31 Games I Would like to Play Before the Apocalypse

Hello there fellow Bitmobbers. I have spent the last week thinking of some creepy scary stuff I could write about in time for Halloween. After a couple of days of thinking, an idea hit me from out of blue. What's more frightening than Armageddon?

With all of this talk about 2012 being the end of the world, that got me to thinking. "Two years left eh? There sure are a lot of games I haven't played yet. Lolz." So I thought of some and started writing this little list. 

 I present to you my list of 31 (Halloween remember) video games I would like to play before the End of Days. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Rated R. MuWahahaha! (insert lightning bolt)

Note: This is just my lame attempt at having some good clean fun for the the Halloween holiday, so I'm not trying morbid and I don't believe in the 2012 theroy or anything like. So yeah. I kinda just ruined the joke with my little disclaimer there. Huhzza for me!

31. Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 & 4- PlayStation 2 (yeah it's a tie so what? wanna fight about it?)

     

Sigh. I guess you can call me a sucker for some cool looking anime artwork. The Persona series has garnered my interest as both a fan of JRPGs, as well as animation. After reading/watching several positive reviews of series and listening to my friends talk about how great the games are, I couldn’t help but look them up. Out of all of the entries in the series, I would have to say that the third and fourth games have definitely peeked my interest the most.

I like Persona 3’s idea of the Dark Hour and how it bends reality with demons attacking the characters who are aware of its existence and how these characters summon beings known as Personas (the second soul that dwells inside of a person’s heart) in order to fight back. Actually in a weird away, it kind of reminds of Nightmare on Elm Street 3. You know the one where the teenagers of Elm Street decide to fight back.

I also like the idea of travelling between two different worlds and the idea of confronting the suppressed aspects of your personality presented in Persona 4. Not too mention that the thought of your TV being the gateway to an alternate world is pretty cool to. Even if it is all dark and evil and full of monsters.   

Persona’s 3 & 4 definitely bring new meaning to the phrase “Identity Crisis.”  

30. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune- PlayStation 3

I have got to admit, first person shooter games aren’t really my thing, but after playing BioShock, I really must say that my hope in the genre has been restored. Not to mention that the gripping and cinematic story featured in BioShock has left me craving more experiences like that in games. From what I have been hearing, the Uncharted series can offer me the same kind of gripping storyline, as well as a solid FPS experience. Oh, and the graphics look absolutely stunning. The 3D platforming levels that are also featured in the game are said to be well polished, which is another plus. So if I am in a position where I can give the series a chance, I certainly will. Although I would like to preferably start with the first game, so I don’t miss out on any important plot points.

29. Killer Instinct- Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Arcade

 

Other than platformers, I would have to say that my favorite genre would be the fighting game genre. From Street Fighter to Mortal Kombat and just about everything in between, I just love dishing out virtual combos and delivering a beat down to my opponent. And boy did Killer Instinct have some crazy combos and ultra combos and combo breakers. Not too mention a killer soundtrack, sweet finishing moves and some uniquely crazy characters with impressive designs and gritty meets cartoony animations but unfortunately I didn’t have an SNES when I was growing up, so this classic fighter slipped past me.

28. Donkey Kong 64- Nintendo 64

Even though I did not have an SNES, I had a few friends and cousins who had the console and lucky for me they were also fans of the Donkey Kong Country series (I became a fan through the Game Boy series Donkey Kong Land). I remember having an absolute blast with them and I still feel that they are among the best 2D platformers ever made. Of course when DK 64 was released, I couldn’t help but wonder what a 3D Donkey Kong Country game would be like.

Apparently, the barrel blasting, character swapping gameplay from the classic 2D games mixed well with the 3D style platforming seen in games like Super Mario 64. Since I had a PlayStation instead of an N64, I quickly forgot about it. I would however remember it again when a buddy of mine and I were talking about N64 games on a bus ride home from High School one afternoon. When DK 64 was brought up, he made an interesting point about how the ESRB should consider a game’s difficulty as well as a game’s content when giving a rating. He told me that DK 64 should have been rated T because the younger audience that Nintendo was aiming for would not be able to beat it because it would be way to hard for them.

Again, my curiosity was peaked but I quickly forgot about it until I started writing this list. I love Donkey Kong, I love a hearty challenge. So I’m bound to love DK 64. Right?  

27. No More Heroes- Nintendo Wii and soon to be on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3

For one, the game is about a foulmouthed, perverted, lightsaber like sword wielding hitman names Travis Touchdown who goes on killing spree just so he can get some action. That plot summary equals epic win. The game seems to have a good sense of humor, the characters look to be fresh and original (although they are a tad on the insane side) and the combat looks like great bit of bloody good fun. Basically it takes the classic kung-fu movie story structure and gives it a vulgarly comedic and crazy anime inspired face-lift. So I’ll make sure to check it out when it becomes available for the 360 sometime in 2011.

26. Darkstalkers (also known as Night Warriors)- Sony PlayStation, Sega Saturn

Oh look. Another fighting game that slipped past me. Basically after reading about this in an issue of PSN on the Christmas I was given my PlayStation, I was instantly captivated. I mean who wouldn’t want to play a fighting game with most of the characters being some kind of iconic monster? I mean this game has everything from aliens to zombies to werewolves to mummies to vampires. It even has a robot, a succubus a catgirl and a Sasquatch! And the sasquatch is a Canadian! Or as we in Canada call it a "Samsquantch.” So yeah. Street Fighter with monsters? Sign me up Capcom. Sign me up! 

25. Any title in the Fire Pro-Wrestling series 

Fire Pro is a series of wrestling games created by Japanese developer Spike. As a wrestling fan, I am desperately trying to find a great wrestling title that was not create by the WWE machine (besides Tecmo World Wrestling or the WCW games). Ever since I have first heard about this series existence, I have been wanting to play any one of the games that I could get my hands on. With it’s expansive rosters of famous wrestlers from across the globe (many of them have their names changed to avoid copyright infringement), solid match variety, seemingly limitless customisation and it’s 2D graphics, it definitely looks like a great alternative for wrestling smarks. A buddy of mine has one of the PS2 entries in the series. We just keep forgetting to play it.    

24. Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo- Game Boy Advanced, XBLA, PSN, Sega Saturn, Sony PlayStation

Now, I may not be the biggest fan of games like Puyo Puyo and Bejeweled but when you add in a loving parody of the Street Fighter and Darkstalkers franchises, you have officially peaked my interest. I remember first hearing about this game in an episode of Lee’s Still Gaming when he reviewed the Xbox Live Arcade version. And I have to say after seeing the hilariously cutesy chibi art style, the interesting mechanics which mix gem blasting puzzle gameplay with Street Fighter’s combo system, I knew I just had to play it sooner or later.

This game would have been slightly higher but I have actually downloaded the demo for HD remix on Xbox Live recently. After playing the demo I have to say that I really enjoyed myself and I will definitely make sure to download the full game at some point.  

23. Separation Anxiety- Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis

I was a big fan of Spider-Man and beat em ups as a kid, so you can only image the sense of pure glee I felt when I picked up my Genesis controller and played Maximum Carnage for the first time. Now I know some comic book fans don’t remember the Maximum Carnage arc too fondly but it is pretty much universally agreed that the video game adaptation was really good for its time. I mean the comic style graphics, the ability to call in other Marvel heroes as strikers and of course being able to play as the almost always badass Venom! How could that not be fantastic? Not too mention that Carnage is one of my all time favorite villains.

So, yeah. I thought Maximum Carnage was just swell and once I saw an advertisement in Electronic Gaming Monthly for a sequel to Maximum Carnage that would not only have you going up against a re-spawned Carnage but a whole batch of hideously pissed off offspring, I was excited. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find it. But if I ever decide to pick up an SNES or another Genesis, I would gladly give this one a whirl to see if my Spider Sense is still as sharp as ever.         

22. Sunset Riders- Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Arcade

A sidescrolling western shoot em up that plays like Contra? I'm so in! Although I will admit that it wasn’t the idea of a cowboy Contra game but actually this sweet death scene that made me really want to play it:

[embed:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1eNW7GG_Q8 ]

21: Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker- Sega Genesis, Arcade

File this one under morbid curiosity. Like many in the late 80’s/early 90’s, I was caught on many an embarrassing occasion dancing to the music of Michael Jackson (my favorite MJ tune was Beat it). I mean this guy ruled the f-ing world at that point. He made Thriller! When I heard about the Genesis port of Moonwalker, I knew I just had to play it.

Unfortunately, just like Separation Anxiety, I was unable to find it. I mean who didn’t want to kill a horde of bad guys with some wicked sweet dance moves? I know I sure did. I know now that Moonwalker is infamously lame and players can now insert a creepy subtext of MJ spending his time looking for children but I still want to play it. I don’t know if it is for the purpose of nostalgia or just for the novelty of fighting crime under the guise of the King of Pop but I still really want to finally give this game a chance. Not to mention it has some of MJ’s greatest hits converted into glorious 16-bit! So let’s hope this gets released on XBLA, PSN and WiiShop channel.

Who’s Bad?
 

To be continued. Muhwaahahaha! (insert another lightning bolt)