Best 5 PC Games of All Time
We’ve spent the past week going over game submissions from readers, all put together to determine the Best 5 PC Games of all Time. In the past, these lists have come from gaming houses, engineers or developers – but rarely from genuine gamers playing the titles each and everyday or throughout their gaming careers.
While some choices are expected, there are some surprises and we look forward to additional feedback from our existing and new readers to continue the discussion around the best PC games
Here we go …
1. Civilization – The turn based strategy masterpiece from the mind of Sid Meier. Well before it’s time, Civilization or ‘Civ’ as it was called opened a huge gaming world to players as they explored, built and fought wars in the early days of existence. This game covered so many angles, from strategy, planning, direct wars (fighting) and fairly good graphics and sound for its era. This title also spawned many in the series; from additional Civilization releases, expansion packs and the Colonization title which also remained popular in its own right. The only thing lacking was a multiplayer option which came with the later versions of this masterpiece. This was a clear winner with a stack of votes from our blog readers.
2. F1GP – Formula One Grand Prix on the PC was a groundbreaking gaming title on the computer. Microprose really lifted the bar here, with realistic track design and layout, top shelf graphics and real audio and amazingly a multiplayer offering that was a first at the time. The multiplayer option worked through the modem and in pre-internet and LAN gaming days, this was a real stunner. So good was F1GP that it was used by actual Formula 1 racing teams at the time as an assistant to new drivers wanting to learn new tracks.
3. Leisure Suit Larry – An entry into the Top 5 from the Sierra Gaming Houses. We didn’t realise we had so many ‘old school’ readers to our blog. But Larry certainly did have its following. A release in the late 80’s – this was a basic graphical offering with a text driven interface. The gamer had to ‘tell’ Leisure Suit Larry what to do as he sought to work the character through the real world with the end goal of getting ‘laid’. Certainly an interesting goal! But it had plenty of laughs and really showed a new side to PC gaming in the early days.
4. World of Warcraft – Seemingly the biggest money spinner in gaming history. World of Warcraft or WoW as it’s known, from Blizzard inc earns many millions of dollars for its owners each and every month. Few predicted how big massively multiplayer online gaming would become (Sierra certainly missed the boat here, they had one of the earliest MMORPG paid offerings called ‘The Realm’ which they shunned and it certainly cost them!) but Blizzard created an everest here and it continues to build, with expansion packs and new features. Not so much a graphical masterpiece, but the virtual world, multiplayer aspect and sheer size of this game have earned it a mammoth following with our younger readers obviously voting this PC game into the Top 5.
5. Wolf3d – Just edging out Counterstrike for the 5th slot, this classic from ID Games opened the doors to first person shooters everywhere. For those that had an Adlib or Soundblaster PCI card in their PC at the time – were blown away by the audio and of course top graphics from this game at the time. Good game speed, amazing story line and of course being able to blast Germans in World War 2 was a big bonus as gamers lined up to take this one to town. Secret levels, various weapons including a chainsaw that eventually came in the Doom sister series – this was a great all round winner for ID software and gamers everywhere.
Some titles just missing the cut; Counterstrike, Adventure Quest, Settlers, Airborne Ranger.
