Explanation and methodology
I compiled fourteen different “best of all time” lists to create one definitive list. It was originally going to be a top 100 but I ended up having enough data to make a consensus top 200. For each list I gave each game a score based on placement (i.e. one point for 100th place, two points for 99th place, all the way up to 100 points for 1st place). I also gave a certain amount of extra points for simply being on the list–otherwise games that ranked low would get basically no advantage over games that didn’t rank at all. The amount differed based on whether the list was a top 50, top 100, top 200, and so on. Making it onto more exclusive lists obviously granted more points.
Lists used
I averaged together the following lists, with diverse perspectives and recent publication being a priority in which lists I chose:
Media rankings: Empire (UK, 2023), USA Today (US, 2022), Popular Mechanics (US, 2022), Looper (US, 2022) IGN (international, 2021), Slant magazine (USA, 2020) Game Informer (US, 2018) Games TM (UK, 2018)
Critic ratings: Metacritic top 200 Metascores of all time (as of 2023)
Gamer ratings: IMDB top 200 user ratings of all time (as of 2023), Ranker top 200 user ratings of all time (as of 2023)
Critic polls: British GQ Industry Poll (UK, 2023)
Gamer polls: TV Asahi viewer poll (Japan, 2021), Hobby Consolas reader poll (Spain/Latin America, 2021)
THE LIST
Here is the final top 200 list:
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Grand Theft Auto V
- The Last of Us
- Tetris
- Resident Evil 4
- Metal Gear Solid
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- Super Mario 64
- BioShock
- Final Fantasy VII
- Super Mario Bros 3
- Half Life 2
- Minecraft
- Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- Shadow of the Colossus
- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
- The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
- Portal 2
- Chrono Trigger
- Street Fighter II
- Pokemon Red/Blue
- Bloodborne
- Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
- God of War (2018)
- Red Dead Redemption 2
- Castlevania Symphony of the Night
- Super Mario World
- Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
- Mass Effect 2
- World of Warcraft
- Dark Souls
- Halo: Combat Evolved
- DOOM (1993)
- Persona 5
- GoldenEye 007
- Super Metroid
- Silent Hill 2
- Fallout 3
- Portal
- Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
- Red Dead Redemption
- Journey
- Super Mario Kart
- Batman: Arkham City
- Metroid Prime
- Disco Elysium
- Diablo II
- Super Mario Odyssey
- Super Mario Bros
- Undertale
- StarCraft
- Hades
- The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask
- Super Smash Bros Melee
- Resident Evil 2
- The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
- Final Fantasy VI
- The Sims
- Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
- Assassin’s Creed II
- Half Life: Alyx
- EarthBound
- Pac Man
- Elden Ring
- Super Smash Bros Ultimate
- Grim Fandango
- System Shock 2
- Planescape: Torment
- Super Mario Galaxy
- Okami
- Super Mario Galaxy 2
- Inside
- Deus Ex
- Pokemon Gold/Silver
- Ms. Pac Man
- Resident Evil
- Batman: Arkham Asylum
- Halo 3
- Persona 4
- Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
- Half Life
- Sonic The Hedgehog 2
- NieR: Automata
- Grand Theft Auto IV
- Dishonored 2
- Civilization IV
- SimCity
- Final Fantasy X
- League of Legends
- Left 4 Dead 2
- Fallout: New Vegas
- Animal Crossing
- Fortnite
- The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
- The Last of Us Part II
- Grand Theft Auto III
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
- Outer Wilds
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons
- Hollow Knight
- Borderlands 2
- BioShock Infinite
- Sonic the Hedgehog
- Kingdom Hearts
- Halo 2
- Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
- Mega Man 2
- Donkey Kong
- Secret of Monkey Island
- Stardew Valley
- Mortal Kombat 2
- Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
- Suikoden II
- God of War (2005)
- Kingdom Hearts II
- Team Fortress 2
- The Oregon Trail
- DOOM (2016)
- Counter Strike
- Dragon Age: Origins
- Age of Empires II
- Divinity: Original Sin 2
- Final Fantasy IX
- Tekken 3
- Baldur’s Gate 2: Shadows of Amn
- Return of the Obra Dinn
- Fire Emblem: Three Houses
- Horizon: Zero Dawn
- Final Fantasy XIV
- Braid
- Fable II
- Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty
- The Legend of Zelda
- Galaga
- Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
- Spelunky
- Psychonauts
- Overwatch
- Ghost of Tsushima
- Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King
- Max Payne
- Final Fantasy Tactics
- Thief: The Dark Project
- Katamari Damacy
- Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
- Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Theory
- Gears of War
- The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
- Marvel vs Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes
- Tomb Raider (1996)
- Xenoblade Chronicles
- God of War II
- Rock Band
- Shenmue 2
- Wii Sports
- Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag
- XCOM: Enemy Unknown
- The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
- Viewtiful Joe
- DOTA 2
- Donkey Kong Country
- Burnout 3: Takedown
- Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
- Gone Home
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
- It Takes Two
- Dead Space
- Myst
- NBA Jam
- Celeste
- Pokemon Diamond/Pearl
- Star Fox 64
- Quake 3
- Civilization II
- Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
- The Walking Dead
- Hotline Miami
- Super Smash Bros Brawl
- Apex Legends
- Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door
- Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem
- Alien: Isolation
- Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
- Dark Souls III
- Kentucky Route Zero
- Spider-Man
- Prince of Persia: Sands of Time
- FTL: Faster Than Light
- Mother 3
- Secret of Mana
- Day of the Tentacle
- Yakuza 0
- Battlefield 2
- Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!
- Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989)
- Kirby Super Star
- Final Fantasy VIII
- LittleBigPlanet
Statistical analysis
Here are some charts showing some interesting data breakdowns of the top 200
Entry distribution by decade:
Entry distribution by country of development:
Entry distribution by console type:
Top franchises:
- Mario
- The Legend of Zelda
- Grand Theft Auto
- Final Fantasy
- Metal Gear Solid
- Resident Evil
- Half Life
- Halo
- Portal
- Red Dead Redemption
- Pokemon
- The Elder Scrolls
- Metroid
- Uncharted
- God of War
Top developers:
- Nintendo
- Square Enix
- Valve
- Capcom
- Rockstar
Highest ranking game of each year
1980: Pac Man
1981: Donkey Kong
1982: Ms. Pac Man
1983: none
1984: Tetris
1985: Super Mario Bros
1986: The Legend of Zelda
1987: Mike Tyson’s Punch Out
1988: Super Mario Bros. 3
1989: SimCity
1990: Super Mario World
1991: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
1992: Super Mario Kart
1993: DOOM
1994: Super Metroid
1995: Chrono Trigger
1996: Super Mario 64
1997: Final Fantasy VII
1998: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
1999: Planescape: Torment
2000: Diablo II
2001: Halo: Combat Evolved
2002: Metroid Prime
2003: Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
2004: Half Life 2
2005: Resident Evil 4
2006: Okami
2007: BioShock
2008: Fallout 3
2009: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
2010: Mass Effect 2
2011: Minecraft
2012: Journey
2013: Grand Theft Auto V
2014: Alien Isolation
2015: The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
2016: Inside
2017: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
2018: God of War
2019: Disco Elysium
2020: Hades
2021: It Takes Two
2022: Elden Ring
Notable games not on the list that I think deserve a shout out:
Banjo Kazooie, Crash Bandicoot, SoulCalibur, Zork, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Titanfall 2, Cuphead, Ico, Devil May Cry, The Stanley Parable, Dance Dance Revolution, Angry Birds, Black and White, What Remains of Edith Finch, Blood, Snake, Baba Is You, Elite, Ridiculous Fishing, Mirror’s Edge, Jet Set Radio, Rocket League, L.A. Noire, Cave Story, The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky, Terraria, Pong
Hope you guys find this interesting and let me know if you have any feedback!
I’m saddened to not see The Talos Principle on the list. It deserves way more attention and praise than it’s gotten. IMO it’s far beyond any of the Portal games in the puzzle genre.
I wouldn’t find it strange to see Fez on this list either.