Rate the Game: Week 106

[M-A-G]

Good morning again, y'all! You ready to rock this fucker? We're down to the last 20 games here as we're reaching the end of April. Well, barring any mishaps, that is. We've got last week's Burnout Paradise to deal with now that we've done all of that rating jazz. A bit of split on the opinions surrounding it but what does the leaderboard have to say about all of it?

<select><option selected="">Rate the Game Results

<option>1. (TIE) The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (4.8)</option>
<option>3. (TIE) Hitman: Codename 47, Mass Effect (4.75)</option>
<option>5. Goldeneye 007 (4.72)</option>
<option>6. Super Mario Bros. 3 (4.7)</option>
<option>7. Silent Hill 2 (4.66)
<option>8. (3-WAY TIE) Chrono Trigger, Portal, Red Dead Redemption (4.5)</option>
<option>11. (3-WAY TIE) Mega Man 2, Donkey Kong Country, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars (4.44)</option>
<option>14. Super Mario Bros. (4.41)</option>
<option>15. God of War (4.4)</option>
<option>16. Mega Man X (4.36)</option>
<option>17. (TIE) Metal Gear Solid, BioShock (4.33)</option>
<option>19. Perfect Dark (4.3)</option>
<option>20. (TIE) Shadow of the Colossus, The Last of Us (4.28)</option>
<option>22. Super Street Fighter 2 (4.15)</option>
<option>23. Sonic the Hedgehog (4.14)</option>
<option>24. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (4.125)</option>
<option>25. Super Mario 64 (4.07)</option>
<option>26. (TIE) Grand Theft Auto 3, The Legend of Zelda (4.06)</option>
<option>28. NBA Jam (4.05)</option>
<option>29. (12-WAY TIE) Super Mario Kart (4.0)</option>
<option>- Sonic the Hedgehog 2</option>
<option>- Super Metroid</option>
<option>- The Simpsons</option>
<option>- Castlevania: Symphony of the Night</option>
<option>- Donkey Kong Country 2</option>
<option>- Resident Evil 4</option>
<option>- Super Smash Bros.</option>
<option>- Banjo-Kazooie</option>
<option>- EarthBound</option>
<option>- Fallout 3</option>
<option>- Mirror's Edge</option>
<option>41. Final Fantasy 7 (3.94)</option>
<option>42. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time (3.92)</option>
<option>43. Mega Man (3.89)</option>
<option>44. (3-WAY TIE) Contra, Castlevania, Devil May Cry (3.86)</option>
<option>47. Half-Life 2 (3.85)</option>
<option>48. (TIE) Half-Life, Infamous (3.83)</option>
<option>50. (TIE) SimCity 2000, Final Fight (3.8)</option>
<option>52. Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver (3.77)</option>
<option>53. Batman: Arkham Asylum (3.76)</option>
<option>54. (TIE) Double Dragon, Max Payne (3.75)</option>
<option>56. Tetris (3.69)</option>
<option>57. Mortal Kombat 2 (3.67)</option>
<option>58. (TIE) Diablo, F.E.A.R. (3.66)</option>
<option>60. Mortal Kombat (3.65)</option>
<option>61. Doom (3.625)</option>
<option>62. StarFox (3.61)</option>
<option>63. Resident Evil (3.58)</option>
<option>64. (3-WAY TIE) Ninja Gaiden, Shinobi, Burnout Paradise (3.5)</option>
<option>67. Dead Space (3.4)</option>
<option>68. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (3.39)</option>
<option>69. Resident Evil: Nemesis (3.38)</option>
<option>70. (5-WAY TIE) Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Condemned: Criminal Origins, Crash Bandicoot, Wolfenstein 3D, Left 4 Dead (3.33)</option>
<option>75. Gears of War (3.27)</option>
<option>76. (TIE) Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Borderlands (3.22)</option>
<option>78. (3-WAY TIE) Quake, Duke Nukem 3D, Darkstalkers (3.2)</option>
<option>81. SoulCalibur (3.16)</option>
<option>82. Pac-Man (3.125)</option>
<option>83. Killer Instinct (3.11)</option>
<option>84. (TIE) Virtua Fighter, Rock Band (3.09)</option>
<option>86. (5-WAY TIE) Time Crisis, Tekken, Earthworm Jim, Metroid, Halo 2 (3.0)</option>
<option>91. Guitar Hero (2.875)</option>
<option>92. Streets of Rage (2.84)</option>
<option>93. Altered Beast (2.8)</option>
<option>94. Bayonetta (2.75)</option>
<option>95. (3-WAY TIE) Dead Rising, Gauntlet, Assassin's Creed (2.71) </option>
<option>98. (TIE) Silent Hill, The Sims (2.6)</option>
<option>100. Tomb Raider (2.55)</option>
<option>101. Halo: Combat Evolved (2.5)</option>
<option>102. (TIE) Twisted Metal, Crackdown (2.42)</option>
<option>104. Gran Turismo (2.3)</option>
<option>105. Ghosts n' Goblins (2.14)</option>
</select>

Well a 3.5 average means Burnout Paradise is going to take up the 64th spot for now, along with some...uh...interesting company in Ninja Gaiden and Shinobi. Million-dollar game idea: combine ninjas with auto racing. License to print money!

What sort of devilry will we be dabbling in this week? It's time for game number 106 to make itself known. What do you say, bowl?

<iframe src="https://giphy.com/embed/3neRtCWhvtDHQWNqPy" width="480" height="222" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="https://giphy.com/gifs/3neRtCWhvtDHQWNqPy">via GIPHY</a></p>

The bowl has spoken, y'all! It's wisdom unparalleled. This week we take a look back on the psychological thriller with a television-style presentation from those crazy fucks that gave us Max Payne, Alan Wake! This title was almost like a callback to the survival horror games of yore with a twist but does it deserve to be remembered as a classic or does it fall flat? What do you say, TPWW Universe? Let's start this countdown to the end as we do that rating thing and see how Alan Wake fares. Until next week!

[Big Vic]

I feel like I heard of this game before?

[drave]

never understood the hype and didnt play it

[ClockShot]

This was fun.

The tie in with Control years down the road was a nice way to debut the remaster

[Lock Jaw]

Never played it.

[M-A-G]

Bought this for the friend who introduced me to this game as a gift. I thought it was appropriate but it's so good that I kind of want to get one for myself now. :o

https://ih1.redbubble.net/image.703820700.7079/throwpillow,small,1000x-bg,f8f8f8-c,0,200,1000,1000.u1.jpg

[Big Vic]

Imagine if this 100+ series ended on "Alan Wake"

[M-A-G]

I've got enough heavy hitters left in the pile to where we don't end on a dud...I hope.

[M-A-G]

This was fun.

The tie in with Control years down the road was a nice way to debut the remaster

I had to look that up as I hadn't heard of that. It sounds interesting, the kind of thing that's up my alley. I feel like buying it would just doom it to the fate of some of my other recent purchases which are just on my shelf.

[ClockShot]

I had to look that up as I hadn't heard of that. It sounds interesting, the kind of thing that's up my alley. I feel like buying it would just doom it to the fate of some of my other recent purchases which are just on my shelf.

Grabbed the ultimate edition for free on PlayStation. If you can get the same deal or find it on the cheap, you won't be disappointed. One of the best games I played in a while.

[DAMN iNATOR]

Had to give it a 3. I didn't feel it was anything to write home about.

[M-A-G]

I had to go with 4 here. I wouldn't have heard about it or played it without the recommendation of my friend who loved it. The description of it sounded like my favorite type of game: the single-player narrative-driven experience. You can tell a lot of care went into crafting this world.

It looks great, despite the environments basically looking the same. I mean, it's the fucking woods for the most part but it pulls you right in. The mechanics behind the combat can get tiresome but the thing that saves the whole experience is the mystery of what the hell is going on. The idea to present the chapters like episodes in a TV series was a nice touch and while it never reaches the scary levels of something like Silent Hill, it's appropriately creepy and does its best to mess with your head. It's one of the few games I've cleared 100% in terms of achievements, including the DLC stuff. I've sadly never got around to the follow-up, American Nightmare. I heard it was fine, if completely different from this title. It was a good experience even it falls a bit short.