🎮 Salty's Favorite Games 🎮
Goddamn I love video games! Don't we all? They made me feel so much less alone as a kid, and they gave me a healthy, happy place to escape to during some not-so-great times throughout my life. This list includes the games that really stuck with me the most and a little blurb about why I love them so much. I also include when the game released, what platform I played the game on, and its genre(s).
🚀 Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 🚀
Release Year: 2003
Platform: Xbox
Genre(s): Turn-Based RPG, Space Western, Science Fiction
Salty Says: This is one of those games that makes me revert to that "they don't make 'em like they used to" old person mentality. This is my favorite game of all time, and I think it is the greatest RPG of all time. Everything about this game is perfect: the story, the characters, the soundtrack, the gameplay itself.. it's all so thoughtful and realistic. It puts the writing of every single Star Wars movie and show to shame. If you haven't played this then you are missing out.
⚡ Fallout 2 ⚡
Release Year: 1998
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Turn-Based Isometric RPG, Post-Apocalyptic, Retro-Futuristic
Salty Says: This is the first Fallout that I ever played way back in the early 2000s, and it's the first I ever truly fell in love with. It is timeless, beautifully written, and it is a complete masterpiece of the genre. The atmosphere in this game is unmatched, and it has an incredible soundtrack. Those talking heads were just so mind-blowing! Disclaimer: make sure you play it with the unofficial patch or else it'll be a buggy mess.
🎢 Sim Theme Park 🎢
Release Year: 1999
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Theme Park Management, Simulation
Salty Says: Folks outside of America know this one as, "Theme Park World" or "Theme Park 2". I have always loved management games, but this game is what began and shaped that love when I was very, very young. While originally marketed towards kids, this game does have a decent construction and management system for its time. I still revisit Sim Theme Park from time to time and have a blast doing so! The advisor "Bugsy" is annoying yet endearing, and I love him for that.
🧟 Project Zomboid 🧟
Release Year: 2013
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Open-World Isometric Zombie Survival
Salty Says: This is the best survival game of all time. While maybe not the most visually striking, PZ has some crazy depth to its gameplay systems, especially when you factor in the countless combinations of mods that are available. It's been in active development for over a decade at this point, and it still has a sizeable and highly dedicated community. It's also insanely fun to play with friends, and I have spent hundreds of hours scavenging, surviving, and painfully dying on a handful of lovingly-maintained multiplayer servers.
💀 Diablo II 💀
Release Year: 2000
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Hack-and-Slash, RPG, Dark Fantasy
Salty Says: Who lived through the early '00s without at least hearing of Diablo? If you haven't played this, you need to go sit down with a copy ASAP. Diablo II is best enjoyed with others, so grab a friend if you can! Despite Blizzard morphing into a greedy, corporate monstrosity, I am so thankful for the treasure chest full of memories I have playing this game at LAN parties with my friends and family. Just don't buy the remastered version; it's a buggy, baseless cash grab.
💥 Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory 💥
Release Year: 2005
Platform: Xbox
Genre(s): Stealth Action
Salty Says: I know a lot of you out there would die on the hill that MGS is the best stealth series of all time... but I really think Chaos Theory puts all of the Metal Gear games to shame as individual titles. This game was absolutely mind-boggling, both from a graphics and gameplay standpoint, when it released in '05, and having played it within the last couple years, it still holds up. The levels are amazing, the A.I. isn't that stupid, and the skill progression is natural and fluid. It's also got a really great co-op campaign that is separate from the single player storyline. It just feels so good to play this game.
The soundtrack by Amon Tobin is also my favorite video game soundtrack of all time; if you're a fan of heavier industrial EDM and DNB then I would definitely recommend giving it a listen whether you like stealth games or not.
🛹 Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 🛹
Release Year: 2001
Platform: Xbox
Genre(s): Skateboarding
Salty Says: This is one of the first games I ever played that made me feel like I was actually good at playing something. Not only is this game insanely fun to play, it also has a bangin' soundtrack, and it doesn't take itself too seriously. The levels are well-designed, it's accessible to a lot of skill levels, and getting to skate as Darth Maul with his lightsaber is a definite bonus. I also think THPS3 did a good job of capturing the ethos and antics of mainstream skateboarding at the time.
🏅 Honorable Mentions 🏅
This list was hard to develop because I love so many games and there are many others that have made a significant impact on my life. Here are some honorable mentions for my top list that I refrained from writing about at length about, but I would invite you to check out nonetheless:
🔮 ARCANUM: OF STEAMWORKS AND MAGICK OBSCURA 🔮
Release Year: 2001
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Turn-Based Isometric RPG, Open World, Steampunk/Fantasy
Salty Says: Sierra's best game, no contest. I obviously love isometric RPGs, and this is one of the best of their "Golden Era." Virgil is the most annoying companion of all time, but what are you gonna do?
⚔️ RUNESCAPE ⚔️
Release Year: 2001
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Fantasy, MMORPG
Salty Says: I'm talking pre-2006 Runescape, not that RS3 stock market, microtransaction bullshit. This game engulfed my entire childhood, as I'm sure it did for many of y'all. I'm glad this game predated the "hours logged" feature of most games because I really don't want to know how much time I spent playing it.
🌎 RISE OF NATIONS 🌎
Release Year: 2003
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Real-Time Strategy
Salty Says: Rise of Nations is Age of Empires for grown-ups who are tired of the same old "clanging swords, neighing horses" bullshit. I think this game stands as one of the best strategy games of all time, and it's one of the few things Microsoft Game Studios ever did right.
🎭 THE SIMS 2 🎭
Release Year: 2004
Platform: PC
Genre(s): Life Simulation
Salty Says: If you're gay, autistic, or both, then you already know what's up with the Sims 2. The original Sims was a landmark, but The Sims 2 was actually fun to play and had WAY more options for customization and gameplay. Bangin' elevator jazz soundtrack, too.