1 game to represent gaming to someone who has no clue about it.

[AyreonMaiden]

A Legend of Zelda game of the N64 era onwards would be my pick to represent gaming. Ocarina, Majora, Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are games that have it all that people here have mentioned: Puzzles, atmosphere, story, humor, variety, accessibility, action, longevity...IF I had to pick one, I'd pick Twilight Princess. I feel a non-gamer will most likely understand and relate to more modern graphics than the 64 bits of the past.

People picking Portal a lot, I see, but I feel that Portal can be alienating if you don't completely get dark humor or if you don't just wanna do straight-up puzzle solving. I know the Weighted Companion Cube flew over my head and had to have someone explain to me why it was a good bit of writing as opposed to stupid overblown meme-driven bullshit, and I'm not ashamed of it.

Shadow of the Colossus...I'd NEVER pick an artsy game to represent gaming for a non-gamer. I loved that game to bits but I was still asking myself questions like "what's going on, why am I doing this, where is this place, why is it all empty?" half out of genuine what-the-hell-am-I-doing and the other half out of trolling minimalistic aesthetics because apparently to be "Art" in games you have to be Bittersweet and Minimalistic. But I digress.

No RPGs. Ever. Period. That'll come after they've gotten their feet wet.

Prince of Persia and Halo games could be good examples too. They feel flighty and adventurous like summer blockbusters.

 

[Vault boy Eddie]

Company of Heroes and it's expansions.

 

[Bobbity]

Jade Empire, definitely.

I think the main point is showing that you can escape into another world, in which case, atmosphere is the most desirable trait.

Almost definitely; that or Red Dead, at least. Just something with a beautiful and amazing world, where everything is a wonder to the eyes. [sub]Although Jade Empire is looking a tad dated these days...[/sub]

 

[MercurySteam]

Bioshock. Just so amazing beyond description. The atmosphere and how the world of Rapture is bought to life is breathtaking. Great work Irrational.

 

[demoman_chaos]

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis/Megadrive. SMB has a lot of annoying parts that would turn off a lot of gamers-to-be. Sonic 2 does not have annoying bits until late in the game. Simple, smooth, refined. Grab some rings and go right. Simple, colorful, great music.

Sonic 1 is quite a bit tougher, and Sonic 3 has the infamous Red Drum of Death.

 

[Avatar Roku]

Okami.

It's about telling a story, exploring fantastic landscapes, and creativity. Although the 20 minute intro will throw them off a bit.

I agree, I loved that game so much, really shows off the industry's creativity.

Call of Duty 4


since every shooter has been copying it since

...and call of duty copied every other shooter before them, and the ones before call of duty copied he ones before them, and the ones before them copied..., Etc, Etc, Etc.

Fair point (and I'm just going to throw this [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeinfeldIsUnfunny] in here for good measure), but do you remember how absolutely mindblowing CoD4 was at the time?

No game is original, since even the 1st video-games were ripoffs of toys, and they were rips off of ordinary games like tig, or hide and seek... Everything is just a better rip off than the last. So to represent gaming to someone, you have to go through the whole bloody history of gaming to show them how downhill it's gone since we ditched the PS2s, Gamecubes and Gameboy advance SPs (Because almost no-one had an X-box, and X-box games were 90% terrible anyway, apart from Halo, and others, but Halo is awful anyway, and is only remotely fun for the story, and/or Halo:2's arbiter sections which everyone got butthurt about except me, oh, and forge, but that is as good as a cardboard box, maybe worse.).

Aaaaaaaand you lost me.

A Legend of Zelda game of the N64 era onwards would be my pick to represent gaming. Ocarina, Majora, Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are games that have it all that people here have mentioned: Puzzles, atmosphere, story, humor, variety, accessibility, action, longevity...IF I had to pick one, I'd pick Twilight Princess. I feel a non-gamer will most likely understand and relate to more modern graphics than the 64 bits of the past.

Good picks. Of those, I'd have gone for Wind Waker myself, but that's just my own personal preference, TP probably is more accessible.

People picking Portal a lot, I see, but I feel that Portal can be alienating if you don't completely get dark humor or if you don't just wanna do straight-up puzzle solving. I know the Weighted Companion Cube flew over my head and had to have someone explain to me why it was a good bit of writing as opposed to stupid overblown meme-driven bullshit, and I'm not ashamed of it.

Well, you can't please EVERYBODY. I feel that enough people would like the puzzles and dark humor to make it worth it. As for the Companion Cube thing, you're not alone. I didn't get why that was so brilliant either, and I still don't.

Do you know why they made it a companion cube instead of a regular one in the first place? Because that was the easiest way to convey to the player that they should take the cube with them. Seriously, that's it.

 

[KillMeOnceMore]

I concur with the Modern Warfare suggestion since that game really is where gaming is right now. I know that are some outstanding artistic and joyous games out there that are far more worthy of attention but they are very much in the minority. Modern Warfare however, is probably the most encapsulating game for the current state of gaming, for better or worse, and is actually still a pretty damn good game that has been unfairly tainted by its spin offs.

 

[bl4ckh4wk64]

Are you high ??? Comparing a book to a video game...seriously stop putting video games on such HUGE piedestals. You need to get out of your basement, go to your local library and read a little bit before you say such stupid things.

But there's cookies and cake in here...

OT: depends on if I want to show them immersion, storyline, or characterization. If it's storyline and characterization, i t would be Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War. That was the first game I cried in, the second being Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter. If its storyline and immersion, then either of the two Mass Effects, most likely the first one as it had a better story.

 

[EdwardOrchard]

This one's easy: World of Warcraft.

I believe that MMORPGs present both the best and worst sides of gaming, and aside from being the most accessible, World of Warcraft is an incredibly all-encompassing game.
One single game to represent gaming in its entirety? Everything from storytelling, to worldbuilding, to gamer culture itself? World of Warcraft.

 

[Yomomma20]

Hmm...I think it makes a big difference if the person is actually going to be playing or not.

You could easily play a game in front of them to show what video games can offer. I would think RPG's are best for this, since they don't have to know the specifics (equiping items, leveling, and such) but still enjoy the story, basic gameplay and overall environment of the game. The Mass Effect games would be great for this.

On the other hand, if you are going to give them a game to play, I'd say just about any modern Mario game (n64 and onwards), specifically Galaxy 1 and 2. In my opinion, most Mario games are really good at appealing to everyone, no matter their gaming background. Most Mario games have very simple controls, very vibrant worlds, and they excel at never being boring. Plus, someone who really sucks at video games isn't really punished for dying repeatedly, which is in itself hard to do. And yet, veteran gamers can still have blast playing them, despite their lack of difficulty (unless you try for a 100% completion; case in point, Super Mario Galaxy 2).

 

[Flailing Escapist]

Final Fantasy 1

 

[cardinalwiggles]

If its storyline and immersion, then either of the two Mass Effects, most likely the first one as it had a better story.

see i originally had that idea, however i wouldn't want them to get bogged down in the grinding for certain missions and things the linear same space station on random planet C and the mako missions wouldn't exactly show alot for gaming me thinks

 

[LobsterFeng]

Knowing very well that it's been said several times, Portal. It is a perfect example of storytelling that only a game could do. And it's just plain fun to play I mean anyone can enjoy it.

 

[AyreonMaiden]

Okami.

It's about telling a story, exploring fantastic landscapes, and creativity. Although the 20 minute intro will throw them off a bit.

I agree, I loved that game so much, really shows off the industry's creativity.

Call of Duty 4


since every shooter has been copying it since

...and call of duty copied every other shooter before them, and the ones before call of duty copied he ones before them, and the ones before them copied..., Etc, Etc, Etc.

Fair point (and I'm just going to throw this [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SeinfeldIsUnfunny] in here for good measure), but do you remember how absolutely mindblowing CoD4 was at the time?

No game is original, since even the 1st video-games were ripoffs of toys, and they were rips off of ordinary games like tig, or hide and seek... Everything is just a better rip off than the last. So to represent gaming to someone, you have to go through the whole bloody history of gaming to show them how downhill it's gone since we ditched the PS2s, Gamecubes and Gameboy advance SPs (Because almost no-one had an X-box, and X-box games were 90% terrible anyway, apart from Halo, and others, but Halo is awful anyway, and is only remotely fun for the story, and/or Halo:2's arbiter sections which everyone got butthurt about except me, oh, and forge, but that is as good as a cardboard box, maybe worse.).

Aaaaaaaand you lost me.

A Legend of Zelda game of the N64 era onwards would be my pick to represent gaming. Ocarina, Majora, Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are games that have it all that people here have mentioned: Puzzles, atmosphere, story, humor, variety, accessibility, action, longevity...IF I had to pick one, I'd pick Twilight Princess. I feel a non-gamer will most likely understand and relate to more modern graphics than the 64 bits of the past.

Good picks. Of those, I'd have gone for Wind Waker myself, but that's just my own personal preference, TP probably is more accessible.

People picking Portal a lot, I see, but I feel that Portal can be alienating if you don't completely get dark humor or if you don't just wanna do straight-up puzzle solving. I know the Weighted Companion Cube flew over my head and had to have someone explain to me why it was a good bit of writing as opposed to stupid overblown meme-driven bullshit, and I'm not ashamed of it.

Well, you can't please EVERYBODY. I feel that enough people would like the puzzles and dark humor to make it worth it. As for the Companion Cube thing, you're not alone. I didn't get why that was so brilliant either, and I still don't.

Do you know why they made it a companion cube instead of a regular one in the first place? Because that was the easiest way to convey to the player that they should take the cube with them. Seriously, that's it.

You're right, you can't please everyone all of the time. My rationale is that that as far as representing gaming as a whole I'd show a game that has elements of as many games as I can, executed well. Portal is an amazing game that does what it does excellently, but when I compared Portal to a Zelda game, I found that Zelda showcased more aspects that I'd want a non-gamer to see.

As for the Companion Cube, what I was told was that it was a misconception on GLaDOS' part. Her understanding of human emotions is so limited that she assumes all it takes for us sentimental humans is five minutes with something before we get helplessly attached. So that's why she has only the one test chamber where you use the Companion Cube. I was told I proved her wrong by unconsciously thinking to myself "This is freaking stupid, the internet is stupid, this cube is stupid, in the fucking fire you go." instead of getting attached to it. Therein lies why it's a good bit of writing.

 

[iaculum]

I've been reading some of the replies and I have to say that some of these choices are mostly influenced by how much the person enjoyed the games instead of what game they think would represent video gaming in general in a positive way to a complete newcomer.


For example, Minecraft. I'm not insulting the guy or gal who suggested it, but I don't think it's a good choice.
Minecraft is pretty much an open sandbox where you create your own objective. There is no introduction, tutorial, or reason to play it. Someone who is new to games might not enjoy it as much as us lads and ladies who just want to take a break from our portal 2 marathons and make a gigantic castle with water pouring off the sides.





I, personally, would go with Spore for reasons I will describle below:

It's fun, easy, and combines several different kinds of gameplay into it-- each of the "stages" represents a genre of gaming from the Tribal-stage RTS to the Animal-stage (or whatever it's called) that looks vaugely like some of these RPGs with your little party of animals following you around and you either make friends with all the other little animals or devour their faces. You also go around looting corpses for better equipment.

You can play it through until you "beat" the space stage, and then you can go and make another world of little face-eating creatures, or you can continue on and conquer the universe!

It can be either an interesting three hours, or a fun and engaging month or three as you turn every single planet purple with cyan clouds and draw genitalia on the home planets of the space empires you don't like.

It's also a lot more cuddly than Halo and would make a gentler introduction to gaming for those people who think us gamers are all about the gore.



Also, this might be a bit random, but I've been dying to use the phrase "Lads and Ladies" for the last while, which is why I included that bit about minecraft.

 

[Thamous]

Are you high ??? Comparing a book to a video game...seriously stop putting video games on such HUGE piedestals. You need to get out of your basement, go to your local library and read a little bit before you say such stupid things.

Oh God. Someone with an opinion that isn't yours. They must be stupid and high, thats the only explanation.

 

[Lagslayer]

The original Super Mario Bros. Simple, fun, colorful, aged really well despite 8-bit graphics, and it's the kind of game everyone should play at least once.

 

[cardinalwiggles]

...snip
I, personally, would go with Spore ...snip

this is a really good choice i bought my girlfriend this who is a relative newcomer to the gaming scene, and what i think she enjoyed was it's variety. she was intrigued enough to play for more than several hours. not much for a storyline though

Also, this might be a bit random, but I've been dying to use the phrase "Lads and Ladies" for the last while, which is why I included that bit about minecraft.

i approve of this it's a term that should be used more often

 

[loc978]

Chr-

I'd have to say Crono Trigger. Epic storyline, engaging characters, an easy to master combat system, and the choices you make impact the outcome. Definitely a way to show a newcomer the best that video games can offer, or at the very least the best that RPGs can offer.

...yeah, that. Also, being a 16-bit RPG, the controls are incredibly easy to learn. Some people have trouble with a keyboard and mouse or thumbsticks. Directional buttons coupled with yes/no/menu buttons being its only controls make the game very accessible.

Arr, I think I be too far into me rum. A ninja got the jump on me.