Over the past few years, the video game industry has grown rapidly, and big corporations have set their sights on it. Of course, it's not surprising given how much money a good game can raise, but many seem to forget that making a good game is a long and complicated process.
It is important for a game to excel in many aspects, like world-building, lore, storytelling, gameplay, soundtracks, and voice acting. Any development team facing the challenge of turning their visions into games knows it's a shaky path. While some developers fail, others nail every step to perfection and successfully create masterpieces that stand out from the rest. A handful of games are so good that people would even wish to forget their playthrough just to fully experience the game again. Here are a few examples.
6 Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
Elder Scrolls games have one of the best appeals in gaming history. While both Skyrim and Oblivion deserve a spot on this list, one of them has to take it, and it should be Skyrim. That feeling of being lost in a huge sandbox of doing whatever you want, being whoever you want, and going wherever you want, was just amazing.
Visiting cities and villages, knowing their stories, participating in a war, deciding its Victor. Fight dragons, learning their shouts. Skyrim perfectly balanced all the game elements to make it a journey to be remembered. It's almost 11 years since its release and Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is still one of the most played games played today.
5 The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
A franchise with over 30 years in its genre, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild exceeded all expectations and delivered a marvelous open-world experience. The number of things players could do in this game was on a whole new scale for an RPG open-world game. From trees to grass, everything in this game was reactive to most players' actions, giving enough freedom for hundreds of combinations.
In addition to its massive sandbox, Breath of the Wild nailed storytelling and introduced one of the most memorable side quests and NPCs. It was an adventure like nothing players have ever experienced before, and surely, most fans would love to experience Hyrule for the first time again.
4 Shadow Of The Colossus
Even to this date, Shadow of the Colossus still influences many new titles, such as Breath of the Wild, and Elden Ring. While most action-adventure and RPG games focus on the time needed to finish the game and its side quests, Shadow of the Colossus only had a brief, compelling eight hours story with nothing else to do in the game.
Yet this short gameplay was accompanied by satisfying music themes and a gorgeous world built around its Colossi beings. The sheer excitement alongside being terrified never changed after meeting all 16 Colossus. It was indeed a journey any player would want to experience again for the first time.
3 Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening
Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening is arguably the best hack and slash game ever made. DMC3 took a brave path in exploring the relationship between Dante and Vergil, and the results were astonishing. It gave the game a unique feeling, adding more depth to its amazing combat system.
Everything was going right for DMC3, gameplay, music, graphics, atmosphere, and narrative. They all contributed to creating a masterpiece that wasn’t just a “kill all the bad guys” game, it was an emotional journey to discover Dante’s identity. The perfectly paced storytelling with the well-delivered cutscenes, all shaped Devil May Cry 3 to stand the test of time.
2 Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Originally released in 2007, the first-person shooter took the world by storm, raised the bar for its genre, and set a new standard. Everything was beautiful about Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, even its multiplayer that changed online shooters forever.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare took players into the depths of hell in its intense single-player mode and often put them in disbelief through the story's events. Of course, it introduced one of the best missions ever made, All Ghillied Up, where players had to go through enemy lines (literally) to assassinate Imran Zakhaev. Nothing can express the feeling of lying on the floor while an entire army passes by, a truly unique experience that paved the way for all the greatness next Call of Duty games achieved.
1 The Last Of Us
It’s easy to say that there won't be any game that will have the same impact on gaming the way The Last of Us had. From the start of the game, The Last of Us takes people on a journey of two broken desperate characters forced to work together and trust each other.
As they progress in their journey, players witness Ellie grows up as she learns more about the perished world she was born in. That gives players the same exact feelings Joel has for her and allows them to relate to all his actions. Without a doubt, The Last of Us is the masterpiece of this generation.