Before Resident Evil started pumping out the angry Plagas mobs, quick-time events, and co-operative missions we recognize today, the series hid its chills and scares behind tight corners, inside vents, and between the melodramatic pages of top secret documents and police files. The first RE turned a single mansion into a booby-trapped house of fear; while Resident Evil 2 moves its horror to the streets, the instinct to survive kicks just as hard. So why do people usually favor Leon’s lovesick adventure and Claire Redfield’s marco polo romp over the classic Jill sandwich, for example? The tacky one-liners and super intense music still run the undead show. So do the zombies, puzzles, man-pecking crows, and deformed baddies. They’re just better, in almost every way.

Unlike its predecessor, RE2 (Biohazard 2) relies on more than puzzles and disgusting monsters to propel the game. In other words, there’s more than one reason to play. The Leon/Claire stories intersperse their gun-reloading moments with puzzles a la the original, but Raccoon City opens up more thanks to the game’s polished edges. Maps are easier to read, ink ribbons are plentiful (no more save game crying), weapons are upgradable (to an extent), adrenaline moments are more rewarding, zombies party with more vigor (and have all sorts of tricks), and the plot and gameplay rarely feel sluggish. On several occasions, players even switch from controlling Raccoon City Police Department’s only surviving cop or the youngest Redfield sibling to Ada Wong or Sherry Birkin, depending on the scenario.

Fewer nonsense situations entail a more streamlined experience, one lacking excessive boss fights. This doesn’t mean the game holds your hand, though. Ammo and health items flow in at an even pace, but when players are thrown into the midst of the overrun city, they quickly learn how to make their bullets count. Resident Evil 2 forces you to survive, and survive well. Chances are, you’ll love every cheesy, heart-pounding second of it.

I’d take RE1’s super nineties’ cinematic graphics over RE2’s ugly, rounded cut-scenes any day, though.

[Ed. Note: WITA.  also known as Stephanie Carmichael, is currently a guest writer at Spawn Kill! We can guarantee you'll want to sink your teeth into more of her work, which you can find here at her personal blog, Impulse Creations, RadNerd, and now at OneMetal! Thanks for stepping in, Stephanie!]

Resident Evil 2
PlayStation, Nintendo Gamecube, Nintendo 64, Dreamcast, PC
	Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom Genre: Survival Horror Release Date: November 01, 1998 ESRB Rating: M for Mature

The first Silent Hill game suffers from more than a few bumps in the night. Controlling protagonist Harry Mason yields a clumsy and difficult affair, and one can safely infer that the impending orthodox flashlight proves brighter than the various characters. Nonetheless, the premiere established many conventions that would endure throughout consecutive installments—including literature-based puzzles, the radio which alerts Harry of nearby monsters, locations such as the nurse-infested hospital, and a ritualistic cult influence. Plus, the alternate but popular UFO ending peaked gamer curiosity. Many notable inclusions redeem the game’s minor flaws, and the inexplicable sounds and sights of the environments contribute the most. Whether players hear an unseen girl crying in the Midwich Elementary School bathroom, the radio’s white noise, or a loud albeit harmless crash in the sewers, or whether they witness the gritty and blood-drenched sights of the Otherworld, the rows of empty classroom desks, or even the menacing elevator descent into Alessa Gillespie’s personal hell, the game delivers plenty to rattle us besides Yamaoka’s soundtrack.

Not to mention the sequence that started it all: A winding and gradually degraded run through a narrow, dead-end alley bordered by wheelchairs and chain-link fences, offering supposedly certain death at its finish, lures us into Silent Hill’s delirium with unbridled success. Players quickly learn that between squeaking black shadows and the dimensional blurring of Alessa’s Nowhere, they are being issued a warning without the luxury of escape. More than a little frightening? Most definitely.

Again, not everything about the game courses smoothly. Documents are inconveniently not logged, the voice-acting sounds altogether horrific, and remembering to watch Harry’s health often becomes an afterthought (along with whether or not an ordinary Joe should be sprinting such long distances without pause). Over the years, the series built an unfortunate reputation for its surprisingly short length—a feature that, when compared with the relentless psychological scares and atmospheric chills, seems to defy reality itself. The possible endings, difficulty modes, and secret weapons unlocked with each game completion allow gamers to clock additional hours of torture and head-spinning encounters. Bring on the carousel rides and abandoned lighthouses, because the classic Silent Hill knows that we’re not just scared of the dark—we can’t get enough of it.

[Ed. Note: WITA.  also known as Stephanie Carmichael, is currently a guest writer at Spawn Kill! We can guarantee you'll want to sink your teeth into more of her work, which you can find here at her personal blog, Impulse Creations, RadNerd, and now at OneMetal! Thanks for stepping in, Stephanie!]

Title: Silent Hill Publisher: Konami of America, Inc., Konami Co., Ltd., Konami Developer: Konami Co., Ltd., Konami Platform(s): PlayStation Release Date: April 04, 2000

Originally released in the United States on March 30, 1996 on the Sony PlayStation, Resident Evil is an amazing example how the hardware could be used to create an experience unlike anything seen on prior consoles. Though director Shinji Mikami took inspiration from the title out of a game in Capcom’s catalog titled Sweet Home for NES, Resident Evil managed to be something so different from anything available that Capcom decided to bestow upon it a new genre, appropriately titled Survival Horror.

Resident Evil pits players into the shoes of Chris Redfield (later playable in Resident Evil: Code Veronica and Resident Evil 5) or Jill Valentine (later playable in Resident Evil 3) as they go on a mission through a haggard and undead-infested mansion set deep in the Arklay mountains. Rooms are littered with the remains of recently-fallen civilians and comrades from STARS (Special Tactics And Rescue Service), forcing the crew to cope with the unchecked aggression while hoping to discover the origins of the ghastly occurrences.

The plot was something quite fulfilling at the time, and has lead Capcom to create a grand tale involving numerous key players dating all the way back to the 1930s. Though one wouldn’t get all the details from the game, the basis for Resident Evil’s zombie outbreak is the release of the Umbrella Corporation’s T-Virus, a virus that reanimates and transforms dead flesh. Although it sounds simple enough, the basis for the original game is nowhere near the beginning or end of the storyline – its just a great place to jump into the tale.

What Resident Evil does so well is to pull players into an engaging realm of horror. Letters and diaries are left all around parts of the mansion, be it a journal left in the servant’s quarters, or a medical log left in a lab in the seedy underground parts of the mansion. Each bit of correspondence tells but a sliver of the story, and often leads the protagonists into harsher frights than many to be found in the rest of the game. One such sliver gives players a glimpse into the mind of a man being transformed into the undead, a satisfyingly macabre viewpoint that one would almost emphasize with.

Capcom chose to incorporate somewhat nonsensical puzzles into the game, though a good bit of them do make sense giving the mansion setting. Many doors are locked, and to be opened, corresponding keys must be found. This does lead to a good bit of backtracking, but several halls and rooms have more to be discovered the second or third time through. Other puzzles involve players hitting switches to match up orders of photographs, or switching out shields and emblems to gain access to hidden areas and items. These elements are indeed engaging, and don’t at all detract from the gameplay; I just have to wonder why some puzzles were necessary.

Of course, this game was released over 13 years ago, and its age does show. At the time, however, Resident Evil’s visuals were second to none. Blowing apart a zombie with a shotgun was (and very much still is) wonderfully visceral, and the prerendered backdrops for the mansion are crisp and clean – just not so much as the series’ later installments.

Although players used to the new iterations of the titles might find the original to be a bit odd, Resident Evil is the purest example of a survival horror game. Players must conserve ammo, fight only when necessary, and hope not to die on a way to a save point. Resident Evil is brilliant, and is also one of my favorite games of all time – feel free to check out my Retro Review if you need more convincing.

Title: Resident Evil Publisher: Capcom Developer: Capcom Production Studio 4 Platform(s): Sony PlayStation Release Date: March 30, 1996 (original release)

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Just like the other console stores the library will continue to expand in the next few months. For those not familiar on how it works when purchasing content via Amazon.com, what you do is purchase the title on Amazon.com then you are given a code to redeem it on your console. The code can be used for any console so you can always use it as gift if you choose to do so. The code will be sent to your Games & Software Library so you can retrieve it when it is convenient for you. Now that you can get all your PSN games online, remember the best way to get to Amazon is by clicking on our Amazon.com banner. You can also sign up for ECA and use the code given to get 10% off your purchase.

PlayStation: The Official Magazine gave the sequel the Editor’s Choice award for the month and got a perfect 5/5.  Not too surprising, I guess, thoughI’m not sure how often they throw out a perfect score. Subscribers of the magazine should be getting the world first review soon and the rest of us will have to wait till it hits newsstands. If the perfect score has gotten you even more excited for the game you can head to your local GameStop to pre-order the game and get access to the multiplayer demo now. If you don’t want to pre-order it you will have to wait until the demo hits the PlayStation Store on September 29^th. We here at Spawn Kill were lucky enough to get access to the multiplayer beta so check out our beta impressions here.

If that wasn’t enough to get you excited Naughty Dog is hosting a “sneak peek” VIP event in these theaters on October 5^th and 6^th:

Chicago Area – Rosemont, IL, Muvico Theater

LA Area – Thousand Oaks, CA, Muvico Theater

Seattle Area – Bellevue, WA, Lincoln Square Theater

San Francisco – Landmark Embarcadero

At the event you’ll get a screening of the game on the huge movie screen and you’ll be able to compete in multiplayer tournaments to win some cool prizes including the very rare Fortune Hunter Edition of Uncharted 2. You’ll have to keep checking PlayStation.Blog for more information on how you can get into the VIP event. That should be just enough to hold you over until the October 15^th release date.

[Source: Playstation.Blog]

For anyone that hasn’t played Resident Evil or one of its many ports through the years, this review does contain spoilers.

Resident Evil starts relatively quietly. The protagonists are members of an elite squad working with the Raccoon City police department who were recently sent to investigate reports of strange and brutal murders. A helicopter with the S.T.A.R.S. Bravo Team is downed, and Alpha Team is sent in to find them. Upon landing, Alpha team is ambushed by mutant canines, and the player is thrust into an old, dilapidated mansion with only the vaguest notion of zombies on the prowl. The original party is split up to investigate the area, and the player is left to find clues towards a path to safety.

Unlike many games supposedly within the Survival Horror genre, Resident Evil hits the nail on the head with the notions of staying safe. Enemies are best avoided, as direct combat can result in being quickly overcome with zombies, being poisoned, or immediate death. Most areas of conflict are tight corridors, allowing little room for evasion. Also, ammo is in relatively short supply (especially compared to popular action games of the time), so players are forced to aim properly and use their knife whenever possible. Getting close enough for melee maneuvers is a very unnerving thing, but is quite effective, adding a very tense dynamic to the overall combat.

Items that are hidden throughout the mansion go into detail on just how the monstrous zombie outbreak started, and to a lesser extent detail the lives of the individuals who lived there during the initial stages of the outbreak. A curious player can find pictures of individuals with their families and friends, find their clothes tucked into their closets, their personal diary, and, on occasion, find the zombified individual himself, trapped and desolate in a bathtub or a wing of his home.

Playing the game, one truly gets a sense of being stranded. In essence, it puts the player in the perspective of every human being there during the outbreak. You never know who or what has been turned, how it was turned, what it turned into, nor where that new being  now dwells. Caution is the only priority, and this game capitalizes on that. The load times between rooms were cleverly disguised as walking up stairs, or opening a door into a dark void, giving kind of a moment of silence in anticipation of an immediate conflict. Unfortunately, the camera angles didn’t always allow for a clear view of rooms being entered, which several times lead to jump-inducing attacks from enemies; however, players who tend to fear the unseen could toggle the auto-aim feature of their weapon to check to see if the protagonist had a fiend within his or her viewpoint outside of what was displayed on-screen, eliminating several potential shocks.

In Resident Evil, weapons and ammo are often not found sitting out for any person to find. The player must actively search for items to aid in his or her quest. Guns are definitely there, but they would be about as well-hidden as a person living inside the mansion would have them (sometimes fortunately coupled with the appropriate ammunition). Lending even more to the feel of surviving, players had to collect herbs and first-aid sprays in order to heal wounds they acquire through the journey. The save mechanic also required an ink ribbon and access to a typewriter in order to “log their experiences.”

The main control scheme may seem archaic now, but for the genre, the controls are spot on. Maneuvering through a hallway full of zombies should not be an easy task, and given the options presented, it really isn’t. Smart players can find ways to bypass rooms that contain many fiends, or wait until an opportune moment to throw some lead around.

Puzzles are a central (albeit quizzical) part of Resident Evil’s gameplay. In keeping with the survival elements, some doors are locked; to pass through them, the player must find the key. This involves searching room-to-room around the mansion, and solving the occasional puzzle. Some puzzles are mandatory in that the reward for completion is the key to the next area. Other puzzles task the player with finding jewels that seem to fit into random objects, eventually revealing a shiny prizes like the powerful Colt Python magnum handgun. These elements are definitely well-aligned with the gameplay, but from a strictly survival perspective, some puzzles fit the scheme better than others.

The plot is weaved strongly through the course of the game. Many of your allies from the Bravo Team are found dead throughout the experience, consumed by the horrors of the mansion. Others are as desperate as ever to get out, while some are a bit too satisfied hanging around. The plot is advanced mostly through cut-scenes where characters interact with each other. The voices, as most know by now, are pretty hilarious (or bad, depending on your perspective). For the time, characters using voice-overs as opposed to text was somewhat revolutionary. Unfortunately, the voice acting didn’t stand the test of time, and some of the more hilarious quips are almost inside-jokes among video game fans.

Ultimately, the player learns of a mega conglomeration named Umbrella Corporation. Chiefly a pharmaceutical company, Umbrella’s most prominent research and training facility was placed underneath the mansion in the Arklay mountains, the main setting of the game. One of their biggest projects, the T-Virus, had been released, causing a lot of strange mutations in creatures and humans. Near the end it was revealed that the S.T.A.R.S. founder and Alpha Team member Albert Wesker had masterminded the entire operation using the S.T.A.R.S. team members as combat data for the T-Virus-infused bio-organic weapons (B.O.W.). Albert planned to destroy the facility and all remaining evidence, taking the combat data and the T-Virus itself to sell to the highest bidder. Unfortunately for Albert, his ultimate B.O.W., the Tyrant, impaled and “killed” him, and was then immediately killed by the protagonist.

It’s a pretty complex tale ultimately, but it serves not only as a fantastic jumping-off point for the mainline series, but also for several Resident Evil tie-ins, both before and after the soon-to-follow Raccoon City incident (where the virus was released into Raccoon City, turning the population into the walking dead). Though the later titles basically descended from this one original title, some of the newer Resident Evil iterations are not so big on survival, and some would say not even horror video games. Regardless of gameplay, latter titles expand upon the story of Chris and Jill, go into the past and future of Umbrella Corporation, as well as explain how Albert ties into the company and the T-virus.

The graphics for Resident Evil are definitely of the era. In 1996, this game’s graphics would astound any who saw it. Thirteen years later, they are clearly dated. Many games of this era can’t stand the test of time. (Strangely, games of the 16-bit era age more much gracefully, and even modern games have visuals that are throwbacks to that time period.) I believe that Resident Evil, in this regard, fares better than many Playstation titles. Many of the pre-rendered backgrounds are highly detailed and set the mood wonderfully. Given the polygon count of the day, its pretty easy to tell where your character stands against the backdrop, and conversely, where the enemy stands. Thankfully, the color schemes applied to enemy and ally serve to blend objects and backgrounds together seamlessly.

The music is more forgettable than anything in this game. The soundtrack does serve its duty well in creating and maintaining a frightening atmosphere, but there’s just not anything noteworthy enough to stick out after over a decade. The sound effects, while not fantastic, do serve their purposes extremely well. Walking up or down stairs gives a strikingly loud thump with an eerie echo, and pushing a creaking door open into an unexplored room is particularly unnerving. Given the player’s mood (and, as always, the proper horror gaming atmosphere), one would still be prone to jump when a noise is heard off-screen.

With a game as old as this one is, it would be easy to find faults — especially comparing those faults with current-gen gameplay mechanics and graphics of the latest Resident Evil iterations. However, if one can allow themselves to enter the early Playstation era, the true beauty of a game like Resident Evil can shine through. While not perfect, this game serves as the ultimate example of what survival horror is. Resident Evil set the stage for things to come in the series and many games in general, and it is wonderful to be able to go back and see the humble beginnings of some of the greatest plot elements and gameplay mechanics we enjoy in video games today.

Overall 9.5/10

Doin It RIGHT: -Complex Story -Intense combat controls -Wonderful atmosphere	Doin It RONG: - Silly voice acting. -Dated graphics and camera system
FINAL SCORE: 9.5 / 10

I am a huge fan of the original Sony Playstation. I still play many of my PSX titles today, and tend to get very excited when I come across good deals in stores or online on some of the titles that I had played or previously owned back in the day. Some of the best PS3 exclusive and cross-platform titles today are based upon popular games that were available for the Playstation. In keeping with my unfaltering admiration for the console, and to properly respect the many games available for it, I present the Top 20 Playstation Games.
10.) Parasite Eve
With Parasite Eve, Squaresoft went for something a little different than they normally put out. Billed as a survival horror role-playing game, Parasite Eve put players in control of Aya Brea, who was set to find out the truth behind mysterious and gruesome deaths in New York City. Following the story set by the novel of the same name, Parasite Eve was a unique blend of intense narrative and standard RPG elements. Though it was short and not necessarily hard, this game managed to win over players, and even spawned a (not so great) strictly survival-horror sequel.

09.) Final Fantasy IX
Moving forward in mechanics but backwards in style and tone, Squaresoft’s Final Fantasy IX hearkened back to the old days of Final Fantasy. Losing its futuristic-fantasy theme from the previous two iterations, FFIX put players back into a more traditional RPG realm of swords, magic, airships, and quaint villages. Introducing new active time events, players could see what the rest of their party members were getting into at given points. Also thrown into the mix was an admittedly simpler magic learning style, where players could learn abilities based on their current equipment. Although it was criticized for taking somewhat of a step backwards in time, Final Fantasy IX was very successful (thanks in part to some very odd ad campaigns,) and is even (Final Fantasy creator) Hironobu Sakaguchi’s favorite title in the series.

08.) Chrono Cross
Of all of the RPGs Square created in the midst of the Playstation’s life, Chrono Cross was one of the most anticipated. Billed as both a sequel and a spiritual successor to the Super Famicom Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross put players into the shoes of Serge, a teen living an unassuming life in a local beach town until he stumbles upon a portal into another world. The plot was both complex and entertaining, and lent very well to the parallel dimension theme that was so clearly evident throughout the title. Chrono Cross also had a fantastic battle system that forced players to work towards stronger attacks and eventually team attacks, as well as factoring in elemental properties for many different varieties of offensive maneuvers. Also on the roster was a cast of over forty characters that could join up with the player. The graphics were some of the best seen on the Playstation, and the music from Yasunori Mitsuda was simply amazing (its my personal favorite game soundtrack.) Needless to say, Chrono Cross was a critical and commercial success, and remains a favorite amongst RPG fans.

07.) Resident Evil 2
Riding on the enormous success of Resident Evil, Capcom released Resident Evil 2 to high acclaim. Using the then-staple of the RE games, RE2 continued the tale of the plight of Raccoon City by pitting players into the shoes of Leon Kennedy or Claire Redfield, both given the ultimate task of figuring out just what has created the flood of zombies lifelessly shambling around. Resident Evil 2 built onto the original in a few ways, namely the scenario system that changed some key events within the game. Though it didn’t receive marks as high as the original, RE2 went on to outsell the original title, and is quoted by many as being their personal favorite in the series.

06.) Final Fantasy VIII
Released in America on September 9, 1999, Final Fantasy VIII was the long-awaited next step after the blockbuster that was Final Fantasy VII. Touting much more detailed graphics and a more pleasing future-fantasy aesthetic, FFVIII was all lined up to be a smashing success. And it was, due to the many changes the next step implemented. The new Junctioning system allowed for an enormous amount of depth related to the previous Materia system, allowing characters to junction magic to basically any statistic they wanted. The plot was pretty cliché at the start, but wound up tying into the fate not just the world, but (drumroll!) all of time. FFVIII was criticized rather harshly, however, as many found the junctioning and magic drawing system to be rather tedious, as well as the animations for the Guardian Forces (summons) that were to be called up to several times per battle. For all of its strengths and weaknesses, Final Fantasy VIII is a fan favorite today not because of its name, but because of the wonderful story and experiences it contained.

05.) Final Fantasy Tactics
As one of few games in the Final Fantasy series to depart from the usual console RPG standard, Final Fantasy Tactics had a hard time fitting in with fans of the franchise. Sure, it had chocobos, but aside from that and a few other series staples there really wasn’t much that seemed to justify its Final Fantasy title. Luckily for itself, FFT is a brilliant game, and has more to offer than most role-playing games of all subgenres even to date. Billed as a turn-based strategy role-playing game, players controlled Ramza Beoulve, a noble caught up in a local political scandal that ties into his close friends and family. The plot was ridiculous in complexity, both in over-the-top politics and its rather sketchy translation, but the games real basis was in its battles. Taking place isometrically over a square-based grid, players could move their units in turns, making both a move and action. Kills against enemies rewarded experience point for player growth as well as  job points used to further skills and classes. In a strange twist (especially for Final Fantasy titles,) characters that died in battles stayed dead, making some conflicts brutally hard, especially in the long run. In the end, though, the fantastic battle system and deep job system were such a rewarding payoff that the game’s fanbase grew dramatically, eventually leading to a PSP remake as well as an exclusive Nintendo DS series.

04.) Final Fantasy VII
No Top PSX list could exclude Final Fantasy VII. FFVII changed the RPG genre nearly single-handedly, and introduced more Americans into the Japanese style of role-playing than any other game in history has. With extremely high sales figures, a critically-acclaimed visual style and story, and some of the most realistic full-motion video available at the time, its no wonder that Square (-Enix) has chosen FFVII as one of its only titles to expand the story upon (Final Fantasy X-2 shouldn’t have been released anyway) with the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. Heralded by many to be the best game ever made, FFVII ranks so high not only because just about everyone loves it, but also because it was a spectacular game.

03.) Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is not only one of the best games in the Castlevania series, but is more or less the pinnacle of two-dimensional action-adventure titles. Set in a familiar-feeling castle, players were set to find the truth behind the reappearance of Dracula’s castle and to ultimately defeat the evil that controls it. Symphony of the Night did so many things right that it is pretty hard to know just where to begin. Controls were tight, from double jumps to attacking. Weapons had different weights and lengths that contributed relative speed and range. Clothes and weapons had unique and distinct appearances that set themselves apart from others. There were hidden abilities within weapons and clothing, as well as the protagonist himself. The castle rooms had themes and multiple hidden areas that could only be found after acquiring specific weapons or abilities. And at the end, when all could have been over, a player who paid close attention was rewarded with an entirely new castle complete with harder monsters and stronger weapons. Symphony of the Night is so badass that IGN gave it a 9.5 when it was released to the Playstation Network nearly ten years after its original release. Not surprisingly, the Symphony of the Night gameplay style is being used for current Castlevania iterations on the Nintendo DS, and though those games are also amazing, nothing lives up to this definitive 32-bit action-adventure experience.

02.) Resident Evil
Resident Evil is intense. Though dated by today’s standards, the original Resident Evil was such a new and shocking experience that players literally had no basis for comparison. Taking inspiration from other titles such as Sweet Home and Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil basically created its own genre by dubbing it “survival horror.” Players were thrust into a sketchy mansion teeming with zombies and miscellaneous undead lifeforms, and with very little help had to fight for their own survival. Ammo was short, and the control scheme was pretty rough, but these elements contributed huge amounts of tension to what could have been just another random shooting game. The plot was complex enough to keep players engaged, but most of the entertainment came from just how well everything was designed. Guns were where non-player characters would have realistically kept them, notes were scattered all about from scientists and residents describing their lives the outbreak of the mutating T-virus, and quite often the individuals who penned the narratives were inside the rooms where said items were found. Resident Evil was just a brilliant game, and has not surprisingly spawned several prequels and sequels detailing how the viruses came to be. With well over fifteen distinct titles, Resident Evil as a series is a literal powerhouse that would not have came about without the success of the original game.

01.) Metal Gear Solid
Konami’s Metal Gear Solid series is easily the one biggest franchises on all of Sony’s gaming consoles. Following the story from the MSX2 games, Metal Gear Solid told the tale of a former special forces agent named Solid Snake who must infiltrate a nuclear waste facility in order to rescue hostages. The plot turns complex quite quickly, and culminates in one of the most insane twists seen in many games even today. MGS continued the trend of prioritizing stealth over run-and-gun gameplay, and in its first Playstation installment it showed just how much fun sneaking around can be. The graphics were amazing, the music memorable, the action was intense, and everything blended together so smoothly that players and critics alike were astonished. Given the huge success of Metal Gear Solid, Hideo Kojima and Konami went on to make three more huge MGS games (and several spin-offs, some of which were in canon,) and the mainline series is one of Sony’s major flagship titles. Though MGS was neither the beginning or the end of franchise, it stands tall and proud as one of the most successful and influential games on the Playstation, and more than any other deserves to be listed as #1 on the Top Twenty Playstation Games.

19.) Street Fighter Alpha 3
Street Fighter Alpha 3 is considered by many to be the pinnacle of fighting games for the Sony Playstation. With crisp, colorful graphics, an upgraded fighting system, and remixed tunes for most characters and levels (as well as the huge cast of characters,) Capcom confirmed the notion that they are kings of two-dimensional fighters. SFA3 is still played today, and even preferred by some over the newly-released Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix.

18.) Vagrant Story
Squaresoft hit a stride around the turn of the century with several Playstation role-playing games of all varieties. On top of many players’ lists is Vagrant Story, a game with unique comic book-style dialog and an intense political storyline that ties into Ivalice, the realm of Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy Tactics. Vagrant Story had several interesting gameplay mechanics, from the custom weaponry that could be forged to the ability to target specific parts of enemies, resulting in varying effects. Though not everyone was a fan of the dungeon exploring variety of games, Vagrant Story was a perfect fit for many players, and was actually ranked fifth among the Playstation’s best-selling titles in the month of its release.

17.) Crash Bandicoot
When it was released, Crash Bandicoot was one of the first games on the Playstation that pushed the limits of 3D platforming. While it wasn’t truly three-dimensional, Crash himself was able to jump and attack enemies in various directions across several different levels.  Naughty Dog’s first action/platformer was a huge financial success that launched an entire series of games, and lead the team neatly into one of the best 3D platforming series on the Playstation 2, Jak and Daxter.

16.) Xenogears
Voted #16 on the best games of all time list by Famitsu readers, Xenogears is one of the most interesting and inspiring role-playing games to grace the PSX. Riding on the popular theme of gigantic anthropomorphic robots, Xenogears allowed players to battle humans and beasts enemies on foot, or take on bigger bosses within their customizable mechs. Aside from the complex plot and not always comprehensible script, players were enticed by the outstanding battle systems and the (strangely-present) platforming bits sprinkled about the maps. Considered rare today, anyone who might perchance stumble upon Xenogears at their local game store owes it to themselves to pick it up.

15.) Suikoden II
Probably the rarest game on this list due to the relatively low amounts of copies that were made, Suikoden II stands as one of the proudest RPGs on the Playstation. Considered by many to be the best in the series, Suikoden II tells the story of a young soldier whose life is torn apart by the prince of the land, and his epic quest towards glory as well as a plot twist that truly caught everyone off-guard. While not the best looking game on the console, Suikoden II is a solid example of 32-bit era role-playing games, and goes to show that Konami can make great games in all genres.

14.) Tomb Raider
Originally released back in 1996, Tomb Raider was a pretty revolutionary game. Set in a fully-realized three-dimensional environment, protagonist Lara Croft was given the task of.. raiding.. tombs. Yeah! At Lara’s disposal was a bevy of platforming moves as well as a host of various weapons for taking down those who might get in her path. Players were expected to explore their surroundings and utilize a number of actions to get around obstacles and traps hidden throughout the levels. The game really showed what the Playstation was capable of so far as gameplay mechanics, and set a high standard for modern platforming games.

13.) Twisted Metal
Twisted Metal was a unique game for the Playstation in that not only was it darker than most games in the vehicular combat genre, but that it pulled it off better than almost all the rest. Simply put, players controlled a vehicle in a small arena that would pick up various weapons to use against other vehicles in the arena. The basic premise was one of pure fun, without the need for a plot; however, Twisted Metal had a plot, and it only helped out what was already a seriously entertaining game.

12.) Silent Hill
When someone thinks of horror video games, the first series that probably pops into mind is Capcom’s Resident Evil series. While more or less the father of the survival horror genre, Resident Evil couldn’t hold a candle to the frights that were in store for players with Konami’s fantastic horror game Silent Hill. The plot itself is disorienting enough on its own: a man is driving with his daughter down a foggy road towards Silent Hill, and crashes his vehicle when he spots a shadowy figure looming in his headlights. Upon regaining consciousness, his daughter is nowhere to be found. Constantly following vague leads, the protagonist is subjected to creepy and macabre creatures and visuals in an effort to be reunited with his little girl. Silent Hill told a great story, and the game had some of the most unnerving camera angles and scripted events of any game to date. Konami again proved its worth with Silent Hill, and its not surprising that the game spawned a highly-successful series that spans multiple consoles and entertainment mediums.

11.) Legend of Dragoon
Developed and Published by Sony Computer Entertainment, Legend of Dragoon was kind of a sleeper RPG hit. Receiving mixed reviews from critics, Legend of Dragoon is fondly remembered by a curiously large fanbase. Though it took on many cliché RPG stereotypes, the game drew players in with an interesting combo system, which (given ridiculously good timing) allowed players to chain together multiple powerful attacks instead of the RPG-established standard single hit, as well as the ability to transform into a Dragoon to command dragons and use magic. This four-disc epic might not have changed the genre completely, but many favorites of fans tend to stick to the standard RPG conventions. Legend of Dragoon was a graphical powerhouse, and stands as a testament to SCE’s ability to make blockbuster games.

Can’t wait to see what the final ten contestants are going to be? Check back at SpawnKill.com Saturday for the second and final part to the Top 20 Playstation Games.