The Fifty Greatest Games of All Time - Ascending Order
The best of the video and computer games I've played. In ascending order, so #1's the least, #50's the greatest. It's a safe bet there are many, many equally worthy games out there less famous than most of these. I swell with pride to note that nearly all the synopses below were written by me.
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50 titles
- DirectorThomas HappA young physicist is killed in a sudden laboratory explosion, only to awaken in the dephs of a mysterious, alien world in this retro, Metroid-inspired adventure game made entirely by one man.
- DirectorRand MillerRobyn C. MillerA manhole opens, a giant beanstalk rises far into a starry sky, and the player embarks on a serene Through-the-Looking-Glass-style adventure of nested worlds and eccentric creatures - and all in brilliantly rendered HyperCard graphics.You can play the game here: https://archive.org/details/TheManholeMacintosh
- DirectorYoshiaki KoizumiStarsCharles MartinetKenny JamesSamantha KellyWhen Princess Peach is abducted as part of Bowser's galaxy creation scheme, stalwart plumber Mario must leap to her rescue, with the help of new celestial friends and powers.
- DirectorJenova ChenFloat as a lone petal through beautiful surroundings and recognise the beauty, peace and serenity that is 'Flower'.
- DirectorSahand SaediStarsLisette De ArtolaMonica De LeonAndrew DennisA point-and-click adventure inspired by Haruki Murakami's surreal short stories. The game tells the story of a young woman who has forgotten her own name. But is she really losing her memory?
- DirectorSean ClarkStarsRobert PatrickMari WeissSteve BlumThree humans trapped on a distant planet discover its deadly secret which could be their undoing.
- The Dream Machine is an award-winning adventure game about dreams and voyeurism. It's built by hand using materials such as clay, cardboard and broccoli.
- DirectorTim SchaferStarsRoy ConradMark HamillHamilton CampFramed for murdering a motorcycle magnate, a biker gang leader tries to clear his name and take revenge on the scheming businessman responsible.Beware the uglified 'Remastered' version.
- DirectorRon GilbertHal BarwoodStarsDominic ArmatoEarl BoenAlexandra BoydYoung pirate wanna-be Guybrush Threepwood sets out to pass the Three Trials, woo the governess Elaine Marley, reach the fabled Monkey Island and vanquish the nefarious ghost pirate LeChuck.Beware the horrendous 'Special Edition' version.
- DirectorAndrew BainbridgeChris DelayStarsMaddie the Cat
- DirectorMilton GuastiThis expanded, expertly crafted 16-bit fan-remake of 'Metroid II', AM2R (Another Metroid 2 Remake) was taken down by Nintendo shortly after its brief Windows release.
- DirectorCarl GrahamIn the year 2010, rural London's gardens are invaded by the Herd, a vicious swarm of pollution-mutated insectoids, and only special cybernetic agent Buck Bumble has the bollocks to save the day.
- DirectorYoshio SakamotoAfter the Metroids were considered to be wiped out, the deadlier X parasites attack Samus. She is given a new suit after her near-death experience and returns to an empty Galactic Federation station, where something seems out of place.
- DirectorEiji AonumaStarsNate BihldorffOsamu HosoiAsami ImaiAfter his sister gets kidnapped from their peaceful island, a young boy aims to emulate the Hero of Time by saving her.
- DirectorMatt SamiaMark SchwarzDuane StinnettStarsGlynnis TalkenMichael GoughPaul EidingIn 2499 in the Koprulu sector, a ferocious collective race known as the Zerg arrives to massacre the exiled human colonies while a highly advanced race, the Protoss, intervenes to exterminate the Zerg.Including 'Brood War'.
- DirectorJakub DvorskýSamorost 3 is a puzzle point-and-click adventure game developed by Amanita Design.
- DirectorTim StamperTrouble is brewing yet again on Donkey Kong Island and it's up to Dixie to save the captured Donkey and Diddy Kong and stop the evil Kremlings.
- DirectorHideki KonnoStarsAsako HaruhanaTomoko MarunoCharles MartinetNintendo's finest from the Mushroom Kingdom gather to race for first place in a multi-player mayhem classic for the Nintendo 64.
- DirectorFumito UedaStarsKazuhiro ShindouRieko TakahashiMisa WatanabeOn a distant island, there is a legend that anyone born with horns will bring about calamity. When such a boy is locked away in a fortress, he must work together with a girl named Yorda to flee before they can be claimed by the spirits.
- DirectorMavros SedeñoStarsEve Chaumontet'NaissanceE' is a visually dynamic adventure/platforming/puzzle game taking place in a mysterious, primitive structure. The player explores the deep ambiance of a desolate, atemporal world.
- DirectorThomas RyderStarsGavin HammonAdam HarringtonRoger JacksonThe story is set in 1972 and follows Joe, a janitor at Archon (a luxurious company focusing on scientific research and development), on a quest to save mankind by using time travel.
- DirectorHidemaro FujibayashiHiroki HiranoKentaro TominagaStarsKengo TakanashiYû ShimamuraKôji TakedaAfter a century of hibernation, Link reawakens to once again save a ruined Hyrule from a great evil.
- DirectorNicklas NygrenKnytt is abducted by a flying saucer, which promptly crash-lands on another planet after hitting an asteroid. Now Knytt must track down the spaceship's missing parts in this atmospheric low-key freeware platformer.
- DirectorShigefumi HinoHideki KonnoToshihiko NakagoWhen the evil magikoopa Kamek knocks Baby Mario from the grasp of his delivery stork and lands him on the remote Yoshi's Island, the plucky green dinosaur sets out on a mission to carry the baby to his parents.
- DirectorShaun AitchesonIt's game night for the Purchase County Turbines and high-school football hero Tommy's sweet-heart is waiting in the bleachers - isn't she? Join Tommy for a night of disturbing discovery in this eerie point-&-click adventure.
- DirectorShaun AitchesonA logger is caught in a terrible landslide, stranding him deep in the Indonesian jungle. Join him on his quest to find his best friend and coworker Ramdan, and return home to his beloved Adiratna in this old-school point-&-click adventure.
- DirectorTim SchaferStarsTony PlanaMaria Canals-BarreraAlan BlumenfeldManuel Calavera is a travel agent in The Land of the Dead who has stumbled across a ring of corruption.In this case the Remastered version's actually better than the original: The characters are in better resolution, the game's way less buggy, and the scenery's unaltered.
- DirectorChihiro FujiokaYoshihiko MaekawaJust as Mario trounces Bowser for the millionth time, a giant, malevolent sword crashes into Bowser's keep, casting Mario, Princess Toadstool and Bowser far and wide, and breaking seven pieces from the wish-granting Star Road.See no remake, hear no remake.
- DirectorJakub DvorskýA point-and-click adventure in which a humble robot must free his friend from the clutches of the nefarious Black Cap Brotherhood and save the control tower of the Steampunk-like city of Machinarium from being blown up.If possible, avoid the tolerable but inferior 'Definitive Version', which sucks out a great deal of the original game's charm.
- DirectorNicklas NygrenPlayers guide a marble through intricate physics puzzles against superbly rendered evening backdrops in this quiet 2D platformer from the creator of the Knytt games.
- DirectorNicklas NygrenA freeware collection of atmospheric platforming adventures designed by Nicklas Nygren and the many players who've made and uploaded their own. In the original story, Juni must shut down a machine sapping life from the land.
- DirectorJenova ChenA robed figure in a desolate world undertakes a journey towards a distant, glowing mountain.This thing is one of the visual wonders of the world.
- StarsAna de CastroAfter Helios sears the world to sand, the winged Nyx descends to the earth to seek her new-found lover Icarus amid the ruins of Greece.
- DirectorEiji AonumaYoshiaki KoizumiStarsFujiko TakimotoSachi MatsumotoKôji TobeAfter becoming the hero of Hyrule, Link stumbles into the enchanted land of Termina, where a falling moon will crush the world in three days.
- DirectorFumito UedaStarsKenji NojimaKazuhiro NakataKyôko HikamiA young man brings a deceased woman to a forbidden land inhabited by colossal beings said to house the power to revive the dead.
- DirectorNaruhiro MatsumotoThe evil Garaden Empire has attacked Primus Star, home of Princess Millian. It seems the Princess has stolen a secret data disk from the clutches of the Empire, and she safely smuggles out the information through her robot, Pibot, but is captured herself. Bomberman is training at Bomber H.Q. when he sees a ship crash-land on a distant mountain. The Garaden Empire reclaims the disks to revive the fearsome Bagular. Bomberman is ready for action! And it's up to him to save the beautiful Princess Millian and defeat Bagular at all costs!
- DirectorArnt JensenA boy wakes up in a forest and sets off to find his sister.
- DirectorArnt JensenStarsSigna KöstlerArthur KöstlerCecilie Gellert NielsenHunted and alone, a boy finds himself drawn into the center of a dark project.
- StarsNeil GallagherAlastair LindsayEveline FischerTwins Juno and Vela, with their dog Lupus, as members of Jet Force Gemini must free the adorably furry Tribals from the evil interstellar conqueror Mizar and his insectoid army.'Jet Force have saved the galaxy and found my pants. What a team.' - Gimlet
- DirectorMark PaciniStarsJennifer HaleVanessa MarshallA Space Pirate distress signal draws bounty hunter Samus Aran to Tallon IV, a world she discovers is being consumed by a terrible poison.Avoid the remastered version. It's less disastrous than most, but does great harm to the atmosphere of the game's two most beautiful regions by thinning out rainfall and snowfall.
- DirectorMark PaciniStarsJennifer HaleVanessa MarshallSent to assist a Galactic Federation squadron stranded on the planet Aether, Samus Aran is thrust into an all-but-lost war between the dying Luminoth race and the umbral demons known as the Ing, on a world torn between light and darkness.
- DirectorJonathan AckleyLarry AhernStarsDominic ArmatoAlexandra BoydEarl BoenAfter unwittingly turning his true love Elaine into solid gold with a cursed engagement ring, Guybrush Threepwood must find a map, a ship and a crew, sail to Blood Island and track down an uncursed diamond ring to reverse the curse.
- DirectorEnrique CabezaThe story follows Jeremiah Devitt, who receives a letter from his childhood friend, Anthony Beechworth. Devitt travels to Beechworth manor, where he finds that strange things are afoot. As he begins to investigate what has happened to his friend, he starts to unravel truths about his past best left forgotten.Along with Season Two, of course.
- DirectorTim StamperWaking to find his banana hoard clean gone, Donkey Kong sets out with his nephew Diddy Kong through jungle and cavern, past temples and reef, across pine forests, factories, and mountains to rid the island of the wicked Kremlings and reclaim his bananas.
- DirectorTim StamperKaptain K. Rool kidnaps Donkey Kong and imprisons him high atop Crocodile Isle. Diddy Kong and his friend Dixie Kong must brave pirate ships, volcanoes, swamps, demented theme parks and deep, dark forests to rescue the gormless gorilla.
- DirectorRichard PerrinEnter the lost world of Kairo. Explore vast abandoned monuments. Bring strange and ancient machinery back to life. Slowly uncover the true purpose of Kairo.
- DirectorYoshio SakamotoStarsKenji YamamotoDan OwsenSamus Aran returns to the brooding planet Zebes to recover the last metroid from the Space Pirates.'What do you people think you're doing, making a work of art?' — Gunpei Yokoi
- DirectorEiji AonumaStarsAkira SasanumaAkiko KômotoHironori MiyataLink, a young man from a small farming village, finds Hyrule is being consumed by an otherworldly twilight. Guided by a strange pixie named Midna, he endeavors to return light to the land and confront the usurper king Zant.
- DirectorEiji AonumaYoichi YamadaYoshiaki KoizumiStarsNobuyuki HiyamaFujiko TakimotoJun MizusawaA young Kokiri boy discovers that his destiny is to free the Seven Sages and save the land of Hyrule from the treacherous sorcerer Ganondorf.
- DirectorRon GilbertStarsDominic ArmatoEarl BoenAlexandra BoydHaving vanquished the ghost pirate LeChuck with a soft drink, Guybrush Threepwood now seeks the treasure of Big Whoop. During his quest he discovers LeChuck is back from the dead. Once again.The greatest of all video games. Beware the ghastly 'Special Edition' version.