Best game of the last gen.

Randall Floyd

Not sure if this thread has already been done but here goes anyway. Now that the Xbox One and PS4 have taken over as the current gen what do people consider to be the best game of the last (Xbox 360/PS3/Wii) console generation?

Personally I'd go for Red Dead Redemption, nothing groundbreaking in it but the combination of the gameplay, aesthetics and story just worked for me.

What do ye consider to be the best?
Is it even possible to say one game in particular is the best?

calex71

Randall Floyd wrote: »

Not sure if this thread has already been done but here goes anyway. Now that the Xbox One and PS4 have taken over as the current gen what do people consider to be the best game of the last (Xbox 360/PS3/Wii) console generation?

Personally I'd go for Red Dead Redemption, nothing groundbreaking in it but the combination of the gameplay, aesthetics and story just worked for me.

What do ye consider to be the best?
Is it even possible to say one game in particular is the best?

Subjective, but seeing as you asked for me Dark Souls, Borderlands 2, Rock Band 2 and Fallout 3

Penn

Yeah Red Dead Redemption would probably get my vote too, closely followed by Borderlands 2 and Assassin's Creed 2.

This gen produced so many great games though. For all the complaints of cookie-cutter games, annual sequels barely improving, microtransactions etc, there have been some real gems.

Cravez

Dark Souls

Shorty11857

Excluding PC games, I'd have to hands down give it to Journey, probably the best game I've ever played

ghostchant

I'll go with Persona 4, presume it counts seeing as it was released almost 3 years after the first PS3/360/Wii games If not then I think I'd have to say Journey too...though Hotline Miami and Mario Galaxy 1/2 would challenge it

Vicxas

Id have to say Dark Souls for me, followed by Borderlands 2.

Retr0gamer

Dark Souls.Nothing else even comes close other than maybe Journey. Not only is it far and away better than anything else this generation but it and Demon's Souls are the two most important games this generation. You can see the asynchronous multiplayer it introduced creeping into nearly every big game this gen.

Shane-KornSpace

For me, Fallout 3 and the Mass Effect trilogy.

krudler

I was extremely late to the party but honestly I'd lean towards Dark Souls as well, have been playing it for over 2 months solid and still haven't seen tons of things yet. It's been a long, long time since I became this invested in a game. The sequel is top of the list of most anticipated games of 2014.

Pac1Man

Borderlands 2? Really? I skipped over that when it was released for some reason. I must give it a shot.

Andrew76

Dark Souls or Super Mario Galaxy 2 would get my vote. Both stunning games.

krudler

Andrew76 wrote: »

Dark Souls or Super Mario Galaxy 2 would get my vote. Both stunning games.

SMG2 is a perfect example of how to take an already great game, improve it in nearly every way and make an almost perfect one. It's one of those games that's an absolute joy to play I must dig out the Wii over Christmas and give it a bash.

The Pheasant2

Gotta be Fallout 3 for me - cannot wait to see Fallout 4

GarH

Borderlands 2 for me.
Don't think I'll tire of it yet. At least until Borderlands 3 comes out

danthefan

The gen ain't over yet!

Dark Souls II and Persona 5 out next year.

Personally I think The Last of Us probably was my highlight. I thought it was outstanding.

krudler

danthefan wrote: »

The gen ain't over yet!

Dark Souls II and Persona 5 out next year.

Personally I think The Last of Us probably was my highlight. I thought it was outstanding.

As a example of how good games can be story and acting wise TLOU is way up there, the gameplay was almost secondary to the story, it's one of those games you could watch someone else play and become enthralled by given it's movie like tendencies. The Walking Dead would be up there too.

danthefan

krudler wrote: »

As a example of how good games can be story and acting wise TLOU is way up there, the gameplay was almost secondary to the story, it's one of those games you could watch someone else play and become enthralled by given it's movie like tendencies. The Walking Dead would be up there too.

I enjoyed the gameplay, but tbh I know what you're saying which is why I made sure to say it was my personal favourite rather than just branding it the game of the generation.

gimli2112

Last of Us
One I played the most MW2

o1s1n

Dark Souls and Fallout 3.

I'd also like to give an honorable mention to the 3DS but not sure if it qualifies

krudler

danthefan wrote: »

I enjoyed the gameplay, but tbh I know what you're saying which is why I made sure to say it was my personal favourite rather than just branding it the game of the generation.

Oh me too, I enjoyed nearly every minute of it aside from a few sections which were a bit of a chore. I never felt like there was much at risk though if you died you just went back to a close enough checkpoint, might play it again on a harder difficulty.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

the amount of people not saying dark souls is hilarious

krudler

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar wrote: »

the amount of people not saying dark souls is hilarious

They need some jolly co-operation asap

Kirby

I played Dark souls. It's excellent. I put untold hours into it. I'd recommend it. I'll definitely buy Dark Souls II.

But you simply can't call it the best game of the last gen. There is just too much wrong with it. Putting aside minor gripes like the wooden animation, clipping issues and the idiotic AI running off cliffs....which are issues but aren't as important as others issues which really plague the game.

There is a difference between making a game difficult and making it obtuse. Challenge is fine, but a person shouldn't have to go to online guides and forums to figure out the games mechanics. Conveyance.

What is humanity? How do I get it and what does it do? What is the difference between being hallowed and human? How do I kindle a bonfire and what does it do? How do I play with my friend? How do I use magic? What's the difference between atonement and intelligence? How does scaling work? and so on. These are questions that nearly every new player asks and the game does virtually nothing to teach you. As veterans, these questions seem idiotic and obvious but we were all asking the same thing at release.

There were server issues for months after release. Summoning worked fine sometimes and not at all other times. The lagfest backstab city that was pvp. It's online infrastructure was a confusing, convoluted mess......they've admitted that the game had problems with players being confused and vowed to make the sequel make more sense to the player.

It was a good game overall, no doubt. But it wouldn't surprise me if the sequel is better in nearly every single way.

Anyone

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar wrote: »

the amount of people not saying dark souls is hilarious

Spent 2 hours trying to finish the tutorial and never went back to it.

danthefan

Anyone wrote: »

Spent 2 hours trying to finish the tutorial and never went back to it.

What tutorial?

Kirby

Escaping the asylum at the beginning of the game I would assume he means.

krudler

Kirby wrote: »

I played Dark souls. It's excellent. I put untold hours into it. I'd recommend it. I'll definitely buy Dark Souls II.

But you simply can't call it the best game of the last gen. There is just too much wrong with it. Putting aside minor gripes like the wooden animation, clipping issues and the idiotic AI running off cliffs....which are issues but aren't as important as others issues which really plague the game.

There is a difference between making a game difficult and making it obtuse. Challenge is fine, but a person shouldn't have to go to online guides and forums to figure out the games mechanics. Conveyance.

What is humanity? How do I get it and what does it do? What is the difference between being hallowed and human? How do I kindle a bonfire and what does it do? How do I play with my friend? How do I use magic? What's the difference between atonement and intelligence? How does scaling work? and so on. These are questions that nearly every new player asks and the game does virtually nothing to teach you. As veterans, these questions seem idiotic and obvious but we were all asking the same thing at release.

There were server issues for months after release. Summoning worked fine sometimes and not at all other times. The lagfest backstab city that was pvp. It's online infrastructure was a confusing, convoluted mess......they've admitted that the game had problems with players being confused and vowed to make the sequel make more sense to the player.

It was a good game overall, no doubt. But it wouldn't surprise me if the sequel is better in nearly every single way.

All very true in fairness, you shouldn't have to consult a wiki within 5 mins of starting a game to see what the basic mechanics do. Now the confusion and feeling of isolation is all part of it but I think they could make some things a bit clearer at the beginning.
That dude sitting beside the bonfire basically explains everything if you keep talking to him. but the more you invest in the game the more rewarding it becomes, it never spoonfeeds you and the lore and story are all there to be discovered through the game instead of endless cutscenes about the other character's motivations.
If they make that aspect more accessible in DS2 then all well and good instead of vague hints and dialogue as to how to use magic or what to do past the intitial stages. It does feel a bit aimless at times when you're not sure why you're doing what you're doing without watching lore videos.

But as far as being engaging and rewarding once you get the basics down it's in a league of it's own. The further you get the more you want to be challenged, it's gas how early areas which seemed so utterly daunting on first playthrough are now a minor hassle you can easily run through without even engaging an enemy if you want. I'm on a new build and in less than 8hrs play have done twice as much as I did at 30+ hours equivalent on my first playthrough .

The thing I hope they fix the most int he sequel is the framerate, good jesus it's horrendous at times on console in some area, Blightown in particular.

mdwexford

The Last Of Us.

Tommy_NDX

Dark Souls. It hasn't left my ps3 for more than a month since release. I played a lot of Demon's Souls so I was familiar with the mechanics going in but I can see where the problem is. I think the lack of instruction in game led to forming the great online community between the wikis, reddit, here etc. and it sure beats all the "press X to jump" tutorials these days.

krudler

Tommy_NDX wrote: »

Dark Souls. It hasn't left my ps3 for more than a month since release. I played a lot of Demon's Souls so I was familiar with the mechanics going in but I can see where the problem is. I think the lack of instruction in game led to forming the great online community between the wikis, reddit, here etc. and it sure beats all the "press X to jump" tutorials these days.

"Now let's calibrate your vision, look around the room and zzzzzzzz"

just let me shoot things in the face!

johnny_ultimate

This argument is why I got a bad vibe from all the complaints that arose when the designer said the second game would be more 'accessible' (he actually apologised for it). The mystery and challenge are undoubtedly key parts of the appeal, but I can easily see them successfully making certain mechanics and systems more transparent and inviting without negatively impacting the overall experience. It's amazing to see a game with the intelligence and decency to allow the player to investigate and discover the depths themselves, but carefully considered guidance is always welcome as long as it doesn't condescend.

penev10

Can a mod close the thread and add "Dark Souls is the" to the title and we're all done here.

richymcdermott

Dark Souls and Demon Souls I consider two of the greatest games of all time , as pointed out by others nothing comes remotely close.

Others I would like to include are Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 , Valkyria Chronicles , Fallout 3 , Skyrim, Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 , Batman Arkham City and Asylum Call Of Duty 4 , Yakuza 3 and 4 and xenoblade

FortuneChip

I'm going to have to break the trend here.
Uncharted 2. Superb set pieces, great humour with excellent characters, and awesome set pieces.
...
...
...
And Dark Souls

Anyone

Kirby wrote: »

Escaping the asylum at the beginning of the game I would assume he means.

Yeah, the big demon at the end, I suck using a controller at the best of times, but that was a step too far.

Fawk Nin

Cod 4 or Bioshock. Possibly Mario Galaxy. All released in the same year I believe.

Retr0gamer

Kirby wrote: »

What is humanity? How do I get it and what does it do? What is the difference between being hallowed and human? How do I kindle a bonfire and what does it do? How do I play with my friend? How do I use magic? What's the difference between atonement and intelligence? How does scaling work? and so on. These are questions that nearly every new player asks and the game does virtually nothing to teach you. As veterans, these questions seem idiotic and obvious but we were all asking the same thing at release.

Go into the menu. Press select. Read the descriptions. It's all there.

Part of what made the game so damn good was having to figure everything out. The whole community effort to figure out the more obtuse elements of Demon's and Dark souls was amazing (more so for Demon's when absolutely nobody knew what they were getting themselves in for!). The lack of hand holding is what made the experience so good, if you came into it late you might have missed all that.

As for your complaints, they are minor visual issues which don't mean much when the game is good (it was made on quite a low budget and what they achieved visually was astounding. As for the dodgy AI there's a thing called game balance. The AI is perfect. If you make the AI too good then and unpredictable you end up with a game that isn't fun. Learning how the AI works and exploiting it (to fall off cliffs) is part of the fun.

Sure the game has problems but no game is perfect. However for as the game that gave me the most amount of satisfaction and most enjoyment this generation is far ahead of anything else out there. Also as a game to showed me as someone completely jaded with online games that you can still do something interesting with online it has to get a lot of credit.

Retr0gamer

Anyone wrote: »

Yeah, the big demon at the end, I suck using a controller at the best of times, but that was a step too far.

The first time you meet him you are meant to run past him. When you meet him the second time he is much easier.

krudler

FortuneChip wrote: »

I'm going to have to break the trend here.
Uncharted 2. Superb set pieces, great humour with excellent characters, and awesome set pieces.
...
...
...
And Dark Souls

It's the benchmark for blockbuster action games imo

Anyone

Retr0gamer wrote: »

The first time you meet him you are meant to run past him. When you meet him the second time he is much easier.

Haha, ok I was bad but not that bad, it was the 2nd time where you actually had to kill him that I couldnt get past.

krudler

Anyone wrote: »

Haha, ok I was bad but not that bad, it was the 2nd time where you actually had to kill him that I couldnt get past.

All you have to do it two hand whatever weapon you have, drop down on him and hit him it takes a massive amount of his health, then chop away at his legs and roll when he attacks.

penev10

Anyone wrote: »

Haha, ok I was bad but not that bad, it was the 2nd time where you actually had to kill him that I couldnt get past.

Lock on to him and keep circling around to stay behind him. You'll get loads of hits in before he jumps into the air, then back off and repeat.

By any chance did you neglect to pick up your proper weapon? killing him with a broken sword is a tough ask.

Retr0gamer

Yep, he should be easy at that stage, you get a drop attack on him that will destroy his health and with new weapons and armour you should make short work of him.

CiDeRmAn

The Last of Us was incredible but Mario Galaxy has been remarkable.

iamanengine

Dark Souls. Easily.

Although, MW2 was by far my most enjoyable multiplayer experience, yes it was mayhem and at times seriously annoying, but my God it was fun!

krudler

iamanengine wrote: »

Dark Souls. Easily.

Although, MW2 was by far my most enjoyable multiplayer experience, yes it was mayhem and at times seriously annoying, but my God it was fun!

It definitely had the "ah just one more game...sh1t its 2am" aspect the later ones didn't. Some of the nights with the other COD players on boards were absolutely hilarious.

x43r0

Games I enjoyed the most: Fallout 3 and Skyrim

Games I played the Most: The Call of Duty series

readyletsgo

Off the top of me head right now

Bioshocks
Galaxy 1(still have to play 2)
TLoU
Uncharted 2
Pikmin 3
Wind Waker (I know its a remake but still)
Doom 3 BFG
Resy 5 (nothing new but enjoyed it)
Resy Revelations (3ds count?)
3D Land

Retr0gamer

The Last of Us looks at Dark Souls and asks, 'If only I could be so grossly incandescent'.

Magill

Single Player... Dark Souls again... unless i've completely forgot about something.

Multiplayer... has to be league of legends, not exactly original but what riot have achieved with it is incredible. The only thing that comes close imo is World of warcraft... but is that considered this gen ?