Alright peeps, lets try: Top 10 Favorite Games

[Dice]

Any sort of personal Top 10's are a pain in the ass because you'll fumble through what you think is best.

Let's be lenient and say IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE IN ANY SPECIFIC ORDER so don't hurt yourself trying.

PS: I've sort of...overdone my list, do yours however (obviously).

10.
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
Yes it was easy, and yes it was a "reworked Ocarina of Time".  Fine.  But, in my opinion, it took Ocarina of Time (which is, sorry, but dated by now) and made it better and provided an atmosphere that finally and deeply fleshed out how a Zelda game "should" feel.  As the GameCube's swan song, the graphics are impressive even by today's standards and demonstrates a great range of dungeon styles, with interesting "in-between dungeon" tasks.  I admire the new approach they took with Zant (from calm, creepy and devious to a complete obssesive lunatic) and a strong companion in Midna (who's wit and sass played infinitely better against the incessant chatterbox, Navi, and Nintendo's preschool mascot, Fi).  While I know the game being "too easy" can be a major flaw, but I do like it for a more casual title in the series (whereas Skyward Sword made you do shit like the Silent Realm to piss you off than entertain you).
Play Count: 3
Honourable Mention: Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for being awesome.
Extra Points: Ganondork's corn-roll-crown.


9.
Final Fantasy IX.
I feel like this is what happens when a perfect blend of "Final Fantasy" and "fairytale-storybook" happens.  You get the more creative/out-there concepts of a Final Fantasy game (Kuja, Terra, Garland, Black Mages) but the traditional story of a thief and a princess (which feels like a pseudo-Princess Bride) amongst wonderful/bizarre animal special (none more hilarious than "Hippo-people").  The battle system is somewhat basic, but there is tons to do and a great cast and world to support it.  Although, I have to rip on the Chocobo Hot Cold; despite the amount of quests and characters, most major equipment is from that one game, making the rest of the quests feel less relevant (and way too many "key items" that do fuck all...hell, let them open up a gaming gallery or some shit).
Play Count: 2, likely another in the future though
Honourable Mention: FF6 for a similar vibe, FF5 for battle system, FF7 for being a strong title as well
Extra Points: ATE system

8.
Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky.
I almost feel like a complete IDIOT for putting this here given we're about only 1/4 through the whole tale (yeah, it's three chapters, but the next two are longer than the first, so...).  But I need to give major kudos to a series that is, in concept, extremely bland and not very original, but really creative and full of heart in its execution.  The dialogue is clever and the plot is smart; the characters are tropes but extremely endearing; the battle system is typical turn-based but with a few added flairs to keep it fun.  Apparently the treasure box messages were of XSeed's own devices... good on them!  I'd actually murder a person to see the other games localized somehow...
Play Count: 2, working on third in between study sessions... Carnelia books suck.
Honourable Mention: Radiant Historia for a lot of the same reasons.  Simple, but well done take to normal turn-based battles and a more than decent script with good politics.
Extra Points: Genki-girl lead -- probably to make up for the rest of the LoH females of the past....

7.
Star Ocean: The Second Story.
While I think Star Ocean 3 has waaaayyy better customization options; the dungeons suck monstrous dick and come at your sometimes in waves of 3-dungeon areas IN A ROW that make it hard to pick up and play.  And despite Star Ocean 4's dogshit story, the battle system plays extremely well and comfortably. 
However; I like Star Ocean 2 because it is the easiest and perhaps most fun to play and the most fun to break.  It was my first serious go at an RPG (as a kid, I won't lie, gameshark was my friend) and I love the atmosphere in the game (Arlia was a great change from the Sci-fi Earth world; and I love the random inclusion of Christian icons in the Hoffman Ruins, or the bizarre monster skeletons in the deeper parts of the Santuary of Linga).  There are a ton of flaws, it's an older title after all, but the game is fun and for its time shows a really in-depth and deep character customization.
Play Count: Tons; some to completion, some cut out half way.  I usually make a habit of putting a movie on while I play through the prologue though...
Honourable Mention: Star Ocean 3/4.
Extra Points: PA system, getting a stupid high powered weapon by Mars if played right... Barrels!

6.
Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth
It's hard to beat the added drama of watching your character's demise: It's one thing to see an in-game death (such as FF7's Aeris), but another to watch a scene knowing how it'll turn out, and the point where a characters tale slowly shows "telltale signs" that they're walking to their imminent death.  The plot is extremely bittersweet but beautifully done, and the use of Norse myth in a new context was well-executed.  One major complaint is that it's too easy to break down the "good characters" (Lawfer) from the really dogshit characters (Badrach, Lleleleleweyn).  I also hate when the best characters and best equipment are in the last few floors of the bonus dungeon. 
But anyways.  Without a doubt, the "Hard Mode" (i.e.; the BEST MODE) provides some of the most unique, interesting, but complicated RPG-platform dungeons I've ever played.  The battle system is a great take on RPG turn-based that requires using multiple attacks to be timed effectively.
Play Count: Once, but a perfect run!  It's a hard game to go back to.  The dungeons are unique and extremely worthy of merit, but some are hard to trek through again (fuck you Lezard and your goddamn tower; the "Egyptian Tomb" also took me for-fucking-ever).  Non-skippable cutscenes, for obvious reasons, hamper the idea of repeat playthroughs.  And also, the requirements for the A-Ending are ridiculously arbitrary.
Honourable Mention: Valkyrie Profile Silmeria; battle system-wise, it doesn't get enough credit as it deserves.
Extra Points: Three L's: Lawfer.  Lezard.  Lenneth.... and GUTS!

5.
Resident Evil 5/6 (plus other co-op titles in this slot)
Yikes.  Lumping two together.  But it has to be mentioned; despite a TON of questionable design choices (moreso in Res6 than 5), the co-op multiplayer was a ton of fun.  Six had the better controls (running and gunning was long overdue), but five had better replay value.
Play Count: Several with many people
Honourable Mention: I hate doing this too, but I wanna throw in stuff like Mario Double Dash and Secret of Mana and the like.  While again, not my favorite games, reeeallly make the experience for me just because of good people there.
Extra Points: Chris' biceps, Sherry being all adorbs, and Jake being fun to play as


4.
Kirby Super Star
This game ruled my world in '96.  Fun co-op, tons of levels, fun abilities, and exciting "kirby-music" and wonderful worlds.  I want to put Kirby 64 on this list, but I think the nostalgia is doing funny things to my head (I think I also generally like the "speed" of Kirby Super Star; Kirby 64 and to a greater extent Kirby 3 was a goddamn pain in the ass because even running felt sluggish and slow).
...Why are Kirby games so cute, fun, and fluffy until their final bosses which are nothing short of nightmare-fuel??  Perfect I guess for a game that takes place in "Dreamland", I guess.
Play Count: Many.
Honourable Mention: Kirby 64.
Extra Points: Could the Great Cave Offensive be *any* cooler?

3.
Tales of the Abyss/Tales of Graces f
EUGH, sorry...lumping again.  But I honestly believe if you took the plot/characters from Abyss and the battle system from Graces you'd have what is a gaming unicorn, an 11/10.  But I do think these games belong here on their own, but for different reasons -- so I thought I'd lump it together.
Tales of the Abyss plot sports not only a ton of unique and interesting NPCs, but also great main characters each representing their own nation's interests; they're a travelling "UN club" with great back stories behind them in addition to the very in-depth main plot.  I also like how the game doesn't throw any punches with regards to their villain: If people hated FF9's Necron from coming out of thin air, a savvy enough person will figure out who Abyss' main villain within the first half hour of the game and plays the idea straight till the end.  The game talks about life and death, politics and the environment, and destiny and freedom....but at the cost of an intriguing battle system (free run makes everything too easy) and a lot of backtracking.
Tales of Graces f sports what is one of the, if not THE best battle system -- not only amongst Tales titles, but easily as a contender for this generation of RPGs.  It eliminates the need for MP in an extremely effective way, making it seem almost archaic and irrelevant to bring back (thanks, Xillia).  The use of additional title-related skills as well as bumping up stats through them was unique and effective and gives the game a ton of mileage of small goals to help pave the way for additional growth (essentially give out what you put in).  Funny enough, Graces suffers the opposite of Abyss' problem: The storyline is really, really cheesy and almost laughably simple (rather, some of the ideas are good, but played out pretty poorly). 
I guess asking for a good plot and battle system is sometimes too much to ask for, huh?
Play Counts:
Abyss - 3
Graces - Still one the first run!  But there's a lot to do, and it's easy to go back and forth between the end-game of the main arc and epilogue to get it all done in some weird-ass Groundhog Day time loop.
Honourable Mention: Symphonia, Eternia, Vesperia.  I dunno, the series has a lot of charm and is pretty easy to recommend...and one of few very RPG series' that's still alive and going strong.
Extra Points: Jade and Pascal; proving you can be more than just the group's go-to "nerd"

2.
Chrono Trigger
It's just a cool idea with a lot more going on in the plot than it really seems on the outside.  C'mon, I mean, just how cool is it when you first arrive in the future? And when you're walking around magical floating continents thousands of years in the past?  Also: a robot and a frog-knight join you -- that's grounds for an instant letter-grade bump up.
Play Count: Maybe 4? It was a staple in the 90s, I've seen it played about as much as I've played it personally
Honourable Mentions:  I guess Radiant Historia for fitting in the time-travel part (and doing it justice). Chrono Cross also gets too little love for its ambition
Extra Points: Robo, Frog.

1.
Shadow of the Colossus.
While I was less than impressed with the noodle-grip of Wander in the "enhanced" PS3 version, the game is still phenomenal and just feels great to play.  The game does a lot with the idea of "less is more"; the world is extremely lonely; but I love seeing how many unique environments are within the one land you're thrown into.  I love how speed runs can complete all Colossi around the half hour mark, but the world is gigantic and will likely take up most of the time.  Anyways, the good about this game has been stated thousands of times, so why go on?
Play Count: 3, room for more since it's relatively quick and easy to pick up.
Extra Points: Agro

Other Honourable Mentions Nominees:
Zelda Oracle Series:  It played on Gameboy, but didn't "feel" like gameboy gmae.  The ideas and style were amazing and fun and the new tools made the 2D Zelda experience as somethng worthy to stand against the 3D titles.

Bust-a-Move: What good establishment in the 90s didn't have this paired with some other arcade game?  90% of places some kid had a birthday party at (bowling or Chuckie Cheese) had one of these and it's just a damn fun game. ...that, and Magical Drop as the "stays in Japan" take on bubble-popping fun.

Baten Kaitos (and Origins too): Great plot twists, and a card-based battle system that's actually fun.

Assassin's Creed II/Brotherhood: while the series has bad/apparent quality shifts, some games are awesome, some not, the series is overall a lot of fun.  Who can say assassinating people in cool time periods is a bad thing?

Legend of Mana: It has that "storybook" quality of FF9 and the game looks amazing... but the overall gameplay is too easy to make use of all of its gameplay elements (magic, pets, robot) and the plot and style is just...too fucking random to be any "awesome".

Wild Arms 1/3: It's a western RPG.  A guy named Roswell gives you an alien sidequest.  What the fuck else do you need?  It would be on the Top 10, but I like the above better, so...

Super Metroid: AS a platformer, this was a hard title to be outdone even when it came out pretty early on the SNES' life cycle.

Zero Escape Series: No series has had me so shocked over plot twists, nor has any series delivered so many.  Unfortunately, puzzle games suffer in that once you figure it out, repeat playthroughs are really dull for it.

Journey: It is amazing, but I do think unanimous glowing reviews are killing it for me.  The game is just too damn short and therefore offers too few elements to really challenge/engage the players.  An extra level or two would have been greatly appreciated.  Anyways, I do like this somewhat wave of "art" games like Braid and Limbo and Unfinished Swan coming into the playfield.

[Starmongoose]

If I wasn't seeing this just before I go to sleep I would totally write my list.


Consider this my placeholder entry.

ALL RIGHT LET'S GO.

10.
Jade Cocoon 2
I've always had a fondness for monster collecting and I still go back to it to this day. You don't hear much about it these days, but I'd say it's definitely one of my favourites. It doesn't have the more mature art style the first game had, but there are remnants of it there, it's just a little more child-friendly. The monster designs are totally unique and adorable, I have no clear winner on which element I start the game with. There's also really good balance gameplay-wise, I never felt like one element was clearly better than the other, or that certain species within the element better or worse than others, they all had defined roles and were good at it. There's charm in its simplicity and heart in its characters. No melodrama, no "destiny", but still more plot than a Pokemon game.
Play Count: 4+ (I can't recall exactly)
Extra Points: Unexpected villain

9.
999: 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors (so many 9's)
i feel stupid saying it, but this game opened my eyes to how good a plot in a game can be and how mature it can be about it. I love this game so much, but Dice is right, it doesn't lend itself to repeated playthroughs. I am however, addicted to watching Let's Plays on youtube of it as long as they are playing blind because I love to see their reactions. Is that a bit weird? The final puzzle was just so perfect in execution, it really underlined the entire plot of the game. I just wish it wasn't Sudoku, I am so bad at that game, luckily the music was awesome so I didn't mind being there for 4 hours trying to solve it.
Playthroughs: 2
Honourable Mention: Virtues Last Reward (I also fricken love it, but I think 999 was tighter), Ever 17 (Also amazing, amazing,amazing but you have to stay invested for a bit longer to get the payoff)
Extra Points: Can't say and won't spoil

8.
Mana Khemia: Alchemists of Al-Revis
I think this game just came at a time where I needed a breath of fresh air. It's not the best written, it's not the best looking, it doesn't play the best and it has glitches. I don't know why, but I still love it anyway. The battle system is really fun, and I liked that it took an element from another game (Final Fantasy X) and improved on it. I liked the characters in their own little cliche'd way and the alchemy system is as fun as ever. It's a personal favourite for sure, and I don't expect everyone to like it
Play Count: 2
Extra Points: Muppy!

7.
Pokemon Black/White
I feel like I might get lynched for putting a Pokemon game on here, especially one that is as recent as it is. Pokemon Black is what brought me back into being interested in Pokemon again, after a long period of thinking I had grown out of it. I loved Red/Blue/Yellow and I was interested up until Emerald, just about. Diamond/Pearl/Platinum while I think I had a go at, just didn't grip me at all and I was ready to stop caring about Pokemon altogether. Then Pokemon Black came and it revitalized that for me. The fact it was all new Pokemon with cool designs excited me, and when I got to playing it I was glad of the improvements from the last game. Everything felt really slow and grindy in the previous generation, from battles to leveling to exploring. Black sped all that up and it did a world of good.
Play Count: 4...5 times maybe?
Honourable Mention: Pokemon RBY, for starting it all.
Extra Points: No fricken fishermen with 14 Magikarps

6.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice For All
I pretty much like all the Phoenix Wright games, I picked this one though because I think it had the best case.
Play Count: 3
Extra Points: "Look a ladder!" "That's a step-ladder." "So? What's the difference? You need to stop judging things based on narrow-minded cultural assumptions, Nick!"

5.
Final Fantasy IX
Er, see Dice's post for more details. It is my favourite FF game.
Play Count: 4 at least
Extra Points: Rose of May ~

4. Suikoden II
I think this is probably as close to a perfect game for me as it could get. With more playthroughs I just get blow away with how much detail there is in the game. The story is mature and well told and well paced, the battle system is amazing (no grind!), there's a million and one things to do outside of the main plot. I think this is where Suikoden hit its peak, but that doesn't mean it was a sharp decline. Sure Suikoden IV was a nose-dive into a sea of bleehhhhhhh, but Suikoden V was a triumphant ascension back into greatness, save for a few problems such as load times.

Play Count: 3
Honourable Mention: Suikoden V, because it was a really hard choice for me.
Extra Points: Gay protag and antag. OKAY THEY WERENT BUT IN MY HEAD THEY WERE. ;-; They belong together.

3.Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2: Innocent Sin
I don't think I have to be totally objective on a personal list. I'm well aware of the games faults, BUT this was my FIRST SMT game. Persona 4 was just released and talk about it might have lead me to find out about the series. I can't remember why I started with this instead of 1, considering IS wasn't even officially released at the time, but that's what I did. I adore the plot of the game, and the battle system never seemed archaic to me because it was my first SMT game, it was just unique.
Play Count: 3
Honourable Mention: Every other SMT game, basically
Extra Points: ACTUAL gay protag and antag. In my version, anyway.

2.
League of Legends
It COUNTS, shut up. Any game that has absorbed about £150 and 2 years of my life should be on here. Thanks for the addiction, John. -.-
Play Count: Nearing 2000+ games. Aka: WoW levels of time.

1. Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Fire Emblem is a good series, but I think PoR is the best. It feels the most solid (I'll never say balanced for a Fire Emblem game), and the story was probably also the strongest in the series. Awakening was a contender, but I feel like Awakening relies to heavily on past titles to make its impression, while Path of Radiance gets by on its own merit.
Play Count: 4 (I think)
Extra Points: You aren't severely punished for actually using Titania!

[Dice]

If I wasn't seeing this just before I go to sleep I would totally write my list.


Consider this my placeholder entry.

Haha love it. x)
Can't wait Mongoosey

[Annubis]

1. Chrono Trigger
Timeless classic. I can't add any more to what everyone has said over the last decade.

Playthroughs: Too many to count

2. Valkyrie Profile (PSX original)
The though-as-nail, hyper-rewarding, incredibly scripted, beautifully orchestrated, Norse immersed wonder. This game is both beautiful and depressing. It stays on the grey line between life and death and portrays the pointlessness of life with a cast that are but tiny specks of dust that you can't help but root for. Lenneth is an incredible protagonist, but the rest of the cast doesn't fall far behind.

A small snippet at the start of the game shows the depth of the characters:
« It was through others' misfortune that I felt myself to be strong. That's right; I was myself without morals. Who was I to judge others? Who was I to look down on them? Injustice... »

Finally, if a game ever did cutscenes right, this is it.

Playthroughs: 2

3. Terranigma
On the complete opposite of Valkyrie Profile. This game represents the beauty of life. The story, ambience and thematic are magnificent. The ending is so good, I think I stood in front of the screen for minutes just staring and listening to the music.

Playthroughs: 2

4. Zone of the Enders: The Second Runner
The ultimate proof that if you make a great 3-hour game, people will play it for a bazillion hours.
The art style is wonderful. The controls are simply god-sent. The boss fights are plentiful and interesting (except the hacking one... fuck that one).

Playthroughs: Too many to count

5. System Shock 2
Go read everything I posted in the System Shock 2 thread =P

Playthroughs: 5

6. Ogre Battle 64
As far as tactic RPGs go, I have never met one that equalled it. This game stands tall like a king. The complexity of the system and the liberties left to the player allow incredible customization. The chaos rating system allows for multiple playthrough to be different.

Playthroughs: 3

7. Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines
I recently discovered this game and I'm amazed that even if I played it a decade later, the game didn't fall short because of it. This game shapes itself to how you play it to a degree that is almost hard to believe. "Don't. Open. It."

Playthroughs: 2

8. Star Ocean 2
I think this is the JRPG that came the closest to recreating the feeling of playing Chrono Trigger. It's happy, go-lucky and buckets of fun. The dual protagonist system is also a great feature.

Playthroughs: 6

9. Ar Tonelico 2
Although 1 and 3 are good too, this would be the most balanced one. An interesting take on the turn based combat system paired with big numbers (everyone loves big numbers). The music is excellent and Croix is by far the best character of the serie. The 3rd reyvateil ending is also one of the manliest thing I've ever seen a protagonist do.

Playthroughs: 1

10. Ever 17
I don't think a game will ever hit me as hard with its plot as that game did. I probably won't ever play it again, as knowing the ending just doesn't make it the same as the virgin run... but that first run was incredible.


Honorable mentions:
Super Metroid
Perfect Cherry Blossom and Imperishable Night (screw the game, the music itself wins it the honor)
Yakuza 4
Shining Force 2
Tales of Vesperia + Tales of Graces F
KotOR 2
Soul Nomad
Katawa Shoujo
Chrono Cross
Baldur's Gate 2 (+ every expansion)
Diablo + Diablo 2

[MeshGearFox]

1. Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne
2. Earthbound
3. Final Fantasy Legend 2
4. Ultima 7
5. SimCity 4
6. Unreal
7. Riven
8. Exile (BBC 1998)

WELP I'M OUT OF IDEAS.

These aren't so much favorite games as they are ones I found really exemplary for one reason or another.

Also tempted to put Oath in Felghana and Euro Truck 2 on here. Possibly replace Exile with Rayman Origins.

[Andrew]

Top 10
1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64/3DS)
2. Paper Mario (N64)
3. Rayman 2: The Great Escape (PC)
4. Skies of Arcadia Legends (GC)
5. Ever 17: Out of Infinity (PC)
6. The World Ends With You (DS)
7. Demon's Souls (PS3)
8. Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (PC)
9. The Void (PC)
10. Journey (PSN)

Honourable Mentions
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Golden Sun 2
Zelda: A Link to the Past
Zelda: Oracle of Seasons
Metroid Prime
Banjo-Kazooie
Snowboard Kids 2
Dragon Quest V
Final Fantasy XII
Shadow of the Colossus
Atelier Totori
FFVII: Crisis Core
Riviera
Valkyrie Profile
Ys II
Earthbound

[Wild Armor]

Grandia
Growlanser Generations (Yeah, I'm cheating: 2 for 1)
Radiata Stories (Ganz slapping Jack should have been visually part of the cutscene, but they at least put the sound of him getting slapped XD)
Wild Arms 3
Ib
The Longest Journey
Infinite Undiscovery
Shadow of the Colossus
Dragon Warrior Monsters (AMAZING game and music)

Honorable mentions
Flower Sun and Rain
Final Fantasy Legend 2 (Good choice Mesh!)
Killer 7
Chrono Trigger
Dark Cloud 2
Nier
Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon
Dragon Quest VIII
Arc Rise Fantasia
Rhythm Heaven Fever
Final Fantasy 6
Wild Arms 2

Might be back to edit this list...maybe

[Klutz64]

Hmm... Let's see if I can actually come up with a well-rounded list here...

#10-4 isn't necessarily in order but #3-1 is.

10. Dark Cloud 2

What I love most in RPG's is variety, and this game had a ton of it. From fishing to photography, to the not-golf minigame of Spheda, there was always a way to get away from combat long enough to keep everything feeling fresh. Add in a fairly good plot, a unique leveling system, and a fantastic score, and I can't get enough of this game.

9. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

My interest in the Zelda series fluctuates between each title, but I loved Twilight Princess. The presentation did an amazing job of bringing the mythos of Hyrule to life. TP's sacred glade was my favorite bit of Master Sword retrieval from the entire series. I loved the idea of a longer, more fleshed out Zelda title, and I'm really hoping Nintendo goes back to this sort of style again.

8. Super Paper Mario

I never really understood the mass appeal of the original two Paper Mario's. Don't get me wrong, they're great games, but the combat is slow and clunky at the best of times. Super Paper Mario took a unique spin on the "Mario RPG" formula by basically making it a Mario platformer, but with stats and stuff. Plus it had my favorite characters of the series.

7. Final Fantasy IX

I've always had a hard time pinpointing why this is my favorite entry in the series, other than the fact that I will vehemently defend Tetra Master as the best FF mini-game. It's not a particularly unique title complete with a rather simple character development system and an ultimately disappointing story. But where the overall story fails, the themes, the look, and the character personalities win me over every time.

6. The Longest Journey

I was late to the party on this one, only having played it about 4 or 5 years ago, but I quickly discovered why this is on so many peoples lists of favorite point and click adventures. The puzzles were a little more straight forward than your standard Lucasarts/Sierra fare (which, frankly, sometimes worked in its favor), but the characters, setting, and story more than made up for the simplistic gameplay.

5. Okami

I think anything that can be said about this game has been said by others much better than I could articulate, it's a visual masterpiece that doesn't use the unique art as a crutch for mediocre game play. The game also has some amazing Zelda-style game play, great music, and some surprisingly emotional writing (That damn scene during the final battle...)

4. Half-Life 2

I normally avoid FPS games like the plague, so the fact that this one got me so invested in it speaks volumes to the quality of the games. I firmly believe that Half-Life 2 was the game that inspired the more common "set piece" design of modern games. I felt really immersed in the game, but not because of the lack of cutscenes, but because of the natural-feeling level design and challenges.

3. Persona 4

As I've mentioned, I'm still slowly working my way through P4 Golden because this is a game meant to savor every moment. I talk to every single character every day that I can even if I know they're just going to repeat what they've said for the last week. The life the creators breathed into the town of Inaba is amazing, and it happens to be one of the few turn-based combat systems I still enjoy playing.

2. Kingdom Hearts 2

I love the Kingdom Hearts series, and I have to say that this one is still so far the pinnacle. The plot started coming into it's own (even though some would argue needlessly convoluted) and the keyblade combat was refined to include a unique sense of style I haven't seen in any other action RPG. The balance between Disney content and Kingdom Hearts specific content was still balanced, and nothing ever felt grindy, repetitive, or needlessly complicated.

1. Valkyria Chronicles.

I did not expect to enjoy this game as much as I did. The perfect balance of strategy and action with a story that was surprisingly engaging for basically being "WWII with a twist." I cared about my squad mates as much as I do in a Fire Emblem game, and fought hard to keep them all alive. It was challenging and rewarding, emotional and hilarious, and it is such a shame that the series committed suicide before it got off the ground by continuing on the PSP.

[Starmongoose]

Edited my post. God it was hard.

[Lard]

Okay.....this is going to be hard. In no particular order:

10. Suikoden II - Like Starmongoose said, pretty close to a perfect game. Everything about it just clicks. Honestly though, I would have to include I, III and V in this as well as they all make up a larger story.

9. Final Fantasy IX - For the same reasons listed by other people.

8. Silent Hill 2 - It develops its themes carefully and maturely, it's got an amazing soundtrack and atmosphere and it has a mind blowing ending. There's not many games that have had more detail and attention given to them.

7. Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne - I'm not normally a fan of dungeon crawlers like this, but this game just clicked with me. The battle system is fun and challenging, the fusion is addicting and while the story isn't meaty, I thought what was presented was interesting. It was like no other game I had played with I went through this the first time, and I still love it. It's got a hell of an atmosphere.

6. Xenoblade - A really great experience. The JRPG with a fresh twist.

5. Pool of Radiance - This is my nostalgia pick. I *loved* the SSI D&D games as a kid and I still think this one is the best. Great story, great ideas, great monsters. And the twist that the guy giving you your missions was the one that sold you out blew my tiny young mind.

4. Grandia - Great battle system, great soundtrack. I really liked the characters in this game and the way the designers made an effort to make it feel like the characters were growing and changing throughout the game. Justin started out as a little kid, and by the end of the game you really felt like he had gone on a journey and grown up. The relationship between Justin and Feena felt organic as well.

3. KOTOR - This was my first Bioware game. I'm sure people will say older Bioware games are better, but this was my first and dammit, I loved it. The universe felt HUGE, the story was great (including the twist) and you really got attached to the characters. It was unique and enjoyable.

2. Nier - By no means a perfect game, but the battle system is fun, the soundtrack is amazing and the story......well it's godly.

1. Rayman 2 - The Great Escape - I *loathe* platformers. Can't stand them. Yet, Rayman 2 sucked me in. It has amazing control and doesn't make you feel like you died because the game was cheap. It has "cutesy" characters but they all talk in gibberish which gives it this surreal quality that other platformers don't have. I really, really dug this game. The only platformer worth playing as far as I'm concerned.


Honourable mentions :

Legend of Mana - Which never gets enough credit for its unique "Short story anthology" approach to the JRPG

Need for Speed High Stakes - Great control, great graphics (for PS1), fun to play and the best licensed soundtrack ever compiled. My favourite racer.

Shadow of Destiny - A really unique puzzle game with a weird atmosphere and a cool concept.

Text adventures - Zork, Hitchhikers, Adventure, The Scott Adams games, I love them all.

Ico - I loved the exploration and the mood of this game. It was like someone had taken what made Zork great and given it graphics.

Fatal Frame - The only horror game I've had to play with the lights *on*.

Mister Mosquito /Incredible Crisis/Robot Alchemic Drive - The holy trinity of weird, unique Playstation games that are essential in any collection.

Mr. Driller - This game is like crack for me.

Silent Scope - My favourite arcade shooter

Tekken Tag Tournament - My favourite fighter

[John]

No One Can Stop Mr. Domino.

[Hathen]

In no particular order:

1. Suikoden 2/3: Really hard for me to choose between these two. Suikoden 5 was good too, and it's actually probably better than both of these presentation-wise, but it had a lot of little things that irked me.

2. Megaman X4: Hard to choose a favorite megaman game, but this is probably the one that has the most polish to me. The cheesy voice acting adds to the charm for me.

3. Fire Emblem (7): First Fire Emblem I actually really played. I like it when games like this are fast-paced so sometimes the older games in the series can drive me crazy. Probably has my favorite cast, too, and that's important for me in the FE games.

4. Shining Force III: Counting all 3 games together here if I may. Too bad the series completely went off the rails after this, and Camelot seperated from SEGA. My dreams of the continuation of the story they teased will never happen.

5. Chrono Cross: I think I'm one of the few people that actually likes this over the prequel. I guess people that like Trigger more tend to like a more complete, well-made product, whereas I really love just big ideas and concepts in and of themselves.

6. Final Fantasy XI: I honestly have a bit of a love/hate relationship with this game at times, but given that it's gotten me to come back several times over a decade I figure it's obviously doing something right.

7. Grandia: Just captures that "boy goes on grand adventure" charm perfectly for me.

8. Mass Effect 2: Still haven't gotten around to the third game, I should really do that. Liked the story in the first one a lot more but as an actual game ME2 has the first one beat at almost everything (aside from the awful planet-scanning, I wish they had cleaned up the Argo sections because it made felt more like you were exploring planets in this gigantic galaxy), as well as a great cast of characters.

9. Earthbound: Really nothing that needs to be said that hasn't already been said.

10. Final Fantasy Tactics: Best Final Fantasy IMO. Great story, and I've always liked a more open-ended job system. I only get annoyed that it gives you too many named characters and you end up only using them. They also often lose all their relevance to the story once they join your party.

Honorable Mention: Energy Breaker. This is actually my favorite game of the Lufia universe, but it had some really weird pacing issues that wasn't the case with Lufia 2. I find the atmosphere and story a lot more enjoyable than Lufia 2 though. Kind of a shame so few have played it- I think the only person around here I've ever seen mention it aside from myself is Ramza.

Might elaborate on some of these more later.

[Annubis]

Wait... Energy Breaker is in the Lufia universe?

[Hathen]

It's been a while since I've played it, but outside of one little reference in there I don't believe there was actually much else in common. Outside of that it could've been anything, probably. Didn't even have similar themes or anything- Lufia is a game about fighting evil giant bad guys that come back every so often to annoy humanity, whereas Energy Breaker had time travel and dimension hopping. It does have some similarity in narrative you'd probably spot though.

Actually, I think I'll go replay it now...

[Dice]

In no particular order:

Suikoden 5 was good too, and it's actually probably better than both of these presentation-wise, but it had a lot of little things that irked me.

Like load times? 
And that stupid fucking boat village you had to go through 20 rooms to reach the "boat palace" made worse by load times??

I hate when a game looks...less than "awesome" but still seems to have terrible load times.  Walking through Daath in Tales of the Abyss (a very room-filled cathedral) was an absolute chore in that it would take at least 5 seconds to load a straight hallway that ends in another door to another room.

SuikoV was killed for me, sadly based on that.  I've heard nothing but amazing things, but I got frustrated and something else took my time up instead by then. =/

Suiko III holds a soft spot because I adore how everyone runs and how loud their shuffling is.  ...oh and the plot's good.