The Best Video Games 10 Years Ago

Instead of writing a list of best games in 2008, I’ve decided to do something a bit different. How many of you remember which video games were popular 10 years ago?
1998 was a great year for video games: titles that shaped the future of gaming industry were released that year.

Of course, it is silly comparing games released decade ago to modern titles such as Fallout 3, Crysis or Gears of War 2, but without those ‘oldies’ world of video games would be much poorer and probably wouldn’t be the same. Also, considering the fact, that we have bigger choice of gaming platforms today, that there are more companies producing games, 1998 was a great success.

This article will try to retrospect some of the best video games that were released 10 years ago, in 1998, which is known as one of the most successful years for gaming business.


Half-Life

According to many sources, HL was the best game of 1998. This revolutionary game was ‘father’ of later Counter Strike, one of the most popular shooter games ever. Half-Life’s advantages were fantastic storyline, visual effects and superb voice acting. Half-Life offered gamers an amazing story-based experience, where they felt like taking the lead role in a well-written action movie.










Starcraft

There were a lot of good strategy games in 1998, but no one can beat StarCraft, which is probably one of the best real-time strategies ever. With a great multiplayer mode, Starcraft's single player and multiplayer mode were both long and compelling. Players could choose from one of three races: the insectlike Zerg, the humanoid Terrans, and the technology based Protoss. In 1998 Starcraft was synonym for addiction. Many players spent hours playing the game three times in a row just to experience it from the perspective of all three races.










Baldur’s Gate

Year 1998 ‘gave birth’ to some of the finest role-playing games ever seen. One of them and one of the best RPGs in gaming history is Baldur’s Gate. This RPG was not only one of the most enjoyable games for playing, but its innovative spirit changed the look of computer role-playing for years to come. Baldur’s Gate had also shown how RPG titles will look like in the future.










Grim Fandango

Adventures never looked the same after the release of Grim Fandango. With its wonderful graphics, culturally influenced artwork and amazing soundtrack and acting (Tony Plana borrowed his voice), Grim Fandango has shown the direction where future adventures should go. This was the first adventure game by LucasArts to use three-dimensional graphics. But, despite positive reviews both from critics and players, Grim Fandango was not a commercial success.










Unreal

Unreal had been released in May 1998 and it was powered by an original gameplay and computer engine that now bears the game's name. Engine had been in development for over three years before the game was released. Unreal was not only the game with the best graphics in 1998, but was also known for its innovative gameplay that set cornerstone for future titles of FPS genre.










Thief: The Dark Project

In Thief: The Dark Project, players could get a glimpse of what the future of gaming is really all about - the exploration and manipulation of a believable virtual world (to quote IGN 1998 review). The game's AI, its brilliant look and feel, and its challenging levels all together made Thief one of the most exciting first-person games in 1998.










Fallout 2

Another significant RPG in 1998, besides Baldur’s Gate, was sequel to Fallout. Set into futuristic environment of the year 2241, featuring an almost completely new game world, stories, and adventures that are several times larger than its predecessor, the game mechanics from Fallout remain mostly unchanged, with the majority of changes to fix some interface issues. Rich cultural background in story and complex gameplay in huge world made this game an instant classic.











Other games that are worth of mentioning and were released in 1998 are Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six, Need for Speed III, Myth II, Final Fantasy VII, Starsiege Tribes, MechCommander, Redguard from the Elder Scrolls Adventures, etc.

But not only PC gamers were lucky to enjoy 1998’s outstanding games. Two console cult classics were also released the same year: Metal Gear Solid and Legend of Zelda.


Metal Gear Solid

Preceded by a lot of hype, Metal Gear Solid was enjoyable enough to gather armies of devoted fans immediately after the release for PlayStation platform in 1998. Unlike other popular shooter games from that time, MGS introduced new features like stealth and realism, combining them with enjoyable and powerful gameplay. Game became instant classic, conquering the throne of console shooters in years that followed.










The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Another game, made for Nintendo 64 platform was even more popular. Best described as RPG platform with a plenty of side missions, minigames and compelling puzzle levels, Zelda has spawned numerous sequels and fairly amount of copycat games.












As you can see, 1998 was a great year for gaming: every game mentioned above was a cornerstone in its genre. Every one of them is still a cult classic that many of us like to remember, and even love to play occasionally.


Happy Gaming New Year!