@Vojtass: I agree with your second paragraph as well. You'd think at least Starcraft would get a nod considering it is still a big deal in E-Sports.
As for the first paragraph, the thing to remember here is that this Hall of Fame is about influence. It's not about which came first or which are the greatest. This is why World of Warcraft was inducted over EverQuest, Doom was inducted over Wolfenstein, The Sims was inducted over Sim City, and Street Fighter 2 was nominated over Karateka. The original idea doesn't always make the biggest splash, though I think we all should be appreciative of where the idea originated.
@advari: The list is for Hall of Fame material, not best games ever. There's no question of the impact Wii Sports has had on the industry. I will concede to the notion though that Metal Gear Solid should be considered for its cinematic storytelling that set the standard for games to follow. Maybe next round.
@fanboyman: Music has been around a lot longer than video games. It takes a lot longer for the music industry to feel the impact of a particular artist than it does for the video game industry to feel the impact of a particular game. Though I agree that current gen games or even last gen games shouldn't be considered when there are so many other influential games to choose from.
There should be no question why these games are nominated
Solitaire - The most played PC game ever with more hours clocked than any other game to date that started as far back as Windows 3.0 and is even still played today.
Myst - Unprecedented graphical presentation for its time. Paved the way for point and click adventure games and non-violent games. Also used visual techniques (still images to create the illusion of 3D space) that would later be used in powerhouse games like Resident Evil and Final Fantasy 7. Also helped establish Macintosh as a gaming platform.
Mortal Kombat - Leader of the "Trifecta of Evil" that lead to the creation of the ESRB ratings system. Paved the way for graphic violence in video games, and is an easily recognized name even today.
Donkey Kong - The game that shaped Nintendo's future as a global gaming leader. It, along with Pac-Man, was the foundation the arcade scene of the 80's and 90's were built upon.
Halo - Redefined the first person shooter genre for consoles and propelled the genre into the multi-million dollar spotlight it is today. It is also the game that put the Xbox brand on the map.
Resident Evil - Became the face of the horror genre and set the standard for all survival horror games to follow. Also spawned the most successful game to movie franchise ever.
Portal - In addition to critical acclaim for its innovative gameplay and story telling, it became a pop culture phenomenon. Even non-gamers have heard about "the cake is a lie!"
Pokemon Red and Green - The first games of the most globally popular handheld series ever and one of the most popular gaming series in existence. The popularity of Pokemon spawned numerous copy-cat games in both the video game and trading card game industries.
Final Fantasy 7 - A crowning achievement in a number of areas for its time. Not only did it help increase the popularity of the Playstation, but it could be single handedly credited for the rise in popularity of the JRPG genre that followed well into the Playstation 2 era. Also widely regarded as one of the best games ever made by many.
Street Fighter 2 - Started the fighting game genre craze that dominated the 90's and laid the foundation of many mechanics still used today. Also could be attributed as the Grandfather of competitive gaming. Before E-Sports and even the internet, arcade tournaments of Street Fighter 2 were happening all over the world.
Tomb Raider - Established that a strong female lead character could not only work, but also be popular in the world of video games (Yes, Samus Aran came before Lara Croft, but many thought Samus was a dude named Metroid at the time). The game also sparked the "anti-sexualization movement" in video games.
Wii Sports - Proved to the world that video games are more than just games. Wii Sports is used in hospitals, nursing homes, and physical therapy clinics around the world as a means to rehabilitate patients suffering from injury or debilitating diseases. Also served as the pinnacle of what motion controls were capable of, and helped the Wii become one of the most sold consoles ever.
@Antarte: This will be my last post to you, since clearly you don't get it and I don't feel compelled to keep defending the game to someone who doesn't even understand what building means and has to resort to derogatory comments.
First of all, if you're going to post a build guide for Diablo 3, at least post a real guide, not a single post on bnet's forum.
Second of all, notice the number of options compared to your precious Path of Exile build. This is only one build of many. Flexibility does not equal casualization or simplicity. If you like rigid, cookie-cutter builds, fine. But don't try to convince the world that anything different is "a different genre".
Lastly, you assume too much. You assume that because I enjoy Diablo 3 that I'm "satisfied with the minimalist expression of RPG" in all cases. I grew up on table-top Dungeons and Dragons and the fact you cite Diablo 2 as being a leader in anything RPG related in the same sentence as "satisfied with the minimalist expression of RPG" is laughable to me.
The fact of the matter is, I enjoy good game design of all varieties while you, like many others, can't handle any changes to your "iconic sagas".
@Antarte: You clearly have no idea what you're talking about. There is no removal of stats in Diablo 3. If you are referring to stat point allocation upon leveling up, that's exactly what Paragon points are post level 70. Are you dense or just have not played Diablo 3 since vanilla?
There are more to builds than skill trees. You seem to think that anyone can select six skills and be ready to plow through Torment 13. Good luck making a Demon Hunter's Marauders build work by simply selecting the correct skills and runes. Doesn't work that way. You need to build up your gems, acquire legendary gems from Greater Rifts, level up those legendary gems, acquire a good amount of paragon points, find all pieces to your set armor, acquire the necessary legendaries needed to throw into Kanai's Cube, and then find any other legendary items needed with build specific effects just to make the build work. This isn't even factoring in using the enchanter to get your stats (those things you claim to have been removed) to align right. Don't get 'reduced cooldown' on three pieces of gear (which only a few slots can even roll this stat) and you won't be able to keep your Vengence active 100% of the time, and you'll be one shot.
There's more "building" to Diablo 3 characters than a fraction of what Diablo 2 had to offer. Your Diablo 2 "net specs" offered no freedom to customize anything. You were pigeon holed into a single, optimal way of doing things.
As to your question, it says ARPG on the box because it has the following RPG elements: class choices, skill choices, level up mechanics, stat allocation, loot, upgradeable items, craftable gear, character customization, dungeons (that are randomly generated), quests with rewards, and lots and lots of RNG.
@chiefwiggum16: This video likely represents the very beginning of the game before acquiring a weapon. You can see weapons do exist here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAL07Pbqx3c
@Antarte: There is so much wrong with this post I don't even know where to begin. Action game without stats? Realism?Different genre? Mario Bros with swords? What the actual ****?!
There are far more viable builds in Diablo 3 than in Diablo 2. In Diablo 2, there were one, sometimes two, viable builds per class. That's it. You talk of stat allocation, but as someone else already mentioned, everyone was built the exact same way, focusing on Dex to the right level, just enough Str to equip gear, then everything else in Vit. If you didn't follow this formula, you were gimping yourself. By comparison, Paragon points in Diablo 3 offer you far more customization and flexibility by boosting more than just the primary stats, and giving you the freedom to choose something to suit your specific needs.
You talk of skill trees, but how many skills in Diablo 2 are there that are utterly useless and how many were you FORCED to choose in order to unlock useful ones? Just because Diablo 3 gives you access to every skill available to a class, does not mean you get to use any skill you want freely at any time. Ironically, in Diablo 2, you spam the same 1 or two skills over and over while in Diablo 3 most use 3-4 skills in constant rotation with 1-2 passive effects or "oh Sh!t" buttons. Diablo 3 isn't without its share of useless skills mind you, but the game doesn't force you to choose them, let alone use them. Not to mention, a lot of legendary items and set armors drastically change how skills function, adding even more diversity and customization. This can't even be logically debated.
End game content? Yes, let's all farm Baal for the millionth time opposed to doing Greater Rifts with random layouts, enemies, bosses and a difficulty that never plateaus. Adventure mode? Seasons? Set dungeons? Achievements? Where are those in Diablo 2?
The ONLY thing Diablo 2 does better is its atmosphere and story. Soon, it won't even have the necromancer class as a hash mark in the win column.
You would do well to learn the difference between accessibility and "casualization". This is coming from someone who's played hundreds and hundreds of hours of both Diablo 2 and Diablo 3.
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