Birthdays mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. It can be a nice family dinner, a crazy party, or just another day. All types of things can happen on a birthday, even an unwelcome surprise party. Maybe you want to celebrate but all your friends forgot. It happens, sadly.

RELATED: Halo: Every Main Character's Age, Height And Birthday

If nothing else, you will always have video games. Some are nice enough to remember your birthday and celebrate on your special day. So, if your birthday does not live up to the hype, just pop in one of these games and celebrate! Why party with real-life friends when could eat a virtual cake? Here are the best games that greet players on their birthday, ranked by their Metacritic scores.

Updated August 4, 2021 by Brady Akins: With the release and subsequent critical success of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the list of video games that include player birthday celebrations now has a new highly-regarded installment. The latest in the series of Animal Crossing games stands out among reviewers and players alike, along with a few other video games that celebrate and provide gifts or even gameplay changes based on the birthday of the player from previous years.

15 Kirby: Squeak Squad (Nintendo DS) - 71

Kirby
Kirby Sucking In Air PNG Overlaid On Image Of Void Termina Core Which Ends Up Having Same Face As Kirby Does

Across the landscape of video games that go out of their way to celebrate the player's birthday, rarely are the celebrations ever as cute as they are in Kirby: Squeak Squad.

The fan-favorite Pink Puffball finds his way on the list thanks to a 2006 installment from the developers at HAL Laboratory. Upon booting the game up on whatever date is set as the user's birthday on the Nintendo DS device, Kirby: Squeak Squad's launch animation will be edited to include a happy birthday message in the form of an animated card. Not a game-changer, but a nice nod to the player on their special day.

14 Tomodachi Life (Nintendo 3DS) - 71

Tomodachi Life - Many Miis Hang Out An Mingle With Each Other
via.ScreenRant.com

When it comes to celebrating birthdays through the medium of pixels and game development, there are few that go further and are more extravagant than the team at Nintendo. 2014's Tomodachi Life for the Nintendo 3DS stands as a testament to the company's joy of birthdays.

Tomodachi Life goes beyond the point of simply acknowledging whatever date the player listed as their birthday, but goes out of its way to throw a celebration in honor of the player. The collection of user-made Mii's that populate the island in Tomodachi life will come together on the user's birthday to throw a party on the island the game takes place. Some people like to lay low on their birthday, without much fanfare. This game is not for them.

13 Mega Man ZX (Nintendo DS) - 76

Mega Man ZX Legacy Collection Cover Art
Cover art for the Mega Man ZX Legacy Collection

Sometimes, it's the smallest gestures that mean the most. Or, at least, that was the philosophy in the inclusion of the birthday celebration in 2006's Mega Man ZX. A massive party would feel a tad out of touch with the tone of an old-school style Mega Man adventure, but that doesn't mean the game can't find some way to recognize the player on their birthday.

The simple inclusion of a slice of cake means as much as any extravagant birthday bash ever could. If the player speaks to Sherry, a character who can be found in Area C-1 of the game, on their birthday, they will be gifted with a slice of cake as an item. Not only a fun acknowledgment of the player's birthday but one that also gifts a worthwhile item that restores eight life points to the player.

12 Wii Fit (Nintendo Wii) - 80

Wii Fit trailer screenshot

In one aspect, Wii Fit doesn't use your birthday as a source of celebration but a source of shame. It measures your center of balance, Body Mass Index, and body control to calculate your Wii Fit age. It's a difficult pill to swallow when the Wii Fit age is older than your actual age. When it's your actual birthday the Wii Fit board will tell you happy birthday, before commanding you to go work out. Maybe you just want to work out for your birthday. Wii Fit thinks it's a healthy option.

11 Death Stranding (PC, PS4) - 82

Death Stranding Sam holding up his weapon

Apparently, Hideo Kojima is a big fan of birthdays. There are three of his games on this list and they all make the player feel a little special. Death Stranding was a divisive game about a delivery man in the apocalypse. Part of Death Stranding's birthday celebration involves a huge spoiler, which will not be detailed here. The short version: a birthday cake appears in one of Sam's safehouses. This is a small moment but it has a special meaning with the narrative.

10 Final Fantasy Tactics (PS1) - 83

FF Tactics main characters sitting together
final fantasy tactics advance characters

Perhaps a bit of a stretch in the grand scheme of video game birthday celebrations, but for as much as the game of Final Fantasy Tactics can shift based solely on the date the player enters as their birthday, this acknowledgment could not go unlisted. In as simple of terms as possible, setting your birthday in Final Fantasy Tactics will determine your zodiac sign, which will, in turn, determine how much damage your character can deal based on the zodiac of other enemies, as well as the zodiac of the members in the player's party.

RELATED: Which Final Fantasy Game Has The Best Moogles?

Final Fantasy can get confusing, but to put it plainly, the birthday you enter in Final Fantasy tactics matters greatly to the gameplay itself-- standing alone in that regard against many of the other entries on the list.

9 Gran Turismo 5 (PS3) - 84

Gran Turismo racetrack

Gran Turismo has a tradition of doing something rather unique for the player's birthday. The famous racing game is 23 years old with the latest release being Gran Turismo Sport. The fifth installment is one of the highest-rated Gran Turismo games of the last decade, according to Metacritic. If you log into Gran Turismo 5 on your birthday, you'll receive a ticket for an unlockable car from your birth year. A free car would be a nice real-world present, though. Too bad it's virtual. At least it's one of the better video game gifts; who cares about digitized cake anyways?!

8 Castlevania: Portrait Of Ruin (Nintendo DS) - 85

Castlevania fight

Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin was a handheld version of the famous game series. Castlevania has become iconic in the video game world and even sparked one of the greatest video game adaptations. One entry in the franchise, though, celebrates the player's birthday. In Portrait of Ruin, a shopkeeper named Vincent can sell the player a birthday cake for 3000 gold. The cake is only sold on the player's birthday but you can cheat the system by changing the date in the DS settings. Vincent may think he is being nice, but who, in their right mind, makes you buy your own birthday cake?

7 Pokemon X & Y (Nintendo 2DS & 3DS) - 87

Pokemon character walking on road

Pokemon X and Y brought players to the new, star-shaped region of Kalos. Just like any Pokemon game, X and Y took the time to acknowledge the player's special day. X and Y doesn't just give you some cake; it actually throws you a surprise party. Well, it's not a surprise anymore. When you enter the Pokémon Center, you'll get scared because the screen freezes. Don't worry, the game didn't crash, confetti will rain down and the receptionist will wish you a happy birthday. What a nice little scare that was!

6 Animal Crossing (GameCube) - 87

Original Animal Crossing cover

The original Animal Crossing, a life simulation game known for its cute villagers, initiated a beloved Nintendo franchise. It also started the franchise trend of celebrating birthdays. The player will be pampered in the virtual world, and this continued in its various ports. Case in point, the franchise's GameCube outing.

RELATED: Games To Play If You Love Animal Crossing

Here, the player's in-game mother will send a birthday cake. The cake can be displayed inside the player's house, the recommended action for receiving any birthday cake. The sweet villagers will also send the player presents. It's a rather heartwarming experience, if we're being honest.

5 Animal Crossing: New Leaf (Nintendo 3DS) - 88

Animal Crossing New Leaf cover

This Animal Crossing was the first to offer Amiibo support. Now, villagers can be invited to the town via Amiibos, Nintendo's toy to game system. Animal Crossing has gone through many iterations since the original release in 2001, but one thing has stayed the same: birthday celebrations. This time around, K.K Slider will perform a happy birthday song and a friendly villager will throw a party. The best part is blowing into the 3DS' microphone to blow out some candles before making a wish.

4 Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Nintendo Switch) - 90

Animal Crossing characters hanging out by the shore
via Trem do Hype
https://tremdohype.com.br/animal-crossing-new-horizons-se-torna-o-maior-lancamento-do-nintendo-switch-no-japao/

If Nintendo stands tall amongst the video game empire as the royalty birthday celebration-based games, then the Animal Crossing series are the crown jewels of the royalty's crown.

And Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the final and highest-rated Animal Crossing installment on the list, is the shiniest of all the jewels. New Horizons offers a similar birthday acknowledgment as the other Animal Crossing games before it, with a town-wide recognition of the player's big day. Additionally, the player will be treated to a surprise birthday party at their house, as well as to the soothing sounds of a K.K. Slider original song-- K.K. Birthday. Like just about anything in Animal Crossing, the game goes all out aesthetically speaking to recognize the player's birthday.

3 Fire Emblem Awakening (Nintendo 3DS) - 92

Fire Emblem Awakening cover

Fire Emblem, the 30-year-old franchise, has included birthdays for many of their entries. Different characters have their own birthdays based on the game's calendar. A birthday means the player can receive special items or gameplay benefits. In Fire Emblem Awakening, the player can set their avatar's birthday. You can make the avatar's birthday the same as yours. The only problem is getting the birthday items later instead of sooner. At least you can pretend all these virtual characters are telling you happy birthday. It might be helpful if all your real-life friends forget.

2 Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain (Xbox One) - 95

Metal Gear Solid screenshot

The Phantom Pain is the latest entry in the Metal Gear series and the last one Kojima worked on before his break up with Konami. It brought an open world to the series and the Mother Base, which can be rebuilt.

RELATED: Things You Didn't Know About Metal Gear Solid IV: The Phantom Pain

If you return to base on your birthday then Ocelot has a little surprise planned for Big Boss. The sound of firecrackers puts Big Boss on edge but he quickly calms when greeted with a birthday cake. Hopefully, you'll smile as big as Big Boss does!

1 Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2) - 96

Sons of Liberty hands in the air

That's right, another Metal Gear. This one is not as elaborate as the previous entry but it's still a nice gesture. Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty revolves around a cleanup facility called "Big Shell, "which was taken over by terrorists and Raiden is sent to take care of it. The player has an opportunity to type in their name, blood type, birthday and nationality. If the entered birthday matches with the system's internal clock, then the player will receive a happy birthday message.

NEXT: Grand Theft Auto 5: Every Main Character's Age, Height, And Birthday