Media What is the best game, uncontested, youd die on that hill proudly

For me, my favorite game and still to this day I defend it is Stardew Valley

I am a comfy gamer at heart and Stardew just does something to me about relaxing. It's a cute life sim that just makes it fun to do meaningless tasks.
It's simple and has a lot of detail. The modding community also definitely keeps it alive in terms of content (but super excited for the 1.6 update!)

Special shoutout to Bioshock 2, one of my favorite games with some of my favorite story-telling. The dialogue in it really takes me for a ride.
 
I have a lot of games I really enjoyed from the early-to-mid 2010s, but one of them in particular stands out. It wasn't until 2013 when I finally got hands on copies of the Super Mario Galaxy games, and for a while I was content with calling them two of my favorite games I had ever played up to that point. That's great and all, but it wouldn't be until a few years ago that the second game managed to emotionally break me to an extent that I haven't seen before or sense. One of the second Galaxy game's common criticisms is that it doesn't have much of a story, at least compared to the first game, but this absolutely could not be further from the truth. The catch is, this isn't a video game story in the traditional sense. Galaxy 2 tells a much deeper story within the confines of a linear narrative, and I love that this isn't something that's immediately obvious. The true storyline of Galaxy 2 as I see it isn't just what's on screen. It's an underlying narrative about the journey of life as a whole.

The most apparent place one can see this theme is within the game's six Worlds, seven if you count the postgame World S. At first glance, you wouldn't think much of the locations of various Galaxies or the content that they each focus on. As early as World 3, though, something starts to feel a bit off. The World Map themes for Worlds 1 and 2 are the same piece- for now, anyways- and for the most part, the Galaxies within those first two Worlds were focused on introducing new concepts to the game. Within the first two Worlds alone, you're introduced to both of Galaxy 2's new power-ups, the first 3D appearance of Yoshi since Sunshine, the first of three fights against Bowser, and a few other earlygame mechanics. By comparison, World 3 onwards introduces noticeably less new content in each of its Galaxies- but what they do introduce is a shift in tone complementary of the new World Map themes you'll be listening to for the rest of the game. World 3's levels are still pretty easy on average, but this too is a step up from the first two Worlds.

World 3's tonal shift within the greater scheme of the full game I feel is emblematic of Galaxy 2's true storyline. The first two Worlds can be seen as a sort of parallel to the earliest stages of life. World 1 can be seen as a representation of birth, or the very beginning of life, while World 2 can be seen as a parallel to the innocence and familiarity of childhood. You're being introduced to so many new things all at once at a young age, and if only for a brief moment, all you know is happiness and content. Just when you think life couldn't get any better, adolescence comes in out of nowhere. Everything you thought you knew has just been ripped away, and all of a sudden you're forced to come to terms with the fact that life is changing. The world around you is changing- literally, in the context of this game, and you're left with nothing but an underlying sense of uncertainty about the road that lies ahead, perfectly represented by the tonal shift and absolutely gorgeous, yet melancholy piano theme of World 3.

But in spite of all of this, World 3's theming still contains flashes of what came before it. As you continue throughout the game, you make your way through the Worlds as you would in any other Mario game, until you're greeted with the game's final Worlds. World 6 is painted as the end of the road, the last part of your journey before the story comes to an end. But, it isn't. The rumors of a "mythical, legendary World" you've been hearing about from the NPCs aboard Starship Mario end up being true, as you're introduced to World S and all of its Galaxies taking inspiration from different Super Mario games. This is where everything comes full circle- you've made it through to the end of the game- the end of your journey through life- but in spite of all of your fears and challenges you've faced in life, your efforts and patience are rewarded with the promised peace of the afterlife, catching glimpses emblematic of World S's selection of Galaxies of everything that has come before it. But even then, even after all you've been through, the game still isn't over. As you collect the last of the 120 Power Stars and inevitably decide to see if this game has a 100% completion reward, the newly adjusted end credits conclude with a camera shot of a certain someone closing a storybook and telling the Lumas about a new story- perfectly fitting as a reminder that even after we're gone, this world will still be here, and that the lives we live and the choices we made during our lives will remain in history during the lives of future generations.

I'm sorry this post has been so long compared to my usual posts in this forum. I knew I wanted to write a post about Super Mario Galaxy 2 here at some point, but I wanted to make sure I told you all the full story. At the time of typing this, I've been in college for three and a half years, and I'll hopefully be finishing out my under-grad strong in the coming months. A few years ago marked the beginning of a major tonal shift in my personal life that I'm still experiencing to this day, which may explain why it took until then for me to fully understand and appreciate the lesson behind this 2010 Nintendo Wii game. It is because this game teaching me the lesson that the rest of my life is still ahead of me that I can confidently say this is one of the greatest games, and one of the most emotional games, ever created. Thank you for your time, and may this post find you well.
 
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can't believe nobody's mentioned Hollow Knight yet. I'd go so far as to say it's the quintessential metroidvania, even against titans like Ori, SteamWorld, and Blasphemous. Lack of momentum, while a bold choice in a partially platformer-based game, gives combat an exciting and extremely reactive feel. When you get good at the game, you start to feel like a ninja, weaving in and out of combat, avoiding attacks by the barest margin to strike back hard against your opponent. That's not to say that lack of momentum hinders the platforming- on the contrary, the player's absolute control of the character allows platforming difficulty to be insanely precise- See Path of Pain. The movement options are all pretty standard stuff for Metroidvanias- double jump, dash/invincibility dash, wall-jump, and ground pound, but there are some unique elements sprinkled in with the Nail Arts, Crystal Dash, and Spell, and it paces the powerups well enough that when you do unlock one, you feel like it's a huge advancement. The game's art and music are also neat; heavy, dramatic music perfectly punctuates the setting of an abandoned, decaying kingdom. This game is awesome; you could swap the price tags of it and SV and it'd fit perfectly.

oh yeah and also seconding portal
Notgamingreally said:
Surprised I’m the first one to mention portal that shit is so good.
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not the BEST game of all time by virtue of being a puzzle game and thus very unreplayable, but damn that first playthrough of portal and portal 2 were so fun. Wheatley and Glados bounce off each other perfectly (I STILL quote some of their more sassy lines; "I think we've both said a lot of things you're going to regret" and "lack of parents" are among my favorites), and they're just a joy to listen to.
 
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Just A Shroom God said:
can't believe nobody's mentioned Hollow Knight yet. I'd go so far as to say it's the quintessential metroidvania, even against titans like Ori, SteamWorld, and Blasphemous. Lack of momentum, while a bold choice in a partially platformer-based game, gives combat an exciting and extremely reactive feel. When you get good at the game, you start to feel like a ninja, weaving in and out of combat, avoiding attacks by the barest margin to strike back hard against your opponent. That's not to say that lack of momentum hinders the platforming- on the contrary, the player's absolute control of the character allows platforming difficulty to be insanely precise- See Path of Pain. The movement options are all pretty standard stuff for Metroidvanias- double jump, dash/invincibility dash, wall-jump, and ground pound, but there are some unique elements sprinkled in with the Nail Arts, Crystal Dash, and Spell, and it paces the powerups well enough that when you do unlock one, you feel like it's a huge advancement. The game's art and music are also neat; heavy, dramatic music perfectly punctuates the setting of an abandoned, decaying kingdom. This game is awesome; you could swap the price tags of it and SV and it'd fit perfectly.
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I'd say sv Is worth at least 20$.
anyways, yeah, hollow knight is probably a top 10 game of all time. my personal list is
1. Minecraft
2. Undertale
3. Portal 2
4. Omori
5. Totk
6. Hollow Knight
7. Celeste
8. Botw
9. Cult of the Lamb
10. Minecraft Dungeons
Honorable mentions to Bad Piggies, Terraria, Super Mario odyssey, super smash bros ultimate, persona 5 (which I would probably put on the list if I know anything about it), baldis basics, plants vs zombies, Mario and Luigi: Bowser's inside story, fnaf 1, rain world, pizza tower, and super Mario maker 2.
 
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Pokemon Infinite Fusion.
The story is one of the best I've ever seen out of a fan game.
Also the fusions themselves.
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BUt then there are the good ones.

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DaRotomMachine said:
Pokemon Infinite Fusion.
The story is one of the best I've ever seen out of a fan game.
Also the fusions themselves.
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BUt then there are the good ones.

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Wouah, Aegislash x Gardevoir is BEAUTIFUL!!!

Commentaries aside, my 5 best video games are:

1. Kirby Super Star Ultra [My very first game I played in my life, I have good memories of it, in addition, I really liked the remake of Kirby's Dream Land]
2. Nier Automata [Just totally perfect in my eyes]
3. Doki Doki Literature Club [A very good story, I love the function of modifying some parts of the game, I'm pretty sure it's the only one of its kind]
4. Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris [SAO Alicization is my favorite part of the anime, no wonder I liked this game]
5. Kirby Star Allies [An adventure with the best characters of the Kirby series, it can only be in my Top 5]
 
Just A Shroom God said:
can't believe nobody's mentioned Hollow Knight yet. I'd go so far as to say it's the quintessential metroidvania, even against titans like Ori, SteamWorld, and Blasphemous. Lack of momentum, while a bold choice in a partially platformer-based game, gives combat an exciting and extremely reactive feel. When you get good at the game, you start to feel like a ninja, weaving in and out of combat, avoiding attacks by the barest margin to strike back hard against your opponent.
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like a few months ago i started hollow knight, got past what i think is all the story in the greener part of the underground map and forgot to keep going
ive gotta hop back on that, hollow knight is super super fun and the comment on the combat i especially agree with even tho im not good at it it just makes u feel so cool
 
Final fantasy 13-2. Love the battle system, love the recruitment for monsters and having them fight alongside you, music is phenomenal
 
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