Effectively unplayable on GameCube controls (the weather balloon mission in Skatopia feels impossible with them), but otherwise this perfectly balances the crisp THPS skateboarding formula and the 2000s obsession with the most raw, foul, despicable sense of stupidity. A vast improvement on its predecessor in arguably every way. If I have any complaint it's that while I do love the rapid-fire, go-at-your-own-pace mission structure here - it also lends itself to being able to crank out this entire game on multiple difficulties in just a few hours. That's barely even a gripe though, considering that I've put countless hours into this over two decades' time and would gladly replay it again in its entirety at a moment's notice. Some of the tightest levels in the whole series, God-tier soundtrack, murders row of secret skaters (including you know who), and an excellent amount of Bam Margera. Classic mode essentially doubles the size of the game, with equally ripper levels to boot. I'm also a massive Jackass fan, so I have zero complaints about this story feeling like a thinly-veiled extension of it. The carefree atmosphere this thing spins is one hell of a tonic, and I doubt it will ever, ever get old.

Strong candidate for most slappable video game villain of all time. Better than all the Hawk games before it - even in spite of having one of the weakest soundtracks in the series and generally feeling rough around the edges in a lot of spots (most notably its horrid in-game rendered 'cutscenes') - simply because of how damn smoothly it plays. Like seriously, how many other games from 2003 can you say have controls this tight? The driving sections are so hilariously scuffed that they're impossible not to love at least a little bit, you just don't see bat-for-the-fences experimentalism like that in games much anymore. And I know it's a divisive move, but imo the addition of walking is the best game-changer of the franchise since the manual and revert. All of the levels are winners, plus you can play as Gene Simmons and Iron Man. The three game stretch of this, THUG2, and THAW was no doubt peak of the series.

Takes a lot of missteps to get to its destination - including but not limited to the fact that it's drab in the same way an early PS3 game would be drab, lots of murky greys and colorless environments. The difficulty also feels a little overblown at times and the controls rather imprecise, but some jankiness is just expected with such an early PS2 game. And in that regard, it's easy to see why this was - and is still - so revolutionary, the massive technical leap from the OG batch of games to this is undeniably massive. That being said, I actually prefer its energy and lore to its gameplay (which I'll confess, I don't find to be all too exciting here on its own). So many horrific characters and shocking cutscenes that sincerely feel like they'd be pushing the envelope for today's standards, let alone those of 2001. I'll never forget Sweet Tooth's "She didn't die easy..." line to Axel, and how much it unnerved me - the way it goes so hardcore on the edgy tone without ever once feeling forced (unlike, say Jak II or Jak III) is masterful. It not only keeps me eager in anticipation to see where each story would go next, but also really connected me to each character I'd play as (even if the special character cutscenes feel noticeably cheap) - succeeding where I think the environmental design fell short. Black indeed, for better and for worse.

I'm probably (surely) alone in this, but this is easily the best entry in the series - yeah cutting its campaign down to only a few characters was an assy move but there's just no reconciling with how sturdy the gameplay and world are here. Wreaking havoc while ripping vehicles apart like grenade shrapnel and flattening on-fire NPCs like pancakes (which of course reward you points) as N.W.A., Sammy Hagar, Rob Zombie, and Patsy Cline play in the background is the most self-assured brand of awesome. The races are a great new addition - relying on you to destroy your enemies by any means necessary rather than traditionally surpass them is a nice spin on things. It just plays so much better, gone are the slippery convulsions of (the still good) Twisted Metal: Black and (comparative) clunkiness of the PS1 games. It still ain't perfect but it's an easy step up imo. And come on, how fucking badass is that gigantic Dollface mech boss thing? That was easily one of the best images spawned out of this gaming era. Can't at all subscribe to the popular opinion that this is mid (??), and even more shocked that the series has been dead in a ditch since - how was it not a complete haven for the Monster Energy-fueled, violence-addicted seventh gen of gaming? Strange, vicious, and wild.

Top 50 Favorites: #35

Sumptuous, mysterious, hyperstylized audiovisual descent (or more appropriately, ascent) into existentialism by way of snappy and deeply creative puzzles. Right alongside Escape Plan and Thomas Was Alone as one of the best high-caloric flash games on console you're likely to ever find. Its story is so much more than just background flavor text as I would have expected, touching on experimental themes of humanity and the inherent destruction individualism has on the mind. Gorgeous colors mixed with plenty of crunchy deaths and truly chilling body horror, with the meat of the game serving as a sublimely satisfying test of problem-solving the likes of which I've rarely ever seen in a video game before or since. Simple yet so, so rewarding. It's a brief one and the collectibles are meh, but it's still an unforgettable experience. Tremendous stuff, as eerie as it is relaxing.

The weakest of all three add-ons for the base game imo, but still sports the exact same brand of grisly slapstick charisma as anything else this seriously underrated IP has to offer. Probably has the hardest difficulty out of all of 'em, too. Would kill to see a sequel for it, considering the recent resurgence of smaller puzzle-type games and nostalgic/belated follow-ups it would be prime time for one. If Gravity Rush - which this is way better than, in my eyes - can get an on-console sequel, I don't see why this can't either.

Okay - against all expectations - this is actually kind of awesome. Constant whip-fast action so speedy that it's often hard to comprehend what's happening. A fair amount more exciting than Madden NFL 2000, that's for sure. Still not quite as precise as it should be, sometimes certain moves done in quick succession don't register the way they should - and twenty-three years of hockey games since have evolved the formula appropriately. But for what it is, it's shocking how much of a blast it is. You can smash people through the glass, get into fist fights mid-game, bounce the puck off of unflinching players' faces right into the goal, and so much more. Graphics are meh but the commentary helps keep it engaging minute-to-minute, the A.I. boasts a fair challenge, and the sound it makes when you smack the hockey puck is supremely satisfying. Auto shot aim is a necessity though, otherwise you ain't making a single hit. It's fun!

Terrifically fun kart racer. More of a Crash Team Racing clone than a Mario Kart clone, with even some of the tracks appearing to be direct riffs on what the former had introduced the year prior. And while it never truly reaches the heights of those games, it comes surprisingly close. Kind of a bummer that the last track is by far the weakest, but they're all tons of fun to race on - requiring complete and total mastery of its mechanics if you want to stand a chance. Because if you thought Mario Kart 64 had devious rubber-banding, you ain't seen nothing yet - and that's not even taking into account how aggressive the A.I. already are on their own. If you can get past its nightmare-fuel opening cutscene, the art style here is really self-assured - with tremendous graphics and music for its day. Not quite on the level of something like Jet Moto 3, but still a great time and highly overlooked.

Games I Dislike That Everybody Else Likes

Hardly even a phone game, takes everything that made the Rock Band series special and effortlessly replayable then dilutes it into this samey, cheapo toss-off. Soundtrack is mostly antiseptic, a scant mix of of-the-era stinkers and songs you've already seen in these types of games like 18,000 times before - but even with Rock Band 3's DLC support this is still a chore to play through. Its point system is just so lame, mashing all the instruments together into the same screen gives way less of an incentive to replay songs. Plus now it isn't even playable anymore lmfao.

Top 50 Favorites: #46

Games I Like That Everybody Else Dislikes

Two major flaws right off the bat: first and foremost its boneheaded attempts at a grimdark tone which just end up being juvenile and insufferable. Second - and this is a less severe blemish but still necessary to mention - the combat system posed here is genius in theory but just isn't 100% here yet, you'll get caught in a move and fall off the edge to your death or accidentally select the wrong limb to attack right in the heat of battle fairly often. Thankfully its sequel would fully rectify both of those problems - but for now, with all that being said, in the end this is still a gorgeous and addicting Souls-like that has an identity all its own. When this game puts you in the zone, oh man... you're dialed in down to the very last nerve. Fighting some of these bosses and then finally tackling them is a religious experience. Its monochromatic world of nanites and technology gone loose is a feast for the eyes, too. Should get automatic bonus points for having an eighth-gen opening cinematic that isn't totally boring, and the Don Hackett storyline is one of gaming's most sorrowful shocks.

Top 50 Favorites: #30

Games I Like That Everybody Else Dislikes

Always loved the off-kilter, macabre simplicity of this one - its rich black-and-white visuals, classical soundtrack, and lovable silent protagonists among other aspects. What should feel like another one of Sony's underwhelming launch titles instead feels totally invigorating due to all these - on the surface - basic features implemented in the most unorthodox, freakish manner possible. Reminds me of the type of thing I'd come home to from middle school in 2011 and play on Newgrounds for a couple hours while chomping down Pringles and a pack of Starburst. A loving tribute to the flash games my generation grew up on just as the medium was starting to die out - a beautiful mix of kooky gimmick gameplay, deadly sadism, and zany humor. Only the seventh generation of gaming could have produced something so uniquely bizarre.

Games I Like That Everybody Else Dislikes

So unabashedly, ludicrously (and arguably accidentally) over-the-top in its offensiveness that it's impossible not to find it at least a little remarkable. I mean come on, the thing was created on the same engine as Carmageddon and released on the 41st anniversary of the actual assassination after several months of extensive research to make this as accurate as possible - by a team who had no idea the general public would find it "sickening", "despicable", and "[in] bad taste" (even after adding in enhanced blood splatter and ragdoll options). Games like that don't come around often, even if the end result is little more than a meager physics simulator in actuality. I admire not only the gall but the seemingly impossible ignorance it must have taken to make and then release this the way it did. Plus okay it's kind of hilarious making the car hook into a building at high speed and seeing everybody just launch tf out like something right out of Goat Simulator.

England during the black plague... what a time to be alive, amiright? Occasionally goes a little too ham (no pun intended) on the grimdark tone but, like, I get it - if there were any setting from history that would constitute such a constantly distressing atmosphere, this one would be a top contender. Regardless this is brisk, pretty gorgeous for what it is, and suitably gross. Has plenty to critique about religion, wealth privilege, and the English empire - but mainly seems content with putting a bunch of child protagonists through hell which - again - seems a bit of a tired field even at this point. Every ounce as simple and restrictive as The Last of Us, but I digress - it's not too shabby.

Very possibly the worst video game I've ever touched. I've been known to be relatively forgiving towards chintzy, blatant cash-grabs like this from the era - by which I mean, there tends to be a prior expectation that they're going to be pretty crappy already. But this is a new low even by that grading curve, and I didn't think the first Cars video game was even that bad, either. Muddy graphics, choppy framerate, track design that ranges from brutally boring to the most horrendous things ever, and handling that will legitimately make you curse your own soul. Those fucking Guido races are one of the top 5 worst things ever spat onto a video game disc - total luck whether or not you don't spin out for no reason (usually miliseconds before the finish line) and/or glitch right through the floor of the track. There are gripes to be made with the current state of gaming but come on, don't act like you aren't immensely glad that this borderline evil genre of games isn't poisoning the well so much anymore.