Topic: Game of the Decade -- Vote After Listening to RFN 183!

[Pandareus]

I wish I had played Majora's Mask, it's the only game on the list I haven't touched.
 
Anyway, I had to vote for Metroid Prime. It was my killer-app, the game that made me buy a GameCube after spending a whole gen away from consoles and focusing on PC gaming.

Retro did a super job making a first person Metroid game. Concessions had to be made, obviously Samus isn't as acrobatic and fast as she once was. But the "simple" accomplishment of making a game feel so true to its predecessors despite its radically new point of view is nothing short of amazing.
 
I also really like the efforts made to make the player feel like he's actually inside Samus' suit. Water drops run down your visor, steam creates condensation, and the insides of squishy bugs will obstuct your view if you blast them from too close.
 
There was something really satisfying about how quickly you could morph into a ball. Some didn't like the tank controls and the lack of dual analog movement, but the fact is, during combat, all you had to do was press a button to switch to a 3rd person view, turn into a nimble ball and make your escape. The lock-on feature also allowed you to run circles around whatever critter you've decided to exterminate.
 
I could go on about the music, the level design, the art design, the quasi-seamless loading, etc., but the post is getting a bit long so I'll just say they're all "masterful". And that's just amazing for a then unknown studio.
 
Metroid Prime is definitely the game of the decade for me.

[Crimm]

What was amazing about Metroid Prime was that it nailed the FEEL of a Metroid game.  It didn't feel like a spin-off, bastardization, or shoehorned concept.

This is good?  It moved a game designed around backtracking into the 21st Century instead of letting that chore die like the useless mechanic it is.  Prime 3 is far and away more fun than Prime for multiple reasons, but the most important is the game doesn't constantly force you to criss-cross the entirety of existence.

While my votes got pretty much blanked (did I go one [and a half] for six?) in the nomination process, it's far easier for me to pallet Majora's Mask because it did something so different within the well-worn tools to which we were all accustomed.  Just the mechanical differences are enough to make the game memorable; the feeling of the game pushes beyond that.

[Halbred]

Hmmm...I think Prime 3 is good, but not as good as the original game, which has superior art direction. I think we can both agree that Echoes was not that great, though.

[NWR_Neal]

So James doesn't like the Metroid design?

I'll admit that backtracking can get tiresome, but I welcome it in Metroid because as you get new abilities, you look at and traverse the world in different ways. I think Jonny mentioned this in regards to Blaster Master: Overdrive, and that's really why backtracking works. It's not for everybody, but it works for some/most.

[Tween20]

Hmmm...I think Prime 3 is good, but not as good as the original game, which has superior art direction. I think we can both agree that Echoes was not that great, though.

I know this is not the thread for this, but I had to comment--  Hated Echoes when I first played it.  But when I played it as part of the trilogy, I have to admit that I think I might have liked it best of all.  Don't know if it was the Wii controls, the fact that I had just come off Prime I, or muscle memory from my first time through, but I really bought what Retro was selling in Echoes the second time around.

[Mop it up]

I voted for Super Smash Brothers Melee. It was kind of difficult not to, since it is my most-played game on any system. SSBBrawl was a disaster.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask wasn't really something I liked. The structure of the game just bothered me, with all of the redundant tasks you were required to do.

Metroid Prime successfully combines the action of a first person shooter with exploration and discovery, and creates an incredible atmosphere. It's certainly one of the most well-crafted games I have ever seen.

Wii Sports could be arguably the most influential game of the decade, if you go by the sheer number of knockoffs out there.

Super Mario Galaxy is Super Mario Galaxy. Enough said.

I haven't played Resident Evil 4. Or any Resident Evil game for that matter.

There are plenty of games released over the last decade which I'd want to give special mention (ExciteBike 64, Banjo-Tooie, Battalion Wars, TimeSplitters, Mario Kart Wii, etc), but I'll mention just one that I feel really deserves some recognition: Perfect Dark.

Perfect Dark is still my favourite N64 game, so I quite disagree with anyone who states it is incompetent today. The controls are still excellent, the N64 controller works very well for FPS games with its layout and comfort, and the more resistant analogue stick makes aiming easier... but maybe this is more due to my own personal loathing of dual-analogue controllers. Its corridor levels are much better designed and make for better action than the open field levels in games like Halo, and its selection of weapons is staggering and includes pretty much any type you can think of.

The best feature of Perfect Dark is definitely the A.I. bots in the multiplayer mode. I know people will say that having online modes eliminates the need for bots, but I believe they're needed now more than ever. When you play online you are likely to find extremely skilled players who aren't even going to give you a chance; there's little hope of improving your skills if you're killed ten seconds after you respawn. Bots make for great practice because you can customize them to match your skill level, and even give them unique personality settings like moving really fast or slow, using only explosive weaponry, or having suicidal tendencies. Since I'm non-competitive my friends and I would never play the game against one another, but would instead always team up against the bots. It was a blast!

[Crimm]

So James doesn't like the Metroid design?

I'll admit that backtracking can get tiresome, but I welcome it in Metroid because as you get new abilities, you look at and traverse the world in different ways. I think Jonny mentioned this in regards to Blaster Master: Overdrive, and that's really why backtracking works. It's not for everybody, but it works for some/most.

Zelda games allow you to explore the world differently with new items.  The backtracking isn't nearly as tiresome in those games.

[kbaker2002de]

Listening to all the NWR submissions for Game of the Decade as well as your round table discussion to reduce the total to 5 (wait 6) titles to vote on is both wonderfully engaging and mind-numbingly rediculous at the same time.  Consider this e-mail my submission to the futility of debate, and the background on why I will cast my vote for Super Mario Galaxy not only as the best Nintendo title of the decade, but the penultimate game Nintendo has been striving for since the heyday of the NES era.
 
When thinking of this issue I came around to deciding between three titles Metroid Prime, Wii Sports, and Super Mario Galaxy.  The difficulty came down to my reasoning and criteria for my decision.  Metroid Prime is possibly the best single player game of all time, it is an amazing game visually and the way it controls and handles.  Prime does so many things that most FPS games do not do.  But it is the definition of a hardcore Nintendo first party title, show it to my wife or my parents and watch their eyes bleed from confusion.  Wii Sports is the ultimate casual title, pop the disc in and simply choose your activity.  From there the gameplay is simple and intuitive and CASUAL.  Wii Sports can take the mantle of single handedly selling millions of Wii consoles in the first few years.  It suffers from the exact opposite criticism of Prime, it is very casual, very shallow and doesn't offer much past the first play.
 
Nintendo first billed the Wii as a console for everyone, catering to the new and groing casual crowd as well the established "hardcore" gamer playing since the NES days.  This philosophy was developed through the soulsearching days of the Gamecube and has been on full display during the Wii lifespan.  To that end, Super Mario Galaxy is the ultimate representation of this philosophy.  Gone away is the relative sandlot feel of Dolphino Island and arrived is a "glorified menu" in the spaceship.  This makes the taks of getting to each galaxy streamlined and easy.  Everything is neatly compartmentalized and represented.  The game offers the player 120 total stars to acheive but a casual player can succeed in the game with only 60, while the hardcore can go after the last 60 and go through some of the wildest most imaginative 3D platforming I have seen.  Add to it the co-star mode for super casual players and it leaves no one behind.  Super Mario Galaxy is the representation of the Nintendo philosophy of the 2000's to have something for every gamer.  That is why it is my game of the decade.
 

[ThePerm]

is that Piac?

[Yankee]

So James doesn't like the Metroid design?

I'll admit that backtracking can get tiresome, but I welcome it in Metroid because as you get new abilities, you look at and traverse the world in different ways. I think Jonny mentioned this in regards to Blaster Master: Overdrive, and that's really why backtracking works. It's not for everybody, but it works for some/most.

Also, while backtracking was effectively done in the prime games, I prefer it in the 2d games because in general traversing the map is much faster. The 2d games also generally have you going constantly back and forth between areas for the most part (except maybe not so much in fusion). The Prime games in general like to have you concentrate on single areas a lot more before going back somewhere.

I know this is not the thread for this, but I had to comment--  Hated Echoes when I first played it.  But when I played it as part of the trilogy, I have to admit that I think I might have liked it best of all.  Don't know if it was the Wii controls, the fact that I had just come off Prime I, or muscle memory from my first time through, but I really bought what Retro was selling in Echoes the second time around.

I played Prime 1 and Echoes both only in the trilogy and I also found that I may like echoes the best of the three, so maybe that has something to do with it. Prime 1 and 2 are very close for me in my mind, but Echoes really grew on me over time. It could also be because Echoes in many ways was very different than the first game. Beats me. Still love the first one also though.


And as far as something a little more on topic, a lot of people seem to be picking melee because of massive appeal and longevity of its multiplayer since it was released. This is true, but as someone who didn't own a gamecube and had a lot of friends who bought wiis and brawl that same experience that many of you have described applies just as much to that game. Just as many of you have logged over 1000 hours of gameplay into melee, I easily have over 1000 is brawl. I can't see myself picking melee when the same applies to brawl and it is arguably the better game. You could argue that melee in many ways lays the foundation for brawl, but then by that logic there goes half of the games on the list. 

Edit: Also as another side note, I also have not played Majora but I just bought Ocarina and will start playing through that for the first time. I have 700 points left, so I will also probably wind up playing that game in the near future. Damn points system conned me into buying more games!

[Stratos]

I don't have nearly as much fun playing Brawl with friends than playing Melee.

[Mop it up]

I can't see myself picking melee when the same applies to brawl and it is arguably the better game.

I will always argue that it is far from the better game.

[ControlerFleX]

I will always argue that it is far from the better game.

Can I ask how so?

[- NintendoFan -]

Metroid Prime was the Ocarina of Time for its decade.  It took a game property that was previously only in 2D and brought it to 3D the right way.  There was no blueprint for Retro to work from, just like Nintendo had no existing blueprint for Ocarina (aside from Mario 64, but the design challenges were completely different for each game).   When it was announced I had no idea how they would pull it off, but they did.

I must say that is an interesting perspective that I had never thought about. I tend to agree, although probably not enough to change my vote. I must admit, I should go back and play the game again, as I haven't done so since it was released.

[gbuell]

Zelda games allow you to explore the world differently with new items.  The backtracking isn't nearly as tiresome in those games.

So do the Metroid games. I'm afraid I really don't understand how there's a substantial difference between backtracking in Zelda and in Metroid. Regardless, I much prefer backtracking to the alternative, which is fully linear level-after-level design.

[Rize]

So James doesn't like the Metroid design?

I'll admit that backtracking can get tiresome, but I welcome it in Metroid because as you get new abilities, you look at and traverse the world in different ways. I think Jonny mentioned this in regards to Blaster Master: Overdrive, and that's really why backtracking works. It's not for everybody, but it works for some/most.

Zelda games allow you to explore the world differently with new items.  The backtracking isn't nearly as tiresome in those games.

And Metroid Prime didn't?   

Not to mention that the environments are so beautiful in Metroid Prime that I've played the game at least 6 times (perhaps 7 or and am still enthralled each time I walk into a room.  There is always something I didn't see before.  Also, simply being more powerful (finding the enemies less threatening) presents an old area in a new light.  As you progress, what was once menacing is now as peaceful as the opening vista of the Tallon Overworld (which contains no enemies).

You're entitled to your opinion, but clearly you're blind to some of the pleasures available in Metroid Prime.

Zeldagames allow you to explore the world differently with new items.  Thebacktracking isn't nearly as tiresome in those games.

Sodo the Metroid games. I'm afraid I really don't understand how there'sa substantial difference between backtracking in Zelda and in Metroid.Regardless, I much prefer backtracking to the alternative, which isfully linear level-after-level design.

You know, there are a ton of similarities between Metroid Prime and Zelda.  Both games feature a very aggressive lock-on targetting system (which Zelda 64 pioneered).  This takes aiming skill out of combat leaving the player to focus on the timing of attacks and dodges.  The main difference is that Samus is shooting a gun from the first person, but it has a surprisingly small effect on the design of enemies and especially bosses.

Defeated enemies and destroyed containers randomly give ammo and health, even during boss fights and in both games you amass a larger and larger pool of health via optional/hidden power-ups.  B

Both games also have a lot of optional text that fleshes out the story.

One clear difference (that goes beyond the superficial) is that Samus is always fighting and exploring (there are no towns and no dungeons).

[gbuell]

Yeah, I've always felt that 3D Zelda and Metroid games were extremely similar in game design, differing only in setting and number of NPCs.

[Mop it up]

I will always argue that it is far from the better game.

Can I ask how so?

I promised myself I would not derail another thread with complaints about SSBBrawl. If you are truly curious, feel free to send me a personal message.

[adadad]

To that end, Super Mario Galaxy is the ultimate representation of this philosophy.  Gone away is the relative sandlot feel of Dolphino Island and arrived is a "glorified menu" in the spaceship.  This makes the taks of getting to each galaxy streamlined and easy.  Everything is neatly compartmentalized and represented.  The game offers the player 120 total stars to acheive but a casual player can succeed in the game with only 60, while the hardcore can go after the last 60 and go through some of the wildest most imaginative 3D platforming I have seen.  Add to it the co-star mode for super casual players and it leaves no one behind.  Super Mario Galaxy is the representation of the Nintendo philosophy of the 2000's to have something for every gamer.  That is why it is my game of the decade.

Super Mario Galaxy for the Super Casual Player. I'm not so sure to be honest, because, and this is purely anecdotal, in my personal experience SMG is far more effective at enticing experienced gamers than people not versed in the hobby. Co-star mode is a nice accessible addition though.

Anyway, my vote is still firmly on the fence. Having thought about it I don't think Majora's Mask, as great as it is, really does enough to define the 2000s for me. As was noted on RFN, it's more original aspects haven't been expanded upon by future games (perhaps understandably so due to MM's abstactness). I'm leaning towards either RE4 or Metroid Prime as my pick, but I'm not sure which. RE4 clicked a good deal more for me personally, and I got a huge amount of enjoyment out of it. It's an incredibly slick, well crafted experience, and Mercenaries is a fantastic post-game bonus. Metroid Prime connected with me in a far less immediate way, however I have a great appreciation for the construction of the world, and I can't help but feel as though it gives a supreme example of how to do non-linear exploratory environments that are designed to be negotiated differently at various points in the player's journey. All too often games will give their dungeons/levels a seemingly meaningless, linear design that leads from room to room to room with no re-traversal. I don't mean backtracking necessarily, but re-encountering the same environments in a different capacity helps tie the player to the game's world. It also gives a sense of realism in my opinion - walking around London I love seeing familiar streets and buildings from a different perspective, and noticing something I didn't see when I was on the opposite side of the road.

Additionally I remember just when I found Prime to be overly meandering, along came the section of the game inside the Space Pirate's base, which suddenly amped things up considerably with epic firefights against the Pirates with jetpacks and tense encounters with security bots who would scramble your visor.

The 12 artifacts at the end of the game were rather disappointing in my opinion, although compared with Echoes' ridiculously obtuse keys I think in hindsight I should've been thankful. That was one aspect of Prime I feel Prime 3 bested, as it's final quest was far more manageable and less esoteric. Prime still holds a soft spot for me, and with the possible exceptions of Portal and Deus Ex, I'm struggling to think of games that have pushed first person games beyond the Doom FPS model to a greater degree (successfully that is - I'm still waiting for the verdict on Jumping Flash!).

[greybrick]

Yeah, I've always felt that 3D Zelda and Metroid games were extremely similar in game design, differing only in setting and number of NPCs.

I think from a goals and progression perspective you are correct. Yet I can't help but feel that in some ways they couldn't be more different. Especially once we reach Prime 3, in which it is necessary to "warp" to new locations, whereas Zelda games create interconnected worlds that can generally be entirely traversed by foot. Add to that the fact that the actual mechanics of playing these games are very distant from one another and you have two sufficiently different series that are based on a similar fundamental progression.

[gbuell]

Yeah, Metroid Prime 3 is the anomaly (though in Twilight Princess you do have to "warp" to the desert and to the Sky Temple, you can't just walk to those places.) I don't fault them for having similar progressions. I think the "explore a world, run into obstacles, get new items to pass those obstacles" game design is so popular for a good reason - it can be really fun, addictive, mentally stimulating and occasionally brilliant, compared to games in which you progress through level after level after level without ever going back.

[NWR_Lindy]

Nintendo first billed the Wii as a console for everyone, catering to the new and groing casual crowd as well the established "hardcore" gamer playing since the NES days.  This philosophy was developed through the soulsearching days of the Gamecube and has been on full display during the Wii lifespan.  To that end, Super Mario Galaxy is the ultimate representation of this philosophy.

I would argue that the  ultimate representation of this philosophy is New Super Mario Bros. Wii, because it doesn't require non-gamers to adjust to moving around in a 3D environment.

[gbuell]

I agree, SMG isn't really that casual-friendly at all. My girlfriend would NEVER play SMG, but she insisted we get New Super Mario Bros. Wii on its release date.

[Stratos]

But my non-gaming parents loved Galaxy's Co-star mode. You don't need to navigate a 3D environment with that. It's the perfect marriage of core-casual dual gameplay.

[stevey]

I voted for Majora's Mask because any game that lets you motor boat Malon is going to be the game of the decade.

Prime come in a close second because turned me onto Samus and Metroid series but Prime 2 deserve to be on top (3 can burn in fail-hell)
Resident Evil 4 win in immersion. Throughout the game, it didn't fell like I was playing a game (with one exception which made me realized how immersed I was). Sadly, I can't forgive Capcom for the ps2 and wii ports.
Brawl wins over Melee for online and Hawtness (Though it lacks a certain redheaded cowgirl)
Wii Sports, that's a joke right?
Galaxy has Rosaline but fail for the jokes of a boss fight they pulled.