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J's Top Video Games: 5-1
By J - 05.31.03
5. Chrono Cross
2000 - Sony Playstation
(Please note - for the purposes of this article role playing game will mean console turn-based rpg).
 Role playing games are allowed to do things that other video games are not. Stories in video games are usually brief, just to sort of give a backdrop for why your character happens to be doing what they are doing. For example, jumping on dinosaurs and shooting fireballs is justified simply by the fact that you need to save the princess. You shoot aliens based on the simple assumption that aliens are evil and invading the earth is bad. But in role playing games, the story is the game - one good analogy is that a role playing game is akin to "playing a book." Players of rpgs expect to and want to sit through lengthy storytelling scenes, and there are usually several main characters to get to know throughout the length of the game. RPGs are usually much longer than other games - players of some of the Final Fantasy games know that they can take 70 hours or longer to explore. Because of the high emphasis on storytelling and character development, and the necessary length to tell a good story, players often tolerate rather repetitive and somewhat tedious battle systems, which help justify the increase in power of each of the playable characters throughout the game.
For some, the characteristics of these games are a big turn on - fans of anime, science fiction, and fantasy are prime candidates for fans of the rpg. But for many gamers, rpgs are a major turn off. Critics of the typical rpg don't usually knock the story aspect (non-rpgs can have amazing stories, just look at Half Life), but criticize the difficulty aspect of the battle system, and the fact that completing and rpg does not denote good general video game skills. In many rpgs, anyone can simply play enough random battles to boost your level up high enough to overwhelm any enemy the game may throw at you.
My humble opinion is that the rpg is a nice change of pace. Even games (already on this list) with relatively repetitive gameplay still manage to be really fun the whole way through - in particular, the final fantasy series. But there is really only one rpg that can not only be called a great role playing game, but a good all around video game - Chrono Cross.
 Chrono Cross gives the finger to anyone who says that turn based battles are repetitive, easy, and can be beaten simply by putting enough time into the game. Characters do not level up - they get minor stat increases after each random battle. And stats are capped (the cap rises each time a boss is beaten), so your characters cannot rise to strengths beyond your progress in the game. You have very few hit points as compared to other games (although they are basically replenished before every battle), and items have been virtually eliminated from the game. Battle requires far far more strategy than the typical role playing game. You have a limited number of points to use in battle, with stronger attacks requiring more points. You have no MP - spells are equipped to certain characters, and can be used once a battle. Casting a spell requires points, and the the level of magic you are allowed to use depends on your successes in physical attacks earlier in the battle. Also, while taking an action in battle costs your character points, it also increases the points of other members of your team. With all of this customization, the combat takes longer to get used to than most games, but also makes each battle more difficult, more critical, and more interesting. As an added bonus, ememies can now be seen approaching, so there are no more random battles. This leads to fewer, longer battles, and also allows players to walk back through previously explored areas without being confronted by enemies.
If you couldn't already guess, Chrono Cross is the sequel to the wildly popular SNES game Chrono Trigger. Without going too far into the story, Chrono Cross explores much more in detail the moral implications and motives of the events in Chrono Trigger. Taking place 20 years later than its predecessor, and with completely different characters, players will find this a much darker game than its Nintendo cousin. While gameplay is quite different than in Trigger (over 40 playable characters, no time traveling, new battle system), the storytelling style and progress through Chrono Cross still feels much the same as playing through the first game in the series. It's tough to imagine a more perfect sequel being made - the world is expanded, the story of the first game is completely intertwined with the first, and the gameplay is taken to a whole new level.
Chrono Cross is also technically very impressive. As one of the last big release games for the Playstation before the PS2 was released, you can see extremely impressive graphics on the 32 bit system. The music is also remarkable, and is enjoyable both in the game and out. From a musical perspective, I would also say that the opening theme song is probably the best of any video game ever made, and could rival many theme songs from movies.
Chrono Cross is often foreshadowed by the fantatical following of Chrono Trigger. Some fans at the release of this game snubbed it because it seemed so different from the previous entry in the series. Chrono Trigger is an amazing game (see my writeup earlier on the list), but just doesn't have the depth that Cross has. It's one of few game experiences that cannot really be replicated without playing through the game and letting the meaning of the story slowly come together in your head. Few games are as engrossing.
Oh, and whatever you do be sure to have Glenn in your party. He can do a crazy dual tech with Serge (the main character). And discerning Chrono Trigger players should note that he is a rather subtle homage to a character from the past…
4. Metroid Prime
2002 - Nintendo Gamecube
 Holy ass. I haven't played a game this good in years. When I was playing through Metroid Prime I was messed up. Like I found myself thinking about Prime in class, while I was going to sleep, while I was eating, it really was crazy. That's because Metroid Prime is the most immersive game ever. When you're playing you start to lose focus of anything besides the tv screen. It is worth getting a Gamecube just to play this game, simply for the experience.
In all the reviews for Metroid Prime, one word kept coming up - atmospheric. The environments you explore don't feel like a video game world - just as much attention was given to the world around you as was to your character model and the enemies. The music is incredible, not in the sense that you would want to buy the cd and play it in your car, but in the sense that it fits the world so well you think of it as part of the environment. To say that the graphics are good don't do the game justice - it's what was done with the Gamecube hardware and the game engine that make the visuals in this game so impressive.
Metroid Prime is the fourth (or fifth, depending on how you look at it, since it came out the same day as Metroid Fusion) entry in Nintendo's well defined Metroid series of games. When Castlevania (the most comprable series of games) made the leap from 2d to 3d, critics blasted the game not so much for being a bad game, but being a departure from the previous series. When screenshots were revealed for Metroid Prime, people gasped and booed it's fps-like appearance. These boos were silenced on day one of it's released - Metroid Prime not only feels just like any other entry in the series, it is also easily the best in the series.
Combat may be from the first person perspective, but that's where the similarities between Prime and first-person shooters end. Samus (the main character) can auto lock onto enemies, so the focus on aiming is completely removed. Defeating enemies is more about using the right weapon, finding the enemy's weak spot, using the right viewpoint, and avoiding enemy fire all at the same time. It's a strategy game - not a shooting game. Just as in other Metroid games, the focus is on exploration, and there is a great deal of backtracking (fear not - it's not tedious at all) through old areas with new items/abilities.
The story in Metroid Prime is handled in a cool way too. If you don't give a shit about the story, you don't have to sit through any of it. But there is a very cool story, as well as lots of information about background to the Metroid Universe, which is found all throughout the game and can be accessed at any time by the player. By scanning computer terminals throughout the game's world, the story is opened up little by little.
I'm done singing the praises of Prime - this game's new so you've probably played it anyways. Appreciate the challenge and the truly unique experience that is Metroid Prime.
Oh, it's important to note that Retro Studios, a company based in Texas, produced this game. It is the first game their company ever produced, and not only did it get this high on my list, but also one countless "Best of 2002" awards from game publications.
3. The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
1998 - Nintendo 64
2003 - Re-released on Nintendo Gamecube
It had been 4 years since the last Zelda game, and this game was met with extremely high hopes. Unlike Metroid Prime, people had relatively few reservations about the Zelda series making the jump into 3d - as an adventure game, the 3d world made perfect since for sword fighting and dungeon exploring. But Ocarina of Time exceeded the lofty expectations it was presented with. To put it simply, Ocarina of Time did for video games in 1998 what Metroid Prime did in 2002 - it was essentially perfect, and is the game all games in its era are compared with.
Why is the Zelda series so damn good? I think it's because it's hard to exactly put it into a specific genre. It's got puzzle elements, action rpg elements, strategy elements, adventure elements, platform elements, and a good storyline. It's easy to say that it is the most beloved and successful of all video game franchises - Link even beat out Mario in the summer 2002 gamefaqs.com character battle. The Ocarina of Time is the best telling of the classic telling of a timeless good fighting against a timeless evil. It is Shigeru Miyamoto's brain doing what it does best - innovating the game world without alienating his fans.
The biggest change in a transformation of the Zelda series from an overhead view 2D world to a 3rd person view 3D world would certainly be the way Link is controlled. Combat becomes more tougher when a Z axis is thrown in, so the Z-Targeting system let Link to maneuver around one targeted character, making shooting arrows and aiming with a sword significantly easier. The N64 controller, while awkward for some games proved to be extremely well suited for this game. Players who took the time could also acquire a horse, which could not only flee from ground confined enemies, but gave Link an added combat edge by allowing him to shoot arrows while mounted on the horse. Link could now roll around, sidestep, and even strafe when needed - fighting in Zelda games had never before been so intricate.
Technically The Ocarina of Time pushed the Nintendo 64 to its limits. It was on the biggest cartridge that had been made at the time, and it shows. The graphics are stunningly detailed, and the music is fantastic.
It's been awhile since I was first obessed with this game, but I remember getting the same feeling I had when I first blasted through Prime. What gives this game the edge over Metroid, however (making it #3 instead of #4), is the magical appeal that Ocarina has. The numbers of people who have played this game are absolutely staggering - many just call this "Zelda" as it is the only one in the series non-gamers are familiar with. The Ocarina of Time in 1998 was big news, and impressed pretty much every guy in the country. I believe it's that simple "save the world from pure evil" theme that underlies every really successful comic book, movie, and game in the twentieth century. And I think that Link as the embodiment of a timeless good is what makes him and his series of games so appealing.
Oh, and in 2003 this game was re-released on the Gamecube as a promotion for preordering The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. The bonus disk includes the infamous "Master Quest" or "Ura Zelda" with ridiculously hard dungeons, and added comedic effect.
2. Tetris
1987 - Many Systems
 First Released in 1987 - Tetris was most popular in the United States on the Nintendo Entertainment System and Nintendo Game Boy, but by today the game has been released on over 60 different platforms in 70 different countries.
Tetris is by far the best selling video game ever made. Who would have thought that this Russian import would define the puzzle game genre, inspire countless spinoffs, and be ported from everything from Microsoft's X-Box to Texas Instruments' TI-83. Whether playing it to procrastinate, or struggling to beat a high score, no other game has more universal appeal than Tetris.
 The genius of this game lies in the simplicity. There are seven different pieces, and one of these pieces randomly fall at a time. When you make a horizontal line, that line disappears. Make even one vertical line, and you're dead. The pieces fall faster and faster each time 10 horizontal lines are cleared, and as you get up into level 20 and beyond you will start to slowly lose your sanity. Clear four lines with one block and you get a "tetris" and tons of points. The game is completely learned within seconds of first playing the game, and the low level of graphics required make it the most portable and accessible games around.
Being a puzzle game, Tetris also has infinite replay value. There's always something else to strive for - a higher score, a higher level, whatever. Also since the order the pieces drop is random, each play of Tetris is completely different.
Tetris' universal appeal, longevity, and proven high level of fun give it the runner up position on my list. It is a game for gamers. It is a game for bored people. It is a game that makes non-gamers give them a gamer-like feel while they're playing this game.
Oh, and what exactly were they thinking with Tetrisphere? If you've played it you know what I mean.
1. Super Mario 64
1996 - Nintendo 64
 We're finally here - the best game ever made! And what could be a more fitting end to a list of greatest video games than the most recognizable video game icon in the world - Mario. Super Mario 64ushered in the modern era of games. When this game came out the 16-bit era finally died, changing the way developers and game players would think of games from then on. From Sonic Adventur to Grand Theft Auto 3 every console game since 1996 borrows from ideas in this game. Never has the been a game so influential, before or since.
Super Mario 64 is significantly different from the other Mario games. In fact, it's probably the biggest change the series had ever seen. This game taught the world what a 3D game should be like. No longer was there linear progression - Mario had a world to explore freely, and he chose which goals he would try to complete in whatever order he saw fit. There are 120 objectives, recorded by "stars" that Mario earns whenever he does something. Only 70 are needed to complete the game, but it is a badge of honor to say that you have acquired all 120. This idea of tons of little worlds connected to a central world worked so well, you find it in every platform game (and some non-platform games) released since.
In any 3D game, the biggest problem is always the camera. In an early 3D game such as Mario 64, it's funny to see how a Lakitu following you around and filming you justified the constantly changing viewpoint. But the camera is handled surprisingly well, especially for an early 3D game. The C-buttons are used to move the camera around in 45 degree segments, whenever the auto camera isn't where you want it to be. You can also zoom in and out on Mario, or stop and look from a first person perspective. It's a wonder with this solid example on the N64 that so many 3D games, even come out today, have just a shitty shitty camera. This game deserves mad props just for that.
When I first saw Super Mario 64 in stores, I thought to myself, "Holy poop. That's it - graphics are never going to get any better than that." I've gotten over that now, and Mario 64's graphics are far from the best on the system. But when all you had to compare them to were SNES and early Playstation graphics, Mario 64 looked like it was coming from a futuristic wonder world. The music is fantastic as well - not only is the quality good for a cartridge, but the music just sounds awesome too. This is really enjoyable music (especially that awesome song from the first world, the bomb world. That's just pure funk). And who can forget the voice acting!!! I mean besides all the grunts and pants Mario uttered, there's the unforgettable "Here we go!" and "It's a me, Mario!" Hahaha - that was so awesome.
Super Mario 64 is also the perfect length and difficulty level. Challenging the whole way through, with increasing difficulty as the game progressed. 120 stars is a lot to get, but it's not ridiculous, and I never once found myself getting bored with the game as it sat with it.
Mario's actions may have been rather limited, but that doesn't mean that the action in the game was repetitive or boring. Making clever use of wall jumps, cannons, or an item you found may have been the difference between completing a puzzle and dying. Mario could also find three hats during the course of the game, which gave him limited powers of flight, metalness, and transparency. Mario's interactions with the world greatly depended on where he was - obviously a field, a volcano, and a desert make for significantly different puzzles. It's amazing how such simple controls could produce such a fine game.
Super Mario 64 is the blueprint for a great video game. Appealing to everyone, visually and audibly impressive for the day, user-friendly controls, variable difficulty, and fun for the entire length of the game. I dare to say that Super Mario 64 is perfect - no other game is fit to top off this list.
Oh, and remember how you could mess with Mario's face at the beginning of the game? Hahahahahahaha I always made his nose all big and stretched out…but I'm a geek like that…
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