CHRONO CROSS

One of the most memorable games of all time, in my opinion, is Chrono Cross. What a twisted, crazy, amazing game. Following in the vein of Ocarina of Time with a speechless protagonist, Chrono Cross had some of the greatest FMVs of the PS1 era.

Most people were skeptical after hearing about a sequel to Chrono Trigger with 40+ playable characters. But once they got their hands on the game and figured out how the loads of characters were implemented into the game, they stopped their skepticism. A great cast of characters and an AMAZING soundtrack make this game shine. Parallel dimensions thrown into a fantastic and mystical story help it out, as well. Also one of the greatest opening themes of any game, along with the opening theme from FFIX.

You don't need to play Chrono Trigger before playing this game. But if you have played it, you can get a few chuckles out of some areas of the game. Especially the area in the future with the machines that leave you well-rested but still feeling hungry. And the characters from Trigger are thrown in at one point for good measure. Anyways, great graphics, a fun battle system that's based on the inherent elements of the characters, and one of the greatest soundtracks to ever grace a game all make Chrono Cross stand out from other games. Did I mention that Gamespot gave this game a perfect 10?

KINGDOM HEARTS

Of the menagerie of RPGs to come out over the recent years, it is quite fair to say that Kingdom Hearts had the most skepticism following it. As in, few believed a merger of the Final Fantasy and Disney universes could work. Players weren't sure, reviewers weren't sure, other developers weren't sure. We didn't know what to expect when Kingdom Hearts came out. Some thought it would be too aimed at a young audience.

But then it did come out. And it was amazing. A deep story, instantly likable characters, and an interesting mesh of an Active Time Battle system and FF's signature menu selections, all on the fly. Don't pretend like it wasn't fun to visit all of your favorite Disney worlds from your younger years. And you had to love the way the Final Fantasy characters were integrated into the game. I played this before I ever played my first FF game, but once I played through it again, I could really appreciate the effort made by Square and Disney to appeal to fans of both worlds. And you can't forget an amazing soundtrack. The music for Hollow Bastion remains one of my favorite area or city themes from ANY game, along with the Memoria theme from FFIX and the Forest Temple theme from Zelda: OOT.

Once you played the game, you didn't have to worry about the companies directing it towards kids. You realized you were getting into a real Square-like adventure, rife with spiky hair and plot twists. Once you begin to travel to non-Disney worlds, the story really begins to pick up, and gains a very mature feel once you are conflicting with Riku in Hollow Bastion. There is not enough I can say about this game. It brings back so many memories. I hope as many of you have played this as possible, because it is well worth its $20 price tag nowadays. It was worth its $50 price tag when it was released.

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: OCARINA OF TIME

I can never forget the day I received this game. I got it as a present from my best friend, and I was shocked, to say the least. I knew how amazing it was supposed to be. And it had just come out! This guy spent like 50 bucks on me to get this game. But we all know he wanted to play it too. So we put it in the N64, and wow... The graphics were so revolutionary. This came out in what...1997? And people doubted the N64's technical capabilities. Not after this, what many consider to be one of the greatest games of all time.

The music was infectious. The gameplay was addicting. Zelda games are one of the few series of games where I actually enjoy almost every battle. The Z-targeting system was an incredible addition. And the inventory was so streamlined. You could get anything in your inventory within a few seconds, and then map it to one of the C buttons. And as with all Zelda games, the bosses were huge and fearsome, and left you feeling very proud after defeating them. Not to say that these bosses were hard; Zelda bosses are never exactly difficult to kill, as once you find their pattern, it's simple to go about the actual act of destroying them. The environments were lush, the character models looked fantastic, the dungeon crawling and puzzles redefined the series. It's so good that I still go back and play it sometimes. If you are one of the six people in the world who missed the game, then I am very sorry.

SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS

What an incredibly memorably game. It has so many great things going for it. ICO was such a fantastic game as well (for those of you who haven't played it, try it out some time). ICO had the graphics and the sound and the ambience to make a wonderful environment. Shadow of the Colossus improved upon all of those ideas twofold. The beginning cutscene leaves you mesmerized. Remember when they showed the bridge he (Wander) was crossing, and the camera kept backing up and backing up, and you saw more and more of the bridge, and you realized just how huge the game was going to be. And they kept everything so simple. Hold up your sword, see where the next colossus is, and spur your horse into a gallop in that direction. Running through barren landscapes that are also diverse enough to keep the environments interesting.

Then you get to the colossus. I thought the first one was big. HA. The second one was huge! And then the dragon near the end. That was ridiculous. The battle with the sandsnake in that huge sand cavern, the battle with the huge raven, the fight against the freaking electric eel. All were crazy. And then you get to the final colossus. "HOLY F*****G S**T WHAT THE F**K IS THAT?!" My dad, my best friend, and my neighbor all watched me beat the last colossus, and it was an amazing experience for all of us, not to mention an exhilarating and terrifying experience for me. This was such a great game. And then you have no idea what is happening once you see the last cutscene, but it seems that it's connected to ICO in some way. A little baby with horns. Really? Yeah. Shadow of the Colossus should never be missed, by anyone. It's just so...artistic and unique and wonderful.

HALO: COMBAT EVOLVED

Remember the reason everyone wanted to own an XBOX? Remember the greatest launch game to ever grace the video gaming world? Remember the first time you popped it in and witnessed the jaw-dropping visuals and incredible backgrounds? Everyone has their own memories of HALO. This was arguably the first great FPS of the new console generation (new console generation being XB, PS2, GC) and it spawned one of the most loved FPS series of all time. Loads of other shooters were reviewed based on how memorable they were compared to HALO.

This game has an incredible single player campaign, rife with amazing moments. Who can forget the first single player sniper rifle level? The Truth and Reconciliation. And then the Assault on the Control Room, with the tank. That was so much fun. That tank kicks ass. And the Scorpion Tank still kicks ass, only human-controlled players can't sit on the sides of it anymore. And then you think that the multiplayer in this game led to some of the most popular online multiplayer games of all time (HALO 2 and 3). It's better than its two sequels, but not by much. The original HALO just had so much newness and originality that left you wanting more, and that's why it made my list.

PERFECT DARK 64

It was difficult for me to choose between GoldenEye and Perfect Dark for the N64. Both were superb shooters and both have withstood the test of time. In my opinion, GoldenEye had the better single player campaign, while Perfect Dark had the better multiplayer gameplay. This game had fantastic graphics and fluid movement. The guns were incredibly responsive. And of all you people out there who played this game, who can forget the Laptop Gun? One of the greatest additions to multiplayer FPS's ever. The Laptop Gun's secondary feature is a sentry gun. Hold down B, aim at a wall, and your character throws the gun onto the wall, where it sticks, waiting for some unsuspecting fool to come jaunting around the corner. Once it senses movement, the gun lets its hail of bullets rain down upon the enemy. Pop one of those babies into a crowded room, and watch the blood spill. For those of you who liked GoldenEye more, I'm sorry. Great level design here, great guns, great gameplay.

MARIO KART 64

How many games truly stand the test of time? Not many. This is the first video game I ever owned, and it is possible that I have put more time into this game than any game I've ever played. Two summers ago, my friend from Virginia came to visit me, and we played for hours every night. Two weeks ago, my suitemate and two other friends and I played for hours while slowly and steadily getting more intoxicated. This might just be my favorite party game of all time. And a game that keeps you playing over 12 years after its release definitely deserves the #10 spot on my list.

I've played some good games lately. They're all interesting. But certain things grate on me in almost every game.

I loved Mirror's Edge. Speed and platforming were incredible. But there didn't need to be so many enemies. Seriously. It could have been more like Ico. Focus on the platforming and (minimal, in ME's case) puzzle-solving without having to worry about bad guys all the time. And you have to use guns to get past some of the parts, unless you want to spend hours trying. Even then, it could get too difficult. For the sequel, I would love to see less focus on bad guys and more focus on worrying about your environment.

Resistance 2 is really fun, and exciting, and "OH MY GOD WHAT WAS THAT??"-ing. Like that weird cloud of bug-looking things that eat people. Anyways, there's no recoil on some of the guns. That bothers me. I like recoil.

Fable 2 upped the ante in terms of socialization. Guns are a nice new addition, and buying properties like drink stalls and barber shops lets you get money easily. Even jobs are alright. But it just plain isn't as good as the first. I mean, what happened to being able to access your inventory on the fly? What happened to mapping items - like potions - to the D-pad? What happened to some semblance of difficulty? Peter Molyneux wanted to streamline the new magic system to make it simpler to use, but all he did was make it more convoluted. Why change so many things that worked so well in the first game?

Metal Gear Solid 4 was fantastic. I played it non-stop over the course of about three days. I think I gave it a 9.5 or something. I loved the voice acting, loved the story, loved the graphics and the characters, and I loved some of the exciting cutscenes. But there were too many. This is the first time I have EVER said this, for ANY game. I didn't mind the excess of cutscenes in Xenosaga, for example. But MGS4 kept taking me away from the action and sticking me in a movie. I mean, seriously, how long were the ending movies? About 2 hours? Yeah.

Oh, and I got Valkyria Chronicles, but my PS3 doesn't work at the moment. :x

I know games can't be perfect. I know many of you love these games. I love them too (except maybe Fable 2). But there are certain things that get on my nerves.

My winter (Christmas) break has started and I am pretty excited. I got home from college on Saturday. I don't have to go back until about a week into January.

So my girlfriend wakes me up this morning with a text message: "I'm getting you a surprise Christmas present; I'm at Gamestop now and I want you to pick out any PS3 game you want, bar none."

So I met her up there, and I was down among 3 games: Prince of Persia, Resistance 2, and Eternal Sonata. I played the demo for Eternal Sonata and it was pretty good, but one of the Gamestop workers said he didn't like it very much, and that was enough for me, so I put it back.

Then I remembered my roommate is getting PoP for Christmas for the 360, so when we get back to school, I can play it for free. I thought "Why not get a PS3 exclusive?" So I did. I got Resistance 2. And I got my best friend the Orange Box for 360. I must say Resistance 2 is pretty cool so far, but I honestly think I may like the single player campaign for Gears 2 a little bit more. However, the multiplayer for R2 is supposed to easily outshine that of Gears 2, which is filled with weird glitches and time-consuming errors.

So, anyone excited for Christmas? Back in your houses, back from school, ready to game it up? I almost forgot, my parents got a 40-inch, 1080p Sony LCD HDTV when I was gone. I was very happy, needless to say. I hooked up my PS3, and it looks incredible, but all I have it hooked up with are the component cables that come with it. Do you think it's worth it to get the HDMI cable?

A few days ago my parents asked me what I want for Christmas.

So I've been thinking. Here's what I've compiled:

1. Mirror's Edge - PS3

2. Valkyria Chronicles - PS3

3. Persona 3: FES - PS2

4. possibly Fallout 3 or LittleBigPlanet

I will probably also ask for books 3 and 4 in the Wheel of Time series.

What do you think of my wanted games? Any suggestions?