1) Halo: Combat Evolved
Developer: Bungie Studios
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Year Released: 2001
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Synopsis: There is great debate among hardcore fans as to the superiority of Halo or Halo 2. IGN scored Halo 2 higher than the original, but looking back on the games from the perspective of 2007, the profound effect, influence, and long-term lifespan of the first Halo puts it in a special category of its own.
Halo essentially carried the Xbox for the first three years of its lifespan. It created a sub-culture of gaming. It gave birth to Red Vs. Blue. It kick-started and sustained the Xbox from the first day the system shipped with one of the most bad-ass game characters ever in a memorable story until Halo 2 finally pushed it off its perch. And it stole millions of college students’ potential time crafting their social skills to meet women, and replaced them with endless hours of co-op and LAN multiplayer parties. A videogame that’s better than a girlfriend? Apparently so.
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Aside from some slightly dull backtracking and confusing hallway sections, both of which are minor quibbles, Halo’s influence was profound on games in general. It showed the world how to make great first-person shooters work well on consoles. It influenced dozens of companies that tried to copy its two-guns-and-grenade weapon system, Cortana’s friendly narrative-style, a functional vehicle mechanic in an FPS, and for those who could do it, cooperative campaign gameplay. It did all these things well, with gorgeous graphics and incredible sound effects and mesmerizing music. Play the Halo today and you’ll realize how remarkably well it has held up.
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2) Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Chaos Theory
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Year Released: 2005
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Synopsis: Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Chaos Theory on Xbox represents the pinnacle of the series. From a gameplay standpoint everything about it was honed, enhanced, and improved upon over its predecessor with tight controls, great level design and beautiful graphics.
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From an audio-visual perspective, Sam’s world is one of the best looking games on the system, replete with gorgeous animations, meticulous texture work, and realistic lighting and shadows — all of which were strengths in the previous versions and bettered in Chaos Theory. Ubisoft also upped the ante with a highly polished adversarial mode and new on- and offline co-op missions, giving it new life after the tough but engaging Pandora Tomorrow.
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Equipped with new moves, a knife, sniper and shotgun attachments for the SC-20K, and alternate fire options that interfere with electrical circuits and disable lights for a short period of time, Fisher, the bad-ass, got even badder. All of this took place with a robust, multi-tiered alert system that created gameplay options, rather than limiting them. Finally, the four new specially designed cooperative levels, and the 11 new multiplayer maps were all built around a more full-bodied set of modes, both offline and online, giving this game legs well beyond its excellent single-player mode.
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3)Rainbow Six 3
Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Year Released: 2003
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Synopsis: Originally created for the PC, Red Storm’s, and then when Ubisoft bought Red Storm, Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six series evolved into a mass market product that has served the hardest of the hardcore shooter, casual gamers, and military fanatics alike on multiple systems. On the Xbox in 2003, Ubisoft saw opportunity knocking and tapped into the growing Xbox Live community with a real team-based tactical shooter that grabbed IGN’s editorial team attention and never let go.
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While the single-player missions didn’t blow the lids off any doors, the team mechanics and controls were solid, and multiple door approaches into terrorist’s barracks gave you a feeling of control and tactical command. And after you finished those off, the substantial co-op and the multiplayer missions kept you riveted for days and weeks afterwards with your friends offline or online. Overall, the powerful range of weaponry, the smart mechanics, the quick impact of a kill, and the sense of camaraderie created while playing on Xbox Live all came together to satisfy our gaming souls.
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4) Fable
Developer: Lionhead Studios / Big Blue Box
Publisher: Microsoft
Year Released: 2004
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Synopsis: You couldn’t plant an acorn and come back later to find a tree. Children in Albion would not change their hairstyle to mimic yours. There weren’t branching story paths. In fact, much of what Peter Molyneux and Lionhead promised in their “ultimate RPG” never panned out. But guess what? The game is still an absolute blast to play. Microsoft’s best answer to Zelda, Fable isn’t a game that’s made for the hardcore RPG gamer. It’s not made for the hardcore action or adventure gamer either. It’s made for everyone and has enough layers to provide both a superficial and exceptionally deep experience in one tight little package.
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Fable wins with its exceptional world design and great good vs. evil dichotomy. Every town, region, and dungeon was hand crafted with loving detail so that every nook just screamed to be explored. The story may not have been the most engaging in the history of the RPG, but the fluid action mechanics and well designed skill progression tree made for an RPG that was fun to play regardless of which genre of game you prefer.
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10) Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Developer: Rockstar North
Publisher: Rockstar Games
Year Released: 2005
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Synopsis: Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto III and the subsequent sequels to that landmark series made their name on the PlayStation 2, plain and simple. Sadly, Xbox owners had to wait long for their GTA. Sony bought the exclusive rights, which Microsoft and Rockstar eventually found loopholes for later, and the result was a two-for-one bundle, GTA III and GTA Vice City in the GTA Double Pack in 2003, and the delayed release of GTA San Andreas in 2005.
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While the GTA III easily had the most profound effect and influence on the industry, from game development to production values to taking a stance on mature themes, the biggest, baddest and best game in the series is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The three-city game, filled with mini-games, side quests and countryside, was far and above the biggest game, in virtual physical space, of its kind. The innovative character growth and customization along with the use of NPC sidekicks, the use of simple vehicles like bicycles, and the African-American central character, CJ, pushed the game to its limits in all respects. Naturally, Rockstar infused the game with its own brand of style, continuity, and pop cultural references, which boosted it far above any game in its genre. GTA San Andreas is the quintessential game of its kind and the crown jewel of thug-style sandbox games in the previous generation.
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What are your favorite?