Let's compile a list of our most loved PC games of all time! It sounds like a bit of fun, doesn't it? Easy. If only we'd known. The following feature spread over the next few days has taken the PC Zone team weeks of heated discussions, office arguments, late-night drunken text messages and email abuse to whittle down the PC's entire 20-plus year output of games into just 101 titles - and that's before we even started thinking about number one...
However, the dust has finally settled, the swearing silenced and here we are - PC Zone's 101 Best Games Ever. Enjoy this, numbers 75 to 51, and the forthcoming instalments featuring the crème de la crème of PC gaming, then don't forget to let us know if you agree or disagree by hitting the comments field below...
75. Final Fantasy VII YEAR 1998: Yes, it's a console port, but Final Fantasy VII remains a touchstone in role-playing games. Featuring the biggest tear-jerk moment, an epic story, great settings, excellent turn-based combat and an unforgettable soundtrack, the FF franchise has rumbled on, but VII is the one you'll be making your grudging grandkids play.
74. The Longest Journey YEAR 1999: A breathtaking and absorbing trek through a world where fantasy and sci-fi combine. The Longest Journey was a traditional pointand- click through and through, but was also a deliberate foray into adult adventuring where easy laughs were not a priority, but narrative was. Buyer beware: this product does contain traces of penis.
73. Uplink YEAR 2001: There's no feeling like being somewhere you really shouldn't, and the excitement of evading the online fuzz was neatly captured by Introversion in Uplink. Gifting you the absolute buzz of fast-paced computer hacking without hazardous FBI interest, it may not look like much, but it can and will rock your geeky little world.
72. Total Annihilation YEAR 1997: Command & Conquer brought strategy to the masses, but it was Chris Taylor and Cavedog who took the RTS mechanic, distilled it, put in some ballistic physics and 3D-lollapalooza and created sheer tactical gold. Supreme Commander has since followed in its wake, but Total Annihilation's legacy will live longer in the memory.
71. Fahrenhiet YEAR 2005: "Well that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, I really love you Fahrenheit!" sang Mud in 1974, with spooky foresight. From the artistic brainwaves of David Cage came a cinematic treatment of a game that bent itself around your actions, told its story the way you played it, and was so grown-up that it contained scenes that went way beyond second base. Playing as multiple characters that you honestly gave a shit about, and with a story that perhaps went that little bit too mad - but was at least a stunning and unpredictable beast - its spiritual follow-up Heavy Rain simply can't come soon enough.
70. Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War YEAR 2004: Back in the early days,Warhammer was all about theartistry of turning a hundred metal men into a vibrant army of inch-high warriors, so it's no surprise that this RTS outing was a gorgeous affair. Preferring fast surging warfare to plodding army building, it's an RTS of unique blood-splattered joy.
69. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl YEAR 2007: A diamond in the rough this one. Unpolished and unremittingly Eastern European, yet wondrously scary and beautifully envisaged. Trekking around the Chernobyl fallout zone is a truly haunting experience, while the roving dynamic AI pulls all manner of surprises out of its hat. Pretty much worth the wait...
68. Trackmania: United YEAR 2007: A racing game, a track construction kit, a virtual racing community - TrackMania: United is as mad as a box of frogs (no offence to French developers Nadeo), and a game likely to induce lucid speed-licked dreams in the most placid of participants. It may cause retinal damage, but the optometrists haven't caught on yet, so our secret remains safe.
67. Garry's Mod YEAR 2006: What began as a way to make the G-Man appear to take Alyx roughly from behind has now bloomed into a Great Egg Race meets Scrapheap Challenge box of delights. Completely sandbox, completely stupid and quite possibly the most romantic entanglement you and your brain will ever have, this is one mod that has truly transcended its, erm, 'source' material.
66. SimCity 2000 YEAR 1993: OK, so technically the most fun you got from SimCity was turning on the riots, fires and alien invasion and watching your carefully crafted creation burn, but the management bits were damn good too. Plus, there was the added bonus that your new-found knowledge of city planning could be used to pass your geography GCSE. A classic of addictive gameplay from Maxis.
65. SWAT 4 YEAR 2005: After the abortive Urban Justice sank without a trace, it looked like the noble SWAT series was done for - until this top-notch instalment saved the day. Developers Irrational certainly didn't spare any grit as you led your five-man team through a series of challenging and at times unsettling scenarios. Decent multiplayer and a robust level editor completed the resurrection.
64. X3 Reunion YEAR 2005: The learning curve may have been a little steep on the third game in the X series, but no-one ever said space life was going to be easy. What's more, once you mastered the umpteen controls required, this game really did offer everything you could ever wish for in a space sim. It demanded a lot, but gave a lot too.
63. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time YEAR 2003: There he was, our once pyjama-clad Prince all grown up and muscly. A time-shifting, acrobatic, death-defying warrior - who was simultaneously crap with women and a bit of a ponce. Fight mechanics improved with two further POP iterations, but nothing came close to rivalling the inherent loveliness contained within The Sands Of Time.
62. Dungeon Keeper YEAR 1997: One of the most loved titles to emerge from the late, great Bullfrog Productions, this fantastically wicked game turned us all into cackling dungeon keepers, prodders, pokers and fiddlers. Its robust design and rather British sense of humour ensure that it remains relentless good fun even today. Sim evil at its very best.
61. Planescape: Torment YEAR 1999: A firm favourite of RPGers everywhere, Planescape: Torment is still loved, still discussed and still sadly lamented. It was one of the first (and only) games to really capture the grimy weirdness of the Forgotten Realms world - pregnant walls, floating skulls, towers built around giants, the lot. Players valiantly ploughed through the swathes of text in the game, proving that gamers will read anything and everything just as long as it's suitably interesting. Indeed, with its memorable characters, great dialogue and engaging plot, Planescape: Torment is the ultimate proof that games can be a powerful storytelling medium.
60. Age of Empires YEAR 1997: Another pillar supporting the giant mouse-shaped roof of the pantheon of strategy gaming, Microsoft's Age Of Empires is a true PC icon. The series has inspired a hundred copycat franchises, but few could touch this historical strategy classic. With sequels and expansion packs still rolling out, the series is an essential part of the PC gaming landscape.
59. StarCraft YEAR 1998: With official patches still appearing from time to time, Blizzard's ongoing support for this sci-fi classic shows exactly how recognised the game is as an almighty icon of strategy gaming. Still played in RTS tournaments, still sublimely designed, still immaculately balanced. If the RTS genre were the Catholic church, StarCraft would be placed among the highest of saints - but only if it ever dies.
58. TIE Fighter YEAR 1994: Sod Luke Skywalker, the prissy do-gooder - what every Star Wars fan really wanted was to get behind the controls of a TIE Fighter and kill that stupid farmboy Biggs. Well-crafted missions, secret missions on behalf of the Emperor and the best 'swoosh!' sound effects in spaceships... Oh happy, evil days.
57. Guild Wars YEAR 2005: NCsoft's magnificent Guild Wars stuck two fingers up at the run-of-the-mill MMO templates, by opting for exciting, immediate and, just as importantly, free online action. It proved to be an extremely smart move on the developer's part, as it's still hiding behind metaphorical large rocks, then pouncing on grind-weary MMOers and enlisting them for the Guild Wars cause.
56. Neverwinter Nights YEAR 2002: After the successes of Baldur's Gate I and II, the 3D Neverwinter Nights was one of the most anticipated RPGs of all time. When it came out, the new engine proved hugely versatile, and the ease with which players could create mods and run their own DMing sessions has proved more enduring than the game itself. True single-player wonders would have to wait for expansions and downloads, but this remains a monumental game.
55. Thief: Deadly Shadows YEAR 2004: Sadly kept at an arm's length from outright brilliance by Xbox considerations, Garrett's third outing in tea-leafing contained some of the best stealth money can buy. With a semi-persistent city allowing for a slice of freeform pilfering, plus the 'OMG scariest level eva', Deadly Shadows was and is a taffing marvel.
54. Tomb Raider YEAR 1996: Lara's first and, for some, best adventure saw the nature-hating archaeologist embarking on a globe-trotting journey to push ancient levers on four different continents. Introducing the most recognisable game character of all time, and having the sense to have her bosom defy gravity, the jumpy, shooty bits were fairly ace too.
53. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault YEAR 2002: Allied Assault's Normandy landing mission remains one of the finest FPS levels ever. Lifelike yet cinematic, the mission defined this exhilarating shooter. Despite its inherent reliance on scripted action, you genuinely felt part of a fighting unit that was in constant peril. The solo bits and ending were complete shit though.
52. EverQuest YEAR 1999: EverQuest was the first MMO to hit the big time and propelled the genre towards the mainstream. Its then groundbreaking persistent world Norrath allowed a massive 24,000 people to batter goblins online at any one time. Had EverQuest not grabbed the attention of the planet, there may never have been a World Of Warcraft. Just imagine...
51. The Sims 2 YEAR 2004: The little burbly morons that we, in all honesty, love having to hate are nevertheless wrapped up inside a jaw-droppingly well-designed game. At one end brilliantly geared to a dollhouse mentality beloved by the mainstream, and at the other allowing us to watch them catch fire and die - small wonder it sells bucketloads. Expect Spore, (next from Sims creator Will Wright) to be near the head of this list come its release...
:twisted: ahh Dungon Keeper im glad to see that this made it somewere up the league table, that was such a good game, not just a stratagy, as you could go first peoson inside your demonic creatures and use them for your evil bidding mwhahaha :twisted:
Probably, a lot of games based their speed on the fsb(I think?), which of course they assumed would stay the same for many years to come. The practical upshot of which is that when I tried to play descent recently everything (including my own ship) was moving about like a humming-bird on speed during a seizure!
Thief: Deadly Shadows ABOVE Planescape Torment, and Thief: Deadly Shadows ABOVE The Longest Journey. Really this mag doesn't know what the heck it's talking about! No wonder I don't buy the mag any more!
Deadly Shadows was great, but I hope Thief 1 & 2 appear higher up, cos they bloody well deserve to.
I also expect to see the following:
Half-Life 1 & 2 (duh) Freelancer Jedi Knight: Jedi Outcast/Academy Fade to Black Bioforge Warcraft 3 Tron 2.0 Little Big Adventure 1 & 2 Midnight Club 2 Duke Nukem 3D (duh)
NO QUAKE GAME SHOULD BE ON THIS LIST (except maybe Q3). The first one may have had groundbreaking graphics, but it was otherwise shit.
Failure to include these will result in the total...annihilation of your raacccccccce
Mogs, a couple of your titles won't be mentioned, when you consider X-Com UFO Defence only got to 47, anything else from that era (like Fade to Black and Bioforge) will be down in the 200's, a total crime, by the way!
This is part of the media's message that 'new is better' in order to keep us buying the modern mostly crappy games and not keep playing our older mostly great games, meaning less PC game sales - and advertisers!
You are going to find lots of classic pre 2000 titles not on the list and plenty of very average 2006-2007 titles in the list.
67. Garry's Mod YEAR 2006: What began as a way to make the G-Man appear to take Alyx roughly from behind has now bloomed into a Great Egg Race meets Scrapheap Challenge box of delights. Completely sandbox, completely stupid and quite possibly the most romantic entanglement you and your brain will ever have, this is one mod that has truly transcended its, erm, 'source' material.
Are ye having a laugh thats not a GAME its A MOD one magizine i wont be buying ina hurry is pc-zone they havent a clue
Thats right, feed the fanboys. FF7 wasn't hideous, but I don't quite see at which point it was deserving of this gigantic shrine built around it and defended to death by a legion of rabid fanboys. The settings where a travesty of ugliness and horrifying controls, turn-based combat hadn't been "excellent" since the days of the snes and the unforgettable soundtrack sounded more like a vocoder being dry-raped by a man made of MIDIS.
Dungeon Keeper not as good as The Sims and Medal of Honour?
CVG you are high aren't you, no really, speaking to you as a single commodity. Dungeon Keeper is a masterpiece in every area. Gameplay, setting, graphics, atmosphere, sound. Should be in the top 20 at least. Also Planescape should be higher surely.
Now you better include some or preferably all of the following in your poxy list yeh :
Unreal Tournement Spellcross Masters of Orion 2 Mum's Anal Adventure
i cannot agree more Starcraft has been my favorite game of all time and still so many people play it. It should have easily made it into the top 10 if not the top 5. grrrrr these people dont know what theyre talking about.
