New Idea - Computer Games!

I've been thinking about diversifying my blog for some time now. I'd quite like to blog about some of the computer games I'm playing recently, but I know I expose myself to a narrow range of genres and so there'd be limited use in me dedicating an entire blog to the subject.

So I think I might allow myself the occasional post about what I'm playing at the moment. Unlike my film reviews, I'll seldom be writing about anything that I genuinely don't like. I'm quite picky about the games I play and often wait for several months after they come out before playing them (cos they're cheaper and you can read lots of reviews), so I generally know I'm going to enjoy what I'm playing.

Platform is the first big issue for any gamer. PC or console? Mouse and keyboard & controller? Personally I can't be bothered trying to keep up with advances in PC technology and so I play almost all my games on my Xbox 360. My first console was an N64, but I migrated to Xbox when it came out because a) I couldn't take the GameCube seriously and b) Halo. I do have a PC which was something of a mid-range spec 4 years ago. It's apparently capable of playing a surprising amount of what's coming out these days if you turn all the graphics settings down to minimum. These days the only gaming it sees is the occasional game of Civ 4. Thankfully I am going to be able to play The Old Republic when it's finally released in late December.

I have an Xbox 360 out of partial brand loyalty (I had an Xbox & Xbox Live accounts), but mainly because I don't get along with PlayStation controllers. There are very few games these days that aren't multi-platform - and so I rarely feel like I'm missing out.

To kick this new section of the blog off then, I thought I'd put my cards on the table and rattle off my favourite 10 computer games of all time. Not *the best* 10 games of all time (got to be Tetris), just the ones I've enjoyed the most. You can probably work out my age by reading through this list...

Civilisation 2

If I had decided to put these games in order, Civ 2 would easily have gone in at the top. I shudder to think about the amount of time I spent at university playing this absorbing turn-based strategy game. When I finally worked out how to beat the AI on Deity level I think I reached the height of my nerd nirvana.

Goldeneye

Though probably not the greatest FPS of all time, Goldeneye is up there with the most innovative of the genre. The first game in which enemies reacted differently if they'd been shot in the head or the foot, and one of the first in which it was entirely possible to complete a level by stealth or all guns blazing - Goldeneye blazes a trail. Plus all those drunken evenings playing multiplayer. There's a certain generation of people to whom the phrase 'one shot kill slaps' will trigger a fusillade of memories.

Knights of the Old Republic

With the greatest twist in the history (well at least my personal history) of computer gaming and the first of several games that overlaid the Star Wars universe onto a D&D rules set - KOTOR was a game I played from start to finish a number of times. This was Bioware getting it right.

Halo

The Xbox's killer app was a good 50% of the reason for me buying Microsoft's console 9 years ago. Endless LAN gaming (Blood Gulch has entered the gaming lexicon as a byword for classic & simple 'capture the flag' level design) and one of the best single player FPS games ever, it's a classic. The final level of the single player game is an astonishing countdown-to-zero car chase through alien hordes, I might go and play it this evening...

Mario Kart 64

Endless hours playing this with housemates at university (can you see a theme running through this list) mean it would be remiss of me not to include it here. I will concede that it probably wasn't as good as the SNES version, but I played this the most and so it gets the nod.

Mass Effect

The most modern game on my list, Mass Effect (parts 1 and 2) has taken the Role Playing genre to a new realm. By introducing cinematic dialogue for the player's character, Bioware have given players a whole new level of investment in their character's story. I can't remember being more emotionally attached to the plot of a computer game that when playing through the final battles of Mass Effect 2. It's probably worrying that I got such an endorphin rush out of
navigating Sheppard's team safety through their encounter with the Collectors. Roll on ME3!

Rock Band

I'm sure my housemates would attest that I would be lying if I left this off my list. The various incarnations of Rock Band have formed the basis of a number of social events and wasted evenings in mine and friends' houses.

Planescape Torment

Despite all that's come since, this isometric RPG remains unique in its dedication to character and philosophy as the driving force behind its story. The central premise is a character whom cannot be killed and his response to the question "What can change the nature of a man?". With pages of dialogue to work your way through, the D&D combat system often took a distant back seat as the 'Nameless One' wandered through the multiverse in search of his destiny. It was my first exposure to RPGs, still one of my favourite.

Shogun Total War

RTS battles + turn-based resource acquisition = brilliant game. The original might look dated now, but it's simple paper / scissors / stone battle system gives it something of a charm that I think the later versions have lost a little of.

John Tiller's Campiagn Series

Possibly the most obscure of my choices, this little-known hex-based platoon-level war simulation game from the late-90s has been something I've regularly gone back to over the years. You can play a variety of historically-accurate scenarios and campaigns from several theatres of the second world war. It helped keep me sane when I was working out in Botswana by myself 4 years ago.

So there you have it. Yet more evidence that I'm a huge nerd to add to the mounting pile.