One of my favourite hobbies is video games, it has been for a long time, so I’d thought I’d share what my favourite games are and why.

10. Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild

This game very much pleased the inner child inner me and satisfied the adult gamer I’ve become. An open world Zelda game sounded awesome when it was first announced and I was excited for it. Playing it is incredibly satisfying exploring the beatiful world is a lot of fun and the story still has a typical legend of zelda feel to it, with plenty of puzzles along the way.

9. Mass Effect 2

Mass Effect 2 is one of my favourite action RPGs, I feel it got the balance between action, story and RPG elements pretty spot on. I sunk hours into this game, trying to gain the trust of all the squad members and exploring the galaxy to help defeat the reapers on any front.

8. Crash Bandicoot

One of my favourite platformer games, also one of the first games I remember playing when I was younger. A classic platformer ballencing fun and a challenge. Back when video game companies had mascots crash is one who is fondly remembered by most people.

7. Spyro the Dragon: Year of the Dragon

Another game of my youth, going through various worlds, as a dragon no less, gave me and my brother hours of fun, gathering as many gems as possible and getting all the eggs. Of course this game on it’s predecessors bringing some awesome new mini games (skateboarding Spyro anyone?).

6. Assassins Creed 2

I knew I was going to choose one Assassins Creed game for this list and it was either going to be be 2 or Black Flag. But in the end Ezio’s charm and the slightly more interesting setting and story of 2 is what drew me to put in on this list. I think many people have been drawn in by Assassins Creeds pseudo history and I still think it’s part of why the series has been around for along as it has.

5. Pokémon Yellow

The first ever pokémon I ever and still one of my favourites. There is a slight rosey tint to how I view this game, but playing through Pokémon: Let’s Go Pikachu, reminds me of what this game originally was, plain simple fun, with a slight competitive edge, as you try to out collect your friends and try and get pokémon they couldn’t and beat gym leaders they struggle with.

4. Goldeneye

For people of a certain age, Goldeneye is their first experience of a First Person Shooter. For me I’m pretty certain that this is the first game I ever played. I remember playing it at my now brother-in-law families house, not long after our family moved in to the village where me and my siblings grew up. Rose tinted glasses aside, this game is an absolute classic, it was a big step forward for shooters and what those kind of games could do. Not to mention it’s brilliant multiplayer mode that could real heated real quick, this game had the capability of making people “salty” before the concept of it was even in a gamers vocabulary. As well as being brilliant fun for split screen multiplayer it gave us an opportunity to be Bond, James Bond and 7 year old was always going to love that.

3. Red Dead Redemption

This game is a masterpiece, the story telling, world exploring, all the things you could do and character progression through this game were all part of what drew me in to this game. The quest to be reunited with your family, tinged with vengenge for what you former gang members did to you early in the game, made the story seem so personal and the ending of the main story that much more of a gut punch. There are also plent of key emotional moments in the game that really draw you in to the game, for example crossing in to Mexico for the first time was genuinely incredible and John Marston as a character has some very relatable traits, . The add on portion of the game Undead Nightmare was also great keeping much of the tone of the main game, but adding a sense of humour and adding more fantasy elements, it made going back to the game even more fun.

2. Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time

Possibly the game that well and truly started my interest in video games, the world that it’s set in, the openess of it and the absolutely classic story about saving the princess from the bad guy completely sucked me in. Playing through various levels and challenges, getting more and more powerful equipment was the right balance of fun and challenging. The music for this game is also excellent, it’s one of a few games where I thought music has played and important part in the game.

1. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice

As someone who suffers with Mental Illness, I was intrigued when I learnt about this game. hearing that the developers went to the trouble of fully researching what it’s like to live with mental illness, in the case of the game, it’s psychosis. They spent time talking to specialist doctors and psychiatrists, as well as patients and people who have experienced psychosis. Not only is this game beautiful, it is thought provoking and challenging, both as a game and personally. I don’t think I’ve played as a video game character that I’ve related to as much as Senua in this game. Her journey through Niflheim and Helheim, struggling with the voices and doubts of her abilities, rings very true for me.

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