The Greatest Games of the 7th Generation

[Wargamer]

Well, we're officially into the 8th Console Generation now that the PS4 and XBox One are out and swinging, so I thought it was a good opportunity to sit down and chat about the consoles now past. Just a heads up, I'm posting spoilers and inviting everyone else to do the same, so if you don't want last gen's greatest games ruined, walk away now.

I'd like everyone else to share their Top 5, but first let me give a disclaimer: this is my top 5 best console games. The reason I don't include any 360 exclusive titles is simple - none of them convinced me they were worth buying a 360 just to own, so as far as I'm concerned none of them deserve to be in my top 5. Sorry, Microsoft Fans, but last Gen's console just wasn't packing the right guns.

Honourable mentions include: The Last of Us and Bioshock, two games I loved the hell out of, but felt didn't do too well on a second playthrough; Gears of War 2, a game that almost made me buy a 360, and Assassin's Creed II, for reasons I shouldn't have to list.

Onwards!

#5 - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
This has to be here for the simple fact that this game is the reason I bought a PS3. The game was an epic, if somewhat convoluted story that dragged the Metal Gear Solid franchise into the near-future and delivered a surprisingly satisfying conclusion to the events of the last four games. It was somewhat spoiled by the fact that Metal Gear Rising happened (MGS4 should have been the end of it), but I for one couldn't have asked for a better ending.

Also, a moment of silence for Metal Gear Online. Truly, it was a beautiful online gaming experience, warts and all. I pray dearly it will return in MGS5, Team Sneaking mode included.

#4 - LittleBigPlanet
This game is just awesome. It's cute, cuddly, instantly approachable and for creative types a sure fire way to lose eighty hours of your life. It was full of light-hearted whimsy and wonder that made it feel like a children's story, and I couldn't help but be drawn in by its playful charm. I felt more invested in the adventures of Sackboy as he tried to save his 2.5D friends than I did any grim and serious muscle-bound meat head.

The sequels sure didn't hurt either; the only thing better than fighting a boss to Nightwish in LBP2 was fighting a boss to the Deipnir Rapids by Turisas in LBP Karting!

Anyone who owns a PS3 and doesn't own LBP, or one of its sequels is sorely missing out. It is a must play title!

#3 - Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard
Was this the best game mechanically speaking? Oh hell no! Was it the best looking? Not even close! Did it have me enthralled every step of the way? Damn right it did! To this day I don't know if the games flaws were there due to lack of polish by the Dev Team, or left in on purpose to ape how bad games of yesteryear often were.

For those unfamiliar with the game, Matt Hazard is a parody of... well, everything. From Duke Nukem to World of Warcraft, Matt Hazard pokes fun at them all while delivering a pretty satisfying third-person cover-based shooter experience. You get to fight the Chinese Mafia, Zombies, 2D Nazis and a brilliantly cringe-worthy spoof of Arnold Schwarzenegger before confronting the CEO of the games company who publishes the Matt Hazard games. Yeah, it sounds ludicrous, but any game where you can kill Space Marines with a water pistol is alright by me!

Speaking of...

#2 - Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine
If you are not a fan of Warhammer 40,000 you might not appreciate just how amazing this game is. If you are, you probably bought it and basked in the eight hour orgasm that is Captain Titus' rampage across the Forge World of Graia.

Not only is this game a loving rendition of the setting, but it's also a beautiful example of how hack-and-slash games should be done. Where Marcus Fenix or Master Chief cower behind cover when wounded and cry their pain away, Captain Titus rushes forward, Chainsword screaming, and heals himself by disemboweling people! Everything in this game emphasizes the power of the Astartes. To quote the 40K lore; "there is less than one Space Marine per world in the Imperium, yet they are numbers enough for the task at hand." Captain Titus and two of his squad are dropped into the middle of a warzone, and the player is never in any doubt that these three are numbers enough to hold the line until the Liberation Fleet arrives.

If you want to spend a few hours of your life slaughtering Orks, Daemons and Traitors with a variety of awesome sci-fi guns and gloriously visceral close combat weapons, you won't find much better.

#1 - Spec Ops: The Line
Yahtzee and the Extra Credits guys did a grand job explaining why everyone should play this game, and I agree wholeheartedly. I didn't buy this game initially because I am really not a fan of Spunkgargleweewee in general, and it was kind of hard to get into when I picked it up for free on PSN+, but I recently sat down and pushed through and I am so glad I did. The game is full of brilliant little touches that hooked me in heart and soul.

For me, the end of my playthrough summarised it all nicely. Walker dies, either due to committing suicide or being killed by someone who may or may not even exist, and I couldn't think of a better way to end this bloody and brutal slog through hell.

Spec Ops should be on everyone's game shelf, especially if you are the kind of person who is really sick and tired of the CoD / Battlefield / MoH model of "AMERICA! FUCK YEAH!" After being bored out of my skull shooting Russians, Muslims and Muslim Russians for twenty-odd games, being having Americans as the bad guys for a change was a seriously cathartic experience.

Play it, hate it, and then wonder how you are ever meant to play any modern shooter again.

 

[MysticSlayer]

As usual, my lists are prone to change.

1). Xenoblade Chronicles: Yeah, this is sort of an obvious entry. This game simply sucked me in and was my primary game to play for months. The world was absolutely beautiful and a joy to explore, and the cast of characters was among the best I've ever seen. On top of that it had an excellent story tying the world and characters together in a highly compelling and thoughtful way. While the game was a little on the easy side (minus the hidden bosses) and some of the side quests were a bit tedious, it was still fun to play, and even the difficulty felt just right for the game's purpose. Overall, it was the game this generation that compelled me and awed me the most, and it was one of the few games this generation that brought out my child-like sense of wonder and excitement. Simply just a fantastic game.

2). Super Mario Galaxy: Part of me has had a love/hate relationship with this game. Personally, I thought it took a too-linear direction for Mario compared to Super Mario 64 and Sunshine, not to mention it was excessively easy, with the only difficult star being based on a mechanic (exclusive to that star) I could never figure out. Still, in the end, it was probably the game that engrossed me the most after Xenoblade. Sure, it's story was the usually laughable Mario story (though, honestly, I did enjoy following Rosalina's backstory), but in terms of gameplay, this game excelled beyond practically all others this generation. Sure, Galaxy 2 did refine a lot of what this game did, but in the end, I think it did the best at giving the sense of exploration and wonder that most games are lacking in anymore.

3). Tales of Vesperia: Even though the 360 turned out to be incredibly weak in the JRPG department, it at least had this game. ToV had a fantastic story that managed to do a great job of keeping its core commentary hidden until near the end while managing to keep that commentary in subtle focus throughout the game. It also had excellent characters, and Yuri is quite possibly my favorite character from the 7th generation. While the gameplay suffered from quite a few problems with the AI, it's gameplay was still enjoyable in the end. Still, I seem to be one of the few that remembers it mostly for its story rather than its gameplay, but that doesn't change the fact that I still loved it.

4). The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion: Was it well-written? Nope. Was its gameplay polished? Yeah right. Still, it had good enough gameplay that didn't detract from the exploration of the world. Granted, it was my first Elder Scrolls game, so I had a lot more new things to experience than those who started in Morrowind, so it seemed to be a much more fresh experience than a lot of older Elder Scrolls fans give it credit for. Still, it was a beautiful world that I absolutely loved to get lost in and explore just for the sake of exploring. Ultimately, I just loved learning more about the world, and as long as there was new stuff to learn about (which there was plenty), I could not pull myself away.

5). Fallout 3: Pretty much for the same reason as Oblivion, but there just wasn't as much to do or explore in this game. That's really the only reason it is #5 instead of #4. Granted, the characters were more memorable and the gameplay better, but the sense of exploration in Oblivion ultimately helped it win out over this one in the end.

Also, as an honorable mention, the STALKER series was easily the best series during the 7th generation. Shadow of Chernobyl was possibly the best FPS game of the generation, minus the plethora of bugs that it had. Call of Pripyat was also an excellent experience that managed to bring back the greatness of Shadow of Chernobyl. Unfortunately, there just hasn't been a game since Call of Pripyat that really brings out the experience of those two games. The Metro games come close, but they just don't do it as well.