Top 10 Games - #10
26/08/09 17:10 Filed in: Gaming Goodness
You know that friend you have that’s really into music, games, or movies. Well you and him are trapped in an elevator. 2 hours into it you’re struggling to think of something new to talk about. So you blurt “What’s your top 10 bands/games/movies?” And you instantly regret it. Not because you’re uninterested in what that person has to say on the subject, but rather because that is a horrible amount of pressure to put on someone. I mean how many bands/games/movies has that person listened to/played/watched? Well I’ve been asked that question from time to time, and I have had no answer, regardless of the topic or genre. Recently I seriously wondered what are my 10 favourite games of all time, and what order they ranked in.
Over the next few weeks I’m going to count down my 10 favourite games of all time. But I must lay down the criteria for selection. First off, only one game from each game series. When I compiled my list I found a bunch of sequels/prequels in there. So to keep the list more diverse I decided to only include the best game from each series. Second, all of these games have inspired me in some way as a wannabe game developer. So when I list each game I will describe what inspired and impressed me about it, and how each game continues to influence me design-wise. And finally I ranked these games based on the impression that they left on me when I initially played them. Which means that you’ll see some older games that may seem inferior or archaic by todays standards, but were hot shit to me back in the day. So now that’s out of the way, on with the countdown!
No I’m not talking about the PS2/Xbox game(although that was pretty cool as well). I’m talking 1989 baby. Depeche Mode is singing about their own personal Jesus. Neil Young is rocking in the free world. And Batman topped the box office followed closely by Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade.
I was 11 years old when this game was initially released, but I didn’t get my hands on it for a few more years when my brother and I got handed our first home computer. As a family, we had owned a few other computers before then. Most notably, a Tandy TRS 80. Affectionately referred to as the TRaSh 80 by some of its owners. Cause, well...it sucked. Anyways, a Mac Plus was the first real computer that my brother and I were allowed to spend significant amounts of time on. And that meant many awesome hours spent gaming with the likes of Dark Castle, Carrier Command, Spaceward Ho(not what you’re thinking), and Lode Runner. But when my dad came home with the oddly shaped box for Prince Of Persia(which is also still in his closet), my brother and I were floored.
Prince Of Persia was a game designed and developed by Jordan Mechner that saw players control a character that has been thrown in the dungeon of a great palace. Why was he thrown into the dungeon? Something about wanting to marry some princess against the will of the evil sorcerer “Jaffar”. She’s trapped in the tallest tower of the palace, and you have an hour to make your way to the top of it to save her. Although realistically you’ll need a lot more than an hour to play this game due to death by sword, fall, and chompy metal things.
POP is a side-scrolling-platform-puzzle game with fighting/action elements. Generally you need to find a way to floor switches and doors scattered throughout each level, and the path to each of these things is always one that requires a large amount of tricky jumps, grabs onto ledges, shimmying, climbing, and swordplay. It’s truly is an awesome thing to see a real pro make his way through this game. Just watch some of the video below to see what I mean. This video shows a person play through the entire game from start to finish. Although since Youtube doesn’t allow for videos longer than 10 minutes, the player has sped the video up to fit. But you can still get the gist of the game from it:
What did this game do for me as an aspiring developer? Well when I first played this game I hadn’t yet realised I wanted to be a game developer. But it was certainly one of the games that pushed me towards it. Yes, the graphics and animation were astounding for their time. And they certainly weren’t lost on me. I was shocked to see just how fluid and lifelike the movements were. Jordan Mechner achieved this look by filming his brother going through all the motions required for the game. He then did his best to match the animations to the video. Something that was much more difficult in 1989 than it is now. There weren’t any DV camcorders lying around. Video editing software really didn’t exist for consumers. And yet Mechner was able to pull it off, and pull it off well. This was one of those games that made me truly realise that there is some real artistry in videogames.
But what it really shows me is how to be creative in the level design. Levels are challenging yet rewarding. The player feels like they’re being treated to something new throughout the duration of the experience. That means that this game grabs you and holds onto you from the beginning through till the end. Something that many games fail to accomplish nowadays.
You have to give the player something new with every level. Many modern games attempt this by handing the player a shiny new weapon or vehicle every once and awhile. Prince Of Persia, with its one weapon, achieved this by changing up the levels so that the player must use their noggin inventively in order to finish their objectives. This was one of the first games I ever finished. And boy did I play the hell out of it. I actually still find myself loading it up from time to time. It stands up extraordinarily well despite being 20 years old.
So, how can you play it? First and foremost, if you have an Xbox 360, or PS3 I would strongly recommend “Prince Of Persia Classic”. Despite a 3D refresh in the graphics department, the gameplay mostly remains true to the original. However, if you want to play the true classic game with classic graphics, you would need to do so in emulation. I would personally recommend Dosbox. Here are guides for setting up dosbox on Mac and Windows. Many dos games are easily found online in the various abandonware websites. You can find Prince Of Persia here. If you have never played this game and consider yourself a gamer, I shake my head at you. Go play it now!
Over the next few weeks I’m going to count down my 10 favourite games of all time. But I must lay down the criteria for selection. First off, only one game from each game series. When I compiled my list I found a bunch of sequels/prequels in there. So to keep the list more diverse I decided to only include the best game from each series. Second, all of these games have inspired me in some way as a wannabe game developer. So when I list each game I will describe what inspired and impressed me about it, and how each game continues to influence me design-wise. And finally I ranked these games based on the impression that they left on me when I initially played them. Which means that you’ll see some older games that may seem inferior or archaic by todays standards, but were hot shit to me back in the day. So now that’s out of the way, on with the countdown!
#10 - Prince Of Persia
No I’m not talking about the PS2/Xbox game(although that was pretty cool as well). I’m talking 1989 baby. Depeche Mode is singing about their own personal Jesus. Neil Young is rocking in the free world. And Batman topped the box office followed closely by Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade.
I was 11 years old when this game was initially released, but I didn’t get my hands on it for a few more years when my brother and I got handed our first home computer. As a family, we had owned a few other computers before then. Most notably, a Tandy TRS 80. Affectionately referred to as the TRaSh 80 by some of its owners. Cause, well...it sucked. Anyways, a Mac Plus was the first real computer that my brother and I were allowed to spend significant amounts of time on. And that meant many awesome hours spent gaming with the likes of Dark Castle, Carrier Command, Spaceward Ho(not what you’re thinking), and Lode Runner. But when my dad came home with the oddly shaped box for Prince Of Persia(which is also still in his closet), my brother and I were floored.
POP is a side-scrolling-platform-puzzle game with fighting/action elements. Generally you need to find a way to floor switches and doors scattered throughout each level, and the path to each of these things is always one that requires a large amount of tricky jumps, grabs onto ledges, shimmying, climbing, and swordplay. It’s truly is an awesome thing to see a real pro make his way through this game. Just watch some of the video below to see what I mean. This video shows a person play through the entire game from start to finish. Although since Youtube doesn’t allow for videos longer than 10 minutes, the player has sped the video up to fit. But you can still get the gist of the game from it:
What did this game do for me as an aspiring developer? Well when I first played this game I hadn’t yet realised I wanted to be a game developer. But it was certainly one of the games that pushed me towards it. Yes, the graphics and animation were astounding for their time. And they certainly weren’t lost on me. I was shocked to see just how fluid and lifelike the movements were. Jordan Mechner achieved this look by filming his brother going through all the motions required for the game. He then did his best to match the animations to the video. Something that was much more difficult in 1989 than it is now. There weren’t any DV camcorders lying around. Video editing software really didn’t exist for consumers. And yet Mechner was able to pull it off, and pull it off well. This was one of those games that made me truly realise that there is some real artistry in videogames.
You have to give the player something new with every level. Many modern games attempt this by handing the player a shiny new weapon or vehicle every once and awhile. Prince Of Persia, with its one weapon, achieved this by changing up the levels so that the player must use their noggin inventively in order to finish their objectives. This was one of the first games I ever finished. And boy did I play the hell out of it. I actually still find myself loading it up from time to time. It stands up extraordinarily well despite being 20 years old.
So, how can you play it? First and foremost, if you have an Xbox 360, or PS3 I would strongly recommend “Prince Of Persia Classic”. Despite a 3D refresh in the graphics department, the gameplay mostly remains true to the original. However, if you want to play the true classic game with classic graphics, you would need to do so in emulation. I would personally recommend Dosbox. Here are guides for setting up dosbox on Mac and Windows. Many dos games are easily found online in the various abandonware websites. You can find Prince Of Persia here. If you have never played this game and consider yourself a gamer, I shake my head at you. Go play it now!