I think if we go 10 titles, we might get more unexpected and personal entries. These lists should tell something about you. Mine says I was a wrestling nut when I was younger. As well as a few of the big names I really connected with. The last few years aren't really featured too much, and my peak interest was definitely around 2001's awesome PS2 Fall/Winter lineup. Here we go.
10. WWF Wrestlemania 2000 (N64) - I knew what I was getting from the AKI boys around the time this came out, but I was a complete WWF whore. It lived up to the hype. I totally submerged in this, it's probably my favorite wrestling game experience, despite No Mercy topping it in many ways. I enjoyed the "2000" era more than I did by No Mercy's time, when I began to move away from wrestling. Also, some slowdowns frustrated me in that one despite awesome features.
9. Metal Gear Solid 3 (PS2) - MGS3 found that a lot of it's fans bailed. I can't say I blamed them, MGS2 was simply the most polarizing super-hyped game I can recall. But from the first released 1 min 30 second footage to the 15 minute trailer released a couple days after, this one just hit the right tone for me. It built with more awesome images, and cool ideas for gameplay. Still, it developed quietly and never built to any crazy hype. More a quiet confidence I followed it with, with tons of awesome images released. It really pushed the graphics engine late in the PS2's lifespan. It delivered more than the hype, and GAF really took to the game following release.
8. Resident Evil 2 (PSX) - After getting a Playstation, I grew to love it. There was a feeling of maturity in it, I never had with previous video game systems. When my uncle, my brother, and I went on a hunt for a horror game, we stumbled across games like Alone in the Dark, Clock Tower, Area 51, King's Field. Nearly moving out of the category of horror even in our search. Until we hit bullseye on the type of horror game we wanted with Resident Evil. One of the best video game experiences I've ever had was playing through it with those two. It quickly became a favorite franchise, and so the sequel became one of my most watched, anticipated game. With it's release in January '98 right at my birthday, I had it pre-ordered long before. It was my first pre-order ever. The game is terrific, but the hype was too much for the length of RE2. I finished it in a day or two, and it didn't quite have the unsettling creepiness of RE1. Still, it brought a lot. And the demo for the game was amazing.
7. Grand Theft Auto Vice City (PS2) - I followed this with complete attention, the media releasing a great style to it. At the same time, it happened only 1 year after GTAIII. Which was never enough time to truly anticipate it to an all-time extent. I remember the promise of indoor areas, helicopters, and motorcycles were perfect additions along with the 80's theme. I skipped that day of school, and went to Best Buy to pick it up early. I played it all night, and on the whole I enjoyed the hell out of the game. But I noticed I became tired with it much quicker than I did GTAIII. It survived on charm, and my brother's enthusiasm for it, who wasn't tiring at all of the GTA series.
6. Super Mario 64 (N64) - I actually first heard of this, when I saw it in a store. I believe I heard word from people Nintendo had a new system coming, but it wasn't until I saw Super Mario 64 in "Toys R Us" that I became aware of what it really was. I remember the sheer amazement playing it at a kiosk before the N64's release. I knew everything was different at that moment pretty much. Still the most surreal moment and biggest single video game leap I can recall. My older brother talked me away from Super Mario 64, and we got a Playstation first for Christmas. I became accustomed to "3D" games quite a bit by the time my sister bought an N64. Still, something was different about this game in it's precise control. This one's definitely a moment to remember.
5. WWF Attitude (PSX) - Despite War Zone not quite matching my hype, I was naive and really expected a lot out of sequels. This one promised blood, the newest era of wrestling, storylines, etc. I enjoyed WCW/NWO Revenge so much at this point, that being a WWF whore, I wanted the best wrestling game ever. I remember downloading shitty small clips of wrestler entrances on 56k during E3. Just hoping not to get kicked offline. The 30 second clips were amazing. I realized after release it's continuing faults, and grew tired with the franchise. I still have a sour taste on this one actually. I became a complete AKI convert afterward, and WWF license going to them not long after was welcome news.
4. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2) - For some people, this game caught them off guard. But it was more of a dream game of me and my friends. Who loved our Driver series, but knew if it was mixed with the top down GTA games it would be "the perfect game". So GTA III came along, and did that. The first glimpse came in a Game Informer issue, which had a long interview and lots of screens. Basically saying they're doing 3D, the city will be fully operating with trains, cars, taxis. It sounded amazing. The game released less than a month before MGS2, and delivered delivered fully on the expectations, with a better story than I even expected. Within a month GTA mania began.
3. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (SNES) - Out of an amazing system, I can't believe I got most hyped over this one. But that's what happened. Making a Christmas list one year, I continued to see the same commercial play over and over again for Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. I adored the show like most kids my age. The commercial showed the side scrolling gist of it, and that was more than enough. I got stuck on the idea of all the villains I loved in the show. How cool the boss battles will be. On Christmas Day I started playing. I liked it, beat it, but never got the great joy out of it I was hoping for, of course.
2. WWF War Zone (PSX) - It really started with one magazine article. The graphics wowed a younger me, and the aim to go more simulation than the current In Your House WWF games, excited my imagination. The only problem was the estimated release date was almost a whole 2 years off! Ouch. My first experience with video game previews to unreleased games being torturous. I played WCW/NWO World Tour prior to the release of this actualy. My anti-WCW bias got me, but I knew it was great quality. Being able to bleed was amazing. Warzone didn't match my hype, or match World Tour for that matter, but I enjoyed it just the same. The cage match was fun, it had my favorite wrestlers, and a championship belt run. I'm definitely a lot more needy these days.
1. Metal Gear Solid 2 (PS2) - For a weird list, this one needs the least explanation. It pretty much started with a trailer, that was legend before I ever even saw it. It was described in detail for readers to imagine, online for download if you had the connection speed(9 minutes, no youtube, 56k taking up phone lines!), and came bundled in an OPM magazine demo disc later on. Any small reveals about the game had a mythical aura about them. The industry hyped this game beyond anything I've seen. Seemingly unable to make a wrong move, Kojima then "submerges" and hides his masterpiece from us. Of course it disappointed, but it did it memorably. I still liked the game a lot, but without a doubt had that tinge of something coming up short on this one.
10. WWF Wrestlemania 2000 (N64) - I knew what I was getting from the AKI boys around the time this came out, but I was a complete WWF whore. It lived up to the hype. I totally submerged in this, it's probably my favorite wrestling game experience, despite No Mercy topping it in many ways. I enjoyed the "2000" era more than I did by No Mercy's time, when I began to move away from wrestling. Also, some slowdowns frustrated me in that one despite awesome features.
9. Metal Gear Solid 3 (PS2) - MGS3 found that a lot of it's fans bailed. I can't say I blamed them, MGS2 was simply the most polarizing super-hyped game I can recall. But from the first released 1 min 30 second footage to the 15 minute trailer released a couple days after, this one just hit the right tone for me. It built with more awesome images, and cool ideas for gameplay. Still, it developed quietly and never built to any crazy hype. More a quiet confidence I followed it with, with tons of awesome images released. It really pushed the graphics engine late in the PS2's lifespan. It delivered more than the hype, and GAF really took to the game following release.
8. Resident Evil 2 (PSX) - After getting a Playstation, I grew to love it. There was a feeling of maturity in it, I never had with previous video game systems. When my uncle, my brother, and I went on a hunt for a horror game, we stumbled across games like Alone in the Dark, Clock Tower, Area 51, King's Field. Nearly moving out of the category of horror even in our search. Until we hit bullseye on the type of horror game we wanted with Resident Evil. One of the best video game experiences I've ever had was playing through it with those two. It quickly became a favorite franchise, and so the sequel became one of my most watched, anticipated game. With it's release in January '98 right at my birthday, I had it pre-ordered long before. It was my first pre-order ever. The game is terrific, but the hype was too much for the length of RE2. I finished it in a day or two, and it didn't quite have the unsettling creepiness of RE1. Still, it brought a lot. And the demo for the game was amazing.
7. Grand Theft Auto Vice City (PS2) - I followed this with complete attention, the media releasing a great style to it. At the same time, it happened only 1 year after GTAIII. Which was never enough time to truly anticipate it to an all-time extent. I remember the promise of indoor areas, helicopters, and motorcycles were perfect additions along with the 80's theme. I skipped that day of school, and went to Best Buy to pick it up early. I played it all night, and on the whole I enjoyed the hell out of the game. But I noticed I became tired with it much quicker than I did GTAIII. It survived on charm, and my brother's enthusiasm for it, who wasn't tiring at all of the GTA series.
6. Super Mario 64 (N64) - I actually first heard of this, when I saw it in a store. I believe I heard word from people Nintendo had a new system coming, but it wasn't until I saw Super Mario 64 in "Toys R Us" that I became aware of what it really was. I remember the sheer amazement playing it at a kiosk before the N64's release. I knew everything was different at that moment pretty much. Still the most surreal moment and biggest single video game leap I can recall. My older brother talked me away from Super Mario 64, and we got a Playstation first for Christmas. I became accustomed to "3D" games quite a bit by the time my sister bought an N64. Still, something was different about this game in it's precise control. This one's definitely a moment to remember.
5. WWF Attitude (PSX) - Despite War Zone not quite matching my hype, I was naive and really expected a lot out of sequels. This one promised blood, the newest era of wrestling, storylines, etc. I enjoyed WCW/NWO Revenge so much at this point, that being a WWF whore, I wanted the best wrestling game ever. I remember downloading shitty small clips of wrestler entrances on 56k during E3. Just hoping not to get kicked offline. The 30 second clips were amazing. I realized after release it's continuing faults, and grew tired with the franchise. I still have a sour taste on this one actually. I became a complete AKI convert afterward, and WWF license going to them not long after was welcome news.
4. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2) - For some people, this game caught them off guard. But it was more of a dream game of me and my friends. Who loved our Driver series, but knew if it was mixed with the top down GTA games it would be "the perfect game". So GTA III came along, and did that. The first glimpse came in a Game Informer issue, which had a long interview and lots of screens. Basically saying they're doing 3D, the city will be fully operating with trains, cars, taxis. It sounded amazing. The game released less than a month before MGS2, and delivered delivered fully on the expectations, with a better story than I even expected. Within a month GTA mania began.
3. Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers (SNES) - Out of an amazing system, I can't believe I got most hyped over this one. But that's what happened. Making a Christmas list one year, I continued to see the same commercial play over and over again for Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. I adored the show like most kids my age. The commercial showed the side scrolling gist of it, and that was more than enough. I got stuck on the idea of all the villains I loved in the show. How cool the boss battles will be. On Christmas Day I started playing. I liked it, beat it, but never got the great joy out of it I was hoping for, of course.
2. WWF War Zone (PSX) - It really started with one magazine article. The graphics wowed a younger me, and the aim to go more simulation than the current In Your House WWF games, excited my imagination. The only problem was the estimated release date was almost a whole 2 years off! Ouch. My first experience with video game previews to unreleased games being torturous. I played WCW/NWO World Tour prior to the release of this actualy. My anti-WCW bias got me, but I knew it was great quality. Being able to bleed was amazing. Warzone didn't match my hype, or match World Tour for that matter, but I enjoyed it just the same. The cage match was fun, it had my favorite wrestlers, and a championship belt run. I'm definitely a lot more needy these days.
1. Metal Gear Solid 2 (PS2) - For a weird list, this one needs the least explanation. It pretty much started with a trailer, that was legend before I ever even saw it. It was described in detail for readers to imagine, online for download if you had the connection speed(9 minutes, no youtube, 56k taking up phone lines!), and came bundled in an OPM magazine demo disc later on. Any small reveals about the game had a mythical aura about them. The industry hyped this game beyond anything I've seen. Seemingly unable to make a wrong move, Kojima then "submerges" and hides his masterpiece from us. Of course it disappointed, but it did it memorably. I still liked the game a lot, but without a doubt had that tinge of something coming up short on this one.
