The Guinness World Records has been in publication since 1955, and has been awarding its famous, sometimes dubious, honors to the uniquely talented ever since. Got fingernails longer than an SUV? There's a record for that. Can you bicycle backwards for 60 kilometers while playing the violin? There's a record for that as well. Now it seems that the Call of Duty series has received a distinction as well, and it actually has nothing to do with sales.
It's makes perfect sense that the London-based record publisher would delve into the world of interactive entertainment, honing in on gamers' competitive desires for records and leaderboards. Civilization has finally received answers to its burning questions such as who can hold the longest Dance Dance Revolution marathon (or, similarly, LittleBigPlanet 2).
Recently, however, Guinness has decided to eschew personal achievement for personal opinion - and the results promise to be nothing short of controversial. Similar to their fan polling of the best video game series of all time, Guinness World Records surveyed 13,519 gamers as to which video games featured the greatest ending. To no one's surprise, almost every single game was a product of the 21st Century, and #1 on the list was Activision and Treyarch's Call of Duty: Black Ops with its star-spangled ending and unique twist on the Kennedy assassination.
Here are the top 50 winners in full:
- Call of Duty: Black Ops
- Halo: Reach
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
- God of War
- Red Dead Redemption
- Portal
- Metal Gear Solid 4
- Final Fantasy VII
- Heavy Rain
- Super Mario Bros.
- Pokemon Black and White
- Halo 3
- Halo: Combat Evolved
- Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
- Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
- Portal 2
- Grand Theft Auto IV
- Mass Effect 2
- Super Mario Galaxy 2
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
- Kingdom Hearts
- Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
- Shadow of the Colossus
- Assassin's Creed
- Assassin's Creed II
- Metal Gear Solid
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Super Mario Galaxy
- Mass Effect
- Kingdom Hearts II
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- Sonic Adventure 2
- StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty
- BioShock
- Gears of War 2
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
- Fallout 3
- inFamous
- New Super Mario Bros. Wii
- The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
- Super Metroid
- Half-Life 2: Episode Two
- Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II
- Call of Duty: World at War
- The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
- Crysis 2
- Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time
- Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
- Resident Evil 4
Now, interestingly enough, Guinness did fully acknowledge that the list would "cause heated debate among passionate gamers," and we can't help but think of that as the sole reason for this blatant popularity contest even existing.
Games, as an art form - you heard us right Roger Ebert - allow for the player to interpret them as they see fit, so we won't lash out at anyone for saying that their favorite ending was that of Call of Duty: Black Ops or even Duke Nukem: Forever. But much the same way chart-topping music or blockbuster movies aren't always the best indicator of quality, a fan vote will always cloud the issue more than it will clarify it. To try to create a "definitive" list placing Black Ops above stellar narratives like Red Dead Redemption, Halo, or Resident Evil 4... well, that's just vain.
Just in case you wanted to relieve it in all it's splendor, though, or don't care to be spoiled, here it is - the greatest video game ending in the history of the homo-sapiens species [SPOILERS]:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsWjsHgY0Tc
Ranters, what is your favorite video game ending of all time? Did Guinness make a pretty accurate list with Call of Duty: Black Ops as its #1, or would you toss that list into the shredder as soon as you got your hands on it?
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Follow me on Twitter @Brian_Sipple
Source: Guinness World Records [via Destructoid]