ten best videogames of all time

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
Quite possibly the greatest game ever made. The gameplay is rock-solid, the story line is one of the best, and the enemies, weapons, dungeons are all varied and well done. It's hard to believe that it came out in 1992, but the game still holds up under modern standards. The absolute gold standard for adventure/rpg games. It must be said: LTTP is better than Ocarina of Time. Only real flaw in the game is its short length.

High Point: The Hookshot

Secret of Mana (SNES)
This one isn't quite as popular as other squaresoft games, but it's just as good as any of the final fantasy games. The story is excellent and involving, and the battles aren't the usual turn-based like in most role playing games. The only drawback for this game is the spell casting, which allows for some pretty easy fights a lot of times(you basically can cast a spell so frequently that enemies can't counter attack). Either way, an excellent game that really you draws you in with the well put together story and deep characters. The soundtrack is also incredible.

High Point: Fighting the Dark Lich

Final Fantasy VI (SNES)
The best of all the final fantasy games. Final Fantasy VI is ridiculously deep for a super nintendo game. FFVI also boasts the greatest villian in videogame history, Kefka. Kefka is evil incarnate. His goal is absolute nothingness, the end of existence for the universe. A vast array of characters to develop and an expansive world to explore will keep you busy for 40-50 hours easily. There are no real flaws in FFVI.

High Point: Waking up from a year long coma halfway through the game and finding the world you knew is gone forever.

Chrono Trigger (SNES)
Another fantastic RPG from Squaresoft. This one has its own unique battle system which, while turn based, allows for team attacks that really satisfy. The story in Chrono Trigger might be the best in any RPG. You really start to care about the plight of your heroes trying to fix the timeline and stop Lavos from destroying the world. Chrono Trigger is a bit on the easy side, which is the only negative.

High Point: Schala sacrificing herself to the Mammon Machine.

Shadowman (Dreamcast)
This game is dark, really dark. You are Michael Leroi, dark soul hunter. A demon called Legion has possessed a group of men called The Five and forced them to kill myriads of innocent people. These men cannot be killed by conventional weaponry, but Michael Leroi has a gun that expels energy that rips their souls from their bodies and sends the demons to hell. For an adventure game, Shadowman is loooooong. It could take you about 20-25 hours to beat, and the game is very open-ended, allowing for multiple ways to get to where you are going. It takes a while to get going, but Shadowman is extremely satisfying, extremely dark and twisted, and one of the most underrated games out there.

High Point: Confronting Victor Batrachian.

Half-Life 2 (including all subsequent episodes) (PC)
The best FPS ever made. The story, pacing, voice acting, graphics, level variety, and gameplay are all as good as it gets. The protagonist, Gordon Freeman, is one of the coolest characters in video games. The last 30 minutes of Half-Life 2: Episode 2 is one of the most intense and exciting segments you will find in any game. The only flaw in this game is the overly long driving sections.

High Point: Ravenholm with Father Grigori

Super Metroid (SNES)
This game is awesome. It's that simple. The boss fights are epic and the different regions of the planet you invade are wonderfully varied and fun to explore. All the suit enhancements and powerups will keep you busy for awhile. For it's time, the graphics were some of the best around. The only drawback is length. If you know exactly what to do and where to go, you can beat the game in under 2 hours easily.

High Point: Hyper Beam

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Playstation)
Of all the subsequent Castlevania games that have come along and copied the same formula, none of them are as good as SOTN. There is so much to see and find in this game it's ridiculous Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is an absolute must play for any gamer. Also, one of the most laughably bad scripts in history. That is the only real knock on SOTN.

High Point: The inverted castle

Resident Evil 4 (Gamecube)
Just when Resident Evil was getting pretty stale, Capcom reinvented and reinvigorated the franchise with Resident Evil 4. RE4 was so much fun I've played through it probably 6-7 times. This was the first game I played that made use of quick time events, and RE4 made excellent use of them. The only weakness of RE4 is the underwhelming last boss.

High Point: Oven Man and the knife fight with Krauser

Bioshock (PC)
One of the most inventive games to come along in ages. Bioshock takes place in the underwater city of Rapture where almost everyone has gone insane from injecting themselves with a substance that grants all sorts of powers and abilities. Your character gains all sorts of powers and finds a variety of weapons to fight off the hordes of crazies. The presentation and setting of Bioshock is incredible; it really is quite a unique game. The main flaw in the game is the difficulty. It can be really easy for a video game veteran.

High Point: The confrontation with Andrew Ryan: A man chooses, a slave obeys.