Best Video Games of the 7th Gen
On May of this year, Microsoft announced the Xbox One. Along with an increased
focus on entertainment, the always on Evil Eye and the ability to
multitask, it ended the 7th Generation of
Consoles and began the 8th gen in November when release started for Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
The 3DS, PS Vita, and Wii U
may be called by some as the first set of eighth generation consoles; These are however, failures like the micro-consoles of the seventh generation. Nintendo could not
repeat its success of Wii by combining it with a tablet, even though tablets
are basically the fad of today. New versions of the previous mentioned three consoles are already
under development. Microsoft and Sony seem to have learnt their lesson from
the disastrous hardware they put out in 7th gen and made wise design and product choices.
From November 2005, Xbox 360.with the early launch was plagued with hardware issues, most infamously the red ring of death. Sony's PlayStation 3 release was a push for the Blu-ray format. The most terrifying thing console owners could see was a small red or yellow light that signalled that their expensive console was dead. The DualShock 3 - and Sixaxis before it, were both terrible controllers.
Generation shifts are marked by changes in hardware as well as philosophical design shifts. Developers came to terms with the fact that they were no longer in a niche industry and catered to larger audiences. Released within about a week of the PS3, the Wii seemed to be indifferent to its competitors. It did not cost prohibitively with long waits in queues to buy. The Wii's low price and gentle learning curve towards its games led to its commercial success through people who don't regularly play video games. The Wii's success led to a new era in casual Video Games. Before, casual games as well as controllers that enable two-dimensional tracking were confined to the PC and the mobile phone. Thanks to the success of motion controls that allowed sports, dance, and aerobics to force players to experience a workout in order to play, the Wii, Kinect, and PlayStation Move have been applauded by many for their fitness potential. Wii more than earns its place as a top console of all time.
As a free bundled demonstration that gave a glimpse into the future of Wii, Wii Sports was reassuring, charming, and good, clean fun. Nintendo showed again that good game-play triumphs over artworks and the need to be heavy and deep. Wii Sports did neither bulge in features nor impress, but what Nintendo put together was a fun package whose variety entertained all players. The variety of games; tennis, baseball, bowling, golf, and boxing covered global preferences without complicated simulations. Brilliant in multiplayer, this launch titles offered a lot of fun from a small package. They increased the video-game market, showed what Wii could do in terms of innovation and made video-games accessible to everyone. For the players who wanted to be seen as hardcore, the instruction mode gave a lot of challenges. While not perfect, overall this game is great, and a big indispensable victory for Nintendo. The greatest strength of Wii Sports was its unparalleled accessibility to the innovation of motion-controlled gaming. A couple of matches got us hooked and delivered what was at the time a completely fresh experience that made gaming more accessible to everyone.
We’ve seen some truly memorable games over the past eight years. Many of them have been in consistent sets which make sense when played together as a series. They were created over a long development periods and thus made video games a very expensive pastime. The success of the industry also led to many new entrants who tried and failed with micro-consoles. Social media has led to many clones of old games from decades past getting rehashed by bad-faith players. Playing on TVs was always and continues to be powerful, more enjoyable than playing on cheaper mobile devices. Smartphones and their potential for casual gaming may change that.
The mainstreaming of video games also led to the rise of voice overs and e-sports. There was a time when video game voice acting was so awful that players turned audio off instead of suffering the torture. Video game stories have become very complex and game artwork now approaches cinematic quality. The need to also deepen the complexity of the game and persons became apparent, which in turn led to the hiring of professional voice performers to give them voice. Good voice overs convey the game’s mood and overall atmosphere. We have moved away from the era of notoriously bad and gimmicky voice acting of games like Resident Evil. Most games in the list below have excellent Voice acting that adds to the game experience.
The competitions around e-sports are converting video gaming into a spectator sport. There were 124 million e-sports viewers in 2012. The increasing viewership is contributing to revenue growth. Brands, seeing the potential of reaching a large and engaged audience, are investing in e-Sports marketing both directly and indirectly.
Without further fuss, here is my list
From November 2005, Xbox 360.with the early launch was plagued with hardware issues, most infamously the red ring of death. Sony's PlayStation 3 release was a push for the Blu-ray format. The most terrifying thing console owners could see was a small red or yellow light that signalled that their expensive console was dead. The DualShock 3 - and Sixaxis before it, were both terrible controllers.
Generation shifts are marked by changes in hardware as well as philosophical design shifts. Developers came to terms with the fact that they were no longer in a niche industry and catered to larger audiences. Released within about a week of the PS3, the Wii seemed to be indifferent to its competitors. It did not cost prohibitively with long waits in queues to buy. The Wii's low price and gentle learning curve towards its games led to its commercial success through people who don't regularly play video games. The Wii's success led to a new era in casual Video Games. Before, casual games as well as controllers that enable two-dimensional tracking were confined to the PC and the mobile phone. Thanks to the success of motion controls that allowed sports, dance, and aerobics to force players to experience a workout in order to play, the Wii, Kinect, and PlayStation Move have been applauded by many for their fitness potential. Wii more than earns its place as a top console of all time.
As a free bundled demonstration that gave a glimpse into the future of Wii, Wii Sports was reassuring, charming, and good, clean fun. Nintendo showed again that good game-play triumphs over artworks and the need to be heavy and deep. Wii Sports did neither bulge in features nor impress, but what Nintendo put together was a fun package whose variety entertained all players. The variety of games; tennis, baseball, bowling, golf, and boxing covered global preferences without complicated simulations. Brilliant in multiplayer, this launch titles offered a lot of fun from a small package. They increased the video-game market, showed what Wii could do in terms of innovation and made video-games accessible to everyone. For the players who wanted to be seen as hardcore, the instruction mode gave a lot of challenges. While not perfect, overall this game is great, and a big indispensable victory for Nintendo. The greatest strength of Wii Sports was its unparalleled accessibility to the innovation of motion-controlled gaming. A couple of matches got us hooked and delivered what was at the time a completely fresh experience that made gaming more accessible to everyone.
We’ve seen some truly memorable games over the past eight years. Many of them have been in consistent sets which make sense when played together as a series. They were created over a long development periods and thus made video games a very expensive pastime. The success of the industry also led to many new entrants who tried and failed with micro-consoles. Social media has led to many clones of old games from decades past getting rehashed by bad-faith players. Playing on TVs was always and continues to be powerful, more enjoyable than playing on cheaper mobile devices. Smartphones and their potential for casual gaming may change that.
The mainstreaming of video games also led to the rise of voice overs and e-sports. There was a time when video game voice acting was so awful that players turned audio off instead of suffering the torture. Video game stories have become very complex and game artwork now approaches cinematic quality. The need to also deepen the complexity of the game and persons became apparent, which in turn led to the hiring of professional voice performers to give them voice. Good voice overs convey the game’s mood and overall atmosphere. We have moved away from the era of notoriously bad and gimmicky voice acting of games like Resident Evil. Most games in the list below have excellent Voice acting that adds to the game experience.
The competitions around e-sports are converting video gaming into a spectator sport. There were 124 million e-sports viewers in 2012. The increasing viewership is contributing to revenue growth. Brands, seeing the potential of reaching a large and engaged audience, are investing in e-Sports marketing both directly and indirectly.
Without further fuss, here is my list
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Portal and Portal 2
PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Portal series is a fresh, unique game experience. The games have smooth learning curves that introduce us to the basic concepts, then continue the introduction through new inventions to use with portals until the chambers become complex jungles of hazardous obstacles. A platformer, physics simulator, and puzzle game rolled into one. The visuals are full of subtle cues to guide players to the proper conclusion.
Portal was introduced as a game where we don't kill a single enemy. The star is a woman in an orange jumpsuit with the game's sole piece of equipment; Portal Gun.The action-oriented nature of The Orange Box and the brand awareness of Half Life allowed Portal to slip through most players' attention. The quality is excellent throughout with unique, well-crafted game-play and a witty, whip-smart script without fillers. Ellen McLain voiced GLaDOS; which resembles HAL 9000 and is the meanest of robots with personality.
Portal 2 is hilariously well-written and voice acted with memorable roles. Everything about this game is on point, from premise to script to gameplay to artworks to music and of course, to the voice acting. Portal 2 builds upon the puzzles in the original, starts off simply enough but soon we face some genuinely ingenious puzzles. We are encouraged to experiment and learn from puzzles to help us solve the next one. Not only is there the great single player but Portal 2 also features a fully fleshed out multiplayer that brings in replay-ability. It also added Stephen Merchant and J.K. Simmons to the voice acting mix. Portal 2 includes a genuinely curious plot that has higher immersion.
Steam began life as a way for Valve to distribute patches for games like Counter-Strike effectively. Steam could develop into a hub to buy games, review them, and even participate in their development. With its wholehearted embrace of non windows PCs, this platform could become very important for video games in the years to come. -
Uncharted Trilogy
Playstation 3
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, and Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception are great flagship game for what PS3 could do. The three different settings of jungle, mountains and desert are gorgeous and use brilliant lighting. They are great commercial successes with a mix of elements from platformer and shooter games. They are also memorable games with replay value and irresistible stories where we are at the thin border between awesomeness and the precipice of abject failure. these games reversed a trend of hyper-linear shooters where, as Kotaku says, "...most shooters went backwards. They doubled down on smoke and mirrors at the expense of richer worlds and deeper experiences." Case in point being the difference in the maps of the same area in different Doom games published in different years shown below.
Drake's Fortune looks awesome with great sweeping scenery, engrossing plot, and magnetic stars in Nathan Drake accompanied in his quest by video journalist Elena Fisher. The subtlety of the animation in Drake’s model lends an incredible amount of believability to both the cinematic nature and Nathan’s sarcastic, gruff, commoner quality. The controls are easy to learn from in-game hints and instructions, and the plot and found items are self explanatory.
From awesome soundtrack, artworks, story, to game-play, Uncharted 2 was superior not just to its predecessor but also to most other games that came out. The game-play is flawless and the only time the game lets up is a beautiful section where we control serious injured Drake as he explores an idyllic Tibetan village while he recovers. Naughty Dog moved the industry forward and raised the expectations with this overwhelmingly good game. The single player campaign packed in many incredible moments that players were debating with friends for months, the multiplayer functionality was superb and rammed with content.
The weakest of the three, Drake's Deception searches for the fabled "Atlantis of the Sands". Segments are thrilling, exciting, yet linear and predictable. It tried to copy melee combat from Rocksteady’s Batman games mentioned next. Those are problems only because Naughty Dog set such a high bar for quality. It is a great game that continued the practice of good camera angles and responsive controls that made climbing sheer walls, hanging from crumbling ledges, swinging off vines and hurdling over crevices immersive rather than frustrating. Overall, a great series with fantastic gripping stories, lovable persons, spectacular cut scenes and artworks, frantic gunfights, and jaw-dropping platforming. -
Batman: Arkham Asylum and Arkham City
PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
This series brought great narrative, impressive boss encounters, and fresh game-play. Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill and Arleen Sorkin; who worked on the DC Animated Universe series of film and television, reprise their roles for the games. This series successfully achieves everything that dark/mature game are supposed to do without jaded gimmicks that lead to M rating.
Arkham Asylum begins with Batman taking Joker in a Bat-mobile to the famous psychiatric hospital that doubles as a jail for the most criminally insane located in Gotham. game-play is very delightful too as we never feel bogged down in combat, detective work, or stealth. The world opens up progressively with some backtracking through some places that change with the game. There is also a thematic reason for exploration of the Nooks and crannies of the game map.
After the polished excellence of Batman: Arkham Asylum. Arkham City surpassed the original with flying colors. It begins in the wake of the events of Arkham Asylum. Gotham's most notorious slums are converted into an immense prison enclosure known as Arkham City. Players fly from one magnificent moment to the other, with absolutely no time for boredom. The game is far more open than Arkham Asylum, and we can spend a lot of time travels around the city and discovery of things to do. The end is very bold and satisfying. Arkham City is an expertly crafted adventure, one that maintains a sensational pace and rhythm that invigorated from start to end. In these two extensive and detailed games, Rocksteady created an intricate, spirited and vertiginous playground worthy of the iconic Batman.
Expectations were high for Batman: Arkham Origins and that is where this series went downhill. The opportunity to create the best trilogy of video game adaptation of a comic book person was lost. Development was changed to a different studio and too much effort spent on gimmicks to start a franchise rather than make a good game. I hope Warner's re-association with Rocksteady makes up for the previous mistake. -
Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2
Wii
After years of platform games progressively improvement in the simulation of gravity and other aspects of physics came these goofy platform games that played around with gravity. Nintendo smartly made the games accessible and enjoyable for their audience who consisted of both newcomers and veterans. The core game itself is average difficulty but there are plenty of collectibles and challenges that will test even the most hardened player. For pure 3D platforming, these were the best.
Super Mario Galaxy was both a fresh take on the platform genre as well as an accessible game for casual or new players. Nintendo's best designers unleashed a meaty, deep adventure that married Mario's traditional fireballs and Koopaling knockouts with distinct galaxies and whimsical perspectives. It introduced the idea of distinct mini levels chained together to form a stage
Super Mario Galaxy 2 took everything its predecessor did and maintained the wonder and discovery. This addictive game is the best Mario game yet. Bowser is now planet-sized, and this changes the approach for his boss battles. Some of the levels will throwback into 2D at some points. Yoshi has been added along with fun new powers. Super Mario Galaxy 2 has excellently brought back what players loved about the first Galaxy game, while steadily built upon the experience. -
World of Goo
PC, Wii, Android, BlackBerry OS
World of the Goo reinvented the Puzzle genre of video games. Cheap, easy on system resources and highly addictive, this well-liked puzzle game is about plucking and plopping down living bits of gooey foundation. The puzzle setups in each of its nearly 50 levels are irresistible, and the physics impeccable. Figuring out how the weight distribution and gravity works in World of Goo is very satisfying, and fun to play with. Engrossing must buy timeless delightful classic. World of Goo features a lot of variety which makes it accessible but with plenty of depth. One of indie gaming's finest hours ever that demonstrated quality over quantity.
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Minecraft
PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Another standard-bearer for the health, potential and the capability of the low budget developers we call the indie scene, serving another notice that scripted design and photo-realistic artworks aren’t needed when players have fun systems. The central achievement of Minecraft is a willingness to let the player define the experience; to make them the most interesting element in a world that's already dynamic and fascinating. It was an open world that prioritized tools over content to spark imagination and a great community. It's a decision that has made designer Markus Persson a millionaire. The environments feed and inform your creativity. Everyone, irrespective of hours they wanted to invest or skills/familiarity with games got rewarded with a unique experience with the randomly generated environments. Minecraft let the players define the fun without losing itself to either esoterica or cynicism. In an era where the development of most games is a closely-guarded, PR-managed secret, millions were invited to buy and play Minecraft years before it was even finished. What it lacks in fancy bells and whistles, it more than makes up for through sheer depth.
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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword
Wii
The Legend of Zelda is a series that beautifully blends aspects of the medieval west with Japanese folklore. They take the same narrative of Darkness being upon the land, to save the world, save the princess. Each game is a great attempt to make this same narrative interesting. Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword occupied conflicting places in the players views.
Twilight Princess is the game that launched Wii and the better of the two. The wondrous, deep adventure and revolutionizing game-play additions of the Twilight transformation and Spinner found mid game that changes the game play make this edition unique and interesting. Complaints about cel-shaded artworks in The Wind Waker led to realistic art style. The dungeon design, bosses, and game balance are all top notch. it takes all its predecessors' raw ideas, perfects them, and creates an experience that's at once new and familiar. It's rare to find a launch game that truly justifies the purchase of a new console, but this was precisely that.
Skyward Sword has an interesting art style. Nintendo has amplified up their design to deliver emotional cut scenes, and even without proper voice acting, players can latch onto these persons and develop feelings for them. The motion control of Wii was expanded with a Wii MotionPlus controller so that players could play the game as precisely as possible. This and the Sword theme lead to unmatched satisfaction like the first time a sword swing in an exact direction or angle defeats an enemy. The game also has flaws like the fickle camera system and time-travel gimmicks which led to disorientation in game and lore with the already convoluted Zelda timelines. While MotionPlus controls led to inventive puzzles and items, its over-reliance on them was a turnoff. Underground digging skill proved more useful and unique than the whip available mid-game.
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Galactic Civilizations II: Ultimate Edition
PC
PC, being an open community and platform for video games attracts many small budget developers. It also enabled Stardock; a general software development company to create video games. Also, during the same period as the introduction of Online passes which treated customers like shoplifters, we had Stardock, which respected customers. Like any other software developer, they decided not to include aggressive Digital Rights Management software in the game. The demonstrated it again after a company universally reviled by people who pay for games, whose software causes system instability and crashes in the name of protection against unauthorized copying, got scared at the success of Stardock's policy and went after them.
Originally released in three parts, Galactic Civilizations II is the lead example of the potential of turn based video-war-games. Sequel to Galactic Civilizations, inspired by Civilization series of games. Galactic Civilizations, AI is famously very good. Stardock has maintained their standard of quality in this series. Every race has a unique research tree. The campaign plot has intricate storytelling and dark themes. The game has high replay value in Sandbox mode which is universally loved even among players who have not play the campaign. I am excited about Galactic Civilizations III which is expected to add multiplayer. -
Bastion
PC, Xbox 360, iOS
The debut release from Supergiant Games, infuses gameplay with a story more meaningful and touching than most entertainment. From the very first moment the star opens his eyes, the disembodied voice of the narrator reacting to action as it happens is amazing. The exceptionally strong writing and moving soundtrack conveys a great deal of background on the explored areas through bittersweet descriptions of what things were. The isometric action amplifies the ever-present danger of falling over the edge Thankfully, the penalty for this is only a slight loss of health. The wide range of unlock-able melee and projectile weapons offers great flexibility in how players can approach its many challenges. The beautiful fairy-tale art style, exceptional hand-painted environments includes a plethora of detail that freshens up the look of how a post-apocalyptical setting should look like. The optional challenges highlight the game’s thrilling and addictive combat and along with the branching endings, entice players to come back and play repeatedly. The story influenced by the colonization of north America, its narration, as well as the progressive difficulty pushes players to the limit, and with the variety of encounters and keeps them flowing. The only potential of improvement was in having more depth and variety. I am excited to see what Supergiant Games creates in the future. -
StarCraft II
PC
This low position is due to the decision pending on the completion of full release. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm and StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void constitute one potentially epic and expensive game. StarCraft started as the legal enough Warhammer 40K version of Warcraft which was itself Frankenstein-ed from multiple famous games. The mass build of broadband Internet networks in South Korea after the 1997 Asian financial crisis, and its multiplayer players created the e-sports industry. It went against the copycat history of Blizzard Entertainment, is now the lead example of the real-time video-war-games with both its modes of single-player and multiplayer being marvellous. The story has been improved immensely along-with in mission chatter and cut scenes, both in game and cinematic. The mission variety and new units mean no feel of the player repeat of a scenario. All three races are well-rounded and have distinct identities. The maps and unit sizes are larger. There are main hub areas where the star can have conversations with allies, as well as customize the units and abilities. More options open up as the campaigns progress based on decisions made. The updated multi-player mode has ranked ladders for casual players and potential for analysis paralysis. The two releases of this game are flawlessly executed and stay true to the original old school real-time game-play.
Legacy of the Void may be released in 2015 when the new generation of consoles will have been established. Till then, this is a trilogy misses the Protoss, whose addition will thematically combine the series as a part of 7th Generation. the series may deserve a higher spot on this list depends on the execution of the last release. With luck, the story will continue to be kept free of cheap tricks like edge lords and time travel. I hope it is also worth the wait; especially for the South Koreans who took a bad game and made StarCraft a moneymaker franchise for Blizzard. -
LittleBigPlanet and LittleBigPlanet 2
PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable
Sony's attempt at broadening PS3's target audience, these titles charmed, captured gaming’s innocence. Their Game-play is a homage to classic 2D platform games like Mario and Sonic but Media Molecule added the twist of “depth” through three planes to move our star. The Story Modes follow light-hearted story following a cute Sackboy (or Sackgirl). Each level is brimming with unlockables, and rewards. Rewards are for completing each of the dozens of levels without error, and for finding all the loot, from stickers, to costume pieces. There are several different locations and each one has its own levels that are inspired by different cultures from around the world without repetition. the platforming challenges get more intense as we play along. They are a beautifully elegant and co-operative play is strongly supported, and perhaps even recommended. While rated E, the levels demand a high level of skill to finish. The cartoon-like artworks are beautiful and the game features great area specific music. Stephen Fry as the soothing Narrator brings a quaint charm. The charm and humour can make even the most jaded players smile. Though some praise the sharing of creativity as a powerful creative tool that puts unlimited potential in the palm of the hand, I am worried it would become another addictive and toxic social network.
Anticipation is high for what Media Molecule does to LittleBigPlanet 3 with its fresh sounds and art style. -
Journey
PC, PlayStation 3
Another independent game on this list. Players are presented with a vast, open world to explore, as they work travel through the last vestiges of some kind of civilization that is long gone on their way to a mountain that is shining to them like a beacon, reliving the story of that civilization on the way. The only companionship being provided by fleeting ribbon-like creatures and other players. One button handles all the communication in Journey, with a short press being a quick yelp, but a longer, held down button allows the player to bellow. All players have the same robed figure, so it's impossible to even have the slightest clue who you are encountering. This simple, emotional experience is much more satisfying than a lot of pretentious doctored scripts in other forms of entertainments. It was a combination of graceful, elegant minimalism through its aesthetics, music, and gameplay. They made for an accessible, but thematically deep and sincere adventure that anyone, regardless of experience or even interest in games, could appreciate. Co-development by Thatgamecompany and Santa Monica Studio led to Struggles and development issues where "...the team’s hope and dedication to something they truly loved and felt mattered to the medium transcended internal issues. Journey is a demonstration that people, at core, do want to be helpful and empathetic to one another -
Street Fighter IV
Arcade, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, iOS, Android,
After a hiatus of eleven years since Street Fighter III in 1997, came this main entry in the series. Despite our fatigue with the cookie cutter fighting game clones out there, the original series churned out a great game. There’s the traditional arcade mode, plus Time Attack and Survival modes. The fighting system in Street Fighter IV has Bucketload of depth and control and several permutations and combination of punches and kicks to master. There are also the options of special moves and super and ultra combos. The fighter roster in Street Fighter IV boasts of all the recognizable figures from Street Fighter II. The brilliant Training mode, which takes you by the hand and guides you through each character’s move set and then teaches you how to string attacks together. The Focus system adds another dimension to combat by allowing players to absorb a hit and then counter-attack. Thus, we can prevent move spam by opponents. By striking a balance between fresh and familiar, and delivering the best aspects of past Street Fighters, Street Fighter IV is this generation's best fighting game. -
Guitar Hero series
Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, PC, Nintendo DS, Mobile phone, iOS
Guitar Hero sparked a gaming and popular culture wonder, filling our heads with wish fulfillment of wicked riffs and our closets with plastic controllers that resembled instruments. Notes flew down from the screen, and players tapped the controls in time with the song with five sequential coloured frets on the neck of the guitar. The rhythm games had finally cracked the secret to the North American tastes. The series grew in a matter of years invoking various imitators and spin-offs. The faux-rock trappings and hilariously-dressed cartoon parodies struck a chord with players who assembled bands with their near and dear. Activision is slowly replacing Electronic arts as the villain of the gaming industry through moves like their mismanagement of this tent-pole franchise where the online multiplayer was underused and became lacklustre. Fans lost the feeling of immersion, grew worn and fatigued as the market was saturated with spin-offs designed only to grab cash. -
Forza Motorsport 2-4 and Horizon
Xbox 360
The best controller to play racing video games, racing simulators, and driving simulators is the steering wheel with pedals. Any effort that successfully and convincingly replicates the handling of an automobiles deserves additional applause. Forza series was the pinnacle of the racing simulation genre for this generation. Addictive and loads of fun even with just the Xbox 360 controllers, Forza Motorsport satisfied both car junkies and general players. It supported triple screen setup for amazing immersion. The main series was the ultimate in this generation for fans of ultra detailed Racing simulators. Turn 10 Studios made a reputation of attention to detail with visual finery combined with the faithfulness of the driving experience. The career mode, with its levelling system and the way it incentivized us to collect various vehicles to modify, upgrade and eventually auction off, is enthralling. Its broad and eclectic garage embraces car culture from all over the globe far more fairly than any of its peers ever have. The car handling is incredibly complex and varied, and the superb modding Garage lets you tweak handling beyond belief - but only if you want. The amazing array of customization options had children, and the most dedicated sim enthusiasts spending hours upon hours tweaking and fiddling with their cars. The online mode with tournaments and partnership with the BBC's Top Gear was excellent at uniting the motoring community.
When Electronics Arts slipped up with its Need for Speed series, Playground Games took the space with Forza Horizon. Horizon is an amazing arcade racer with an open road setting. Horizon's story revolves around the Horizon Festival where automobile enthusiasts compete in events spread throughout Horizon's version of Colorado. The tradeoffs of purity for spectacle and tuning depth for light-hearted enjoyment is near perfect. This made the already good multiplayer mode intense and fun for arcade racer players.
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