When it comes to horror video games, Resident Evil tops the chart, nails the head shots, and splatters the screen with blood and gore. Although the popular series changed its mainstream viral formula with the “action horror” award-winner Resident Evil 4, fans still consider the second game a hot favorite. Leon S. Kennedy may be a teenage girl’s knight in zombie gut-stained armor now, but he wasn’t always such a looker who rolled with Umbrella’s punches as slickly as the bad puns and bingo jokes. Once upon a time in Raccoon City, he was a rookie cop whose first day on the job ended in city-wide decimation. He slogged through grimy sewers, followed a corporation’s blood trail, befriended Redfield’s sister … and fell for one dangerous lady in red.

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There are many gamers who praise open-world design. With some of the most recent and acclaimed action and RPG titles driving players down a one-way path to the end game, the idea of sandbox-style gameplay is becoming a much stronger bullet point for upcoming releases. Of the many open-world games to have been released for current-generation consoles, there is one that stands high above the rest.

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Street Fighter Alpha 3 represents the best of everything Capcom had learned in their many years creating different fighting games. The gameplay is a blend of the more slow-paced and strategic Street Fighter 2 with the more varied and frenetic Alpha series. Air combos, alpha counters, and flashy finishing moves were combined with superior character balancing and deep fighting strategies to make Alpha 3 one of the best fighting titles of all time.

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In 1994, Blizzard Entertainment’s Warcraft: Orcs and Humans revolutionized the real-time strategy genre, bringing a pleasing amount of depth and a subtle simplicity to a relatively-hardcore genre. Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness released in 1995, and not only introduced an all-new level of shine and polish, but also introduced many gamers to the world of online competition. The bar was set high for Warcraft III, and with Reign of Chaos, Blizzard proved that they are truly the kings amongst fantasy RTS fans.

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Back during its 2008 release, Lost Odyssey was a big deal.  It was a brand new IP, it was console-exclusive, and it sprung from the creative mind of Hironobu Sakaguchi, famed Final Fantasy series creator (maybe you’ve heard of it?).  The studio behind Lost Odyssey was relatively new at the time, with only two games on their resume.  ASH: Archaic Sealed Heat was a DS tactical RPG only released in Japan, well received but unknown in the states, and Blue Dragon was a cartoonish RPG released both in Japan and North American with maybe the worst aesthetic in the history of gaming.  That’s possibly an overstatement.  The truth is I tried to like Blue Dragon, it had aspects that made it intriguing as an RPG and all total I probably sunk 20-25 hours into it, but in the end I couldn’t get over how stupid it looked and so quit.  Argue with me if you like.

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In July 18th of the year 2000, Squaresoft (now Square Enix) released a game amongst their “Summer of Adventure” promotion named Threads of Fate. Released alongside Legend of Mana and the much hyped-about Chrono Cross, this simple story of two young persons going out in search of an ancient, powerful relic was largely overlooked by casual gamers and RPG fans on a budget. Though definitely not as successful or as sought-after as the two aforementioned titles, Threads of Fate is a lighthearted, charming adventure with just the right amount of moral implications.

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One decade ago, Konami left a neoteric imprint on the survival horror genre with Silent Hill, a video game that would inspire a number of future titles, a movie, and several books and comics. But Harry Mason’s investigation into the fog-covered town and its strange occurrences accomplished more than just a household name among the likes of Resident Evil. The heart-pounding adrenaline rush introduced gamers to a nightmare founded on psychological Japanese horror and an equally unnerving musical score by composer Akira Yamaoka.

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I’ll start off by confessing that I’ve been playing this game off and on for nearly a year.  It’s just one of those games that’s great to pick up and play for a little while, set it down, and come back to it later.  It’s also one of my all-time favorite games for the DS (it’s also available on nearly every other platform), even though it’s far from perfect.  But a game doesn’t have to be “perfect” to be fun, does it?  Even though I’ve finished the story mode, I know I’ll keep playing whenever the “match 3″ bug strikes me, and I’m very eagerly awaiting the true sequel, which promises to do nothing but improve over the first game.

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Almost four years before God of War became a top priority amongst action game fans, Capcom’s Devil May Cry was the go-to title for fast-paced combat, impossible air juggles, and a brutal, bloody storyline telling a tale of redemption of revenge. Though the series is more or less on the backburner with modern-generation consoles, Devil May Cry was very much the precursor to some of the biggest games coming out this year.

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Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater is a title that many gamers cannot forget, be it willfully or not. By this point in time, the series has been an up-and-comer, a hot new title, a firmly-established series, and a repetitive, iterative franchise. Now, the games have come to be nothing but a fragile husk of their former glory. While interest in skateboarding titles has both waned and been redirected to a newer series, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 was at one point in time one of the best games available, for everything from graphics, soundtracks, and straight-up fun factor.

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The Nintendo GameCube was not as disappointing to me as it was for many gamers. Due to some of the things going on in my life during the time of its release (College, marriage, becoming a parent, etc.) I didn’t have time to play every game released. One of the largest complaints about the Cube was that it did not have the number of quality games that the other systems had. Though this may be true, I found many treasures in my GameCube library. For instance, the purchase of Pikmin 2 led to the most charming game experience in my career as a gamer.

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Few video games arouse genuine nirvana in players, but even less promise a blossoming underwater world only to swallow gamers whole and leave them wanting more wretched decay, both lovely and sanguine. BioShock is one such praised gem, and experiencing the game without feeling like the developers literally poured their souls into its creation is virtually impossible. Indeed, BioShock at its very core flourishes as a polished experience, and quite a mighty one at that.

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During the 16 and 32-bit eras, role-playing games reigned supreme. Also during those times, Squaresoft saw a phenomenal boost in the sales and popularity of their games. With Squaresoft’s rise to power came a conflict within Quest (developers of the Ogre Battle series of games,) and many of the former employees of Quest signed on with Square. The result of this marriage was one of the finest strategy-based role playing games of all time, Final Fantasy Tactics.

Final Fantasy Tactics incorporated all of the best elements of both franchises. The intricate battle and leveling mechanics from the Ogre series were a perfect match for the previously-established line of Final Fantasy jobs as well as the generally-grand plots and character developments from the more recent games in the series.

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The story of Joan of Arc, heroine of France and historical legend, is known to many.  The tale tells of a young lass who hears the voice of God telling her to save France from the wicked English.  She does so by taking up arms and slaughtering people Old Testament style.  The game Jeanne D’arc follows this theme, but throws in animal human hybrids, elves, demons, and just about every other fantasy cliché one can dream up.  It still takes place in France, it still stars Jeanne herself, and it even features burning at the stake, but players certainly won’t be gaining any historical insight when playing.

What they will gain is one of the finest portable strategy RPG experiences they’ll probably ever play.

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The Sony PlayStation was arguably the most popular console around the 32-bit era of gaming. Likewise, Japanese-styled role playing games dominated on the PlayStation, moving some of the biggest titles of that time. One of the rarest of these titles came from developer Tri-Ace, known then for the ridiculously enjoyable Star Ocean: The Second Story. This particular game was titled Valkyrie Profile, and it was great.

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