My Top 5 Video Game List

If you know me, then you would know that I'm a pretty big fan of video games.

I started playing when I was around seven or eight years old, with my first exposure being a Nintendo 3DS that I had been given as a gift for my birthday.

The first video game that I ever played on it was Super Mario 64. It's honestly hard for me to put into words how much I loved playing this game growing up. I remember taking my 3DS on car rides from West Palm Beach to Orlando and playing it, which kept me up the whole way through.

Now that the years have gone by, I've gone through a good amount of gaming systems. In particular, I went from the Nintendo 3DS to the Wii, from the Wii to the Xbox 360, from the Xbox 360 to the Xbox One, and finally from the Xbox One to the PC.

Throughout that span of years, I've gone through hundreds of video games, many of which I spent numerous hours playing, ranging from one hour to over a thousand hours (crazy, I know).

With that being said, I wanted to take the time to write about the games that stood out to me throughout the years and the ones that I hold dearly to me.

5. Wii Sports Resort

When I transitioned from the Nintendo 3DS to the Wii, the first game that I ever played on it was Wii Sports Resort.

If you were to ask how many hours I spent playing, I would probably say it hovers around the same amount of time as I did playing Super Mario 64.

So, you might be wondering now, why did I choose Wii Sports Resort over Super Mario 64?

The simple answer to that is its replay value.

What I didn't mention earlier was that the reason why I played Super Mario 64 for so long was that it took me forever to beat the game. Although I had tons of fun throughout the countless hours I put into it, after I saved Princess Peach from being trapped behind a painting, I pretty much stored the game card away, never to be seen again.

With Wii Sports Resort, I would always find myself playing the same game modes over and over again. Even though the objective was the same and the duration of each game was probably no more than ten minutes, I would always find myself having a different experience with each of the matches that I played, which is why it was so enjoyable.

If you're wondering what my favorite game mode is, then that would easily go to table tennis. I played it so much that I unlocked the flip-flop as a paddle (if you know, you know). Behind that would have to be swordplay and basketball.

There was another game mode where you could freely roam the island with a plane, which gave the player the opportunity to explore the island and find any Easter eggs that the developer had hidden. For example, if you flew far enough away, you would run into a completely different island that is normally not discoverable from the other game modes.

With that being said, Wii Sports Resort will always have a special spot for me as it is one of the first games where I devoted a good amount of hours to, and it is the game that introduced me to the Wii console.

4. Stardew Valley

I'm normally not a big fan of 2D pixelated games, so having Stardew Valley rank so high on my list is somewhat of a surprise to myself. However, what made this game so enjoyable for me is the depth of its story and the ability to craft your own play style as the game progresses.

The game starts off with a cutscene presenting your grandfather, who appears to be lying sick in bed. He hands the player an envelope, but he tells you not to open it at that moment. Instead, he wants you to open it when you feel 'crushed by the burden of life.'

Fast forward to a later point in time, you find yourself in a cutscene where the player is sitting in a cubicle, working a stereotypical 9-to-5 job, typing away at a computer, and responding to customer questions and concerns on a landline telephone.

They then proceed to open one of the drawers in their desk, and inside is the envelope their grandfather had given them. Given the state the player is in now, they feel it's time to unveil the contents of the envelope.

Inside is a letter telling the player that they have inherited their grandfather's farmland in an area called Stardew Valley. After reading this, the player packs all their belongings and takes a bus ride to the farmland.

From this point forward, the player is essentially tasked with cultivating their farmland and meeting the people in Pelican Town, located right next to your plot of land.

As the game progresses, you begin to realize that the decisions you make can affect your relationships with the people of Pelican Town, whether it be marrying someone, completing the community center, or siding with Joja Mart.

There are other aspects of the game that are incredibly well done, such as the mining system, which encourages the player to go back to the mines to reach a deeper level and scavenge for better loot. Additionally, the relationship system in the game facilitates the role-playing aspect, acting as somewhat of a side quest for the player to partake in.

Of course, there is so much more about the game that I could talk about, but throughout the hundreds of hours I've put into it, I can easily say that this is one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played.

I will say, though, that this game is tailored to those who are into the casual gaming experience, but if you're willing to try out a game that doesn't involve any sort of competitive aspect, Stardew Valley is without a doubt the first game I would recommend.

3. Fallout 4

The first role-playing game that I ever played, Fallout 4, is one of the greatest games I have ever experienced.

Now, if you ask a die-hard Fallout fan about the best game in the series, they would probably go with Fallout: New Vegas.

Objectively, they are probably correct. New Vegas is widely praised by many critics as one of the greatest RPGs of all time, and I won't lie, I also have to agree.

So why did I prefer Fallout 4 over New Vegas? To be quite frank, I fell in love with the settlement system and the relationships you can build that Bethesda had set in place.

If you're unfamiliar with the Fallout series, it essentially revolves around a nuclear war between the United States and China. A company known as Vault-Tec constructed underground vaults across the country for people to reside in during the war.

In each of the Fallout games, you play as a survivor from one of these vaults, exploring the wasteland and discovering the entirely new environment altered by the nuclear bombs. Fallout 4, in particular, has the main character searching for their lost child.

What made this game significantly different from the previous Fallout games were the character upgrades and the new settlement system that they introduced.

As mentioned earlier, the settlement system is what had me hooked on this game for so long, alongside its fantastic story. You essentially cultivate your own community and act as the leader of that settlement.

There are several factors you have to manage, such as food, water, and defense, all contributing to the overall happiness of your settlement.

What excited me was the freedom to handcraft the look of your settlement. I remember spending countless hours designing my settlement in a style that I felt best fit with the surrounding area.

Other than that, I really enjoyed the large number of companions you can choose from and their backstories, as you get to build relationships with them as the game progresses. My personal favorites were Preston Garvey, one of the last remaining survivors of the Minutemen, and Dogmeat, a German Shepherd that the player first encounters at a Red Rocket gas station.

With the nature of Bethesda games, there are of course tons of side quests that the player can undertake, which contribute to the lore of the entire series or act as comedic encounters to give the player a laugh.

There is so much more that I would like to go over about this game, but with the amount of lore packed into Fallout 4, I think it would be best if you were to experience the game firsthand.

2. Overwatch

For the people who know me in person, it's probably become a meme at this point that I'm a pretty big advocate for Overwatch.

I've been playing ever since the beta first came out around 2015, and my in-game playtime is well over a thousand hours. I was even on my university's Overwatch e-sports team for a bit (I swear, I have a life).

I think what made Overwatch so appealing to me was its competitive nature, especially the urge to rise up the ranks throughout each season. What set this apart from other games with ranked modes, like Valorant and Rainbow Six Siege, was the sheer amount of action in each team fight.

There are so many unpredictable factors that go into each team battle, so having a coordinated tactic when going into a fight and winning the battle is one of the most satisfying and rewarding feelings when playing the game.

I primarily played the tank role on the team, so I was pretty much always on the frontline, taking the first shots and making the calls on what to do. In particular, I really enjoyed playing Reinhardt, Orisa, Winston, and Zarya, all tanks who are basically always in the meta.

As I am writing this and reflecting on my past matches in Overwatch, I truly miss the laughs this game has given me. While there are, of course, plenty of frustrating moments, as is the nature of a competitive game, I often think back to the times where playing this game helped me to destress. The feeling of hopping on with a group of friends to play ranked at eight o'clock at night and playing past midnight is something that I will miss as I continue to get older.

It somewhat hurts to see Overwatch 2 being one of the worst-rated games on Steam, even though it may be warranted, but no matter how much the game goes downhill, I will always revisit it occasionally.

Recently, I haven't had as much time to play due to the insane course load I took on this past Fall semester, but hopefully, I can slowly get back into it next semester. Trust me, I've been dying to get back into it.

I think for most people who are into gaming, there will always be that one multiplayer competitive game they'll put countless hours into playing in order to improve and rise up the elo ladder. For me, that game just happened to be Overwatch.

1. Minecraft

So, we've reached the end and to no one's surprise, Minecraft trumps all.

I've grown up watching Minecraft YouTubers such as SkyDoesMinecraft, SSundee, BajanCanadian, PopularMMOs, etc., so it's no surprise that Minecraft would have such a large influence on my life, not just for its nostalgia but also for the friends that I've been able to make throughout the years.

Nowadays, I've pretty much reached a point in Minecraft where I'll leave it untouched for several months at a time until one of my friends decides to start up a server that we'll play on for two weeks straight, then never touch again.

The last time that happened was actually this past summer, and I was able to meet a couple of new people that I really enjoyed talking to. Even though I'll probably never talk to them again, because the Minecraft server is basically dead, this goes to show how Minecraft allows you to create plenty of enjoyable memories that you can look back on every now and then.

I remember the first ever large-scale project that I had built was NASA's Space Shuttle Challenger. Being a little kid at the time, it obviously wasn't a one-to-one replica, but what made it pretty unique was that I included a TNT launcher inside, which would launch the player hundreds of blocks into the air. I was so happy with the results that I showed it to my mom, who applauded me, but probably had no idea what I was doing.

To those who somehow have never touched this game, Minecraft is a survival game where you basically do whatever you want. You can build houses, go mining to get better gear, go fishing, explore, and much more. The ultimate goal of the game is to kill the Ender Dragon, but the game goes on even after killing it. Minecraft caters to multiple gaming styles, so you truly do have the freedom to do whatever you want.

I don't want to keep this part too long because if you were born before the year 2010, then it would be pretty understandable as to why Minecraft is number one on my list.

Final Remarks

Looking back on all the years that I've been playing video games, it's quite easy to say that they have had a pretty big impact on my life. They've helped me make friends, both online and in-person, and figure out at a young age what my potential interests were for a career in the future. The reason why I am pursuing a career in tech is because of video games.

If you're reading this and have never played video games, I would definitely give it a shot. You never know, you may meet some people you might unexpectedly get close with.

Do NOT play League of Legends.

Thanks for reading! :)