Key

As we move forward into the 2000's, the format is going to change a little bit. I like to keep things looking interesting and while the format for the 90's entries were great, I didn't quite like the outcome. It works. I'm proud of it regardless.
Instead of having fancy pictures and all that, i'm just going to focus on posting pictures that further a point. It'll make it easier to read and it'll make it look nicer. At least for me. So yeah.

With the 2000's, there's going to be so many games that I won't have a chance to talk about. I'll probably miss hundreds even. I can't talk about them all, but I can certainly try. So let's start.

Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
North America Release Date: June 26th, 2000
Publisher: Nintendo

First game on the list goes to Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. You basically play as Kirby, and the game is set up sort of like a 3D-esque sidescroller platformer. The neat mechanic about it is that you play as Kirby who has the ability to suck up monsters who have powers, and steal the powers for himself. You can power up with things like bombs, fire, lightning. The even cooler part is that you can combine two powers to create a super power. It makes the game really interesting because you want to try every combination you can. I don't think I've ever used all the powerups, but I've seen a lot of them, and they are all really cool.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
North America Release Date: October 26th, 2000
Publisher: Nintendo

Yet another staple in The Legend of Zelda history and gaming history in general. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask takes the method of using a style of gameplay we are already familiar with i.e. Ocarina of Time, and puts it to the ultimate test of bringing it to a depressing setting, and testing out the waters of what it means to have a creepy Zelda game. And man, it hits all the right notes. Majora's Mask is notorious for being the more depressing side of the series, and for good reason. It brings a story of dread and disaster while you the character, succumb to some pretty bizaree and mind boggling situations. Turning into a Deku scrub for one. Or meeting the mask trader. There's a lot going on in this game, and if you've experienced it for yourself, you will agree that the story is just so ****ing good. They really went all out in making sure you felt dread throughout the story. And plus, can we just talk about this moon for a second?



Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
Release Date: September 20th, 2000
Publisher: Activision

It's funny that this comes up literally right after I was talking about its predecessor, but yeah, remember Tony Hawk's Pro Skater? Well, it got a sequel, and god damn it's a good one. It does what a lot of sequels do correctly. Takes a known style, and just improves upon it. I legitimately loved Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 because it simply felt like an extension of the first game, and back in the day of no skateboarding games of this kind, it was a nice thing to see them progressing with the game. Not a whole lot more to say about it other than if you liked the first one, you'll love this one.

Banjo-Tooie
North America Release Date: November 20th, 2000
Publisher: Nintendo

I'm throwing this out there right now: To date, the best example of what it means to make a sequel to an already amazing game in a series. Banjo Kazooie brought a lot to the table when it came to 3D platformers. When there were rumors of a sequel, people were excited, and for good reason. Once Banjo Tooie released, everybody was struck at how amazing this game truly was. When I played through Banjo Tooie for the first time, I actually went through it with the mindset that I'm going to completely 100% it. And I did. And it was amazing. The huge world, the level designs, the new powerups. Everything about Banjo Tooie shows that Rare knew exactly what it meant to make a sequel. But again, that didn't last past Banjo Tooie when Nuts & Bolts was released *cringe*. But Banjo Tooie will forever hold a special place in my heart for showing me what it meant to play an actual great Banjo Kazooie sequel.

Star Wars Episode 1: Racer
Release Date: 1999-2000
Publisher: LucasArts

I'm including this one in 2000 and not 1999 because I already had enough for 1999. Seeing as the Dreamcast version of this game came out in 2000, I feel like it's a fair compromise. I've talked about Star Wars Episode 1: Racer many times in this journal so I'll try to keep this short. I loved the **** out of this game when it was popular back in the day. Something about feeling the speed of a podracer and being able to control was truly amazing, especially for its time. I'd easily play through this game again if it were ever remastered.

The Batlord

Neva Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

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Key

Many great memories made playing that game.

Key

Let's talk about...Banjo Tooie.

Yeah, I wasn't really done talking about Banjo Tooie because I feel like I can talk more and more about it, so that's what I'm gonna do.

Banjo Tooie is certainly a must need to play game. Especially if you've played Banjo Kazooie and enjoyed it thoroughly. Banjo Tooie is basically the best form of the series while also improving on everything Banjo Kazooie already did perfectly. Great playforming, great level design, and just an overall fun time.

The big difference I found with Banjo Tooie is just how open it was. Compared to the first game, you pretty much have an entire open world of levels to progress through and each level comes with its own twist, much like how Banjo Kazooie did it. I feel like Banjo Tooie was definitely more expansive and allowed for more adventurous platforming and experiences.

While the level design is still top notch, some of the smaller things are worth mentioning as well. The jinjo collecting is completely reworked and you now collect them and put them back into their houses in the jinjo village. The power ups that you get are also awesome. It sticks with the usual power ups that you get in the old game, but in this one you get things like dragon Kazooie and splitting apart. And those are used fairly regularly and help the game feel more diverse and fun.

Overall a genuinely fantastic sequel that also works as a game on its own merits. Adds a lot to an already fantastic series and does everything it has to do to create an incredible experience.

Hell, even the Gruntilda fight is great. I don't think I liked the fight at first because I thought it was odd that she'd fight in a drill type tank thing, but the boss fight is interesting enough that it warrants it. Plus, Banjo Kazooie did have a pretty amazing boss fight and I don't think Banjo Tooie necessarily needed it to be as amazing but I guess in some ways it is better. I just enjoyed the first one more. Again though, Banjo Tooie does quite well with offering as much as it does. When I played through it for the first time, I was very much satisfied with it as a whole. Same with its predecessor of course but I'll always prefer Banjo Tooie for feeling like the more complete and sometimes complex game.

Key

Moving right into 2001, we're going to start off with a game that I actually just talked about pretty in depth in another post, but I don't care because it's Runescape and I wanna talk more about Runescape.

Runescape
Release Date: January 4th, 2001
Publisher: Jagex

So, technically Runescape did start off in Runescape Classic in 1999, but since we're in 2001, I feel like it's still valid to talk about the actual Runescape that most people got into. It's technically known to the fanbase as Runescape 2 because it did actually come after another iteration of Runescape known as Runescape Classic. However, when I look at it, Runescape 2 being my very first experience with Runescape, then going over to Runescape Classic, I consider Runescape 2 to be the more "Runescape" game. What is it about this game that makes me continuously talk about it? I mean, I've talked about it in depth multiple times in this journal. Well, as I've mentioned prior, it's just filled with so many quests, skills, and lots of interesting things to do. Unfortunately as the years went on, the vision of Runescape was lost and many people including myself became tired of watching Jagex destroy their own game. Back in its heyday though, this was by far the best MMO to play, especially if you wanted a timesink.

Paper Mario
North America Release Date: February 5th, 2001
Publisher: Nintendo

I love me some Paper Mario. I mean, c'mon, take a look at this and tell me it doesn't look like a **** ton of fun to play:



The fact that they decided to take Mario and put him into a world of 2D sprites with 3D backgrounds is certainly something else. Seeing this back in the day on the N64 just once again shows the capability of what the N64 was able to do back then. I absolutely love Paper Mario, and I've played through the first one and a couple of the others that have released. Definitely a lot of fun if you're looking for a really unique Mario style RPG-esque adventure. Just take the notion of 2D not looking cool on any system and throw it out the window. They capture the effect really well in this game, and obviously better in games that came after it.

Conker's Bad Fur Day
North America Release Date: March 5th, 2001
Publisher: Rare / THQ

Time and time again I talk about this game and I talk about the fact that I never got to play it. It's quite unfortunate because I have heard from so many people that this game is fantastic. The sad thing is, I think I would have really enjoyed playing through it back in the day. The beauty of it is that it's visually similar to Banjo Kazooie and the like, and it's just mixed with graphic violence and vulgar humor among other things. I give Rare a lot of credit for taking the plunge and making this game. From screenshots and videos that I've seen, the game seems like it'd be really cool to play and potentially hilarious. It's just a game that has sort of been there and I've just never played it.

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon
North America Release Date: June 11th, 2001
Publisher: Konami

Castlevania is a series that I really didn't respect that much as a kid. I didn't really pick up on the value of what the games were offering. Specifically, Castlevania: Circle of the Moon is a game for the Game Boy Advance that I actually played through multiple times and only ever beat Dracula one time. That is one tough boss fight for a Game Boy Advance game. I did absolutely love playing through the game though because everything from the card system to the extra attacks you can get for the whip made for a pretty enjoyable experience overall. I liked seeing what different combinations you could get in terms of cards and moves etc.

Halo: Combat Evolved
North America Release Date: November 15th, 2001
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios

I can't believe Halo came out so long ago and it's still one of my favorite gaming experiences ever. Yeah, I'm a fan of Halo, and I'm a humongous fan of the earlier Halo games. I have not played all the Halo games to date, but I've at least played through several. Halo: Reach probably being my favorite of the ones I've played, Halo: Combat Evolved certainly gets the #2 spot. I just remember vivid memories of hopping onto Halo with friends and playing through the campaign together. I absolutely ****ing loved the campaign in this game. I think it did everything it needed to perfectly and set the stage for everything we would see in the future. Master Chief is also by far one of the coolest main characters in any game I've ever played. The mysteriousness of his character in this one as well and just hearing that badass voice actor time and time again, truly great.

Key

Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World
When a game is so good that you can continuously talk about throughout the years, that's what Super Mario World has going for it. I remember back when this first came out, I was so excited to see what it had on it, and when I played it, I was just blown away by everything it did. It's your typical run of the mill Super Mario sidescroller, but the little things here and there that they did to make it truly unique really worked in its favor. Power ups, ability to ride Yoshi, all that stuff. It's why this game is regarded as one of the best of all time. It truly is a masterpiece of a Mario game.

Jet Set Radio Future
This particular game is one that I'm very surprised to find that very few people have actually played it. I grew up with the original Xbox and it came with a copy of this and Sega GT 2001 in a combined disc. While Sega GT was really fun, I really put the most time into JSRF. This game was so much larger than I was expecting when I first played it, but god damn is it good. If you've never heard of this game, you basically play as a skater and you reek havoc by graffiti'ing walls and doing all kinds of cool tricks. The best part about this game I find is the fact that you can grind endlessly. It's incredibly forgiving and you rarely ever feel the burn of a bail. I definitely recommend all to play this if you're looking for a really really solid rollerskating game. I mean, just look at these graphics.



Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter
If I remember correctly, this may have been the very first Star Wars game I ever played. I remember owning the copy for whatever reason, and when I played it, I was just amazed and intrigued by it. So much so that it definitely help my Star Wars "addiction". The game came with 15 different main missions and on top of that, several bonus missions. As far as graphics and gameplay go, I don't remember having too many gripes about it. I certainly enjoyed the game when I owned it and I'd probably play it again given the opportunity. I think I did beat it several times too because I basically had no other games to play.

Super Smash Bros: Melee
It's pretty funny to be bringing this one up considering I've been hanging out with friends that have a copy of Super Smash Bros: Melee. I've never been very good at the Smash games and I don't really think I'm that good now. But I will always love this game for being such a fun time with friends. Usually we do it where we're on teams and we fight lvl 9 enemies. Other times it's just an all out war. I have a ton of fun playing this one, although I will say that the Wii U version is far superior in a lot of ways. But, if you want a simple and fun way to play Smash, this is it. I don't mean simple in terms of mechanics. I just mean an easy way to play a Smash game.

Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos
As far as I can tell, I've only really talked about my love of the Warcraft III expansion as I find that the expansion is the better and fuller game. But when it comes to the original Warcraft II: Reign of Chaos, I can't deny that I had a really good time playing this one. I've gone through this games story many many times, and each time, I find myself enjoying it more and more. The story of Arthas and everything like that is just so amazing and interesting to me that I can't help myself but play through it over and over. If we're combining the amount of times I've played through this and Frozen Throne, it'd probably be near the 100's. I've seriously spent many many hours playing through these games. I just enjoy them so much and the story gets interesting every time. Certainly a classic.

debaserr

I was huge into Circle of the Moon too. Those bosses were hard.

I don't know if I have the patience for Metroidvania's anymore. Isn't something like Dead Cells just more enjoyable? And then you have your Hollow Knight's and whatnot...

Shit I have a lot of games that I don't play.

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Last.FM

Key

Dead Cells is definitely the best one around right now..I'm so happy it's being successful.

Key

This will continue. Eventually.

The Batlord

Extra life in this thread?

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