LK's Top 30 Games of All Time #20-16

20. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (GEN)

SEGA had a really major franchise beginning with the first Sonic the Hedgehog, and though it wasn’t amazing, it was pretty damn good. It had great speed, good level design, and it was a pretty good game overall. But SEGA really outdid themselves with the next installment. Everything was better about it. The graphics were enhanced, the soundtrack was even more memorable, the game was longer, and just about everything else about the game as just more fun, and this is why it sits at number 20 on my all time list of best games.

But Sonic 2 didn’t just beat the first Sonic in every category imaginably, Sonic 2 absolutely destroyed it. The first Sonic had a great sense of speed, but it was even more noticeable in the second game, making every level more and more fun to play. Sonic 2’s enemies were some of the best seen in the series even up to this very day, and got rid of some annoying moments like the 3 act stages. Sonic 2 also had a major upgrade in boss fights, every boss was fun, never a chore.

Fighting Dr. RobotnikThe level design is what really brought the second Sonic game to the AAA tier of games. Every level was unique, some would take you through a Casino, while some had you going through an oil factory. But what made the level design even more impressive was the visuals, and the major upgrade from the first Sonic game. The background had more colour to them while the foreground had lots of moving objects, colourful art, and just visually impressive all around.

Putting all of the major elements of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in to one pot really sums up how good the game is. The level design is still the best seen in a Sonic game to date, the gameplay is still fast and furious, the soundtrack and sound effects are still memorable plus sound awesome, and the visuals are a huge step above SEGA Genesis games at the time. Sonic 2 is definitely one of the best platformers ever to be released, and I would suggest it to anyone, including the non-gamers out there.

Though the stealth action adventure games aren’t very frequent anymore, nor are any of them good, they were a lot of them back in the day that really stood out of the pack. Included in this list was one of Konami’s growing franchises, Metal Gear Solid. Metal Gear Solid sticks out to me as one of the best video game stories ever. It had drama, very intense and cinematic moments, and it also had a lot of those heart stopping moments of sneaking around without anyone seeing you. This is why Metal Gear Solid is so good, and this is why it’s number 19 of this list.

One of the best things about the first Metal Gear Solid game was its presentation. Right off the bat your put into action having to sneak around while trying to hide from guards while the game looked beautiful, and presented itself like a movie with credits rolling while you played the game. Metal Gear Solid also had some pretty deep cutscenes and codec conversations that always keep you intrigued and interested on what’s going to happen to Solid Snake next.

Another thing that kept Metal Gear Solid high up on the AAA shelf was the superb voice acting, not seen as much during its time. Not only did it havevoice acting, but it had absolutely outstanding voice acting, still good in today’s standards. Snake voiced by David Hayter was flawless, while all of the other supporting rolls were done very well too. The soundtrack for Metal Gear Solid was also top notch, there are tons of epic situations that sounded oh-so perfect with every beat. MGS has some of the greatest soundtracks in its franchise’s history, and the first game had some of the best.

Taking coverBut not only were the presentation and sound good, but the game was also fun as hell. You had an arsenal of weapons like a normal silenced pistol, to grenade and rocket launchers. You could sneak through the whole game, or blast you way through, it was all up to you. One of the best parts of the gameplay was its epic boss battles. There are a little more in Metal Gear Solid than seen in other games like it, but all of them were just amazing in every possible way. Some had you sniping through a snowy field, while some had you running around a warehouse setting mines to blow you enemy to smithereens. 

Metal Gear Solid had pretty much every going in 1998. It had incredible graphics, though muddy in situations, it had amazing voice acting, but it also had some very fun moments like the incredibly epic boss battles. The game also presented itself like a movie, and turned out pretty much like it was supposed to. You’ll never be bored during Metal Gear Solid, it was made to be an epic game with an amazing deep story and fun gameplay, and it hit its mark perfectly.

It’s been a tough couple of years for Nintendo fans. Sure, the Wii has had a ton of success, but the hardcore group that has stood by Nintendo has had to suffer through disappointment after disappointment from Nintendo’s latest console. Sure, there were some decent games leading up to Galaxy like a port of Resident Evil 4, and Metroid Prime 3, but after I got my hands on Super Mario Galaxy and see what the Wii is capable of, I can’t see other games the same way again. Not only is Galaxy by far the best on the Wii, but its also one of the best Mario games to ever hit the market, and my 18th favorite game of all time.

Mario Galaxy really is an odd game. It goes into space without any gear (all is forgiven, it’s Mario we’re talking about here), but the result isn’t anything short of jaw-dropping. The gravity physics are some of the best I’ve seen in my entire life. Mario can stick to planets, and when he tries to jump off, the gravity slowly pulls him back and looks and feels amazing. Some of the more small planets can be jumped off and onto other planets as well, and it all feels totally natural. Some of planets can actually jumped across if done right, with a long-jump that everyone has come accustom to.

But even with the great physics there still had to be some good level design to be fun right? You bet your ass. Not only does Mario Galaxy have some of the best level designs seen in a Mario game, it has some of the best ever. Every level has a unique theme to it, and while not all of the stages aren’t necessarily in space, all are awesome in their own unique way. Some have you jumping from flowers into a gust of wind while some have you jumping from a giant pill and onto a larger planet with enemies on it.

If you’re wondering, Galaxy also features the enemies and power-ups you’ve come to expect, and maybe more than you first thought it would have. Goombas, Koopas, Bullet Bills, and other famous Mario enemies return, as well as some other not-so-favorite enemies like Bowser Jr. Galaxy also features a wide variety of power-ups like a Fire Flower, and Flying Cap, while also featuring new power-ups like a Bee Mario that can fly like a bee, and Boo Mario that can go through walls.

Visually, the best on WiiOne of the major elements of Super Mario Galaxy are ridiculously good looking visuals, combined with an incredible orchestrated soundtrack. The visuals are easily the best on the Wii, there are nice bloom effects everywhere as well as everything being polished with great textures, nice fur effects, and amazing physics. The soundtrack also is incredibly “Marioy” with all of the classic tunes redone with modern technology and new tunes that will still sound amazing, even to the virgin ears.

But to say anything but amazing when talking about Super Mario Galaxy is an under-statement. It has incredible great level design with gorgeous graphics and an amazing soundtrack. The true Super Mario gameplay is still here and as perfect as ever, and pretty much everything else about the game is near perfect. The only downfalls are its length, and some stupid power-ups here and there, but it is truly a fantastic game. If you like Mario games, do yourself a favor and pick this game up. It’s worthy of a purchase, no doubt, but also worthy of the $250 on a Wii, for sure.

After the incredible first 3D Metal Gear game on the PlayStation 1, no one knew what could be done on a higher generation console. When Konami first showed off Metal Gear Solid 2 for the PlayStation 2, people’s jaws not only dropped, but they dropped through the damn floor. Metal Gear Solid 2 looked amazing, it had totally enhanced graphics that weren’t muddy and ugly looking while also having new awesome gameplay elements like first-person shooting. It was a giant leap forward, and the end result is my 17th favorite game of all time.

Metal Gear Solid 2 is just an amazing game, but lots of players didn’t take it the way it was intended because of one of the primary character of the game, and that character is Raiden. Raiden is a women-looking male who has a girly voice, and doesn’t suit the game’s badass vibe. The other disappointing part about her... *cough* I mean him, is that 3 quarters of the game has you playing as Raiden, and only 1 quarter with Solid Snake. The game makes you think that the game is going to be badass throughout when you start out as Snake, but eventually Raiden will turn into the main character.

But even with the main character being Raiden, the gameplay still remained nearly untouched from the Solid Snake parts, and ends up being awesome anyways. Snake’s part is a tanker where you infiltrate to find the new Metal Gear named Ray, while you play as Raiden to infiltrate a Plant in the middle of the ocean. Both are fun, and the Plant is especially lengthy, which made the game more and more fun as you progressed through it. Raiden’s attacks and rolls are a little different from Snake’s, but they both played nearly identical.

But additions to the new Metal Gear Solid formula came with great improvements. The new controls with the PlayStation 2 having pressure sensitive buttons allowed the L2 and R2 buttons to be held to switch weapons or items, or tapping them to un-equip them on the fly instead of using the L1 and R1 buttons which are now to aim in first-person mode. The first person mode really allowed for more strategic ways of going through rooms and other places because you could see your surroundings a lot better, and it was a lot easier to hit enemies in a certain body part like the head, or yes, the crotch.

Metal Gear... Ray?All of the famous Metal Gear Solid gameplay options were added to Sons of Liberty like epic boss fights, and long but interesting cutscenes. The story especially is again fantastic in MGS2, but this time really difficult to understand. The soundtrack is also epic and heart-pumping while also being heartwarming and beautiful in other situations. The graphics were especially amazing for the time because the first Metal Gear Solid came out only 3 years previous and difference in the presentation to both games were night and day.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty is easily one of the greatest PlayStation 2 games ever made, and it really showed people what the PlayStation 2 is capable of. The game had some amazing graphics, it had an great soundtrack, but it kept the great Metal Gear Solid themes like an amazing story with great cutscenes to back it up, while also having the great sneaking gameplay you’d come to expect. Metal Gear Solid 2, though it’s not the best Metal Gear Solid game in the series, is still one of the greatest games I have ever play, and is my 17th favorite of all time.

I’m not a big sucker for RPG’s, so when I first heard of Mass Effect, an epic action-RPG from BioWare, I wasn’t sucked into the hype. Sure, it sounded fun, but I wasn’t in to the whole game overall. But what I bought that day on November 20th really caught me by surprise, because what I got not only looked and sounded awesome, but just the sheer amount of fun you get out of this game was almost not matched in 2007. I’m not a sucker for RPG’s, but Mass Effect absolutely sucked me in, hard.

Usually when a developer says their game is giant, I take it with a grain of salt, because like Twilight Princess, it’s usually never true. Mass Effect however is absolutely huge, there are tons of planets to explore while the important planets are also pretty decent in size. But what it all comes down to is that the game has to be fun, no matter how big the game is, but Mass Effect nailed the fun part, and the scope of the universe only made the game better from any standpoint.

Mass Effect plays like a 3rd-Person Shooter. The camera is locked behind Commander Shepard (that your character’s name - boy or girl) when you’re shooting, but is free when not in combat. You have 4 kinds of weapons (pistol, assault rifle, sniper rifle, and shotgun), but depending on what class you choose at the beginning of the game, you can also have different powers like Lift which lift your enemies into the air, or Overload which will hit your opponents with a strong blast. Picking a certain class can be tough, but I ended up using my guns more than my powers, so a soldier class best suited me.

One of the biggest ‘wow’ moments Mass Effect come from the interactive dialog trees that the game is absolutely filled with. Talking to specific (not all sadly) people, or beings, will trigger a conversation that can be different every time, depending on what you say. Usually there are 3 things to say for every part, one that’s nice, one that’s mean, and one that’s neutral. Depending what you say will usually have an effect on some parts of the game, and how much Paragon or Renegade points you. Eventually when you have enough of either points, you can tell people to “Fuck Off” in gentle, or mean ways, it’s very fun.

Shepard and his crewOn a technical standpoint, Mass Effect is awesome. It has incredible graphics, especially running in 720p, but turning off the default grain effect makes the game look a lot better. The game also has some nice motion blur, but some annoying little bits like textures loading in late which can make cutscenes terrible in situations. The soundtrack is also really good consisting of nothing expect epic tunes that will suit the mood in every situation. The voice acting, above all else, is THE thing to be amazed about in Mass Effect. Every piece of dialog from the opening scene with Seth Green, to the ending scene of the game, every single bit of the game has incredibly deep voice acting, and is honestly the best voice acting in any game, ever.

Mass Effect was an amazing experience overall. It had one of the greatest stories ever, some of the best dialog ever seen a video game, and it was also a beautiful game with a brilliant soundtrack and really fun gameplay. There were barely anything wrong with the game, sometimes the textures would pop in, and the gameplay was occasional buggy, but the overall game was absolutely amazing from start to finish. If you have an Xbox 360 or a good PC, I would definitely suggest this game, because not only is it fantastic, it’s my 16th favorite game of all time.