Japan Gaming Guide

Its been a long time coming, but here, finally is our top 10:

10. System Shock 2 (PC)

One of gaming’s darkest visions is of the crazed computer trying to exterminate its creators. The vision is realized perfectly here, the star of the show being the audio narrative, both from Shodan, an evil hybrid of HAL and Anne Robinson, and the audio logs of her victims.

9. Ico (PS2)

A haunting and memorable trip through a dream like castle, populated by dark spirits and a mysterious girl. Protect the girl, escape the castle. Brilliant. Short, but that’s a good thing.

8. Monkey Island II (PC/Amiga)

Laugh so hard milk will come out of your nose – and we did. Pirates of the Caribbean’s distant videogame cousin is an outstanding piece of entertainment – wicked humour, graphics that ooze artistry from every pixel, and vicious puzzles. These puzzles are probably what killed the graphic adventure, the problem being that unless you know how the designers minds work, you probably wont solve all the puzzles without getting stuck a lot. Once it clicks however, you get to play games like this, so its worth it.

7. Battlefield II: Modern Combat (360)

An online game for the modern era, free of cheating, lag and 12 year old Beavis and Butthead clones? No, but its a great experience due to its accessibility and the satisfaction of working as a team.

The game provides the toys and the playground, the toys being a selection of weaponry and combat vehicles, the playground being a range of warfare scenarios. Playing this is filled with so many great “Yeeesss!” type moments – taking down your first chopper, owning everybody in a tank, jumping a bridge in a humvee and the vehicular combat is backed up by solid FPS multiplayer gunplay.

6. Metal Gear Solid (PS)

The playstation metal gear solid was a real masterpiece of a game, endlessly creative it really pushed the bar in terms of interaction and cinematography. Free of the filler that most games put in between the good bits, this was short, but very sweet to play.

5. Half Life II (PC)

Valve revolutionised the FPS genre with classic shooter Half-Life, so making a sequel that lived up to its legacy was never going to be easy. But they managed it. Keeping the elements that made the original so successful – and drawing on the lessons of recent genre classics makes a game of such awesome genius as to defy description. Half-life II has a fantastic understanding of drama and how to draw the player into its world. Combining an epic plot with little touches of humour and human interest, and constantly reinventing itself as gameplay progresses its a genuine roller coaster ride.

4. Civilization II (PC)

The monstrously huge godfather of the strategy genre, civilization lets you take your tribe from humble stone age beginnings through to the space race and nuclear age. A megalomaniac fantasy come true, if you want to rule the world, this is the place to start.

3. Super Mario World (SNES)

96 level that beg to be explored, a control system that begs to be mastered – this game feels so complete, so perfectly crafted that you’ll want to play it over and over until you’ve squeezed every last gameplay possibility out of it. Mario is one of the few games where jumping around a completely empty room is entertaining – and there are no empty rooms in Mario World.

2. Zelda a link to the past (SNES)

Links greatest adventure? Its a close thing with this and Ocarina of Time, but we’ll remain forever charmed by this game. Woven between the worlds of darkness and light, A link to the past is designed so the player is always juggling multiple things in their head – exploring the possibilities of a new item, searching a new dungeon, figuring out a puzzle, and this journey is so full of invention and sparkle that it deserves it place as one of the greats of videogame history.

1. Final Fantasy VII (PS)

Where were you when it happened? There are so many memorable moments in this game, aside from THAT one, but we’re not going to spoil a single one of them. We cried when it was over. Play it and see for yourself, you know you want to.

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