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BioShock is a game that is almost perfect. The unique environments, nontraditional story (specifically one that only really works if it's a video game), the cornucopia of weapons and plasmids that enable you to tackle the many splicers of Rapture, and the idea of telling the story through the environment, rather than explicit cut scenes (To be fair, it wasn't the first to do this, it was just so goddamn good at it). These are all reasons that BioShock is great, and why it will be looked back on as one of the most important games of its era.
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Mirror's Edge is a game that encourages perfection. There is nothing quite like nailing a complicated maneuver, and sticking the landing by kicking an armed goon in the head. With it's unique movement and traversal system, there again is nothing quite like Mirror's Edge, with its minimalist design, using swathes of color to beautifully render the mysterious dystopian future you find yourself in. All combined with its non-focus on first person shooting action, and even rewarding players for finishing the game without firing a single bullet. This choice is a ballsy one when you make a game in the era in which Call of Duty begins its ascent to the throne of annual sales charts.
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Batman: Arkham Asylum had no right to be good. It was being made by an vastly unproven developer and was a licensed game to boot. There was something off though, because the usual response to these types of games was indifference, with some sort of disdain thrown in. Rocksteady blew everyones expectations out of the water by creating not only an amazing Batman game that utilizes the character and mythos in loving ways, but while also exploiting what is so great about Batman and with that creating a truly great game, regardless of being a licensed property. If nothing else, it proved that we don't have to settle for the licensed video game ghetto that we have for the past 20 years.
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Valve is synonymous with bringing about fresh multiplayer experiences. With heavy hitters like Counter-Strike and Team Fortress on their roster, a lot of people expected Left 4 Dead to be something unique, while also being accessible, and most importantly, fun. The drop in drop out co-op system is one of the most robust in gaming at large, with its asymmetrical versus multiplayer offering an experience found no where else. Throw in a dose of lovable characters with multitudes of dynamic dialogue, and you've got a game that attracts casual players, while also satisfying the hardcore bunch who insist on completing every campaign on expert. All this great action coupled with detail nourished environments, and an overall late night horror movie aesthetic, and you've got a classic of a generation.
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The Battlefield series has been slowly mutating and changing since its inception with Battlefield 1942. Originally being a game that needed a PC to achieve the true experience, it didn't stop DICE from attempting console versions of their beloved series. While the previous console attempts are certainly not missteps, Bad Company 2 took the mechanics from the previous Bad Company, namely the destruction and overall great gunplay, and polished it to a mirror sheen. Battlefield's multiplayer hit critical mass with this entry, and has yet to recapture the magic of this game in the subsequent sequels. Not only that, but the campaign is not only good, but genuinely funny.
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