Little disappointed to see Sands of Time didn't make the list because on top of the 3D platforming aspects (which was the first game to really execute the acrobatics of the Matrix, wire-fu, and other stylistic approaches to stage combat in film), it was one of the first games to best execute a cinematic, circular narrative where the end of the game informs nuances throughout the entire game, similar to Memento where a full viewing lets you in on the details present throughout the film. I really think it was ahead of its time and had a much greater impact on gaming than it gets credit for.
I feel like Majora's Mask is only on there because Ocarina of Time was two years too early to make this list, which by the same token I don't think Galaxy 2 should be on next decade's list because it will be an iteration on the more original game, its predecessor. I think Wind Waker was a better game, particularly because of how it executed on the mostly-water world in an adventure game, which in concept seems ludicrous for a land-lubbing series like Zelda.
More importantly, it set the precedent for the art of the game to be the graphics of the game, instead of rendering concept art in realistic textures and quadrillions of polygons. You wouldn't have had Okami without Wind Waker, and you most certainly wouldn't have had Ubisoft use the art style it did on the recent Prince of Persia. Its impact can be seen just by how reaction to screenshots has changed. It went from disappointment/anger at a 3D artistic style, to peaked interest at a more artistic approach to graphics that we see more of today. It opened the door of artistic 3D graphical design well before the industry was ready.
Melee was great because of how many hours were pumped into it/sucked into its ridiculous black-hole time-sink, but I'm not quite sure its a game of the decade, and I think its only because of its limited scope. Can a fighting game ever be a better game than a solid adventure game?
Wii sports was great and definitely industry changing, but Galaxy is really the closest to perfection that any of those games come to; though it is on this list because I think it was a greater evolution on platforming than even Super Mario 64.
Prime was fantastic, I think the best, most compelling 2D to 3D transition of any of Nintendo's franchises. First person shooting, adventuring, and platforming in one game. No game has ever done that to the level of execution that Retro did. Let alone the expansive world, exploration, and discoverable plot left to the player to find if they wanted to, its game mechanics alone, imo, set it apart from the majority of other games. A little RPG weapon upgrading/equipment changing that was integrated into the gameplay, as Metroid is known for and that Prime expanded upon with the visors, and I'm hard-pressed to find a game that utilizes as broad-reaching genre characteristics to make a really unique game. Prime vs. Galaxy in my book.
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Topic: Game of the Decade -- Vote After Listening to RFN 183! (Read 49181 times)
