The 'Games that hold up' thread - Page 3

Yeah, there probably won't be a Shenmue III, But, as Justin pointed out, the success of Heavy Rain might lead to a resurrection of the series. I'd be very interested to see what they do with a Next Gen reboot. The original Shenmue was one of the most unique gaming experiences I've ever had. Never got around to the sequel.

Speaking of games that hold up and reboots... Snatcher was a fantastic game. And we never got a sequel because Sega didn't know how to properly support their CD peripheral. It won't happen, but I'd love a reimagining of that one.

Something else I still find fun? Out Of This World. More for nostalgia because its cinematic innovations are pretty dated. But both that and Flashback offered some of the most enjoyable gaming of the 16 bit generation and they still play very well even today.

Agree here. San Andreas is deeper in the gameplay department. But the atmosphere, storyline and humor of Vice City still trump it. Though, it's probably a question of pop culture sensibilities. Although I was an adolescent and came of age in the 90s, I consider myself firmly an 80s kid.

But no GTA game after III can ever be accused of being boring. I'm starting to do something just for the fun of it. I have decided to play through the PS2 GTA storyline in chronological order. Starting with Vice City Stories and eventually making my way to GTA III. I'll just play through the story missions and not do any side stuff (except with Vice City Stories, which I never properly completed).

Yup Justin... ryoken's got you there. But I don't know that PS2 Shinobi is a "bad" game.

However, Shinobi Legions for the Saturn most certainly is. And please don't defend the Master System Shinobi. It's a horrendous port of the arcade game, even for 8 bit. To say nothing of the near unplayable NES version put out by Tengen.

However, the Genesis Shinobi Trilogy - Revenge, Shadowdancer and III - is absolutely the cream-of-the-crop when it comes to ninja action games. And they're still a blast to play. The Genesis Shadowdancer is even more fun than the arcade game. By not making it a direct port, they actually improved it.

(Sega's good that way. Michael Jackson's Moonwalker was pretty fun on the Genesis. Unlike the horrible arcade game)

Okay, I'll stop now. I could talk old-school gaming all day.

Ninja Gaiden > Shinobi

Ninja Gaiden definitely belongs in this thread. Super hard, but super satisfying. I've made it to the last boss (and died!), but nowadays I just like to pretend that getting to level 6-1 means I beat the game. Protip: watching speedruns of this game makes you a better player.

Forgot about Legions. I stand corrected.

The Master System Shinobi, though, they ported to Game Gear, and actually enjoyed it, though whether it still stands the test of time is another story.

The Ninja Gaiden trilogy on the NES is pretty great and it was one of the first games to place such a strong emphasis on storytelling. But the difficulty is just too punishing.

That's what makes the Shinobi trilogy excel in my book. There is challenge, but it doesn't really go to unbearable extremes. The problem with Ninja Gaiden is that it would get to the point where you just weren't having fun anymore. I can't tell you how many times I went hoarse from growling FFFUUUUCCCCCKKKK YOOOUUUUUUU!!!!!

Games

Did I read somewhere above that someone liked Fallout Tactics? The NMA-ers tend to hate that one, it's nice to see someone appreciates it.

Fallout 1/2, Baldur's Gate I/II, Rise of the Dragon, Bloodnet (even though it's impossible to beat), and anything by Infocom.

AVP 2, Noone Lives Forever 1 and 2, Tron 2.0. Anything by Monolith.

That isn't fucking Fear. Or Blood 2! The ones above have aged fantastically, especially NOLF and Tron in the AI department. FEAR has aged well in that regard too but fuck it...it looks terrible and feels clunky.

I reinstall Ultima V every year or two and have a go. I played the hell out of it when I was a kid and it's my favorite in the series (though I love all of them up to 7 Pt. 2). I tried the Lazarus remake, but it didn't suit me.

Speaking of Monolith I need to find my copy of Shogo.

I just thought of another game that holds up extremely well for me: ZZT.

The game's graphics are made purely out of ASCII symbols, so it certainly isn't very pretty to look at. However, it has some devilish puzzles and a lot of imagination within its limitations. Plus, the level editor is still fun to play around with. Perhaps I should add ZZT-OOP programming to my resume....nah.

Absolutely. The style is changed a bit. Things are toned down a little, including Kate's wardrobe but its very good. NOLF 2's reputation is that it sold about 50 copies. Not literally but there was no hype whatsoever.

Not to mention a different voice actress for Kate...worth a playthrough though for the Tornado level alone. Much shorter than the first one though.

Gunstar Heroes is still the shit.

Just replaying Blood 1 courtesy of GOG. Yeah, it stands the test of time.
The voodoo doll is fun, but has a major weakness in that it is so damn slow. You can only use it occasionally.
But the Tesla cannon is great.. I love how the enemies become skeltons a split second before they die.
The games only real weakness is, except for Cheogh, the First episode Boss monster,the bosses are such wimps. The Big Bad Techernober, you can kill with just a few jolts of the Tesla cannon from a distance. But that is a minor quibble.
NLF2 is not quite as good as NFL1, but it is well worth playing. It's no Blood 2 by any means.
If you have not played Blood, get over to www.gog.com and download it for Six Bucks. It comes with all the expansion packs. A bargain.

If you can't, you can get it for Six Bucks at GOG.

SIM ANT is a remarkable game and one that I used to get lost in for hours and hours

This makes sense. And I would point to something like Metal Gear Solid as still holding up. But I think even that one got a Gamecube upgrade. Graphically they seem shittier. But some of them are still fun to play. Curiously, PS2 games don't seem as dated. Even though, graphically, the PS3 mops the floor with most.

GTAIII, though? That one is reaaaallly clunky now. I was astonished at how primitive it seemed when I gave it a spin just for fun the other day. Remember when it was the most amazing thing we had ever seen?

Nah, PS1's 3D graphics are beyond abysmal. Just lots of ugliness.

There are a handful of fantastic 2D games on the system (Street Fighter Anthology, Metal Slug X). The only other games that still look half-way decent use some pretty limited 3D: Einhander and Final Fantasy Tactics being the two that spring to mind.

About GTA3 - use the overhead camera view, and it's still really fun. Especially with a flame thrower. You have to be pretty careful when driving since you can't see that far ahead, but it's definitely doable.

I don't think GTA3 has aged so badly visually. The main problem is the gameplay just doesn't have the variety of the later games and it feels a bit undeveloped in comparison.

Personally I still swear by the very first GTA for pure knockabout fun value. For better and worse the GTA series has followed a steady progression of slowing the gameplay down in exchange for increased complexity, and sometimes it's nice to just go back to high energy joyriding shenanigans. Plus the original music was catchy as hell.

Oh definitely. As far as the storyline and world are concerned, the Vice City games are my favorites. Even post San Andreas and GTAIV.

I actually really love the GTAIII soundtrack. It's underrated because it doesn't have the big names and kitsch of the later soundtracks. I actually really enjoyed their pastiche versions of modern pop. What was that song that had lyrics like: I've had sadder days/when I'd wake up with a bulldog next to me/(woof. woof woof.) I think it's called Good Thing. I would find myself humming it in my private life.

.....

Visually I think it has aged pretty badly actually. All you have to do, in fact, is compare its graphics to Liberty City Stories. That's how you can see the clear diference in the renders.

I go through a period where I play Sierra's Pharaoh like an addict. It's not that hitech, but damn, are those games well built. They the best looking? Nah, but it's an effective formula.

I'd also like to add many of the N64's and Gamecube games. Re4, Majora's Mask, Ocarina of Time, Windwaker, Eternal Darkness.