I was too sozzled during the marfGH New Year's Eve stream to remember to do this, but I righted the wrong at the start of this week's Okami stream and showed off my beaten games memory card. Since 2024, I've been using an old 32MB PS2 memory card as a big dumping ground for PS1 and PS2 games I went through and completed. It's about half-filled now, and the part of me that's addicted to finishing things loves to look at the saves pile up as time goes on.
Looking at my gaming habits this year, a few things about how I like my games become apparent which may or may not be a surprise to you:
- I really like games I can breeze through. This is funny given how big I was into RetroAchievements, where some of the achievements I've gone for have been exceedingly difficult, but I do like to shut off to things that are quite easy. I don't know if I've ever found a game too easy, or easy to the point of being less-than-satisfying.
- I love mechanical satisfaction over all else. I love a good, fluid game that prizes a bit of skill. Stories are nice, and I have story games I enjoyed for the story, but rarely do they factor into whether a game was my favorite or not.
- Conversely, a game where progress is glacial and hard to measure frustrates me. I don't want every trip to every place I need to go next to be a padded out stroll through the daisies. Games are not impressive to me just because they're big. Big doesn't mean fun.
- My true favorites are repetitively satisfying games that I can shut off to. Look, I already think too much. Every project I make turns into a gigantic, sprawling thing that eats up a month of my time and makes my girlfriend go "Cammy what the fuck". I write huge things because the only thing I know how to do is keep talking. Maybe I'd like to turn on my PS2 and fuck over the Packers 35-0 every single night for 2-3 weeks while I listen to MATI or albums or whatever for a change.
In celebration of how many games I did beat, I thought it'd be fun to rank them in 140 characters each. I'm ranking my overall enjoyment of the experience looking back, not how good I think the game is, so sometimes, great games will be ranked low, and new (to me), novel favorites that left me on a high will rank high. Most are PS1 and PS2, but there's the occasional Game Boy game also from the trip. If I've done a proper review on my other site for it at the time of writing, I'll link that in the heading for each game. I'll make this a yearly thing, perhaps.
#1: Madden NFL 2003 (PS2)
The polish of the next generation! Mini Camp! Compared to the PS1 ones, just so damn easy to play and such a nicely-rounded experience.
#2: Rock Band (PS2)
Great fun despite the engine/port limitations. I'm never gonna forget gold-starring the three hardest Expert guitar songs on the same day.
#3: Spyro the Dragon (PS1)
Thank you for releasing me. Makes me wanna listen to Semisonic. Comfy, lush, easy-breezy platforming, except Tree Tops. Fuck Tree Tops.
#4: Guitar Hero II and Rocks the 80s (PS2)
Still maybe my favorite game of all time, next to Minecraft. I didn't even miss the Deluxe features as much as I thought I would.
#5: Madden NFL 2002 (PS1)
For everything weird about it, these really have become comfort food zoneout listen-to-stuff games for me, and those are my favorites.
#6: Gran Turismo (PS1)
Ass license tests, weird physics, grindy as any of them. Racing, especially in GT Hi-Fi, is still thrilling as fuck, though.
#7: Ratchet and Clank: Going Commando (PS2)
The template for how you do a sequel. Everything good about the first, but three times as explosive, with much better difficulty balancing.
#8: Rock Band 2 (PS2)
Seeing the other side of this game is a badge of honor. Almost too much great music. Thank God for singleplayer bass for the harder songs.
#9: Pokémon Blue (GB)
There's just a warm wistfulness about Kanto about the time I get to Celadon that I absolutely adore. Yes, I did Catch 'Em All, all 151.
#10: Madden NFL 2005 (DS)
Basically the wonky late PS1 Maddens on the DS, which I like. Precipitated all my late-year sports gaming. Underrated, if underbaked.
#11: Guitar Hero (PS2)
All my nitpicks are things that would make normal people go "if you say so". All the best, hugely fun bits were in place from the start.
#12: All Rock Band Track Packs (Vol. 1, Vol. 2, AC/DC Live, Classic Rock, all PS2)
Hard to argue with more of a good thing, but no singleplayer bass and the shitty Practice mode really makes the hardest songs a slog.
#13: Sega Rally Championship (PS2)
Arcade-perfect racing bliss with really satisfying car handling/physics. I'm absolutely shit at it, but that didn't stop me the fun.
#14: Pokémon Puzzle Challenge (GBC)
It's no Tetris, but this still cleansed my palate real nicely between Madden 2005 DS and episodes of Top Gear alone in the lounge in Wales.
#15: FreQuency (PS2)
Weirdly, I think I did better on PAL than NTSC. Harmonix's first game and it shows, but it's still a lot of fun and the music is terrific.
#16: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 (PS1)
Impressive that it even exists. Some of the later goals are absolutely sadistic, but I still got it all over my face, neck, and chest.
#17: Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (PS2)
Huge technical achievement, the comfiest islands to visit, but irritating to navigate. Definite third place PS2 mascot platformer for me.
#18: Pac-Man World 2 (PS2)
Short and cute, but man, having that OG asshole difficulty version really sucked the fun out of it. The ice skating is still the best part.
#19: Pitfall: The Lost Expedition (PS2)
Well, I'm glad to have beaten it finally. Decent platforming and movement, but too much running around, and everyone in it is a space alien.
#20: Fantavision (PS2)
I mean, it's pretty! I thought the 70s chic was a little campy for my tastes, and there's not really much of a game to it, but it's pretty.
Dishonorable mentions (games I started and gave up on)
Neopets: The Darkest Faerie (PS2)
I really wanted to beat this—it's so cute!—but knowing where to go next sucks and navigating is a chore. Mate, where's the fast travel?
Jimmy Neutron: Jet Fusion (PS2)
"Okay, so let's make a platformer where the jumping fucking sucks, and it's for kids." The funniest part is they gave Jimmy a gun in school.
Tagged under: gaming
