Replaying MGS2 in 2026
Twenty-five years later, does the Big Shell still hold up? Mostly yes, and the codec calls are funnier than I remembered.
My Top 5 Games of All Time
Every few years I try to rewrite this list, and every few years it comes out almost the same. These aren't the "best" games ever made. They're the ones that stuck with me long after the credits.
#1
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
2006 · GameCube / Wii
I played this one over a whole winter break and it still feels like winter to me. The gloomy Twilight Realm, riding Epona across Hyrule Field at dusk, Midna's sarcastic little comments. It's the Zelda that felt the most grown-up when I was a kid.
The dungeons are some of the best in the series: the Snowpeak Ruins mansion with the yeti couple cooking soup is my favourite level in any game, period. Wolf Link sections drag a little at the start, but by the end I wouldn't cut a single minute.
#2
Cyberpunk 2077
2020 · PC / PS5 / Xbox Series
Yes, the launch was rough. I waited, came back after the big updates and Phantom Liberty, and found one of the most detailed cities I've ever walked around in. Night City at 3 a.m. in the rain, with the radio on, is a vibe I can't get anywhere else.
What sold me were the side jobs. Some of the smallest stories, the ones you stumble into by accident, hit harder than the main plot. Panam and Judy's quests alone are worth the whole game.
#3
Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
2001 · PlayStation 2
The tanker chapter is pure fun: rain on the deck, guards you can tranq and hide in lockers, ridiculous attention to detail like ice cubes melting. Then the Big Shell starts and the game slowly turns into something much stranger.
As a teenager I was annoyed by the switch to Raiden. As an adult, the last hour of this game is the most ahead-of-its-time thing I've seen in the medium. It was talking about information overload before most of us had broadband.
#4
God of War III
2010 · PlayStation 3
The opening on the back of a titan climbing Mount Olympus is still one of the best first hours in gaming. The sense of scale was unreal on PS3, and honestly it holds up today.
Kratos in this one is pure fury, and that's the point: it's the end of a revenge story, loud and messy and over the top. The combat is tight enough that I still replay the arena challenges once in a while.
#5
Assassin's Creed II
2009 · PS3 / Xbox 360 / PC
Climbing the bell towers of Florence and Venice made me want to visit Italy, and when I finally did, I kept looking up at rooftops. Ezio's growth from a cocky kid to a mentor is the best character arc in the series.
Monteriggioni, the villa you slowly rebuild, was a simple idea that kept me hooked for hours. And the music in this game is fantastic: I still have "Ezio's Family" in my playlist.
Honourable mentions, because five is cruel: Half-Life 2, Shadow of the Colossus, The Witcher 3. Disagree? Good, that's what lists are for.
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