For the next few weeks, my Xbox is going to take a backseat to my favorite sporting event of the year: March Madness. What little time I have left for video games will probably be spent playing Dragon Age: Origins, and since we’ve covered that on the site, I figured I’d try something new: a video game bracket!
I’ve chosen 28 of my favorite games across 4 different categories (“regions”), and as the NCAA tournament plays itself out, so too will you get to watch this video game bracket play itself out. Why am I doing this? Well, I love brackets, first of all. Secondly, it’s a chance for me to take a trip down memory lane and narrow down some of my favorite games of all time. I recognize that a lot of times comparing games is like comparing apples to oranges, which is why I separated the games by genres (loosely).
Anyway, I’ve left the 8 seed open in all four regions, so I need YOU, the Leveling Down reader, to suggest games to finish out the bracket. Hit the jump to see the selection committee’s (aka, cmfl3x’s) criteria and some other notes about this totally awesome tournament.
You can access the entire bracket here:
March Madness – Video Game Style
Now, a couple of notes on how the games were chosen:
1. Video Games were split up into 4 Regions: The Hollywood Region (games with good stories – mainly RPGs), The M16 Region (shooters – any perspective), The Sun-Tzu Region (strategy games), and The Hodj Podj Region (miscellaneous games).
2. Games must have been sold for retail; thus Warcraft III is an option, but Defense of the Ancients (a mod), is not.
3. Games were seeded mostly according to critical acclaim. For recent games, I used metacritic, and for older games I did my best to guesstimate where they would fall. Probably not the best metric, but the best I could come up with for now.
4. I didn’t choose multiple games from any series, so you won’t see both Halo 2 and 3 in the field.
That’s it! I’ll be pitting these games against each other over the next few weeks, but be warned, I’ll mostly be arbitrarily choosing my favorites (but comments on why you feel a game should beat another will definitely have potential to sway my opinion). If there is a large outcry, maybe we could set up a poll, but you’ll have to let us know if you want that to happen – or we could do that next year.
Anyway, onto this year’s field! And remember, be sure to suggest games you think I’ve left out – there are 4 more spots to fill!
The Hollywood Region – Great Storylines
Matchups:
(1) BioShock vs. (8) TBD
(4) God of War vs. (5) Portal
(3) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic vs. (6) Beyond Good and Evil
(2) Metal Gear Solid vs. (7) Final Fantasy IV
(1) BioShock [360/PS3], metacritic = 96 – Although the story fizzled out at the end, Bioshock definitely has a story that sticks with you, and a plot twist that really gets in your head.
(2) Metal Gear Solid [PS1/GC], metacritic = 94 – Hideo Kojima’s masterpiece, this game helped to change video game storytelling and really put the scene into the cut scene. Narrowly edged out Metal Gear Solid 3, which is personally my favorite story.
(3) Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic [Xbox/PC], metacritic = 94 – Every Star Wars fanboy’s dream, this game also featured some excellent plot twists and introduced Bioware as a story-telling developer to be reckoned with.
(4) God of War [PS2], metacritic = 94 – Even though I’m not a huge fan of the gameplay, God of War has an amazing storyline. Kratos seeking his revenge on the Gods is one of the best premises for a videogame, and his backstory makes it even more rewarding.
(5) Portal [360/PS3/PC], metacritic = 90 – This “add-on” in the Orange Box has one of the most cleverly told narratives in a video game to date. It’s not a story, per se, but the way Valve sets the mood and brings the game to its amusing conclusion is worthy of…cake.
(6) Beyond Good and Evil [Xbox/PS2/GC], ,etacritic = 87 – This game was a huge hit with the gaming community, but never had good sales. The characters and innovative story are what make this game, but unfortunately, nobody ever played it.
(7) Final Fantasy IV [SNES, GBA, DS], metacritic = 85 – This game is underseeded since the metacritic score comes from the DS version. My favorite Final Fantasy story ever. Final Fantasy VI’s Kefka was memorable, but this was the first Final Fantasy game where I actually cared about the characters and what happened to them. STONE!
(8) TBD
The M16 Region – Shooters
Matchups:
(1) Metroid Prime vs. (8) TBD
(4) Halo 3 vs. (5) Modern Warfare 2
(3) Goldeneye vs. (6) Doom 2
(2) Uncharted 2 vs. (7) Gears of War 2
(1) Metroid Prime [GC/Wii], metacritic = 97 – That Metroid Prime is the #1 seed in this region seems like an upset in itself, but the numbers don’t lie. Metroid Prime kept the feel of the classic games while switching to a first person perspective and remains my favorite Gamecube game to this day.
(2) Uncharted 2 [PS3], metacritic = 96 – This game could probably have made it into the Hollywood Region as well, but here it is matched up with Gears of War 2, the other 3rd person shooter in this bracket. I think this one might be a walk.
(3) Goldeneye [N64] metacritic = 96 – There is a reason why people keep requesting that Goldeneye be re-released: it is one of the best games ever, period. Sure, FPS games have taken huge leaps since then, but Goldeneye helped pave the way, especially on consoles. Fitting that it be up against the other old school FPS game, Doom 2.
(4) Halo 3 [360], metacritic = 94 – Why is Halo 3 #4 and Modern Warfare 2 #5? Simply put, Halo 3 has probably had more traffic over the course of Xbox Live’s history. Of course, it had a pretty big head start, but the fact that a million kids are still playing it as I type this gives it the slight edge.
(5) Modern Warfare 2 [360/PS3/PC], metacritic = 94 – What is there to write? The most complete multiplayer FPS game to date. It will battle it out with Halo 3, just like it does on the servers.
(6) Doom 2 [PC], metacritic = N/A – Back when you needed to use a modem to connect with other players, Doom 2 set the bar for first person shooters. It had no story whatsoever, but nobody cared – the secret tricks and traps, the deathmatch games, and the co-op deathmatch games were never forgotten by old school gamers.
(7) Gears of War 2 [360], metacritic = 93 – Gears of War 2 is here so I don’t get flamed by Xbox fans. It’s a great game, and probably could make the bracket solely on account of the assault rifle chainsaw alone.
The Sun-Tzu Region – Strategy Games
Matchups:
(1) Civilization IV vs. (8) TBD
(4) Warcraft III vs. (5) Dune 2
(3) Starcraft vs. (6) Halo Wars
(2) Advance Wars: Dual Strike vs. (7) Final Fantasy Tactics A2
(1) Civilization IV [PC], metacritic = 94 – One more turn. Players have been saying that to themselves for over a decade now with the Civ games, which task you with conquering the world in multiple different ways. This game features addictive gameplay that strategy gamers can’t get enough of.
(2) Advance Wars: Dual Strike [DS], metacritic = 90 – I’m shocked that this game is the 2 seed in this region, but that’s metacritic for you. An excellent turn based strategy game, it introduced battles on both screens (air on top, ground on bottom), which made for some pretty unique gameplay.
(3) Starcraft [PC/Mac], metacritic = 88 – 88? Seriously? Maybe game reviewers were just tougher back then. Starcraft is THE real time strategy game. It was so big it spawned super competitive, televised tournament circuits in Korea. It introduced the term actions per second. The landscape of video gaming was never the same again.
(4) Warcraft III [PC/Mac], Metacritic = 88 – Warcraft III, another Blizzard masterpiece, introduced hero units and greater micromanagement into real time strategy games. It also spawned the immensely popular Defense of the Ancients mod.
(5) Dune 2 [PC], metacritic = N/A – Dune 2 was the game that put RTS games on the map, both for gamers at large and for me personally. It can’t stand up to these heavyweights, but I thought it at least deserved some recognition. Watch out for sandworms.
(6) Halo Wars [360], metacritic = 82 – This is mainly here so certain readers of the site don’t lambaste me. In its defense, it is the best console RTS out there, hands down. All units!
(7) Final Fantasy Tactics A2 [DS], metacritic = 80 – The Final Fantasy Tactics games are an excellent series with very deep, strategic gameplay. You could literally spend 100 hours playing this game and not run out of things to do. Almost infinite bang for your buck!
The Hodj Podj Region – Other Games
Note: This is probably the most random region, I just tried to represent other genres as best as possible.
Matchups:
(1) Super Mario 64 vs. (8) TBD
(4) Warioware Inc., Mega Microgame$ vs. (5) NHL 94
(3) World of Warcraft vs. (6) Secret of Monkey Island
(2) Street Fighter IV vs. (7) Animal Crossing
(1) Super Mario 64 [N64],mMetacritic = 94 – Like Metroid Prime, Super Mario 64 took a beloved game and put a whole new twist on it. Unlike Metroid Prime, SM64 launched the 3-D era. Plus you could unlock Yoshi, which was awesome…
(2) Street Fighter IV [360/PS3/PC], metacritic = 94 – Street Fighter IV completely reinvigorated the entire fighting game genre, no small feat considering people had considered fighting games all but dead.
(3) World of Warcraft [PC/Mac],mMetacritic = 93 – Just like Starcraft, WoW is the pinnacle of its genre, the MMORPG. I think more hours have been sunk into WoW than it took to build America.
(4) Warioware Inc., Mega Microgame$ [GBA], metacritic = N/A – This was the first minigame collection I can remember that only gave you 5 seconds per minigame. A ridiculous premise, ridiculous games including picking a nose, and a ridiculous amount of fun.
(5) NHL 94 [SNES, Genesis], metacritic = N/A – My favorite sports game ever, and one of the last games before sports games got super complicated. I’m sure people would rather see some Maddens here but…oh well.
(6) Secret of Monkey Island [PC/360], metacritic = 88 – The token representative of the adventure game genre, this game featured great humor and great puzzles, a killer combination. I’ll never forget what to do with a rubber chicken attached to a pulley.
(7) Animal Crossing [GC, DS, Wii], metacritic = 87 – There are a multitude of games that task you with the mundane parts of our daily lives, but Animal Crossing was one of the first I found really memorable. How fun is it to catch fish and leave them in your friends’ mailboxes!?
Parting Thoughts
And that’s the almost complete Video Game Bracket! Post in the comments games you think I missed out and that I should include as the 8 seeds, or tell me I’m power crazy for even doing this! I’ll be watching 12 hours straight of basketball…
Wow, you really put a lot of time into this!!
Here are my suggestions for the 8th seeds in each category. I do realize that maybe you haven’t played all of these games, so I don’t know how this will affect anything, but here they are anyway.
Hollywood Region
8. Planescape Torment (PC)
There are tons of PC RPGs that have excellent stories (Just look at BioWare’s resume), but Black Isle Studios’ Planescape: Torment has the most original and engrossing storyline I think I’ve ever played. In this game, you play as a nameless character who has no recollection of his past nor can he die, but throughout the game he parties up with interesting characters (including a wise-cracking skull) and uncovers his mysterious origin. I would still recommend even playing it today because it’s still that good.
The M16 Region – Shooters
8. Resident Evil 4 (GC, Wii)
Metroid Prime was definitely one of the top games I’ve ever played on the Gamecube. I would say top, but it shares that spot with Resident Evil 4, arguably the best Resident Evil game in the series. Fortunately, both have been re-released on the Wii, so they can still be experienced by those that didn’t own the Gamecube back in its time.
The Sun-Tzu Region – Strategy Games
8. Galactic Civilizations II (PC)
What better way to set up a strategy game matchup then to put one of the only other most popular PC strategy games against it? Galactic Civilizations II is basically Civilization in space, and I have probably spent as many hours playing this turn-based strategy game as Civilization IV.
The Hodj Podj Region – Other Games
8. The Legend of Zelda – A Link to the Past (SNES)
I’m surprised to see that Zelda didn’t get any representation in the bracket, and so it’s fitting to put it up against what some argue is the best Mario game made since I believe A Link to the Past is the best Zelda game ever made. Who wins – Mario or Link?
Pretty cool bracket – this should be fun to see how it pans out. Here are my suggestions for the extra games:
Hollywood Region: Prince of Persia, The Sands of Time
This was my favourite of the POP games because the gameplay was so innovative and tight – being able to run along walls was so fun and now this type of gameplay is almost taken for granted. The story was great too – and of course Hollywood are about to release their version of this story in a couple months.
M16 Region: I agree with espion4ge and will go with Resident Evil 4. Maybe not too much of a shooter, but it definitely deserves to be in the bracket somewhere. I would almost consider swapping it with Bioshock?
Sun-Tzu Region: I don’t know anything about strategy games, so I’ll just suggest Command & Conquer. At least one of them must have been good right?
Hodj Podj Region: This is my big pick – Rock Band 2. Or the original Guitar Hero. Gotta give the music games some love here!
Great post!
Hollywood or Hodj Podj: Tales of Symphonia has a great story and easily one of the best gamecube games ever.
Sun-Tzu: I think the orinigal Final Fantasy Tactics is incredible or the Fire Emblem series all are good strategy games.
Nominee for Hodj Podj – Shadow of the Colossus (PS2). That’s my fav adventure game of all time, actually only played through it 2 years ago (many years after it’s release) and was totally amazed by how awesome the several gaming elements were for such an old game.
I think Shadow of the Colossus can definitely contend with Super Mario 64…
Graphics – amazing, breathtaking setting. A desolate countryside with desert, mountainous, and lake regions to explore with awesome sky effects – blazing sun that sets, misty fog, and stormy thunderous skies all take place in this game. What does Mario have? A bunch of bright colors and sparkling stars – yippee.
Not to mention – the amazingly detailed fluidness of the character (and horse!) actions just make you wonder how long it took to develop.
Gameplay – I’ve never felt so much sense of achievement playing a video game than when I played Shadow of the Colossus – each time I defeated a foe, it was like I had figured out a way to win the lottery and win it every time. The basic premise of gameplay is you are a human equipped with a horse, a sword, and a bow and arrow versus giant colossi of varying size, strength, speed, and skill. And that’s it; that’s all you get the whole game. No leveling up, no HP increases, no new weapons, no new skills learned. This really is great – no item management or skill tree to develop that puts the focus on gameplay versus character building. The odds really seem stacked against you and they really are, so you just feel that much more victorious every time you defeat a colossus.
Story – to add on the feeling of desperation, the reason why you are defeating the colossi to bring back to the life the love of your life. The overall premise and feeling of desperation and urgency makes you want to keep going. The twisted ending also makes you wonder. I will admit the story development in SotC isn’t great, but it’s definitely better than defeat Bowser to rescue the Kingdom.
Music – just PERFECT. Really adds to the setting and the beautiful world that you are in, yet has that twinge of ominence. And then when you encounter a colossus, the music just erupts into a heart-racing battle sequence. The music even changes volume (and even track) during the fight depending on what you are doing. A serious soundtrack for a serious game.
Replayability – and when you finally go through challenge after challenge and beat the game, it unlocks “HARD” mode lol. freakin awesome
nice pick! I never got a chance to play Team Ico’s Ico or Shadow of the Colossus on the PS2, but I am looking forward to picking up their next game, The Last Guardian, when it comes out later this year. Hopefully I’ll have my PS3 by then!
Oh and I just checked metacritic – they gave Shadow of the Colossus a 91. Good to know critics agree.
man, halo wars vs starcraft in the first round?!? so much for a cinderella story, this thing is rigged!!
I noticed the absence of mariokart in the hodj podj division… if it’s a go, I nominate either super mariokart or mariokart 64
My nominees for 8 seeds:
Hollywood: Assassin’s Creed 2
M16: You will never put Borderlands in here, so I won’t bother. Actually, I don’t even like Borderlands that much. How about Counterstrike?
The Art of War: Final Fantasy Tactics should absolutely be here and win this bracket. I’m ok if Starcraft wins it though.
Hodj Podj: I like the original Guitar Hero/Rock Band 2 suggestion. And Street Fighter 2 should be in there instead of Street Fighter 4.
Also, FFT A2 should not be there. Why are you including DS games?
Haha espion4ge and I talked about it. We’re probably gonna change it to the original FF Tactics. No offense NatureB4E, but DS has some of the best games out there, so it’s fair for there to be one or two reps out there. Plus, it’s all arbitrary!
For sure:
Resident Evil 4
Star Control 2
Possibly:
Half-Life 1
Counter-Strike
Master of Orion 1
Diablo
Zelda Ocarina of Time
Personal favorites:
Megaman 3
Contra 3
Those are off the top of my head.