Game Informer's Top 200 game

[Data]

This is what the December 2009 Issue of Game Informer listed as their top 200 games of all time. I wish the old crew of Electronic Gaming Monthly could put their table next to this.

1. The Legend of Zelda (NES, 1987)

2. Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1985)

3. Tetris (PC, 1984)

4. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2, 2001)

5. Half-Life 2 (PC, 2004)

6. Doom (PC, 1993)

7. Metroid (NES, 1986)

8. Final Fantasy III (SNES, 1994)

9. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES, 1990)

10. Ms. Pac-Man (Coin-op, 1981)

11. World of Warcraft (PC, 2004)

12. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1992)

13. Super Mario 64 (N64, 1996)

14. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3/360/PC, 2007)

15. Final Fantasy VII (PS, 1997)

16. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! (NES, 1987)

17. Chrono Trigger (SNES, 1995)

18. Resident Evil 4 (GameCube, 2005)

19. Metal Gear Solid (PS, 1998)

20. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, 1998)

21. Super Metroid (SNES, 1994)

22. Contra (NES, 1988)

23. Galaga (Coin-op, 1981)

24. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS, 1997)

25. Street Fighter II (Coin-op, 1991)

26. God of War (PS2, 2005)

27. BioShock (360/PC, 2007)

28. Diablo II (PC, 2000)

29. Half-Life (PC, 1998)

30. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivious (360/PC, 2006)

31. Tecmo Super Bowl (NES, 1991)

32. GoldenEye 007 (N64, 1997)

33. Super Mario Kart (SNES, 1992)

34. Sonic the Hedgehog (SEGA Genesis, 1991)

35. Starcraft (PC, 1998)

36. Civilization (PC, 1991)

37. SimCity (PC, 1989)

38. Mega Man 2 (NES, 1988)

39. Halo: Combat Evolved (Xbox, (2001)

40. Gran Turismo (PS, 1998)

41. Resident Evil 2 (PS, 1998)

42. Pokemon Red and Blue (GB, 1996)

43. Final Fantasy X (PS2, 2001)

44. EverQuest (PC, 1999)

45. Final Fantasy Tactics (PS, 1998)

46. Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3/360, 2008)

47. Super Mario World (SNES, 1991)

48. Deus Ex (PC, 2000)

49. Guitar Hero (PS2, 2005)

50. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2, 2001)

51. Super Mario Galaxy (Wii, 2007)

52. Pac-Man (Coin-op, 1980)

53. Battlefield 2 (PC, 2005)

54. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (Xbox, 2003)

55. Ico (PS2, 2001)

56. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3, 2009)

57. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 (PS, 2000)

58. Mass Effect (360, 2007)

59. Adventure (2600, 1980)

60. Arkanoid (Coin-op, 1986)

61. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (GB, 1993)

62. Star Wars: X-Wing (PC, 1993)

63. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (N64, 2000)

64. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2, 2004)

65. Fallout 3 (PS3/360/PC, 2008)

66. Zork (PC, 1980)

67. Soul Calibur (DC, 1999)

68. Double Dragon (Coin-op, 1987)

69. Dr. Mario (NES, 1990)

70. The Sims (PC, 2000)

71. Age of Empires (PC, 1997)

72. Mortal Kombat II (Coin-op, 1993)

73. Rock Band 2 (PS3/360, 2008)

74. Tomb Raider (PS, 1996)

75. Super Bomberman (SNES, 1993)

76. Mario’s Picross (GB, 1995)

77. Ninja Gaiden (NES, 1989)

78. Command & Conquer (PC, 1995)

79. Kingdom Hearts (PS2, 2002)

80. Final Fantasy II (SNES, 1991)

81. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES, 1988)

82. Left 4 Dead (PC, 2008)

83. Okami (PS2, 2006)

84. Shadow of the Colossus (PS2, 2005)

85. Metroid Prime (GameCube, 2002)

86. Super Smash Bros. Melee (GameCube, 2001)

87. Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (PC, 1995)

88. Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn (PC, 2000)

89. God of War II (PS2, 2007)

90. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii, 2006)

91. Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal (PS2, 2004)

92. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (PC, 2002)

93. Skies of Arcadia (DC, 2000)

94. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (GameCube, 2003)

95. Silent Hill 2 (PS2, 2001)

96. Counter-Strike (PC, 1999)

97. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (SEGA Genesis, 1992)

98. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS3/360, 2009)

99. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (PS2/Xbox/GameCube/PC, 2003)

100. Portal (PC/360, 2007)

101. The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (PC, 2002)

102. Heroes of Might & Magic III (PC, 1999)

103. Donkey Kong (Coin-op, 1981)

104. Batman: Arkham Asylum (PS3/360, 2009)

105. System Shock 2 (PC, 1999)

106. Resident Evil (PS, 1996)

107. Gears of War (360, 2006)

108. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (PS3, 2008)

109. Crash Bandicoot: Warped (PS, 1998)

110. Halo 2 (Xbox, 2004)

111. Tetris Attack (SNES, 1996)

112. Final Fantasy XII (PS2, 2006)

113. Earthbound (SNES, 1995)

114. Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri (PC, 1998)

115. Command & Conquer: Red alert (PC, 1996)

116. Advance Wars (GBA, 2001)

117. Fallout (PC, 1997)

118. Team Fortress 2 (PS3/360/PC, 2007)

119. Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (Xbox, 2005)

120. Mega Man X (SNES, 1994)

121. Lemmings (PC, 1991)

122. Panzer Dragoon Saga (Saturn, 1998)

123. NHL ‘94 (SEGA Genesis/SNES, 1993)

124. Warlords (Coin-op, 1980)

125. Shadowrun (SNES, 1993)

126. Twisted Metal 2 (PS, 1996)

127. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee (PS, 1997)

128. Metroid Fusion (GBA, 2002)

129. Homeworld (PC, 1999)

130. Kingdom Hearts II (PS2, 2006)

131. Pilotwings (SNES, 1991)

132. Quake II (PC, 1997)

133. Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II (PC, 1997)

134. Borderlands (PS3/360/PC, 2009)

135. Final Fight (Coin-op, 1989)

136. Star Fox (SNES, 1993)

137. Madden NFL ‘99 (PS/N64/PC, 1999)

138. Call of Duty 2 (360/PC, 2005)

139. Wolfenstein 3D (PC, 1992)

140. Diablo (PC, 1996)

141. Civilization IV (PC, 2005)

142. Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle (PC, 1993)

143. Assassin’s Creed (PS3/360, 2007)

144. Burnout 3: Takedown (PS2/Xbox, 2004)

145. Unreal Tournament 2004 (PC, 2004)

146. Power Stone 2 (DC, 2000)

147. Super Castlevania IV (SNES, 1991)

148. Super Mario RPG (SNES, 1996)

149. Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (PC, 2002)

150. ActRaiser (SNES, 1991)

151. Fable (Xbox, 2004)

152. Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht (PS2, 2003)

153. Asteroids (Coin-op, 1979)

154. LittleBigPlanet (PS3, 2008)

155. Crackdown (360, 2007)

156. Gauntlet (Coin-op, 1985)

157. Devil May Cry (PS2, 2001)

158. Pong (Coin-op, 1972)

159. Battlefield 1942 (PC, 2002)

160. Thief (PC, 1998)

161. Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved (360, 2005)

162. Far Cry (PC, 2004)

163. Robotron: 2084 (Coin-op, 1982)

164. X-COM: UFO Defense (PC, 1993)

165. Peggle (PC, 2007)

166. King’s Quest VI (PC, 1992)

167. Doom II (PC, 1994)

168. Tempest 2000 (Jaguar, 1994)

169. Braid (360, 2008)

170. Ridge Racer (PS, 1995)

171. Bully (PS2, 2006)

172. Ikaruga (GameCube, 2006)

173. Lode Runner (Apple II, 1983)

174. Gunstar Heroes (SEGA Genesis, 1993)

175. Dig Dug (Coin-op, 1982)

176. Castlevania (NES, 1988)

177. Tekken 3 (Coin-op, 1997)

178. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (DS, 2005)

179. NBA Jam: Tournament Edition (Coin-op, 1993)

180. Max Payne (PC, 2001)

181. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3/360/PC, 2009)

182. Samurai Shodown (Neo Geo, 1993)

183. NFL 2K5 (PS2/Xbox, 2004)

184. Vagrant Story (PS, 2000)

185. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island (SNES, 1995)

186. Marble Madness (Coin-op, 1984)

187. Infamous (PS3, 2009)

188. Planescape: Torment (PC, 1999)

189. Kid Icarus (NES, 1986)

190. The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (Xbox, 2004)

191. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (PS2, 2004)

192. Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem (GameCube, 2002)

193. Jak 3 (PS2, 2004)

194. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (DC, 2002)

195. Ultima (PC, 1981)

196. Call of Duty (PC, 2003)

197. NHL 09 (PS3/360, 2008)

198. Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (Xbox, 2004)

199. Tactics Ogre (PS, 1997)

200. Beyond Good and Evil (PS2/Xbox/GameCube, 2003)

[atik]

Hmmmm......interesting list with some truly great game's, they're just not in the right order. But hey, I guess everyone has their own idea's about what game's should be on a list like this and what order they should appear in. I wonder if this list was compiled solely by the Game Informer's staff or if the reader's of the magazine had any input.

One thing did catch my eye about this list, they included Mortal Kombat 2 at no. 72 (a series which I never really liked) and yet amazingly they don't have a single Virtua Fighter game anywhere on the list.

Anyway apart from this and maybe a few more omission's, it's a pretty good list.

[SuperFrog]

It's still better then Retrogamer's list of top 100 with Mario Cart being No. 1.

I'll try to find that list this weekend...

[Areala]

That particular list was compiled by the GI staff alone, and trust me, in the next issue, there were PLENTY of letters written in berating them for not including this game, ranking Game X above Game Y, and demanding that Game Z be removed from the list and replaced with the far superior Game A. Which, I suppose, is inevitable for that kind of thing.

I agreed with a number of their choices, was pleasently surprised to find certain games ranked above others, and equally annoyed that some games got anywhere on the list while others were ignored. Most importantly, I felt happy to see Final Fantasy VI ranked in the top 10 above Final Fantasy VII (which only made the top 20). I was very irritated at Super Metroid's position being so far away from the top 10, and downright confused at some games' locations vis-a-vis other games (is there anyone in the known universe who would rather play Mike Tyson's Punch Out!! over Chrono Trigger? Or Galaga over Castlevania: Symphony of the Night? Really?). My own list would look remarkably different, but I have to say it takes guts to make and publish a list like that, and my hats off to them for getting in my opinion more things right than wrong.

*huggles*

Areala

[Data]

You really have to take this list with a grain of salt. Almost all the games on this list were excellent minus a few such as Dr. Mario and Super Mario World 2. I would have liked to have seen at least one Shining Force game and a Phantasy Star Game or maybe even Skies of Arcadia. They could have filled one of those slots with a Mario Party game. There were many games I never got a chance to play so it's hard for me so I remain neutral on many. I still say it would be awful interesting to see a top 200 list coming from the 1990's review crew for Electronic Gaming Monthly. They've played far more games long before I got around to it and I'll bet the people at Game Informer never played as many either. I bet there still just greenhorns. (under 25)

[SuperFrog]

They did include some old games like civilization and x-com with later one being in 150+?! Civilization II, which was far better game then first part is not even on the list.

How did Kid Icarus got on that list, is really wonder... (I guess thanks to Nintendo VC )

@ Jake, Skies of Arcadia - Dreamcast is 93. on the list.

[Data]

So it is. You can't really have a number one game of all time. It is just crazy but this list does contain 200 excellent games that most people should try.

[Mister Zero]

Why is Mario's Picross on this list, and at #76?? I understand some people might enjoy that game.. but not nearly enough for it to even be mentioned. There are plenty of games from further down on the list that beat that game hands-down.

CoD4 Modern Warfare- #14??? Insanely misplaced. This game is nowhere NEAR as good as Super Metroid, Castlevania: SotN, or virtually any game listed after it. Not everyone in the world plays FPS games. Granted, not everyone these days are familiar with older games on PSX and SNES, but still.

Nice try, Game Informer.

[SuperFrog]

So it is. You can't really have a number one game of all time. It is just crazy but this list does contain 200 excellent games that most people should try.

Nice 200, but very incomplete list imho.

Just quick notice that they are completely missing 8bit and 16bit computing, so you'll miss great games such as BruceLee (c64), Sabre Wolf (ZX Spectrum), Adventure (Apple ][ - not A2600 game), Lionheart (Amiga), Aliens (C64), Alien Breed (Amiga), Desert Strike (Genesis/SNES/Amiga), and most importantly: SUPER FROG!!!

Task at hand is insane, as they are more then likely to miss some really good games just because they don't even know about them...

It is interesting that they got Star Wars x-Wing while everyone else favor Tie Fighter (PC Games' top game of 90s) and they don't even have any of revolutionary Wing Commander games?!