New games being added to Xbox Game Pass was a mistake. When I go to download Metal: Hellsinger, I always end up accidentally playing the hours of Mass Effect instead. And now, as we enter a crowded release window, we're still feeling nostalgic for a simpler time, having recently debated the best game from the 1990s.
Well now, we're fast-forwarding ten years into the era of pop punk, low-rise jeans, and double denim. That's right - this week, the big question is: what's your favourite game from the '00s?
Dragon Age: Origins
Rhiannon Bevan, News Editor
The ‘00s is a controversial era for boomer RPG lovers such as myself. While otherwise a fantastic decade for games, us lot saw beloved classics like Baldur’s Gate and Fallout modernized, shedding their isometric, over-complicated charm. It’s probably for this reason that the best of the bunch was a new IP, specially made for this new style of RPGs. Dragon Age: Origins represents the best of the 00s in this regard. It marries our desire to see all games voice acted and imagined with 3D environments, with the difficulty and strategy of older titles in the genre. It also ends on a 30 Seconds to Mars song that doesn’t fit the tone at all. It doesn’t get much more ‘00s than that.
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
Axel Nicolás Bosso, Guides Trainer
Look, there’s an almost endless list of really great games from the ‘00s. Picking only one should be a crime. But if I had to go with the first thing that comes to mind, Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater is one of my favorites of all time. Seeing how Big Boss became Big Boss is a ride of fun and heartbreaking moments that I’m always ready to go through it once again. And that’s without saying that this game is still a joy to play: its camouflage and healing system and the wild number of ways in which you could go through levels or end boss fights are phenomenal.
To be honest, the fact that we still talk about the scene of a dude climbing up some fucking long stairs after all these years should say everything.
BioShock
Lu-Hai Liang, News Editor
The '00s were a great gaming decade, and I have fond memories of playing the likes of Black & White, GTA 3, Gran Turismo 3, SSX Tricky, and Final Fantasy 10, to name just the games that came out in the very earliest years of that decade, while I’ve also been on record saying that I think MGS2 is a 10/10 game. However, the 00s also saw gaming’s move into the HD era and ushering in greater realism and more mature storytelling. To name the best game from this decade, I’d have to hand it to BioShock. The art style, atmosphere, and narrative verve of 2K’s title is unforgettable while the HD graphics means the game still holds up visually today. While some games from the 00s might have exerted more influence (GTA 3 I’m looking at you), BioShock remains a pinnacle of the medium and an example of games as art.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4
Stacey Henley, Editor-in-Chief
The ‘00s were the best decade for video games, a perception entirely unrelated to the fact it’s also the decade when I was a teenager and my life consisted of coming home from school to play video games and not much else. Despite THPS’ place in the pop culture canon, it feels as if the games themselves do not get enough respect. We all love them, but we never really discuss them amongst the greats. Well today, in TheGamer’s The Big Question column, we make history. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 rocks.
Halo: Combat Evolved
Amanda Hurych, Evergreen Content Lead
I love Halo more than nearly any video game series. (Yeah, these past few years have been a little…tough.) So when looking back at the ‘00s, there is no question in my mind that Halo: CE is the best game to come from that decade. Halo 2 and Halo 3 also both released within this time period, but Combat Evolved was the one that started it all. It set the lore in motion, it brought the Xbox its initial glory, and it cemented Halo as an enjoyable social game in our minds. Even more than it was a “competitive” game, Halo began as a party game. Images of people hosting LAN parties to play some CTF on Blood Gulch are iconic at this point. And the joy of playing Halo: CE is something that persists to this day. I know I play it more than I play Infinite.
Shadow Of The Colossus
Matt Arnold, Specialist
There’s never been a game like Shadow Of The Colossus, before or since. While it’s technically part of a loosely-connected trilogy, preceded by ICO and followed by The Last Guardian, Shadow Of The Colossus stands on its own as a masterclass in minimalist storytelling. Its stark landscape, unique boss fights, and flawed hero make it one of the most memorable games of all time, never mind the decade.