Top Lists
The games in these lists are judged by how fun and relevant they are for me today. Unless otherwise stated, they're not lists of the most groundbreaking or popular games throughout history, nor are they nostalgic (I do realize none of us can be completely cured) lists of the games that I have the most fond childhood memories of. In other words, I don’t care how arcade-accurate a game like Strider was when it came out for the MD back in 1989 because right here and now, there are about 100 other games for that console that I consider to be better and would rather be playing.
Speaking of Strider, other ports of a game are always considered. For example, many MD games were multiplatform (SNES, PCE, Amiga, Arcade) and which one had the best version of a game is usually debatable. I’ll always be considering the gameplay first, while graphics, sound or minor extra features are secondary. For most older games (16-bit era or older), story takes the lowest priority, not because I don’t care for that part of a game but because the ones told in older games are usually not even close to being up to par with other media such as literature and film.
I’m no enemy to MAME or other emulation. Emulators today are accurate enough to be able to judge a (32-bit or older at least) game based on playing it that way instead of on real hardware. Because of this I also don’t factor in availability and cost, and fan translations as well as other hacks/mods of games are OK in my book.
Technically impressive but otherwise lackluster games have a low priority. A game can look and sound like crap but still be a better game than one full of parallax, rotation, perfect color optimization, quality sound design, etc.
I wanted to represent all kinds of genres so as to get well-rounded lists, starting with listing by genre before grouping everything together on here. However, certain systems were simply better hosts to certain genres than others. Like everyone else, I also have a certain bias towards some genres. You’ll see few Sports, Simulation, or Board games in any of my lists (possibly with the exception of Sim games for PC).
Top Arcade Games (1980s) WIP
Top PC Games (1980s) WIP
Top Amiga Games WIP
Top MSX Games WIP
Top NES Games WIP
Top SMS Games WIP
Top PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 Games WIP
Top PC Engine CD Games WIP
Top MD/GEN Games WIP
Top GB Games WIP
Top Arcade Games (1990s)
Top PC Games (1990s) WIP
Top SNES Games WIP
Top MCD/SCD Games WIP
Top GG Games WIP
Top Saturn Games WIP
Top PS1 Games WIP
Top N64 Games
Top GBC Games
Top Dreamcast Games
Top PC Games (2000s) WIP
Top PS2 Games
Top GBA Games
Top GC Games
Top 100 Games (All Systems)
Top Games By Year WIP
Top 8-Bit Games By Year WIP
Top 16-Bit Games By Year WIP
Top NES Games By Year
Top Master System Games By Year
Top Mega Drive Games By Year
Top SNES Games By Year WIP
Top Saturn Games By Year WIP
Top VGM Composers & Arrangers: 1980s
Top VGM Composers & Arrangers: 1990s Part 1 (1990-1994)
Best-Selling 2D & 2.5D Games of the 32-Bit Era
Top 10 Consoles (Swedish)
Top Game Box Art
Top Games by Genre: 1980s (WIP)
Top Games by Genre: 1990s (WIP)
Top Sega Games (1985-2005) WIP
Top Exclusives By System WIP
Top 8-Bit Graphics WIP
Top 16-Bit Graphics WIP
Worst Graphics in a Game WIP
Top 100 VGM Western (old)
Top 100 VGM Eastern (old)
Top VGM 80s (old)
Top RPGish Ending Themes WIP
Speaking of Strider, other ports of a game are always considered. For example, many MD games were multiplatform (SNES, PCE, Amiga, Arcade) and which one had the best version of a game is usually debatable. I’ll always be considering the gameplay first, while graphics, sound or minor extra features are secondary. For most older games (16-bit era or older), story takes the lowest priority, not because I don’t care for that part of a game but because the ones told in older games are usually not even close to being up to par with other media such as literature and film.
I’m no enemy to MAME or other emulation. Emulators today are accurate enough to be able to judge a (32-bit or older at least) game based on playing it that way instead of on real hardware. Because of this I also don’t factor in availability and cost, and fan translations as well as other hacks/mods of games are OK in my book.
Technically impressive but otherwise lackluster games have a low priority. A game can look and sound like crap but still be a better game than one full of parallax, rotation, perfect color optimization, quality sound design, etc.
I wanted to represent all kinds of genres so as to get well-rounded lists, starting with listing by genre before grouping everything together on here. However, certain systems were simply better hosts to certain genres than others. Like everyone else, I also have a certain bias towards some genres. You’ll see few Sports, Simulation, or Board games in any of my lists (possibly with the exception of Sim games for PC).
Top Arcade Games (1980s) WIP
Top PC Games (1980s) WIP
Top Amiga Games WIP
Top MSX Games WIP
Top NES Games WIP
Top SMS Games WIP
Top PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 Games WIP
Top PC Engine CD Games WIP
Top MD/GEN Games WIP
Top GB Games WIP
Top Arcade Games (1990s)
Top PC Games (1990s) WIP
Top SNES Games WIP
Top MCD/SCD Games WIP
Top GG Games WIP
Top Saturn Games WIP
Top PS1 Games WIP
Top N64 Games
Top GBC Games
Top Dreamcast Games
Top PC Games (2000s) WIP
Top PS2 Games
Top GBA Games
Top GC Games
Top 100 Games (All Systems)
Top Games By Year WIP
Top 8-Bit Games By Year WIP
Top 16-Bit Games By Year WIP
Top NES Games By Year
Top Master System Games By Year
Top Mega Drive Games By Year
Top SNES Games By Year WIP
Top Saturn Games By Year WIP
Top VGM Composers & Arrangers: 1980s
Top VGM Composers & Arrangers: 1990s Part 1 (1990-1994)
Best-Selling 2D & 2.5D Games of the 32-Bit Era
Top 10 Consoles (Swedish)
Top Game Box Art
Top Games by Genre: 1980s (WIP)
Top Games by Genre: 1990s (WIP)
Top Sega Games (1985-2005) WIP
Top Exclusives By System WIP
Top 8-Bit Graphics WIP
Top 16-Bit Graphics WIP
Worst Graphics in a Game WIP
Top 100 VGM Western (old)
Top 100 VGM Eastern (old)
Top VGM 80s (old)
Top RPGish Ending Themes WIP
