LoC #81 - Top 50 Video Games of the Oughts

[Pak-Man]

#32–Dead Rising

(25 Points) 2 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #12 –Compound

I mean, all they do is eat, and eat, and eat. Growing in number... just like you red, white, and blue Americans.   

Release Date:  August 8, 2006
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Dead Rising is a 2006 open world survival horror video game. It is developed and published by Capcom and produced by Keiji Inafune. It was released on August 8, 2006 exclusively for the Xbox 360 video game console.
 
Dead Rising's story centers on Frank West, a photojournalist who ends up trapped in a shopping mall in the fictional town of Willamette, Colorado, that is infested with zombies. Frank must defend himself from zombie attacks, rescue survivors, contend with crazed psychopaths, and stay alive while still attempting to uncover the truth behind the incident. The player controls Frank as he explores the mall, using any available object as a weapon. The player can complete several main and optional missions to earn Prestige Points (PP) and gain special abilities. The game is designed as a sandbox game and features several endings, depending on the decisions the player makes along the way.
 
The player character is Frank West, a photojournalist who sneaks into the fictional town of Willamette, Colorado, which has been quarantined by the military. The main objective of the game is to investigate the Willamette Parkview Mall and complete "Case Files", missions that advance the storyline and reveal the cause of the zombie outbreak. The player has three days to do this, at which point a helicopter will arrive to retrieve him. Time passes twelve times faster in-game (i.e. one day in-game is two hours in real time); therefore, the game automatically concludes after six hours of gameplay. If a player fails a mission, it does not end the game, but different actions result in different endings at the end of the 72-hour period. In addition to the Case Files, the player is offered the opportunity to rescue other survivors of the zombie outbreak, either from the zombies themselves, or from "psychopaths", boss characters who have either been driven insane by the zombie attacks, or are using the outbreak as cover for their own purposes. Alternately, the player can ignore all missions and play as a sandbox game; wandering though the mall (modeled on stereotypical American shopping malls), trying outfits and food, and killing zombies with a variety of objects.
 
A counter at the bottom right corner of the screen helps the player keep track of how many zombies have been killed. Electronic Gaming Monthly reported that there can be up to 800 zombies on screen at once. During the day, the zombies are sluggish and weak, but at night they become more active, tougher, and more numerous.
 
Dead Rising is notable for the hundreds of weapons that the player can find in the mall and use against the zombies. There are over 250 items that can be used as weapons, ranging from powerful to near-useless. Weapons will break down or run out of ammunition with use, and will break or be discarded (some of which break into usable pieces). Others can be changed by the environment, such as frying pans, which can be heated on a stove to both increase damage and gain access to a special move. Large items, such as benches or cash registers, can be used, but are not stored in the player's inventory and are dropped if they pick up or switch to another item. Many of the more useless weapons exist purely for humorous effect, such as a toy Megabuster, from Capcom's Mega Man, that shoots tennis balls, or a glowing light sword toy. Other comical weapons, such as traffic cones and Servbot novelty masks, can be placed on zombies' heads, causing them to stumble about blindly.

Pak's Thoughts – Leave it to Capcom to add some fun to the Zombie Apocalypse. Improvising weapons to mow down mobs of Zombies is just a good time. I always get a little bit bummed that I’m so bad at completing the rescue missions, but then I find a riding lawnmower and a field of Zombies and everything’s fun again.

[Pak-Man]

#31–The Sims 3

(25 Points) 3 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #14 –Quantum Vagina

Reticulating Splines.

Release Date:  June 2, 2009
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
The Sims 3 is a 2009 life simulation video game developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sequel to the best-selling computer game, The Sims 2. It was first released on June 2, 2009 simultaneously for OS X and Microsoft Windows – both versions on the same disc.

The Sims 3 is built upon the same concept as its predecessors. Players control their own Sims' activities and relationships in a manner similar to real life. The gameplay is open-ended and does not have a defined goal. Challenges occur randomly based on aspects of each Sim's lifestyle, such as relationships, skills and job. Career opportunities such as working overtime or completing special tasks can yield a pay raise, cash bonus, or relationship boost. Skill opportunities are requests by neighbors or community members for Sims to solve problems using their acquired skills for cash or relationship rewards.
 
The all new reward system Wishes replaces the Wants And Fears system in its predecessor The Sims 2. Fulfilling a Sim's wish contributes to the Sim's Lifetime Happiness score, allowing players to purchase lifetime rewards for the cost of those Lifetime Happiness points. Moodlets can be inspired by physical events, such as having a good meal or comfort from sitting in a good chair, as well as emotional events like a first kiss or a break-up.
 
The game includes an optional feature called "Story Progression" which allows all Sims in the neighborhood to autonomously continue free will as if the player were controlling them, such as get married, get jobs and promotions, have children, move into their dream house or move out of the neighbourhood while the player isn't playing, etc. Sims live for a set duration of time that is adjustable by the player and advance through several life stages (baby, toddler, child, teen, young adult, adult, and elder). Sims can die of old age or they can die prematurely from causes such as fire, starvation, drowning, electrocution, (as of the World Adventures expansion pack) Mummy's curse, (as of the Ambitions expansion pack) a meteor, (as of the Late Night expansion pack) by thirst (vampires only), (as of the Showtime expansion pack) by failing a trick as a magician (drowning in water/being buried), (as of the Supernatural expansion pack) by failing Haunting Curse (witches only), eating a poisoned jelly bean and transmuting into gold, (as of the Seasons expansion pack) by freezing, (as of the University Life expansion pack) by being crushed by murphy bed/vending machines, (as of the Island Paradise expansion pack) by shark, drowning while scuba diving and dehydratation (mermaids only) and (as of the Into the Future expansion pack) by falling from the sky with jetpack and by time paradox.

Pak's Thoughts – Now here’s a game that fed that desire I mentioned to create characters. You don’t even have to worry about a Sim after you create them. Just move them into a random house and let them live their life. It’s fun letting my Sim wander around a neighborhood full of other Sims that I’ve created. People criticize The Sims series for the numerous expansion packs. They’re absolutely right, and one of these days I’ll stop buying them and show EA a thing or two…

That’s all for today. There will be more tomorrow!

[CJones]

I was a huge fan of SaGa Frontier (not so much the second one). I wanted to include it, but it was released in the late 90's. Romancing SaGa isn't as good, but it's the best recent SaGa game. I even have the Japanese guide for SF, which details all the stuff they intended to do, but couldn't due to time and/or money, including an entire eighth quest with Fuse and the other IRPO characters.

[Relaxing Dragon]

#40 –Manhunt

(24 Points) 1 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #2 – Relaxing Dragon

By the technicality that is a small voting pool, my controversial choice breaks through. And yeah, this is not a game for everyone. It's a brutal, mean, remarkably violent little game. As only a game about starring in a snuff film could be. But the thing is, it also had an incredible amount of TLC put into all that brutality, meanness, and violence. The world of Carcer City is very well crafted, both graphically and in terms of overall history and structure. The character designs are remarkably varied, and the amount of dialogue (like, just random, in-game lines) is rather staggering. The entire concept of the execution system brings a heck of a lot of variety to the proceedings. And that tone... it's the sort of twisted tone you just don't see very often in gaming, ever. It walks that line of being insanely dark without being over-the-top, and manages to stay a grisly experience throughout. So, not everyone's cup of tea, but for the semi-twisted person like me... well, let's just say I cosplayed as one of the hunters at Comic Con one year.

As a side anecdote to all of the above, a Manhunt fan forum was my first real forray onto the internet back in 2007. As in, first time joining a forum, actually making online friends, and developing into the persona that I am today. I've come a heck of a long way, sure, but one can never forget your roots.

#36–Resident Evil: Rebirth

(25 Points) 1 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #1 – Tyrant

This one was almost on my list, and is a high runner-up. It was both my first experience with the Resident Evil series, and my first genuine horror game ever. And wow did it ever manage to scare the piss out of me as a youngin'. Things weren't so bad by the time I got to the Residence, but throughout those first few hours in the Mansion... my palms were sweaty pretty much the whole time, even when I was playing it in broad daylight surrounded by friends. Alone at night in my room... that was something else. How 12-year-old me got ahold of this, that's another matter (thank goodness for inattentive Gamestop clerks, I suppose).

#35–Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

(25 Points) 1 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #1 – Pak-Man

Pak's Thoughts – OK. At least one or two of you have to be smacking your heads right about now. How am I the only one to vote for this? Paper Mario is my favorite RPG series, and Thousand Year Door is the crown jewel of that series. The goofy humor, the beautiful visuals, the interactive RPG fights, the compelling story- everything about this game just works.

Yeah, I'm smacking my head right now. This is the one I forgot, and it would've been in my Top 5 for sure, because it's easily one of my favorite RPGs ever. Just the perfect blend of play mechanics, story, writing, humor, graphics (which integrate into the world so well)... you're right, everything about it works. In fact, I just started replaying it the other night, and it's like meeting an old friend again. Such a fantastic game.

[Sugar Ray Dodge]

#43 –WWF: No Mercy

(24 Points) 1 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #2 – Sugar Ray Dodge

Release Date:  November 17, 2000
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
WWF No Mercy is a professional wrestling video game released in 2000 on the Nintendo 64 console and published by THQ. It is named after the World Wrestling Federation annual pay-per-view event of the same name. No Mercy is the follow-up to 1999's WWF WrestleMania 2000, and the last WWF game released for the Nintendo 64. No Mercy was well received by players and critics alike.

Pak's Thoughts – I’m not much of a wrestling fan, which means I don’t play a lot of wrestling games, but I always enjoy them when I try one out. I’ve never tried this one, so maybe Sugar Ray Dodge can fill in for nostalgic memories. :^)

It really is hard to explain what No Mercy was like to non-Wrestling Game fans. This was truly a game of skill. No button mashing, no cinematics, none of that. You had to know your wrestler's moves. You had to practice. You had to know your opponent. And the controls and gameplay were fast and sharp as hell. The CAW feature was also out of this world. You could probably build the entire current WWE roster in it. It's also very closely associated with a very magical time in WWF history. The Rock and Triple H were burning up the ring at every event, along with Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Chris Benoit, Taker, Eddie Guerrero, the Hardys, Edge and Christian, the Dudleys, Mick Foley's commissionership, to say NOTHING of probably the best storyline in the history of the business: The return of Stone Cold Steve Austin, which was happening as the game came out and it's culmination at WrestleMania 17, an event that brought a close to the Attitude Era. And we were playing this game through all of that. If it had been a lesser game, it would have been forgotten, but it wasn't, and the fact that it was part of that whole experience makes it extremely special.

[PsychoGoatee]

Diggin' the game list action! I did play WoW for a while, up to level 50 and the content before the expansions, had fun. Glad to see Double Dash made it, I got the Gamecube that came with Double Dash, good times.

[Pak-Man]

#30–Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga

(25 Points) 3 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #6 –Sugar Ray Dodge (Voted for the Prequel Trilogy. Merged with this entry)

Roger, Roger.

Release Date:  March 29, 2005 (Prequel Trilogy) September 11, 2006 (Original Trilogy) November 6, 2007 (Complete Saga)
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga is a video game based on the Star Wars-themed toy line by the Lego Group. It is a combination of the game Lego Star Wars: The Video Game and its sequel, Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, which includes all episodes, one through six. The game was announced by LucasArts on May 25, 2007 at Celebration IV and was released for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and Nintendo DS on November 6, 2007 in North America. The compilation title was released for the PC on October 13, 2009 in the US.

The aim of the game is to successfully make it through the entire story and collect the gold pieces while progressing through the game. In the Wii, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions there are 160 to collect; 120 of these are for the main levels. There are three for each of the levels. One is for completing the level in story mode, the second is for collecting a set amount of studs/coins to achieve a "True Jedi" status and the third is by collecting the 10 LEGO canisters, called "minikits," which are hidden around the level. There are 20 gold bricks for completing the Bounty Hunter missions which involve finding key members of the Republic and Rebellion for Jabba the Hutt's capture and subsequent ransom. There are 6 gold bricks for completing the bonus missions and 14 to buy at the Cantina. There are 36 story levels, 20 bounty hunter missions, and six bonus levels (two Lego Cities, two story levels, and the original pod race and gunship levels). Most of the story levels are the same as those found in the original games.[11] A level involving the pursuit of bounty hunter Zam Wesell has been added (this was a deleted level from LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game), while another level that was cut from the first game (Anakin's starship battle from Episode I) is included as a bonus level. This level utilizes vehicle free-roam from the second game. The game takes place from "the Trade Federation's negotiations" above Naboo in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace to the space battle above Endor in Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. The "Gunship Cavalry" and "Mos Espa Podrace" levels have been redesigned although the original versions are still in the game as bonus levels. However, "Battle over Coruscant" remains the same except that players can change vehicles in free-play. A brand new 2-player Battle Arena mode has been added, called "arcade mode", new vehicle bonus missions, the red power bricks from Lego Star Wars II, and 10 additional bounty hunter missions add new challenges to the Prequel Trilogy portions originally seen in Lego Star Wars: The Video Game. The Episodes I-II-III levels have been updated so that characters can build and ride vehicles, wear helmets and gain access to bounty hunter and stormtrooper areas, and those characters now have the ability to dodge blaster fire and have their own special melee attack (for example, Chewbacca rips off arms). New Force moves are included (force lightning and force choke). New characters have also been added, bringing the total up to 160. Indiana Jones is an unlockable playable character (to foreshadow Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures).[12] One error that occurred is that Luke is no longer shown screaming in the cutscene where Ben Kenobi is killed.

Pak's Thoughts – This should have been a disaster. They took the Star Wars brand (Which was batting a million at the time for sloppy cash-grab games) and made it into an obvious commercial for Legos . Darned if the end result isn’t pure joy, though. What is it about the lego brand that just disarms every cynical thought you have about the licensing they do. This one spawned an ocean of other Lego games and while they all have their own takes on the series, they never stray too far from the original.

[Pak-Man]

#29–Borderlands

(27 Points) 2 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #8-Quantum Vagina

You’re still alive!?

Release Date:  October 20, 2009
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Borderlands is an action role-playing first-person shooter video game that was developed by Gearbox Software for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It is the first game in the Borderlands series.
 
Borderlands includes character-building elements found in role-playing games, leading Gearbox to call the game a "role-playing shooter". At the start of the game, players select one of four characters, each with a unique special skill and with proficiencies with certain weapons. The four characters are: Roland the Soldier, Mordecai the Hunter, Lilith the Siren, and Brick, the Berserker. From then on, players take on missions assigned through non-player characters or from bounty boards, each typically rewarding the player with experience points, money, and sometimes a reward item. Players earn experience by killing both human and non-human foes and completing in-game challenges (such as getting a certain number of kills using a specific type of weapon). As they gain levels from experience growth, players can then allocate skill points into a skill tree that features three distinct specializations of the base character; for example, Mordecai can become specialized in sniping, gunslinging with revolvers, or using his pet Bloodwing to assist in kills and health boosting. Players can distribute points among any of the specializations, and can also spend a small amount of in-game money to redistribute their skill points.
 
Borderlands is set on the planet of Pandora. Lured by its apparent vast deposits of minerals, several colonization ships sponsored by the Dahl Corporation (one of several diversified mega-corporations that appear to control and govern entire planets) journey to the planet and build settlements there. The mining operations are cost-effectively manned by large amounts of convict labor brought to the planet by Dahl.
 
Prior to the events of the game, one of the other mega-corporations, the Atlas Corporation, found an ancient vault on nearby planet Prometheus, filled with advanced alien weapons technology that allowed them to rapidly overtake their competitors. The presence of similar alien ruins scattered across Pandora spurred Atlas to settle the planet in hopes of finding more alien technology. However Atlas failed to realize that Pandora was in its winter cycle, and the arrival of spring unleashes hordes of dangerous alien wildlife coming out of hibernation. Unable to find any alien technology, Atlas abandoned the planet. The Dahl Corporation then settled on Pandora, starting massive industrial mining operations while undertaking their own search for a vault, headed by Patricia Tannis, a respected xeno-archeologist. Despite all of her colleagues being killed by the planet's wildlife, and being driven partially insane herself, Tannis managed to find proof of a vault on Pandora. News of her discovery reached Atlas, who sent their private military force, the Crimson Lance, to capture Tannis and get the vault's location from her.
 
Faced with an invasion, those who are rich and important enough leave the planet, with Dahl abandoning the rest of the population to scavenge for their living in isolated settlements in the barren wastelands and industrial trash heaps across the planet. To make matters worse, the Dahl Corporation simply opened the gates of the prison labor camps during their departure, and gangs of bandits terrorize the populace. Despite Dahl's failure to find it, "The Vault" lives on in legends, attracting mercenary "Vault Hunters" to the planet.

Pak's Thoughts – I haven’t played much Borderlands. I just got it a couple months ago as part of a Humble Bundle. I like what I’ve played, and I can see the charm. The setting is very immersive and there’s nothing  more fun than corpse looting. The upcoming Telltale adventure game will probably motivate me to put some time into these games, because Telltale controls my life.

[Pak-Man]

#28–Kingdom Hearts

(27 Points) 4 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #16 - ColeStratton

I've been having these weird thoughts lately.... Like, is any of this for real... or not?

Release Date:  March 28. 2002
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Kingdom Hearts is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It's the first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, and is the result of a collaboration between Squaresoft and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney animated features with those from Square's Final Fantasy series. The story follows a young boy, Sora, as he is thrown into an epic battle against the forces of darkness. He is joined by Donald Duck, Goofy, and other classic Disney characters who help him on his quest.
 
The game was a departure from Square's standard role-playing games, introducing a substantial action-adventure element to the gameplay. Kingdom Hearts has an all-star voice cast and includes many of the Disney characters' official voice actors. It was longtime Square character designer Tetsuya Nomura's first time in a directorial position.
 
Kingdom Hearts was praised for its unusual combination of action and role-playing, as well as its unexpectedly harmonious mix of Square and Disney elements.

Kingdom Hearts is influenced by its parent franchise, Final Fantasy,] and carries gameplay elements over into its own action-based, hack and slash system. The main battle party consists of three characters: Sora, Goofy, and Donald Duck. Sora is directly controlled by the player from a third person camera angle. All other party members are computer-controlled, though the player can customize their behavior to an extent through the pause menu. Donald and Goofy comprise the party in most areas but nearly every level features a character who may replace them. For instance, Jack Skellington can join the player's party in Halloween Town, but cannot accompany the player elsewhere. In some worlds, the party changes its appearance, has abilities unique to that world, or both; the party can fly in Neverland, acquire aquatic forms in Atlantica, which enable them to survive underwater, and gain Halloween costumes in Halloween Town to blend in with the locals.

The initial idea for Kingdom Hearts began with a discussion between Shinji Hashimoto and Hironobu Sakaguchi about Super Mario 64. They were planning to make a game with freedom of movement in three dimensions like Super Mario 64 but lamented that only characters as popular as Disney's could rival a Mario game. Tetsuya Nomura, overhearing their conversation, volunteered to lead the project and the two producers agreed to let him direct. A chance meeting between Hashimoto and a Disney executive in an elevator—Square and Disney had previously worked in the same building in Japan—allowed Hashimoto to pitch the idea directly to Disney. Nomura struck down a number of proposals from Disney in order to pursue his own concept featuring an original character not based on a Disney property. The production team consisted of over one hundred members from both Square and Disney Interactive. The game began development in February 2000 and originally focused more on the gameplay with a simple story to appeal to Disney's target age range. After executive producer Hironobu Sakaguchi told director Tetsuya Nomura the game would be a failure if it did not aim for the same level as the Final Fantasy series, Nomura began to develop the story further. When choosing the Disney worlds to include in the game, Nomura and his team tried to pick worlds that had distinctively different looks. They also tried to take into account worlds with Disney characters that would be interesting. Thanks to support from Disney's then-president and current chairman and chief executive Bob Iger, the team had few restrictions on which worlds they could use from the Disney franchises. However, they tried to remain within each character's boundaries set by their respective Disney films. In June 2013, Nomura stated the name of the game came from him thinking about Disney Theme Parks, especially Animal Kingdom. However, Nomura could not get the IP with just "Kingdom", so the development team began to think about "heart" as a core part of the story, so they decided to combine the two to form "Kingdom Hearts".

Pak's Thoughts – Here’s another game that was just crazy enough to work. I find the action-RPG elements to be a little bit tedious, but I love the setting and the whole concept. I haven’t picked one up since the original, but if I understand correctly, I can pick up the HD remakes and be completely caught up.

[Pak-Man]

#27–Batman: Arkham Asylum

(28 Points) 2 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #11 – Johnny Unusual

Welcome to the madhouse, Batman! I set a trap and you sprang it gloriously! Now let's get this party started.

Release Date:  August 25, 2009
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Batman: Arkham Asylum is a 2009 action-adventure video game based on the DC Comics superhero, Batman. It was developed by Rocksteady Studios and published by Eidos Interactive in conjunction with Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 video game consoles, and Microsoft Windows. It was released worldwide for consoles, beginning in North America on August 25, 2009, with a Microsoft Windows version following on September 15.
 
Written by veteran Batman writer Paul Dini, Arkham Asylum is based on the long-running comic book mythos. In the game's main storyline, Batman's archenemy, the Joker, instigates an elaborate plot to seize control of Arkham Asylum and trap Batman inside with many of his incarcerated foes. With Joker threatening to detonate hidden bombs around fictional Gotham City, Batman is forced to fight his way through the asylum's inmates and put an end to the Joker's plans. Most of the game's leading characters are voiced by actors who have appeared in other media based on the DC Animated Universe; Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, and Arleen Sorkin reprised their roles as Batman, the Joker, and his sidekick Harley Quinn respectively. The game is presented from the third-person perspective with a primary focus on Batman's combat and stealth abilities, detective skills, and gadgets that can be used in combat and exploration.

 Batman: Arkham Asylum is an action-adventure game viewed from the third-person perspective. The playable character is visible on the screen and the camera can be freely rotated around him. The player controls Batman as he traverses Arkham Asylum, a secure facility for the criminally insane located off the coast of Gotham City. The opening areas of the game are linear, serving as a tutorial for the moves and approaches available to the player. Once the player emerges onto the island he can freely explore the game world, although some areas remain inaccessible until certain milestones in the main story. Batman can run, jump, climb, crouch, glide from heights using his cape, and use his grapple gun to climb low structures or escape to higher ledges.

The player can use "Detective Vision"—a visual mode which provides contextual information, tinting the game world blue and highlighting interactive objects like destructible walls and removable grates, the number of enemies in an area and their status—such as their awareness of Batman's presence—and shows civilians and corpses. The mode is also used to follow footprints, investigate odors, and solve puzzles.

Pak's Thoughts – Batman has had better luck than most superheroes when it comes to video games, but none of the games ever made you feel like Batman himself until this one came along. You’re sneaking along scaffolding, taking out bad guys before they even know you’re there, and solving mysteries left and right. It set a new standard for licensed games.

[Pak-Man]

#26–Super Mario Sunshine

(28 Points) 2 of 11 Lists - Highest Ranking - #10 –lassieface

Leave my mama alone, you bad man! I won't let you take Mama Peach away! 

Release Date:  July 19, 2002
Just the facts/Stuff I wiki'd:
Super Mario Sunshine is a platform video game developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. It was released in Japan in July 2002, in North America in August 2002, and in Europe and Australia in October 2002. It is the second 3D Mario platformer, following Super Mario 64 in 1996.
 
The game takes place on the tropical Isle Delfino, where Mario, Toadsworth, Princess Peach, and five Toads are taking a vacation. A villain resembling Mario, known as Shadow Mario, vandalizes the entire island with graffiti and Mario gets blamed for the mess. Later on, Mario is ordered to clean up Isle Delfino, while saving Princess Peach from Shadow Mario. Mario cleans up the island with a device called FLUDD (Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device).
 
Super Mario Sunshine shares many similar gameplay elements with its predecessor, Super Mario 64, whilst introducing various new gameplay features. Players control Mario as he tries to obtain 120 Shine Sprites in order to bring light back to Isle Defino and prove his innocence after an imposter steals the Shine Sprites and covers the island in toxic slime. Players start off in the hub world of Isle Delfino and access various worlds via portals which become available as the game progresses. Similar to collecting Stars in Super Mario 64, players obtain Shine Sprites by clearing various objectives given to Mario upon entering each stage, with more objectives unlocked in each level after clearing an existing one. There are also various hidden areas and challenges across Isle Delfino where more Shine Sprites can be obtained. Throughout the game, players may also find Blue Coins, which can be exchanged for more Shine Sprites.
 
In this game, Mario is joined by a robotic backpack named FLUDD (Flash Liquidizing Ultra Dousing Device), which uses the power of water to clean away slime and help Mario reach new places. Mario starts with two default nozzles for FLUDD, Spray and Hover, which he can quickly switch between. The Spray nozzle lets Mario squirt a stream of water which he can use to clean slime, attack enemies, and activate certain mechanisms. The Hover nozzle lets Mario hover in the air for a short period of time, allowing him to cross large gaps while simultaneously spraying things directly below him. As the game progresses, Mario unlocks two additional nozzles for FLUDD which can substituted with the Hover nozzle; the Rocket nozzle, which shoots Mario high up into the air; and the Turbo nozzle, which moves Mario at high speeds, allowing him to run across water and break into certain areas. Each of FLUDD's nozzles use water from its reserves, which can be refilled via water sources such as rivers or fountains. There are also some areas where FLUDD is taken away from Mario, forcing him to rely on his natural platforming abilities. At certain points in the game, Mario may come across an egg which hatches into a Yoshi after being brought a fruit it asks for. Yoshi can be ridden upon and can attack by spitting juice, which can clear certain obstacles that water cannot. Yoshi can also use its tongue to eat enemies or other pieces of fruit which change its color, depending on the type of fruit. Yoshi will disappear if it runs out of juice, which can be replenished by eating more fruit, or falls into deep water.

Pak's Thoughts – If I could vacation inside of a video game, I’d want to kick back on Isle Delfino. There’s something about the wonderful soundtrack in this game that makes everything feel just a little bit more laid back. Mario’s got evil to thwart, sure, but he’s on vacation, too. Kick back, take in the sights, and enjoy the ride.

So does anyone else find it odd that

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

when Peach is accused of being Bowser Jr.’s mom, her reaction is, “I’m your mom?” Not, “Don’t be ridiculous. That couldn’t have happened because I’ve never submitted to Bowser’s advances!” Not, “I think I’d remember giving birth to you, or laying an egg, or whatever.” Just a kind of doubtful reply that seems to say, “Maaaybe. Things got pretty crazy that one time…”

That’s it for now. I’ll be taking the weekend off and will post the top 25 next week. Be there!

[Johnny Unusual]

Borderlands started fun... then just kept going.  And going.  And it all felt the same, so me and my friend just gave up on it.

[Quantum Vagina]

Borderlands started fun... then just kept going.  And going.  And it all felt the same, so me and my friend just gave up on it.

As much as I love Borderlands, I can see how some people wouldn't. Its a very interesting game, but if everything in it doesn't suit you, it's just not gonna be for you.there's hundreds of hour of gameplay if you do, though. BL2 has a stronger story and is more interesting to play, but it couldn't be on my list.

[CJones]

I can't believe I forgot to vote for Arkham Asylum. Though I liked Arkham City better, it was released too recently. Both games kick ass.

Also, I'm coming to regret not buying a Gamecube. I have a PS1 and a PS2, a Saturn and a Dreamcast, but I pretty much ditched Nintendo after the SNES. As a result I've missed out on every Zelda, Metroid and Mario game since the SNES era.

[Relaxing Dragon]

I can't believe I forgot to vote for Arkham Asylum. Though I liked Arkham City better, it was released too recently. Both games kick ass.

Also, I'm coming to regret not buying a Gamecube. I have a PS1 and a PS2, a Saturn and a Dreamcast, but I pretty much ditched Nintendo after the SNES. As a result I've missed out on every Zelda, Metroid and Mario game since the SNES era.

Arkham Asylum is a game that I kind of keep forgetting is as amazing as it is. Seriously, licensed games have no business being that good, to the point that it's just one of the best stealth games of the decade. I haven't gotten around to Arkham City yet, but if it's even half as good it'll be an achievement.

And the Gamecube is a wonderful little system. It had a lower volume of really good games, as do most Nintendo products (such as it is when you make things so hard for so many third party developers), but the ones that are good tend to be some of the best ever. Still great from a hardware aspect as well, seeing as my system is 12+ years old and still runs like a dream.