Everything I appreciate and look for in games stemmed from this.
Amazing story
Fantastic Music
Top Tier voice acting, in goddamn 1998 no less
Atmosphere that few, non horror, games even in its own series have matched

If you cannot get into this game, we have nothing to contribute to each other. If you even so much as think Twin Snakes is a good replacement, you are banned from my property

This is like the third list I've made in a post Reload world that I'm putting FES in. Still haven't played it at the time of writing this cuz I work to damn much and Yakuza 8 released first. Thanks Sega

Saying a game is somber has never been more apt. The lessons this game taught me have become cornerstone to my very being and beleifs. The colors, the characters, the music. I can't hate anything about this game. AI party members? Marin Karin? Thanks for revealing you never touched the tactics menu

Persona, hell even most jrpgs, haven't reached the heights of this game for me. The emotional wreck I was when I finished it for the first time, the impact it left on me never got filled by anything else, and I don't think anything can. Until I play Reload, I am unsure if I will accept someone playing Reload over this.

If you're a Portable stan though and consider it better, get out. We have no chance

Dino Crisis 1 and 2 are the most Alien vs Aliens moment of the game industry has ever seen. Both have their strengths and weaknesses. I LOVE redheads, I love dinosaurs, I love fighting dinosaurs.

I choose 2 cuz despite Regina not being the main playable character outside of a couple sections, I find running through the jungle and blasting raptors with a shotgun, getting bonus points for not getting hit is what I want from a dinosaur game. Sure do wish they followed up on what this set up... Capcom only acknowledges this series when they put out surveys

This is your first tank control filter of my list. Keyword. First.

This is my go to 3d collectathon. Some poeple have their Banjos and some people have their Marios. I enjoy those too (especially Galaxy and 64) but buggier than the first game as it may be, its the one I always come back to.

Glimmer's OST lives rent free in my head to the point I consider it the main theme of the series over it ACTUAL main theme. The introduction of the powers, unique side quests with the orbs (with Professor's Pencil in Mystic Marsh being my favorite), the introduction of characters like Hunter but before an overreliance on secondary playable ones like in 3.

If you play the one from the Reignited Trilogy over the original, I won't fight you. I enjoyed reignited even if it did lack some sovl.

The best of the original trilogy, despite having a DOGSHIT final boss

Tight levels and not as gimmick heavy as Warped. The Komodo Brothers for whatever reason are the boss I remember the most.

Unlike for Spyro, I prefer the original over N.Sane trilogy. I think the music is worse and, this will be nitpicky as af, they messed up the hologram animations. In the original, they always cut off right after the final word was said which made them have this malfunctioning technology feel. In the remake, they don't do that and you fully see the character return to the resting position before it cuts off. They also unified the wumpa box jumps and physics across all 3 so 2's stuff got wonky in it and required different tactics to get some of those extras.

That being said, I won't fight you if you only play the N.Sane version over the original.

I used to be a "6 was the best" guy but that all changed when I played 9.

The game is somber, like what I like about Persona 3, and I think its story and ost is the best of the series. Loss of Me, You're Not Alone and Melodies of Life stuck with me since that first run all those years ago. Zidane, Vivi, Freya, Garnet, Steiner, Eiko, Freya palm tree Amarant and Quina, I love them all.

Yes, the game is slow in battle and general speed, hell that world map struggles hard. I don't fault anyone for preferring the HD version and are permanently on speedup cuz of it. Chocographs are also AWFUL. Oh my god. A tip for that though, speed up doesn't speed up the timer so now you can fight the superboss and not want to jump into a woodchipper while playing hot n cold.

If you are only gonna play one JRPG in your life, make it this one.

The Dragon Ball fan in me will always love Troiyama's artstyle. The most well rounded jrpg you can ever run into in every regard. If you've somehow never played this and like jrpgs, you need to turn in your jrpg fan card. Such Sacrilege!

My first Yakuza game was 4, back before 5 even released in the west. Anyone remember Two Best Friends Play? They were why I gave it the initial chance but I didn't continue even after 5 released. Then their playthrough of 0, after like 3 episodes made me pick this up and I FELL SO HARD for the series and it became one of my favorites.

The 80's were a bit before my time but I still love the atmosphere, aesthetic, music, fashion, everything on display in this game. The style switching in this game brought so much to it, even if I was mainly using Beast mode cuz I'm all about that unga bunga.

I still don't know how to pronounce this game. Is it Live a Live, Live a Live or some combination of the 2? I always said Live a Live.

The final unlocked chapter of this game was such a beautiful culmination of events, I cried when it was over not because it was sad but because it was such a beautiful game. This is the only game that I can remember that has done so. You are doing yourself a disservice for not playing this, just like how us in the west were denied such PEAK for damn near 30 years before this FINALLY came over.

I'm a survival horror lover. Your second tank controls filter, did you even make it this far?

I'm just gonna copy and paste some of what I put in my Resident Evil Ranked list:

The pinnacle and dare I say, Quintessential Resident Experience. I respect the original RE but this game outright replaced it for me and unless you wanna pay respect to the origins, just play this and watch a voice acting compilation on youtube.

Your third and final tank controls check. Now with fog.

The real filter here is me putting 1 over 2. You might thin I belong in Silent Hill for that insanity but I stand by it.

The limitations of the Ps1 causing the most iconic aspect of the series (the fog), the fleshy monstrosities that you cannot see until they are within 8 feet of you, the fact that so much as a squeak caused me so much agita. 2 is deserving of every praise it gets, but 1's importance can't be understated

There is not a single game in the entire library of the ps2 that has more playtime for me than this. Countless summers, countless hours, 100%. I booted this up for the first time in a decade when I ran through Raging Blast 1 and it STILL was so much fun even with mountains of rust to fight through.

Copy and past feeling character aside, there has yet to be a dragon ball game that has even come close to being as fun, though fighterz came close to meeting that criteria. Sparking Zero has some massive shoes to fill and the lack of splitscreen rumors already made damn sure thats an impossible task for it.

While BT3 might have the most ps2 hours, this has my most playtime period. I lived this game in high school. I carried over my save from Freedom 2. Greatsword for life. I love a big sword, I use them in any game I can.

My former head Felyne chef Simon became the best Felyne Comrade I could have asked for (FUCK YOUR PALICO NONSENSE). No longer chopping slabs of meat but instead chopping tails off silver rathalos. A green beast wielding a Katana and feared nothing.

Nowadays I'm not so much about the grind, I actually got fairly annoyed with it in Iceborne and Rise, but this game is still special to me. The game was me during most of my teens and I was the one who spread this series to my friend group. I was patient zero.

People always like that I put Gestalt on my lists. I'm honestly shocked its not more common. Do people hate the combat that much? Just get Iron Will and helmsplitter. EZ

For real though, I never had an issue with the combat. The combat also isn't why I love this game, its the story and music. Even before I became a father myself, I still very much preferred Papa Nier and always will. Ultimate Weapon, Song of the Ancients (duet), Kaine, Emil. When Automata was announced I was not gonna buy it if Emi Evans and Okabe weren't on the ost

Replicant whatever string of numbers they used for the title, does have better combat but its brother Nier and while dynamic music is fine on paper, I found it nerfed a lot of the tracks I like. Ultimate weapon being the biggest one, especially since its only in one of the areas you'll only play before getting the first ending.

If you couldn't tell I tend to value narrative a lot. Despite that I don't like pure VNs, I do need some gameplay thats more that choices for routes.

Play Ghost Trick. Play it! Please... It has a remaster now, you don't need a DS or mobile anymore

I was the perfect age for the Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies to cement him as my favorite super hero. Didn't happen though cuz I grew up watching the live action Lou Ferrigno Hulk show.

Fuck Prototype (this is Prototype's prototype). The power of The INCREDIBLE Hulk, in the palm of your hands. Destroying buildings, minigames such as golf with oil pumps, PILDRIVING HULBUSTERS ACROSS TOWN! We are just not allowed to get good non comic Hulk media these days to the point this game from 2005 is still the pinnacle of it.

I vastly prefer this game to Evolution 1 and 2 despite it being vastly more limited in just about every way unless you mod it.

Jurassic Park dinosaur sound design is the best in the industry and it carries so much for me. One of my more played ps2 games and the most time I've ever spent on a park builder. I like enter a zen mode whenever I boot this game up.

Everyone on the playground fought in the trenches of the Ratchet and Clank vs Jak and Daxter war. Well, not everyone. Those cultured among them knew Sly was king. My infatuation with metal gear made me graviatate toward anything stealth so I am faithful to this racoon.

I like all 3 of the trilogy. I use 3 cuz its my favorite. Clockwerk is my favorite villain of the series. 2 is considered the best and generally I agree, but 3 has one thing 2 doesn't and thats the ability to replay missions without restarting the game. Also unironically has an amazing pirate sequence, probably better than Skull and Bones since you can actually board ships and explore islands for treasure.

Also a Boss is named General Tsao, and he's a Rooster.

This'll be your final filter. Do anime yabos really frighten you that much?

This is also a package deal, Torna should be played after beating the main game. Wish there was a bundle option that wasn't just "season pass" for an entry

This is a game where I absolutely HATE the gameplay. MMO shit, an awful half step between action and turn based. But goddamn if the music, story and characters aren't some of the best. I call this the best in the series for a reason. I've gotten away with playing "We Are The Chosen Ones" around christmas time and not one even questions it. Morag is my beloved, and I think when I realized I have a thing for Scottish accents.

Make no mistake, I agree with a lot of its critisisms. The fact its tutorials are awful and can't be reread is horrendus. The field skill system is cumbersome and should have pulled from full blade inventory instead of equipped. The gacha system is intrusive and shouldn't be in it at all. If it was on any platform but nintendo it probably would have had microtransactions but it doesn't so it just locks content behind rng.

Still love it though