#40 Rayman Origins
Precision platforming done to perfection. Before platformers were built from the ground up with speedrunners in mind, Rayman was perfecting the smooth level design that would become an industry norm several years later.
There is nothing that feels better than cruising through one of these levels, nailing split-second jumping through the various complex and lengthy challenging levels. A joyful experience amplified by cartoon silliness.
#39 Kentucky Route Zero
The quintessential art game.
You either love this game on a level that redefines you as a person, or you hate it and think it’s pretentious nonsensical trash.
Both are probably valid opinions.
But there is no arguing that this game NAILS a look, a mood, a soundscape. And in my opinion, it’s complex thematic elements make it a fascinating game built from the ground up to absorb multiple times over many years to come.
#38 The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky
Falcom’s OTHER massive successful long-running franchise. Trails in the Sky is World Building 101. It proves you don’t have to make a massive open world to make a well-realized environment to occupy time in.
The amount of work put into the mini-stories the NPCs tell throughout the game is expertly done, and the core dynamic between Estelle and Joshua kept me invested in it’s narrative until it’s big cliffhanger ending. A must-play for classic JRPG fans.
#37 Control
I’m gonna admit, I’m fairly indifferent to the actual gameplay of Control.
But that just shows how GREAT the world and storytelling are. It’s worth trudging through a mediocre action game in order to sink into the endlessly creative (…ok so its just Remedy does SCP, but still) concept.
Every little side story, memo, and extra bit of world building had me wide-eyed and grinning like an idiot. Only game to ever make a refrigerator an intimidating antagonist.
And I mean… if I say the words “Ashtray Maze”, you know what’s up. Simply epic.
#36 The Longest Journey
Can’t say I’ve played a ton of point and click adventures. They tend to not grab me in the same way other narrative-heavy games do.
But The Longest Journey is one hell of an exception to that.
I’m still blown away by how in-depth the writing is in this game. Ragnar Tørnquist managed to not only make one of the most fascinating and unique FANTASY stories, but also one of the most fascinating and unqiue SCI-FI stories… in the same game! I spent way too much time clicking through every single dialogue option and immersing myself in the storytelling. I wish we’d get that direct sequel they’ve always been teasing…
#35 Chrono Cross
I was one of those “this game sucks ’cause it’s not Chrono Trigger 2” guys. Then I replayed it as an adult and gave it a second chance.
And now here it is above Chrono Trigger on my favorite games list. I absolutely love the over-the-top storyline and characters. I can’t get over how amazing the art design of this game is. And quite frankly: this is my favorite video game soundtrack of all time.
Sure, I’m still awful at the battle system and sometimes it gets way too obtuse for it’s own good, but when it lands, it lands hard. It still has one of my favorite plot twists ever pulled off in a video game.
#34 Wild ARMs
How are there not more games that blend steam punk, fantasy, and western stylings together?
Wild ARMs stands alone in it’s direction, and because of this, it tells an unmatched story in the genre. While the combat is fairly standard and will eventually be built upon in the sequels, the dungeon puzzles are top level. If you want a little Zelda in your JRPG, there is no better series to get into than Wild ARMs.
And I’d be a failure of a fan if I didn’t shout out my girl Michiko Naruke, one of the best JRPG composers that doesn’t get enough credit. The score for this game is untouchable.
#33 AI: The Somnium Files
I’m not even entirely sure how to describe the Somnium Files series. It’s just plain goofy but manages to tell a well-written anime AF story that keeps you guessing until the very end.
I spent entirely too much time clicking on every tiny item on every screen so I could listen to the funny dialogue between the characters. Date is the most loveable dirtbag ever written, and the supporting cast bounce off him perfectly.
And as I said with it’s sequel, this game also has a pretty damn impressively pulled off twist that you simply will not guess.
#32 Stray
Cat.
You play as a cat.
Greatest game ever.
Jokes aside, Stray went all-in on it’s concept. The cat in the game acts and feels like a real cat, and while that novelty would be enough to carry a few hour exploration based game, Stray doesn’t rest on it’s hook alone.
The world feels very well realized, and the puzzle integration is organic in a way that most games of this style fail to nail down. There were many moments where I was just poking my way around and went “wait, can I do something with this?”.
THIS is what an open exploration game should be. And as for the ending? I’m not crying just thinking about it, if that’s what you’re asking. Now where are those tissues…
#31 World Of Final Fantasy
Sometimes, fan service can be done well.
World of Final Fantasy is absolutely STUFFED with winks and nods for the fans of the series, but it doesn’t rely on that entirely to carry you through.
The core gameplay is addicting in that Pokemon-esque way of collecting familiar monsters and building teams. And the actual original story delivers enough to keep the game going.
But really, it’s just the pure joy of exploring familiar worlds with familiar characters and chuckling at the absurdity of it all.
#30 Terraria
ReLogic owes me like… 1000 hours of my life back? Give or take?
As of this writing, Terraria is on about 12 years of pumping out original content for free. It’s insane the legs this simple “Minecraft-like” has had.
I’ve buried myself in this game on numerous occasions, and always find myself coming back. Exploring, looting, building. or just getting destroyed by random boulders, I never don’t have a great time sinking time into this hobby… I mean game… I mean full time job.
Someday they’ll stop adding 1000 pieces of new content to it every year or so. Right?
#29 Suikoden 2
I wouldn’t be a very good PS1-era JRPG fan if I didn’t raise a fuss about Suikoden 2. It’s like… THE PS1 JRPG.
And for good reason. It’s a heartwrenching fantasy war story that keeps itself grounded around very believable and well-written characters stands alone in the genre. Even today, it’s a gripping playthrough. Add to that the replayability that comes with Suikoden’s 108 Stars of Destiny system and you have a game that’s very easy to play again and again and again.
#28 Cocoon
I’m what you might call “a stupid dumb idiot”, and I tend to fall off puzzle games over time. But Cocoon was a one-shot playthrough that I couldn’t put down.
Not only does it make you feel clever when you peel away it’s layers and reveal the solutions hidden beneath, but there were several moments that I just straight up had to put my controller down and gasp at how brilliantly designed it was.
Layering it’s relatively simple mechanics on top of each other in ways that blow the mind all while looking and sounding incredible. A true masterpiece in the genre.
#27 Shenmue
I get it, Shenmue “hasn’t aged well”. But you have to understand something. At the time, NOTHING was like this. It’s the one game that I think the cliche “ahead of it’s time” actually fully fits.
I spent hours upon hours marvelling at how detailed the world was. From it’s NPCs having actual schedules (and their own friggin’ homes!), to poking every little object for no apparent reason other than ’cause you can.
And quite frankly, it’s B-movie grade voice acting only makes the experience even more endearing. There is nothing like Shenmue, even today. It stands completely alone.
#26 The Last Guardian
After such a long wait, I was pleasantly surprised that The Last Guardian didn’t turn out to be a disaster.
To this day, I’m astonished by how polished this game actually is. The way Trico interacts with the environments is a technical marvel. When you combine that with that signature Fumito Ueda style, you have a magnifanct work of art.
And yes, I even enjoy Trico being a jerk half the time. It’s just like trying to get a regular pet to listen to your commands. Weaponizing frustration as a mechanic is risky, but it pays off in the end.
#25 Kirby’s Epic Yarn
Sometimes you just need that comfort food game that makes all your worries go away. Epic Yarn is that game for me. I bought a wii JUST for this game, and it was well worth it.
There is something about a stress-free Kirby experience wrapped in adorable art style that warms the ol’ ticker.
But what really puts this game over is it’s remarkably large amount of unique and different level gimmicks. Almost every level in this robust game is coming from a new direction, with entirely different level themes and various transformation abilities that spice up the gameplay. An overall master class in style and substance combined.
#24 Wild ARMs 2
Take everything that was great about the first Wild ARMs, and refine it even more. More mindbending puzzles? Check. More incredible music? Oh yeah. It’s all there and wrapped in even more steampunk western stylings.
Wild ARMs 2 somehow overcame it’s… we’ll say rocky… localization choices to present a maturely written story carried entirely by it’s cast of loveable characters. And with it’s more developed systems, it’s a perfect sequel to an already excellent game.
#23 Kirby: Planet Robobot
Someone walked into a board room at HAL Labs one day, silently picked up a dry erase marker, and just wrote “Kirby + Mech Suits” on the whiteboard.
And everyone in the room just went “well yeah, of course we do that”.
Planet Robobot is everything you want in a Kirby game. Tons of fun abilities to toy with, adorable details in it’s level design, and a story that gets so dark at the end it’ll keep you up at night in existential crisis. All the Kirby staples you expect!
#22 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
A triumph in modern turn based RPG. A gripping story about grief and loss tied up in a rich fantasy world designed entirely on the concept of being “painterly”.
Add in a deep character customization system, a solid battle system that harkens back to Lost Odyssey and Shadow Hearts, and a genuinely Top 10 of all time OST and you have a true classic in the genre.
All minor flaws aside, this game is a culmination of influences in the best way.
#21 Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
The Ys formula, perfected.
Ys VIII blends everything the franchise is known for together into a nearly flawless action RPG. From the story to the cast to the music, everything is here in top form.
But what’s an action RPG without action? And Ys VIII’s gameplay is perhaps the best the franchise has ever felt. Flying through the environments while pulse-pounding music plays, shredding through hordes of cool enemies with incredibly fun abilities.
All of this lends itself to a great setup of finding survivors on an island and building your own tiny village to come back to. The stories and characters that exist within this village make the downtime just as enjoyable as the action. And the main storyline, perfectly pulled off using a dual protagonist system, comes together in the end with an emotionally impactful payoff.
A truly special action RPG that shows how far the Ys series has come, and set a new benchmark for the series to follow in the future. I still listen to the Sunshine Coastline theme every few days or so.
The Mog Pile 