Video Games

So I'm going to be using this blog mostly to talk about various forms of entertainment in my life. This will include video games, sports, movies, books, TV... you get the point. So, to give people an idea of what's going to be covered in my posts, I'm going to spend my next few entries covering my favorite games, sports and teams, etc.

Favorite Video Games

• Super Mario Bros.: It's the first game I ever played and still one of my all-time favorites. I love the simplicity of the game; it's a game anybody can pick up and play easily without having to go through a bunch of tutorials and/or asking someone to explain the controls to them.
• Starcraft II: I haven't played much ladder in the past few months, but I still love some of the custom games. Desert Strike and Mafia are probably my favorites, even though I almost inevitably have terrible teammates for both.
• Final Fantasy IV: I know a lot of people that will say this game hasn't aged well, but to this day it is one of my favorite RPGs. It definitely helps that is has Kain Highwind, one of my favorite characters in the series.
• Final Fantasy VI: This is the crowning achievement of Squaresoft/Enix, the Final Fantasy series, and the RPG genre. It is a serious contender for my favorite game ever, and easily has the best villain in the history of video games. The main cast is so well-rounded and you have so many different combinations you can use for your party, almost all of which can be molded into a certain role in the party due to how the magic system works.
• Final Fantasy Tactics: Noticing a pattern here? I'm a big fan of the Final Fantasy series- the old school games at least; still haven't played XII or XIII- and RPGs/SRPGs in general. Among SRPGs, Tactics ranks in my top 5 along with some other games I'll list later. The complete customization of your party is the selling point for me here: other than storyline characters like Ramza, you have complete control of your party. Starting from the base classes of squire and chemist, you can turn each generic party member into any class you choose, whether it's a summoner or a lancer or a ninja. It can be time-consuming to unlock some of these classes, but the end result is definitely worth it.
• Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance: I love the Fire Emblem series, and this is my favorite one. I love the way supports are handled in this game, mounted units be able to move after attacking was a great change, and Ike is far and away my favorite Lord in the series. My only real complaints are the cast could be a little more balanced- the first four people you get are all within the top 5-8 units in the game- and only 3 members of your party can actually be used to damage the final boss, which just seems stupid to me.
• Tales of Symphonia: Yet another RPG. I love the art style of this game, and the battle system is quite fun. The story and characters sometimes feel lacking, but overall I still enjoy both. 
• Super Smash Bros. Melee: I love the Smash Bros. series. It's simple, fun, and great for both parties and tournaments. Well, Melee is great for tournaments. Brawl's competitive scene has always bored me and I never got into SSB64's.
• Super Robot Taisen Original Generation: SRPG #3 on this list. I love this game and its sequel and play through them all the time. The characters and battles are very entertaining, and I love switching up mech/pilot combos.
• Sports games: Madden, FIFA, NCAA, etc. I'll play pretty much any of them. They're a lot of fun usually, though Madden has a few problems/shortcomings I wish EA would deal with.

I think that should just about cover it for now. As you can see, I'm quite fond of RPGs and Nintendo systems, but I also own an XBox 360 and a PS2 that I use primarily for PS1 games.