Most cinematic game you have ever played.

What is the most cinematic game you have ever played on a PC?
(or a Mac, if you insist the experience comes near).
By cinematic I mean jaw-dropping visuals,
audio and video production that rivals Hollywood's crap
and action that takes you by the balls...
We had a conversation about this with friends and I am trying to come up with top 3.
My picks are:

BIOSHOCK
FEAR
DIABLO II
UT3

Yours?

Probably Mass Effect,

Yeah, I think Mass Effect is up there.

I think the voice acting is excellent and also the camera positioning during cut scenes and dialogue. All topped of with that film grain effect.

Do you think it is harder for games in first person perspective to do those things?

Yeah, I think Mass Effect is up there.

I think the voice acting is excellent and also the camera positioning during cut scenes and dialogue. All topped of with that film grain effect.

Do you think it is harder for games in first person perspective to do those things?

MagicJoe

Half-Life 2
Deus Ex
F.E.A.R.
Metal Gear Solid
Call Of Duty 4

I'm going by things like atmosphere and story here.

Call Of Duty 4

Crysis

Half-Life 2 [+Ep's]

Wheelman, COD4, Crysis

I'd have to go with Mass Effect too, cutscenes are just briliant, graphics and story is jawdropping and voice acting is one of the best also.Honorable mention : Mirrors Edge.

Wing Commander IV, while the gameplay in itself was rather cinematic with flashy space battles, scripted events and proper voice acting and video feeds from other fighters, it still sometimes felt like it was just something to connect the cutscenes together, which says a lot about them. HL and Max Payne on the other hand pulled it off with the actual gameplay, atmosphere and story telling. For some reason I didn't get that vibe from Mass Effect, perhaps because it's so open, a linear tight experience with scripted events to me works better in greating a cinematic feel to a game.mr_mozilla

Tetris.

Pong>>>>>>>>>Tetris

Pong>>>>>>>>>Tetris

theintrospect79

Max Payne anyone????

Bioshock is supremely immersive, feel's like a waking dream. I vote Crysis though, it seemed to get everything right, even down to the epic soundtrack. And if getting chased through the forest by a 50 foot walker isn't cinematic, I don't know what is...

Live action from Command & Conquer.

Max Payne anyone????

biltros

Good shout! I remember in particular using the Kung Fu and trying to recreate the Matrix!

I might just have to find the CD out now...

CoD 4 single player campaign. Mass Effect was also onejrabbit99

forgot all about CoD 4 campaign. That also has my three thumbs, up in it's general direction.

Max Payne anyone????

biltros

COD4, Left 4 Dead

Metal Gear Solid.

Assassins Creed's cutscenes and storytelling was amazing as well.

Full Throttle. Very cinematic, especially for a DOS game.

Crap I forgot the new Prince of Persia. That game had a really cool story and a movie like method to tell it.

Oooh, this is hard...

I would have to say, for that hollywood-style tingle, Halo 3 took the biscuit for me. FFX is just behind that.

In terms of PC though, Bioshock was pretty impressive, and Fallout 3 has some fine art direction.

COD4

Mass Effect

Crysis

Bioshock

Half Life 2 series

Half-Life 2 + EP 1,2

Bioshock

Yeah I guess Crysis, Bioshock, Mass Effect, Half-Life 2, F.E.A.R, Metal Gear Solid and Call Of Duty 4 should top the list.

My special thanks to DanielDust and mr_mozilla for your comments - helpful to define "cinematic" for me.

Bioshock, Mass Effect and FEAR2. FEAR2 probably the most; I only played the demo but wow it was like walking in a movie. Yeah the gameplay is repetitive but it is truly a cinematic experiencemachine_B

Dunno, I feel F.E.A.R. 2 is not as cinematic as the original. Graphics is defenitely better in the sequel, but that's it. I felt the gameplay was not as good and there was something else that made the whole experience much less intense - sounds. Sound in this game was somehow flat. Like for example you kick-open some heavy industrial doors but the sound that comes with it is more like when you spit on a carpet. Or try firing to the sides - the gunshots do not really come from the directions they should. Things like that ruin it for me.

And the winner is .....

Tetris.

OoSuperMarioO

That tops my list now ;)

Mass Effect I would say.