Number Eight

(Ethan's List of the Top Ten Games Ever: Yes, His List is Better Than Yours)

Yes, placing above games from two of the most critically series of all time comes a game from an equally, if not moreso, popular series with varying critical acclaim.

Yes, I'm talking about the gateway drug into RPGs.

Number Eight - Pokemon: Silver Version

Let's dive right in.
Please note that everything I say assumably applies to Gold as well.



So I might not be able to ramble to such an extent that I did about number nine and ten, but this title still deserves this position.
Out of the entire incredibly addicting series, this one is the most jam-packed.
And not jammed-packed with the ridiculous 500 little critters the latest iterations boast.
Silver introduced the not only the night and day cycles, but events mapped to days of the week. It was like Animal Crossing, but with a main quest and leveling up. It was the only upgrade to the series to actually feel like a sequel. Everything was upgraded so intuitively that just when you thought the gameplay of Red/Blue couldn't get anymore addicting, Silver turned it up that notch.

While the story was never anything to care about, the level design was tight and felt very intentional; as opposed to the sprawling arbitrary layouts of the newer versions.

And when you were done the main quest, not only did you still have the task of collecting all the pokemon, but now you also had the chance to return to a modified Kanto -- the setting for the first games.

So with essentially two main quests, time and date sensitive events, more pokemon (but not TOO many pokemon), an interesting world, and ridiculously addicting gameplay, Pokemon Silver claims this spot for the pure fun factor. And while its successors have only made the interface far more intuitive, Silver remains as the peak of the series.

Agree with me yet?

Tune it tomorrow for a title that's definitely critically acclaimed and loved by the few people who bought it.
Any guesses?

Feel free to leave comments agreeing or disagreeing below.

_ethan

Number Nine

(Ethan's List of the Top Ten Games Ever: Yes, His List is Better Than Yours)

And let's continue this list with another unappreciated masterpiece.

Number Nine - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Since I don't want to take up the paragraphs below talking about Tingle, I'll get that out of the way now: Tingle is great.
Yes, he's a creepy delusional man who thinks he's a fairy. No, I wouldn't want him to babysit my kids or my dog or even my stuffed animals. But Tingle is so full of personality (no matter how unsettling) that it's impossible to ignore. I think he's an example of what makes the Zelda series great. Notice how stale Twilight Princess felt? That's because the only good character was that blunt, business-savvy super-child.
But moving on.



Like any good Zelda game, Link starts off in a place he doesn't belong (notice this isn't the case in Wind Waker and Twilight Princess?). This immediately connects you to Link and draws you into the dark world and bizarre scenario.

Clock Town is bursting with life. There are doors everywhere and even more characters filling these spaces. And to add to this already incredible dynamic is the fact that almost every character works on a schedule. Now the place you visited earlier in the day is completely different from the evening is completely different from the next day is competely different from the next day. Get the idea?
While some felt that the timeline was restricting, I felt it opened the world up to become a breathing organism that just demanded you know all its parts.

While the dungeons were the worst out of any 3D Zelda game (yes, even worse than Wind Waker), it didn't really matter because the main story almost became the side story. Majora's Mask is about the sidequests. It's about the little stories you discover about Kafei and Romani and The Postman and so many more. Everything is so connected and everything holds a reward. It is a dense, rich world that feels like everything has as much emphasis as everything else.

Speaking of these characters, let's go back to the first point I was making. Because Link doesn't talk, a Zelda game needs incredibly strong characters to give the game (and therefore, Link) a personality. And this game delivers. You have the complex nature of the reactions of Anju and Kafei, you have the muddled intentions of the unsettling Happy Mask Man, you have the proud story of Darmani, the sad Deku butler, the faithful witch sisters. And this is just scratching the surface. Everywhere you turn are new characters waiting to plow you over with their bizarre complexity.

And here's an important part of the games that make this list that Final Fantasy XII didn't get a nod about (with some reason). The music. While Twilight Princess had a good theme and some other occasional moments when the music shone, and Wind Waker had appropriate, well-written music for the setting, Majora's Mask is the last Zelda game to truly have an outstanding soundtrack. To carry the powerful mood the game establishes, the music becomes everything. From Clock Town to Snow Peak, Majora's Mask immerses you.
(can you tell WW and TP won't be making this list?)

Agree with me yet?

Tomorrow's item might just surprise you.

Until then,

_ethan

Number Ten

So let's kick this amazing list off.
Remember: disagree and die.


Number Ten - Final Fantasy XII

This one is almost just to piss you guys off.
Final Fantasy VII held this spot for a bit, but then I realized a game doesn't deserve a spot on this list if it's only here for nostalgia purposes. And let's face it: FFVII is only amazing until you leave Midgar. It's all downhill from there.
On with why Final Fantasy XII does deserve this spot.



While everybody at IGN except Jeremy Dunham seems to inexplicably write off this title, I see it for what it truly is.
Final Fantasy XII is so incredibly refreshing in so many ways. It allows you to explore a massive world with barely any "invisible walls" to stop you. Instead, if you venture off to explore, the shear challenge of the wild beasts in the area give you hints that you're not quite powerful enough to be there yet.
But still you feel the need to explore because every area calls to you. There is no longer a bizarre, perspective-altering overworld like the PSX generation iterations. There is no longer just a plain arbitrary path connecting one destination to the other like in Final Fantasy X.
No, in XII you feel like you're actually embarking on a real journey each time you gear up to take travel. You cross plains and duck through caves usually taking one of many paths that could lead you to where you want to go.

Although the story -- while intricate -- is a bit too boring to care about, the storytelling is spectacular.
Final Fantasy XII easily sets the standard for voice-acting in a video game. Which is a huge relief after the terrible work done in X. Not only are the voices stellar, but the direction of the scenes are compelling and inventive.
While Vaan and Penelo are annoying, Ashe and Basch are boring and only Fran and Balthier are interesting, you still care about every scene because of how well it's put together.
If this is continued in XIII with a more engaging storyline and consistently interesting characters, imagine the possibilities.

Finally the controversial battle system. Here's the final word: it's refreshing, engaging, customizable, and fun. It's beyond me how so many IGN editors seem to write XII off as another boring notch on the Final Fantasy series when so much was improved upon from the mediocrity that was X.
(Can you tell X won't be on this list?)

Agree with me yet?

Look forward to agreeing with me again when Number 9 comes tomorrow.

There will be no rapidfire while this feature is running, but feel free to comment below.

_ethan

A New Feature.

Be excited.
Starting tomorrow, I start a brand new feature called:

Ethan's List of the Top Ten Games Ever: Yes, His List is Better Than Yours.

Or - ELotTTGE:YHLiBTY for short.

Tomorrow will be number ten.

_ethan

Music News Today

So today I start work on Scarecrow.
It's definitely the most excited I've been for a music for movie project.
Mostly because it's the best work we've had to work with so far.
I'm hoping to go for a bit of a Pan's Labyrinth thing.

I'll let you know when there are samples up at the site.
Time to work 12 hours straight.

_ethan