Top 50 Games Every Developer Should Play

[spadgy]

Top 50 Games Every Developer Should Play, in Develop Magazine.

Battle Garegga got in there, so it must be worth something...

I've no idea how that happened

[Udderdude]

"Think arty games and ‘feelings through play’ are all a load of wank? So did we, until Flower. The joy felt when bringing colour to nothingness is compounded by an actual use for the Sixaxis and some of the most understated but perfect music around."

Vomit.

[spadgy]

Vomit.

Ha! Excellent stuff!

[Momijitsuki]

So I'm guessing Final Fantasy VII and X-2 are on the list so developers know how not to make a game?

[cools]

Shame the screenshot of Settlers, isn't.

[kengou]

4. Tomb Raider

Given that they were developed at almost exactly the same time, Super Mario 64 often unfairly gets the credit for getting 3D movement right – something Core’s effort did equally well, if differently. Just remember the first time you swam through that underwater tunnel, executed that perfect vault, or scaled that seemingly-impossible cliff

Tomb Raider's controls... good? What have these guys been smoking?

[Ganelon]

Yeah, you wonder what systems the article writers played. There seems to be a huge dearth of relevant computer games.

[Damocles]

...and a lot of iPhone games...

[Udderdude]

Seriously, this is like a list from fucking bizzaro world, with few exceptions.

[Specineff]

That list is crap if it's missing either Ikaruga, Silhouette Mirage, Gunstar Heroes, Alien Soldier or Sin And Punishment.

Design isn't law. Gameplay is king.

EDIT: No Contras? BURN IN HELL, INFIDELS!

[t0yrobo]

For it's faults at least it has more variety that most 'best games EVAR' lists.

[Skykid]

I've no idea how that happened

I do.

[UnscathedFlyingObject]

I scrolled down and saw FFX-2 in there. Makes sense to teach devs how not to butcher a game.

[nZero]

I scrolled down and saw FFX-2 in there. Makes sense to teach devs how to create a franchise so popular and well-respected that even the worst attempts at sequels and spinoffs will be guaranteed to sell millions of copies based on name recognition alone.

[Diabollokus]

Probably one of the most dissapointing lists I have seen in a long time. Sega saturn didn't even get mentioned for greats like Panzer dragoon, virtua fighter 2 or nights. Yeah FFX-2 was one of the biggest dissapointments ever, No Dragon Quest 8 either...................

[No_not_like_Quake]

Shadow Complex? I don't get the hype/ near perfect reviews this game got. It was adequate but most of the time playing it (that I remember, nothing is particularly memorable in this game), I wanted to play Super Metroid.

[Momijitsuki]

I scrolled down and saw FFX-2 in there. Makes sense to teach devs how to create a franchise so popular and well-respected that even the worst attempts at sequels and spinoffs will be guaranteed to sell millions of copies based on name recognition alone.

No one knew that it was going to be awful before it came out. FFX is probably the only game I enjoyed past FFVI, so I thought a sequel to it would be great.

I expected a good game.

I did not get a good game.

[DJ Incompetent]

50 is probably not an appropriate number to stop at, but this is a good list given the title. They knew about Facade. Good for them.

[Shatterhand]

50 is probably not an appropriate number to stop at, but this is a good list given the title. They knew about Facade. Good for them.

Indeed, 50 is not an appropriate number. Some entries are pretty relevants, while others are completely stupid. FF X-2 ? Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo? What the heck, have they never heard of Puyo Puyo?

But all in all, it's not an horrible list.

[Specineff]

Why the hate for FF X-2? It wasn't the greatest, but it didn't do for the franchise what Appaloosa did for the Contra series.

[Ex-Cyber]

Aside from a few token hits, mostly ill-considered (the only one I'd strongly agree with is Zelda; if you take off the nostalgia goggles FF7 has probably aged worse than any other FF, they don't seem to realize that "any" Grand Theft Auto game includes GTA1/2, etc.), this reeks of a generic "most underrated games" list. Xenogears and the entire Xenosaga series are a must-play for every developer? All four of them (I like the series, but for fuck's sake...)? Just one 16-bit console exclusive made the cut? Zero late 70s/early 80s arcade games? I don't get the impression that a lot of thought went into this list.

[Andi]

Developers shouldn't even play games. They should make games without any sort of outside stimulus. Only then will we get truly original games. And maybe bad games. But that's how it goes.

Like Outsider Art.

[Cuilan]

So I'm guessing Final Fantasy VII and X-2 are on the list so developers know how not to make a game?

I would add Rez and R-Type to that category : boss milking = no, shmups with checkpoints = no

Also, Boomshine instead of Every Extend? SFIV instead of SF3TS? SPF2T instead of...like 10 other puzzle games I can think of?

[Ed Oscuro]

Top 50 lists every developer should ignore

Developers shouldn't even play games. They should make games without any sort of outside stimulus. Only then will we get truly original games. And maybe bad games. But that's how it goes.

Like the story about the musician who gets his hands chopped off 'cuz he heard some Mozart.

Yeah, under that system every game is Jungle King. Every CPU is a 6502.

[Taylor]

There's quite a lot of meets you can go to for people who do, or want to, work in the industry. Not just conferences but little social get-togethers, IDGA would probably be the easiest way to find them. You'll find very quickly a lot of people in the industry don't play games. And these people are really good at coming up with stuff that's been done before, chasing really bad concepts to their inevitable conclusion, and not understanding what you're saying because their frames of reference, if any, are a decade old.

[Ed Oscuro]

See, that sounds like a description of the ESRB reviewer list. Not the group of people I'd actually want designing the medium's future.

[Andi]

Top 50 lists every developer should ignore

Developers shouldn't even play games. They should make games without any sort of outside stimulus. Only then will we get truly original games. And maybe bad games. But that's how it goes.

Like the story about the musician who gets his hands chopped off 'cuz he heard some Mozart.

Yeah, under that system every game is Jungle King. Every CPU is a 6502.

That's oversimplifying it. I bet if you could get 1,000 such "outsider" game designers to make a game, none of them would make the same game, and none of them would make Jungle King.

Plus, you have to think that each designer would grow conceptually with each new game made. Even if they all made Jungle King as the first game (which is, of course ludicrous). Certainly none of them would make Jungle King the second game. They would come up with new concepts during the development of the first game, and the art form would progress.

Of course, it's all theory and that's no way for an industry to function - but it's something to think about.

[ZacharyB]

Developers shouldn't even play games. They should make games without any sort of outside stimulus. Only then will we get truly original games. And maybe bad games. But that's how it goes.

Like Outsider Art.

I agree with this, but in addition, I think there could be a pool of developers who would play a bunch of games, and then not play any for several years. The natural distortion and/or corruption of memory will create new game impressions and ideas out of the old ones they played. When they bring a game to the table, it will end up being a homage to a game that doesn't exist.

This sounds like how most games are already made. The key point is to play a few games and then not play any for a long time to allow the natural creativity of human memory to have its input.

This will create some interesting games based on genres we already have.



To create new genres and games for the next generations, I support the idea of a developer who has never played games before.

I think the risk of repeating gaming history is low due to how much our technology and technological culture have advanced since the days of the first video games.

[Ed Oscuro]

That's oversimplifying it. I bet if you could get 1,000 such "outsider" game designers to make a game, none of them would make the same game, and none of them would make Jungle King.

True. They wouldn't have gotten the rope-jumping mechanic right, and they wouldn't have had the experience to come up with the swimming and slashing or the boulder-jumping. Too complicated for a first effort.

You better be trolling because I can't imagine anybody in their right mind wants ESRB members (Flanders / Skinner) making games.

[TrevHead (TVR)]

50 is probably not an appropriate number to stop at, but this is a good list given the title. They knew about Facade. Good for them.

I tottally agree with that way too small a number. That a big gripe i have about all those top 10 top 20 or whatever, so many great games get missed out. I use these lists to find out games that i dont know about but once youve seen a few you rarly find any new games.


and the point about devs not playing games i agree. How many dev interviews i read/watched where after asked what games he plays he answers 'i dont really play that many games' or if he mentions a game its something thats 10 years old so he is eather a hardcore gamer of said game or maybe just bullshitting and saying the last game he played seriously,