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Greatest games of all time lists have, for all time, gone the same way; a team of video game journalists sit down and put together a ranking that is almost predetermined – a seemingly canonical hall of fame that attempts to cover off as many bases as possible. Here at GQ, we thought we’d embrace chaos instead. Rather than shuffle Ocarina of Time, Dark Souls and Ico across a big list according to our own whims, we decided to get our friends involved.
So we gave the industry at large a blank canvas on which to determine their own criteria of “best” to see where the chosen games differ – and where they’re similar – to the traditionally accepted canon. That meant gathering together a massive collective of our favourite developers, streamers, directors and journalists in the business. Think of it as an “Avengers assemble” moment.
Each voter had one task: pick a personally ranked top ten list. A game in first receives 10 points. A game in 10th place receives 1 point. We invited 300 individuals to participate and received 239 final lists, with an incredible 652 games receiving one vote or more. Our winner not only received the most votes but also placed in people’s Number 1 more than any other rival.
For us, the full list is one of many different stories, from surprising newcomers like 2019’s Disco Elysium making an incredibly deep run in the rankings to a complete absence of mega-franchise names such as Assassin’s Creed. It’s a mix of new, old and very old, with blockbusters and indies, from every genre and from studios in every corner of the world. There are familiar faces – often in surprising places – and a couple of inclusions we didn’t simply didn’t expect. You can see how it all shook out below…
Bioware // Xbox, PC
The greatest Star Wars game ever made doesn’t mention a Skywalker or a Palpatine. Bioware’s magnificent prequel tale offers up a story that feels simultaneously like the space operatics of Star Wars and the personal sci-fi of Bioware, with memorable characters, a shocking late-game reveal, and worlds you never saw in Lucas’ films. A remake was announced in 2021.
United Game Artists // Dreamcast, PlayStation 2
Although the closest Sega’s Dreamcast ever came to commercial success was its sponsorship of Arsene Wnger’s swaggering Arsenal FC side, the inimitable console was home to a ragtag gang of bona fide classics. Chief amongst them was Rez, a musical rail shooter that was as trippy as it was dizzyingly inventive.
Ensemble Studios // PC
To those 12-year-olds who also tried (and failed) to wage warfare solely via a battalion of prohibitively expensive trebuchets, we salute you.
Lucas Pope // Mac, PC, Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
A ghost ship. A missing crew. An engrossing investigation. The Return of the Obra Dinn’s style – a 1-bit monochromatic black and white style not seen since the earliest games – makes it stand out. But it’s the fierce intelligence of its design, from solo creator Lucas Pope, that really sets it apart from its contemporaries.
Nintendo // NES
If ever you find yourself questioning Shigeru Miyamoto’s genius, then know that he near-on perfected the platforming genre in the space of a year, while also making the very first The Legend of Zelda at the same time. Seems exhausting just thinking about it…
Blue Sky Productions // PC
Its revolutionary 2.5D visuals might not stand up in the cold light of 2023, but there’s no mistaking The Stygian Abyss’s ongoing impact on role-playing games to this very day. Puzzle-filled dungeons, a peerless physics system, sword combat with fantasy nasties and an oft-infuriating weapon durability system… Sounds an awful lot like another all-timer starring a chap in a blue tunic, doesn’t it?
Clover Studio // PlayStation 2, Wii
Timeless art and a near-perfect Famitsu score didn’t stop Okami from being a flop, taking years to surpass a million copies sold. Nowadays it’s revered for its painterly style and Zelda-like mechanics. Developer Clover Studio shut its doors for good just a few months after release. This is why we can't have nice things.
Lionhead Studios // Xbox 360
Lionhead’s lofty ambition of a choice-driven RPG peaked with Fable II. More dynamic, more heartfelt and more accomplished than the 2004 original, Fable II created one of the most quintessentially British worlds ever playable in a video game with a morality system that lets you run wild with paragon good or devilishly evil deeds. Or just farts. Really wet farts.
Bioware // Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3
A game that makes you feel good about punching a journalist while also making you feel bad for fancying a polygonal alien, Mass Effect was BioWare’s big new punt at a not-Star Wars space opera IP about evil squids destroying the universe. It was great – but the series' best moments were yet to come.
Rockstar Games // PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC
Cousin! Announced when Xbox exec, Peter Moore, revealed the series logo tattooed on his bicep at E3, Grand Theft Auto IV did away with the kitchen sink approach of San Andreas in a then staggering recreation of New York City. You might not be able to base jump off mountains, but this is one of Rockstar’s best, most affecting stories.
Nintendo // SNES
The only Mario Kart game without the Blue Shell is the one that ranks in our Top 100. Coincidence? We think not.
IO Interactive // PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Formerly a trilogy of expertly curated stealth games, the World of Assassination series became one package in 2021, with IO Interactive making every level available via Hitman 3. With that, the team consolidated an ultraviolet sandbox of F1 sabotage, industrial wine-pressing catastrophes and death by toilet drowning as a globe-trotting murder sim par excellence.
Japan Studio & GenDesign // PlayStation 4
Divisive in a way that many games don’t have the courage to be these days, The Last Guardian saw you make friends with a giant dog-bird creature called Trico that proved to be as hungry as he was impetuous. Those with the patience for director Fumito Ueda’s eccentricities – as well as a nine-year development cycle – would find another unforgettable adventure from the Ico and Shadow of the Colossus creator.
Nintendo // Switch
Honestly, we were sold from the moment you could use a plumber’s hat to mind control a T-Rex.
Firaxis // PC
Just two strategy games made our list and Civ V is utterly deserving of that distinction. Firaxis’ fifth entry in the long-running Sid Meier franchise reshaped the 4X genre completely, taking the grid-based design of previous Civilization games and transforming it into a hexagonal map. It's legacy of hour-sapping ‘one more turn’ moreishness stretches over a decade now.
Square Enix // PlayStation 3, PC
The poster child for “games with a disastrous launch that turned out to be great”, Naoki Yoshida’s salvage job on FF XIV remains as unlikely as it is astonishing. Perhaps more than any other title here, attempting to pin down what makes this sprawling MMORPG so beloved is nigh-on impossible. For many fans, this is the pinnacle of storytelling in a now 35-year-old franchise.
Sega AM2 // Dreamcast
A finer forklift driving sim is yet to be made. Proof that video games are often at their best when they are unashamed to get weird. Deeply, profoundly weird.
Irrational Games // PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC, Mac
A nation overrun by religious zealotry that’s infiltrated the conservative movement and seen its populace succumb to racism and xenophobia. Couldn't happen anywhere but in Columbia, could it?
Bioware // PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One
The first in a high fantasy trifecta released between 2009 and 2015 – see also: Skyrim and The Witcher III – Origins cemented developer Bioware’s status as a near-unparalleled RPG storyteller while expanding its horizons with expansive character customisation and rich combat mechanics. All of which the developer will be sorely looking to recapture with the upcoming Dragon Age: Dreadwolf.
Epic Games // PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Mac
A pop culture mash-up machine featuring everything from Christopher Nolan movie trailer debuts to Travis Scott concerts, Fortnite is the closest we’ve come to a real metaverse in 2023. For kids growing up nowadays, it’s practically a rite of passage.
Campo Santo // PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Mac
Campo Santo’s first and only game before being subsumed by Valve in 2018, Firewatch is a pastel-coloured adventure about loss, isolation and estrangement. The game even inspired youngsters like Jack Kelley to campaign to save real fire watch towers in the United States. A spiritual successor, The Valley of the Gods, has reportedly been put on hold, but its oblique immersive spirit lives on in Half-Life: Alyx, on which multiple team members collaborated.
Monstars, Resonair // PlayStation 4
Take one of the most iconic 2D games of all time and add a sumptuous soundtrack. That’s the basic premise of Tetris Effect. Designed by Rez mastermind Tetsuya Mizuguchi, Tetris Effect’s various modes have you busting blocks to the beat while vivid colours explode off the screen. A truly transcendent experience in virtual reality.
Neversoft // PlayStation
There are entire childhoods with just one core memory: trying to get 1080 in the halfpipe at the Hangar level for absolutely no reward bar your own sense of accomplishment. Wouldn’t have it any other way.
Lucasfilm Games // PC, Mac, Amiga, Atari ST
Worth its spot for the invention of ‘Insult Sword Fighting’ alone…
“Now I know what filth and stupidity really are.”
“I'm glad to hear you attended your family reunion.”
Game Freak // Game Boy Color
Widely regarded by the Poké hardcore as the series’ high watermark, Gold and Silver were so assured of themselves that their postgame featured almost the entirety of Pokémon Red and Blue’s Kanto region. This seems even more of a flex in 2023 when many games struggle to ship their first level out of the door in a fully functional state.
Retro Studios // GameCube
Like much of the Metroid franchise, Prime’s existence feels like a borderline miracle and its recent Remastered incarnation does nothing to dissuade us of that notion. Created by the Texas-based Retro Studios largely in the space of just two years, it took the series themes of isolation and exploration and transplanted them into what is still Nintendo’s only first-person shooter of note.
Toby Fox // Mac, PC
Certainly, the only game on this list to have been gifted to the head of the Catholic Church. Undertale was what YouTuber MatPat decided to give to Pope Francis when an Internet summit was held at the Vatican in 2016. We can only hope Pope Francis attempted a pacifist run.
Square // SNES
The last of the 2D Final Fantasys occupies a uniquely macabre place in franchise history. Considering its sequel saw one lead character impaled by a giant samurai sword, that is really quite saying something.
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio // PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4
Yakuza fans are a lot like WWE obsessives. Listening to them explain how managing a hostess bar, building a real estate empire or fine-tuning your batting cage skills is just as essential as seizing control of a Tokyo crime syndicate in these games is an utterly incomprehensible experience… Until you watch almost any video clip of this sensorial overload in effect and playing anything else seems pointless.
Infinity Ward // PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC
A relentlessly lean campaign, and a multiplayer mode that would change online gaming forever, Modern Warfare took the Call of Duty franchise from the battlefields of World War II and Vietnam and gave it a colder, more nuanced ethos. Because what if war isn’t always fun? Its Pripyat mission through the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone’s undergrowth remains unforgettably harrowing.
Valve // PC, Xbox 360
Not all zombie games are thoughtful meditations on humanity's true nature, some demand you bludgeon hordes of the undead with an electric guitar or chainsaw.
Nintendo // N64
What’s there left to achieve after you’ve made (what was) the undisputed gaming GOAT in Ocarina Of Time? Scar an entire generation with cosmic nightmare fuel, of course.
Looking Glass Studios // PC
One of the rare video games that can be completed without leaving a trail of corporeal destruction in your wake, Thief pioneered the stealth genre as we know it. And so, like a guard who’ll loudly declare their every waking thought to the shadows, we too are duty-bound to proclaim its pioneering excellence to the cold, uncaring void that is the Internet.
67. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (2002)
Nintendo // GameCube
In fairness to those gamers who lost their tiny minds upon Wind Waker’s 2001 Space World reveal, the spiritual successor to Ocarina Of Time did seem like an almighty gamble. At a moment when Nintendo desperately needed to prove its wares weren’t just for kids, here was its Hero of Time in a playable anime form. The Gamecube might have tanked harder than Master Sword through Ganondorf’s skull comes Link’s final boss fight, but this remains that dinky console’s crowning achievement.
Obsidian Entertainment // PlayStation 3, PC, Xbox 360
A game strung together with nothing but bargain bin duct tape, New Vegas still makes this list thanks to its incredible approach to RPG choice-making.
Rare // N64
Forget Shrek Smash n' Crash Racing, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial and literally any Kingdom Hearts game, GoldenEye 007 remains the greatest movie tie-in ever made. Responsible for demonstrating the viability of a first-person shooter genre on consoles, it popularised the ‘Deathmatch mode’ that became the core pillar of such multiplayer series as Halo, Timesplitters and Call of Duty moving forwards.
P-Studio // PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4
Hands down, the best 100 hours you can spend in the company of a swaggering, anthropomorphic cat.
Maxis // PC
There’s more to The Sims 2’s considerable legacy than its appeal beyond what was then the gaming’s core demographic of Kalashnikov-loving young men. Given how this sequel doubled down on appealing to players outside such a narrow bubble – The Sims 4 currently claims 60 per cent of its audience is women between the ages of 18 and 24 – we’d be remiss in not celebrating such a pioneering approach in what can still be a depressingly insular industry.
Konami // PlayStation, Sega Saturn
AKA the “vania” in the Metroidvania genre that’s defined every major noughties indie hit of note from Hollow Knight to Dead Cells, as well as Hideo Miyazaki’s Souls franchise, Symphony Of The Night deserves better than to be known for all the classics it inspired. If nothing else, it still boasts one of gaming’s most iconic plot twists while whipping your way through Dracula’s undead hordes remains bloody brilliant fun.
Rockstar Games // PlayStation 2
Revolutionary for its 3D open world, Grand Theft Auto III had unparalleled freedom for the time. Voice acting, mission design, world-building and a gritty city underbelly atmosphere all combined for a video game that changed everything forever. Rockstar would, somehow, deliver two sequels in the following three years. A feat that’s all the more impressive now that GTA V has gone a decade without a successor.
Nintendo // SNES
Arguably the most subversive game in Nintendo’s entire back catalogue and certainly one of its most influential, Super Metroid pits its female action hero against the merciless flora and fauna of an alien planet. Although much of this oppressive vibe is carried over from its NES predecessor, Samus Aran’s third adventure is elevated by the fresh intricacies its 16-bit level design could afford. That and the fact its difficulty was dialled back from “soul-crushingly brutal” this time around.
Bethesda Game Studios // PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Would you leave the relative safety of an underground vault to venture out into an irradiated hell on Earth in order to find your lovely dad who is Liam Neeson? Your answer may vary, but one thing is for sure: Bethesda made a mighty fine RPG out of that very question.
Bethesda Game Studios // PC, Xbox 360
Oblivion’s “step out” moment – when you leave an introductory dungeon and see the game’s vast world – was one of the defining moments of the Xbox 360 era and practically paved the way for open-world RPGs on console. Plus, they managed to get Patrick Stewart to do about nine seconds of voice work - not bad for 2006.
Square Enix // PlayStation
Final Fantasy’s OG PlayStation family saw two high-flying siblings stand on either side of a weird emo kid with great hair. FF IX is probably the most straight-laced of the bunch, which is really saying something, given one of your party members is a giant frog chef. Nevertheless, it uses that breathing room to tell a classic fantasy story of heroes, a princess and Michelin-starred swamp cuisine.
Playdead // Xbox, PC, PlayStation 4
One of the most bizarre, horrifying and unexpected endings in all of gaming, Inside’s noir aesthetic and lonely atmosphere are in keeping with Playdead’s debut, Limbo, but it ratchets up the mechanical and design craft to make this a clear standout.
Team Cherry // PC, Mac
It’s still astonishing that a game as expansive, compelling and finessed as Hollow Knight was made by an Adelaide-based team of just three developers. Although its Dark Souls meets Metroidvania influences are immediately apparent, they’re transcended by the sheer detail and TLC that oozes throughout the dilapidated remains of Hallownest and its curious inhabitants. To those who wasted untold hours before slaying its Radiance boss, we salute you.
Japan Studio, Team Ico // PlayStation 2
Mario and Luigi. Nate and Sully. Call of Duty and teabagging. Gaming is full of unforgettable duos, but Ico’s is one of the more iconoclastic. Twisting the boy-meets-princess fairytale in a colder, more austere direction, it remains one of the most daring titles in PlayStation’s frequently crowd-pleasing back catalogue.
Arkane // PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One
A game of almost peerless interconnected craft, Dishonored 2 contains not one but two of the all-time greatest levels: a labyrinthine clockwork mansion and a brain-bending adventure through time. Arkane’s grasp of complex, enjoyable systemic gameplay mechanics peaked here. Criminally, the game barely made any money, but we’re sure the Number 53 spot on this list is every bit as valuable to publisher Bethesda.
Valve // PC
As anyone who has returned to GoldenEye 007 in recent years will attest, many vintage first-person shooters are best left to the ravages of time. Although Half-Life garnered rapturous acclaim in the late ‘90s for its then cutting-edge graphics and physics engine, its novelist Marc Laidlaw’s twisting sci-fi narrative and the immersive way it was told without relying on cut-scenes that means Valve’s first classic of many still holds up. That and the fact those head crabs still haunt our waking dreams.
Square Enix // PlayStation 2
Much like Lionel Messi's goals and Logan Roy expletives, the Final Fantasy franchise is now storied enough for everyone to have their own favourite. Look past its oft-memed laughing scene, and Final Fantasy X is worthy of its place amongst the RPG series' finest offerings. Not least for its invention of blitzball, one of the greatest (fictional) sports known to both mankind and Spira residents.
Mossmouth // PC
Alongside Fez and The Binding Of Isaac, Spelunky leads the noughties to charge for a new breed of low-budget, big-brained indie games that set an entirely new direction for the art form. By dialling in on a small but perfectly formed idea – find treasure, don’t die – players were hooked in minutes but would spend hours risking death by impalement, snakebite or an irate shopkeeper, amongst many other perilous fates in order to master the fiendish charms of Derek Yu’s creation.
ConcernedApe // PC
Stardew Valley gives you a chance to swap the big smoke for a small town and grow crops, nurture livestock and commit to a relaxed country life. Where games such as Civilization gamified the one more turn aspect to keep players hooked, Stardew Valley convinces your brain to play one more day at a time… Until your wife has taken the kids, but you have some very big cabbages and award-winning wine.
Rockstar Games // PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
GTA V made $1 billion in three days. 2022’s highest-grossing film, Avatar: The Way of Water, took 14 to hit that milestone. It’s still Rockstar’s most audacious campaign – a multi-protagonist heist epic that mixes satire with an incredible grasp of blockbuster game-making – spanning everything from hell-raising bank robberies to leisurely bike rides down the Pacific Coast Highway.
Sony Santa Monica // PlayStation 4
Sony Santa Monica’s reboot transformed God of War from a gratuitous gore-fest to a thoughtful meditation on parenthood. Alongside Bloodborne and The Last of Us Part II, it helped Sony further define its PlayStation 4 as the home for exclusive single-player games of imperious quality.
Bungie // PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
For many people, Destiny is their only game, which means they'll refuse to care about 99 of the other games on this list.
Bungie // Xbox 360
Halo 3 saw Xbox push gaming to the mainstream further than perhaps it has ever been since, including trailers directed by Neil Blomkamp and Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski and 10,000-midnight launch openings. It was the biggest gaming moment of 2007 and remains one of the best single-player campaigns ever made.
Bethesda Game Studios // PC, Xbox
The “weird one” in the Elder Scrolls repertoire, Morrowind marked the first time Bethesda Game Studios ported one of its gargantuan RPGs to console. At 20 years old this year, Morrowind doesn't have any of the quality-of-life improvements that came with later releases, but it also offers one of the most fluid and open-ended versions of its maker's sandbox vision.
Platinum Games // PlayStation 4, PC
An action RPG so good that you have to play it at least three times.
Square Enix // SNES
Such is the domineering nature of Square’s Final Fantasy series that Chrono Trigger’s RPG pedigree feels like a secret reserved for those ‘90s kids who also still swear by Mudhoney, Seinfeld and Stone Cold Steve Austin. You needn’t own a pair of rose-tinted cargo pants to appreciate the elegant storytelling and vintage turn-based combat on show here, though.
Maxis // PC
An outlet for pure imagination and self-expression, The Sims became the benchmark for second-life simulators at the turn of the century. With unrivalled freedom to build and live however you want, who among us hasn’t locked a Sim in a windowless 2x2 tile room with nought but a faulty oven for the company?
Nintendo // Wii
Look, we’re not saying that Yoshiaki Koizumi specifically made Super Mario Galaxy with stoners in mind. If you did so happen to indulge in Mario’s neon-soaked space rock-hopping adventures while utterly baked, it was a pretty excellent time.
Giant Sparrow // PlayStation 4, PC, Xbox One
By 2017, “esoteric video games that made you feel something” were no longer a preposterous genre. If the likes of Gone Home and Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture helped to carve out a space for the ‘walking sim’, then …Edith Finch didn’t so much tug at our heartstrings as it did wrench them out of our chest with surprising finesse. Bath time has never felt the same again.
Supergiant Games // Switch, PC, Mac
Supergiant’s colourful, contemporary take on Greek mythology made full use of the early access model to give players the opportunity to play the game before “full release”. It meant Supergiant could improve the game with players as they took note of detailed feedback, mainly for even more lusty character design.
Konami // PlayStation 2
A horror classic that made a virtue of its technical limitations by fusing an oppressive, ever-present fog and our fear of the unknown to sweaty-palmed effect. After Hideo Kojima and Guillermo del Toro's aborted P.T. attempt to revive the franchise in 2014, a remake is expected later this year.
Nintendo // NES
Such is Nintendo’s dominance during the NES era, it claimed 94 per cent of the North American console market as its own. Aside from printing money by the absolute truckload, that machine’s greatest achievement was Super Mario Bros 3 in which Miyamoto set the platforming bar so high its star plumber has leapt over it only occasionally in the intervening decades.
Valve // PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
After the imperious Half-Life: Alyx and Counter-Strike 2’s promising debut, it seems like Valve is seriously flirting with becoming a video games developer again. So it’s worth remembering that in 2007, the now PC gaming monolith was on such a hot streak it could afford to toss off a puzzle game as inventive as Portal as part of The Orange Box compilation package. Pure genius from start to finish, it proved to be as creative as it was outright hilarious.
Naughty Dog // PlayStation 3
Uncharted 2’s mid-game, high-speed train cart set piece rivals the best of the Mission Impossible movies, and it was all done on a PlayStation 3 in 2009. Nathan Drake’s sophomore outing pushed the envelope for motion capture and rip-roaring action and is a high bar for the best-selling PlayStation series.
Konami // PlayStation 2
Long before Hideo Kojima veered off into post-apocalyptic parcel delivery and Konami decided pachinko machines were the only game in town, the auteur and his longtime publisher were at the peak of their combined powers with Snake Eater. With a newfound emphasis on camouflage and close-quarters combat, this was as close to espionage realism as the PS2 could muster. Just don’t ask us to explain the plot.
Ion Storm // PC
Set in 2052, Deus Ex still feels ahead of its time for both the sheer choice afforded to its players and the unnerving prescience of its conspiratorial plot. Riffs on what global pandemics aside, Warren Spector’s iconoclastic creation is even more remarkable for its ongoing influence on the immersive sim genre. Having been sold to the Embracer Group in 2022 as part of a $300 million acquisition from Square Enix, a franchise revival seems sure to arrive before its predicted dystopia, if only just.
Team Ico // PlayStation 2
A game where less is truly more, the beauty of Shadow of the Colossus’ painterly, minimalistic environments are outmatched only by the monolithic creatures you track down throughout your quest. Academy Award-winning director, Guillermo del Toro, hailed Team Ico’s game as a “masterpiece” and an influence on his twisted directorial craft.
Mobius Digital // PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Outer Wilds offers you an entire solar system to explore and unpick. Its worlds are incredible, self-contained dioramas with idiosyncratic quirks. A black hole. A planet with an eternal storm. A comet that falls into a star. And one big problem: the sun goes supernova every 20 minutes, resetting the world. So begins an unforgettable space adventure.
Thatgamecompany // PlayStation 3
The most beautiful sand you’ll ever see in a video game and a sensory experience unlike any other. The less said about Journey, the better – just put a couple of hours of your day aside and play it.
Naughty Dog // PlayStation 4
The most contentious sequel in video game history, Naughty Dog’s The Godfather Part II homage played with perspective and expectation to deliver its most complex, knotty game to date. Despite devastating plot leaks and huge player backlash, the game won seven of 11 nominations at the 2020 Game Awards – the most in the show’s history.
Capcom // Arcade
The seminal fighting game Street Fighter II revolutionised arcade joystick controls to give never before seen levels of responsiveness. The fact it survived the port to SNES (no easy feat when mapping controls to a gamepad) cemented its still venerated legacy.
Nintendo // SNES
On the plus side, A Link To The Past is so good that its mix of fiendish dungeons, oddball inhabitants and a world map brimming with secrets set the Zelda template for two decades straight. On the other hand, it is singularly responsible for every torturous “dark mirror world” other (less talented) developers have made us trawl through ever since.
Game Freak // Game Boy
Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur. We love them all equally, but Bulbasaur most of all.
Mojang // PC
Minecraft has sold almost 240 million copies – more than any other game in history. Its lasting impact on player-driven creativity can be seen in every building mode from Fortnite to Fallout.
Irrational Games // PC, Xbox 360
A game about the power of games, Bioshock submerged players in Rapture: an art deco metropolis at the bottom of the sea. Mixing first-person shooting with choice-driven gameplay, the game delivered one of the medium’s most memorable villains, Andrew Ryan, and an all-time third wall-breaking twist.
Blizzard // PC
We all know someone who was hooked on World of Warcraft. Almost 20 years on from its debut, it’s still the most-played MMO ever. We’ve moved on, though. Promise.
Bungie // Xbox
Catapulted into launch game status mid-development, Bungie’s first-person shooter would reframe how we saw single-player shooter campaigns and multiplayer arena modes. Despite its frenzied creation that saw multiple changes to its fundamental concept, Halo’s impact changed a genre forever.
From Software // PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series consoles, PC
The punishing difficulty of Dark Souls and the abstract lore building of Bloodborne meets one of the most ambitious open worlds ever created. Elden Ring used core narrative foundations written by George R.R. Martin to create a staggeringly ambitious RPG packed full of awe-inspiring sights, hard-as-nails bosses and juvenile tributes to all manner of finger-related activities.
id Software // PC
So popular was Doom that it’s estimated to have been installed on more PCs than Windows at the time. Bill Gates even considered buying developer id Software. Instead, he enlisted Microsoft producer and eventual founder of Valve, Gabe Newell, to port it to Windows. Decades later, Microsoft would finally own Doom via its $7.5bn purchase of Bethesda.
Nintendo // N64
Edge magazine’s first-ever 10/10 – one of just 24 in the magazine’s 30-year publication – went to Super Mario 64. Directed by Nintendo’s Mario overseer, Shigeru Miyamoto, this transformative platformer set a dizzying precedent for 3D games while they were still in their infancy. In 2021, a pristine original copy became the most expensive video game ever when it sold at auction for more than $1.5M.
Square Enix // PlayStation
Final Fantasy VII (AKA the one with the samurai sword impalement) was the most expensive game ever made in 1997. It now looks so blocky that eliciting such emotional reactions from players seems like madness. Truly, this marked a massive step forward for RPG storytelling. So much so that Square Enix pumped probably double the dough into a multi-part remake.
Bethesda Game Studios // PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Dragons! Skyrim captured both hardcore and casuals with its streamlined role-playing design. Its snowy mountain peaks are an incredible discovery space with 100s of hours of quests and secrets and – like all Bethesda games – thousands of fan-made mods created entire new quests and systems to elongate the game’s life for over a decade.
Rockstar Games // PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Perhaps the greatest flex in video game history, Rockstar outdid its own benchmark for cinematic storytelling and attention to detail with Red Dead 2 - a sombre story about a man running out of time, in which you can also hog-tie innocent victims to train tracks and marvel at lovingly rendered horse testicles. Video games, eh.
Nintendo // SNES
There are a whole bunch of reasons for Super Mario World’s iconic status. The fact that it launched alongside Nintendo’s SNES console, its joyous abundance of platforming trickery and an effervescent soundtrack that absolutely slaps. Really, we reckon it’s all down to the debut of a charming green dinosaur called Yoshi.
Nintendo // N64
Held aloft as the undisputed GOAT for decades, Ocarina of Time’s crown has slipped a little after 2017’s Breath of the Wild redefined The Legend of Zelda franchise once again. For those who still have the “Song Of Time” written into their muscle memory, no amount of open-world adventuring can supplant this game’s magic.
ZA/UM // PC
A game where your inner psyche narrates its way through one almighty hangover/murder mystery, Disco Elysium’s non-traditional role-playing mechanics put conversation as the primary interactive element. Just make sure your detective's morale doesn’t drop so low that they literally lose the will to live.
Capcom // GameCube
Resident Evil 4’s grasp of pace, tension, and campaign variety is still near flawless, as its thirst for truly revolting insectoids. Legendary director Shinji Mikami and the team at Capcom popularised the over-the-shoulder view seen in every game after, from The Last of Us to Grand Theft Auto. The critical reception to a 2023 remake shows its impact has not waned a jot.
Valve // PC
Many of the games on this list would arguably not exist without Half-Life 2, a game that demonstrated what it was possible to do with 3D spaces, playing with physics models to create engaging puzzles and levels. It remains immensely playable to this very day. Now how about that sequel, Valve?
From Software // PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Venture deep into Dark Souls' dank subterranean area called Blighttown and the acrid swamp around you becomes the enemy, slowly poisoning you. In a sadistic game that asks for all your patience and then your sanity, mere survival feels exhilarating.
Valve // PC, Mac, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Come for the brain-teasing puzzles and incredible physics-based gameplay. Stay for Stephen Merchant reading from one of the medium’s funniest scripts.
Konami // PlayStation
One of the foundational entries in the stealth genre and the game that birthed Hideo Kojima as one of the artform's few auteurs. There’s a reason every star from Lea Seydoux to Mads Mikkelsen wants to work with him – he’s ingenious, inventive and bonkers weird.
Bioware // PC, Xbox 360
Mass Effect 2’s final quest – aptly named a Suicide Mission – is one of the greatest in video game history; a thrilling conclusion that also puts all of your choices throughout the game to the test as you potentially lose precious squad mates. There may never be a band of heroes this lovable ever again.
CD Projekt Red // PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Our recent replay of The Witcher 3 took 130 hours. Every second of it was packed with rich characters, phenomenal storytelling and some of the best quests in RPG history. As such, we’re sorely tempted to reacquaint ourselves with the Bloody Baron all over again.
From Software // PlayStation 4
Bloodborne’s intensely aggressive combat and near-on indecipherable web of Lovecraftian lore cemented director Hidetaki Miyazaki as one of the most influential developers of the decade. The game’s originality – it’s the only entry in our top 10 without a sequel or spin-off – further cements its mystique.
Alexey Pajitnov // Electronika 60
Effortlessly simple game design. The rights to Tetris have been contested many times, but few can deny the impact of Alexey Pajitnov’s blockbuster. As one of just two pre-1990s games in our Greatest 100, it currently holds the Guinness World Record for the most ported game ever made, with more than 65 platforms officially.
Naughty Dog // PlayStation 3
A dad game for the ages, Naughty Dog’s punt at a Cormac McCarthy-inspired post-apocalyptic travelogue was one of the riskiest moves in PlayStation history. With 32 million copies sold in the franchise so far and season two of a critically acclaimed HBO TV show already in the works, it's safe to say Neil Druckmann and Bruce Straley's almighty gamble paid off.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017)
Nintendo // Switch
Nintendo’s magnificent Switch launch game changed how many saw open world experiences. Vast in size, deeply systemic, with a completely freeform approach to exploration, combat and puzzles. Few games match its scope for experimental play opportunities, and few give the player so much sense of authority over their own discoveries. Its sequel, Tears of the Kingdom, has one hell of a legacy to live up to.
Thanks to everyone who submitted personal lists. Each one was a fascinating insight into your tastes and preferences. Below is – yet another – list of every individual who voted and agreed to be credited.
Mourad El-Dine Abdou (Rare), Kahlief Adams (Spawn on Me), Blessing Adeoye Jr. (Kinda Funny), Liz Albl (Cloud Chamber), Leigh Alexander (Indie), Jim Ashilevi (Za/UM), Jack Attridge (Flavourworks), Autumn (Streamer)
Jon Bailes (Freelance Journalist), Kat Bailey (IGN), Dinga Bakaba (Arkane Lyon), Dinah Bakeer (Naughty Dog), Michael Barclay (Naughty Dog), Ricardo Bare (Arkane Austin), Sam Barlow (Half Mermaid), Eric Barone (Concerned Ape), Christopher Barrett (Bungie), James Batchelor (GamesIndustry.Biz), Sean Bell (The Computer Game Show), Stephanie Bendixsen (Freelance), Hollie Bennett (Frontier Developments), Julian Benson (TechRadar Gaming), Joe Blackburn (Bungie), Louise Blain (BBC), Vikki Blake (Freelance Journalist), Cliff Bleszinski, Bloody, Bloodyfaster, Bouphe, Sadie Boyd (Arkane Austin), Adam Boyes (Iron Galaxy), Tom Bramwell (Freelance Journalist), Chris Bratt (People Make Games), Jerome Braune (Arkane Lyon), Breebunn, Mark Brown (Game Maker’s Toolkit), Mike Brown (Maverick Games), Nathan Brown (Hit Points), Tim Browne (Avalanche), Corinne Busch (BioWare), Tom Butcher (Maverick Games)
Carina Calvert (505 Games), Marilia Campos (SEGA), Molly Carroll (Larian Studios), Matthew Castle (The Back Page Podcast), Khee Hoon Chan (Freelance Journalist), Jack Chapman (PlayStation London Studio), Tim Clark (PC Gamer), Raphael Colantonio (Wolfeye), Paul Colls (Sumo Digital), Lloyd Coombes (GG Recon), Jez Corden (Windows Central), Javiera Cordero (Meta), Andy “Nitro Rifle” Cortez (Kinda Funny), Brian Crecente (Pad and Pixel), Daniel Curtis (Codemasters)
Mark Darrah, Mathijs de Jonge (Guerrilla), Jake Dekker (GameSpot), Bo DeVries (Guerrilla), Alex Donaldson (RPG Site), Christian Donlan (Eurogamer), Osama Dorias (Blizzard), Nicolas Doucet (Team Asobi), Chris Dring (GamesIndustry.biz), Mike Drucker (Comedian / TV Writer), Neil Druckmann (Naughty Dog), James Dyer (Empire)
Elspeth Eastman (Voice Actor), Emmalition, Julien Eveille (Arkane Lyon)
Josef Fares (Hazelight), Elise Favis (Freelance Journalist), Ralph Fulton (Playground Games)
Janet Garcia (Pen to Pixels), Des Gayle (Radical Forge), Emily Gera (Larian Studios), Arthur Gies (Wirecutter), Harold Goldberg (New York Videogames Critic Circle), Will Goldstone (Unity Games), Danny Gray (UsTwo Games), Kate Gray (Freelance), Aaron Greenberg (Xbox), Jeff Grubb (Giant Bomb)
Ben Hanson (MinnMaxx), Alistair Hatch (Bethesda), Luke Hebblethwaite (BAFTA), Stacey Henley (The Gamer), Alex Hern (The Guardian), Evan Hill (Obsidian), Edward Hines-Lindo (Rockstar Games), Charley Hodson (Xbox), Anna Hollinrake (Electric Saint), Vic Hood (Dot ESports), Dan Houser, Ross Houston (Sony Santa Monica), Leon Hurley (GamesRadar), Tamoor Hussain (GameSpot)
Poppy Ingham (Za/Um), Bryan Intihar (Insomniac Games), Phil Iwaniuk (Freelance Journalist)
Aram Jabbari (Sony Interactive Entertainment), Jacksepticeye, Gita Jackson (Freelance Journalist), Lucy James (GameSpot), Britanni Johnson (G2 Esports), Neil Jones (Indie), Will Judd (Digital Foundry)
Greg Kasavin (Supergiant Games), Lauren Kaye (Limit Break), Andy Kelly (Devolver Digital), Mary Kenney (Insomniac Games), Will Kerslake (Crystal Dynamics), Imran Khan (My Dearest), Emma Kidwell (Firaxis), Paul Kildruff-Taylor (Mode 7), Matt Kim (IGN), Jade King (The Gamer), Mary Kish (Twitch), Patrick Klepek (Waypoint), Dora Klindžić (Za/Um), Knightenator, Merritt K (Fanbyte), Rob Krekel (Formosa Interactive), Daniel Krupa (RKG)
Rick Lane (Freelance Journalist), JC Lau (Probably Monsters), Robert Leedham (GQ), Arnaldo Licea (Naughty Dog), Parris Lilley (Kinda Funny), Gabby Llanillo (Riot Games), Lomadiah, Sarah Longthorne (Chinese Room), Sam Loveridge (GamesRadar)
Keza MacDonald (The Guardian), Cian Maher (CD Projekt Red), Kurt Margenau (Naughty Dog), Lee Mather (Codemasters), Derek Mattson (Naughty Dog), Ben Maxwell (Network N), Ryan McCaffrey (IGN), Stefan McGarry (Ubisoft), Kirk McKeand (GLHF), Ally McLean (Indie), David Meikleham (Future Publishing), Alyssa Mercante (Kotaku), Arne Meyer (Naughty Dog), Jordan Middler (VGC), Patrick Milles (CD Projekt Red), Dave Milner (The Shot), Eric Monacelli (Marvel Games), Shayna Moon (The Coalition), Michael Mumbauer (Liithos), Gav Murphy (RKG)
Nate Najda (Wushu Studios), Alex Navarro (Netlander), Xalavier Nelson (Strange Scaffold), Alexandria Neonakis (Probably Monsters), Holly Nielsen (Academic), Ninja, Ayo Norman-Williams (Indie), Mark Noseworthy (Bungie)
Lucy O’Brien (Ubisoft), PJ O’Reilly (Nintendo Life), Jade Oakley (Blizzard), Beau Ockers (Bungie), Grant Orban (Playground Games), Adam Orth (Digital Eclipse), Osiefish
Michael Pachter (Analyst), Paladin Amber, Gene Park (The Washington Post), Simon Parkin (The New Yorker), Ash Parrish (The Verge), Alanah Pearce (Sony Santa Monica), Jeremy Peel (Freelance Journalist), Sabrina Phillips (Naughty Dog), Chris Plante (Polygon), Shannon Plante (Sacriel), Luke Plunkett (Kotaku), Steffan Powell (BBC)
Chella Ramanan (Massive Entertainment), Mel Ramsay (BBC), Blake Rebouche (Guerrilla), Andrea Rene (What’s Good Games), Stephen Rhodes (EA Motive), Greg Rice (Sony Interactive Entertainment), Samuel Roberts (The Back Page Podcast), Mark Robins (Bethesda), Andy Robinson (VGC), Martin Robinson (Eurogamer), Daniel Robson (IGN Japan), John Romero (Romero Games), Jim Rossignol (Indie), Kyle Rowley (Remedy), Chantal Ryan (Indie), Calliope Ryder (Weta Workshop)
Sacriel, Anisa Sanusi (Rollerdrome), Phil Savage (PC Gamer), Josh Sawyer (Obsidian), David Scarborough (Inflexion), Tim Schafer (Double Fine), Josh Scherr (Crop Circle Games), Chris Schilling (EDGE), Kevin Schultz (Firaxis), Richard Scott-Jones (PC Games N), Chloe Sinclair (Firesprite Games), Skillup, Joe Skrebels (Xbox), Adam Smith (Larian Studios), Harvey Smith (Arkane Austin), Luke Smith (Bungie), Matt Sophos (Sony Santa Monica), Alex Spencer-Dale (EDGE), Juliet Stafford (Mediatonic), James Stevenson (Insomniac Games), Keith Stuart (The Guardian), Sunpi
Chris Tapsell (Eurogamer), Lindsay Thompson (Insomniac Games), Mia Torr (Za/Um), Alexis Trust (Chucklefish)
Samantha Wallschlaeger (Crystal Dynamics), Albertine Watson (Bunnyhug Games), Philipp Weber (CD Projekt Red), Sam White (GQ), Logan Willis (Riot Forge), Chris Wilson (Cardboard Sword), Sam Winkler (Gearbox Software), Wisalallen, Sloane Wolf (Xbox)
Kelly Yeo (Blizzard)
First published on gq-magazine.co.uk
