Entertainment Weekly Picks The Top 25 New Classic Video Games

By Steve West: 2008-06-24 11:08:57

Entertainment Weekly Picks The Top 25 New Classic Video Games

Best of lists are such wonderfully subjective and divisive things. Everyone has their own opinion about what is the “best” of anything. So when a new list comes out I like to peruse it, pick it apart, and then judge the writers for obviously not knowing what they’re talking about. This past week Entertainment Weekly released its 1000th issue (holy crap) and they did not shy away from making a best of the new classics in video games. And before you question their gaming integrity Geoff Keighly was a part of writing said list.

Like Beck, who had the best celebrity top 10 in the magazine, I also hate coming up with lists. I’d rather read and disagree with someone else’s. The EW list of the best “new classic” video games is interesting because it reads a little like what the average person would pick. You know, more like the well known entities are mentioned for the most part.

Take the inclusion of Final Fantasy VII at number 13. I loved the game when it came out, but it suffers from the “at the time” syndrome. Games like FF VII and Goldeneye seem to be viewed in today’s world through rose tinted glasses. I’d certainly include both of these games on my personal top 25 list of all time, but perhaps not quite as high. See? Subjectivity, isn’t it fantastic?

Here’s another interesting thing to note: Super Mario Bros appears nowhere on the list. The game came out in 1985, so it falls within the 25 year time frame EW set up. I don’t necessarily agree with IGN that SMB is the number one game of all time, but it certainly is in the upper echelon. And yes, Mario does make an appearance on EW’s list at number four with Super Mario World. I’m about to say it, but I think World is a better sidescrolling platformer than Super Mario Bros 3. It’s nice to see it get some recognition.

I wonder if Geoff and the crew who made the list are kicking themselves that MGS 4 came out after the deadline for the list. Because I can’t help but feel that it would have knocked GTA IV way down. Number nine, that’s where the latest GTA rests and I find that incomprehensible.

You know what? That’s enough from me. Here’s EW’s list of the Top 25 New Classic Video Games. For the rest of their list visit EW.com.

1. Tetris
PC (1985)

2. Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
N64 (1998)

3. Doom
PC (1993)

4. Super Mario World
SNES (1991)

5. Guitar Hero
PS2 (2005)

6. Street Fighter II
SNES (1991)

7. Super Mario Kart
SNES (1992)

8. GoldenEye 007
N64 (1997)

9. Grand Theft Auto IV
PS3 and Xbox 360 (2008)

10. Metal Gear Solid
PlayStation (1998)

11. Halo: Combat Evolved
Xbox 360 (2001)

12. Super Mario Galaxy
Wii (2007)

13. Final Fantasy VII
PlayStation (1997)

14. Resident Evil 4
GameCube (2005)

15. Chrono Trigger
SNES (1995)

16. Gran Turismo
PlayStation (1998)

17. Sim City
Macintosh and Amiga (1989)

18. Half-Life
PC (1998)

19. Sid Meier's Civilization II
PC (1996)

20. Gears of War
Xbox 360 (2006)

21. StarCraft
PC (1997)

22. Super Metroid
SNES (1994)

23. Deus Ex
PC (2000)

24. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
PlayStation (2000)

25. Shadow of the Colossus
PS2 (2005)

Tips N4G

RELATED: editorial, psp, ds, wii, ps2, ps3, xbox 360, microsoft, sony, nintendo, gtaiv, mgs4, goldeneye, final fantasy vii, ew

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David P.
July 2, 2008 at 12:58

My biggest issue with the list is that in the description for Final Fantasy VII it says something to the effect of "Go ahead and hate us for including this one as the best (if you're looking, Final Fantasy III is at number 28)"

Sorry, but who in the world is going to be looking for the Famicom only version of Final Fantasy III? Over VII?? Considering how mainstreamish the rest of the list is, I have to feel that this was a mistake and that the SNES version of Final Fantasy III (aka FF VI) was what they meant to include. This would say to me that at least two people involved with the making of the list had no idea what they were doing when it came to RPGs.

I do think they got the list somewhat accurate, but it's probably more from looking at other video game lists (like the IGN one) and not because the compilers played all the games themselves.

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Pete H
June 24, 2008 at 15:44

The funniest part of the list is that number 50 is "Madden 2005" - pretty random installment to pick to represent the series. I don't agree with the ordering of the list (Halo almost hitting the top ten?), their reluctance to mention multiple installments of a series (Half-Life 2 is conspicuously absent), or their omission of X-Com.

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Entertainment Weekly Picks The Top 25 New Classic Video Games

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