Resident Evil 2 (1998, PlayStation)

Unlike the WWII shooter franchises I followed from the beginning, when it came to the Resident Evil series I came in second, but I found that sometimes second can beat first. Such is the case with Resident Evil 2, the first survival-horror game I ever played, only to learn later about other genre series like Silent Hill. I played this game at a friends house, in the dark, and remember being freaked-the-fuck out but having the time of my life dodging blood thirsty zombie and (still) creepy as hell hounds. Today the dialogue is even more cheesy than it was years ago and of course the graphics are outdated, but the story and thrills still hold strong. I always revisit this game thanks to my handy dandy GameCube edition (with barely updated graphics, but I’m not going to complain) at least once a year having just as much a good time as I originally did.

Sid Meier’s Civilization V (2010, PC)

Another series where I came late in the game, starting at Civilization IV. Still, all the same I admired the amount of thought and depth that had been put into these games (I have now played all five, and of course given the 100+ hours to V alone). Before I go into V, one of the biggest things my Civ friends and I agreed on was that the main menu track Baba Yetu for IV was beyond epic for a game. So, to much disappointment, when V was released the menu track could not live up to Baba Yetu. Luckily with some minor modifications (some call it modding) I was able to have Baba Yetu play during V’s main menu screen. There are many things that I can say about Civ V, but one of my favorite things would have to be the extensive growth of knowledge that may be learned by the player. The Civilopedia is the game’s official guide and a great well of knowledge about all the civilizations you may play as at different time periods among many cultural and social history and information. It’s on a level where I feel kids could play this in school and truly learn while they play.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 (2001, PlayStation 2)

The final on the list, but certainly not last. This was the first console game I ever owned, along with 007: Agent Under Fire, after my parents bought me a PS2, also my first console (remember I used my friends’ consoles, I was fortunate). Having played Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 & 2 the games had become two of the few, if not only, game that I could win against my console whisperer friends I would naturally take 3 out for a spin, naturally. So I did and I liked it…too much. At the time I was living in sunny California and could have been really skateboarding with my friends but instead experienced my first shut-in game. It is good, very good. The biggest improvement was the game physics and the smooth flow of the controls. Of course the graphics and soundtrack were top notch, though my favorite THPS soundtrack is the one for 2. And who didn’t love bailing just to see your skater become surrounded by his blood and get up like nothing happened? I feel that this is still the pinnacle of the series, and another game that I dedicate time to once a year.

Honorable Mention: Blizzard Entertainment

Why? Because it’s Blizzard!

Thanks for reading!