IGN's Top 100 Modern Video Games

[Spark Of Spirit]

Actually someone should do a top 100 PS1 game list. And a SNES, Genesis, PS2, Saturn, Dreamcast...

There are a lot of gems that would otherwise be overlooked.

But you have to have people who actually know games make these lists, otherwise they never turn out right. Which means these big game sites could never handle it right.

[gunswordfist]

Or a genre list. Namely action rpg

[Eddy]

20. Dead Space (Dead Space 2 was better, if anything that should be here)
19. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (oh hai generic war shooter)
18. Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (never played it)
17. Left 4 Dead 2 (never played it, but I have played L4D1)
16. Heavy Rain (I actually loved Heavy Rain so I'm glad to see it here)
15. New Super Mario Bros. (fuck no)
14. Halo: Reach (haven't played it)
13. Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (loved, but I'm not sure it's top 20 material)
12. Half-Life 2: Episode 2 (Half-Life 2 itself, hell yeah, but Episode 2 itself I'm not so sure)
11. Grand Theft Auto IV (haven't played it, despite owning it)
10. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (deserves it)
9. Batman: Arkham Asylum (deserves it)
8. Assassin's Creed II (haven't played it yet, but I own it)
7. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (haven't played this one either, but I own it)
6. Fallout 3 (deserves it, I loved Fallout 3)
5. Portal 2 (fuck yes)
4. Super Mario Galaxy 2 (fuck yes)
3. Red Dead Redemption (fuck yes)
2. BioShock (fuck yes)
1. Mass Effect 2 (haven't played it)

There are a lot of holes in it overall (Limbo made it and no sign of Super Meat Boy? wtf IGN), but the top ten itself isn't that bad.

[Spark Of Spirit]

Not a SINGLE game from Platinum Games, Treasure, WayForward, Monolith, or Atlus.

I'm stunned.

[Eddy]

And I knew it wasn't going to (since this is IGN we're talking about) but, god dammit, Deadly Premonition should have been somewhere on this list. It deserves it.

[Spark Of Spirit]

The worst part of Deadly Premonition is that if it came out last gen on the Dreamcast, it would be heralded as a fucking classic.

We all know it.

*And it almost DID come out last gen, which just proves how lame critics have gotten*

[talonmalon333]

I just realized that they didn't include SMG1, but they DID include NSMBDS...

*Sigh*

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I just realized that they didn't include SMG1, but they DID include NSMBDS...

*Sigh*

They said that they would only include 1 entry per series (well they said franchise, but they broke that rule by having way more than 1 Mario-related game on the list, but as far as individual series go they only chose one representative from each series), and SMG2 was the one that they chose as the representative of the Galaxy games. They couldn't include SMG1 on the list if they already listed the 2nd game.

[Foggle]

I am ECSTATIC that Mass Effect 2 got its well deserved spot and Red Dead Redemption is my most wanted game so I am glad it ranked so ridiculously high

Mass Effect 2 is a good game, sure. I love it, in fact. But to be listed as number 1 on a list like this is downright insulting. Also, Red Dead Redemption is actually extremely boring looking back. The missions take FOREVER to pick up speed and the countryside is only interesting until you realize that the whole landscape is fucking lifeless. Rampages in Just Cause 2 and the Saints Row games are infinitely more exciting just because the area feels inhabited. The writing is excellent, though, as in all Rockstar games.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I love the old-western theme. I'd play an FPS or TPS or any action game based on classic Western films. However, I have to be honest, I don't think its a suitable setting for an open-world GTA style game. That's when you notice things like how boring and repetitive the landscape looks and stuff of that sort. It needs to be made into a more action-focused sort of game that keeps you on track. There can and should be room for some exploration around towns and the like, but the focus should be on fast-paced gun-blazing action. From what I've played, that one Western themed level from Time Splitters 2 is the closest that I ever got to that. I haven't tried the Call of Juarez games, though. Does anyone know if they are any good?

[Foggle]

Oh, I LOVE the story, music, voice acting, and setting in RDR. The gameplay is lacking, though, IMO. If you were bored by Oblivion and Fallout 3 (which had tons more to do than this game), I don't think you'd find it exciting.

Call of Juarez is... strange. Half the game is shitty, ridiculously frustrating stealth levels, while the other half is intense, well-done firefights. I'd actually advise against playing it.

Call of Juarez: Bound In Blood is all shooting, all the time. It's fun, but it's a total movie shooter through and through. Maybe a rental at best.

Call of Juarez: The Cartel has nothing to do with the old west and looks dumb as hell. Avoid.

[Spark Of Spirit]

I frequently hear people saying that Just Cause 2 and Saints Row 2 are the best open world games there are, WAY better than GTA4.

Neither made this list.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

With those games I suppose it depends on what you're looking for in an open-world sort of game, though. IGN Seems to suck a game's dick if they think it has a strong narrative and what not. Just Cause is pretty tongue-in-cheek and over-the-top with its action and Saints Row is also a bit ridiculous and overall tries to stray away from being compared to GTA from what I can tell. I can't really say whether they are better games or not, myself, because to be honest all 3 game series aren't really my cup of tea, as I'm not a fan of sandbox games that are about doing whatever you want with very little focus in the gameplay. That said, I would probably enjoy both of those games more than GTA IV, at the very least. Its not like I even hate GTA or anything, but for me the whole formula got kind of boring after GTA III and Vice City. There's only so much you can do with a sandbox style game like that before the gameplay gets stale before long if you don't give it any real sort of focus.

[Foggle]

I frequently hear people saying that Just Cause 2 and Saints Row 2 are the best open world games there are, WAY better than GTA4.

They are. I've spent hours just dicking around in both of those games. Each has something awesome to make it stand out, as well: JC 2 has the parachute and grappling hook while SR 2 has hilarious mini-games and co-op (which is horribly laggy, unfortunately).

Speaking of western-themed games, I just picked up Darkwatch for Xbox 1 a few minutes ago (along with an unopened copy of the FF4/Chrono Trigger collection on PS1 - score!). I hear it's very similar to Painkiller and I've wanted to play it for years but have never been able to find a copy. I'll be sure to tell you how it is.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Well, Dark Watch is more of a combination of a Western with Vampires rather than a pure Western flick style experience. But hey, I'm not complaining about 2 awesome things being rolled into one (assuming that the game is actually any good).