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NeoGAF: Your Top 5(+) Developers of All Time?
- Thread starter Boss Man
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MrTroubleMaker
Member
Rockstar Games - Great story - GTA
Bioware - Nice dialog and aesthetics (mass effect)
Volition - Great humor (saints row) and destruction (red faction:g)
Avalanche Studios - Great open world games (just cause)
Dice - Fun with vehicles! (BF - rally)
Bioware - Nice dialog and aesthetics (mass effect)
Volition - Great humor (saints row) and destruction (red faction:g)
Avalanche Studios - Great open world games (just cause)
Dice - Fun with vehicles! (BF - rally)
1. Square (soft/Enix/Eidos)-
This can be rather fragmented depending on your definition, but this is it baby. The crème de la crème. Through my entire video game playing history starting with the Nintendo I got at Easter, 1986, these games have stayed with me for (console) generations. Starting with Rad Racer and Final Fantasy, ending most recently with Deus Ex. I've played every main FF except 13. I spent seven years off and on playing Final Fantasy XI. If you ask me my top five favorite RPG's, three of them are from the FF series. Just Cause 2 was awesome in scope (especially on PC). I plan on playing Tomb Raider soon at some point.
2. Nintendo.
Do I really even need to say anything here?
Fine, five words: Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Earthbound, Kart. Shit, my one and only vidya game tattoo is Earthbound.
3. Bethesda
Fallout. Elder Scrolls. Dishonoured wasn't too shabby either.
4. Sony
I spent countless hours playing Twisted Metal games. Tossing in all Sony first and second party, there are too many games to mention. Easily some of my favorites.
5. Team Meat
Super Meat Boy is the best platformer of all time. You think otherwise? IDGAF. Isaac is phenomenal and Meowgenics has me hyped, bad.
This can be rather fragmented depending on your definition, but this is it baby. The crème de la crème. Through my entire video game playing history starting with the Nintendo I got at Easter, 1986, these games have stayed with me for (console) generations. Starting with Rad Racer and Final Fantasy, ending most recently with Deus Ex. I've played every main FF except 13. I spent seven years off and on playing Final Fantasy XI. If you ask me my top five favorite RPG's, three of them are from the FF series. Just Cause 2 was awesome in scope (especially on PC). I plan on playing Tomb Raider soon at some point.
2. Nintendo.
Do I really even need to say anything here?
Fine, five words: Mario, Zelda, Metroid, Earthbound, Kart. Shit, my one and only vidya game tattoo is Earthbound.
3. Bethesda
Fallout. Elder Scrolls. Dishonoured wasn't too shabby either.
4. Sony
I spent countless hours playing Twisted Metal games. Tossing in all Sony first and second party, there are too many games to mention. Easily some of my favorites.
5. Team Meat
Super Meat Boy is the best platformer of all time. You think otherwise? IDGAF. Isaac is phenomenal and Meowgenics has me hyped, bad.
JoduanER2
Member
1. Rockstar
2. Valve
3. Blizzard
4. Naughty Dog
5. Nintendo
Rockstar's games always surprise me, even though Max Payne 3 sucked as a whole, it was a nice effort but it lacked a "soul", and it was boring as hell.
Well and Valve's games are all masterpieces but they dont release many games so number 2 for them... Its hard being as consistent as Rockstar has.
2. Valve
3. Blizzard
4. Naughty Dog
5. Nintendo
Rockstar's games always surprise me, even though Max Payne 3 sucked as a whole, it was a nice effort but it lacked a "soul", and it was boring as hell.
Well and Valve's games are all masterpieces but they dont release many games so number 2 for them... Its hard being as consistent as Rockstar has.
1. Valve - Simply the best. Can't remember a single game by them that wasn't excellent. Not too mention that they have basically become the stewards of the best gaming platform in existence.
2. Looking Glass Studios - One of the most innovative if not the most innovative FPS studio ever. The sheer amount of talent that worked there is crazy. Warren Spector and Ken Levine get the most love but there are many more.
3. Blizzard - I've been dissapointed in Blizz as of late but almost all the games they've released have been mega hit 10/10 affairs that keep the playerbases hooked for years. I'm not sure any other studio has such a consistent record of putting out gigantic evergreen titles.
4. 2015/Infinity Ward/Respawn - I have all three of these listed because it's the same core group of people. 2015 made maybe the best WW2 shooter of all time in Medal of Honor Allied Assault. Infinity Ward did it again..twice..with the first two CoD games. Then Modern Warfare came along and defined a generation of games. These dudes do nothing but make quality hits. It's a shame they have to move around so much.
5. Nintendo EAD - Nintendo now is not really my cup of tea. But these guys like the ones in the list previous to them have a nearly unblemished line of super great games. And they've been doing it a long time. Any list like this just isn't complete without them.
2. Looking Glass Studios - One of the most innovative if not the most innovative FPS studio ever. The sheer amount of talent that worked there is crazy. Warren Spector and Ken Levine get the most love but there are many more.
3. Blizzard - I've been dissapointed in Blizz as of late but almost all the games they've released have been mega hit 10/10 affairs that keep the playerbases hooked for years. I'm not sure any other studio has such a consistent record of putting out gigantic evergreen titles.
4. 2015/Infinity Ward/Respawn - I have all three of these listed because it's the same core group of people. 2015 made maybe the best WW2 shooter of all time in Medal of Honor Allied Assault. Infinity Ward did it again..twice..with the first two CoD games. Then Modern Warfare came along and defined a generation of games. These dudes do nothing but make quality hits. It's a shame they have to move around so much.
5. Nintendo EAD - Nintendo now is not really my cup of tea. But these guys like the ones in the list previous to them have a nearly unblemished line of super great games. And they've been doing it a long time. Any list like this just isn't complete without them.
From Software - For Armored Core. Been a fan of them since the Armored Core demo for PS1 in 1996. I really liked the idea they had with Murakumo for the Xbox, they could have made it into something awesome if they had taken out the distance restriction. The cityscape they created in the game looked STUNNING for that matter - better than any background they've created since for their mech games. Case in point: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EF3f69qNXg
Square Enix - I've enjoyed much of their games that they've put out over the years - in fact I have yet to outright hate anything they've made. Valkyrie Profile, Kingdom Hearts, Chrono Cross, and Star Ocean 3 (credit here goes to Tri-Ace).
Namco Bandai - .hack// remains one of my favorite RPG franchises. Been an Ace Combat fan since the original. I've become a Tales fan as well.
Monolith Soft - Xenosaga/Gears and Xenoblade have really made their portfolio look great. Looking forward to X.
Capcom - Megaman X - X5, Street Fighter II Turbo, Street Fighter III Alpha, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite - this company has consistently gotten my dollars over the years, though not so much recently.
Special mentions: Sega, Nintendo, Gamefreak, Sony (Ape Escape!), Studio Liverpool, Nippon Ichi Software, Blizzard, Taito (Darius)
Square Enix - I've enjoyed much of their games that they've put out over the years - in fact I have yet to outright hate anything they've made. Valkyrie Profile, Kingdom Hearts, Chrono Cross, and Star Ocean 3 (credit here goes to Tri-Ace).
Namco Bandai - .hack// remains one of my favorite RPG franchises. Been an Ace Combat fan since the original. I've become a Tales fan as well.
Monolith Soft - Xenosaga/Gears and Xenoblade have really made their portfolio look great. Looking forward to X.
Capcom - Megaman X - X5, Street Fighter II Turbo, Street Fighter III Alpha, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite - this company has consistently gotten my dollars over the years, though not so much recently.
Special mentions: Sega, Nintendo, Gamefreak, Sony (Ape Escape!), Studio Liverpool, Nippon Ichi Software, Blizzard, Taito (Darius)
Byronic Hero
Member
1. Naughty Dog - They haven't made a game I haven;t liked in at least a decade, and unlike some other companies, they haven't forgotten what made them popular. (Jak and Daxter, you know, after they lost Crash)
2. Sucker Punch - Again, haven't made a bad game in years and I think I have played all their games except their first one and have loved them all.
3. Nintendo - They are pretty much my childhood, every game that came into my house for my first 5 years of gaming was a Nintendo title. (Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Star Fox, F Zero X, Super Smash Bros, Pokemon, the list goes on.)
4. Tri Ace - They made my favorite JRPG of all time, I really wish they would make some more games that don't end up sucking.
5. Square-Enix - I Love JRPGs, and they are the only ones who give me decent ones almost every year. I've tried others like NIS, but I ended up hating all of their games, so I'll be sticking with the lesser of two evils.
2. Sucker Punch - Again, haven't made a bad game in years and I think I have played all their games except their first one and have loved them all.
3. Nintendo - They are pretty much my childhood, every game that came into my house for my first 5 years of gaming was a Nintendo title. (Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Star Fox, F Zero X, Super Smash Bros, Pokemon, the list goes on.)
4. Tri Ace - They made my favorite JRPG of all time, I really wish they would make some more games that don't end up sucking.
5. Square-Enix - I Love JRPGs, and they are the only ones who give me decent ones almost every year. I've tried others like NIS, but I ended up hating all of their games, so I'll be sticking with the lesser of two evils.
Naughty Dog: Has never failed to impress me. Moves on to new IP all the time and tend to take new directions in their game making. However they always keep a consistent level of quality to their work that is imho unmatched.
Rockstar: Basically because of the GTA franchise. Bully was good too. But god damn was Max Payne horrible or what. Destroyed which used to be one of my most favorite franchises of all time. But at the end of the day GTA games are fun
Sucker Punch: Like ND they have yet to fail me. All their games have been fun and inFamous is the most fun I have had with a sandbox game. Second Son looks absolutely stunning as well
Square Enix: They have their failures but they have also made some of the best games ever. This gen they have dropped the ball somewhat with FF in consoles but their handheld FF games were great.
sony Santa Monica: God of War is one of the main reasons I became a console gamer after being a PC gamer primarily for years. Their work with the franchise as well as on other projects with other developers have shown their capabilities. God of War A MP is underrated imho. It's bring a fresh and unique experience to the realm of MP gaming. Can't wait to see their future titles
Rockstar: Basically because of the GTA franchise. Bully was good too. But god damn was Max Payne horrible or what. Destroyed which used to be one of my most favorite franchises of all time. But at the end of the day GTA games are fun
Sucker Punch: Like ND they have yet to fail me. All their games have been fun and inFamous is the most fun I have had with a sandbox game. Second Son looks absolutely stunning as well
Square Enix: They have their failures but they have also made some of the best games ever. This gen they have dropped the ball somewhat with FF in consoles but their handheld FF games were great.
sony Santa Monica: God of War is one of the main reasons I became a console gamer after being a PC gamer primarily for years. Their work with the franchise as well as on other projects with other developers have shown their capabilities. God of War A MP is underrated imho. It's bring a fresh and unique experience to the realm of MP gaming. Can't wait to see their future titles
Malaussene
Neo Member
- Nintendo
Quite useless to comment on nintendo being in the list. We all know. - Capcom
Since childhood seeing capcom logo in a video game gives me good vibes.. Megaman, Ghosts and Goblins, Street Fighter, Resident Evil and more recently Monster Hunter.. masterpieces. - Valve
Half life, source engine and saving PC gaming with steam is more than enough. Should I put Team Fortress and Portal in the deal too? - Konami
Castlevania SoTN is one of the best videogames ever. And I've grown up with many of their other games too: Gradius, Contra, Metal Gear, Silent Hill and Winning Eleven. EDIT: SUIKODEN!! - Rockstar
This is a bit controversial but, in my opinion, they helped the general audience to look at videogames as a more mature and complete medium. That's quite a lot.
Square Enix/Soft: A huge portion of my favourite games were made by them. My all time favourite, FF VIII, was one of the best experiences with videogames. The FF franchise in general was what got me into gaming.
Nintendo: Zelda and Mario come from them. Need I say more?
Capcom: Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, Phoenix Wright and many more.
XSeed:I love them for bringing over Ys and Corpse Party.
Naughty Dog: Uncharted and Crash are two of my favourite series. I also love Jak & Daxter.
Nintendo: Zelda and Mario come from them. Need I say more?
Capcom: Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, Phoenix Wright and many more.
XSeed:I love them for bringing over Ys and Corpse Party.
Naughty Dog: Uncharted and Crash are two of my favourite series. I also love Jak & Daxter.
Aeriscloud
Banned
Nintendo
Squaresoft
Platinum
Capcom
Quintet
Squaresoft
Platinum
Capcom
Quintet
TaroYamada
Member
The thread asks for developers but most people seem to have just named publishers rather than individual devs. I'll do both just to be on the safe side.
Publishers:
1. SEGA - overall I think they are the most important and influential gaming company, created the 3D fighter, (arguably the) third person shooter and rail shooter as well as introducing the use of axonometric projection to video games, amongst many other important contributions. The six button lay out is still the definitive controller lay out to this day and the Saturn's dpad is still my favorite. Had a few down years but in the period in-between I became a PC exclusive gamer and I consider SEGA's output on PC unarguably some of the finest on the platform (Total War but now they produce CoH as well).
2. Capcom - Capcom at their peak is the only third party company where I think they would have been capable of supporting a console as a first party publisher. I hate them as they currently exist.
3. Nintendo - tons of important contributions to console and in particular, handheld gaming. Great content but in recent years I've been disappointed in them for a variety of reasons. Refusal to adapt to online gaming in a timely manner chief amongst those reasons.
4. SNK - lots of great fighting games and I love the NGPC/NGCD joystick, my favorite solution for digital control after Saturn's dpad.
5. Squaresoft - tons of classic RPGs and unlike some I still like them as Square Enix but most of the content I recognize as their best was produced as Squaresoft.
Developers:
1. SEGA AM2 - For Shenmue, Virtua Cop, Space Harrier, OutRun & Virtua Fighter mostly, to this day I think few games understand an open world as well as the first Shenmue. The objective shouldn't be larger spaces, it should be more content packed within a reasonable space. I don't enjoy traversing what amounts to pointless terrain and in most open world games with worlds that are too large I end up using the quick travel. If you have to include quick travel to get around your world, to me it seems you're admitting there's a flaw in the way you've designed your game.You're admitting all that terrain you designed for players to traverse, is rather boring. Give me more objectives, not the same amount of objectives stretched across a larger space. The travel is typically busy work, nothing more. I also consider Virtua Fighter the best 3D fighting franchise and the deepest and most intricate.
2. Smilebit - Jet Set Radio, Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Orta, The Typing of the Dead. Jet Set Radio is one of my favorite 3D platformers of all time (and yes, it's a platformer, not a skating game) and I view Panzer Dragoon Orta as the finest rail shooter of all time.
3. Sonic Team - Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic 3&K, Chu Chu Rocket, PSO, etc. I know the last two Sonic games (on genesis) were developed at STI but the core members of Sonic Team were brought in to work on them, as such it's considered Sonic Team supported the development of the latter two. I consider the first three Sonic games the finest 2D platformers ever but I became extremely disappointed in the 3D games for being so linear. Sonic in 2D had some of the most expansive & open-ended level designs in a 2D platformer, especially within the 4th generation. The switch to 3D put Sonic on what essentially amounts to & in some cases literally, rails.
4. Clover Studios - Viewtiful Joe & Bayonetta but mostly Okami & Vanquish (I'm counting Platinum/Clover as one), I'm one of "those" people who thinks Okami is a better action adventure games than any of the Zelda titles (though I didn't play Skyward Sword and I still think Zelda is a fantastic franchise). Vanquish is just the best third person shooter ever made. It's amazing.
5. Relic - mostly due to vCoH, which is my favorite western-made game of all time. THQ was a monster this last generation, they were actually my favorite publisher for the 7th gen. Darksiders, Saints Row the Third, CoH, DoWII and I do consider the first Red Faction amongst the best FPS games ever but we're talking Relic right now, these guys are freaking fantastic. CoH2's off to a not-so-great start but people forget the condition CoH released in, and that it took ~2 years of patching to make it the best RTS of all time. I'm confident they can do the same with CoH2.
Tons of other devs I love who didn't make the list though: Team Andromeda, Overworks/AM7, EAD Tokyo (grp. 2, SMG2 is my 2nd favorite 3D platformer ever), EAD Kyoto (grp. 3), Treasure, Creative Assembly, Volition, Vigil, Valve, Capcom Production Studio 1 & 2, SuckerPunch (Sly 2 is my favorite 3D platformer ever but wasn't huge on Infamous), Naughty Dog, Bungie, Noise Factory, SNK, Squaresoft D1 etc. etc.
Publishers:
1. SEGA - overall I think they are the most important and influential gaming company, created the 3D fighter, (arguably the) third person shooter and rail shooter as well as introducing the use of axonometric projection to video games, amongst many other important contributions. The six button lay out is still the definitive controller lay out to this day and the Saturn's dpad is still my favorite. Had a few down years but in the period in-between I became a PC exclusive gamer and I consider SEGA's output on PC unarguably some of the finest on the platform (Total War but now they produce CoH as well).
2. Capcom - Capcom at their peak is the only third party company where I think they would have been capable of supporting a console as a first party publisher. I hate them as they currently exist.
3. Nintendo - tons of important contributions to console and in particular, handheld gaming. Great content but in recent years I've been disappointed in them for a variety of reasons. Refusal to adapt to online gaming in a timely manner chief amongst those reasons.
4. SNK - lots of great fighting games and I love the NGPC/NGCD joystick, my favorite solution for digital control after Saturn's dpad.
5. Squaresoft - tons of classic RPGs and unlike some I still like them as Square Enix but most of the content I recognize as their best was produced as Squaresoft.
Developers:
1. SEGA AM2 - For Shenmue, Virtua Cop, Space Harrier, OutRun & Virtua Fighter mostly, to this day I think few games understand an open world as well as the first Shenmue. The objective shouldn't be larger spaces, it should be more content packed within a reasonable space. I don't enjoy traversing what amounts to pointless terrain and in most open world games with worlds that are too large I end up using the quick travel. If you have to include quick travel to get around your world, to me it seems you're admitting there's a flaw in the way you've designed your game.You're admitting all that terrain you designed for players to traverse, is rather boring. Give me more objectives, not the same amount of objectives stretched across a larger space. The travel is typically busy work, nothing more. I also consider Virtua Fighter the best 3D fighting franchise and the deepest and most intricate.
2. Smilebit - Jet Set Radio, Jet Set Radio Future, Panzer Dragoon Orta, The Typing of the Dead. Jet Set Radio is one of my favorite 3D platformers of all time (and yes, it's a platformer, not a skating game) and I view Panzer Dragoon Orta as the finest rail shooter of all time.
3. Sonic Team - Sonic, Sonic 2, Sonic 3&K, Chu Chu Rocket, PSO, etc. I know the last two Sonic games (on genesis) were developed at STI but the core members of Sonic Team were brought in to work on them, as such it's considered Sonic Team supported the development of the latter two. I consider the first three Sonic games the finest 2D platformers ever but I became extremely disappointed in the 3D games for being so linear. Sonic in 2D had some of the most expansive & open-ended level designs in a 2D platformer, especially within the 4th generation. The switch to 3D put Sonic on what essentially amounts to & in some cases literally, rails.
4. Clover Studios - Viewtiful Joe & Bayonetta but mostly Okami & Vanquish (I'm counting Platinum/Clover as one), I'm one of "those" people who thinks Okami is a better action adventure games than any of the Zelda titles (though I didn't play Skyward Sword and I still think Zelda is a fantastic franchise). Vanquish is just the best third person shooter ever made. It's amazing.
5. Relic - mostly due to vCoH, which is my favorite western-made game of all time. THQ was a monster this last generation, they were actually my favorite publisher for the 7th gen. Darksiders, Saints Row the Third, CoH, DoWII and I do consider the first Red Faction amongst the best FPS games ever but we're talking Relic right now, these guys are freaking fantastic. CoH2's off to a not-so-great start but people forget the condition CoH released in, and that it took ~2 years of patching to make it the best RTS of all time. I'm confident they can do the same with CoH2.
Tons of other devs I love who didn't make the list though: Team Andromeda, Overworks/AM7, EAD Tokyo (grp. 2, SMG2 is my 2nd favorite 3D platformer ever), EAD Kyoto (grp. 3), Treasure, Creative Assembly, Volition, Vigil, Valve, Capcom Production Studio 1 & 2, SuckerPunch (Sly 2 is my favorite 3D platformer ever but wasn't huge on Infamous), Naughty Dog, Bungie, Noise Factory, SNK, Squaresoft D1 etc. etc.
- Nintendo for introducing me to video games and still being a bright spot of interaction with my friends and family.
- Square for giving me Kingdom Hearts and a plethora of RPG goodness.
- Vanillaware for having such beautiful art direction to go with consistently solid gameplay.
- Platinum for always trying something new and somehow still fitting within my gaming tastes.
- Capcom because despite their weird decisions, they gave me the Ace Attorney series.
My current top 5. That is, my favorite developers at this moment, and not of all time. In no particular order:
As far as "of all time" goes:
- Firaxis: Civilization V and XCOM are two of my favorite strategy games ever. I wonder what their next big project is.
- Valve: While a disappointing shift, I can't really fault them for their focus on microtransactions. They pretty much turned TF2 from one of my favorite competitive shooters into some bizarre party game. But at least they're keeping it reasonable with DOTA2. DOTA2, L4D2 and Portal 2 are all pretty much knock-out games, the very best of their kind.
- From Software: Demon's Souls was the only game I owned for my PS3 for several years, and I did not mind at all. Then Dark Souls came out, and it was even better.
- DICE: I think Battlefield 3 takes the crown as the best multiplayer shooter this generation, and they're also responsible for Mirror's Edge.
- Irrational Games: Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite have both had some of the most well crafted and engrossing worlds this generation.
As far as "of all time" goes:
- Nintendo: they owned my soul from the very first Mario Bros up until the release of Twilight Princess. Although it has been downhill ever since, but with the occasional golden nugget like Mario Galaxy.
- Capcom: They've been relevant since the dawn of home consoles, mainly because they really know how to make fun games. It's been a bit up and down, but their ups have been great.
- Blizzard: they really hone their games to perfection. Diablo 2 is undoubtedly the greatest loot game ever, Starcraft 1&2 are some of the best RTSs (and the very best competitively), and World of Warcraft is the best MMO of all time. Three big genres, all dominated by Blizzard.
- ID Software: their dominance in the PC shooter market as well as anything graphics related was nothing short of legendary.
- Valve: Probably the most impressive tracklist of games there is. Averaging at least one great game per year since Half Life 1 was released.
My basic criteria is the variety in games they made that were actually good is extremely high. I list the standout titles from each development team and they are ranked.
1. Valve
Half-Life Series - These games achieves what few games can.
Portal - In a dearth of shooters and rpgs in the first person perspective, Valve did something bold here and delivered on one of the most well crafted gaming experiences.
Dota 2 - This version solves a lot of the UI problems I had with the original mod and it is an excellent well balanced game.
2. Nintendo EAD
Mario Kart, 2D Zelda series, Mario Series.
3. Lucas Arts
Shadows of the Empire was my first introduction to their work and the level design variety was excellent.
I tried Dark Forces years later and a game that old to not only hold up but exceed expectations is very difficult.
4. Micropose
Civilization Series - I've sunk so many hours into this it's insane.
Mechcommander - In an era where more and more games were shifting to constant save points this hold out made a very compelling case for why saving should only be allowed between levels.
5. Rare
Battletoads, Killer Instinct
Both had cutting edge graphics for their time with an art direction that allows them to hold up well today. BT was very difficult but it was a challenge worth going through.
KI was more accessible and had a gratifying combo system.
Golden Eye - The FPS shooter to play on a console. It was so different from Quake but it was almost just as good.
1. Valve
Half-Life Series - These games achieves what few games can.
Portal - In a dearth of shooters and rpgs in the first person perspective, Valve did something bold here and delivered on one of the most well crafted gaming experiences.
Dota 2 - This version solves a lot of the UI problems I had with the original mod and it is an excellent well balanced game.
2. Nintendo EAD
Mario Kart, 2D Zelda series, Mario Series.
3. Lucas Arts
Shadows of the Empire was my first introduction to their work and the level design variety was excellent.
I tried Dark Forces years later and a game that old to not only hold up but exceed expectations is very difficult.
4. Micropose
Civilization Series - I've sunk so many hours into this it's insane.
Mechcommander - In an era where more and more games were shifting to constant save points this hold out made a very compelling case for why saving should only be allowed between levels.
5. Rare
Battletoads, Killer Instinct
Both had cutting edge graphics for their time with an art direction that allows them to hold up well today. BT was very difficult but it was a challenge worth going through.
KI was more accessible and had a gratifying combo system.
Golden Eye - The FPS shooter to play on a console. It was so different from Quake but it was almost just as good.
palpabl_purpura
Member
Capcom (old)- Countless of titles. Street Fighter, Megaman, Bionic Commando, Marvel Series, Forgotten Worlds, Ducktales, CvS,
Konami (old)- Blades of Steel, Skate or Die, Contra, Metal Gear, Rushn' Attack, TMNT (nes)
Tecmo- Tecmo Bowl, Dead or Alive, Ninja Gaiden (NES) I, II, III,
Sega (old): Golden Axe, Sonic, Virtua Fighters/Fighter's Megamix, Streets of Rage, Ghost House, MJ's Moonwalker, NFL 2k series, Countless others
Data East (and Technos spin off): Double dragon I, II, Bad Dudes, Midnight resistance, Karate Champ
Namco: Pac Man, Tekken, Soul Caliber series, Galga
Can't leave Nintendo off, even though only 5 are allowed.
Konami (old)- Blades of Steel, Skate or Die, Contra, Metal Gear, Rushn' Attack, TMNT (nes)
Tecmo- Tecmo Bowl, Dead or Alive, Ninja Gaiden (NES) I, II, III,
Sega (old): Golden Axe, Sonic, Virtua Fighters/Fighter's Megamix, Streets of Rage, Ghost House, MJ's Moonwalker, NFL 2k series, Countless others
Data East (and Technos spin off): Double dragon I, II, Bad Dudes, Midnight resistance, Karate Champ
Namco: Pac Man, Tekken, Soul Caliber series, Galga
Can't leave Nintendo off, even though only 5 are allowed.
SOME-MIST
Member
I'd love to see Mikami's team go on and dominate the genre even though this will be the only title Mikami is a part of. I just think it's funny it's someone's favorite developer of all time and they haven't output a title yet.
1: Origin: Easily the most influential developers in all my time with gaming, they created some of the best games this industry has ever had imo, and entrenched my love of RPGs. Ultima Online alone could justify them being at the top of my list with it being the greatest MMO even to this day. Ultima VII is still one of the games I use judge the greatness of other RPGs.
2. Squaresoft: Countless games that I genuinely consider to be classics, the Chrono series, Final Fantasy, Mana, Kingdom Hearts, etc, etc. Square has created too many games that would go in a greatest of all time list, so its impossible for me to exclude them.
3. Sony Santa Monica: God of War alone is reason enough for me to have them on my list. Few games so accurately brought something I wanted from games to life the way the God of War series has. The greek tragedy, the unlikeable, and flawed, but somewhat understandable protag, the fantastic combat, and some of the best boss battles in gaming.
4. KojiPro: Metal Gear, Snatcher, Policenaughts, Zone of the enders. All great franchises with Metal Gear standing at the top of the heap. MG really brought spy fiction to games in a way i only imagined in games when I was growing up. Studio has a ton of talent.
5. Sega: Sadly they are not what they once were, but those old glory days were something special. So many games have come from them that I love, Phantasy Star, Jet set, Chu Chu Rocket, Sonic, Skies of Arcadia, Yakuza, Virtual On, and so on. It kills me seeing what Sega has become, but they were the champs for along time.
2. Squaresoft: Countless games that I genuinely consider to be classics, the Chrono series, Final Fantasy, Mana, Kingdom Hearts, etc, etc. Square has created too many games that would go in a greatest of all time list, so its impossible for me to exclude them.
3. Sony Santa Monica: God of War alone is reason enough for me to have them on my list. Few games so accurately brought something I wanted from games to life the way the God of War series has. The greek tragedy, the unlikeable, and flawed, but somewhat understandable protag, the fantastic combat, and some of the best boss battles in gaming.
4. KojiPro: Metal Gear, Snatcher, Policenaughts, Zone of the enders. All great franchises with Metal Gear standing at the top of the heap. MG really brought spy fiction to games in a way i only imagined in games when I was growing up. Studio has a ton of talent.
5. Sega: Sadly they are not what they once were, but those old glory days were something special. So many games have come from them that I love, Phantasy Star, Jet set, Chu Chu Rocket, Sonic, Skies of Arcadia, Yakuza, Virtual On, and so on. It kills me seeing what Sega has become, but they were the champs for along time.
In no particular order,
1. Naughty Dog
Made my favourite game of the generation in Uncharted 2 then topped it with my new favourite game of the generation a couple of weeks back with The Last of Us. Let's not forget Crash and J&D.
2. Bullfrog
Creators of some of the most memorable PC games of all time. Whilst I enjoyed Evil Genius and games of there ilk nothing has ever topped Dungeon Kepper and I don't think anything will.
3. Nintendo EAD (I know there's many groups)
Resposible for many of the worlds longest living and enjoyable series most notably Mario games. Pikmin 2 was the pick of the bunch for me.
4. Kojima Productions
Created my favourite gaming series in MGS nuff said.
5. DICE
I'm not as keen on Mirrors Edge as many other gaffers but when everyone was playing CS and various arena shooters I was playing the Battlefield series. Whilst 1942 and expansions were good Vietnam was on a whole other level. BF2 is probably my favourite shooter and has never quite been topped. The Bad Company games weren't bad but they were always console shooters in my eyes. BF3 whilst great graphically failed me in many ways. Teamwork seemed to take a back seat, no commander, no ingame VoIP etc. not forgetting pretty poor maps.
Anyhoo there are other developers who I'd have liked to have included but these were the first 5 that came to mind.
1. Naughty Dog
Made my favourite game of the generation in Uncharted 2 then topped it with my new favourite game of the generation a couple of weeks back with The Last of Us. Let's not forget Crash and J&D.
2. Bullfrog
Creators of some of the most memorable PC games of all time. Whilst I enjoyed Evil Genius and games of there ilk nothing has ever topped Dungeon Kepper and I don't think anything will.
3. Nintendo EAD (I know there's many groups)
Resposible for many of the worlds longest living and enjoyable series most notably Mario games. Pikmin 2 was the pick of the bunch for me.
4. Kojima Productions
Created my favourite gaming series in MGS nuff said.
5. DICE
I'm not as keen on Mirrors Edge as many other gaffers but when everyone was playing CS and various arena shooters I was playing the Battlefield series. Whilst 1942 and expansions were good Vietnam was on a whole other level. BF2 is probably my favourite shooter and has never quite been topped. The Bad Company games weren't bad but they were always console shooters in my eyes. BF3 whilst great graphically failed me in many ways. Teamwork seemed to take a back seat, no commander, no ingame VoIP etc. not forgetting pretty poor maps.
Anyhoo there are other developers who I'd have liked to have included but these were the first 5 that came to mind.
Huh, this is a difficult choice.
Nintendo - They might not be my personal favorites right now, but they had a huge effect on the industry and created several of my favorite franchises (F-Zero, Metroid, Mario). Plus, they're willing to move in an opposite direction from what a lot of studios are doing, and that makes the more interesting for me. This is probably my number 1 spot on the list, especially if we count Retro as part of Nintendo.
FROM Software - Demon's Souls and Dark Souls alone would have guaranteed a spot on this list; they are simply incredible games that reject the norms of the industry. However, FROM has also made plenty of other good games; the Armored Core series, the King's Field games, and the hilarious Metal Wolf Chaos (Sadly not released in the United States). They haven't been people with a large effect on the industry, but they've made good games and that's what counts for me.
Capcom - As much as I might not like much of their current output, Capcom pretty much built the fighting game and I love them for that. Also, Resident Evil 4. Also, Devil May Cry 3. Some of the greatest games ever made were created when Capcom were in their prime.
Valve - I used to be more of a Valve fan when I had just started PC gaming, but I still love them. Half Life had an amazing effect on the medium, Source changed game engines forever, and plenty of their titles were just plain good games. Best of all, they're one of the most responsive and open studios I know, and you can always count on them to do the best work they can.
Platinum - They make quality games. I just really like their style, especially how varied it is; this is the same studio that's making both Bayonetta 2 and The Wonderful 101.
Nintendo - They might not be my personal favorites right now, but they had a huge effect on the industry and created several of my favorite franchises (F-Zero, Metroid, Mario). Plus, they're willing to move in an opposite direction from what a lot of studios are doing, and that makes the more interesting for me. This is probably my number 1 spot on the list, especially if we count Retro as part of Nintendo.
FROM Software - Demon's Souls and Dark Souls alone would have guaranteed a spot on this list; they are simply incredible games that reject the norms of the industry. However, FROM has also made plenty of other good games; the Armored Core series, the King's Field games, and the hilarious Metal Wolf Chaos (Sadly not released in the United States). They haven't been people with a large effect on the industry, but they've made good games and that's what counts for me.
Capcom - As much as I might not like much of their current output, Capcom pretty much built the fighting game and I love them for that. Also, Resident Evil 4. Also, Devil May Cry 3. Some of the greatest games ever made were created when Capcom were in their prime.
Valve - I used to be more of a Valve fan when I had just started PC gaming, but I still love them. Half Life had an amazing effect on the medium, Source changed game engines forever, and plenty of their titles were just plain good games. Best of all, they're one of the most responsive and open studios I know, and you can always count on them to do the best work they can.
Platinum - They make quality games. I just really like their style, especially how varied it is; this is the same studio that's making both Bayonetta 2 and The Wonderful 101.
Boss Man
Member
Great post! Got the list all made up now though. Love seeing this level of discussion anyhow.
While its great that you tabulated our opinions I don't like that the original question was about development teams and you merged sub divisions into umbrella companies.
Nintendo EAD and Rockstar North deserve being recognized head and shoulders over everyone else from their respective companies.
Merging Clover with Platinum is ok since Clover was large scale absorbed into Platinum with many of the same people from Clover working in Platinum.
This type of ranking would be unfair with Capcom who seem to be less public about their different development teams but that's ok.
Nintendo EAD and Rockstar North deserve being recognized head and shoulders over everyone else from their respective companies.
Merging Clover with Platinum is ok since Clover was large scale absorbed into Platinum with many of the same people from Clover working in Platinum.
This type of ranking would be unfair with Capcom who seem to be less public about their different development teams but that's ok.