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# 010 // Super Metroid |
 | Name:Super MetroidPlatform: SNES Developer: Intelligent Systems Publisher: Nintendo Year Released: 1994 Why it Made the Top 100 List: As 3D gaming began to loom on the horizon, this strictly-2D adventure showed off the SNES hardware and provided one of the most thought out, intriguing gameplay experiences available at the time. Super Metroid took itself seriously and offered up a captivating sci-fi world. As lead heroine Samus Aran, players progressively explored more complex areas of planet Zebes by collecting suit power-ups and conquering absolutely gigantic boss figures along the way. For all its subtlety, style, and intelligent design it is still adored by fans and has gone on to spawn numerous top-rated sequels. |
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# 009 // Star Wars: TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROM |
 | Name:Star Wars: TIE Fighter Collector's CD-ROMPlatform: PC Developer: Totally Games Publisher: LucasArts Year Released: 1995 Why it Made the Top 100 List:Larry Holland's epic space combat simulator released to stores and then promptly set one hundred and seventy eight new bars by which all other games that planned to feature stars and shooting would be judged. Among other things, Tie Fighter Collector's CD-ROM featured super advanced polygonal graphics and crisp CD quality audio highlighted by an ultra intuitive, yet unimaginably deep network of starship, squad and fleet controls. The result was a wonderfully complex Star Wars universe with gameplay that still dominates the genre. And all this came accented by one of the coolest evil heroes in history. Believe us, Grand Admiral Thrawn is one bad-assed silvery grey-blue Imperial you do not want to mess around with. |
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# 008 // Street Fighter II |
| Name:Street Fighter IIPlatform: Arcade Developer: Capcom Publisher: Capcom Year Released: 1991 Why it Made the Top 100 List: To this day, Street Fighter II remains one of the premier one-on-one versus video games in existence. In fact, we still play it daily. Not only did Street Fighter II kick-start a genre that flooded the early '90s with copycat clones, but it also established many genre gameplay standards that persist even to this day: two-in-one combos, quarter-circle-forward and charge motions, etc. are still the foundation of many of today's fighting games. With a simple premise and subtly deep design, Street Fighter II established itself as a cultural icon for the youth of the time and easily deserves a top spot on our list. |
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# 007 // StarCraft |
 | Name:StarCraftPlatform: PC Developer: Blizzard Publisher: Blizzard Year Released: 1997 Why it Made the Top 100 List: StarCraft is hands down one of the best, if not the best real-time strategy game ever created. With three distinct races, both in terms of gameplay and style, Blizzard's masterpiece contains some of the most balanced and yet widely varied units to be seen in the genre. Add in amazing production value that still looks good and a brilliant story progression and you've got yourself one incredibly addictive and fulfilling strategy title that still has rabid fans all over the world. Eight years on and Blizzard continues to patch the game to make it as great as it can be. |
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# 006 // Sid Meier's Pirates! |
| Name:Sid Meier's Pirates!Platform: PC Developer: Microprose Software, Inc. Publisher: Microprose Software, Inc. Year Released: 1987 Why it Made the Top 100 List:One of the first and most open-ended and non-linear games in history, Sid Meier's booty-filled masterpiece is just as relevant today as it was nearly 20 years ago. Looking at the excellent remake/revamp for PC and Xbox proves that Pirates! is still every bit as fun, addictive, time-consuming and timeless as it was two decades ago. The game's simplicity, coupled with its seemingly never-ending amount of possibilities, makes Pirates! just as accessible as it is deep. Sid Meier set a bar for adventure and exploration games that few to this day that have ever even approached. |
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# 005 // Super Mario 64 |
 | Name:Super Mario 64Platform: Nintendo 64 Developer: Nintendo EAD Publisher: Nintendo Year Released: 1996 Why it Made our Top 100 List:Once upon a time, 3D games were unrefined, clumsy, and lacking precise control. And then Super Mario 64 came along and changed everything. The revolutionary title introduced analog sensitivity to console players and also showed the world that 3D games needn't be a chore to play. In stark contrast, Nintendo's breathtakingly beautiful platformer not only brought a new level of control accuracy to the table, but enveloped gamers in huge worlds filled with complementary objectives and challenges. Like Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 64 also successfully updated Nintendo's mascot franchise for a new generation of gamers. The game will go down in history as a true classic. |
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# 004 // Sid Meier's Civilization II |
| Name:Sid Meier's Civilization IIPlatform: PC Developer: MicroProse Software Publisher: MicroProse Software Year Released: 1996 Why it Made the Top 100 List: You can't make a list of the best games ever without including at least half a dozen of the old Microprose titles. Our favorite by far is Sid Meier's Civilization II. Building on the addictive historical strategy concept pioneered in the original game, Civilization II is one of the deepest and more complex games ever made. Players lead their civilization from the founding of their first cities through the conquest of other planets. Along the way they'll set research priorities, manage the empire's economy, build new cities, negotiate with other civilizations and, best of all, and wage war across the entire globe. |
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# 003 // Tetris |
 | Name:TetrisPlatform: Multiple Systems Developer: Pajitnov/Pavlovsky/Gerasimov Publisher: Various Year Released: 1986 Why it Made the Top 100 List: In the mid-'80s a group of computer engineers designed Tetris in secret at the Russian Academy of Sciences. Thankfully, creator Alexey Pajitnov smuggled the hopelessly addictive videogame out of the Soviet Union and unleashed it across the world. Tetris is made timeless and brilliant because of its instant accessibility, which, interestingly, is most unlike chess, its motherland cousin. Rules are simple: players stack a series of falling, differently shaped "Tetramino" blocks in a well and attempt to keep it from filling up by clearing solid, horizontal lines. Most Tetris players experience complete escapism, which is why many corporations and educational institutions loathe its existence. Tetris has gone on to inspire countless variations and will forever influence puzzle-based videogames. |
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# 002 // Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time |
 | Name:Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of TimePlatform: Nintendo 64 Developer: Nintendo EAD Publisher: Nintendo Year Released: 1998 Why it Made our Top 100 List:Considered by many critics to be the greatest game ever made, Nintendo's Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is one of only a handful of games to receive a perfect IGN rating. The masterpiece, which stars hero Link in both child and teenage form, helped pave the way for 3D adventure games, but it will likely be remembered and adored for two other reasons: first, it reinvented Nintendo's famed Zelda franchise and indeed actually made it better. And second, it showed Nintendo 64 fans and the videogame community at large that as revolutionary and pretty as Super Mario 64 was, Nintendo still had some serious magic in its hefty bag of tricks. Ocarina of Time is an epic undertaking drowning in tight control, ingenious level design and intuitive play mechanics. It remains one of the all-time most innovative adventure outings to date. |
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# 001 // Super Mario Bros. |
 | Name:Super Mario Bros.Platform: NES Developer: Nintendo EAD Publisher: Nintendo Year Released: 1985 Why it Made our Top 100 List: Nintendo's beloved 2D platformer was number one on our Top 100 list a couple of years ago, and it had no problem holding onto the top spot in this year's vote. Perhaps the classic game remains an IGN favorite because it helped revitalize the videogame industry in the post-Atari era of gloom and doom. Or maybe it's cherished above all others because it so effortlessly represents everything that makes us love Nintendo-developed games in general: an unwavering attention to play control and level design. The effort, which stars Nintendo's classic mascot hero Mario through 30-some levels of inspired 2D platforming, introduced millions of players to videogames and simultaneously captivated them. Super Mario Bros. remains one of the most pioneering and influential titles to date, but more importantly it's every bit as addictive, enjoyable, and satisfying today as it was two decades ago. |
