Whether it’s a sprawling open-world RPG, a classic sidescrolling beat ‘em up, a nostalgic 3D platformer, or even a persistently popularbattle royale, there is a video game out there that comes to mind when thinking of a particular genre.
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To truly ‘define’ a genre, a game must refine the mechanics of what makes its particular niche so popular while also bringing something fresh and unique to the table. Usually, it will feature an element that makes it stand apart in its own right and carry forward in some way to other games. It’s the game that people will refer to time and again, years after its initial launch.
10Street Fighter 2 - Fighting Games
Launched amidst theglorious arcade era of video games,Street Fighter2 took the gaming world by storm and is one of the most influential fighting games ever made. It brought with it an unprecedented level of depth to its fighting, featuring a huge variety of combos and special moves to tactically button mash your way to victory.
It introduced many staples of the genre that are still enjoyed to this day, such as the ability to string together a complicated set of combos and powerful super attacks the series is known for. There’s a good reason it has beenre-released to high heaven.
9The Sims - Simulation
On paper,The Simsdoesn’t sound like it would translate well to video game form. You must oversee the needs and desires of a bunch of virtual people as they attempt to navigate the mundane routine of day-to-day life. But it is far from mundane.
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Maintaining your Sims' moods, keeping their various needs topped up, and providing a habitable living space of your design resulted in an extremely infectious gameplay loopthat had players coming back year after year.The Sims 3is arguably the best of the bunch, as it expanded upon the series in every way and had countless significant expansions. For our money, the original Sims game is the defining experience.
8Fortnite Battle Royale - Battle Royale
DespitePUBGstarting the genre that has since pervaded all forms of online multiplayer imaginable, it’sFortnitethat took battle royale games to the next level. The ever-pervasive game that took the world by an increasingly enclosing storm first started as a multiplayer spin-off to help salvage a failed tower defence multiplayer title. In what has to be one of the best genre pivots ever, Fortnite Battle Royale took the tried-and-true battle royale formula and made it mainstream.
With its vibrantly colourful cartoony graphics, huge map, anda constant stream of updates and seasonal events, Fortnite has persisted as one of the most successful games ever.Its fort-building mechanicsgave it a unique edge over the competition and helped solidify it as a part of the cultural zeitgeist.
7Guitar Hero - Music Rhythm Games
BeforeGuitar Herocame along,the only rhythm games you could playsaw you banging bongos in Donkey Konga, rapping your heart away in Parappa the Rapper, or wildly tapping your feet withDance Dance Revolution. Guitar Hero added a plastic guitar into the mix and allowed you to shred away to some of the best rock tracks around.
It skyrocketed the series to ridiculous heights and was an incredibly popular party game that was enjoyed by people all over the world. After spawning several sequels and some not-so-successful spinoffs (we’re looking at you, DJ Hero), the series began to fade as gamers moved on to the next big thing. Here’s hoping more plastic instruments make their way back into our living rooms soon. Gone, but not forgotten.
6Dark Souls - Soulslike
BeforeFromSoftware’s series of punishingly difficult action RPGs, there was hardly anything else like it. The key features ofDark Soulsare the gothically inspired expansive environments,the strikingly nightmarish enemy design, and the extreme frequency with which you will see the “You Died” screen.
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It also brought with it bonfires — a series staple that sees all the enemies in the surrounding area respawn after resting to level up and spend your ‘souls’ currency. It was such a success that sparked an entirely new genre, an endless stream of copycats, and a slightly irritating and overused description in video game discourse. Dark Souls is the Dark Souls of Dark Souls video games.
5Gears Of War - Third-Person Shooter
BeforeGears of Warcame along,third-person shooterswere fairly limited. The game introduced a revolutionary ‘sticky’ cover system that allowed you to snap into a safe position and pop in and out of the firing line with intuitive ease. It also helped that the game was a bombastic blast from start to finish, with extremely high production values for the time.
It included a bloody balls-to-the-wall campaign, brilliantly iconic weapons (did someone say chainsaw gun?), and jaw-dropping graphics that showcased whatEpic’sUnreal Enginewas truly capable of. Despite the genre becoming a bit bloated over the years, Gears of War was the first to do it with a high degree of finesse and polish.
4Grand Theft Auto 3 - Open-World Sandbox
Thanks to the power of thePS2,Grand Theft Auto 3was able to bring the series into 3D, allowing you to explore a huge Liberty City at your leisure.This groundbreaking sequelgave you the ability to get into any car you came across and pretty much do as you pleased.
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On top of having a fully voice-acted story, you could also create a variety of unique emergent gameplay experiences by getting involved in crime sprees, carrying out odd jobs, and generally wreaking a significant amount of havoc. The cultural significance ofGrand Theft Autois no joke — each anticipated launch breaks sales records and pushes the series in new directions. GTA 3 has had a significant impact on the entire genre — every single open-world game has borrowed ideas from the game that did it first.
3Super Mario 64 - 3D Platformer
The dawn of theNintendo 64was an undeniably exciting time for video games. It brought gaming into the future with fully explorable three-dimensional spaces — there was no better test bed for this electrifyingly profound experience thanSuper Mario 64.
Opening up the play space in such a way allowed for the type of platforming never before seen in video games, allowing for more freedom of movement and the developer’s brilliant level design to be experienced in a new and refreshing way. It had a profound influence on the golden era of platformers that came after it, including all ofMario’s subsequent stellar outings.
2The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time - Action Adventure
Another Nintendo 64 classic,The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Timeis up there with the greatest video games of all time. It holds great cultural significance and is highly regarded by gamers and non-gamers alike. Much like Mario’s Nintendo 64 outing, Ocarina saw Zelda move to 3D for the first time.
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It took Link on a great adventure against the backdrop of a fully explorable Hyrule, with loads of monsters to fight, dungeons to explore, puzzles to solve, and chests to loot. There’s no denying the impact it has had on open-world action-adventure games, influencing a staggering number of games that can proudly call themselves Zelda clones.
1The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim - RPG
Building on the depth ofMorrowindand the expansiveness ofOblivionbefore it,Skyrimrefined all ofBethesda’s previous efforts to produce a huge sprawling RPG with a staggering number of quests to complete, a deep physics-based first-person action combat system, and a huge world filled with interesting things to discover and explore.
Skyrim has such a prevalent presence that it has spawned countless remasters and re-releaseson pretty much any device that has a pulse. It has had a lasting impact on gamers for more than a decade since its launch and is still widely enjoyed to this very day.
