What games are the "definitive" games of their genre?

As in, which games do you think defined their entire genre as we now know it? In other words, the standard against which most, if not all, games of that genre are held? Not necessarily the most popular or even the first games of the genre, but the ones which essentially cemented the "rules" for what is expected from other games in its genre. Franchises count, too.

2D platformers: Super Mario Bros

3D platformers: Super Mario 64

2D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past

3D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Third-person action/adventure: Diablo

Third-person action: Ninja Gaiden

First-person shooters: Half-Life

Third-person shooters: Gears of War

Western RPG: Baldur's Gate II

Japanese RPG: Final Fantasy

Stealth: Splinter Cell (franchise)

2D Fighter: Street Fighter II

3D Fighter: Soul Calibur (the game, not the franchise)

Tactical RPG: Fire Emblem (franchise)

Real-Time Strategy: StarCraft

Turn-Based Strategy: Civilization

2D platformers: Super Mario Bros - agreed

3D platformers: Super Mario 64 - agreed

2D adventure: dunno =/

3D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - hmm maybee

Third-person action/adventure: dunno..fable?

Third-person action: Ninja Gaiden - agreed

First-person shooters: Bioshock tie Riddick escape from butchers bay..

Third-person shooters: Gears of War, agreed

Western RPG: Oblivion

Japanese RPG: Final Fantasy tie with Chrono cross.

Stealth: Splinter Cell tie with Tenchu

2D Fighter: Street Fighter II, agreed.

3D Fighter: Soul Calibur, agreed.

Tactical RPG: FF tactics

Real-Time Strategy: Dunno

Turn-Based Strategy: Dunno

mjarantilla

Excellent list. I would say this though:

Real-Time Strategy: Total Annihilation

2D platformers: Super Mario Brothers 3

3D platformers: Super Mario 64

2D adventure: Legend of Zelda

3D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Third-person action/adventure: No idea?

Third-person action: Ninja Gaiden

First-person shooters: Doom

Third-person shooters: Jet Force Gemini (XD)

Western RPG: Baldur's Gate II

Japanese RPG: Final Fantasy

Stealth: MGS

2D Fighter: Street Fighter II

3D Fighter: Soul Calibur (the game, not the franchise)

Tactical RPG: Tactics Ogre

Real-Time Strategy: StarCraft

Turn-Based Strategy: Civilization

Puzles : Tetris

2D platformers : Pitfall for the Atari 2600

First Person shooter : Wolfenstein 3-D

RTS: Dune 2

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

Nagru

Excellent list. I would say this though:

Real-Time Strategy: Total Annihilation

You really think TA influenced the RTS genre THAT much?

First-person shooters: Golden Eye

[QUOTE="Nagru"]

[QUOTE="mjarantilla"]

mjarantilla

Excellent list. I would say this though:

Real-Time Strategy: Total Annihilation

You really think TA influenced the RTS genre THAT much?

According to Gamespot, "...Total Annihilation was nothing less than a revelation. And a revolution."

My main reason for saying TA though was just because I'm a big fan of the game.

Multiplayer FPS- Doom

Console FPS-Goldeneye

Arcade Sidescroller-TMNT

Console Sidescroller-Metroid

Adventure game-Adventure

RPG-Final Fantasy VII (corrected)

Turn based RTS- Final Fantasy Tactics (corrected)

Motion sensing-Wii Sports

Cash-in game-Mario Party

Point and Click-Day of the Tentacle

Storyline game-Grim Fandango

Mascot game(where-in the mascot survives for only one generation)- Rocket Knight Adventures

Puzzle game-Tetris

Puzzler-Lost Vikings

3-D fighter-Power Stone (corrected)

2-D fighter-Street Fighter 2

I say Metroid prty much represnts the adventure shooter genre, for 2-d and 3-d, and halo: CE defined the scifi shooter genre

soul calibur shoudl be replaced with tekken ... not because it is the better game ... but becasue it is what it represents more.humber_matus

I admit, I was torn between Tekken and Soul Calibur. I chose Soul Calibur because SC1 got better ratings than the first Tekken. But I guess that Tekken is a more recognizable name when one thinks of "3D fighter."

As in, which games do you think defined their entire genre as we now know it? In other words, the standard against which most, if not all, games of that genre are held? Not necessarily the most popular or even the first games of the genre, but the ones which essentially cemented the "rules" for what is expected from other games in its genre. Franchises count, too.

2D platformers: Super Mario Bros

3D platformers: Super Mario 64

2D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past

3D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Third-person action/adventure: Diablo - Isometric Action RPG

Third-person action: Ninja Gaiden

First-person shooters: Half-Life

Third-person shooters: Gears of War

Western RPG: Baldur's Gate II

Japanese RPG: Final Fantasy

Stealth: Splinter Cell (franchise)

2D Fighter: Street Fighter II

3D Fighter: Soul Calibur (the game, not the franchise)

Tactical RPG: Fire Emblem (franchise)

Real-Time Strategy: StarCraft

Turn-Based Strategy: Civilization

mjarantilla

No Driving? Sports? Flight Simulators?

First-person shooters: Golden Eye

adastos

Stealth/action adventure - MGS

[QUOTE="adastos"]

First-person shooters: Golden Eye

Rougehunter

All that you said is true, however it was not the blueprint for every FPS that came after it.

Case and point-Halo has no bot setting.

There's no such thing it's completely up to the player.

But to me.

2D platformers: Super Mario World

3D platformers: Banjo Series

2D adventure: Monkey Island

3D adventure: Grim Fandango

Third-person action/adventure: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Third-person action: Devil May Cry

First-person shooters: DOOM

Third-person shooters: Gears of War

Western RPG: Fallout 2 (too broad of a subgenre though)

Japanese RPG: Shin Megami Tensei (way too broad of a subgenre)

Stealth: Thief

2D Fighter: Super Street Fighter II Turbo

3D Fighter: Virtua Fighter

Tactical RPG: Fire Emblem series

Real-Time Strategy:Command and Conquer

Turn-Based Strategy: Civilization

3D adventure: Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

mjarantilla

2D Fighter : Mortal Kombat TrilogyRigga911