The main lead of FF XI is Zidane, a young thief. He and his allies become involved in a battle against the evil Queen Brahne. In classic RPG fashion however, you find out that Brahne is just an unwitting puppet for an even bigger villain, Kuja. The game contains many staples of early FF titles; the four crystals, characters classified by various classes (knight, thief, lancer, mage, etc), black mages with blue robes and yellow hats, and random encounters. Even the battle music, while it’s an original track, takes you back to the old days. That’s not to say that FF IX doesn’t have any new tricks. An active event system allows players to switch between different events when something else is going on, allowing you to see things from different viewpoints. The mognet subquest has you delivering mail to the moggles, and the card game from FFVIII has returned, although it’s simpler to play than last time. The plot is much more lighthearted in fare, to a fault almost. It may not be in epic in scale as VII and VIII, but RPG fans will nonetheless enjoy it.

FFXI represented the end of an era. FFX and XI were setting to once again take the franchise new directions, and FFXI was the last numbered Final Fantasy game for the PS1. Square’s effort closed out an already epic year for the company, and it bought back everything fans loved about the 16-bit franchise titles while still keeping things fresh.

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Doom 64 takes place after Doom II. The Earth has been saved, but there are still demons roaming the halls of Mars and its moons. In a last ditch effort to eliminate every trace to the demonic invasion, the moons are bombed with irradiation, killing off nearly every demon….except one. While healing himself, he resurrects his fallen brethren. However because of the radiation, they become different and more powerful than they were before. Now it’s time to go back once again and stop the demon horde.

Doom 64 features all new textures and animations for the enemies (well the ones who have returned at least) and weapons. The backdrops and wall textures have also been given a new look, with the satanic imagery more prevalent than the old PC game. The lighting and texturing have also been altered to make the game’s atmosphere seem more moody and fearful than it was in the PC game. All of the weapons are back, although they have new looks and effects. They have been joined by a new weapon called the Unmaker, a powerful laser gun which can be upgraded by finding artifacts for it (now for some trivia: the Unmaker was one of the many unused concepts from developer Tom Hall’s Doom Bible, and its appearance in Doom 64 marks the first and only time it appeared in the series). The game also includes booby traps such as darts, making the game’s levels more intense than before. The music was done by Aubrey Hodges, who had done the musical score for the Playstation version of Ultimate Doom. The moody soundtrack also does a good job of adding to fear and dread.

Doom 64 is an excellent and underrated part of the Doom saga, and could almost be considered Doom 3 (of course the actual Doom 3 was released 7 years later). Doom 64 was also one of the few must-have titles on the Nintendo 64, and beside Goldeneye, it was one of the best first person shooter games on the system. Sadly it was largely ignored due to its engine looking dated and gamers having moved on to more advanced FPS titles. A lot of fans are hard at work bringing this to PC as a Doom conversion, and it hopefully won’t be long before this game is available on the Virtual Console.

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Timesplitters places players in the shoes of various heroes throughout the ages as they do battle with a mysterious race of mutants known as the Timesplitters. You’ll begin in 1930s Egypt, travel to Chinatown in the 70s, and you’ll even travel towards the distant future. Rather than the hyper realistic graphics of most FPS titles, Timesplitters has a cartoonish art style, and there is very little blood and gore (although a few women characters are quite scantily clad The campaign mode (which you can play co-op) is easily the weakest part of the game. The story is virtually nonexistent, and all you do in each stage is head out to retrieve an object, then bring it back to the starting point while being chased by the Timesplitters. However, the game’s arcade mode is where the game really shines. It allows players to complete challenges, get used to the game’s multiplayer modes, and unlock new maps and characters. The arcade and multiplayer modes are guaranteed to keep Timespliters in your PS2’s tray for months after finishing the Campaign mode.

The game also includes a user-friendly mapmaker, so that players can create their own multiplayer maps. You basically select a motif, lay down room tiles, and you’re ready to go. Throughout the series’ next few entries, the mapmaker’s functionality had been expanded, and by the third entry, Future Perfect, players were able to create story mode single player missions and share them online. This helped pave the way for more user-generated content in console games.

Before Halo burned up Xbox Live, Timesplitters helped bring buddies together so that they could blast each other to pieces, and its sequels improved on the formula. Sadly, the status of the franchise is up in the air as Free Radical was absorbed into Crytek after 2008’s Haze, a flop of epic proportions. Long before their premature demise, Free Radical shown a teaser for Timesplitters 4. Hopefully they will be able to proceed, because I’m ready to see what they can do on current generation hardware.

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$20 Game of the Week: Syphon Filter – Logan’s Shadow
Logan’s Shadow is the follow up to 2006’s Dark Mirror, the game that reintroduced the Syphon Filter franchise to gamers and also one of the PSP’s must-have titles. Logan’s Shadow continues the espionage fun with an all new plotline. Once again stepping into the role of agent Gabe Logan, players have to once again unravel a conspiracy. This time however, longtime partner Lian Xing has been suspected of being a traitor and is missing in action, while Gabe Logan’s agency has been disbanded by a corrupt U.S. senator, so the stakes are higher than ever before. If you played Dark Mirror, then Logan’s Shadow will be easy to get into. In fact, the tutorial missions are the same as in Dark Mirror, with the exception of an added tutorial for underwater combat. The only major gameplay change is that the medkit system has been dropped in favor of a Halo-style auto-refilling health bar. You can now chose weather to have the L button use a free-aiming mechanic or the series’ trademark lock-on system. Just like Dark Mirror, Logan’s Shadow features a ton of unlockables, including weapons and missions.

Like it’s predecessor, Logan’s Shadow should be in the library of every PSP owner, and fans of the series will find another round of the action that the series is known for, although the ending leaves the future of the series up in the air. I won’t spoil it for you, you’ll just have to play the game.

Lost Classics: Super Castlevania 4 (SNES, Wii Virtual Console)

Okay, so this game really doesn’t really fit the criteria for a proper Lost Classic. With today being a holiday and this being perhaps one of the games of all time however, I hope all you Poweteers will let me slide.

In my personal humble opinion, SCIV is the best Castlevania game in the series. Yes, there are better games in the series than SCIV, and there are games in the series that I have enjoyed more than SCIV, but no other game in the series has left the impression on me that SCIV did.

In the early days of the SNES, the games that were released for it were basically 16-bit sequels/upgrades of classic 8-bit games. Super Mario World improved upon the overworld design of Super Mario Brothers 3 while adding battery backup. Final Fantasy II (or IV as it was known as in Japan) took the basic gameplay of FF1 (and the Japan only 2 and 3) and added in Mode 7 graphics and orchestra sound. So it was with Super Castlevania IV, which in terms of the series’ chronology, had the same storyline as the original Castlevania: Simon Belmont set out to defeat Dracula, who was risen from the dead once again. Only this time, the game didn’t start right at the entrance. That wasn’t until level 6. While the game started out with the familiar whip-cracking-outside-the-gate sequence, you had to travel through the stables, the marsh, a cave, and more before you even got to the front door. With a front yard like that, you wouldn’t even need ADT security. It would be so much trouble getting to the front door that any would-be burglar would simply give up. Simon thankfully had a new trick up his sleeve to take on the danger: an 8-way directional whip, possibly inspired by Contra. This trick helped a long way towards alleviating some of the frustrations which were common in platform gaming, such as enemies overhead and small flying objects which cause pitfalls. By holding down the Y button, Simon can even dangle the whip, providing a shield of sorts against smaller enemies and projectiles.

It being a SNES game, the first thing gamers noticed was the improved visuals, particularly Simon Belmont’s sprite. it was huge and well detailed. There were also parallel backgrounds, and the first level of the game in particular took advantage of the new technology. You traversed inside and outside of a gate to make your way through part of the level. Then there was the second stage and its swamp, where after you beat the level’s boss, the level still didn’t end, as you went down a sludge covered ramp. One of my favorite moments in the game takes place in level four. You traverse your way through a tower with rotating platforms, and midway through the level you fight a giant ghost skull. After destroying the skull, you then move on to the level’s second half, which started with a room full of spikes which rotated as you had to hang on for dear life then swing across to avoid getting impaled. Next, you’re in the inside of a rotating barrel full of enemies which come out the background to attack you. The last part of the level took place in a hall which put a whole new spin on the ‘moving blocks’ segment of the platforming genre. At the end, you faced yet another boss: a rock monster which grew LARGER as you damaged him. The next level was a bit of a rest of sorts, as you went up a stairway towards Dracula’s castle. When you finally entered Drac’s castle in level 6, it was a brand-new experience entirely. While level 6 started off with the old-school Castlevania zombie entrance way and underground water lagoon, things soon got hectic as you jumped across chandeliers, battled ghost dancers, and took on possessed suits of armor. The final level was another awesome moment which really put gamers’ fingers to the test, as they outran a giant wheel, descended a tower, and took on THREE SEPARATE BOSSES before meeting Dracula himself. SCIV’s levels were chock full of cool stuff, and the graphics and sound capabilities of the Super Nintendo made everything even more surrealistic.

The music was another huge part of the SCIV experience. While this was right before CD gaming became the norm, the SNES sound processors could give more advance sound systems a run for their money, and SCIV demonstrated this. The game’s first level featured a tune that would go on to become a classic Castlevania anthem, and you’d even hum along to it like you did songs like Vampire Killer and Bloody Tears. The second level’s BGM featured slapping congo drums and an ominous but upbeat melody which went perfectly with the marsh setting. The first part of level three featured a hauntingly beautiful harp-plucking/flute melody which gave way to a strong piano loop when you reached the waterfall in the second part. The final part of the level featured a weird smooth-jazz sounding number which sounded surreal with the area’s Sunken-Atlantis backdrop. The second part of level 4 was an awesome melody which started out almost like a modern R&B piece, but transferred into a more traditional Castlevania-style tune, although it got increasingly frantic as it went on. The R&B ends abruptly with some organs, then the horns and drums come in, and they get louder and more frantic, which was perfect, because the level itself became crazier and frantic towards the end. Level 7’s library featured a quieter string/wood piece, which helped players catch their breaths a bit after level 6’s insanity. It also helped get them ready for 8, which had some foreboding piano keys accentuated with some even more sinister sounding African drums. This was especially perfect, as the level took place in a prison full of traps. The game’s final levels featured remixes of some classic Castlevania tunes as well.

It has been almost 20 years since that Christmas morning that I got my SNES and played SCIV for the first time. However, it still remains one of my favorite games to this day. It demonstrated how an action game should be done, and it was an excellent showcase of the SNES’s capabilities. It was also one of the first games I downloaded to my Wii Virtual Console, and playing it with my Gamecube controller gives me so many flashbacks. No other game in the series has as many water-cooler moments as SCIV, not even Symphony of the Night’s upside-down castle, Dracula X’s burning village, or even Portrait of Ruin’s tag team final boss battle against Dracula and Death. If you haven’t played it yet, you owe it to yourself to do so as soon as you can. It’s an excellent entry in an excellent gaming franchise.

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Little Known Fact: River City Ransom is actually the third game in what’s known in Japan as the Kunio series. The first two made it over here as Renegade and Super Dodgeball.

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The Sega Genesis version stuck to the movie’s plot, and it added in flashback levels from the series showing how three of the Power Rangers joined the team. It was a Final Fight-style beat-em-up, and you faced villains from the series after beating up waves of putties (the mindless footsoldiers that comprised the private army of whatever villain the rangers were battling against in that particular series). You controlled the Megazords towards the end of the game, and the game’s music was comprised of music from the show, albeit it was in Sega Genesis sound processor form.

The Super Nintendo version on the other hand didn’t follow the movie at all. The only real similarity it had with the movie was the fact that you fought Ivan Ooze. The game seemed more of a sequel to the Power Rangers game that was released the previous year. You had your pick of rangers, and this time a friend could join you for co-op. It was a side scrolling platformer with beat-em-up style gameplay, a’la X_men Mutant Apocalypse. In many of the game’s areas, you can jump vertically between two planes of action, similar to the old-school Fatal Fury games. The game features bright graphics and a catchy soundtrack, as well as a few codes for players who beat the game on expert mode.

Disappointingly, neither version of the game features the ninja suits or the ninjazords that were introduced in the movie, and that was one of its man selling points. Also, as these games were obviously geared toward children, they don’t present much of a challenge. Even on the highest difficulty setting, my brother and I had no problems finishing both games withing a couple of hours. Still though, if you wanted something you could play with your kids or younger siblings, then you could do a lot worse than Power Rangers.

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GunValkyrie takes place in an alternate version of the early 1900s. During the late 19th century, a scientist named Dr. Hebbel Gate harnessed the power of Haley’s Comet to advance technology and help the British Empire take control of Earth. Recently he has gone missing but not before cutting his daughter’s head off, placing it a life support unit, and stealing her body (an act which will surely guarantee his nomination for father of the year). Making matters worse, entire colonies are disappearing and being replaced by bug-like creatures. Therefore it is up to the military force Team Dolphin to find out what’s going on.

Players take control of one of two characters, Kelly O’Lenmy or Saburota Mishima, both of which have their own weapons and abilities. The two characters also have their own difficulty levels, as Kelly is geared towards players who play on the medium difficulty and Saburota is recommended for advanced players. You often choose which character to play as before the start of each level. The two have upgradable weapons and armor, which you’ll need because the game can be very difficult. The game’s dual analog control scheme is different from other third-person shooters, so there is a very steep learning curve. Those who master it will be rewarded with some very trippy visuals which do a good job of complementing the stunning backdrops. One level in patricular has players scaling a structure as an alien creature broadcasts Dr. Gate’s voice.

GunValkyrie was a one-of-a-kind action shooter on Xbox, with some fans even comparing it to Metroid. It’s anime-inspired atmosphere made it unique. It’s too bad that Sega never decided to follow it up. Maybe Microsoft will make it available on Xbox Live’s Xbox originals.

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Well, now that the turkey is digested and the Black Friday bargain hunting is done, it’s time to get a start on your holiday shopping. Of course, I’m here to help you get a head start. For the $20 GOTW, I’ve got one of those new-fangled rhythm games that the kids seem to love so much, and for the lost classic, I got one of those old-school style PC RPGs that a select few tend to love.

$20 Game of the Week Part 1: Guitar Hero II (Xbox 360, PS2)
There have been music games long before the Guitar Hero series. However, none of them have done the genre justice like the Guitar Hero series. The Guitar Hero series has made the genre more accessible thanks in no small part to the prop guitar that comes with the game and the recognizable song list. Even hip-hop heads such as me can recognize many of the songs on the game’s playlist, and it’s not uncommon to go into stores like Best Buy and see people gathering around an in-store product demo. The genre has spurned many knockoffs and imitators, but beside Rock Band (which was created by series creator Harmonix), few of them have gotten the genre right.

Guitar Hero II is a very important entry for the series for two reasons. Number one, it was the first to go multiplatform (hitting Xbox 360 months after the PS2 release). Number two, it introduced music tracks downloadable content. For a cheap price, your playlist can get even bigger, making your game experience fresh. These two features helped change the face of the music game genre. Thanks to the online model that Harmonix and Activision introduced, more and more of your favorite bands and tracks are showing up for current games such as Rock Band 2 and Lips.

(Obviously the $20 or less price tag is for the game by itself and without the guitar. )

Lost Classics: Realms of Arkaina (PC)
The main thing that separates console RPGs from their PC counterparts is their ties to the old school pen-and-paper RPGs of the past. You know, the kind that you have to roll 10 or 20 sided die in order to generate your character’s stats. Even with current hits like Dragon Age and Oblivion don’t stray too far from the Dungeons and Dragons blueprint with their character customization. While games such as Final Fantasy and Breath of Fire feature characters who are unique, games such as Mass Effect and Neverwinter Nights have concentrated on having players making unique characters. Earlier RPGs especially stuck close to this blueprint, even at the cost of their accessibility. One of the earliest examples of this trend was SirTech’s Realms of Arkania. Based on the German pen and paper RPG The Dark Eye, Arkania features several features from other RPGs, such as Might and Magic 3 and Eye of the Beholder. The game takes place mostly in a 3D view, but switches to an isometric view for the turn-based strategy battles.

This 2 pack features the first two games in the series, Blade of Destiny and Star Trail. In Balde of Destiny, players have to find the pieces of a legendary sword in order to defeat an orc king while in Star Trail, players have to find a legendary artifact which will unite elves in dwarves in battle against the orcs. The cool thing about this series is that players can save the game after beating them, and carry their characters over into the sequel. The game has a very steep learning curve. Along with simply having to defeat enemies, you also have to make sure they get adequate food, water, and rest. You also risk catching the flu if you don’t use blankets while sleeping. Unlike today’s RPGs which put you through an intro, the game tends to throw you right into things without telling you what to do, so reading the instruction manual is a must. You’ll also want to find a decent strategy guide or FAQ somewhere online.

Realms of Arkania has a very steep learning curve that WILL scare away most players. However, for those who do manage to get a hang on how things work and how to approach the game, the game can be quite rewarding. You’ll get into some serious level grinding and exploring, and you’ll be spending time in the game’s generation section crafting the perfect party to use. There is a 2 pack featuring the first 2 games in the series at GOG.com. The third game, Shadows Over Riva is also available on the site, and both can be purchased for $5.99 each.

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The following may or may not be an actual conversation between me and a college roommate.

My Roommate: Yo Will! Check out this book I read for history class!

Me: You actually read? I thought you just played football and lifted weights all day!

My Romomate: Heck yeah! It’s called Romance of the Three Kingdoms! I thought it was some sappy romance novel, but it’s got sorcerers, babes, dudes getting their heads chopped off, dudes chopping their wives up and eating them and all kinds of crazy $#!t!

Me: Awesome. They made some video games about it you know. You select a Chinese general, kill hundreds of enemies, and you even get to ride on horseback!

Roomie: I already know about that. Koei made them and they’re called Dynasty Warriors. So that’s what those games are based on…

Me: Nope, Capcom made them, and it was a pair of arcade titles called Dynasty Wars and Warriors of Fate. They’re arcade games, so they’re a bit hard to find.

Roomie: Awesome! I’m gonna find them right now!

Dynasty Wars (not to be confused with Dynasty Warriors, which is also based on Romance of the Three Kingdoms) is a historical beat-em-up from Capcom. Long before Koei made the Chinese novel into it’s version of Madden, Capcom bought it into a Final-Fight style beat em up setting. The first game dealt with the Yellow Turban Rebellion and the rise of the evil tyrant Dong Zhuo. You select one of four generals and make your way through waves on enemies while on horseback. You can collect experience points and special items to improve your weapons and stats RPG style.

Warriors of Fate was the game’s sequel. Unlike its predecessor, you now fought on foot (although horses frequently show up for players to ride on). In this game, you select one of 5 generals as you stop emperor Cao Cao and the Wei kingdom. If you’re playing the world version of the game, then the characters have been renamed and there is a slightly different storyline. Like other beat-em-up of the period, players could pick up dropped weapons and used them. The game was surprisingly gory for its time, as attacks decapitate and disembowel opponents.

Although the games weren’t very different from other beat-em-ups, they were enjoyable all the same. The fact that they are semi-educational is a small bonus as well. It’s a wonder why Capcom didn’t include then on their classics collection compilations

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$20 Game of the Week: Castlevania-Order of Ecclesia (Nintendo DS)
A series that sticks this closely for this long shouldn’t be allowed to be enjoyable. However, despite sticking to the exploration-heavy style of 1997’s Symphony of the Night, each Nintendo portable installment of Castlevania has managed to add in enough gameplay mechanics and variety to keep the series fresh and enjoyable, and the latest entry in the series, Order of Ecclesia, is no exception.

OOE takes place between SOTN and Castlevania Bloodlines. The Belmonts are MIA after the Vampire Killer whip’s power was corrupted. In their place, several organizations have sprung up, each dedicated to taking down Dracula. Ecclesia is one of these organizations, and your character, Shanoa, is a member. The Order may have discovered a way to take down Dracula for good: a set of glyphs called the Dominus. When a jealous rival steals the Dominus, causing Shanoa to lose her in the process, Shanoa sets out to get it back, dealing with any supernatural threats along the way. Your main way of attacking is with glyphs, objects which draw from your magical power. You gain them by defeating certain enemies or by completing certain sections of the game. These glyphs include everything from swords and temporary stat boosts to projectile attacks and familiar Castlevania sub-weapons. They all use magic, so while they recover quickly, one must be careful not to overuse them, least they be out of juice at a critical moment.

OOE once again takes the SOTN approach, in which exploration and backtracking are the key to getting ahead. You’ll gain relics and abilities which will open up new sections, so you always want to keep your eye open. This time around, the world is split up into several smaller locations instead of one huge central location like in previous games. A village serves as a hub world of sorts, where you can buy items, converse with non-player characters, and recover. Throughout the game you’ll rescue villagers, who then give you requests to carry out. Most of these revolve around finding an item of sorts, but there is a big reward for doing so. One thing you’ll notice about this game is that it’s very hard, especially in the first few areas. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself doing some level grinding. The boss fights are especially tough, but if you can decipher their attack pattern, they become a bit easier. In typical Castlevania fashion, there are numerous unlockables available after completing the game.

Once again, Konami has recycled their familiar formula while still keeping things fresh. Although many Castlevania fans have been patiently awaiting something new for a long time (such as the upcoming Lords of Shadow), Konami is still releasing quality entries such as this to tide them over in the meantime.

Lost Classics: Clock Tower (Playstation 1)
This Playstation 1 game is actually a sequel to the Super Nintendo Clock Tower game which was only released in Japan. It’s basically a point-and-click adventure title, but there are also survival horror elements, and it’s the video game equivalent of a slasher flick. Playing as one of two characters, you must discover the truth surrounding a series of murderers carried out by Scissorman, a deformed serial killer. What’s notable about this game is that the main character is weaker than the villain. While solving the game’s puzzles, you’ll be attacked by Scissorman at random, and you’ll either have to find some way to temporarily fend him off or find a safe hiding spot. The story changes depending on what choices you make, and both characters have 5 different endings. Clock Tower has enjoyed a strong cult following. It spawned two sequels, with Clock Tower 3 being published by Capcom. Hopefully it won’t be long before we see tis game on the Playstation Network, as horror fans looking for a different type of survival horror will love it.

Lost Classics: Sweet Home (NES)
Designed by Resident Evil’s Shinji Mikami, Capcom’s Sweet Home served as the inspiration behind Resident Evil, along with the survival horror genre itself. This Japan-only Super Famicom game was released in conjunction with the movie of the same name. As a matter of fact, a trailer for the movie included footage from the game, advertising both at the same time. Although it didn’t sell too well and wasn’t released outside of Japan, Sweet Home introduced a number of innovations to the RPG genre, and even included a few elements from the adventure game genre. Features such as limited inventory management, the mansion setting, the use of notes to tell parts of the story, and even the ‘door’ loading screen all show up in other survival horror games, most notable Resident Evil.

Players control a team of 5 characters who end up trapped in a haunted mansion while on an assignment to photograph and restore a series of wall murals. They must contend with a series of ghosts and creatures, and try to survive the mansion. Each of the characters has their own abilities, and you’ll have to use each of them in order to make it through the game. However, if a character dies, then you’ll find an item which can simulate their abilities. This is important too, because if a character dies, then you lose them for the entire game, thus making the survival theme more important than ever. You can switch between the characters at any time, and there are 5 different endings depending on who survives.

It’s a shame that this game never made it over here, nor is there any chance of the game showing up on Virtual Console. Beside hunting down an import, the only way to check out this game is via an unauthorized fan translation. Despite its limited popularity, Sweet Home helped lay the foundation for survival horror. Now would be a good time for a sequel, or even a remake.

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TIM is a puzzle game in which you have to accomplish a goal using whatever means you have available. This can be from something as simple as putting a ball into a basket, or something as complex as operating a series of appliances. You’ll have a certain amount of objects available to you, and it’s up to you to figure out how to use them to accomplish the goal. You’ll use everything from balls, to pipes, and even laser guns. You can even design your own puzzles, choosing which parts to use, which parts to throw in the use bin, and determine under what conditions the puzzle would be solved with an easy to use interface. The most recent iteration of the series, Even More Contraptions featured an online sharing service which was sadly disabled due to the game’s age. Speaking of EMC, you’ll want to check out the tutorial mode. Although it’s lengthy, you’ll learn how to use every gadget in the game.

It’s hard to find a boxed retail copy of the game, but thankfully GOG.com has recently released The Incredible Machine Mega pack. It contains The Even More Incredible Machine (an enhanced version of TIM 1), The Incredible Machine 3 (which contains all of the levels from TIM 2 as well as newer content), The Return of the Incredible Machine, and Even More Contraptions, all for the low price of $9.99. There are also rumors of an Xbox Live Arcade version, but I’ll believe it when I see it. You should definitely check it out, as it’s highly fun and innovative. Fans of the recently released Crayon Physics and Scribblenauts especially would get a kick out of this game. It’s fun putting together things just to see what you can come up with.

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When Sony entered the market as a console manufacturer, they began a whole new era of gaming, and much of it was due to the rise of disc-based gaming. Disc based systems at the time were becoming more commonplace due to CDs being easier and cheaper to manufacture. Since they could hold more information than floppy disks and cartridges, it was easy to see why they were becoming increasingly attractive to developers. Even before the Sony, there were already several disc-based systems on the market, although few of them fully utilized the potential of the added storage space and horse power of the medium. The Sega CD for instance, was merely an add-on to the Sega Genesis. Most of its line up either consisted of amped-up versions of Sega Genesis titles, arcade ports, and interactive movies. such as the controversial Night Trap. The Super CD, an add on for the Turbographix-16, had a slightly more impressive lineup (including the highly sought after Dracula X), but it never made it beyond the borders of Japan. The 3DO, which was a standalone system, carried many of the interactive movies that graced the Sega CD, and it also boasted arcade-perfect ports of games such as Samurai Showdown and Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo. However, its high price tag prevented it from making a huge impact in the marketplace. The Phillips CD-I, just plain sucked.

Around the early 90s, Nintendo wanted to jump into the CD gaming market. Originally, it was Sony who would help them develop the technology that would power the new system. Sony was of course no stranger to gaming. Under the name Sony Imagesoft, they developed and published several games for their soon-to-be competitors (in fact, you may have even seen a couple of them as Lost Classics). However, the deal would fall through due to lawsuits on both sides, and Nintendo opted to go with Phillips instead. That deal would also fall apart, and Nintendo would eventually abandon the concept of a CD based gaming system altogether in favor of cartridge-based the Nintendo 64. It’s because of this reason that many suspect that the Playstation is what Nintendo’s CD system would have been. Regardless of weather or not that rumor was true, it was ironic that Sony, the people slated to work with Nintendo on their new hardware, instead usurped their place as top dog console manufacturer.

The Playstation, arriving on U.S. shores in 1995, had a slow start due to its $300 price tag. Its major competition would be Nintendo’s Nintendo 64 and Sega’s Saturn. The former, despite introducing the analog stick to gaming, would unfortunately be a nightmare for third party developers due to Nintendo’s stubborn insistence on a cartridge-based medium. The later, despite having a promising library of games that included Panzer Dragoon, Fighter’s Mega Mix, and Guardian Saga, was killed off by Sega in favor of the similarly ill-fated Dreamcast. Sony lowered the Playstation’s price tag shortly after its release, and soon it made its way into the homes of many a gamer who had grown up with Sega and/or Nintendo products. Before long, the big two had finally became the big three.

Like the NES a decade ago, the Sony Playstation would change the face of gaming forever, not just through its technology, but by the library of games that was released for the system, weather they were from Sony’s in-house teams or from third party developers, many of which had churned out product for Sega and Nintendo for years. Games released on the Playstation either refined or introduced game mechanics that would shape gaming for the next 14 years. The following is a list of 10 of the most significant games and franchises that were released for Sony’s console. It’s not a list of the ten best games, as there would be some games that would have been left off and others that would have been included instead.

1. Final Fantasy VII
Perhaps no one game demonstrated the Playstation’s contribution to the video game market better than Final Fantasy VII. What made this game even more shocking was that it was even on a Playstation console at all, as Square had plied it’s trade exclusively for Nintendo since the late 1980s. However, Square left Nintendo’s stable, claiming that the company’s insistence on using cartridges was keeping developers such as Square from taking their games in the direction that they wanted to. Seeing FFVII in action, it was clear what that direction was. While the series always had deep and moving plotlines, the beautiful CG cinematics, which at times rivaled even Disney’s Toy Story, drove it home in a way never seen before. Who can forget that moment when Aeris was brutally killed by Sephiroth, or when the city of Midgard collapsed onto itself, or even when the planet is only moments away from annihilation during the game’s ending? The beautiful cinemas, along with the solid RPG gameplay that the Final Fantasy series was always known for, made FFVII a huge system seller for the Playstation, and it changed the face of an entire genre.

2. Metal Gear Solid
In hindsight, it seemed strange that Konami would choose to revive Metal Gear. The most U.S. gamers had seen of the series was its NES incarnation (which series creator Hideo Kojima didn’t even like) and its unofficial sequel Snake’s Revenge (which Kojima had no involvement with). Meanwhile in Japan, Metal Gear and its official sequel (which Kojima created after Snake’s Revenge) were both released on the MSX home computer. When Metal Gear Solid hit the Playstation however, it became an instant classic with players, and introduced stealth action gameplay to the masses. Though Thief came before it, MGS made stealth gameplay mainstream, as more and more developers incorporate stealth elements into their game. Like Final Fantasy VII, it also made use of cinematics to move its plot. While some more jaded gamers criticize the cinemas as being long winded, the cinemas did a good job of bringing the world to life and adding additional backstory to the series. Plot threads created here would still be bought up in later games in the series, such as last year’s MGS 4. The game also set the tone for the memorable boss fights that would be seen throughout the series. Boss fights such as sniper battle with Sniper Wolf in a snow-covered forest and the fight with Vulcan Raven (who was so huge you had to hit him with remote-controlled missiles) were intense and required strategy and planning to win. The crown jewel of these fights however, was the battle with Psycho Mantis who read your mind by reading the saves off your memory card (of course once you figured out the trick, it was simple to defeat him in short order). It was such features that saw Metal Gear Solid go from one of yesterday’s most sought after games to one of today’s hottest gaming franchises.

3. Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 5 hit the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 this past spring. For the most part, it has been generally well received, and will most likely be nominated for one or more year-end gaming awards. However, many people will agree that RE5 is missing what made the series so special to begin with. If one were to discuss the glory days of the series, then there is a good chance they will point to this second entry. While the first Resident Evil may not have created what is known as the survival horror genre (that honor goes to Alone in the Dark), it provided a blueprint that many developers tried to copy, although few would succeed. The sequel took everything that made the first great and made it even better. Trading in the first game’s secluded mansion for an average American town, RE2 provided players with scares of something that could almost happen tomorrow. Like the first game, there were two heroes players could pick from. This time however, the adventure was so huge, each character had their own disc. Best of all, after you finished the game with one person, you could load up the second disc and play as the other character, complete with new areas, enemies, plot details, and an extended ending. There were also several unlockable features, and this insured that the dame would have plenty of replay value. Years before games like Left 4 Dead and Dead Rising, it was Resident Evil that bought George Romero-style zombie killing fun to gamers.

4. Tekken 2
Since the early days of video gaming, the biggest challenge was getting arcade games to run at home. With primitive games such as Pong and Space Invaders, it was pretty easy. However, moving into the 80s with the NES, developers had to make compromises in order to get their games to run as best as they can while staying true to the arcade. The SNES and Geneses came pretty close, but as games such as Street Fighter II and Fatal Fury began to make use of more advance hardware, even they had to work with home versions that were graphically inferior to their arcade counterparts. However, when companies began to make disc-based systems, they finally had the horse power and storage capabilities to match the latest arcade hardware. Tekken 2 in particular, was one of the first instances of home versions that were actually surpassing their arcade counterparts. Not only did the Playstation 1 version of Tekken 2 feature graphics that were on par with the arcade version, it featured a remixed soundtrack, a new CGI intro and CGI animated endings (gotta love Anna William’s shower scene). The beautiful opening sequence pulled players into the game, and for many people (myself included), it signified the very reason they bought a Playstation. Later Namco fighters, such as Tekken 3 and Soul Edge would continue the trend by offering even more improved graphics and game modes not found in the arcade. As far as the gameplay, its sheer amount of unlockable characters, 3D combat, and emphasis on real fighting styles and combos (as opposed to the fireballs and flying kicks found in the Mortal Kombats and Street Fighters) made Tekken (along with Sega’s Virtua Fighter) much more advanced than any other fighting game on the market at a time when the series stood along alongside Battle Arena Toshinden and Virtua Fighter in the 3D fighting genre. Even when the market became over-saturated with copycats during the late 90s (just as the 2d fighting game market became over-saturated during the mid-90s), Tekken stood tall and maintained its identity, and it’s successive entries (Tekken 4 notwithstanding) continue to set standards for the fighting game genre.

5. Twisted Metal 2
The Playstation era saw the rise of a new genre, car combat, and Sony’s Twisted Metal was at the top of the pack. This new genre was basically demolition derby with guns added. Nintendo’s Mario Kart laid down the foundation for this new genre, but it was games such as Twisted Metal which really moved it forward. Twisted Metal 2 was heralded by many fans as the best entry in the series, as it would be the last game in the series that developer Singletrac worked on before splitting from Sony. Twisted Metal 2 took the chaos from the original game and took it around the world, from Los Angeles to Paris. The slightly destructible environments added strategy to the game and made for some cool visuals. It was quite satisfying to watch the Eiffel Tower blow up and destroy anyone stupid enough to be inside. The game’s cast of bizarre characters also made Twisted Metal 2 memorable. Players could hit the mode with characters such as Sweet Tooth, Mr. Grimm, Axel, and several other drivers who were unique as the vehicles they drove. Besides Twisted Metal, the amount of games that could do car combat right can almost be counted on only one hand. Not even Sony could properly follow up Twisted Metal 2, as Twisted Metal 3 was ill received by fans and Twisted Metal 4 went ignored. It wasn’t until SingleTrac developers reunited with Sony to develop Twisted Metal Black. Even after that game’s success, the PSP entry Twisted Metal Head On bought back the atmosphere of Twisted Metal 2 while negating 3 and 4 from the franchise’s overall storyline.

6. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
While the previous 5 games set new boundaries in 3D gaming, Konami’s Castlevania proved that there was still room for old school 2D gameplay in the new era of gaming. Not only that, but they introduced a brand-new style of gameplay for the long-standing series, trading in the traditional linear gameplay for an exploration-focused nonlinear design that was seeming inspired by Metroid. With RPG elements added to the gameplay, SOTN was one of the biggest and deepest Castlevania games yet. Players took control of Alucard, the son of Dracula. He was tasked with discovering the truth behind the sudden appearance of his father’s fortress Castlevania, which was ran by none other than….Richtel Belmont? Playing through the game, it would become apparent that things were not at all what they seemed. Just when you thought you had the whole game figured out (and provided you had the right item), the game threw in a monkey wrench, and you had to explore an alternate version of Castlevania which was upside down. It was moments such as that which made SOTN a hit with both fans and critics alike. It was such a hit, that many later Castlevania titles stuck closely to SOTN’s formula.

7. Street Fighter Alpha 3
It was only by the good grace of god that SFA3 was able to hit the Playstation. The PS1 wasn’t particularly adept at handling the CPS 2 and 3 powered Capcom arcade titles. In fact, many Playstation home ports of Capcom arcade games had to cut out several frames of animation and reduce the speed just to get it to fit. As a matter of fact, a PS1 version of X-Men vs Street Fighter which had been released the prior year had cut out the tag team mode which made the arcade game so popular. So it came as a total shock when it was announced that not only would Street Fighter Alpha 3 come to Playstation, but it would also contain several extras. SFA 3 bought back all the classic Street Fighter characters such as Ken, Ryu, and Chun Li. Several new characters were added, such as Kari and R. Mika. The home version bought back characters such as Guile and Fei Long, and therefore SFA 3’s cast contained every character who was even in a 2D Street Fighter game. Several home exclusive game modes made the package even more epic. World Tour mode allowed players to develop their characters RPG style, while Dramatic Battle mode allow players to create 2 on one handicap matchups, complete with a special background that was reminiscent of the Street Fighter animated movie, thereby allowing gamers to relive that final battle against M. Bison from the film. It was good to see that even as Tekken and SoulCalibur were taking the 3D fighting genre to new heights, companies such as Capcom were keeping 2D fighting games alive and well.

8. Tomb Raider
When it was first released, Tomb Raider representative a new standard for action gaming with its exploration-heavy gameplay, fully 3D environments and movement, and polygonal graphics. Players explored exotic locales such as Egypt and Peru while solving puzzles and avoiding deadly traps. However, Tomb Raider might be more famous for its protagonist, Lara Croft. Despite her ‘assets’, Lara Croft became a hit with gamers as a female Indiana Jones. Croft was such a hit with fans, that Eidos commissioned several real life actresses to portray her. Perhaps the most famous was Angelina Jolie, who played the part of Lara Croft in the two Tomb Raider films. Tomb Raider spawned a franchise, complete with movies, comic books, and action figures. While the series suffered through a serious slump for several years, 2006’s Tomb Raider Legend bought the franchise back from the depths of its own tomb, once again setting it apart from the many games that tried to rip off its formula.

9. Gran Turismo 2
While Namco’s Ridge Racer helped attract racing fans to Sony’s console, the capacity of the PS1’s disc allowed for something that was bigger and more expansive than what the Ridge Racer games had offered. Polyphony Digital helped to deliver this in spades with Gran Turismo. Gran Turismo offered racing fans a simulation that had an unprecedented amount of depth, and its sequel added even more complexity. Featuring 27 tracks and 650 cars from real world manufacturers, Gran Turismo was a dream package for car enthusiasts. Players had to earn licenses to compete on new courses, earn trophies, and buy new cars in order in order to progress. There was an arcade mode for players to unwind by taking any car on any track. This time however, the game was so huge that the game needed to be split between two discs! One disc was for simulation, and the other was for arcade mode. Gran Turismo had so much to offer players regardless of weather of not they were racing enthusiasts. A soundtrack featuring then-current rock hits helped to seal the deal for gamers. To this day, Gran Turismo 2 remains one of the biggest racing games of all time, and it helped to make room for more complex racing games such as Forza Motorsport on the Xbox.

10. Suikoden
Long before Final Fantasy VII changed the face of RPG gaming, Konami’s Suikoden took what was best about old school 16 bit RPGs and added in a few new tricks. For starters, players assembled their crew by seeking out 108 different characters, with a majority of them being available to use in combat. The storyline was quite deep as well, and it smacked of political intrigue and double crossing. One on one dueling and all-out war modes (both of which played similar to paper, rock, and scissors), helped break up the action. Even in today’s modern RPG world, games such as Suikoden showed gamers that old school RPG can hold its own against the fancy new RPGs that were popping up on the PS1 and its competition.

I think I speak for many gamers when I say that while it was because of Nintendo that got me playing video games, it was because of Sony that I kept playing them. These games, along with countless others, have played a vital role in shaping gaming into what it is today. So whenever you stock your garage in Forza, blow apart a zombie in Left 4 Dead, or make your way through the world of Shadow Complex, think about the Playstation. Even today as the system is well into its third iteration, the Playstation’s library continues to innovate with games such as Little Big Planet and Resistance. If you haven’t checked out these games yet, then I strongly advise you to do so, weather you purchase them off the Playstation Network, or buy them from amazon.com (by clicking the thumbnails).

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Punch Out was another arcade-to-home port that had to be drastically altered to fit within the NES’s graphical capabilities. The original arcade port featured a wireframe character and two screens (one for stats and another to show the game), so obviously this wouldn’t be feasible to even try to duplicate on the NES, so they chose to work with a top-down view, add in new fighters, and add in a plot featuring cutscenes. When then Nintendo president Minoru Arakawa saw Mike Tyson in a boxing match, he was so impressed by iron Mike that he decided to insert a digital likeness of him in the game. As Little Mac, you made your way through the boxing circuit taking on all challengers. Each boxer has his own pattern of attacks, and it was up to you to figure out how to defeat them by exploiting their strategy and figuring out their weakpoints. This game wasn’t focused on movement and punches as it was focused on timing and strategy, almost like a puzzle game.

A few years after its release, Mike Tyson’s name was dropped from the title, and players fought Mr. Dream at the end of the game. Even so, Punch Out remains one of the best boxing games of any system generation. The game is available on Virtual Console, but unfortunately, it’s the Mr Dream version.

Fun Fact: Contrary to popular belief, Tyson’s name wasn’t dropped from the title due to his rape charges and divorce from Robin Givens. The licensing rights that Nintendo had to use his name and likeness simply expired, and the company neglected to renew them.

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Looking back, one has to wonder, what made Halo so popular? The game didn’t have any fancy cel-shaded graphics, huge-chested women, celebrity voice talent, RPG-like stat development features, merchandising tie-ins, or licensed soundtrack. Its story was familiar (stop the alien invasion) and it didn’t even have any online multiplayer (as this was released before Xbox Live), yet it managed to outsell even Super Smash brothers melee! As an first person shooter, Halo didn’t do anything that hadn’t been done before, so what was the big deal? Then it hit me, it was NOTHING. Halo didn’t have a gimmick. It just did what other FPS games did better than anything else at the time. From gameplay was fluid, the narrative flowed together throughout each level, the enemy A.I was intelligent, the vehicles handled well after you got used to them, and the splitscreen multiplayer was fun, and you could connect Xboxes together to bring in up to 16 players. Thanks to this solid first entry, Halo would soon take its place alongside Doom and Half-Life as one of the all time great FPS games.

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You (and a friend if playing co-op) travel throughout the world to find the Eyes of Judgment which will open the Doors of Fate, hopefully leading to treasure. You play the game by selecting two of six available stages, and each stage has players choosing one of two path in order to proceed, thus keeping the game fresh with each playthrough. You’ll blast everything from mermen and gorgons to mummies and giant spiders. You gain new weapons which can be used for a short amount of time, and there are multiple endings depending on which path you select. The game isn’t very deep, but games in this genre have never been known for their depth. Crypt Killer can be played with Konami’s Playstation Justifier (provided you can find one) or the Sega Saturn Virtua light gun. It’s doubtful we’ll be seeing this on the Playstation Network (and it wouldn’t work as well without a light gun anyway), so click the thumbnail to find a copy.

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Saga Frontier takes place in a collection of planets known as the Regions. You begin the game by picking one of seven protagonists, each with their own background, abilities, and storyline. The game’s characters include a woman who was framed for murdering her lover, a monster out to save his homeland, and a young man who is made into a superhero in order to avenge his father’s death. You’ll meet up with the other characters throughout the course of each storyline, and you’re free to travel in between the Regions most of the time. Although the non linearity tends to get confusing at times, the game’s pacing is a bit more relaxed than a Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest game. There are times when the game’s plot will change depending on choices that have been made, who your character is, or who is currently in your party. The combat features your usual mix of weapons and magic. However, there are several different disciplines of magic, each with their own spells. Also, there are hidden combination attacks similar to Chrono Trigger. Like in the Game Boy Saga Frontier games, there are different races such as humans, robots, and monsters. If you complete the character’s main quest one after the other, you can carry over save data to the other character’s quests to give them an advantage. Completing all the quests opens up a special room where players can fight all the final bosses and speak to the game’s programmers.

While Saga Frontier wasn’t as well received as many of Square’s other Playstation 1 titles, it was still a solid RPG, and the free scenario system made the game rewarding for players who liked to explore. It was released in the Playstation Network store last year in Japan, so hopefully it won’t be long before U.S gamers can download it from the PSN store as well. In the meantime, you can click the thumbnail above to hunt down a copy at Amazon.com.

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Fun Fact: Speaking of Ninja Gaiden, the Game Boy entry of the series, Ninja Gaiden Shadow, was originally intended to be a Game Boy release of this game. Tecmo bought the rights to it from Natsume, and re-christened it into a Ninja Gaiden game, hence the game having a similar plot and gameplay to Shadow of the Ninja, along with some continuity questions.

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The NES version was similar to Zelda, and other action role playing games of the period. However, the game had little to do with the movie’s plot, and almost seemed that it was planned to be another game altogether before deciding to make it into Willow. Taking control of Willow, players travel throughout the land to defeat the evil Bavmorda. You gain experience points, levels, magic, and new weaponry like in other action RPGs. There are even a few boss battles. While the game has very little to do with the plot, the game is still enjoyable, and it was head and shoulders above other games based on existing licenses at the time.

The arcade game is a platformer. Unlike the NES version, the arcade game sticks closely to the movie’s plot. The game features six levels, and players alternate between Willow and Madmartigan as they rescue the holy infant from the evil queen Bavmorda. Willow makes use of magic attacks, while Madmartigan uses his sword. You can buy upgrades at a shop. The game recreates several key scenes from the movie, and the CPS1 arcade board the game utilizes creates some pretty impressive visuals for its time.

Along with the NES and Arcade games was also a crappy Amiga game (not developed by Capcom) which contained a series of poorly implemented minigames, so it isn’t worth going over in this article. As for the console and Arcade ports, fantasy fans would do well to check them out, especially if you like games such as Zelda. Even if the movie didn’t do the numbers that Lucas wanted, it was still good enough to gain fans, and the video game tie-ins were a lot better than the typical licensed fare. You’ll have to do a little hunting if you want to check these games out, as there is little chance of either of them showing up on any download service anytime soon Virtual Console or otherwise.

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The SuperScope, probably the most beloved of the home console light guns, demonstrated plenty of potential for innovation in the light gun genre. Heck, the 6-game pack that came with it featured a puzzle game and a variation on whack-a-mole. It’s buttons and unique shape gave developers some unique options on to use for gameplay. While most games for the SuperScope never moved far away from the usual Operation-Wolf format, there were a few unique games using the peripheral. One of these games is Metal Combat: Falcon’s revenge.

Metal Combat (not to be confused with Mortal Kombat) was the sequel to a game called Battle Clash. Like its predecessor, Metal Combat is a mech fighting game in which the player takes control of the mech’s gunner. Metal Combat features many improvements over Battle Clash, such as a ranking system, a training mode, and a few unlockable features. The main hero of the game is Mike Anderson (you play as his gunner). Three years after the events of the original Battle Clash, Anubis, the mech pilot that Mike defeated to avenge his father, has returned and is threatening the peace of the world. He has gathered a group of mech pilots to stand as his lieutenants, and is en route to resume his reign of tyranny. Thus, Mike jumps back into action, ready to once again defeat Anubis and his men. You’ll battle through a parade of mechs in one-on-one battles, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. You’ll blast them apart and gain access to special items that give you an edge in battle. A two-player versus mode allows a second player to play as the bosses, and there is an additional character who is unlocked after beating the game once.

You’ll have to do some searching to find the original cartridge, as it is probably not likely that Nintendo will release this on virtual console due to the fact that it used the SuperScope. While once could use the Wiimote in place of the SuperScope, don’t keep your fingers crossed. Be that as it may, Metal Combat is one of the best games to make use of the SuperScope. It might not have been the end-all and be-all of light gun games, but it managed to offer something different and fun.

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