Your Top 10 Games of this Generation?

[Fiairflair]

10) Bastion
Bastion has excellent storytelling and my favourite game soundtrack of all time. Even the ridiculous number of weapons was a plus, creating more play-styles to choose from.

9) Mass Effect 2
The game that introduced Miranda Lawson: brilliant, stunning and Australian. ... Miranda, that is. The game is pretty good too.

8) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Skyrim earns its place here simply for how immersive the world is. Peaks and valleys; Skyrim is pretty and you can lose yourself in it.

7) Red Dead Redemption
An incredibly violent game about cowboys and Mexicans that somehow delivered so much more than the box art lets on. Southern America is a world away from my quiet office-based life down under so, like Skyrim, RDR was an escape to another world that I thoroughly enjoyed.

6) Fable III
There is nothing like comic dialog coupled with 2-dimential moral dilemmas. Fable is a piss-in-the-wind pleasure of gaming: shallow but fun.

5) Civilization V
Civilization is a plethora of historical and strategic goodies. There is something uniquely satisfying about seeing anything you build up from scratch dominating all the other similar but inferior things.

4) Team Fortress 2
The simple fact that I have played over 1000 hours of TF2 and I am not bored of it mandates that it be placed this high on the list. F2P FTW.
<spoiler=Third Place> 3) Assassin's Creed II
Everything about ACII is magical but the story and the cities you play in are the main reasons why I love this game.

<spoiler=Second Place> 2) Portal
This game was a triumph and GLaDOS is the reason why.

<spoiler=First Place> 1) Bioshock Infinite
Not only the best game of this generation, Bioshock Infinite has overtaken LOZ: OOT as my favourite game of all time. The gameplay is too tight, the story too delicious, the artwork and setting and themes and characters and multi-dimensional escapades too good for this game to be anywhere other than first.

Honourable mentions
Portal 2
Bioshock
Thomas Was Alone
The Walking Dead

Possible gems that I haven't played yet
Borderlands
Journey
Dishonoured
Spec Ops: The Line
X-Com: Enemy Unknown
Limbo
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Half Life

Dishonourable mentions (that I have played)
The Witcher
Halo 4
Final Fantasy XIII
Gears of War

 

[Joey Bolzenius]

10.COD Modern Warfare/Borderlands 1 (RPG in the shooter, gaming's chocolate and peanut butter mix)
9.Saints Row the Third/Prototype/Just Cause 2(open world bliss)
8. Amnesia the Dark Descent
7.Oblivion(yes, Skyrim is amazing but the jump Oblivion took from Morrowind was enormous)
6.Dead Space 2/Bioshock Infinite(well defined worlds)
5.Mass Effect 1, 2, 95% of 3
4.Gears of War 2(cover shooting at its finest, yes Gears 3 is an improvement but more in new weapons and variations on horde mode)
3.Batman
2.Super Mario Galaxy 1/2
1.Fallout 3

I wish I could put the Last of Us on here, I do. The issue is that as amazing as it is, it did not scratch any particular itch of mine, gameplay, story, presentation. I fully admit it is one of the best games of this gen and all time but somehow I cannot put it above anything on this list. It is a 10 out of 10 game and I advise anyone with the time and money to buy a PS3 just for that game alone, oh and Ni No Kuni too which is a total 9.5 game worth owning. What happened with those two is that I just did not get a huge emotional tug from the entire package which is odd I know. I do not think one console or platform is inherently better than the other, I just have certain ways I respond to game mechanics, story, presentation, and even my own nostalgia.

This gen was incredible, so many memories and in-game events that took me by surprise. The Batman Arkham games are so solid in my opinion they will hold up for at least a few decades. I love how goddamn ambitious the Mass Effect series was and despite the last minute major fuck up of 3, I am so glad Bioware put their heart and soul into that series. Let me finish by saying I am aware of the massive issues the game industry faces, the costs of development, nasty communities, the sheer fucking risk of making huge, sprawling and smaller virtual worlds and attempting to tell stories in them with visuals, voice acting, and gameplay. However I am so passionate about this medium because it has so enriched my life that I cannot wait to play the next indie masterpiece, the next bloated triple A game that amazes me!

 

[InfernalGrape]

10) Shadows of the Damned

Sadly, this game was overshadowed by other Suda51 titles, like Lollipop Chainsaw, also EA didn't make proper PR work. While honestly Damned didn't have anything groundbreaking, it was very charming. Good old RE4 mechanics provided by Mikami makes it more playable than Lollipop. From position of design and art direction, it's also much better than No More Heroes and Lollipop. The Demon World is interesting setting, grotesque and pity it's not more detailed. There are some really nice locations. The overall concept of light vs. darkness is nothing new, but played nice. Design of enemies and characters is memorisable and cool, especially bosses. The game is full of funny things, not only sexualized jokes, but details like door lock, eating strawberries. Music by Akira Yamaoka is melancholic, and it gives pretty interesting feel.
Again, SotD was not "great", but it's can find place in your heart. And it makes more sense than Lollipop or Killer is Dead (no no no, i love killer7 and flower sun and rain, dont worry)

9) Bully: Scholarship Edition

This game contains so much fun. Yes, it's "gta: school days". And it has awesome soundtrack in surf rock style, composed specially for this game.

8) Bulletstorm

Maybe the best fps of this gen. Brutal and dynamic.

7) Alice: Madness Returns

Very beautyful and interesting setting, period. And yes i love old platformers.

6) Binary Domain

Best tps here. Cyperpunkish world with its society problems, epic boss battles, and plot touches heart. Ah, and cyborgs, cyborgs

5) Batman: Arkham Asylum & Arkham City

Amazingly correct depiction of Gotham, the best Batman games since 2D times..

4) Zeno Clash 1-2

Very beautiful epos from Chile developers with unique world and habitants and some interesting questions. Sequel is good if you liked ZC1.

3)BioShock

Rapture, Andrew Ryan & Atlas, all that jazz and art deco =)

2) Witcher 1-2

While W2 has pretty serious political plot, Witcher 1 still amazes me with it's contasts of beautyful, breathing world and sins of people who lives in it. And great bestiary in W1 also.

1) Dark Souls & Demons' Souls

Honestly, i don't care for challenge. I played many games on easy even. What i love in Dark Souls, it's the world. Great architecture that makes you feel like a bug. Awesome level design (mostly) with feel of vertical (which is so rare in current gen) and many connections of different locations, that makes you consider all of that as one world instead of different areas. It's creepy as idk monster and bosses. And what about Demon's Souls? It's a bit more unique. I can't forget it's 3rd world...

Honourable mentions:

Alan Wake - while it ended up not as good as expected, it has good moments and beautyful outdoors.
Clive Barker's Jericho - not great game, but monster design and some levels are catching.
Bioshock Infinite - cool game world, unexpected plot and some really heartful moments (dancing Elizabeth..)
The Darkness - stylish noire fps with Mike Patton's voice acting. Sequel is also nice.
Deadly Premonition - unique game. For all Twin Peaks fans. Maybe the best plot of current gen.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution - wish it had more "city" locations..
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen - excellent exploration/grinding rpg with breathing world
El Shaddai: Ascension of Metatron - well, made by authors of Okami. Most unique and artful visuals of gen.
Fallout 3 & New Vegas
Fragile Dreams - hidden gem on Wii
The Last of Us - full of stamps, but it's a masterpiece of putting them together.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance - it's fun. Ignore the hate of metal gear fans.
Mirror's Edge - another stunning design here. Find some screens on gaf forums
Nier
Resonance of Fate - underrated jrpg gem of this gen.
Silent Hill Shattered Memories - very interesting "creative remake" of cult game.
Siren: Blood Curse - while it's far from great (Siren 2 still the best), it's interesting horror.
Sleeping Dogs - liked it more than GTA4, sorry. Also, when it rains, it's really beautyful. Too bad it has good ending.
Vanquish - fun mecha tps

And, handhelds:

Ghost Trick - puzzle/adventure with interesting concept and excellent plot.
The World Ends With You - imho it's "much better Persona" than Persona 3&4.
Flower, Sun, and Rain - has frustrating gameplay and graphics, BUT it's a masterpiece. why? Plot and atmosphere. While killer7 also was great, i prefer this one from old Suda51 library. Well, it also was on ps2 with better visuals but j-only.
Shantae: Risky's Revenge - awesome platformer/action

Gravity Rush - charming gem of vita
Shin Megami Tensei IV - well, its megaten =)


So, anything still says that current gen was a fail?)))

 

[Evonisia]

10: Silent Hill Shattered Memories and Downpour

Shattered Memories and Downpour both delivered a brilliant experience with everything Silent Hill was praised for, excluding the 'scary' part. Good narrative, well written characters, haunting atmosphere and in Downpour's case a better usage of the monsters than 2-4.

9: Halo 3: ODST

After the legend making disappointment that was Halo 3's singleplayer experience, ODST showed us just how Bungie makes a nice little game in a short amount of time. Lonely atmosphere, brilliant lighting, liberal use of appropriate flashbacks and a nice little mini-film called Sadie's Story giving us an appropriate background to the events before the start. It's still not as good as Halo 2, but it's definitely earned it's place in my eyes.

8: Left4Dead Series

Left4Dead is basically a Zombies game with little to no plot, with brilliantly written and modelled characters and a variety of special Zombies to kill the yummy humans in interesting ways. Great multiplayer experience, and it's not too bad on Solo either.

7: Call of Duty: World at War

WaW is one of my favourite World War II shooters, both in it's singleplayer and it's multiplayer. It's still the benchmark of the series for me. It has cliché characters but I like how it shows us the horrors of war that all (except America shockingly enough, right?) and shows the bond between characterised characters and silent protagonists. Also seeing the Japanese in a World War II shooter is my cup of drink.

6: Halo Wars

Halo Wars is not the best RTS in the world, it's controls are a bit faulty. But I can't hate the game when I can experiment with it, and it has a nice little campaign that stays true to the original series without causing too many canon issues. Sure the characters are bit off and the vehicles can't be trusted to drive anywhere, but Halo Wars gains my respect. It's probably also because it was released a week early in the UK than the US, so finishing before they got it felt satisfying.

5: BioShock

We all know the drill, it's System Shock under the sea. I like it's imagination, entertaining gameplay, villains, characters, even the morale choice system has some enjoyment in it. Unfortunately BioShock 2 didn't really live up to it, and I hated Infinite so I guess the series as a whole is hit n' miss, but it's not enough to tarnish BioShock in my mind.

4: Saints Row 2

Saints Row 2 is the embodiment of fun, and is a worthy sequel to the original. I can't say much else otherwise I'd end up gushing too much fluid.

3: Remember Me
Good concept, well executed. Got some issues but overall very satisfying and enjoyable.

2: Oblivion

Oblivion is my second, and favourite Elder Scrolls game, great world, dull but 'entertaining' NPCs, hundreds of interesting quests, good questlines (for the most part), atmospheric as hell and has a difficulty curve like slamming you head into a car.

1: Portal

I put Portal here not because I had the most fun with it (Oblivion or Saints Row 2 would take that), but because I cannot fault it. Sure it's fans are horrible and Portal 2 didn't live up to it, but Portal is a small, effective and very witty and entertaining game. I can't think of any major issue with it.

Honorable mention goes to WoW's Burning Crusade and Wrath of the Lich King expansions, that being my favourite time of the game, despite them not really being 'this gen' (Vanilla wasn't, as it came out in 2004).

 

[spartandude]

Now for the list of ultimate games is this generation....
(btw please read this with some sort of epic voice)


10.Portal 2
9. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
8. The Walking Dead
7. Bioshock
6. Metroid Prime: Trilogy
5. The Elder Scrolls IV: The Shivering Isles (i prefer the expansion)
4. Mass Effect
3. Dragon Age: Origins
2. Halo 3

And number 1 is.... The Witcher 2: Assassins Of Kings

 

[OrpheusTelos]

This is counting DS and PSP games, for the record.

10- Shin Megami Tensei IV

9- Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII

8- Darksiders

7- Resonance of Fate

6- The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

5- Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep

4- The Last Story

3- Xenoblade Chronicles

2- Radiant Historia

1- NieR

 

[Random Encounter]

There are still a lot of games from the generation that I've been wanting to play but lack the time/money to do so, meaning that my list is not concrete.

In no particular order:

1. Bioshock
2. Deus Ex: Human Revolution.
3. Donkey Kong Country Returns
4. Fez
5. Hotline Miami
6. L.A. Noire
7. Minecraft
8. Portal
9. Red Dead Redemption
10. Super Mario Galaxy.

If I wrote an honourable mentions section it would probably go on for half a page.

 

[ZCAB]

1. Red Dead Redemption
2. Skyrim
3. GTA IV
4. Super Mario Galaxy
5. Rayman: Origins
6. Batman: Arkham Asylum
7. Portal
8. Far Cry 3
9. Just Cause 2
10. Tomb Raider

 

[LaoJim]

1. Dragon Age: Origins
2. Mass Effect 1
3. Red Dead Redemption
4. Bayonetta
5. Modern Warfare 1
6. Forza 4
7. Burnout Paradise
8. Plants vs Zombies
9. Dead Space
10.Batman Arkham Asylum

Dirt 2, Rayman Origins, Sleeping Dogs
These three were on the list until I remebered something better.

Why is there no love for racing games on this thread? 5 pages and I've only seen TrackMania and Split/Second mentioned?

 

[stroopwafel]

1) Demon's/Dark Souls
Some of the most engaging games ever made. Challenging and intriguing.

2) Batman Arkham Asylum/City
A love letter to the Batman lore.

3) Deus Ex Human Revolution
Excellent story and really good gameplay. I was really immersed in the near-future setting they created.

4) Mass Effect 2
This game had truly great characterization. And being unfamiliar with the ME series the looming threat of the Reapers
really made me invest in the plot. It was fun to play but the story really made the game memorable for me.

5) Dead Space 2
It's like...RE4 in space! RE4 being one of my favorite games of all time I liked this a lot.

6) The Last of Us
I wasn't blown away by the story(it was more window dressing for the bond between Ellie and Joel anyway) but I think it did a great job setting the mood and making you sympathize with the characters and rendering violence context sensitive instead of glorifying it. You guide the characters through a harsh struggle of survival and instead of the usual bravado there is a persistent sober undertone. And that made the game really immersive to me.

7) Dishonered.
Really great gameplay that offers a lot of freedom and the setting was just frightening and genuinely authentic. Truly superb.

8) Bioshock Infinite.
Another game with a really intriguing setting that you just want to know more of. Really shows how attention to detail and having a proper story can elevate a first person shooter tremendously.

9) Skyrim.
Just wandering around in this huge world provides a sense of wonderment that is truly unique.

10) Metal Gear Solid 4
Epic 'conclusion' to the saga even if they relied a little too much on nanomachines as a Deus ex machina.

11) Transformers Fall of Cybertron
For being a love letter to my childhood!

Honorable mentions: Fallout 3/NV, Vanquish, FEAR 2, Max Payne 3, Just Cause 2, The Darkness 2, Sniper Elite V2, Hitman Absolution, Metal Gear Revengeance, Silent Hill Downpour, Metro Last Light, Far Cry 2/3, Shadows of the Damned, 3D Dot Game Heroes, GTA4, Sleeping Dogs, Saints Row 3, Spec Ops: The Line...and probably some others I forget about. Not to mention we still have GTA5, Arkham Origins and Dark Souls 2 to come.

In all this generation have been truly awesome. It really peaked in both story techniques and gameplay in ways that were impossible before.

Why is there no love for racing games on this thread? 5 pages and I've only seen TrackMania and Split/Second mentioned?

I never really mention them in these kind of threads but you're right, there have been some truly excellent racing games this gen. NFS Hot Pursuit(espescially the Interceptor mode in multiplayer) is probably my favorite racing game of all time. Played that game to death. Nothing really captures that excitement of 1 racer vs 1 cop in a high-speed chase.