30. Ultima VI: The False Prophet (Origin Systems, 1990)
It seemed that every Ultima title did its best to up the ante over the previous one, and Ultima VI was no different in that regard. While the previous games had a recognizable world to venture through with a lot of surprising nods to realism, Ultima VI set out to create an immersive, realistic world that you'd live an alternate life in. You could hunt animals for food, milk cows, load and fire cannons, move furniture around and so forth, and creative solutions to get around problems often work. The story was another great one too, starting with what appears to be a hostile invasion but having you looking at things from a very different perspective by the end. The somewhat clunky UI and limited viewpoint don't make it my favorite Ultima to play, but even with the annoyances of constantly running into dead-ends and getting lost in towns, it's another fantastic RPG from Origin and a very worthwhile entry to a legendary franchise.
29. Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition (BioWare/Beamdog, 2000/2014)
There
have been a lot of Dungeons and Dragons video games, licensed and
otherwise, stretching all the way back to the old '70s mainframes. For
my money, though,
BioWare's Baldur's Gate II is still one of the best ever made. A more linear, though more narrative-driven experience
than the original, it had complex characters with their own storylines,
tons of depth and strategy, and more challenge than ever, especially
with higher-level critters like Beholders and Mind Flayers appearing
(and requiring some ingenious, if not downright cheap, tactics to
survive their attacks). The game also gives you over 60 classes to play
as (even more in the enhanced edition), and online multiplayer and mod
support give it virtually infinite replay value.
28. Slay the Spire (Megacrit, 2019)
A relatively novel blend of elements, Slay the Spire is one part deck-building card game and one part roguelike, melded together quite expertly. Building your deck, thinning out your less-useful cards and acquiring various Relics to bolster your abilities (doing everything from restoring HP after battle to damaging enemies every few cards you play) become just as much of a focus as clearing out foes. As you proceed up floors, defeating progressively tougher enemies, you also get a slew of randomized events - campfires to rest and regain HP or upgrade a single card in your deck, shops, and all manner of random events that can help or hinder you. Tough and unpredictable as any good roguelike, but with enough of a strategic bent that encourages experimentation and gives it a ton of replayability.
27. Castle of the Winds (Saadasoft, 1993)
Dungeon crawlers have always been a pretty PC-centric genre; various attempts at creating them on consoles have usually been met with relatively lukewarm reception or relegation to cult classic status at best (Atlus's Etrian Odyssey being one of the more well-known examples). Out of all of the games in this vast genre, though, Castle of the Winds has to be one of my favorites, in no small part because it manages to be relatively easy to pick up and play while retaining the challenge the genre is known for. Simplistic yet charming sprites for visuals, a windows-based interface and a relatively bare-bones yet still captivating story also make it an enjoyable experience, and let's be honest, it's always fun carving your way through an entire swath of ogres or giants and emerging victorious with enough loot to buy a luxurious mansion, only to spend it on some better equipment instead.
26. DOOM (Id Software, 1993)
DOOM was an amazing title at the time of its release for its realistic 3D environments, fast-paced action and varied gameplay, combining elements of puzzle-solving with run and gun action against hordes of enemies. But when you added on online deathmatches and the ability to create custom maps, the game's replay value rocketed through the roof, and even today it remains an incredibly fun experience, spawning hundreds of thousands of custom maps and countless player mods that remix the experience into something completely new. Surpassed in technology but still unmatched in gameplay, DOOM is a truly immortal game.
25. Scorched Earth (Wendell Hicken, 1991)
At a glance, Scorched Earth isn't much to look at - a game with tiny sprites and simplistic VGA graphics where tanks shoot missiles and try to blow each other up. But then you take a closer look and find that this game is steeped in clever mechanics and surprisingly deep tactics. From MIRVs to Funky Bombs to Sandhogs, the game has a variety of interesting weapons to utilize, some of which can devastate everything on the screen (even their user) in short order. Further adding to the fun are defensive items like shields and options like having shots wrap around to the other side of the screen, bounce off the ceiling or radically shifting winds making aiming shots more difficult. In short, it's a game with a lot of options and endless replayability, especially in multi-player combat. The only real crime is that it never got an online play option!
24. Tetris (Alexei Pajitnov, 1984+)
Tetris had its beginnings all the way back in 1984 for the Electronika 60, and its popularity was (and still is) such that it's gotten numerous updates, ports, rereleases and remakes across just about every platform imaginable. But before Nintendo got the license and created the monstrously popular Game Boy port, several companies made their own computer versions (the one depicted in this screenshot is the 1987 Spectrum Holobyte version). While each had minor variances and change-ups, there's no denying one thing - it's a fun, addictive puzzle game that's easy to learn, but nearly impossible to master. Not that it's stopped any of us from trying for the last thirty years.
23. Tyrian 2000 (Eclipse Software, 2000)
I was never a big fan of shoot-em-up games; many of them start to feel very samey to me after a while, not to mention the fact that they feature one-hit deaths and swarming enemy patterns that are generally extremely trial-and-error based and require spot-on precision, and I don't really have the patience for that kind of thing. Tyrian 2000, however, is more my speed. An updated re-release of 1995's Tyrian, the game also features a lot of elements not normally seen in the genre - an in-depth storyline told between stages, a wide variety of customizable ship parts, weapons, sub-weapons and ship types, and even a pretty good sense of humor as you play through various minigames and collect giant fruits for points and have the option to pilot a ship that fires bananas and hot dogs at its enemies. Of course, the colorful graphics and sweet soundtrack also help, as does the fact that you actually have a health bar (in the form of a shield meter that regenerates over time and an armor meter that can only be restored via powerups). It still manages to be quite a challenge, but it's one that I can get into. Tyrian 2000 is a standout title and, for my money, the best top-down shmup ever made.
22. Maniac Mansion (Lucasfilm Games, 1987)
Graphic adventure games were a staple of early computer gaming, with countless examples throughout the 80s and into the mid-90s and several big companies that are still going today building their name on beloved franchises. One of the earliest I recall playing, and still my favorite of the genre to this day, is one Maniac Mansion, a game unique from most in the genre in that it actually had quite a lot of replay value - you could pick two additional characters (out of six) for each playthrough, with each having differing dialog and solutions to particular problems, and there were eleven different endings to see based on the player's choice of characters and actions taken throughout. Top all that with a lack of cheap deaths (characters still can be killed, but you need to do some
really dumb stuff to get there) and a sharp sense of humor that would become the trademark of all following Lucasfilm adventure games, and you've got a true classic.
21. Deltarune (Toby Fox, 2018)
Deltarune, the followup to the highly successful Undertale, is a very different beast, but no less ingenious. Taking the core gameplay of Undertale to new heights with party-based design, as well as much more challenging encounters (taming most enemies is a multi-step process now, especially bosses), it also never loses sight of what made its predecessor great. The vivid, colorful environments, the expressive characters who never once fall into being lazy cardboard-cutouts (even the antagonists are very well-realized, three-dimensional characters with their own motives and personalities) and it's not afraid to show its emotional side, running the gamut from hilarious to disturbing to tender while never once feeling forced. Even with only two chapters done, it's a brilliant experience; hell, even if it never gets finished, it'll still be one of the best gaming experiences I've ever had. In an era where 99% of all time and money in the medium of video gaming goes into pretty-yet-empty 3D backdrops, models and textures that'll age about as well as milk and algorithmically-generated bland filler just to meet some arbitrary publisher-mandated length quota, with another 3 years of multi-gigabyte patches to follow just to make it slightly resemble an actual, finished product, it's nice to see developers who still remember what really makes gaming great.
