Support NeoGAF

[VinFTW]

Spoiler

First thread hype!

Video games, like other media, have this odd power over me. They're time-wasters, but in a good way. They make me sit and stare at even the most simple, but beautiful things. Sometimes I'll find myself watching water flow through a map, and maybe I'll follow that water and find a waterfall or a bed of flowers with some butterflies hanging around. Maybe I'll stare out in the distance and find a mountain range, and maybe that mountain range has trees covered with snow and all the while, the seconds lead to minutes, and minutes lead to hours. Before I know it, I'm lost. I don't know where I am, or where I'll go next, but what I do know is, I want to be there. I want to forget about my stresses or the challenges I'm facing right now or the next challenge that I will eventually and inevitably face. Some games have this charm or ability rather, to completely sweep you off your feet and transport you somewhere else. Maybe its a good place, maybe its a bad place, but regardless its not "here". I know there are people out there that take the time to stare out at every vista, cherish the view, and carry on their merry way and murder some more bad-guys. Regardless of why you do it, there's just this simple, innate urge to question certain things. Have you ever caught yourself staring up at the sky in games? Did you wonder what's out there or how you could get there? I know I have.

For me, personally, there's hundreds of games that have made me wish I was somewhere else. For the sake of a good discussion thread, I'll list a few and explain why, I find myself losing myself in their virtual beauty.

1.) Mass Effect

Boy, if there's one thing I could say about my #1 favorite game of all time, is that it sure knows how to make you wish we were born a couple hundred years later... Mass Effect, to me, is a game that holds a special place in my life. At a time where I really needed a distraction, I got this game for Christmas. Long story short, I fell in love and beat the game about 9 times.

There's one particular unexplored, unidentified planet I will never forget finding on my journey:

This planet... this

Spoiler

fucking

planet. I sat and stared at this view for hours, sometimes I would turn the game on, travel to this planet, turn the controller off, and just go about my business. There's something hauntingly silent about unexplored planets on Mass Effect. It's almost as if its really what it would be like. On a derelict planet, unexplored from all life, it would really be that silent. I was completely lost in the possibilities of that view being real. Now, to be fair, I'm a HUGE Carl Sagan fan and all of this is like a dream come true in a video-game. It's everything Carl used to teach to me. I would sit there and completely stare out at those two buddies in the sky wondering what it would be like to be there myself. I wish I was Shepherd, and I wish I could be so lucky to be in awe of such a view.

2.) Journey (and Flower, but I'll focus on Journey for the purpose of keeping it short).

Man, this game... What a journey

Spoiler

dontkillme

... I wish I could experience the journey for myself. The spiritual implications this game had on me are almost too powerful and too deep for me to even write into words to all of you (So I won't try). All I can say is that there has never been a game quite this moving, or powerful (Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons comes close) in my long existence of video-game playing.


So, Gaf, I ask you now: What games take you away?

 

[FUNKNOWN iXi]

Ocarina of Time. The moment I turned it on as a kid and heard the title theme I was hooked, and I'll never forget that journey. It was perfect.

 

[patientx]

Right now I am playing alien : isolatian and I was sceptical about how a with so little npc's "to kill" or to interact I'll be bored and just run around and finish it in short time but the atmosphere .. Damn man even without 3d it realy fells like I am in some abondoned station in fucking nowhere in the middle of space ... Reminded me of some of Star Trek DS9's episodes where characters gets trapped on the station itself or other old stations scenerios.

 

[gngf123]

Fez had this amazing world filled with great art, sounds, and logic that made sense but required some manual work to fully piece together.

It was pretty great, and definitely had this effect on me at times, while at others I had to pull myself out of it and treat the game like an object that needed analysing. It was pretty good.

I also got drawn in by Wind Waker's world.

And then there is Xenoblade.

 

[VinFTW]

Right now I am playing alien : isolatian and I was sceptical about how a with so little npc's "to kill" or to interact I'll be bored and just run around and finish it in short time but the atmosphere .. Damn man even without 3d it realy fells like I am in some abondoned station in fucking nowhere in the middle of space ... Reminded me of some of Star Trek DS9's episodes where characters gets trapped on the station itself or other old stations scenerios.

Man, I knew I wasn't alone feeling this way. Personally, the V'Ger episode atmosphere reminds me the most of Alien: Isolation. Creepy, eerie, a tangible fear.

Ocarina of Time. The moment I turned it on as a kid and heard the title theme I was hooked, and I'll never forget that journey. It was perfect.

This was my GFs response to this thread. She feels the same way...

 

[VinFTW]

Fez had this amazing world filled with great art, sounds, and logic that made sense but required some manual work to fully piece together.

It was pretty great, and definitely had this effect on me at times, while at others I had to pull myself out of it and treat the game like an object that needed analysing. It was pretty good.

I also got drawn in by Wind Waker's world.

And then there is Xenoblade.

Hopefully my first experience with Xenoblade on the new 3DS will give me the same experience. Can't wait, it looks like it has those sprawling worlds, ripe with fantasy and amazing vistas.

Dark Souls. I love Lordran's atmosphere, you can tell there was a society there, before the undead curse.

If I would add a 3.) to my OP it would be Dark Souls. Man, what an amazingly deep atmosphere. The lore has so many implications. So beautiful..

 

[Molemitts]

Dark Souls. I love Lordran's atmosphere, you can tell there was a society there, before the undead curse.

 

[mrmickfran]

God, my first playthrough of Xenoblade was amazing.

The locations bring you into the game.

 

[Wonko_C]

The original Phantasy Star Online (and its episodes). The only game that has made me wish Earth wasn't so boring and we were technologically advanced enough to travel on spaceships that double as cities, exploring the unknown. Forest will be forever one of the places I'll go back to and still feel its beauty, no matter how aged the graphics are.

(On the phone so no pics)

 

[Betty]

Shenmue did this very well, especially with two certain locations.

#1 Kowloon City

It looks and feels like a city that belongs in some far fetched JRPG, yet not only was it an actual place, but thanks to it being torn down and made into a park, the only way to actually visit it again is by playing the game.
It sits on top of a hill overlooking the sea. Towering skyscrapers all crammed together, rotting away by both the residents and the erosion of time, with entire floors broken and impassable. Strange ruins litter the the outside and are used as brawling rings for entertainers. The danger and decay of the place really shines through and there's always a sense of unease during your time there.

#2 Guilin

Again, based on a real place, and coming to it after Kowloon city felt almost dreamlike, as if visiting this location was a reward for surviving the hostile Kowloon. It's so tranquil and gorgeous with hills that jut into the sky and look unlike anything else.
The inhabitants are so far inland they've never even seen the ocean. There's several area's you encounter that you can't tell are fictional or not, like a pond that changes colors or a tree that looks like a giant spider or a cave that is pockmarked with an unbelievable array of colored stone. It's almost magical.

 

[IAmRandom31]

I think the very very first game that drew me into its entire world was Shadowrun on the Genesis. Even as a kid I just loved that whole style. Loved the cyberpunk. Loved the hacking and the Deckers. I spent very many dozens of hours exploring every single corporate computer in the world and taking on every piece of Black Ice I could find trying to best the biggest corps security systems with my highly upgraded near million dollar decks.

Wanted to be able to jump off the train and go throughout the world.

Another early game was Star Wars Galaxies. Holy shit you better believe I visited every single available pixel in the worlds available. I along with hundreds of thousands of others prayed for dozens of new planets to explore and creatures to tame and whatnot.

 

[More_Badass]

NaissanceE has an incredibly otherworldly and eerie alien atmosphere that just makes you feel unwelcome (in a good way)

 

[Mr. X]

Okami

I just love the art direction in this game, it is such a beautiful title. I honestly did spend hours just running around.

 

[IDKAboutThat]

I lived in Inaba for about a month. It was fantastic.

 

[VinFTW]

Okami

I just love the art direction in this game, it is such a beautiful title. I honestly did spend hours just running around.

Okami... the one game my girlfriend keeps BEGGING me to play and I haven't yet! I need to!

Also Persona.. Really need to dive into that franchise head first and go for it.

.

Man, well said. I really need to play these games...

 

[ZiggyPalffyLA]

Metroid Prime. Should have been the first post.

 

[VinFTW]

Metroid Prime. Should have been the first post.

Still need to play these.

Gonna pick up the Trilogy Wii pack to play on Wii U.

 

[Eljoacosupreme]

I have experienced the same thing in many games. I never rush any playtrough (even if nowadays i have less time for gaming) so that i can appreciate some of the amazing environments they offer. Remarkable examples of this case (at least in my opinion) could be Red dead redemption, which is one of the few games that turned a dessert into a very beatiful place

Or Alan Wake. Say what you will about it, Bright Falls its the place i would settle in if i could

 

[BolognaSoup]

Completely agree with Mass Effect 1. That Mako exploring was so underrated. They really should have expanded on that rather than scrapping it for the boring planet scanning.

You should try Space Engine, OP. It seems right up your alley.

 

[VinFTW]

Or Alan Wake. Say what you will about it, Bright Falls its the place i would settle in if i could

As a huge Twin Peaks fan, Alan Wake was a dream come true, being able to explore that town lost me...

Completely agree with Mass Effect 1. That Mako exploring was so underrated. They really should have expanded on that rather than scrapping it for the boring planet scanning.

You should try Space Engine, OP. It seems right up your alley.

I'll check it out! And it was also nice to hear they are really focusing on the Mako and exploration in ME4 can't wait to see how that develops later on...

 

[Ridesh]

Most recently Inaba [Persona 4 Golden]

The gameplay of the game is very weak IMO, but all the in-game social aspects, like bonding with the characters and "living" in Inaba was so well done that the game left me a pretty good, warm feeling.

 

[Eljoacosupreme]

As a huge Twin Peaks fan, Alan Wake was a dream come true, being able to explore that town lost me...

I definitly agree, and its funny but playing Alan Wake actually led me to watch twin peaks (after hearing how much it was influenced by it).
Oh, and how could i forget about Columbia, a lot of the experience was trying to absorb all the detail in that city

 

[VinFTW]

I definitly agree, and its funny but playing Alan Wake actually led me to watch twin peaks (after hearing how much it was influenced by it).
Oh, and how could i forget about Columbia, a lot of the experience was trying to absorb all the detail in that city

Infinite, while hated on Gaf, was such an amazing experience for me. I remember AFKing for dinner during the beach scene. It was amazing to come back and have 3 different parts of the level "bobbing/floating" out of sync with eachother. It really felt real to me.

 

[MDSVeritas]

A lot of really good answers here. I definitley agree with Persona and Mass Effect.

As for my own contribution, I'm gonna go with what may be a sorta outlier; LittleBigPlanet.

Yeah there was the whole element of creating stages, but I also love how the entire presentation was warped up in a way that felt distinctly like a creative other realm that, while varied, was always sort of unified in it's approachable, loving sorta style.

Some of my fondest memories are playing the game's original beta and being able to just get enveloped in the look and feel of the game and the way it showed through people's stages.

 

[VinFTW]

A lot of really good answers here. I definitley agree with Persona and Mass Effect.

As for my own contribution, I'm gonna go with what may be a sorta outlier; LittleBigPlanet.

Yeah there was the whole element of creating stages, but I also love how the entire presentation was warped up in a way that felt distinctly like a creative other realm that, while varied, was always sort of unified in it's approachable, loving sorta style.

Some of my fondest memories are playing the game's original beta and being able to just get enveloped in the look and feel of the game and the way it showed through people's stages.

I'll never forget the first time the game was unveiled and the first time I got to see it in person, while, I wasn't "into" the series game-play wise, I was deeply entranced by it's art-style. It was super unique for its time.

 

[Breakage]

Shenmue
The attention to detail and the way it simulated the monotony of daily life really made me feel like I was inhabiting a small Japanese city in 1986.

Shenmue II's abundance of cinematic QTEs, ability to time skip events and more linear, less interactive nature ensured the sequel would be no where near as immersive imo.

 

[Currygan]

a lot of them (tons of RPGs, open worlds, MMORPGs, RTS) , but if I have to name one, it would be this

it's so easy to lose yourself in the beautiy that is Middle Earth

 

[Labrynian Rebel]

I'm pretty sure I know every inch of Termina in Majora's Mask (it was pretty much my Mario 64, first 3D game, came with the N64, and I played it for 7 years before I beat it)

Play any song, mention any character, show any screenshot, I still get misty-eyed.

For my teenage years the winner would have to be the magic I felt when I discovered Myst's sequel Riven. That world, that world, see some red flower petals decorating a shrine? Look hard enough on the other side of the world, and BOOM, there's the type of flowers those petals came from. And that water, and those animals, and the gadgets! Amazing. And now the 3D remake is making me smile and feel all is well in the world with every new screenshot. Riven in 3D will make me cry with joy when I get to explore it again.

 

[CHC]

Ah the thread I never knew I wanted so much!

Morrowind.... one of the first games to REALLY take me somewhere else. The world felt so totally alien, yet so real - the complex politics of this Empire infringing on the weird rites and rituals of an ancient Dark Elf society, the bizarre myths and religions, the unearthly landscape of the island.... And all of it in the backdrop, just passively there if you wanted to learn about it. The strange ash storms, the little stories that each dungeon implicitly told, the local words ("this is the end of you, swit!"), the complex web of the elven Great Houses... there was just so so much to love and get lost in.

Sometimes I feel so nostalgic for this... place it feels like a physical force on me. Azeroth... even the name just makes me think of adventure. It has everything, it is a true world. There is no one theme, there is no one tone, there is no one thing that this world offers, but it's like a real place - it can cater to whatever you're looking for, if you go find it.

 

[VinFTW]

.

Morrowind was one of those games I played on Xbox when I was younger. Man... it was like a dream come true that game. It was the first game I played like it and I just spent hours walking around (and load screens).


WoW wow. Man, I miss old Orgrimmar. I think Wrath had the best atmosphere easily. Played for about 4 maybe 5 years and despite all the raiding the most fun I've had was exploring all the zones with my GF. Good times.

The Blood-elf starting zone is still one of my favorite areas.