Gaming Most Epic Games

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="DarkOrange"]Oi. I was just doing a Top 10 for GameFAQs on epic games, so I figured I'd start a topic her about it. What do you think are some of the most epic games? I'll just do the top 3 since the list was huge as 10.

1. [B]Shadow of the Colossus[/B]

This is, by far, the most epic, massive game ever to be created. First of all, the world in which it takes place is enormous and breathtaking, and the best part is that you never once have to backtrack. Each time you defeat a colossus, you are sent back to the temple at the center of the continent, leaving you to another amazing journey on your way to the next boss fight. This world is so huge that you never really cover most of it in the short game, and there are some secrets it holds that you might not even realize on your first play through. Adding to that, there are no load screens throughout.

The biggest thing about this game, in every way, is the bosses. In Shadow of the Colossus, there are no regular enemies. The entire game is in 16 boss battles, each unique from one another, even though some of them look similar. To defeat the giant beasts, your character, Wander, must literally climb their backs, make your way to their head, and jam your sword into their weak points releasing sprays of blood. Between the sheer scope of the fights to the creative and sometimes insane ways you have to win them is 16 of the greatest boss fights in gaming history. The final boss itself is probably the most massive.

2. [B]God of War[/B]

What?s there to say about this game that hasn?t been said before? It?s bloody, brutal, and Kratos is one of the most visceral and cool characters to walk the digital plane. This game starts you out in the middle of an action scene and jumps straight into a massive boss battle. It stays exciting all the way through and continues to surprise with it?s steady mix of ingenious puzzles and pulse-pumping action scenes. The story is one of the best I?ve seen in an action game, and leads up to a truly awesome conclusion.

[spoiler]The best and most epic part of the entire game, though, is that Kratos actually fights his way out of Hades. This level is ridiculously hard, entirely exciting, and one of the most fulfilling experiences in any game. Who else can say that they fought their way out from the bowls of Hell itself? No one. And the ending; just the way Kratos sits in his throne and chills was wonderful. [/spoiler]

3. [B]The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess[/B]

While the beautiful landscape doesn?t quite match the size and accessibility of the number one game on this list, it is a masterfully created world that holds a grand plethora of exploration and tons of things to discover. When compared to earlier incarnations of the Zelda series, one can see just how huge this game really is, especially since most of it?s areas offer plenty of exploring before even entering the extensive dungeons. Even the Wind Waker isn?t quite as big as this one. Because one Zelda is enough, and I?d like to pick the biggest of the series, this takes the only Zelda spot on the countdown.

[spoiler]The final battle(s) in this game are some of the most epic, fun, and satisfying to grace my gaming eyes. While the earlier parts of the battle are far more difficult and interesting, the ultimate one-on-one sword fight between Link and Ganondorf is really the cat?s meow. While simplistic, the joy of simply beating Ganondorf to the ground like you?ve wanted to since that Gamecube preview in ?01 was superb. The final blow, Link slamming the sword into him and his reaction to this action were pure bliss.[/spoiler][/COLOR]

[Dagger]

I think of something else* when I see the word 'epic'--a huge timespan or a cast of thousands, plot twists upon plot twists, etc. If it's not cheating to mention a series, I'd say Xenosaga, whose story is much too big to be contained effectively by just three games. And I've marveled at this before, but where else can you find [spoiler]Jesus (Yeshua)[/spoiler] as a playable character!?

*Probably because world exploration is not much of a draw for me.

~Dagger~

[Korey]

Most Epic Games?

[B]ff7[/B]- The game's storyline, while somewhat convoluted at some points was the driving point for the entire story. If even people who haven't played the game know the story by heart and while the other FF games before it (with the exception of ff1) had storylines, there wasn't as much appreciation for the characters and the landscape and completing the story. If a game merits two or three save slots for you...then it can be considered epic

[B]Legend of Dragoon[/B] This game was long and looked good when it came out and the story was epic worthy in my opinion. Did you not feel compassion for the characters when tragedy struck? This game was SCEA's answer to FF7 and it shined because it had the story to keep you hooked for a long time. While not as popular and recognized as FF7 was, there has been no other game that has merited a sequel in gaming message boards other than Legend of Dragoon.

[B]Xeno-series (SAGA and Gears)[/B] These games delved deep into social issues and religious ones as well, so that was a plus for me. The space opera that unfolded in the Xenosaga series was really cool and there wasn't a point in the game where I wanted to skip a cutscene to get back into the action (which wasn't that great, BTW. C'mon Namco, only one battle theme in XS1?). Xenogears was a better game in my opinion but I loved the games.

I know that all these games were RPG's but hey that's what RPG's are supposed to be right? If it's not epic or made by square enix or Nippon Ichi....then it's just not an epic game baby.

[silpheedpilot]

[SIZE="1"][COLOR="SlateGray"]Actually, DB. There is one other person who [SPOILER]fought his way out of hell and thats our shotgun wielding friend; the Doomguy![/SPOILER]

Either way, I don't find RPGs to be epic any more because they're all along the lines of 'scary man taking over the universe and it's up to a ragtag group of people to stop him.'
Whatever. Boring.

Epic to me is, not even a great storyline but, a storyline that overlays a game with amazing action, or something that sets itself apart from other games like Shadow of the Colossus. Good one, DB.

Another epic game to me is Rainbow Six: Vegas. Terrorists trying and mildly succeeding to take over Las Vegas is kinda a big deal. It also follows that 'ragtag group fights mean bad guys' but its a tactical first person shooter where you play as highly trained soldiers and it makes more sense than a yellow-haired youth swinging around a sword bigger than he is.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[BlueYoshi]

[color=darkred]The moment I read the thread title I knew that someone would have mentioned FFVII lol. But man, I hope this thread doesn't become restricted only to RPGs and games that look like they took place 19849073 years ago, because there is some mighty epic stuff out there -- the GTA series for its massive (though partly restricted) universe, or Gran Turismo for the stunning realism of the car models.

But since I'm also feeling generic at the moment I vote for Assassin's Creed. I mean, it takes place during the Third Crusadezors... that and the computer AI seems impressive. :)[/color]

[Billy Shears]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="1"]I would have to say that God of War II was quite more epic than the first one. I loved the first one to death, but the second one had the sense of awe in almost every second. I was blown away by the [spoiler]Pegasus level[/spoiler], just because of the sense of speed and height. Regardless of the Greek mythology setting, it seemed more realistic than say, the GTA series.

Anyone remeber the battle against Bowser in Super Mario World? I think that was pretty epic moment in a gargantuan game. :animesmil[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[BlueYoshi]

[quote name='Billy Shears'][COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="1"]I would have to say that God of War II was quite more epic than the first one. I loved the first one to death, but the second one had the sense of awe in almost every second. I was blown away by the [spoiler]Pegasus level[/spoiler], just because of the sense of speed and height. Regardless of the Greek mythology setting, it seemed more realistic than say, the GTA series.[/SIZE][/COLOR][/QUOTE]

[color=darkred]What do you mean by this? More realistic in gameplay and graphics, or in the sense that GTA is more far-fetched than God Of War. If something is epic, it means that it is big, bombastic, boastful. There is a common misconception that epic means medievel, swords, gauntlets and all that, and I can see where it comes from what with movie trailers and the like conforming to this archetype of setting, but in their own rights, both God Of War and GTA are epic. Realistic is a different matter.[/color]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR="DarkOrange"]GTA sucks. Suck can't be epic

anyhow, I haven't played [B]God of War 2[/B]. Also, my list was supposed to be only last-gen so no [B]Oblivion [/B]or them things. While RPGs can be epic, I find epic to ruly be a game where everything is grandious from start to finish. God of War always has that sense of extreme power as you manage puzzles the size of gods and such. [B]Shadow ot Colossus [/B]is self-explanitory. [B]Zelda [/B]is plain huge and sticks with you.

Others on my list included [B]Halo[/B], [B]Zone of the Enders: the 2nd Runner[/B], [B]Phantasy Star Online Episode 1&2[/B], [B]Super Smash Bros. Melee[/B], [B]Radiata Stories [/B](see! Epic RPG), [B]Onimusha 3[/B], and [B]Pokemon Silver[/B].[/COLOR]

[Billy Shears]

[quote name='Bombu'][color=darkred]What do you mean by this? More realistic in gameplay and graphics, or in the sense that GTA is more far-fetched than God Of War. If something is epic, it means that it is big, bombastic, boastful. There is a common misconception that epic means medievel, swords, gauntlets and all that, and I can see where it comes from what with movie trailers and the like conforming to this archetype of setting, but in their own rights, both God Of War and GTA are epic. Realistic is a different matter.[/color][/QUOTE]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][SIZE="1"]I thought the sense of scale was extremely realistic in God of War II. When you were fighting a monsterous boss, the creature was faaking enormous compared to you. When you were up in the air in GOWII, you felt like you were miles and miles above the stratosphere. You could only do so much regarding scale in GTA, and I am in no way saying that game had a bad sense of scale, because it did. I thought GOWII presented its sense of scale better though. I will agree, GTA is an epic game in its own rights, and I think it was kind of a bad comparison. But to me, GOWII had a better sense of scale, making it more of an epic game.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Nerdsy]

[color=deeppink]Pretty much anything made by Bioware is epic. Seriously, those games are [I]massive[/I], and I love the myriad possibilities in them.

I don't consider the GTA games epic at all, with the exception of San Andreas. Now, I haven't played the top view ones all the much, so I can't speak on them other than to say that they sucked so bad I coudln't bring myself to play them, but III and Vice City are far from epic-worthy.

They're just not that big; they both take place in a (small) city, and they really don't feel like they take that long nor do they feel like they have a large scope. Further, neither of them were all that impressive in terms of either gameplay or the actions taken by the main character. Granted, the final missions in both those games were epic battles, but one epic battle isn't enough to make a video game epic.[/color]

[DeathKnight]

[color=crimson]What an epic thread.

Dragon Quest VIII- Epically involving, epically well crafted and an almost epic story. The graphics, I have a bias for cel shaded so bear with me, are just vivid and alluring. The gameplay is actually just pretty much the same as most RP games, it's the smaller touches within the battle system and exploring the world.. how some enemies just sit and lick themselves instead of attacking you, it's just the quirks in the system that make you enjoy it. The story was kind of standard fair (evil being does evil thing) but it was presented in a refined way that still held a twist and a turn. The characters were presented realistically enough to be engaging and the voice acting was SUPERB. Best voice acting I have heard in a long while, hands down.

Dead Rising- Epic zombie assault, epic combat, epic weapons and a not too shabby story with multiple ways it can end. Assault zombies with a bench! A parasol, a lawn mower. If you must you can use real weapons.. uzis, sniper rifles, shotguns, katanas, chainsaws both large and small. The combat system and capability to produce items was neat and I never had much of a problem in slaughtering everything. The number of zombies everywhere just never ceased to amaze, especially once you hopped down into the basement garage area. Unreal. The story was well done although I thought it kind of melodramatically presented itself at times.. I guess zombie apocalypses end up being pretty melodramatic though.[/color]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][COLOR="Indigo"][quote name='DeathKnight'][color=crimson][B]Dragon Quest VIII[/B]- Epically involving, epically well crafted and an almost epic story. The graphics, I have a bias for cel shaded so bear with me, are just vivid and alluring. The gameplay is actually just pretty much the same as most RP games, it's the smaller touches within the battle system and exploring the world.. how some enemies just sit and lick themselves instead of attacking you, it's just the quirks in the system that make you enjoy it. The story was kind of standard fair (evil being does evil thing) but it was presented in a refined way that still held a twist and a turn. The characters were presented realistically enough to be engaging and the voice acting was SUPERB. Best voice acting I have heard in a long while, hands down.[/color][/QUOTE]I hadn't responded to this thread since I couldn't think of an epic game that I've actually played, that is until I read this. You're 100% correct. This is one of the most totally awesome games I've played in a very long time.

And the inclusion of so many silly things as well as have the opportunity to replay it and build your character around totally different skill sets gives it a good replay value as well. I also enjoyed the choice of music for it as well.

It has all sorts of funny things just waiting to be found, one of my favorites was attempting to zoom back to a town while standing under a bridge. I laughed and laughed when my character instead hit the underside of the bridge and fell to the ground, forcing me to move to open skies. This and other little tidbits just give it a depth and fun that makes it even more enjoyable. As well as being epic.
[B]
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess[/B]

I consider it epic for some of the same reasons DB does. The actual world was fantastic and even though some of the boss fights could have been more involved, the worlds surrounding them were great. The massive underground water cavern in the water temple, the need for [spoiler]dual hookshot just to get around and to fight the boss[/spoiler] were great fun.[/COLOR]
[/COLOR]

[Guest Subliminal]

[COLOR="DarkSlateGray"][B]Shadow Hearts: From the New World[/B] - Ah, this game is amazing. I love the story-line, characters, and boss battles. My favorite battle is at the end, when you fight [spoiler]Lady.[/spoiler] The last cutscene of the game gave me both chills and excitement. I also like the arcane side of the story with Émigré. And Johnny staring at Shania's boobs; priceless.

[B]Xenosaga ep:1[/B] - The gnosis battles, the religious basis for the game.. ahhh, great times in gaming. One of my favorite RPGs ever made. The graphics were good, the story-line was cool, and the characters are awesome. My favorite villain had to be Albedo, when he [spoiler]ripped off his head in front of Momo[/spoiler] I laughed. I didn't like KOS-MOS all that much though. She was kinda revealing in my eyes.

[B]Phantasy Star Universe [/B]- I really liked this game, I just hated how short it was. But I bet online play would be epic I guess.[/COLOR]

[BlueYoshi]

[quote name='Nerdsy'][color=deeppink]They're just not that big; they both take place in a (small) city, and they really don't feel like they take that long nor do they feel like they have a large scope. Further, neither of them were all that impressive in terms of either gameplay or the actions taken by the main character. Granted, the final missions in both those games were epic battles, but one epic battle isn't enough to make a video game epic.[/color][/QUOTE]

[color=darkred]You have to consider that even though the concept of being able to roam a free environment and do whatever you want wasn't new at the time, the scale of which both GTA3 and Vice City took this concept was something else. It provided a 3D model metropolitan atmosphere which opened the way for a whole new level of freedom in gameplay, and aside from doing the missions (and some of them were [i]hard[/i]), you could just drive or walk around or do some of the kill frenzies, and much more.

Take FFVII for example. Everyone loves it and tries to give it a mention wherever possiible, but in terms of gameplay it is very simple (especially when compared to more contemporary RPGs) -- the battle and materia-system were very user-friendly, but I, and others, still see it as epic. You think GTA isn't that great gameplay wise, but there's no denying that it's a hell of a lot of fun. If all games were to be judged because they never had a large enough scope, that'd just be wrong. Video games are evolving rapidly and efforts are being made to make each one as epic as the last, whether it be through a great storyline, original gameplay, or simply by offering something that other games can not.[/color]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]Definitely agree with Nerdsy, anything Bioware have made has turned out to be utterly epic in nearly every sense of the word, [B]Jade Empire[/B] and [B]Knights of the Old Republic[/B] being my two best examples of this as I never got into the D&D games. My favourite aspect to Bioware have been their concentration on a solid story, environment and character development above graphics, as was much the opposite with Bethesda's [B]Elder Scrolls Oblivion[/B], which though a fine game, and a definitely improvement on it's unplayable predecessor Morrowind lacked depth and story to me.

I will have to disagree though that GTA isn't epic, because in a gaming sense, it has most certainly revolutionised it's own genre and many others, San An being the biggest so far, though I imagine IV will only improve on it.The series stories have always been gripping and despite playing some of the worst society has to offer, you do gain a genuine understanding of their mentality, which is only a further nod to Rockstar's story-telling abilities.

[b]Command & Conquer[/b], need I say more ? I thought not. Well except that Generals was EA rather than C&C.

[b]Age of Empires[/b], see above, though unlike C&C, AoE has yet to have it's Generals.[/SIZE]

[eleanor]

[font="trebuchet ms"]
[url="http://nigoro.jp/game/rosecamellia/rosecamellia.php"]Rose & Camellia[/url].

To quote Kotaku: "This is Rose & Camellia. It's set in the 19th century. You play a woman. You slap other women. That's it."

Greatest game ever. And very epic.[/font]

[Break]

[quote name='Bombu'][color=darkred]... Gran Turismo for the stunning realism of the car models.[/color][/QUOTE]

Did you actually say that? lol...

Actually, I'm afraid epic sort of [i]does[/i] mean - how did you put it? - "medievel, swords, gauntlets, and all that". GTA is definitely not epic. Perhaps there is leeway for games to be considered 'epic' if they are 1) big and 2) good.

[quote]... in terms of gameplay it is very simple[/quote]

That has absolutely nothing to do with how epic a game is lol. And as for

[quote]You think GTA isn't that great gameplay wise, but there's no denying that it's a hell of a lot of fun.[/quote]

So is skimming stones. Fun does not make anything epic. It could be horrible, it could be frustrating, but it's the story and the environment and the characters that make a game epic. Don't forget the origins of the word "epic". I really really don't think you can apply that to GTA.

Or Gran Turismo. ;)

EDIT: I didn't actually say anything about my favourites, but I'm going with [b]Final Fantasy IX[/b] (obsessed with it at the moment). Clear cut, huge world, depth enough for a couple of replays [i]at least[/i] and a cast of characters that you can feel for. What more can be said? The usual storyline - but then they are sticking to a way of constructing a story that has been around for ages. People keep playing these types of games; there must be something good about them. :p

[Korey]

We have to define what really is "epic" as far as games go. Is it an in depth look into whatever the genre is? Or is it a giant world where the player has sympathy for the characters and the story of the game has multiple twists and turns that brings the character deep into the mythos of the story?

Here's another entry for me:

Metal Gear Solid (series): The games are great every time. The story always has more plot twists in it than a soap opera and the excellent story sets the stage for an epic experience. The game that stands out from this series would be MGS 3. The world that it was set in was vast and varied and the fact that the character had to rely on basic survival skills to execute their mission was pretty epic if you ask me. The envvironment was lush and very very large. From the jungles to the mountains to the eventual showdown at Groznyj Grad...the game was just awesome from point a to point b. The feeling of being hunted by the bosses, the use of camoflauge to stay hidden, the use of traps inside the jungle, the mostly smart AI. The game is just epic period.

[Break]

[quote name='Sesshomarufan']We have to define what really is "epic" as far as games go. Is it an in depth look into whatever the genre is? Or is it a giant world where the player has sympathy for the characters and the story of the game has multiple twists and turns that brings the character deep into the mythos of the story?[/QUOTE]

Definitely the second one, if you want the real definition of "epic".

If you want the modern, half-arsed one... apparently it can be anything from the realistic cars in Gran Turismo to paying for a prostitute in GTA III lol.

[Endymion]

[SIZE="1"][COLOR="Navy"]For the PC, I would have to say [B]Star Craft[/B] and it's expansion,[B] Brood War[/B]. Definitely the best RTS of all time (Although Rome: Total War rocks out in it's own way). The three races were balanced and the only thing needed to have an upper hand was skill. The story-line for the single player campaign was great. With the announcement of [B]Starcraft 2[/B] ('bout time Blizzard) will dominate it's predecessor. From the 15 or so minute gameplay demo...all you can say is 'Wow!' Knowing Blizzard though...we won't see it until late 2008 or 2009.

Console-wise, I would say any game from the [B]Harvest Moon [/B]series (aside from Save the Homeland for PS2 - not a true HM game IMHO). My favorites are probably [B]Harvest Moon 64 [/B]for the Nintendo 64 and [B]Harvest Moon: Magical Melody [/B]for the Gamecube. How great is it to choose between letting your farm rot and working your butt off and making it the star of the town - making friends, winning races, and getting married in the process.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Break]

[quote name='Endymion'][SIZE="1"][COLOR="Navy"]Console-wise, I would say any game from the [B]Harvest Moon [/B]series (aside from Save the Homeland for PS2 - not a true HM game IMHO). My favorites are probably [B]Harvest Moon 64 [/B]for the Nintendo 64 and [B]Harvest Moon: Magical Melody [/B]for the Gamecube. How great is it to choose between letting your farm rot and working your butt off and making it the star of the town - making friends, winning races, and getting married in the process.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/QUOTE]

I've been addicted to [b]Harvest Moon DS[/b] for a while now. I've lost interest as of late, but in the glory days I played on it [i]so[/i] much. Not what I'd call epic, but fair enough! Getting married annoyed me a bit. I couldn't choose who I wanted - I'm very indecisive.

It's a bit off topic but the new Harvest Moon game, [b]Rune Factory[/b] looks as if it's going to be a bit more epic than the rest of the titles. Farming [i]and[/i] fighting for the greater good!

[BlueYoshi]

[quote name='Break']Did you actually say that? lol...

Actually, I'm afraid epic sort of does mean - how did you put it? - "medievel, swords, gauntlets, and all that". GTA is definitely not epic. Perhaps there is leeway for games to be considered 'epic' if they are 1) big and 2) good.[/quote]


[color=darkred]Well, really now, there's no bother in comparing what we both consider to be epic because I'm set on what I consider to be epic, and obviously so are you. If you want to look at the generic perspective of epic, then fine, go ahead. But as for the scope of something being epic, it certainly isn't limited to medievel, swords, and gauntlets. Look at a game like Gears of War, for example. It has stunning graphics and great gameplay, and provides a breath of fresh air as far as third person shooters go, but because none of the above attributes of "epic" are present, does that mean it's not epic? Now take your version of an epic game, one which does consist of those attributes and turn it around so as that there are big guns and body armour instead. Does that mean it's not epic anymore? Epic isn't limited to a storyline you know, it's a partial factor, sure, but not the only thing. :rolleyes:

And you have to remember another thing, Gran Turismo was released in 1998, almost ten years ago (I never mentioned in my previous post that they were realistic at the time, haha). Of course it doesn't seem so huge now, but if you played it during that era, you definitely would have considered it as a worthy game, just as I do, and that's what makes it epic for me. Sorry it doesn't fit into your criteria of swords and sourcery.[/color]


[quote name='Break']Definitely the second one, if you want the real definition of "epic".

If you want the modern, half-arsed one... apparently it can be anything from the realistic cars in Gran Turismo to paying for a prostitute in GTA III lol.[/QUOTE]

[color=darkred]There is a bigger picture to consider in GTAIII, rather than focusing on the pettiest thing the game has to offer, but you're ignoring it; GTAIII has inspired many other popular sandbox games due to its compatibility. So what if the game doesn't have a great storyline or deep character driven plots, it doesn't mean it doesn't count for anything in the epic sense. Needless to say, my version of epic somewhat contrasts the former of Sesshomarufan's statement.[/color]

[Gavin]

[quote name='Sesshomarufan']Metal Gear Solid (series): The games are great every time. The story always has more plot twists in it than a soap opera and the excellent story sets the stage for an epic experience. The game that stands out from this series would be MGS 3. [/QUOTE]

[SIZE="1"]Agreed. [B]Snake Eater[/B], despite it's easily ridiculed name, has to be one of the most epic games I've ever played in the entire sense of the word. What really did it for me, aside from the really well developed story and characters was the music score.

For me, really well timed and executed music can make a game that much more than it would be be without. To give an example, the KOTOR series would really do better if they happened to add a plot longer than 25 hours for a first place, and 13 for veterans and included more orchestral music.[/SIZE]

[desertphoenix]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][B][SIZE="3"]Psychonauts[/SIZE][/B]

A very epic game that sold badly, and I love this game to death from start to finish. I say this game is epic, because of the wacky psychedelic presentation, fun game play, the wacky characters, and comedy. A solid platformer with a great handful of fun psychic abilities. Something about uncovering conspiracies at a camp for psychics, and diving into the crazy minds of other people that leaves a lasting impression on me.[spoiler] Diving into the mind of a lungfish and the milkman at the asylum is funny enough just to buy the game.[/spoiler] Plus, it has some gravity defining elements that you are going to see in Super Mario Galaxy:p. [/COLOR]