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1001 VIDEO GAMES YOU MUST PLAY BEFORE YOU DIE


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http://www.amazon.co... BEFORE YOU DIE

 

Picked this up recently and while I am not big on these type of "list" books I really enjoyed this one. It pretty much glosses over some systems many here love (ColecoVision, Intellivision, Vectrex) but it does start early in videogame history. Most games get only one screenshot (some none) and it's written by handful of people, so the game recaps are pretty inconsistent. Plus after a while you will recognize each writer by their style as they tend to be a little repetitive with their terms.

 

But most of the text is the nostalgic type. You can tell these guys picked their favorite games largely, not based on some set crtieria. In the end I think it actually helps the book--it's less factual/historical (though it offers up it's tidbits of data here and there) and more just a remembrance of cool games. I got mine at the store where I work for 10$, but it can likely be found anywhere you might buy books online. Including the behemoth linked above of course.

 

Also: fits nicely on the back of the toilet. LOL.

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They do include arcade games.

 

It did educate me on some (to them anyway) highlights of systems I never had, such as an Amiga or Apple II. They do their best to include everything of note, the stuff you can't ignore (Pac-man, DK, etc) so there is a lot of old hat. But then there were the part that tickles the memory banks too...hey, I DO remember playing that Leader Board golf game on my neighbor's C64!

 

It also leans towards 2000 and on. But that isn't to say early stuff isn't paid it's dues either.

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I actually really enjoy coffee table books like these (not because I agree with what their subjective top lists are), but because I discover lots of interesting games (or books or movies) I've never heard of. What was the #1 Atari 2600 game they chose? (and c64 and Apple II if you remember?)

 

It's actually ordered by date. So it starts in 71 with Oregon Trail and just moves on from there. It's not like a ranking thing, more of just a BIG conglomeration of games over 40 years (my edition goes up top about 2010, not sure if there is a new edition or not). VERY much a coffee table "I'll just thumb through this thing" type of book.

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  • 4 years later...

IMO, arcade Star Wars should be removed because without the Star Wars IP to provide the nostalgic tingle, all that's left is a dull on-rails shooter. For a vector-based space epic, I'd take Major Havoc any day of the week over Star Wars.

 

Deduct: Bomb Jack

Add: Burgertime

 

Deduct: Blasteroids

Add: Omega Race

 

Deduct: Salamander

Add: Any number of horizontal shooters... Salamander sucks

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Props for them including Raiden and DoDonPachi. I wouldn't think they would be obvious choices, but they're important within their genre and deserve to be on the list.

 

Thoughts on some exclusions:

  • They have a bajillion Zeldas, but not The Adventure of Link...If these are games everyone should play, I think it's important to see the evolution of such an important series, including what spurred Nintendo to stick with the top-down approach for so long.
  • They don't have a single Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game. The first arcade game, or better yet Turtles in Time, at least deserves to be among the 1001. Especially since the Simpsons Arcade game and X-Men were excluded as well.
  • Take out Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow and put Castlevania III in instead.
  • Is it really necessary to have every Halo game? I think the original would suffice, and maybe Halo: Reach as well.
  • Marathon or Marathon 2 would be more appropriate than Marathon Infinity, which is incredibly confusing as a stand-alone game. Hell, Infinity is confusing even for those who have played every Marathon and studied up on the lore.
  • The Last of Us is so close to perfection within its genre, and possibly the best example of cinematic storytelling in video games. It deserves a spot on the list. It came out in 2013, the same year as the most recent entries on the list, so it might not have been eligible at the time.
  • They have six Metal Gear Solid games but not the original Metal Gear?
  • Alien Isolation came out after the list was made. It should be included in the next update.
  • Night Trap was instrumental in the creation of the ESRB and made big headlines in its day. It should be included.
  • Pitfall, Burger Time, Shadow of the Beast, Ninja Gaiden NES (or NG2), Contra NES, Adventure Island, Turrican, Streets of Rage, Wizards & Warriors, and Castle of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse are all classics that were very popular and iconic in their time. They should be on the list.
  • Super Meat Boy was partially responsible for the indie boom in the beginning of this decade, and deserves a spot on the list.
  • Wolfenstein 3D was the first big FPS. It is even more responsible for the popularity of the genre than Doom and should be included for that reason. (Doom is already on the list, and rightfully so.)
  • I also think it would be good to throw in an LCD Tiger Handheld game, as they were super popular back in the day and portable gaming has come a long way since then. It doesn't matter which one, as they're all equally terrible.

 

All that being said, I recognize that it's virtually impossible to put together a list that is agreeable to everybody. But come on...they had 1001 slots and skipped all of these in favor of "42 All Time Classics," Zuma, and Zack & Wiki? That's a little too arbitrary for me.

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Missing Atari 8 bit Computer 'Star Raiders', a killer-app game (software selling hardware) , big fail.

Actually missing many Apple/Atari computer classics which should've been included.

But this book was made by an English man who grew up on lacklustre Spectrum games, Tony Mott idiot

Edited by high voltage
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