The VGC Top 100 Best Games of All Time, #20-11 - News
by VGChartz Staff , posted on 26 May 2009 / 92,444 Views
Welcome to the penultimate installment of VGChartz Top 100 Games of All Time. Every last one of these games can be somebody’s most beloved title of all time, and collectively represent 10 legendary titles that belong in everyone’s collection.
20. Shadow of the Colossus
Team Ico operates on the ethos that their games are not played but are experienced. Shadow of the Colossus is the product of this ethos. Team Ico’s distinctive art direction, moving soundtrack, and moody atmosphere contribute to the isolated feel of the game. The elements all combine for a truly emotional experience. Also, Team Ico completely shook up the Action Adventure paradigm with this title. There are no towns, other characters to interact with, or even dungeons to explore, just 16 different giant monsters to defeat. The way the colossi are typically defeated is by climbing on them and discoverying a weakness to exploit, which is tons of fun. All of these ideas come together for a unique game.
Platform: PlayStation 2
19. Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow
Yes, there was a time when ‘catching ‘em all’ involved only wrangling 151 different cuddly monsters. Red, Blue, and Yellow are the original games in the Pokemon series, were released in 1998 (in North America), and no doubt were an inspiration to an eight teen year old Michael Vick. Pokemon was revolutionary at its time. Unlike the normal role-playing game, these games did not revolve around a party of core characters; instead, the player assumed the role of a Pokemon trainer and the party was custom created by their choice of 151 different monsters. The game is surprisingly deep as all 151 creatures have different move sets, strengths, weaknesses, and special abilities. Add in a competitive multiplayer mode and an impetus to catch all of the available creatures and you get a game that will keep you busy for months.
Platform: Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Game Boy Advance (as Fire Red and Leaf Green)
18. Starcraft
Starcraft is the Super Mario Brothers of the Real Time Strategy genre. Starcraft is timeless; it feels just as fresh now as it did when it was first released. It also defined the Real Time Strategy genre just as Super Mario Brothers did for the platforming genre. Starcraft featured three different races to play, all with incredible balance and deep story campaigns. However, the reason this for this game's persistent popularity is the multiplayer. Up to 8 players could duke it out via LAN play and Battle.net. The arena maps can range from small corridors to huge aerial and terrain maps. The included map creator also extended the gameplay and allowed gamers to create their own competitive arenas.
Platform: PC, Mac, Nintendo 64 (not that anyone really wants to admit that)
17. Super Smash Bros Brawl
With this entry all three iterations of Nintendo’s King of the Hill fighter makes the VGChartz Top 100 Games of All Time. It also seems that VGChartz community agrees that with each iteration this series gets better and better. Brawl offers the best of its two precursors and none of the headaches. All the exploits that plagued Melee are gone and the slow tempo of the original has been adjusted. This game also has amazing new stage designs that are more interactive than the previous two. Other improvements include an online mode and stage builder and literally thousands of collectibles. Also much improved is the single player campaign as the story-driven Subspace Emissary was added to this installment. Many fans of the franchise feel that Brawl is the most complete and polished title in the series.
Platform: Wii
16. Metroid Prime
Many were apprehensive about Metriod Prime when it was revealed. Fans of the series questioned whether or not Metroid could successfully make the jump from two dimensions to three. Early drama in development did nothing to quell these fears as the developer, Retro Studios, had massive layoffs and Nintendo mastermind Shigeru Miyamoto had the original 3rd person design scrapped in favor of a 1st person design. But in November of 2002, Retro showed the world that Metroid was a series primed for the 3rd dimension. The world of Tallon IV was brought to life with lush environments that varied from a lava zone to an arctic tundra. The gameplay was both a fresh take on FPS games and reminiscent of classic 2D games like Super Metroid. This game offered avid fans of the long-lasting franchise everything they wanted in a modern sequel.
Platform: Nintendo GameCube, Wii (as New Play Control and as Metriod Trilogy in North America)
15. GoldenEye 007
You remember this game. Even if you never played GoldenEye 007, you remember it because so many console FPS games take after it. This is the title that showcased what was possible with a console FPS. Split screen multiplayer was the big innovation that set this game apart. Four player deathmatch was some of the most incredible gaming many VGChartz members experienced. GoldenEye may not be the best console shooter, but it’s the first one to do everything right. The arenas were huge with many secrets, tight corridors, and tons of weaponry. The multiplayer had many customization options and loads of secret cheats to augment the experience. In addition to the rocking multiplayer, GoldenEye had a solid single player that followed the movie’s plot.
Platform: Nintendo 64
14. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
Majora’s Mask was designed to be a follow-up to the massively successful Ocarina of Time. However, this game turned out to be one of the biggest departures from the Zelda universe to date. The game chronicles Link’s journey to a place called Termina days before it’s destroyed by an apocalyptic event. By time traveling between these three days multiple times, Link is able to affect the future and ultimately stave off the apocalypse. What is really fascinating is the detail of the world and its inhabitants. This game showed unprecedented detail to supporting characters and tracked their scripted lives through all 3 days that could be traversed; it also kept track of changes to the space/time continuum made by Link’s actions. This added a new dimension to the world as completing tasks and quests would have profound effects on how the three days unfold after traveling back to the beginning of Day 1. Majora’s Mask is a great game that feels nothing like its predecessors and doesn’t suffer from being under Ocarina of Time’s shadow.
Platform: Nintendo 64, Virtual Console
13. Metal Gear Solid
This is Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece that took the premise of a childhood game, hide and go seek, and made it awesome. Metal Gear Solid was released at a time when violence and gunplay were considered the only way to have fun. Kojima had a different idea. MGS focuses on stealth and confrontation avoidance, and it does it well. The production values of Metal Gear Solid were also unprecedented; it featured high quality voice acting and narrative. Also, the game has some of the most classic boss battles in the medium, which continue to influence games in the current generation.
Platform: PlayStation, Nintendo Gamecube (as Twin Snakes)
12. Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger is the RPG otaku’s 16-bit paramour. This game has iconic characters designed by legendary artist, Akira Toriyama, who is known for DragonBall and the Dragon Quest games. The game also featured an innovative active-time battle system that kept the action going without ever falling into a turn-based lull. Also, the gripping story line broke the rules of time and space but weaved a brilliant narrative will never be forgotten by gamers. The variety of settings and set-pieces is also outstanding, ranging from a prehistoric tribal town to a post-apocalyptic dystopia.
Platform: Super Nintendo, Nintendo DS, PlayStation (as FF:Chronicles)
11. Final Fantasy X
This game is memorable because it showed the world the technical leap that the sixth generation made possible. Squaresoft developed a stellar presentation with great voice acting and impressive full motion videos and one of the most emotional stories in gaming. Each character in this game is brought to life in a way that had not happened before in video games. Very few games can raise the bar on so many levels in both gameplay and presentation. Final Fantasy X's mythology was so loved that it was the first to merit a sequel.
Platform: PlayStation 2
Missed one? Check out a previous installment!
Numbers 30-21
Numbers 40-31
Numbers 50-41
Numbers 60-51
Numbers 70-61
Numbers 80-71
Numbers 90-81
Numbers 100-91
The VGC Top 100 Best Games of All Time is based entirely on votes by our members. The source for the list can be found here . Only games released before January 1st 2009 are included.
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The whole list is laughably bad and I suspect the top 10 will consist more of a battle between the game series with the biggest fanboys - Zelda or Final Fantasy. As it stands, this list is utter joke and I suspect the top 10 won't bring any new revelations. It's quite predictable what game will make the list. Nice to thumb through and see some personal favorites receive some accolades, but the list should definitely not be taken seriously.
The list is this:
VGCharts (2009)
Rank Title Publisher Year
1 Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Nintendo 1998
2 Final Fantasy VII Squaresoft 1997
3 Super Mario Bros. 3 Nintendo 1990
4 Metal Gear: Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Konami 2008
5 Super Mario Galaxy Nintendo 2007
6 Super Mario 64 Nintendo 1996
7 Resident Evil 4 Capcom 2005
8 Final Fantasy III (VI) Squaresoft 1994
9 Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past Nintendo 1992
10 Super Mario World Nintendo 1991
Sweet, glad to see Shadow of the Colossus and Final Fantasy X make the cut... damn all the young'ns on here though skewing the votes. FFIV > FFX!
Starcraft and Pokemon definitely deserve their rankings as well. I expect we'll be seeing a fairly generic top 10.
Why all the FFX hate? It's a great game, although only disappointed those that linger to old-school FF gameplay.
Im Sorry, but this has gone FAR enough. BRAWL?!?!?! TOP 20? U SERIOUS! MAX 100 - 90 ...................... STAR CRAFT? OMGosh ... AND FF10? one of the WORST FF games ive played? Get off your acid trip
Or even Pong!!
Space Invaders!!!!
no mgs4 on the top100?
this is a joke
... and no valkyria chronicles -.-'
GoldenEye 007 Brings back great memories
@ Jumpin
Did you know words like that can get someone hurt?
smash bros..
Nooooo
I knew it.
Wait for the top 10. Too many nintendo games.
Anyways good to see starcraft gettin sum lovin.
Duke nukem 3d been here yet ?
Most overrated games in history: FF7, Zelda: Link to the Past, and Doom.
Chrono Trigger, Goldeneye, Starcraft, Majora's Mask, and Shadow of the Colossis all deserving. MGS I am on the fence about. Metroid is a long shot (and yes, if Turok is an FPS, then Metroid is an FPS because Metroid is a Turok clone) The rest of them, I don't think so.
sonicshuffle: metroid prime is not an fps
Starcraft not in the top 10?
THIS IS TERRIBLE D:<
Prime, MAjora, Brawl, Goldeneye FTW!
Fantastic list can't wait for the next installment
@Sonicshuffle? Are you serious!? Metroid Prime was without a doubt one of the best games of last generation and it's the 5th best reviewed game of all time on game rankings! It DEFINITELY deserves a top 20 spot!
im sorry but SSBB does not deserve to be this High. Melee was a far better game than brawl
nice for Pokemon red blue, brawl, chrono
@Amp
Actually, that happened with #71.
@makingmusic476
It could be super mario world indeed.
Wish Brawl was in top 10... it deserves it...
C'mon Sonic 3! You can be in top 10 (lol, prob. not, but I hope so...)
I feel for numbers 13-11... each and every one of these should be higher...
But hey, at least MGS4 has a chance still...
Wow. Just wow. Metroid Prime does not deserve anywhere near this spot. There are way better FPS's out there like Halo and this is higher? Unbelievable. That game doesn't even deserve top 100.
Sucks that Ico didn't make the top 100 at all. =(
@dante: Super Mario World? I'm not sure if that's been done yet.
final fantasy X was fantastic
well deserved spot
Ler's see, there's only 10 left. My predictions in no particular order:
Super Mario Bros 3
Super Mario Galaxy
Super Mario 64
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The Legend of Zelda: A link to the Past
Final Fantasy VI
Final Fantasy VII
Resident Evil 4
Metal Gear Solid 4
... Damn it. I'm missing one... Maybe Resident Evil 2?
@bkslopper
That really does have to be the case. I mean, why is there a different Mario, Zelda, and Metroid in each tier? If someone says Mario 1 is a great game, fine. But Mario 2 isn't that different, so why even mention it?
But then again, like you said, it's based on the VGC community, not gaming as a whole. Otherwise, MGS4 would be higher, original Gears of War would be higher, and Brawl would be WAAAAY lower than the original Super Smash Bros.
Now, I know I'm becoming less surprised by this list of popular games (I still don't see Sim City 2000 and we probably won't) but why, even though I've played the game a few times through, do I not recognise the image on the right of the FFX feature.
Nobody should really be surprised by the results. This isn't a list of 100 best videogames of all time. It's a list of the 100 most popular games by people who voted on VGchartz. That's all it is, and shouldn't get anymore more merit. It speaks volumes about the people who frequent these forums, but has little to do with the games themselves. I have gethered that many people here would need a fake ID to buy alcohol.
if Final Fantasy 7 isn't in the top 3 this chart is retarded!
Final Fantasy X is soooooooooooo much worse than everything else on 20-11.
Why is SoTC only at 20?
People suck.
i thought that FFX would be in the top 5 ...
I can't imagine who are in the top 10.
Imagine how high Super Smash Bros Brawl would rank if the online actually worked.
Also, I'd like to point out a typo. You guys accidentally put a 5 after the 1 on the number one game of all time.
I personally think GSC should rank above RBY. But eh whatever. Good list.
And lol at people hating Smash Bros/Brawl
Glad to see Majora in top 20. It's most underrated Zelda IMO. Metroid Prime should be in top 10
MGS
Excellent most of my top 10 should be in the top 10. Although I think MGS3 should of been in the top 10...
Huhhhhhh?!! How dare vgcharters put brawl ahead of melee!!! Melee >>>> Brawl.
I've wasted so much time on R/B/Y... Great to see that they made it to the list; despite all the time since their release, they're still fantastic games!
These games deserve to be 1 - 10 in their own right. Remaining games: 4 Super Marios, 2 Zeldas in the top 10? No way. Zelda: OoT will end up being number one and IMO it is not even in the Top 3 Zelda games, let alone best game of all time.
FFX pretty high. A little too early on the Michael Vick joke I think. =(
lol..StarCraft got shafted! :P ...glad to see it in the top twenty at least but no was brawl should be above it...I could live with the original pokemon games above it but come on...and FFX over Chrono Trigger??? say wah??? At least FFVI should beat it but not X...heck even Harvest Moon snes I would rank above FFX
awesome list... I think i will pick up few of these games on the top 100 list
so... 4 Super Mario, 2 Zelda, 2 Final Fantasy, RE4 and MGS4 will be on the final list?
WHERES SPYRO AND CRASH?!?!??! (FOR PS ONE)
THOSE WERE SOME OF THE BEST GAMES EVER!!! If CTR isnt up, VG Chartz is really stupid. Its LITERALLY the best racer, didnt sell the best (about 5 mill, so still good) but is still the most fun.
Eh, Chrono Trigger should definitely be in the top 10.
And has Sotn already figured in the list, or will we see both it and Super Metroid in the top 10?
Hmpf, Chrono Trigger deserves better :p
I know Final Fantasy VII will be in Top 3 but I hope Final Fantasy VI beats it.
My top 3 would be:
Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Final Fantasy VI
Super Mario Galaxy
this list needs more x-com SotN and prince of persia SoT
yeaahhhh, SoTC MGS and Chrono Triggers, some of the best ever
I'd hate to be one of the "my game wasn't high enough in the list", but I think Super Metroid is the best game of all time. Many top 100 games have it at #1, and I think it odd this list has it as #25.
Something that is cool is that I look through the top 30, and I have played all of them, beaten most of them. Brings back memories reading their descriptions.
Ugh. I let this list suck however much it wanted to for awhile now - but SotC at 20!? And since I doubt ICO beat it out, it means we're missing one of the best games of all time on a Top 100 list.
For shame VGC Community, for shame.
These lists are always highly subjective, so I won't comment on that part. However, I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed GoldenEye 007 and my favorite part was always slapping that woman Natalya? Natasha? to death in the beginning of the mission, or setting off some kind of alarm so all I did was lay waste to an endless stream of baddies...oh yeah, kill count!
This amazingly anti-retro list just keeps proving that there's no point in this list existing.
Unless the top 10 games include:
mario bros 3
super mario world
yoshi's island
ninja gaiden (nes)
blaster master
a link to the past
FF VI
punch-out and or super punch-out
turtles in time (snes)
and we're still missing other acclaimed modern titles like
soul caliber (DC)
jet grind radio (DC)
marvel vs capcom 2 (DC)
ICO (ps2)
mario galaxy (wii)
jak 3 (ps2)
beyond good and evil
Sonic CD
guardian heroes (saturn)
I could go on. Instead of any of these great games we've seen titles like 'silent hill 2,' 'no more heroes,' and 4 (!) 'mario kart' games.
Meh. Good games, but not close to best 100.
I don't know if Resident Evil 2 will be in here, but it should. If they give 2 spots to the original, RE2, which is the best, should be up there, I'm hoping.
I wonder why Final Fantasy XI wasn't in any of these Best Games of All Time as of yet...
@ Nintendo fanboy
We haven't seen Resident Evil 4 yet.
Here are the games that are yet to come (the only thing I don't know is the order...)
Super Mario Bros 3
Super Mario World
Super Mario 64
Super Mario Galaxy
Zelda: A Link To The Past
Zelda: Link's Awakening
Zelda: Ocarina Of Time
Final Fantasy VI
Final Fantasy VII
Metal Gear Solid IV
This is only a guess mind you, but it is pretty clear looking at what has appeared already.
WOO Majora's Mask at 14!!!
My lucky number and my favorite game together lol
I bet anyone 10cents that MGS4 is in the top 5...
Nice to see MGS1 high.
Pokemon yellow should not be with red and blue. But why is green not with those.
at least there will be three Zelda game at the top ten :
The Legend of Zelda - Ocarina of Time.
The Legend of Zelda - A Link to The Past.
The Legend of Zelda - Link's Awakening.
and of course at least Two Super Mario
Galaxy
I can't wait for the comments for when 1-10 are uploaded.
Final fantasy 7 Top 10 great.
this shows pretty well, that this list is mainly a popularity vote and not really a vote for the "best game"
there had better not be a snes game in the top ten. no game is better than chrono trigger on the snes. It should've at least made the top 10 though
SotC, for being a game no one played, it's very high, it's amazing that it cracked the top 20, shows the masterpiece it is. Great spots for MGS1 and FFX too
MGS1 is here, then for sure MGS4 is in the top 10. Brawl, and FFX should not be there.
Top 10 prediction
- Ocarina of time
- Super Mario Galaxy
- Final Fantasy VII
- Another Mario - Probably Super Mario 64
- Another Metal Gear Solid - Probably MGS2 or MGS4
- Another Zelda - No idea which
- Maybe Perfect Dark or something? Has that one already been listed
- Another mediocre JRPG
- Another mediocre JRPG
- Something Mario/Zelda/Metroid
FFX not in the top 10? Blasphemy.
Pokemon Red/Blue should be top 3, not 19th. In fact, pokemon is the only game deserving to be in the top 20 so far that's been listed.
@dclKeel: hwats wrong with Smash Bros Brawl?
FFX that high? are you kidding me?
At least FFX made it high. Expect FF7 in the Top Ten.
SSBB??? FF 10!?!? That final fantasy was the one that initiated squaresofts' defile and rape the whole FF series plan!! It's been all downhill from there. Majora's mask was awsome, awsome game but 14 is a bit to high, it's more like the 40-50 range.
This list is retarded my god, i still cant believe SSBB is even on this list.
SlumsofOhio, somehow fanboys feel the need of selling consoles. This is another a way to do it.
Lol, it was expected that some would start whining more and more as the Top comes closer to the finish @_@
Highly predictable....
goldeneye 007 outside the top 10?
im sorry, but what?
FFX doesn't belong that high up.
If MGS4 is voted ahead of the original Metal Gear Solid, it will be rediculous. Metal Gear Solid 4 is the worst MGS game to date, how can it possibly be ahead of the original?
FFX one of the worst FF game, cmon!
FF7 FF8 FF9 are way better...
Sweet, It's good to see Goldeneye and Metal Gear Solid up there.
smash and pokemon......
for me:
- SSBB
- Super Mario Galaxy
- Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal
- Tales of Symphonia
- Mario Kart Wii yahoo
Looking through the comments, I am reminded of the possibility that there might have been enough current-gen fanboys to put MGS4 into the top 10, particularly since it hasn't shown up yet.
I will ... be able to contain my rage if it is in 10-6. But if it makes 5-1, I promise nothing. If it makes 1 that will be the only thing that could inspire even more hatred than what I suspect will ACTUALLY win.
But FFS, Halo 3 wasn't anywhere CLOSE. MGS4 isn't THAT much more deserving. Why did it get that many more votes? Because the FPS votes got divided among more games than the interactive movie votes? Or are PS3 fans so much more numerous?
Ahh, Golden Eye brings back memories of skipping class in college to play split screen!!! Awesome game!!
@ Derek: Ultimate=final; PENultimate is next to final. Like the penumbra of an eclipse is the next-to-darkest part around the blackness in the circle of the umbra.
Hmmm ... except Starcraft and a few hours of MGS (I did not like it at all), I never played all the others
First to MERIT a sequel? Think again. That was merely a landmark of Square's change in strategy. First to GET a sequel. How else to explain the fact that previous games have now also gotten sequels/prequels?
Also, StarCraft should have done better, and I wouldn't say it's the "SMB" of RTS; rather, some other Mario, perhaps SM64.
Personally, I can't complain about Brawl being higher than Melee. As a whole package, it truly delivers. It's a "MarioBoy's" dream game, I mean the soundtrack is excellent and I enjoyed the Subspace Emissary.
Only game I might disagree with is Shadow of the Colossus. Sure, the game is magnificent and it truly is a great show of what the PS2 could accomplish, but what happens when you finish the game? I consider it more like Portal, it's a masterpiece you finish once so you could experience what it was all about, but that's it. You want to keep the charm forever, so you try as much as possible to not re-play the game in order to not come in contact with certain glitches/bugs/annoyments in the game you didn't encounter in your first playthrough because it would otherwise change your view about it!
Or maybe I'm the only freak out there that thinks this...! @_@
Eew FFX, and it's higher than SotC? no, just no
Penultimate = final. Wouldn't that be the top ten, not 20-11?
The suspense is killing me!
Seriously, I think this is the best put together section of the list so far. Other than Starcraft of course.
Actually if I remember right GTA3 and Vice City are still missing...
Judging on the "Top 100 VGC" pictur, I think FF7 is going to be #1
yay for starcraft :)
Well cant argue with the games that are in this list :P Cant wait for top 10 :D
Good for FFX!
I predict a few Zeldas yet to come. :)
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