IGN is listing their top 25 (5 games at a time... I'll update the rest when I have them). How many have you played? And How would your rate them on a scale of 1 to 5 (five being best). I listed my views next to them. Although I haven't played all of them, I like what they listed... but not in their particular order.

25. Streetfighter IV
24. Left for Dead 2 (3) - One of the best co-op franchises ever. It's the spiritual father of Horde or Firefight. But I even got a little bored of shooting zombies all day
23. Splinter Cell: Conviction (3) - Not a ton of replayability, but gameplay was really satisfying. Story was a bit cliche. Co-op was fun, but not addicting.
22. Batman: Arkham Asylum (4) - Beautiful game that captures the heart of the comics. Uniquely balanced stealth with fighting all in an absolutely stunningly rendered backdrop of Arkham Asylum.
21. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (5) - The game that all FPS try to emulate
20. Gears of War (4) - For it's time, there was no game that was better. Multiplayer was a blast and the graphics were beautiful
19. FIFA '10 (3) - No better soccer game
18. Dead Space (5) - Surprised I gave it a 5? Gameplay and graphics were spectacular. It had a unique twist on survival horror in space. All that was missing was a satisfying final boss battle and multiplayer. Actually now that I think about it I'm kinda glad they didn't do a multiplayer... don't do a MP unless it is the core of the franchise.
17. Halo Wars
16. Assassin's Creed 2 (4) - One of the most beautifully rendered sandbox games I've ever seen. Gameplay was certainly better than its predecessor. Convoluted story, but you can't say it's not interesting.
15. Forza Motorsports 3
14. Alan Wake (3) - Supreme disappointment,IMHO. The graphics were good and story was mildly interesting.
13. Halo 3 ODST
12. Rock Band 2
11. Borderlands (5) - Unique graphic style, great co-op, humor, and creative missions. This game had it all... except a satisfying final boss battle.
10. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
9. Grand Theft Auto IV (3) - Great sandbox. Loved driving around that city. But trite story and horrible MP.
8. Bioshock (5) - Truly visionary graphics and gameplay. Never thought I could say a video game had ambience, but this really did. It was a bit to constrictive about pushing you through the tunnel, but just a wonderful playthrough
7. Mass Effect (5) - Finally, a unique sci-fi adventure story with truly deep characters that you care about. Gameplay was a good mix of RPG and FPS. And while the story meandered a bit in ME2, the gameplay only got better.
6. The Orange Box -
5) Halo 3 (4) - A great shooter, but a little too twitchy for me. Single-player was fun, but I generally consider the plot to be rehashing mediocre sci-fi. If it wasn't for the general population of 12 year old boys who just learned the "F bomb" it might even be fun to play online. The Forge was truly a unique feature which has yet to be replicated successfully. And no one does good multiplayer lobbies like Bungie.
4) Red Dead Redemption (3) - An adequate story (read: a constant homage to every good Western out there) wrapped around a beautiful sandbox. Co-op was truly fun, but multiplayer was as boring as it was in GTA IV. An enjoyable playthrough, but only once for me.
3) Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (5) - The standard by which all Shooters are measured. Clean graphics, balanced weapons, and great multiplayer experience.
2) Fallout 3 (5) - A rich rich world inhabited by great characters. A RPG that deftly combined shooter and sandbox elements that did not detract from the gameplay. Collecting things can be tedious at times, but it was a solid play from beginning to end.
1) Mass Effect 2 (5) - A unique story with genuinely rich characters. While the story wasn't as tight as ME1, every gameplay improvement made up for it. A beautifully rendered game around a great story with a good character flexibility to make the game replayable.


I admit some of my scores may be versus my expectations since I wasn't expecting anything from Borderlands or Dead Space. I tried to be objective.

I'm guessing the top 5 includes: COD4 MW1, Halo 3, Madden or NCAA 2011, Red Dead Redemption, GOW2, or Fallout 3. I'm cool with those with the exception of the Rockstar Games... GTA IV and RDR didn't do anything for me.

MW2 not being in the top 10 is laughable...

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Arkham Asylum seems kind of low to me. That game was pretty sweet.

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Was going to say that list sucks, but went to the site and saw it was only for XBOX 360 games.

It is definitely only XBOX 360... I should've noted that. I also should have noted that the PS3 sucked, but I kinda just thought that was assumed. Just kidding... just trying to get under crosscheck's skin. I'm sure the PS3 is a fine system. And I think it is a current list... not best games ever. In other words, if you knew nothing else about a gamer and he could buy 25 games, what do you think he'd buy. They list the methodology there, but I can't cut and paste it because IGN is blocked at work.

This

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perhaps better... but certainly less popular. None of my gaming buddies use it as their primary system. In other words, if there is a game that comes out on both platforms, they'll always get the Xbox 360 version. Not sure why that is though.

ODST rated higher than MW2?



I mean, I'm a Halo fanboy and all, but...



Besides...this list will need to be changed in less than three weeks anyways...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Definately can't read that...

...but I'm guessing the words "Armor Lock" are in there somewhere...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

10-6 went up a couple hours ago....

10) Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion although I would argue it's ranked 9 spots too low...
9) Grand Theft Auto IV
Bioshock
7) Mass Effect
6) The Orange Box (I'll admit, I overlooked this one at first...but definately worthy)

so that leaves five spots...lots of good games are getting completely left off this list...my guess

5) Gears of War 2
4) Mass Effect 2
3) Fallout 3
2) Halo 3
1) Call of Duty 4

I'll post what would be my list later...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

The original Mass Effect was that good?

Absolutely...much more of an RPG than the second installment...I enjoyed it more...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

I did too. I also enjoyed GOW1 better than GOW2. Curious to see if they put both of those sequels (GOW2 and ME2) higher than the originals. Seemingly they'll do the opposite with MW2, huh?

You know we're kinda forgetting about NHL 2010. Sports games are more about what sport you like better... I think we can all argue that all NHL '10, FIFA '10, Madden '11 and NCAA '11 are all great games. Never played the NBA games... never found b-ball games that fun other than the old "Magic vs. Bird" PC game! And I didn't list any baseball games... because as we all know... baseball sucks.

Sports game often get the shaft in rankings like this, which if why I found the inclusion of FIFA a head scratcher...not saying they can't be or aren't great games, but you never really see them talked about on lists like this, or for Game of the Year discussions for that matter...ditto with driving games, to a lesser extent...

Also, as for sequels, I usually lean towards ranking the originals higher, unless there was a significant change made to the gameplay. Thus, while I disagree with the low rating MW2 got, I certainly agree that COD4 should be ranked higher, seeing as MW2 was very similar gameplay and graphics wise. Likewise, while I would personally rank Mass Effect higher than Mass Effect 2, I don't have as much a problem with it because Mass Effect 2 was a completely different gameplay mechanic and really felt like a different game.

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Final Five Announced...

5) Halo 3
4) Red Dead Redemption
3) Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
2) Fallout 3
1) Mass Effect 2

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Disagree... I'm like Lipid, I think ME1 should have beat ME2, but both were good. And I thought both were better than Fallout 3 just based on the story. I didn't think RDR belonged anywhere near the top 10, let alone top 5.

oh my god, NBA2K10 is an embarrassment. Just an outright waste. Waste of great graphics and good soundtrack. The game is just ridiculously bug infested. I think in one game, there were over 30 turnovers. I don't think I've even seen a march madness game (in real life) have that many. Any time you threw a long pass down the court, it'd be automatically intercepted.

FIFA10 is awesome; but has a rotten soundtrack. only a few good songs here and there.

immessedup17, I think I agree with you on Fallout 3... it was one of the best sandbox/RPG/Shooter combo... and it did everything well enough. On review, Mass Effect was a little too linear. But perhaps they did that consciously to improve the way the story was told. Regardless, they were all really good games.

I have to admit that I really liked this list. I may not have agreed with the order, but these are all very good games. And you guys know that I'm a HUGE Battlefied: Bad Company 2 fan. I still think the destruction engine on BC2 is one of the most original things I've seen in video gaming in the last 2 years save perhaps the destruction engine used in Red Faction: Guerilla. If I had to knock a game off this list to put BC2 on, it would probably be Alan Wake.

I updated the reviews on the top 5.

WOuld love to read your guys' reviews of these games. We could even try ranking these 25 how WE would rank them.

I have a word document with my top 25 on it and comments on about half the titles...I'll try to finish it tonight...or just post what I have...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Fixed

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

What a way to go!

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Alright, baby steps...here's 21-25 for me...

21) The Beatles: Rock Band – I’m by no means a Beatles fan, but this was still an impressive title that sets the bar for band-specific music games. The story mode is a nice progression from beginning to end, and some of the dreamscapes that take place in the later portions of the game are so good that I found myself getting distracted at the expense of score.

22) Resident Evil 5 – Horribly cheesy dialogue aside, RE5 features a lot of the same gameplay that made the prior installment an instant classic. The addition of a cooperative mode was a plus. Only major gripes with this one are the nerfing of the inventory system and the removal of the fan favorite “Yellow Herb.”

23) Red Faction: Guerilla – While the story and multiplayer are mostly throwaway, this game is worth the price of admission if only for the sheer level of destruction that is possible. In the spirit of other sandbox style games, much of the joy comes from exploring the world, and in this case, seeing how much of it you can destroy.

24) Quantum of Solace – Proving that Treyarch is actually capable of making something worth playing, Quantum of Solace is different in that while it is largely based on the Call of Duty engine, it throws in a third person cover mechanic ala Gears of War, mixing things up a bit. Sure, the storyline is a mess of the previous two movies twisted together, but the multiplayer, with its many different Bond themed game modes, more than makes up for it.

25) Assassin’s Creed – The opening missions give a taste of some of the best gameplay mechanics ever. Gather some information on your target, stalk him to a spot where you can sneak in for the kill, and then make a daring escape. It’s too bad the rest of the game devolved into a button mashing beat-em-up.

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."

Oh this is great... and you had me at Red Faction: Guerilla!! Glad to see someone else thought it was good too.

c'mon lipid! we want (or at least I want) your next 5!!!

Yeah, last night wasn't good...got home late from work...fought with iTunes/iPod for hours trying to get them to work...ended up saying fuck it.

I think I broke just broke my keyboard in the process...

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"There is a high statistical probability of death by gunshot. A punch to the face is also likely."