LogFAQs > #977179062

65. Mother 3
A game of highs and...not lows, but mediums. There's no part of Mother 3 that's outright bad, but some parts are clearly less interesting than others. It lacks the ever-present weirdness of Earthbound, where random details would keep you entertained even when nothing was really happening. That feels like an unfair comparison, as Mother 3's plot wouldn't have fit with constant quirkiness, but I can't ignore the fact that some sections were just kinda okay.

Those highs, though? They'll stick with you. Mother 3 goes straight for the heart.

64. Phoenix Wright: Dual Destinies
Deserves a spot on this list just from rescuing Phoenix from the garbage bin. I couldn't stand what AA4 did to his character. Should he have been retired after AA3? Does his presence make it difficult for Apollo and Athena to get the limelight they need? Yes, and I consider all those as acceptable tradeoffs. It's not easy to salvage a plot-based series after the well has been thoroughly poisoned. DD essentially performed a miracle, and bringing back the poster boy was a necessary part of that.

When DD came out I ranked it as my 2nd-favorite in the series in large part due to Phoenix Is Back hype but I've cooled on it since then. It doesn't reach the peaks of AA1 or AA3. Still, it's one of the most consistently enjoyable Ace Attorney games, and it definitely has its moments.

63. Dragon Warrior Monsters
Caught me in my monster-collecting phase. Outside of Pokemon itself, this is the only other one I ended up enjoying. Dragon Warrior Monsters (titled that way due to Game Boy Color nostalgia) has three notable strengths. First, it's Dragon Quest. The monsters have fantastic designs, and in this type of game, that's very important. Second, the breeding system is jank but fun. It has an element of commitment to it, where you permanently lose the two monsters you put together. There's no compendium like Persona. In exchange, you get to create unique combinations with bizarre stats and abilities that don't fit whatsoever.

Third and a bigger deal to me than most players are the randomly-generated dungeons. Each dungeon is split up into floors, and each floor has the potential to be something completely different then the last There's a good number of variations, and it does a lot to keep things fresh throughout the game's lengthy runtime.

62. Dragon Warrior III
I recently replayed this a few years ago. Square announced the HD remake a week later. Damnit.

Dragon Quest III probably wouldn't feel special to modern-day gamers the reason being that it influenced every JRPG under the sun. This game basically created the template for the genre, and even after Final Fantasy evolved it, the roots are still there. It's the Seinfeld of games, feeling derivative due to being such a foundational piece of media.

And much like Seinfeld, it's still great anyway. Dragon Quest III has charm out the wazoo, great area design, simple-but-fun combat, and strong character customization. It also has the single-best introduction in any game I've played, where you answers a series of personal questions, get thrown into one of many unique mini-scenarios, then are judged based on the actions you take. Other games may have copied everything else about DQ3, but not this, for some reason.

Actually, I might have gotten a similar experience playing Dragon Warrior III for the Game Boy Color that people in Japan got playing DQ3 on release. Being an RPG lover with only Nintendo systems for the first 6-7 years of my life was...tough. This and Dragon Warrior Monsters were my oasis in the desert.

61. Half-Life
Either the original or the Black Mesa remake. Both are equal in my eyes.

Very few people would rank Half-Life 1 above 2, but I like to live dangerously. HL1 does nearly everything right. It set a standard that should be met by games released decades later, yet rarely is. The secret sauce for why this game is evergreen lies in the phenomenal level design. Exploring Black Mesa is exciting from start to finish. It has a very strong closed-in atmosphere, as well as frequent, unique setpieces and encounters. The moment-to-moment gameplay is hard to beat.