout, Planescape: Torment, and Betrayal At Krondor".
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Bard's Tale 1: Tales of the Unknown
Bard's Tale 2: The Destiny Knight
Bard's Tale 3: Thief of Fate
Based loosely on traditional Dungeons and Dragons gameplay and inspired by the Wizardry computer games, The Bard's Tale was noteworthy for its unprecedented 3D graphics and animated character portraits. The Bard was also an innovation: "The Bard was author Michael Cranford's contribution to the genre, a character who casts spells by singing one of six tunes."
RANDOM PRAISE
The game was reviewed in 1986 in Dragon #116 by Hartley and Pattie Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers rated the game well, concluding that "Bard?s Tale, a game of high adventure ... is one we recommend for your software library." The game was revisited in Dragon #120. In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age is a role-playing video game series created by BioWare. The first game, Dragon Age: Origins, was released in 2009. Dragon Age II, a sequel to Origins, was released in March 2011. The series' fantasy setting has also been used by a variety of other media, including books and tabletop games, and the two main games have been joined by a variety of downloadable contents add-ons.
RANDOM PRAISE
Kevin VanOrd of GameSpot reviewed the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 versions separately. The PC version was given a score of 9.5 out of 10, plus an 'Editor's Choice' award. The game was described as "that kind of game, so rich and involving that you are powerless to resist its wiles and whims, so touching and triumphant that your mind and heart will be moved... Few games are this ambitious, and even fewer can mold these ambitions into such a complete and entertaining experience. You might spend 50 or more hours on your first play-though, but there are so many paths to follow, so many details to uncover, and so many ways to customize your party that you'll want to play again as soon as you finish the first time."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Fallout
Fallout 2
Fallout 3
Fallout: New Vegas
Fallout is a series of post-apocalyptic role-playing games (RPGs) published by Interplay Entertainment and later by Bethesda Softworks. Although the series is set during the 22nd and 23rd centuries, its retrofuturistic story and artwork are influenced by the post-war culture of 1950s America, and its combination of hope for the promises of technology and lurking fear of nuclear annihilation.
RANDOM PRAISE
Fallout was named #4, #10, #13, #21 and #7 on the list of best games of all time by PC Gamer in 2001, 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010 respectively. It was ranked #5 on IGN's list of "Top 25 PC dGames of All Time" in 2007, and #19 in 2009. It was ranked #55 on IGN's "Top 100 Games of All Time" list in 2005, and #33 in 2007. PC Zone named it #21 on its "101 Best PC Games Ever" list in 2007.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Pool of Radiance
Curse of the Azure Bonds
Secret of the Silver Blades
Pools of Darkness
Gateway to the Savage Frontier
Treasures of the Savage Frontier
Champions of Krynn
Death Knights of Krynn
The Dark Queen of Krynn
Gold Box is the name for a series of computer role-playing games produced by SSI. The company won a license to produce games based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game from TSR, Inc. These games shared a common engine that came to be known as the "Gold Box Engine" after the gold-colored boxes in which most games of the series were sold.
RANDOM PRAISE
The first game produced in the series was Pool of Radiance, released in 1988. This was followed by Curse of the Azure Bonds (1989), Secret of the Silver Blades (1990), and Pools of Darkness (1991), the games forming one continuous story rooted in the once-glorious city of Phlan and later encompassing the entire Moonsea Reaches and four outer planes. The original four titles were developed in-house at SSI, and were the best selling Gold Box games. Their success spurred an era of rapid growth at the company.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Gothic
Gothic II
Gothic 3
ArkaniA: Gothic 4
Gothic is an action role-playing game franchise, created and owned by Piranha Bytes.
RANDOM PRAISE
The game has received generally positive reviews from game critics, scoring an average of 79.35% on GameRankings and 81/100 on Metacritic. IGN concluded that "Gothic is a solid role-playing experience" and Eurogamer said that it is a game that "developers should look to as an example of how a role-playing adventure should be done".
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Knights of the Old Republic
Knights of the Old Republic 2
The Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series, often abbreviated as KotOR, is a comic book and RPG video game series based on the fictional universe of Star Wars by George Lucas. The first video game installment was developed by BioWare, while the second was done by Obsidian Entertainment per LucasArts' request, and they were both published by LucasArts. The comic series was published by Dark Horse Comics. This series acts as a prequel to the films.
RANDOM PRAISE
The general critical response of Knights of the Old Republic was overwhelmingly positive. KotOR won numerous awards, including Game Developers Choice Awards' game of the year, BAFTA Games Awards' best Xbox game of the year, and Interactive Achievement Awards for best console RPG and best computer RPG. KotOR has seen success as the game of the year from many sources including IGN, GameSpot, Computer Gaming World, PC Gamer, GMR Magazine, The Game Developers Choice Awards, Xbox Magazine, and G4TV. Interactive Achievement Awards awarded it for best story and best character development. IGN gave KotOR additional awards in Best Sound (Xbox category), Best Story (PC category), Xbox RPG Game of the Year 2003, PC RPG Game of the Year 2003, Xbox Game of the Year 2003, PC Game of the Year 2003, and Overall Game of the Year 2003 across all platforms. G4TV's game review show X-Play picked KotOR as the second "best game ever" since the show began. The game is also part of the Xbox Platinum Series/Classics for sales in excess of one million units. In 2007, a story twist within the game was ranked number two in Game Informer's list of the top ten video game twists of all time.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Mass Effect
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect is an award-winning, bestselling series of science fiction RPG third-person shooter video games developed by the Canadian company BioWare and released for the Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and, from the second installment, for the PlayStation 3.
RANDOM PRAISE
Since the beginning the series has been a major critical success. Both games have received critical acclaim for their storyline, characters, romances, voice acting, choices, tolerance of diversity, and the depth of the galaxy. Video game website GamesRadar called Mass Effect the best new franchise of the generation, saying that the galaxy was so well-constructed that it felt like a decades-old franchise and that it represented "a high-water mark for video games as a story-telling medium."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Might and Magic: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum
Might and Magic II: Gates to Another World
Might and Magic III: Isles of Terra
Might and Magic IV: Clouds of Xeen
Might and Magic V: Darkside of Xeen
Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven
Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor
Might and Magic VIII: Day of the Destroyer
Might and Magic IX
Might and Magic (MM) is a series of role-playing video games from New World Computing, which in 1996 became a subsidiary of The 3DO Company. The producer of the series was Jon Van Caneghem. Might and Magic is considered one of the defining examples of early PC role-playing games, along with the Bard's Tale, Ultima and Wizardry series.
Modern commentators acknowledge MM1 for the immense scope of its world, for its freedom of exploration and for pioneering aspects such as incorporating player characters' race, gender and alignment into the gameplay. The Apple II version of the game was reviewed in 1987 in Dragon #122 by Patricia Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. Lesser stated that "This adventure is awesome in its scope, completely fascinating, graphically pleasing, and one of the top five games ever produced for a computer." In a subsequent column, the reviewers gave the game 5 out of 5 stars. Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser reviewed the IBM version of the game in 1988 in Dragon #132, also giving it 5 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the MacIntosh version of the game in Dragon #140, giving the Macintosh II version 4.5 stars, and the Macintosh Plus version 3.5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Sega Genesis version of the game in Dragon #175, giving that version of the game 5 out of 5 stars.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Neverwinter NIghts
Neverwinter NIghts: Shadows of Undrentide
Neverwinter NIghts: Hordes of the Underdark
Neverwinter Nights 2
Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer
Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir
Neverwinter Nights is a series of video games developed by BioWare, Obsidian Entertainment and Cryptic Studios, based on the Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The Neverwinter Nights Series is a follow-up to the Savage Frontier (series) which introduced the city of Neverwinter.
RANDOM PRAISE
In general, Neverwinter Nights met with positive reviews, receiving "universal acclaim" according to Metacritic. GameSpot referred to it as "one of those exceedingly rare games that has a lot to offer virtually everyone, even if they aren't already into RPGs", and praised it for its campaign, its Aurora toolset, and its graphics. PC Gamer US called it "a total package ? a PC gaming classic for the ages", and said that its "storyline [is] as persuasive as any I?ve encountered in a fantasy roleplaying game"
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
The Elder Scrolls: Arena
The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall
An Elder Scrolls Legend: Battlespire
The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard
The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
The Elder Scrolls (abbreviated as TES) is a role-playing video game series developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The world of The Elder Scrolls is known for its attention to detail, attempted realism, and the vast number of names, dates, and places that constitute its history and the interconnected structure of its various societies, cultures, and religions. There is no one compilation of all information pertaining to the Elder Scrolls world, and, within the games, historical references are often vague or unclear. Players are encouraged to draw their own conclusions about situations and events for which the records are sparse, contradictory, or incomplete.
RANDOM PRAISE
IGN gave the game a rating of 9.5 out of 10, stating "It's a mesmerizing game that draws you into a finely crafted fictional space packed with content that consistently surprises... playing Skyrim is a rare kind of intensely personal, deeply rewarding experience, and one of the best role-playing games yet produced. Destructoid gave the game a 10/10 citing that "The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is every single reason to love a Western role-playing game, condensed into a single comprehensive experience with nothing lost in the conversion process."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
The Witcher
The Witcher 2:Assassins of Kings
The Witcher takes place in a medieval fantasy world and follows the story of Geralt, one of a few remaining "witchers" ? traveling monster hunters for hire, gifted with unnatural powers. The game's system of "moral choices" as part of the storyline was noted for its time-delayed consequences and lack of black-and-white morality.
RANDOM PRAISE
Critics generally praised combat mechanics, customization, graphics, environments, immersiveness and storytelling. The game garnered a number of perfect scores, with GamePro saying that "The Witcher 2 embodies everything that's good about PC development, and everything that makes it, in my mind, the best platform out there."
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Akalabeth
Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness
Ultima II: Revenge of the Enchantress
Ultima III: Exodus
Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar
Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny
Ultima VI: The False Prophet
Ultima VII: The Black Gate
Ultima VII: Serpent's Isle
Ultima VIII: Pagan
I refuse to acknowledge Ultima IX may your black souls rot in hell EA rowlowrowowl...
Worlds of Ultima: Savage Empire
Worlds of Ultima: Martian Dreams
Ultima Underworld
Ultima Underworld II
Ultima is a series of fantasy role-playing video games from Origin Systems, Inc. Ultima was created by Richard Garriott, a.k.a. Lord British. Several games of the series are considered seminal games of their genre. Many innovations of the early Ultimas - in particular Ultima III: Exodus (1983) - eventually became standard among later RPGs, such as the use of tiled graphics and party-based combat, its mix of fantasy and science-fiction elements, and the introduction of time travel as a plot device. In turn, some of these elements were inspired by Wizardry, specifically the party-based combat. Exodus was also revolutionary in its use of a written narrative to convey a larger story than the typically minimal plots that were common at the time. Most video games - including Garriott's own Ultima I and II and Akalabeth - tended to focus primarily on things like combat without venturing much further. In addition, Garriott would introduce in Ultima IV a theme that would persist throughout later Ultimas - a system of chivalry and code of conduct in which the player, or "Avatar", is tested periodically (in both obvious and unseen ways) and judged according to his or her actions. This system of morals and ethics was unique, in that in other video games players could for the most part act and do as they wished without having to consider the consequences of their actions.
RANDOM PRAISE
The Black Gate was critically and commercially successful, being widely lauded as a high point in the series and as one of the best isometric RPGs ever created. In an interview with GameSpot, Richard Garriott stated that Ultima VII "was the most masterfully executed of the Ultima series." He has also often stated that the game was, along with Ultima IV, his own favorite part overall.
[HEADING=3]GAMES IN SERIES[/HEADING]
Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord
Wizardry II: The Knight of Diamonds
Wizardry III: Legacy of Llylgamyn
Wizardry IV: The Return of Werdna
Wizardry V: Heart of the Maelstrom
Wizardry VI: Bane of the Cosmic Forge
Wizardry VII: Crusaders of the Dark Savant
Nemesis: The Wizardry Adventure
Wizardry 8
Wizardry began as a simple dungeon crawl by Andrew C. Greenberg and Robert Woodhead. It was written when they were students at Cornell University and then published by Sir-Tech. The earliest installments of Wizardry were quite successful, as they were the first graphically-rich incarnations of Dungeons & Dragons-type gameplay for home computers. The release of the first version coincided with the height of D&D's popularity in North America. Wizardry inspired many clones and served as a template for computer role-playing games. Some notable series that trace their look and feel to Wizardry include The Bard's Tale and Might and Magic. Wizardry also established the command-driven battle system with a still image of the monster being fought that would be emulated in later games, such as The Bard's Tale, Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.
RANDOM PRAISE
Wizardry became an instant classic, with publications like Computer Gaming World praising it as "one of the all-time classic computer games"; complex yet playable. With no major faults, the only minor one described in the review is the ease with which parties can initially be killed. The game eventually led to a series of eight games spanning twenty years, and helped set genre standards with its intuitive layout and interface.
The game was reviewed in 1982 in The Dragon #65 by Bruce Humphrey. Humphrey stated that "There is so much good about this game, it?s difficult to decide where to begin", and concluded by describing it as "not easily beaten or solved, I recommend it to anyone tired of mediocre programs and ho-hum dungeon encounters."
EDIT: Planescape: Torment, while undeniably one of, if not THE finest CRPG ever made, is a single game, and not a series. Stop voting for it! Stop it right now!
EDIT 2: Added Might and Magic.
