Brandon Higley’s ‘blog

Today is officially the last day of 2009, and the first decade of this millennium. It’s only appropriate, then, that I make a list of my top ten video game from the last ten years!

It’s too easy to forget all of the little things that made a game great seven years ago, so I’ve tried as hard as possible to rank each game not only by their appeal at their time of release, but by their legacy and lasting appeal. Likewise, I’ve done my best to predict which games released recently will be memorable for quite some time.

So, here it is, in no particular order:

Rock Band 2 – This game took the the music game genre, perfected it, and moved it into American households. Its micro-transaction business model for downloadable content has given its online library official “platinum” status.

Kingdom Hearts 2 – A role-playing game featuring the makers of Final Fantasy and the characters of Disney seemed undoable, but this game’s emotionally engrossing storyline and fun gameplay took people by surprise.

Silent Hill 4: The Room – Fact: Silent Hill is scary. The solitude created by this game’s atmosphere created a wonderfully horrifying experience that haunted my dreams for weeks.

Mass Effect – It isn’t easy to merge the role-playing game and the first-person shooter, but this game managed just fine. It had just enough open-endedness while retaining developer control over the story, and the dialogue system put every game Bethesda has ever done and ever will do to shame.

Little Big Planet – The sheer number of awards this game won in 2008 is testament to its greatness. It created the “Play Create Share” model that Sony has so passionately adopted.

Shadow of the Colossus – This game is proof that games can be artistic. The score was brilliant, the art style beautiful, and the boss battles clever.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – Like no other before it, this game brought games into the mainstream. Its addictive multiplayer had just enough of a progression system to make you come back for that next gun or perk. And, I even saw an interview with Robin Williams on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon where the superstar actor admitted to staying up late at night to play the shooter.

Capcom vs. SNK 2 – Fighting games are usually all the same. This merger between the two developer giants managed to take only the best from both company’s franchises and make what is possibly still the greatest fighting game around.

X-Men Legends 2: Rise of Apocalypse – Multiplayer role-playing games are a hard thing to master; usually, too much time is spent with one character shopping or leveling up and the others waiting their turn (Champions of Norrath), or the complexity of the system takes away from the fun of the game (Baldur’s Gate). The X-Men Legends series streamlined multiplayer role-playing games, making them an accessible and fun experience.

Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords – Another Bioware classic, this game set the model for games to come such as Dragon Age: Origins and Fallout 3 with its limitless character customization possibilities and open-ended storyline.

Honorable Mentions:
NHL Hitz Pro
Portal
Dragon Age: Origins
Need for Speed: SHIFT
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Lion War
Star Wars: Battlefront 2
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines
Batman: Arkham Asylum
World of Goo
The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass
Trine
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

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