Which game gave the most enterainment for your buck?

[NewHampshireDem]

The impending release of "The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion" got me thinking about this issue, since I've put off buying any other new games (like Civ IV or CoD2) knowing that I'll be sucked in for hour upon hour upon hour. When considering the entertainment:dollars ratio, I was originally thinking just in terms of time, but I think there were a lot of games that were relatively short and had little replay value that nonetheless had a high e:$ ratio. So, here's my list:

1. Half-Life--thanks to all the mods and great multiplayer action, the original Half-Life is king, no matter how much you paid for it.

2. Quake--only because I spent many, many hours playing Team Fortress

3. Civilization series--but most especially the original. I wont' get into the whole 1 vs. 2 vs. 3 debate here, but most likely whichever version you prefer, you probably spent an ungodly number of hours trying to be godly. :)

4. TES: Morrowind--the nearly infinite ways to play through the non-linear storyline and the nearly infinite ways to customize your characters led to a really, really high replayability.

5. Syberia--low replay, relatively short game, but a great story with amazing visuals and puzzles that were the right level of difficulty--hard enough to make you go "aha!" when you solve them, but not so hard that you pull out all your hair or spend all of your time looking up walkthroughs on the Internet.

[malmapus]

1. Hrmmm

With you on Morrowind and it's expansions. Just with how open the world was and with everything you could do.

Would throw in with that Daggerfall, that game was insane at the time with all you could do.

Civilization was a good choice too, very open game.

Lucasarts: Knights of the Old Republic - Even better that I recently bought it for $17.00, game was pretty amazing when it came out (played on a friends machine). But with all the ways you can take your character and play the game as you like.

Right now I'm enjoing EVE-Online. Game lets you play whatever you want pretty much in open space. Can be a pirate, miner, trader, pirate hunter just about whatever you can think of. Like I started my character off as a miner (make big money that way), but I got bored with it so now I'm running the trade routes. Buying low and finding buyers where I can make a nice little profit for just traveling between systems.

Asherons Call was another one, with how you could make your character to your own spec. With all the skillsets they made available you could pretty much go anyway you wanted in the game, without having to be a "cookie cutter" template like other games.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

2. Starcraft/Broodwar, by a mile. So many hours of single and online play.

[Salviati]

18. Either this or Soul Blade for the PS1 for me...

Soul Blade had a clock to track the time played, and we weren't quite sure if we rolled it over 3x or just 2x...

In my circle of friends, we were all reasonably decent at Starcraft. We had two people who probably qualified as very good, but at Soul Blade, I really think that we were all very good.


In Starcraft it was just too much fun to screw around... My favorite thing to impose on my enemies: "Nuclear, Nuclear, Nuclear launch detected" That, or as a nearly vanquished zerg player coming back with 200 control worth of zergling.


ooooh, almost forgot about arbiter warping in siege tanks alread in siege mode! nothing says pwned! like getting beat by someone who has climed up 2 tech trees

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

19. You mean when you mind controlled some poor Terran's worker? LOL

[Salviati]

20. Yeah, having the units from two races let you do a lot of fun stuff...

It used to be, in one of the earlier patches, that if you put a ghost calling down a nuke in a stasis field, the nuke still got called down. There was absolutely nothing anyone could do to stop it. That got patched pretty quick...

[YOY]

3. The Total War Series

Hours and Hours and Hours and Hours for 40 something bucks a-piece. Plus the added Harry Turtledovesque factors such as 'What if...the Danes took over in the middle ages, Islam was the presominant religion in the west, or the Golden Horde were stopped before they could ravage the east?'

Baldur's Gate and Fallout Series for the replayability and real role playing aspects.

[TheBaldyMan]

4. Quite a few spring to mind

Baldur's Gate series, GTA series, Tomb Raider series, Champ Manager (although I was so addicted I don't play it anymore), Red Baron, Total War, the list goes on and on, mainly because I play them to death. I haven't listed any FPS

[Hatalles]

5. Two games come to mind...

1. Half-Life

2. The Sims -- the sequel may actually overtake the original IMHO. The user created content is never ending... it just keeps on coming, even for the original game.

[StaggerLee]

6. Three so far

SP - Mafia

MP - BF1942 and COD


BF1942 and COD are incredible alone but even better when modded.

Mafia is such a fun game and the voice acting alone makes the game worthy of playing again every six months or so.
The Freeride extreme mode is a blast especially when you get enough grenades and malatov cocktails in your inventory.

[Hatalles]

10. I've been meaning to re-install Mafia...

... it's certainly in my top-5 most underrated games category. I absolutely loved that game. Great story, great voice acting, memorable characters, fun gameplay... it had it all. Except for that really annoying race level... that's my only strike against it. I haven't been able to play another GTA game since Mafia...

[StaggerLee]

11. Yeah the race level was a pain

There's a way to beat it by hitting replace car as you drive through the shortcut but I think it was fixed with the patch because I couldn't cheat on it last time I played it. I actually had to finish the race.

Before some of the missions you need to get a weapons from Vincenzo. During one of these instances before you go up the stairs to get your weapons there's a guy just leaning over the balcony/fire escape next door. It's fun to cap that guy just for sh1ts and giggles. Hilarious.

Have you ever tried attacking your friends at Salieri's? One of the characters says something like, "you bring a knife, I bring a gun!"

Good times.

[Hatalles]

12. Haha, yes.

I think it was Sam who said that...



Paulie could have said it too... but his language often tended to be a bit more "flowery."



Jeez... I gotta get around to re-installing it. :)

[DrGonzoLives]

7. Burnout: Revenge

Traffic Attack mode is wonderful after a long commute during rush hour.

[The Revolution]

8. Half-Life by far

Half-Life and HL2 plus all the mods have given me countless hours of entertainment. And it remains one of the most poplular games around (there's 80,000 people playing CS/CSS right now).

[Anarcho-Socialist]

9. Europa Universalis II, Hearts of Iron 2, Unreal Tournament,...

Age of Empires 2, Battlefield 1942/Vietnam.

[NuttyFluffers]

28. whaddya know, another EU2 and HoI2 player

they were pretty entertaining games at one time. i just got tired of EU2 because of the obscene western slant. for example, i played the fantasy setting (y'know, expecting not a strict historical interpretation) as Inca and was essentially done conquering and consolidating all of the map that was allowed to me in roughly 10-20 years. basically i poli annexed the only other empire near me, which had like 7-ish provinces, and then explored the other lands nearby and settled them in record time. and then the game wouldn't let me explore anymore. that was it. that was the extent of the game for me. i had to wait another 200+ years game time for the spanish to come conquer me... stupid.

i then tried playing as Annam, the Hedjaz, Iroquois, etc. each an every one were crippled to the point that they were just there waiting for europe to come conquer them. very stupid. i could flip whole fascist nations into communist in around a year, but there was actual programmed locks upon the other nations. you just couldn't do anything except sit on your hands and get conquered by european imperialistic powers. so i gave up, packed it in, and deleted the game off my pc. it could have been so much better.

EU1 was fun in fantasia mode. had an Incan empire that conquered all of S. America and most of N. America, and establish 80%+ as cities (not just outposts) in roughly under 200 years. i was batting away europe from america like they were flies. did the same with Mughal empire, consolidating basically the whole continent of Asia with 70%+ as cities, not outposts, in roughly the same amount of time. and i always had a rather low standing military, it was so much easier to vomit out a legion, defeat the offending army, conquer 2-3 provinces of theirs, consolidate, and then disband excess troops. the most peaceful empires you could imagine.

EU could've been a really great benchmark game if only they took off that stupid european favortism. but then, hey, it is Europa Universalis, even if i routinely smashed all european expansionary ambition quickly. i do wish it was a bit more challenging though...

[Sin]

13. Mostly every game mentioned

+ All of the Hero's of might and magic series
Turn based and rpg first person ( 4 is coming so soon:) )

Baulders Gate. 1 and 2
Total Annihilation by cave dog ( didn't like # 2)

Diablo
WoW
Dark age of Camelot
UO

All of the Cesar Series and Pharaoh series
Kings Quest 4

I know I'm missing a few others but that sums up some of the better games I played.
:)

[Greyhound]

14. I'd have to go with...

Star Craft and Vice City. I've played them both over and over and over and they're just as fun as they were when I first got them.
I have a love - hate relationship with the on-line games. The games are great, but too many of the players are just assholes that ruin it for everyone else. :freak:

[jayfish]

15. Tie...

between TES:Morrowind and Battlefield 1942. Morrowind for the reasons you mentioned and BF1942 for the many, many mods available. Any of the GTA games get an honorable mention.

Jay

[NewHampshireDem]

16. Lots of great suggestions

I had totally forgotten about my Diablo and Diablo II addictions--we actually ending up buying a second computer so my wife and I could play DII at the same time.

I'd have to agree too with King's Quest IV. That was an excellent game, and even though I don't think it had much replay value the first time through was well worth the money.

[Ready4Change]

17. Doom.

I probably should have paid for that, somewhere...

[gatorboy]

21. Quake 3 Arena

I've played that game and ONLY that game (Well, until I bought Battlefield 2 last week) since its debute in '99. I've dabbled in others but I'm always back for my sweet, fragging mistress...

I was so to that game that at one point, my wife hid the game from me (So I had to buy secret stash Q3. :P)

[Guy Fawkes]

22. Only one game:

Apocalyptica. This game was so bad, we're still making fun of it. A quake/unreal ripoff done by fundies, Apocalyptica is a game so Christian you play as gun/sword/spell wielding saints. I kid you not- choose from a "sister", "Brother", "Angel" or "Robot Saint" and let loose with guns, swords or spells on the hell-spawn.

But the game, which is extremely easy and chock full of bugs and glitches (ultra-slowdown over lan), includes the greatest (read: funniest) weapon I've ever seen: a bible gun. Instead of loading a clip into his gun, one "brother" loads the holy bible- feeding in scripture and turning out deadly bullets of Christly love.

I am not a Christian- if I was, I would be deeply offended- but at a measly $1 (including tax!), this game provided several hours of fun (most of which was not spent playing the game).

[YOY]

23. Praise cyber jeebus!

[Ohio Joe]

24. A couple that I still play today

Civ II
Alpha Centuari/Alien Crossfire
Diablo/Diablo II
Star Craft/Brood War

All great games

[Frank Cannon]

25. Deus Ex

I STILL play that game. I love it. I don't think I'll ever get tired of trying to come up with new ways to solve some of the tasks.

I still haven't figured out how to get through the whole game without killing anybody, although I hear it is possible.

[lovelaureng]

26. I agree with you.

This was a great game. I don't know to get through it either without killing. It was one of those games that really went unnoticed by a lot of gamers I thought. I loved it.

A few other games for the list:
Monster Rancher
X-COM: UFO Defense

I played the hell outta both of those games as well.

[Salviati]

30. You do have to kill at least one person.

You've got to kill Anna, but it's possible to make it through without killing anyone else. Lots of people who you're supposed to kill for missions, you can just knock out or tranquilize...

[SlavesandBulldozers]

27. Operation Flashpoint.

the realism. the scale. the size of the maps. the modding community's passion and attention to detail.

can't wait for Op2 to come out. though i won't hold my breath for bohemia interactive, they take they bohemian ass time with that shit.

[NuttyFluffers]

29. Romance of the 3 Kingdom series, just about all Phantasy Stars,

Street Fighter series, Fighters Megamix, Castlevania Symphony of the Night and Circle of the Moon, Final Fantasy 4 and 6, Chrono Trigger, Golden Axe, Shining Force series, Gemfire, Aerobiz, Railroad Tycoon 2, Sim City 2000, etc. lots of games, but i'm mostly a console player. these are just the games i most likely poured the most time into.

[Mojambo]

31. Civilization probably tops my list

A few others that I have off the top of my head...

Wizardry 8 - I played this game a CRAZY amount of time. The virtually limitless class/party combinations and a GREAT modding scene kept me coming back again and again.

High Heat Baseball 2001 - I've probably played more games of this than any other game. It has to be in the thousands. Again, great modding scene.

Wasteland - My favorite roleplaying game of all time. I still think about things that happened in that game. I'd KILL for a remake of this game using the same basic engine that Wizardry 8 used. I wish some enterprising game developer would get on that.

Sid Meir's (Original) Pirates! - I logged some serious time with this one on my old C-64. Great replayability.

Soldier Of Fortune - I know it's a pretty unremarkable title within the FPS genre, but I'm not much of a FPS guy, so I found the more simple gameplay really fun. The variety of levels was really cool and made up for the less than intelligent AI. Plus, it was bloody.

Out of the Parki Baseball - Best textbased baseball sim ever. I'm eagerly awaiting the brand spanking new version. Under 3 weeks to go!