What games are just objective masterpieces?
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Just out of curiosity, listing the games mentioned here as of this writing by their date of release:
Release Date Game 1980 Pac-Man 1985 The Oregon Trail (assuming widely-played 1985 game) 1985 Tetris 1986 Kid Icarus 1988 Mega Man 2 1988 Super Mario Brothers 3 1988 The Guardian Legend 1989 Abadox: The Deadly Inner War 1989 Ironsword: Wizards & Warriors II 1989 Monster Party 1989 Populous 1989 Sweet Home 1990 Dr. Mario 1990 Final Fantasy III 1991 Battletoads (assuming original game) 1991 The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 1992 Ecco the Dolphin 1992 Sonic the Hedgehog 2 1992 Super Mario Kart 1993 Dinopark Tycoon 1993 Doom 1993 Gauntlet IV 1993 Lufia & the Fortress of Doom (assuming first game) 1993 Mega Man X 1994 Donkey Kong Country 1994 Earthworm Jim 1994 Sonic & Knuckles 1994 Sonic the Hedgehog 3 1994 Super Metroid 1994 The Lion King 1995 Chrono Trigger 1997 Castlevania: Symphony of the Night 1997 Diablo 1997 Final Fantasy VII 1997 Mega Man X4 1997 Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee 1997 Snowboard Kids 1998 Banjo-Kazooie 1998 Metal Gear Solid 1998 Sonic Adventure 1998 South Park 1998 StarCraft: Brood War 1999 Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings 1999 Heroes of Might and Magic III 1999 Planescape: Torment 1999 Quake III Arena 1999 RollerCoaster Tycoon 1999 Silent Hill 1999 Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike 1999 Sven Co-op 1999 Unreal Tournament 1999 Worms Armageddon 2000 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 2000 Diablo II 2000 Resident Evil CODE: Veronica 2000 SimCity 3000 Unlimited 2000 Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 2001 Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies 2001 Final Fantasy X 2001 Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty 2001 Shenmue II 2002 The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind 2003 Beyond Good & Evil 2003 Need for Speed: Underground 2003 Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2004 Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War 2004 Champions of Norrath 2004 Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas 2004 Gran Turismo 4 2004 Half Life 2 2004 Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater 2004 The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap 2005 Champions: Return to Arms 2005 Psychonauts 2005 Shadow of the Colossus 2006 Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War 2006 Ōkami 2007 BioShock 2007 Dark Souls 2007 Mass Effect 2007 Portal 2008 Clonk Rage 2008 Left 4 Dead 2008 Mirror's Edge 2008 Super Smash Bros. Brawl 2009 Dragon Age: Origins 2009 Forza Motorsport 3 2009 Killing Floor 2009 Left 4 Dead 2 2009 Plants vs. Zombies 2009 Steins;Gate 2010 Battlefield: Bad Company 2 2010 Limbo 2010 Nier 2010 Planet Minigolf 2011 Bastion 2011 Portal 2 2011 Terraria 2011 The Binding of Isaac 2012 Hotline Miami 2012 The House in Fata Morgana 2012 Tokyo Jungle 2014 Forza Horizon 2 2014 LISA: The Painful 2015 Bloodborne 2015 Ori and the Blind Forest 2015 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt 2015 Undertale 2016 Doom (2016) 2016 Kirby: Planet Robobot 2016 Stardew Valley 2016 The Witness 2016 Titanfall 2 2016 Tyranny 2017 Little Nightmares 2017 Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (for Deluxe version) 2017 Nier: Automata 2017 Night in the Woods 2017 Super Mario Odyssey 2017 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2018 Celeste 2018 Donut County 2018 Return of the Obra Dinn 2018 Rimworld 2018 Subnautica 2019 A Short Hike 2019 Disco Elysium 2019 Outer Wilds 2019 Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice 2019 Slay the Spire 2020 Cyberpunk 2077 2020 Factorio 2020 Hades 2021 Everhood: An Ineffable Tale of the Inexpressible Divine Moments of Truth 2021 Psychonauts 2 2022 Elden Ring 2022 Lil Gator Game 2023 Baldur's Gate 3 2023 Dave the Diver 2024 Balatro wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:04 last edited byHas seriously no one mentioned The Last of Us? That’s crazy.
I think the second should be included.
As well as red dead redemption 2.
The storytelling is just top tier. Better than literally almost all media made today.
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For me it's Journey. That game gave me an emotional experience I've never had in any other.
wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:05 last edited byAbsolute embodiment of less is more. Controls are simple but intuitive, you can beat it in one session, there's no major payoff in the end. It's just a game about the journey and the friends made along the way.
I still remember having my mind blown that the other figure I met after the tutorial level was not just an NPC, when I noticed their movements were too deliberate and they were solving some puzzles for me.
I made it all the way to the end of the game with that person. Never knew who they even were until their name showed up at the very end. What a cathartic experience. I've also never been able to achieve anything similar since then.
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:12 last edited by
Antichamber
and maybe Portal
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Bastion, Hades, Disco Elysium, Planescape: Torment, and Tyranny (even if the last act is rushed in the last two) come to mind for me
wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:22 last edited byBastion is amazing.
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wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:40 last edited by
A short hike! Very pleased to see this one mentioned. What a game. The best kids game IMO
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I didn’t know Chris Plante is on Lemmy.
wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:48 last edited byQuick, go through their post history and see if they’ve mentioned any Neil Breen films
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 03:50 last edited by
ENA: Dream BBQ
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:00 last edited by
objective
MEDIA APPRECIATION DOES NOT WORK THAT WAY, GOOD NIGHT!
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It actually is directly tied to the movies. The character who first gives Furiosa a chassis to build from isn't quite as hunchbacked as in the game but he is credited as "Chumbucket!"
wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:14 last edited byNo shit that’s awesome!
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I'm going to take this as "games that I never see anyone question their quality." (I don't even like all these games myself)
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Sonic 3 & Knuckles
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Kirby Planet Robobot
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Doom 2016
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Street Fighter III: Third Strike
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Pac-Man
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Balatro
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Steins;Gate
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The House in Fata Morgana
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Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
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Gran Turismo 4
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Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
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Mega Man X
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Mega Man X4
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Super Mario Bros. 3
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Hollow Knight
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Bloodborne
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Elden Ring
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Balder's Gate 3
wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:18 last edited byI am here to question Elden Ring's quality
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:19 last edited by
Outer wilds
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:33 last edited by
Clair Obscur has been the best game I've played in a long while, absolute masterpiece
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 04:38 last edited by
Mega Man X
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For me it's Journey. That game gave me an emotional experience I've never had in any other.
wrote on 28 May 2025, 05:29 last edited byI added the buddy I ran through the game with and he's still on my friend list decade or so later, amazing experience
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:06 last edited by
Doom (93) I guess ?
Also HL and HL2
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I'm going to take this as "games that I never see anyone question their quality." (I don't even like all these games myself)
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Sonic 3 & Knuckles
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Kirby Planet Robobot
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Doom 2016
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Street Fighter III: Third Strike
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Pac-Man
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Balatro
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Steins;Gate
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The House in Fata Morgana
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Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
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Gran Turismo 4
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Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
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Mega Man X
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Mega Man X4
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Super Mario Bros. 3
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Hollow Knight
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Bloodborne
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Elden Ring
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Balder's Gate 3
wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:18 last edited bySteins;Gate my man cultured AF
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:18 last edited by
Super Hexagon
It's about as simple as a 'modern' game can be (I read there was even a port of it to Commodore 64.) but it's a finely tuned machine. When you lose - and you will, a lot - it feels like mostly your own fault and not the game's.
The difficulty levels very accurately start at Hard for the easiest one. There are 6 total levels, the next 5 difficulties are Harder, Hardest, Hardester, Hardestest, and Hardestestest.
With much time and luck I can beat the first level (unlocking the 4th). On a lost save I had unlocked the 5th level by completing the 2nd, and have only ever seen the 6th in videos from other people. I would have to beat the 3rd to see it myself, and that's not happening.
The criteria to beat a level is "last for 60 seconds".
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This post did not contain any content.wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:20 last edited by
The Spyro the dragon trilogy for me is just an absolute masterpiece.
Final Fantasy VII, IX and X are three master pieces
Metroid prime and fusion
Fatal Frame trilogy on the PlayStation 2, Forbidden Siren, Silent Hill 2, Resident Evil 2 are amongst the best of the best
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Are you saying that Portal 2 is not perfect due is a sequel?
wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:25 last edited byIn my opinion, Portal 2’s difficulty curve was off. It started in a good place and ended in a good place but was too easy for most of the game.
The two player section was fantastic though.
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Super Hexagon
It's about as simple as a 'modern' game can be (I read there was even a port of it to Commodore 64.) but it's a finely tuned machine. When you lose - and you will, a lot - it feels like mostly your own fault and not the game's.
The difficulty levels very accurately start at Hard for the easiest one. There are 6 total levels, the next 5 difficulties are Harder, Hardest, Hardester, Hardestest, and Hardestestest.
With much time and luck I can beat the first level (unlocking the 4th). On a lost save I had unlocked the 5th level by completing the 2nd, and have only ever seen the 6th in videos from other people. I would have to beat the 3rd to see it myself, and that's not happening.
The criteria to beat a level is "last for 60 seconds".
wrote on 28 May 2025, 06:35 last edited by foobarrington@lemmy.worldSuper. Hexagon.
It's hard to explain the relief I felt upon beating the last level. I can fairly easily survive for 300s in the first one, but I've never gotten close to beating the last one again.
The most important tip I can give: if you have a 60Hz monitor, turn off VSync. Makes a huge difference.
There's also a "spiritual successor" called Open Hexagon that's extendable by the community if you want more, though I haven't played it myself.
