I always forget how difficult it can be to make these lists. A lot of these games I haven’t played in 15 years, so I’m really just relying on gut feelings and vibes at this point. But that’s kind of the fun of a blog, right? This isn’t necessarily an objective look at the best video games ever according to a harsh rubric. This is my heart, and sometimes, my heart is stupid.

80 – XCOM: Enemy Unknown

Year Released: 2012 | Platform: Playstation 3

XCOM: Enemy Unknown is widely regarded as one of the best squad-based tactical RPGs of the modern era. You command a team of soldiers, facing off in turn-based combat against an alien invasion. XCOM does a great job of building tension by having the government caught flatfooted by the invasion, so your crew are weak, ill-equipped, and low on resources to handle all the pressing needs, as well as having permadeath be a consequence for letting one of your squad members fall in battle.

One of my favourite tidbits is that the majority of players didn’t complete XCOM, so when XCOM 2 came out, the story picks up as if the aliens won the invasion and took over. Now you take the role of an underground resistance committing guerrilla warfare upon the alien overlords.

Overall, the superb tactical and strategic gameplay combined with the emotional attachment to the survival of your squad members makes XCOM a magnificent and memorable experience.

79 – No More Heroes

Year Released: 2007 | Platform: Nintendo Wii

Perhaps sacrilegious, but this is the only Suda51 game I’ve played, and damn does it drop with style. In No More Heroes, Scrawny Travis Touchdown leaves his anime nerd haven of a motel room after winning a beam katana and takes on a job to assassinate local villain. This earns him rank 11 with the United Assassins Association, and he just chooses to claw his way to the top.

The gameplay is pretty hack and slash, with plenty of references to general anime and wrestling fandoms. The humour is crass and juvenile, complete with the need to shake the Wii Remote in a furious up and down motion to recharge your katana, and the save game location being toilet stalls. It’s stupid, I wouldn’t really recommend anyone play it, as it’s kinda stupid, but it’s also fun. If Suda51’s humour and aesthetic appeal to you, you’ll probably dig No More Heroes, but if it doesn’t, then you wouldn’t be missing out on any kind of important cultural milestone by skipping this title.

78 – Mega Man Zero 2

Year Released: 2003 | Platform: Game Boy Advance

I always considered this to be my second favourite Mega Man game, right after Mega Man X, which you’ll see much higher on the list. Mega Man Zero 2 begins with Zero wandering, battered and close to collapse in a sandstorm. With only his sword and buster gun operational, he fights through the wave of baddies, only to collapse at the end of the first level.

Zero awakes in the new Resistance Base, where Ciel and her team repair Zero, equip him with some new gear, and he joins their cause while seeking out the baby elves.

Mega Man Zero 2 is everything I want from a Mega Man game. It’s fast paced, each of the weapons have their uses, as you memorize and get better at each level, you’re rewarded with various new armors and abilities, it’s just utterly satisfying to get really good at a game and be rewarded for it. Mega Man Zero 2 lived in my Game Boy for months on end, until I got an S rank on every mission, and could complete the game without taking a single hit. I have played some of the other Mega Man Zero games, but without the memory of all the levels in the back of my head, I feel less intrested in actually getting good at these ‘new’ games, instead choosing to just replay Mega Man Zero 2 over and over again. What can I say? I like feeling competent in my limited game time!

77 – Plok

Year Released: 1993 | Platform: SNES

Gosh Plok has such serious memories for me. On some level, I kind of miss the wild west of video games that existed back in 1993 when you could just make a wacky ass game like this. Plok is a side scrolling platformer about a… I don’t even know what Plok is, some kind of goblin? Either way, he throws his hands and his feet to attack his foes, if he loses them, they appear on clothes hangers somewhere else in the level. Giant presents are littered throughout the levels that transform Plok into a saw blade, a helicopter, a boxer, and so much more.

It’s bright, colourful, and crazy, everything that mattered to me when I was 5 years old. I never actually beat Plok, I should really go back and give it another play now that i’m all grown up.

76 – Fallout 3

Year Released: 2008 | Platform: Xbox 360

I came into Fallout 3 almost entirely blind. I was walking around the mall in Winnipeg, saw a cardboard cutout of the power armor pictured above, and said “hell yes”. I walked in, bought the game, went home, and fell in love.

Fallout 3 is a post apocalyptic first-person shooter that starts the players in an underground vault. As you progress through the introduction, you’re introduced to the tight group of people that live in the vault under the iron grip of the Overseer. Something goes terribly wrong, people die, your father disappears, and you manage to escape the vault. The first time you leave the cave that hides the vault entrance, and you look out at the blinding light of the wasteland, my jaw dropped. What follows is a haunting adventure through the “what if” future of humanity post nuclear armageddon.

Fallout 3 was my introduciton to the series, and I fell utterly in love with the series. Unfortunately, Fallout 4 was a bit to action/adventure for my tastes, and I’ve completely boycotted Fallout 76 due to the lifeless world upon launch to the $130 per year subscription fee. I’ve resolved myself to enjoying Fallout 3, and hoping for something better on the horizon.

75 – Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Year Released: 2009 | Platform: PlayStation 3

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is often described as a thrilling, cinematic experience, much like an action-packed summer blockbuster. The hero Nathan Drake is likable, every character has sharp dialogue, all in service of an epic story to create a narrative-driven adventure that hooks and engages you. At the time of launch, Uncharted 2’s visuals, audio, and score were all top-tier, making it one of the hottest games at the time.

The gameplay combines tense platforming in-between cover-based shooting sections. While the platforming is not particularly challenging, it feels exciting, especially when Nathan is dangling by one hand above certain death. The voice acting, storytelling, and plot set pieces kept me utterly engaged throughout the game’s runtime.

However, Uncharted 2 is very linear, with limited exploration compared to many other action-adventure games. It feels like the platforming just exists to transition between combat and cutscenes. Despite this, playing Uncharted 2 feels like a rollercoaster, blending memorable cinematic moments with exciting gameplay, making it (and the series) a perfect example of the “game as an experience” philosophy.

74 – Pokémon Diamond and Pearl

Year Released: 2006 | Platform: Nintendo DS

I distinctly remember picking up Pokémon Diamond after a vacation to Dallas. I was on the way home to my small village, we stopped off at the nearest Walmart (4 hours away), and I saw a huge banner on the side of the building. Internet wasn’t great where I grew up, and nerd media was nearly impossible to come by, so I had no idea that a new Pokémon game was even in development. At this point, I had played my Pokémon Sapphire to utter death. I hated Diamond at first, thinking it was inferior to Sapphire in every way. By the end of this generation of Pokémon, I accrued much more hours in Diamond than I ever did in Sapphire.

73 – Bastion

Year Released: 2011 | Platform: PC

Another one of my early PC games, as I built my first PC around 2012, and Bastion was still being highly praised at the time. The gameplay is action packed as you control The Kid wandering around a world that is being built and falling apart around him. What really hooked me in Bastion, was the dynamic narration. Beautifully voiced by Logan Cunningham, commentary and exposition came up in response to your actions. And the music is utterly enchanting, so much so, that it’s still one of my default OST’s to this day.

Supergiant Games has produced several fantastic games since Bastion (Pyre, Transistor, and their most popular hit to date, Hades), but this one has a special place in my heart. For so long, I was a console fanboy, but playing Bastion on the PC made me realize that I was missing out on so many great experiences. And for that, I thank it.

72 – Pikmin

Year Released: 2001 | Platform: Nintendo GameCube

This might be one of the most recent additions to my list. I somehow skipped over Pikmin in my gaming life, dismissing it as a game for children, right up until early this year when I borrowed Pikmin 1 and 2 for the Nintendo Switch. Once I actually got my hands on it and started playing, I was in love. A RTS game on a console, with cute charm and puzzles to overcome, I was kicking myself for not being a fan of Pikmin 20 years ago.

71 – Final Fantasy X

Year Released: 2001 | Platform: PlayStation 2

I’ve long been one of those insufferable snobs that firmly believe that the best Final Fantasy games are sprite based, and the series progression into 3D has made me very angry and is generally regarded as a bad move. But even more so, I believe Final Fantasy X marks a turning point as the ‘last good game’ before the series left what I really look for in a JRPG, behind (read, not MMOs or gambit systems that play the game for you).

I’m being a jerk again. Final Fantasy X follows Tidus as he is thrown back and forth in time as Sin destroys the world around him. He encounters Yuna, a young summoner who is about to embark on a pilgrimage to obtain the Final Aeon so she can defeat Sin once and for all.

Final Fantasy X is a beautiful tale, and I played it much later than I should have. I didn’t get a PS2 until the PS3 was well into it’s life cycle, so I had to circle back to enjoy this entry. I enjoyed the characters growth, the twisting story, and the gameplay where you get to watch the numbers go up, everything that really I look for in a JRPG, but it wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be. The cutscenes were beautiful, but some of the ingame graphics were rough. The music was amazing, but the voice acting had some truly awful moments.

Also, I find Blitzball to be boring.

You know, with all the above complaints, you’d be forgiven if you forgot that Final Fantasy X is number 71 on my FAVOURITE games list. It’s still a great game, but I just wanted it to be so much more. I know Final Fantasy is capable of creating some of the best JRPG experiences out there, and even when they miss, it’s still a good game. But I can’t help but feel twinges of disappointment in my heart when I think about Final Fantasy X.

I also never played X-2, and probably never well. Sorry!