3. Final Fantasy IX
RPG's, where you can steal things from plants.
While Final Fantasy VII is the popular choice, and Final Fantasy VI is the "correct" choice, it is Final Fantasy IX that I absolutely love. It's the last Final Fantasy until re-inventing the series for every installment became a nervous tick for the developers at Square Enix. It's a throwback to all the old school FF stuff I loved growing up. And while yes, that did mean a plot that eventually boiled down to a magic rock, it also had charm, subtlety, and a goddamn sense of humor.
I love the characters in this game. Many have long story arcs with actual character development. They fucking change during the course of the game. Granted not every character is great (Eiko is the token JRPG magical child mage, Quina is annoying comic relief, and Amarant, is uh, just sort of there), but the good ones are far better than the dead weight. Zidane is the last good protagonist Final Fantasy has ever had. Garnet is a sheltered princess who gradually opens up in a believable way. Steiner is a noble knight who tries too hard NOT to be a buffoon. Even Freya has some good parts early on. But this one guy.....THIS ONE FUCKING GUY......
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.....best Final Fantasy character ever. Vivi's story is one of identity issues and as someone playing this game at 17 years old, this guy was me! He goes from a timid, nervous, friendless mage who learns what he is (yes, what), what he was created for, decides to defy that purpose, fight with his new found accepting friends, aaaaand his late game "Doomsday" spell is the most powerful attack in the game if you ignore the legendary weapons. Vivi is arguably my favorite video game character of all time. He even has a tragic ending that I'd rather not talk about because FEEEELS.
This game held my #1 spot for a long time. The battle system is classic, top-notch Final Fantasy. The inventory system is great. The music! Shit! I almost forgot about the music! So many great themes. The only reason it's not in my #1 anymore is because; 1. The top 2 are better, 2. The last 1/4th of this story gets stupid (Zidane is a clone from another planet who is also the angel of death or some shit), and 3. I still don't know who the final boss is supposed to be. God maybe?
2. Persona 4
Lazy demon fighting teenagers
Who would have thought that a 1/2 dungeon crawling, turn-based RPG and 1/2 life simulation game would be this damn good? The combat is entertaining and very challenging. Random encounter monsters can easily one hit kill you if you have the wrong Persona equipped. Boss fights are a real struggle and even the early ones don't go down easy. The life sim portion has realistic weight to its story. Creating friendships effect your stats and improve your personas. There is also an in canon explanation for WHY they effect your personas stats. They didn't just take the Final Fantasy approach of "not explaining anything ever." This game is fucking brilliant.
I wasn't completely blind to this game though because I played Persona 3 first and debated putting that game on this list too. Persona 3 had some enraging flaws though and all I could think about after completing it was playing Persona 4. Not only did P4 live up to the hype in my own head, it surpassed it and fixed every major flaw in P3. I don't think I've ever seen a sequel do that in any entertainment medium. The only thing that could come close is Robocop in the new Avengers movie. (Please don't actually do that. I was joking).
Centered around a murder mystery, the story of this game takes many twists and turns, all of which seem plausible and not completely out of left field (I'm looking at you Metal Gear Solid series). You eventually have to decide who the murderer is and the game doesn't hold your hand about it. You have to piece together the clues on your own and it's SO refreshing to see a game do this and do it well.
The real heart of this game is the characters (noticing a theme here reader?). Not one single character fits into a typical stereotype, except maybe Yosuke, but even he seems real. Not only that, but every character has some sort of deep dark secret that you literally fight as a monster in a dungeon. This game is also very progressive in that it has an almost gay character and one of the only Trans characters I can remember in a video game.* Even the character I thought I would hate going in, Teddie, grew on me and I admit to laughing at a couple of his stupid bear puns. Oh and Chie is the best. Just, just the best.
*I think ATLUS chickened out by not having Kanji actually be gay. He just likes feminine things? Okay fine, but he ALSO has a thing for Naoto and feels relieved when Naoto is revealed to be a girl. Naoto is obviously Trans but the game never outright says it. However, it's really cool that Naoto feels more comfortable acting and dressing like a boy despite being born a girl. HE is accepted for this and is treated like no big deal after the Persona battle. Story-wise, I can excuse ATLUS for not making more of a statement since these are both high school teenage characters that might not fully understand who they are. I just thought I should clarify.
Side note: This game has the best boss battle theme of all time, especially 20 seconds in.
1. Mass Effect 2
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"Good choice. Yes. Would not recommend Mass Effect 3. Outcome, problematic."
Obviously. I echo AJ's words but I want to elaborate on two points.
1. The Characters
YES. I am aware that almost every loyalty mission boils down to "daddy issues", either figurative (Tali, Grunt and arguably Garrus), metaphorical (Jack and Samara), or literal in THREE cases (Jacob, Miranda and Thane). I don't care. Legion and Mordin's don't, so it's moot.
I am also aware that some keyhole into stereotypes, mainly Garrus, Grunt, Jack and "Every Man" Jacob. Mayyyyyyybe Miranda. But again I don't care.
These are some of the most actualized characters I've ever seen and a big reason why I LOVE this game. Even the stereotypes feel real. Familiar faces from Mass Effect like Garrus and Tali feel like they've grown (Liara too even though she doesn't join the Normandy). New characters are interesting including Legion, in which I NEVER would have thought a geth would join the crew.
But nobody is as cool as Mordin. Granted, his best and worst moment comes in Mass Effect 3 (RIP), but he is really the only character to fight back against Shepard. During his loyalty mission, if you start questioning him on his work with the genophage, he actually fights back! This is the first time in a game I've ever been worried about losing a squad mate because we had a philosophical difference. Out of any character in the series, Mordin is the only one who NEVER shows a sense of awe from being in the presence of Shepard.
2. The Suicide Mission
Hands down the best final level in video game history. Nothing else even comes close. Video game lives are at stake! I was soooo worried about losing somebody I obsessively improved everything I could and spent at least 15 minutes deciding what tech expert to send in the vent, who to lead the 2nd team, and who to hold the biotic field. The mission has perfect fusion between gameplay and cutscenes too. Oh...and the music is awesome.
I could write an entire article on why The Suicide Mission is so great...so I'll probably do that sometime.
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See AJ's Top 10 Favorite Games here, which are far better than mine.
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