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Post by mrnash on Feb 19, 2016 12:04:35 GMT -5
Final Fantasy XII would be one for me. I like the battle system, the dungeons are fun, it has hunts, the graphics and music are amazing, and the story was fun. I really wanted to toss in Symphony of the Night but there isn't all that much happening with the story, which holds it back from being mentioned in this discussion.
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Post by ommadawnyawn2 on Feb 19, 2016 12:30:15 GMT -5
I think it's more fair to look at what a game does or tries to do and judge those aspects, not start with a bunch of criteria that are sure to disqualify most games (innovation, story (in the traditional sense), diversity, technical achievement, non-linearity for example).
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Post by wyrdwad on Feb 19, 2016 12:48:08 GMT -5
I would say Super Mario Bros but its story isn't its strong point. So I would probably choose Mother or Chrono Trigger. Oh, Chrono Trigger! Yeah, dunno how it took that long to get to Chrono Trigger in this topic -- that's kind of the poster boy for well-rounded gaming. It's not my favorite RPG, but there's really not a damned thing it doesn't do exceptionally well. It's a very polished game in all regards. -Tom |
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Post by cambertian on Feb 19, 2016 14:11:59 GMT -5
Ocarina of Time and, if good story wasn't a requirement, Super Mario 64. It's kind of cliche to list Nintendo titles, but they're good fun all around, and I've seen plenty of people dedicate their lives to them.
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Post by X-pert74 on Feb 19, 2016 17:05:21 GMT -5
Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. Awesome art style, brilliant story, engaging combats, lots of variety and little details like Luigi's side story. Oh my gosh, this is another amazing choice. The Thousand Year Door is one of the only games I've ever played where, after finishing up my first playthrough, I immediately went on to start and finish a second playthrough, simply because I loved the world and characters so much that I didn't want it all to end. I adore this game  I should really replay it sometime. |
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Post by GamerL on Feb 19, 2016 19:44:10 GMT -5
I've been wanting to play The Thousand Year Door, but it's super expensive these days, as are most first party Gamecube games. Final Fantasy XII would be one for me. I like the battle system, the dungeons are fun, it has hunts, the graphics and music are amazing, and the story was fun. I really wanted to toss in Symphony of the Night but there isn't all that much happening with the story, which holds it back from being mentioned in this discussion. I would say Symphony of the Night's story is pretty good, it's not outstanding but it's the first time in the series the story was more than just basically "go and kill Dracula", so I would call it a very well rounded game. |
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Post by wyrdwad on Feb 19, 2016 21:14:48 GMT -5
Final Fantasy XII would be one for me. I like the battle system, the dungeons are fun, it has hunts, the graphics and music are amazing, and the story was fun. I really wanted to toss in Symphony of the Night but there isn't all that much happening with the story, which holds it back from being mentioned in this discussion. I also don't think Symphony of the Night is particularly well-rounded, honestly. The game's inventory is really bloated (well over half the items you get in any given playthrough just wind up as menu clutter), the challenge level is frustratingly inconsistent (ludicrously easy to beat as Alucard due to the leveling system and no shortage of totally overpowered weapons, yet ludicrously difficult to beat as Richter), and the map is full of dead-end corridors and other areas that serve no actual purpose but to waste the player's time. I do really enjoy Symphony of the Night, but I always felt Super Metroid was the more well-rounded experience due to the fact that nothing is wasted: there's not a single item that ever goes unused, not a single screen that doesn't serve a purpose, and no challenge that can be overcome simply by leveling-up or equipping the right weapon. -Tom |
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Post by alphex on Feb 19, 2016 21:57:49 GMT -5
Absolutely agreed on The Last Of Us and Super Metroid.
Kirby Super Star. It's got pretty much every playstyle that was known to platformers at the time, minigames, and even a coop mode.
The original Final Fight is the original Die Hard of video games. Not an ounce of fat on that one, it's just all very well designed, but that's why it works.
Of course, these two games have hardly any story to speak of. (But neither does Super Metroid, even if what little is there is put to maximum effect; hell, I'd argue, it's a great use of story, given the medium.)
I'm also inclined to put the Playstation version of Street Fighter Alpha 3 here. World Tour Mode was a brilliant addition, and with the three ISMs, you got an incredible amount of content.
And to name a modern game - Ori and the Blind Forrest did little to nothing wrong, in my opinion.
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Post by wyrdwad on Feb 19, 2016 22:27:45 GMT -5
And to name a modern game - Ori and the Blind Forrest did little to nothing wrong, in my opinion. Man, I really need to play that one. That and Axiom Verge are pretty close to the top of my backlog. Can't wait, as I'm pretty sure I'm going to absolutely love both games. Another lesser-known game I thought of earlier that I think deserves to be present on any list of well-rounded games, but which I feel really hipster-y for mentioning (especially since I can't seem to shut up about it lately!), is Fire Hawk: Thexder the Second Contact. I'm consistently impressed by how little this game does wrong, with my only complaints about it being largely superficial things. It's a great-looking game for the time it was made (and the systems it appeared on), its soundtrack is outstanding, its gameplay is unique and absolutely perfectly balanced (extremely challenging, but never unfairly so, always rewarding persistence with success), its level designs are huge and well laid-out with lots of variety and a healthy amount of hidden (but not TOO hidden) content, its bosses memorable and difficult, and its story SHOCKINGLY good for a 1989 platformer/shooter hybrid. It's my favorite game I've played thus far on my MSX2+, and is easily one of the most impressive games of its kind I've played from that era. Game Arts absolutely knocked it out of the park with that one, showcasing a lot of very thoughtful and sophisticated game design practices. -Tom |
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Post by derboo on Feb 19, 2016 23:45:06 GMT -5
Weird how games considered as "well-rounded" almost always translates to "kind of boring" to me. The sole exceptions among the mentions in this thread are Resident Evil 4 and Super Metroid, although I maintain that each could be pulled off only once in the history of the world and every game in their vein after them feels trite. Even Arkham Asylum, which I technically consider one of the greatest action games made this millennium, seemed kind of dumb and pointless in hindsight.
I guess my number one examples for "well-rounded" games would be Blizzard's post-Diablo output - no coincidence Blizzard is the most boring game developer around in my eyes, because everything they do nowadays needs to be 100% calculated perfection of something they already know how to do.
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Post by GamerL on Feb 19, 2016 23:57:59 GMT -5
Weird how games considered as "well-rounded" almost always translates to "kind of boring" to me. The sole exceptions among the mentions in this thread are Resident Evil 4 and Super Metroid, although I maintain that each could be pulled off only once in the history of the world and every game in their vein after them feels trite. Even Arkham Asylum, which I technically consider one of the greatest action games made this millennium, seemed kind of dumb and pointless in hindsight. I guess my number one examples for "well-rounded" games would be Blizzard's post-Diablo output - no coincidence Blizzard is the most boring game developer around in my eyes, because everything they do nowadays needs to be 100% calculated perfection of something they already know how to do. I'm not really sure where you're coming from, are you saying that a game without any major flaws is boring to you? I mean you really found Max Payne to be boring? That was one of the most blood pumping games of it's day what with the John Woo meets The Matrix style gun fights. And what is "dumb and pointless" about Arkham Asylum? The whole point was to make you feel like you were actually Batman, not just an action game with Batman thrown in. And considering how many terrible Batman games came prior to it, like Dark Tomorrow for example, the fact that they actually succeeded in making a great Batman game is anything but dumb. |
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Post by cambertian on Feb 20, 2016 16:41:08 GMT -5
I'm not really sure where you're coming from, are you saying that a game without any major flaws is boring to you? I mean you really found Max Payne to be boring? That was one of the most blood pumping games of it's day what with the John Woo meets The Matrix style gun fights. And what is "dumb and pointless" about Arkham Asylum? The whole point was to make you feel like you were actually Batman, not just an action game with Batman thrown in. And considering how many terrible Batman games came prior to it, like Dark Tomorrow for example, the fact that they actually succeeded in making a great Batman game is anything but dumb. I think he's saying that genetically engineered super-games aren't as impressive as home-grown successes, and I have to agree. To me, the best flavors are ones you don't expect to be good. |
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Post by Échalote on Feb 20, 2016 16:42:21 GMT -5
Kirby is really well rounded
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Post by wyldesyde on Feb 20, 2016 18:38:46 GMT -5
The correct answer to the thread is The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
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anklerocker
New Member
Getting slapped around by Ninja Gaiden...
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Post by anklerocker on Feb 20, 2016 23:28:50 GMT -5
I think a well rounded game is one that not only offers you something solid and polished but also gives you variation of play through out the experience to keep things feeling fresh until the end.
ActRaiser jumps to mind. The sim aspect is fun and charming with a good feeling of discovery and the platforming stages feel really good. The swap between them comes at a swift enough pace that neither linger on for longer than you'd want them too.
Plus, seriously... the soundtrack and sound effects are some of the most memorable in any game ever.
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I should really replay it sometime.
