Game Informer Top 200 list

[swlovinist]

1. The Legend of Zelda (NES, 1987)
2. Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1985)
3. Tetris (PC, 1984)
4. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2, 2001)
5. Half-Life 2 (PC, 2004)
6. Doom (PC, 1993)
7. Metroid (NES, 1986)
8. Final Fantasy III (SNES, 1994)
9. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES, 1990)
10. Ms. Pac-Man (Coin-op, 1981)
11. World of Warcraft (PC, 2004)
12. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1992)
13. Super Mario 64 (N64, 1996)
14. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3/360/PC, 2007)
15. Final Fantasy VII (PS, 1997)
16. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! (NES, 1987)
17. Chrono Trigger (SNES, 1995)
18. Resident Evil 4 (GameCube, 2005)
19. Metal Gear Solid (PS, 1998)
20. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, 1998)
21. Super Metroid (SNES, 1994)
22. Contra (NES, 1988)
23. Galaga (Coin-op, 1981)
24. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS, 1997)
25. Street Fighter II (Coin-op, 1991)
26. God of War (PS2, 2005)
27. BioShock (360/PC, 2007)
28. Diablo II (PC, 2000)
29. Half-Life (PC, 1998)
30. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivious (360/PC, 2006)
31. Tecmo Super Bowl (NES, 1991)
32. GoldenEye 007 (N64, 1997)
33. Super Mario Kart (SNES, 1992)
34. Sonic the Hedgehog (SEGA Genesis, 1991)
35. Starcraft (PC, 1998)
36. Civilization (PC, 1991)
37. SimCity (PC, 1989)
38. Mega Man 2 (NES, 1988)
39. Halo: Combat Evolved (Xbox, 2001)
40. Gran Turismo (PS, 1998)
41. Resident Evil 2 (PS, 1998)
42. Pokemon Red and Blue (GB, 1996)
43. Final Fantasy X (PS2, 2001)
44. EverQuest (PC, 1999)
45. Final Fantasy Tactics (PS, 1998)
46. Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3/360, 2008)
47. Super Mario World (SNES, 1991)
48. Deus Ex (PC, 2000)
49. Guitar Hero (PS2, 2005)
50. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2, 2001)
51. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii, 2007)
52. Pac-Man (Coin-op, 1980)
53. Battlefield 2 (PC, 2005)
54. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (Xbox, 2003)
55. Ico (PS2, 2001)
56. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3, 2009)
57. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 (PS, 2000)
58. Mass Effect (360, 2007)
59. Adventure (2600, 1980)
60. Arkanoid (Coin-op, 1986)
61. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (GB, 1993)
62. Star Wars: X-Wing (PC, 1993)
63. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (N64, 2000)
64. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2, 2004)
65. Fallout 3 (PS3/360/PC, 2008)
66. Zork (PC, 1980)
67. Soul Calibur (DC, 1999)
68. Double Dragon (Coin-op, 1987)
69. Dr. Mario (NES, 1990)
70. The Sims (PC, 2000)
71. Age of Empires (PC, 1997)
72. Mortal Kombat II (Coin-op, 1993)
73. Rock Band 2 (PS3/360, 2008)
74. Tomb Raider (PS, 1996)
75. Super Bomberman (SNES, 1993)
76. Mario’s Picross (GB, 1995)
77. Ninja Gaiden (NES, 1989)
78. Command & Conquer (PC, 1995)
79. Kingdom Hearts (PS2, 2002)
80. Final Fantasy II (SNES, 1991)
81. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES, 1988)
82. Left 4 Dead (PC, 2008)
83. Okami (PS2, 2006)
84. Shadow of the Colossus (PS2, 2005)
85. Metroid Prime (GameCube, 2002)
86. Super Smash Bros. Melee (GameCube, 2001)
87. Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (PC, 1995)
88. Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn (PC, 2000)
89. God of War II (PS2, 2007)
90. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii, 2006)
91. Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal (PS2, 2004)
92. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (PC, 2002)
93. Skies of Arcadia (DC, 2000)
94. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (GameCube, 2003)
95. Silent Hill 2 (PS2, 2001)
96. Counter-Strike (PC, 1999)
97. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (SEGA Genesis, 1992)
98. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS3/360, 2009)
99. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (PS2/Xbox/GameCube/PC, 2003)
100. Portal (PC/360, 2007)
101. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (PC, 2002)
102. Heroes of Might & Magic III (PC, 1999)
103. Donkey Kong (Coin-op, 1981)
104. Batman: Arkham Asylum (PS3/360, 2009)
105. System Shock 2 (PC, 1999)
106. Resident Evil (PS, 1996)
107. Gears of War (360, 2006)
108. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3, 2008)
109. Crash Bandicoot: Warped (PS, 1998)
110. Halo 2 (Xbox, 2004)
111. Tetris Attack (SNES, 1996)
112. Final Fantasy XII (PS2, 2006)
113. Earthbound (SNES, 1995)
114. Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri (PC, 1998)
115. Command & Conquer: Red alert (PC, 1996)
116. Advance Wars (GBA, 2001)
117. Fallout (PC, 1997)
118. Team Fortress 2 (PS3/360/PC, 2007)
119. Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (Xbox, 2005)
120. Mega Man X (SNES, 1994)
121. Lemmings (PC, 1991)
122. Panzer Dragoon Saga (Saturn, 1998)
123. NHL ‘94 (SEGA Genesis/SNES, 1993)
124. Warlords (Coin-op, 1980)
125. Shadowrun (SNES, 1993)
126. Twisted Metal 2 (PS, 1996)
127. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee (PS, 1997)
128. Metroid Fusion (GBA, 2002)
129. Homeworld (PC, 1999)
130. Kingdom Hearts II (PS2, 2006)
131. Pilotwings (SNES, 1991)
132. Quake II (PC, 1997)
133. Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (PC, 1997)
134. Borderlands (PS3/360/PC, 2009)
135. Final Fight (Coin-op, 1989)
136. Star Fox (SNES, 1993)
137. Madden NFL ‘99 (PS/N64/PC, 1999)
138. Call of Duty 2 (360/PC, 2005)
139. Wolfenstein 3D (PC, 1992)
140. Diablo (PC, 1996)
141. Civilization IV (PC, 2005)
142. Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle (PC, 1993)
143. Assassin’s Creed (PS3/360, 2007)
144. Burnout 3: Takedown (PS2/Xbox, 2004)
145. Unreal Tournament 2004 (PC, 2004)
146. Power Stone 2 (DC, 2000)
147. Super Castlevania IV (SNES, 1991)
148. Super Mario RPG (SNES, 1996)
149. Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (PC, 2002)
150. ActRaiser (SNES, 1991)
151. Fable (Xbox, 2004)
152. Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht (PS2, 2003)
153. Asteroids (Coin-op, 1979)
154. LittleBigPlanet (PS3, 2008)
155. Crackdown (360, 2007)
156. Gauntlet (Coin-op, 1985)
157. Devil May Cry (PS2, 2001)
158. Pong (Coin-op, 1972)
159. Battlefield 1942 (PC, 2002)
160. Thief (PC, 1998)
161. Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved (360, 2005)
162. Far Cry (PC, 2004)
163. Robotron: 2084 (Coin-op, 1982)
164. X-COM: UFO Defense (PC, 1993)
165. Peggle (PC, 2007)
166. King’s Quest VI (PC, 1992)
167. Doom II (PC, 1994)
168. Tempest 2000 (Jaguar, 1994)
169. Braid (360, 2008)
170. Ridge Racer (PS, 1995)
171. Bully (PS2, 2006)
172. Ikaruga (GameCube, 2006)
173. Lode Runner (Apple II, 1983)
174. Gunstar Heroes (SEGA Genesis, 1993)
175. Dig Dug (Coin-op, 1982)
176. Castlevania (NES, 1988)
177. Tekken 3 (Coin-op, 1997)
178. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (DS, 2005)
179. NBA Jam: Tournament Edition (Coin-op, 1993)
180. Max Payne (PC, 2001)
181. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3/360/PC, 2009)
182. Samurai Shodown (Neo Geo, 1993)
183. NFL 2K5 (PS2/Xbox, 2004)
184. Vagrant Story (PS, 2000)
185. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island (SNES, 1995)
186. Marble Madness (Coin-op, 1984)
187. Infamous (PS3, 2009)
188. Planescape: Torment (PC, 1999)
189. Kid Icarus (NES, 1986)
190. The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (Xbox, 2004)
191. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (PS2, 2004)
192. Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem (GameCube, 2002)
193. Jak 3 (PS2, 2004)
194. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (DC, 2002)
195. Ultima (PC, 1981)
196. Call of Duty (PC, 2003)
197. NHL 09 (PS3/360, 2008)
198. Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (Xbox, 2004)
199. Tactics Ogre (PS, 1997)
200. Beyond Good and Evil (PS2/Xbox/GameCube, 2003)


Yet another top 200 list, but I thought this would be good topic to create. I guess my big problem with the list is that there are games that have not been out 6 months and they are on here? For me, a game has to PROVE itself in the long run to be considered worthy to be on an all time list. Just my two cents...thoughts?

[Nebagram]

I dunno, it doesn't seem too bad. There are only a few recent additions on there that seem particularly regreious (looking at you, Uncharted 2 and Borderlands). And by the end they did seem to stop caring. It's almost as if they stuck the sublime BG&E at 200 and then random made up 186-199.

There are also a lot of games on there from 1996-1999, which I highly approve of that was my own personal favourite era.

Oh, and:-

30. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivious (360/PC, 2006)

Hilarious.

[vivaeljason]

I love that NHL 09: Roster Update is on the list.

Really though, other than the games from 2009 that are on the list, there's nothing all that bad on here.

[BHvrd]

(looking at you, Uncharted 2 and Borderlands).

At least those two games are a bit different and genre defining, but...

181. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3/360/PC, 2009)

is just the same old retreaded shit repackaged.

[Simply Dave]

That's the order of the list?

Metroid ahead of Super Metroid?

GTA III ahead of Vice City/San Andreas?

I dunno about that.

[Dangerboy]

I thought it was a really well done list (though the number order is all opinion based). You'd have to have the originals first since they set the standard.

As for the 2009 games included, they're going to be the trend starters. Borderland's AI invented weaponry is going to change how larger games handle item invention (imagine if they included healing items in that lot), and Batman: AA was the proof that a small company could finally give a license a properly done game.

I absolutely love their alternate covers though. The FF6 one is great with Kefka on the back. ^o^

[b0ub0u]

Xenosaga episode 1 is there... but not Xenogears... Xenosaga is a very bad RPG. Xenosaga is a classic. That's just one exemple... I'm not too sure about some of the entries there.

I do find that most of these games added something to the video game world when they were released. Pretty good list I would say.

[joshnickerson]

Sonic the Hedgehog at #34 with Yoshi's Island at #185???

That's seriously messed up.

[Raedon]

11. World of Warcraft (PC, 2004)

I've had a great time with WoW. Played the shit out of it truth be known. Played even more Everquest. Neither of those I would have put on a game list in the 1-20 range.

[MachineGex]

I always thought comparing classic arcade games to retro console games to mondern PC games(etc.) never made sense. I like lists and all, but you gotta compare apples to apples.

[Kid Ice]

Nice that the list-mania from a couple years go finally died down.

No one will ever get away with making a list like this without gripes. These are mine:

-some of the games on the list are too new imo to include with games from the 80s and 90s. I haven't put much time into Modern Warfare but to me it just seems like a dozen other games out there and probably will more so in ten years. Borderlands and that Batman game are on the list? Come on.

-Gunstar Heroes #176?

-GTA IV above GTAVC? What?

-not enough shooters Galaga and Ikaruga are on the list but...no Defender? Gradius V (or any Gradius)? R-Type? No Rayforce/Raystorm? Thunderforce III/IV/V? Einhander?

-speaking of shooters, not one TG-16 game? No Vectrex games? Only one Neo Geo game made the whole list (and it was the first Sam Sho?) No 3DO games?

[TonyTheTiger]

Game Informer did at top 100 games list back in their 100th issue. I haven't pulled it out to check but from what I remember, this Top 200 list looks like a mere extension of the first one. They just added games beneath the original 100.

[Overbite]

Some of these games I think they just stuck in there to shut up game nerds, like Gunstar Heroes and random old ones that don't stand up well today.

[chicnstu]

Mass Effect and Assassin's Creed on a list of the 200 best games EVER? Doesn't make sense. Those two games are so full of problems that they don't deserve high scores just because they were made by BioWare and Ubisoft. Technically they are bad games with wonderful ideas. Are they only on the list because they influenced other games (inFamous, Dead Space maybe)?

[Trebuken]

Mass Effect and Assassin's Creed on a list of the 200 best games EVER? Doesn't make sense. Those two games are so full of problems that they don't deserve high scores just because they were made by BioWare and Ubisoft. Technically they are bad games with wonderful ideas. Are they only on the list because they influenced other games (inFamous, Dead Space maybe)?

Ridiculous.

Anyways, no Commodore 64 love it seems. I think it's a good enough list.

Are they supposed tobe best to worst? or just top 200?

[WCP]

Super Mario World at No.47? Are you FREAKING kidding me? I've seen alot of top 100 game of all time lists, and I can't remember any list ranking SMW this low. Personally, I'd have SMW ranked in the top 5 overall. I'm sure I have a bunch of other complaints about this list, but not seeing Super Mario World ranked in the top 30 (at the very least) made my blood boil a bit.

[Fuyukaze]

I love these lists and hate them at the same time. The bad is that I rarely agree with them 90% of the time. I love them for two reasons. First it allows me to compare my favorites to theirs and second they ALWAYS piss off people on gaming forums. Anyone remember the top 25 list we did a year or two ago and how much a headache it proved to be? Kinda wonder what the results would be now if it was done again.

[Wraith Storm]

...not one TG-16 game? No Vectrex games? Only one Neo Geo game made the whole list (and it was the first Sam Sho?) No 3DO games?

My thoughts as well.

Also, why is there only 1 Saturn game on that list? (122. Panzer Dragoon Saga) While I agree that PDS should certainly be on that list, there are other Saturn games that are just as important and deserving.

[Reecer6]

I have some issues.
There are NO Katamari games, Scribblenauts, Crazy Taxi, or any Jet Set Radio game. There's also the fact that they're saying that a PICROSS GAME IS TWICE BETTER THAN BRAID.
If I had to do the Top 200... I couldn't, because I don't have that much opinion on most game, but that's beside the point. If I did it, Those stuff above would be fixed!

(Also, first post.)

[carlcarlson]

Rather than read the whole list I just ran a search for my favorites. No Morrowind, Diablos, or any of the Fallouts? I didn't think they had Oblvion either, but I guess they just spelled it wrong, so it's good to see it on the list (and pretty high too). There are a lot of good games on there, but they've skipped my favorites.

edit: ok, I just skimmed the list again and not only did I find Morrowind, but also Fallout 1 and 3. What the heck was my search function looking at? It's good to see Braid up there too.