[Essentials] Mindless Fun

[Ace Gunman]

On IRC earlier we were discussing those games that we've all spent countless hours with friends and family playing over the years... you know the ones. They aren't the greatest stories ever told or even necessarily the deepest of gaming experiences, they're just damn fun to play. Here are the guidelines:

1) Multiplayer games are preferred but single player games can be added if you give strong enough reasons.

2) Name the specific system or systems that the games in question are fun for.

3) In rare cases the name of a series can be used instead of specific title (IE: Super Smash Bros), in this case rule number doesn't apply.

4) While most of the games on the list will doubtlessly be older retro titles, newer titles that fit the criteria are acceptable.

5) A game in question may be challenged and is open to public debate/voting.

Here are a few examples of the sorts of games we want for this essentials list: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time, Super Smash Bros, Twisted Metal, Contra, Left4Dead, Marvel vs. Capcom, etc. It doesn't matter if it's your favorite game or not, things such as Final Fantasy, Paper Mario, The Legend of Zelda and so on aren't what we're looking for. It's about mindless (group) fun, not epic storylines and content.

Ideally this list will lead to an influx of Retro Reviews and perhaps even some retro and/or multiplayer game nights via emulators and online connectivity.

I'll start us off with Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time (Arcade, Super Nintendo).

 

[Maikel Steneker]

What about Boom Blox for Wii?

 

[Jarjaxle]

serious sam 1 and 2

 

[Ace Gunman]

That's the ticket! Keep in mind you can name multiple games/series at a time.

 

[Satangel]

What about Boom Blox for Wii?

I must agree, so addictive!

 

[Ace Gunman]

I'll throw in one of my favorites here: Quake 3 Arena (PC) and Goldeneye 64 (Nintendo 64).

 

[Licardo7]

Me and my cousin spent countless hours playing Counter strike source. Love that game and could keep you on your seat for hours.

 

[Jarjaxle]

dynasty warriors/ samurai warriors

 

[Gaisuto]

Left 4 Dead. (X360/PC)
Super Smash Bros Brawl (Wii)
Dokapon Kingdom (Wii/PS2)

 

[kevenka]

Mario Party Series (They haven't changed much over the years...but still mindless fun

)

 

[xcalibur]

Ikaruga (well I suppose I can put in just about any shooter here but I won't exhaust myself)
Jump! ultimate stars
MOH: Allied Assualt (many hours wasted playing this over lan)
Tekken 3 (again, any decent 2d/3d figther can be put here)
DBZ fighting games (since the budokai series they have been nothing but top-notch IMO)
Letf 4 Dead (only played the demo but its just SO DAMN AWESOME)
Guitar Hero


also: inb4 zelda

 

[SpaceJump]

Power Stone! Street Fighter!

 

[reimu]

How about WarioWare (Wii)! Man that game is fun... oooh, so is Soul Calibur (PS2).

 

[pasc]

The Tim (the incredible Machine) Series for the PC.

 

[kobykaan]

Syndicate (Amiga)
Chaos Engine (Amiga)
Settlers (The original first one on Amiga)
Jet Set Willy (Spectrum 128/Amiga,C64..Played it on just about all formats!)
Super Mario Bros (Atari 2600 VCS)
Centipede (Atari 2600 VCS) (clocked this game 4 times in a row suffered hand cramp for days

)
Mortal Kombat 1-3 (Snes versions were best my opinion for home consoles)
Street Fighter II Turbo (Snes)
Super Mario Kart (Snes)
Unreal Tournament GOTY edition (PC)
Quake 1+2 (PC)
Doom (PC)
Wolfenstein (PC)

along with too many other good ones too list!

 

[B-Blue]

Dr. Mario

Tetris

 

[Ace Gunman]

Remember, if it's a one player game that could be shared, give your reasoning. Like, I don't know, Super Mario Land 3. That sort of game where you and your friends or whoever would spend hours (and forever) handing off to each other back and forth taking turns. Pure undiluted fun.

 

[Law]

If we're talking FPS', I just have to say Team Fortress 2. You could spend days on there and not even notice. Pure fun.

 

[JPH]

Grand Theft Auto (series).
Get you a list of cheats and unlock all of the cities, and boy can you have mindless fun driving, killing, and doing whatever else there is to do.

Also, Guitar Hero is also a game you can pick up and play for a while without ever getting old.

Tetris also defines "mindless fun" hehe.

 

[Ace Gunman]

There will probably be a little bit of debate about GTA, but I'll second it because I have experienced that mindless fun. If you max it out on cheats, don't bother with the story, and fool around, you and some friends can have a lot of fun times.