Maybe it’s the old coot in me, but this preview comment by Richard Mitchell from Xbox360fanboy regarding his hands on playthrough of the Fallout3 presser just made the hair on my neck stand up and immediately put me off:
Some things must be made clear. One, I played Bethesda’s Fallout 3 today. Two, I have never played a Fallout title before, so I can’t judge it based on the merits of the series.
Points in advance for Richard’s honesty here, but come on. While I can appreciate getting an impartial review from someone who isn’t familiar with the series, how can someone have a career in games journalism and not have played “one of the classics” like Fallout? Don’t get me wrong, there are obviously so many classics that it’s unlikely that any one person could have played all of them, but I’ve been noticing that as our industry rapidly expands, there’s quite a few people who are entering the ranks who simply lack the bona fides to be in the trenches. Much like an experienced vet, I don’t want to share my fox hole with the noob, and it irks me (possibly unfairly) that there’s young’ins being brought into the fold who haven’t been given a proper primer.
When I was at the GDC Games Design Workshop, during the “make a card game out of a classic video game” exercise, we were instructed to pick games that were so popular “everyone at the table should have played them or be familiar with them.” As I recall, Street Fighter was on the table as an option, and of the ten people at the table who were there to take a grueling two day boot camp on game design, only two of us (myself included) had played at least one version of Street Fighter. Take a look at this list. Pardon my French, but there are forty three fucking versions of Street Fighter there. If you haven’t played one of them at some point in your lifetime, even for just ten minutes, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that you probably should if you desire a career in the games industry, be it production, development, or journalism.
I don’t care if you’re only making web games, or phone games, or FPSs. There’s a whole gamut of games out there that you should have played, or should be playing. Broadening your taste in genres will only make you a stronger designer. Occasionally I can be stumped by a specific game (usually a sequel), but for the most part, I like to think that I’ve got at least one of the classics for each genre under my belt. If I had to make a list of what I consider a proper gamer’s primer, it might look something like…this:
- US RPG: Elder Scrolls, Baldur’s Gate. Bonus points: Wizardry, Ultima (NOT online).
- JRPG: Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger
- Sci-Fi RPG: Mass Effect, Fallout, KotoR
- Fighter: Street Fighter, Tekken, Soul Caliber, Virtua Fighter
- FPS: DOOM, Marathon, Quake, Counter-Strike, Battlefield
- ConsoleFPS: Halo, Call of Duty, Rainbow6
- Adventure: Any SCuMM Engine game
- MMO: Ultima, Everquest, WoW
- MFPS: WWIIO, Planetside
- Combat Flight Sims: X-Wing/Tie, Wing Commander, (I know I’m missing some here)
- Casual/Puzzle: Sims, any Maxis game, any PopCap game, Portal
- Shmup: 1941, Robotron/SmashTV, Time Pilot, Ikaruga
- Driving: GT, Burnout, Need For Speed (older)
- Car Combat: Twisted Metal, Vigilante 8
- Mech Combat: Mechwarrior (old and console), Virtua On, Battletech Center
- Skateboarding: 720, Tony Hawk, Skate
- Sports: Madden, NBAJams, Tecmo Bowl. Extra credit: Arch Rivals, Pigskin.
- Platformers: Mario, Sonic, Crash Bandicoot
- Action Adventure: Zelda, Metroid, Castlevania
- Roguelike: Nethack, Dwarf Fortress
- RTS: Command & Conquer, Starcraft, Dune, Warcraft
- Turn Based Strategy: Final Fantasy Tactics, X-COM, Advance Wars
- 4X: Civilization, Age of Orion, Galactic Civilizations 2
- Stealth: Metal Gear, Thief, Splinter Cell. Ultra bonus points: Wolfenstein (the original ancient Apple][ one).
Okay, I’m exhausting myself trying to come up with this list. Obviously, I’m engaging in an excercise of futility, but I don’t mind fanning some fanboy flames here.
What have I missed? Entire genres? Classics that can’t go without making it on the list?
Update: Added a bunch of category suggestions based on comments or oversights due to my lack of sleep when posting the original list. I imagine if given enough time this list could become something a bit like the AFI Top 100 Films.
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15 responses so far ↓
1 Brent // Jul 16, 2008 at 1:28 am
No Mario or Zelda?
Ha, sorry. I enjoyed your list, despite the fact that you couldn’t possibly complete it.
Here’s hoping Fallout 3 gets more voice actors than Oblivion did… or they at least try to use different voices.
2 Woozie // Jul 16, 2008 at 2:47 am
“Here’s hoping Fallout 3 gets more voice actors than Oblivion did… or they at least try to use different voices.” QFT
3 Jeff // Jul 16, 2008 at 3:58 am
Yeah, the lack of platformers & console adventure games is pretty glaring. I also wonder why MFPS games are set in a different category; none of them, IMO, scratched an itch I couldn’t get by playing other online FPSs, like Unreal Tournament or Team Fortress or Battlefield.
Some categories you missed:
-2D Platformers: Mario, Sonic, Mega Man
-3D Platformers: Mario, Sly Cooper, Ratchet & Clank
-Action-Adventure: Zelda, Landstalker, Terranigma
-Text Adventure: Zork, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
-Roguelike: Nethack, Dwarf Fortress
-RTS: Command & Conquer, Starcraft, Total Annihilation
-Battlefield Strategy: Final Fantasy Tactics, X-COM, Advance Wars
-4X: Civilization, Age of Orion, Galactic Civilizations 2
-Online Social: MUDs, tabletop RPGs run online, PbEMs
-Creation: SimCity, Animal Crossing, Mario Paint
4 Amauriel // Jul 16, 2008 at 5:58 am
Well, you’ve made me feel more sure of myself as a “hardcore” gamer…there are not five game series listed between you and Jeff that I haven’t played.
I want to give you a bit of kudos on your list, as I was very happy and a bit surprised to see Time Pilot on there. The only game that I really think needs to be represented on that list (that isn’t) is Earthbound. One, it’s a great game that will expand any gamers idea of RPGs. Second, make an obscure Earthbound reference in your article and you suddenly have a collection of people that will love you and come back time and again for your articles…the fan base for that game is RABID.
5 Skye // Jul 16, 2008 at 9:00 am
I never played Fallout 1 or 2. I remember looking at them long and hard at several points and deciding to purchase Age of Empires, Baldur’s Gate, Planescapes, etc. Looking back at it I really wished I would have got them at that point. Sort of a gaming regret for me.
I think we are starting to reach a point though with the proliferation of gaming throughout culture that there is a significant majority of the gaming population that have not played “classics”. This is an industry that is several generations old now and unlike literature, music, or movies, it has not made its past classics very accessible to the masses. If I wanted to play Shining Force before Gametap or this console generation I would have to drag out my Genesis console to do it. There is a bit of a logistical nightmare that goes with getting all the pieces together to play older titles, particularly on consoles. On the other hand I can easily go to Itunes/ Rhapsody/ whatever and download Crimson and Clover. Or if I want Casablanca I have numerous outlets and formats to get it.
The overall situation is improving with classic gaming, with places like gametap, xboxlive, wii, etc., but it is still not great or as user friendly as other media entertainment. There is also a technology factor that needs to be accounted for. For what reason would some kid want to go play 8-bit Super Mario Bros? They would much rather go play Galaxy instead. I think part of that has to be with the industry itself always pushing for better graphics, AI, etc. That mentality carries over into the fanbase.
I could go on, but this has dragged on long enough. So in summary, gaming has created a platform for our fans that doesn’t really embrace the classics, instead it is focused on waiting for the next great thing.
6 Robin // Jul 16, 2008 at 9:25 am
I have noticed that older awesome games are just completely unknown to people. Planescape: Torment is one of my favorites, but it’s hard to describe to people who don’t even know what Fallout or Baldur’s Gate look like, or haven’t heard of them. I’m VERY tired of saying “Like Baldur’s Gate. No, the real Baldur’s Gate, not that dungeon crawler they made. Yes, that was a crappy sequal-type thing, the REAL game is an RPG that you should play!”
I go to a college that has a game programming major, so there are lots of gamers, but I don’t know any that know about these wonderful older RPGs. :’-(
7 Norm // Jul 16, 2008 at 10:02 am
In addition to the entire genres Jeff covered, it seems odd to leave Half Life out of the FPS category. I’d also add PoP: The Sands of Time to Jeff’s 3D platforming list.
Also, if you’re going to divide platforming into 2D and 3D you probably ought to divide fighting games the same way. Street Fighter is a great series but modern 2D fighters like Guilty Gear and Arcana Heart have added a lot to the genre.
8 Ezekiall // Jul 16, 2008 at 12:24 pm
I loved the list, but what about stealth games?
Things like Metal Gear (And MGS) , Thief, and Splinter cell.
9 Maph // Jul 16, 2008 at 1:24 pm
You also missed both real-time, and turn-based strategy games. Whether you would split them up as such or not I don’t know, but it’ll be a sad sad day when people don’t know the name of Starcraft, or C&C.
I’m also glad that I managed to “make the cut” according to your list.
10 Muscadine // Jul 16, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Agreeing with Maph’s comment, and I would probably split them up and maybe have a separate console strategy category. Final Fantasy Tactics should be on that list, maybe something from the Ogre Battle/Tactics series, maybe Disgaea. Then there’s the slightly different genre represented by series like Fire Emblem and Advance Wars…
11 Bryce // Jul 16, 2008 at 3:42 pm
I am always blown away by people who claim to have experience with FPSs but the first they played was Halo or Counter Strike. Ugh. The same goes for people who tell me they are big Zelda fans but never played one before Ocarina of Time. Or Final Fantasy fans who started with FF7.
I agree that you missed the Roguelike category. And bonus marks go to people who have actually played Rogue. It is still my favorite game and I have been playing it for 24 years.
12 spitfire // Jul 16, 2008 at 9:09 pm
Great suggestions, folks, and yeah, the Mario/Zelda ones were just an oversight of me working 10 hour days and then staying up too late.
Updating main post…
13 Dastardly Josh // Jul 16, 2008 at 10:42 pm
I think in making a “classics” list you’ve really illuminated why there are people in the industry without “bonofides.”
Unfortunately plenty of “classics” fail to hold up in today’s light, either due to graphics, controls, or poor translation from the Japanese version.
You also have to account for the industries growth. There’s no longer a handful of people developing a title. Both the volume of games, and the people needed to development has grown.
It makes me feel like an old fart having played the Atari 2600 when it was new. Plenty of people I work with have had their fist console experience on the SNES and even as late as the XBOX.
14 Haze // Jul 17, 2008 at 8:59 am
These game series came to mind as ones that might belong on your list:
Ace Combat
God of War
Heroes of Might and Magic
Mario Kart
Mario Party
Megaman
Mortal Kombat
It felt peculiar to see Mortal Kombat missing, mostly because I grew up with the seeming competition with Capcom’s Street Fighter, the controversy about the blood and voilence, the different take on character graphics, the sequels….
Ace Combat’s on my list simply because it’s basically the only flight game I’ve actually enjoyed. I’ve tried a few simulators that repelled me with complexity and bad graphics and generally have shied away from the genre as a result. The games you listed might be better choices.
Also, it might be interesting to list the most successful games featuring cross-overs. Kingdom Hearts, Marvel vs Capcom, Capcom vs SNK… um… there must be more….
That reminds me; what about the card-game genre? While I don’t think there’s anything there that would need to be played in a “gamer’s primer”, these games are always being made and, as with any genre, it’s good to know of past failures and successes.
15 Hal_Mayne // Jul 23, 2008 at 1:26 pm
I wish more game designers (and gamers in general) had played FreeSpace and it’s sequel. Besides the excellent story and gameplay, things like the mission design and variations, good and extensive use of voice acting in debriefings and in mission, and the intuitive and well designed HUD. I can’t think of a game on par since, (probably since the space sim genre is as much as dead.)
The intro movie still gives me chills, http://youtube.com/watch?v=NJ-xcgBL1mY
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