More on Video Games

I'd just like to further the discussion of greatest video games and toss in some of my personal favs.

1) ESPN NFL 2k5
Simply the best football game to ever be released. In 2005, I purchased the game for just $20, as opposed to the $50 being asked for Madden. The game offered a different kind of running style where the user taps repetedly to build up speed, then holds it down to burst into the potential tackeler. It made you feel as if you were the one actually running the ball, rather than just holding down X. Also, the halftime show alone was something to marvel at, Chris Berman (however annoying in real life he may be) showed all of your highlights including TD's, FGs and INTs from the first half and would describe them to you, this is a feat still unmatched by any video game. The game also offered more in depth attribute stats rather than just Throw Power and Throw Accuracy being the only ones that mattered as with Madden. You can still find this game for about $4 bucks at any shop that sells used games, i suggest giving it a try.

http://2ksports.com/games/nfl2k5/

2) Front Page Sports: Baseball Pro 96
This PC game is a stat lovers wet dream. You cant be average Joe Baseball Fan to play this game, you have to have an understanding of how a manager actually handles a game. The game would display the most in depth statistics you could imagine. If you had a lefty comming up in the 8th down by two runs with runners on second and third, you could find out the batters average in Close and Late Situations as well as Against Left and with Runners in Scoring position. Ok, maybe that just makes me a geek, but the game really put you inside the game of baseball, something MLB games fail to do today. Plus since the game was made in 1996, its fun to see that Ben McDonald actually had a career then.
But additionally, the rookie draft, rule 5 draft, expanded rosters, in depth minor league rosters and custom defense positioning were all featured, something that at the time was revolutionary.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/sports/frontpagesportsbp96s/index.html

3) NBA LIVE 95
Ok so maybe my nostalgia is getting the best of me here, because not only did my brother and I have wire to wire battles with East vs. West custom all-star teams, but also 1995-96 was just a great year for basketball. That was the year Motombo and the Nuggets, the 8 seed, upset favorite Seattle Supersonics, the 1 seed, in the first round of the playoffs. You could back down big men with Hakeem, do fade aways with Miller, or even have Rodmans hair change mid-game. This game was the first to feature realistic looking size differences between Centers and Guards. If you play live 95, then look at NBA games now, you will see where all the ideas for custom dunks, free throw shooting and incorporating usable offensive plays came from.

http://www.mobygames.com/game/nba-live-95/screenshots

I must concur about Madden. No Madden game belongs on a best games list. For every system, they were just lazy repeats of the same game year after year with minor, even silly changes. The only reason you bought the new one was for the new roster, which if you have time, you could just go in and change it all yourself (which we've been known to do). Plus two giant middle fingers up to EA Sports for buying exclusive rights to the NFL so we'll never know how good 2k could have been.