30 Days of Video Games

[Burnt Ash]

Well, in earlier years, my favorite series used to be Mario. Nowadays, I still like Mario, but my favorite series would be the Sonic the Hedgehog series.

I got into the Sonic series starting with Sonic Adventure 2:Battle and Sonic Mega Collection for the GameCube, and I've loved the series ever since, well the two game I've played, I got into the series with Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic 2006, despite me not liking the latter anymore. Things I love about the Sonic series is its very fast gameplay, several of its storylines, and the many different characters that belong to the series (Favorite characters: Sonic and Shadow). So yeah, my favorite series would be Sonic the Hedgehog.

Edited January 19, 2012 by thebluehedgehog

[buba]

Day 4 - Favourite Series

Sonic the Hedgehog

The first game I played, the first one I had fun.

Always liked the series even when they where in the dark ages and they where the ones (other than Pokémon) that where always fun to play.

I got many friends and awesome memories thanks to this series and most important it is one of series that my father made me love since I played his Sonic 2 when I was 3/4.

Edited January 22, 2012 by Tmsp

[gato]

Day 4 - Favourite Series:

There are few series I can say I enjoyed most of it's games, franchises like "Phatasy Star", "Command & Conquer" and "Sonic the Hedgehog" have a big place in my heart (and that's why all of them get honorable mentions here)... But there is only 1 series (even if I'm not sure if it counts) that makes me feel nothing but love...

STARCRAFT:

Yup! This series only has 2 games (that's why I'm not sure if it counts), but both of them are of the most fun games I've ever played, as I mentioned before, Starcraft (with the Broodwar expansion)

But Starcraft II doesn't fall behind, it made many improvements over the original (expected, since there is a huge time gap between the titles) while still keeping much of the stuff that made the first game so memorable.

It's funny how I pretty much got to see how the whole game was being done little change by little change, Blizzard was awesome enough to share that kind of info with the fanbase every once in a while.

The gameplay, the characters (and units with character) the will to create a balanced and fun experience to all kind of players were all there! The boost Battle.net has received over the years (that once again, due to connection problems, getting to addicted to PSO and running out of time of my license I never got to experience) must have been good too (despite initial problems some users had with the upgrade... Or so I've heard).

I almost feel bad whenever I send such charismatic guys to their almost certain doom.

The soundtrack is still awesome and the new campaign mode is pretty fun too (though yeah, I'm as annoyed as many of the fans for getting only one campaing, and for our choices not being so influential in the story)...

Terrans, in all their rocking glory!

I never got to see how is this game going when it comes to mods... I've heard it works like in Warcraft III (that allows you to greatly modify a map, but you are not able to modify the whole game, your mods are just limited to a single mad, which really disappoints me)...

I wonder if there is a cow level out there...

But yeah, all in all both Starcraft games are amazing! And that's why it's my favourite series. <3

Red Alert 3 was good thought the story is just as cheesy as the Red Alert 2 (this one follows Red Alert 2) the gameplay is good but the Coop wasn't really my thing, the campaign was good but Srkmish I found unbalanced (either it was too easy or too difficult) its Expansion Pack was download only although I did enjoy it. Not Bad.

Edited January 19, 2012 by 502 Bad gatoway

[Conando]

This shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. My favorite game series is:

The Super Mario Series

Nothing can get me as excited as a new Mario game (though Zelda comes close). Like I mentioned, Super Mario Brothers was my first video game, and it made a huge impression on me and Super Mario World on my uncle's SNES sealed the deal. No other game series screams pure fun to me more than these games. When I got a N64, Mario 64 never left the cartidge slot for more than a few weeks. It might come off as a bit of a cheap choice, considering Mario and his friends cover almost every single genre out there. I like that in a character, though. Mario lends himself well to not just plaformers but, sports games, party games, fighting games, and even RPGs! It was kind of an easy choice when you look at it that way.

Edited January 19, 2012 by Hero Of Fate

[Tornado]

This one's hard. I mean, there are plenty of series where, if this was 2002, I'd be all over them (lol Sonic. lol Spyro. lol Need For Speed. lol Ridge Racer). But this is 2012.

So:

Does it count when your entire reason for loving a franchise is because they keep remaking the same two games over and over, and thus have no bad experiences with it?

My runner up would be Ace Attorney.

Edited January 19, 2012 by Tornado

[Carbo]

Courtroom drama has never been this insane, this off-the-wall, this... Japanese. Ace Attorney is the brainchild of Japanese designer Shu Takumi. An idea based around the concept of contradictions, and the corruption behind the Japanese judicial system. Against impeccable odds, you play as a defense attorney who wants nothing but the truth, and to protect the weak and innocent.

The Ace Attorney series is something so rare of a fantastic example of being able to make a great game out of anything. It's a fantastically written series that gives immense depth and likability towards it's characters, which is the real reason you'll stay with the games. Due to it's visual novel setup the entire game is like an interactive book and since it's a portable based series it's the perfect set of stories to have on the go, pretty much all of them which are timeless and lovely to go through so many times. There's something in here for everyone to find, and it's the kind of series that you can just go onto any online gaming forum and talk about what parts you loved the most.

At the end of the day, you'll feel just as smug as our good attorney when you spot the contradiction in a witness testimony, and there's nothing more satisfying than making their faces shut up with one big, powerful objection.

Runner Up: Oddworld.

[TheGerkuman]

So now I have to find something to say about Ace Attorney that Carbo hasn't. Shiit.

Actually, he didn't mention the music. And this series, by far, has one of the best soundtracks of all time. Sonic and Megaman may be up there, but neither of them got orchestrated albums dedicated to them. The character tracks enliven the already lively characters and the court themes ramp up the tense atmosphere. I can put on those aforesaid albums and soak in the atmosphere, and remember all the wonderful events they heralded.

And of course, all the stuff Carbo said is definitely true. Whether you're Phoenix Wright, Apollo Justice or Miles Edgeworth, seeking the truth is fun. Even Marylyn Manson likes it.

[Autosaver]

DAY 4 - (ONE) of my favorite series

Kingdom Hearts

What would happen if Mickey Mouse and Final Fantasy fell in love? Kingdom Hearts is what would happen. From the makers of the Final Fantasy series comes Kingdom Hearts. It isn't RPG styled like FF is, but it still retains the RPG format by turning it into an action RPG game.

It also started with the original game - Kingdom Hearts for PS2.

It had everything you could ask for. Great music, loveable setting, awesome Disney voice actors, and more. Who doesn't want to fly with Peter Pan in Neverland? Or how about going through Wonderland? The story just sucks you in. The amount of polish SquareSoft put in this game is just fantastic.

Kingdom Hearts COM came several years later. It was a gameboy exclusive. It added a lot to the story, but it wasn't that good of an experience compared to the original game. Square completely ditched the fighting system used in Kingdom Hearts and resided with a card based attack system. It still is worth a check out if you own a GBA.

After Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts II came out. Sora is back, and this time with his nobody Roxas. The voices have greatly improved in this game and they are actually listenable now. SquareEnix (Merged with Enix by this time) heavilly retooled the original game and improved upon every flaw. The game goes by much faster and has much better controls. No longer will you have awkward camera moments due to the ability to change it anytime. In KH2, you go through various worlds such as Halloween Town and Beast's Castle.

This was majorally hyped - 1000 enemies ON SCREEN!

Kingdom Hearts II was one of my favorite games for PS2 when I was a kid. I actually borrowed the game from a friend and I never got a chance to play it again. (Partly due to selling of PS2) I waited years for Kingdom Hearts III but instead we got several other games. KH 358/2 Days, Birth by Sleep, and RE:Coded.

358/2 Days is a game developed exclusively for DS. It stars Sora's nobody Roxas and the mysterious 14th member. In this game, you'll play through Roxas's life throughout his time in Organization XIII. A lot of the worlds are brought from Kingdom Hearts I and II. The gameplay is similar to KHI as it is slower and requires more skill than KHII. In my opinion, this has got to be one of the best DS games made. It has a great story, detailed 3D graphics, gorgeous cutscenes, amazing multiplayer, and outstanding gameplay. If you haven't picked it up, I recommend it.

More than a year later, Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep came out. This game is a prequel to the first KH game. Since it takes place in the past, Square chose more classic worlds for this game. Several examples include Snow White & Cinderella. The battle system has been completely changed for this game. There is a huge focus on deck commands which really brighten up the gameplay. You no longer use your keyblade for 99% of your attacks. You have a whole new range of physical and special attacks. This becomes a standard in future KH games.

Sora is back on the DS? What?! Kingdom Hearts RE:Coded is a remake of the cell phone game Coded. The game never came stateside and the fans wanted to play the game so a remake was made. Sora's journal from Kingdom Hearts I has a message in it but it is all bugged up. Mickey makes a copy of Sora to go through the journal and solve the mystery. It takes BbS's gameplay system and improves it. It also improved 358/2 Days graphics and made them more detailed. It is quite a nice looking game.

Finally, 3D. This game is coming out for the 3DS. This is a huge title and it is supposed to tie into Kingdom Hearts III. It looks like one of the best looking 3DS games so far graphically and gameplay wise. I personally can't wait for it to come over.

I love the huge complicated story of Kingdom Hearts. The gameplay, music, story, and settings all make the Kingdom Hearts series worthy of being played. Don't let the 6 year old fans or the yaoi abusers turn you away from the game. Just avoid 99% of the fanbase and you'll be fine.

[SuperStingray]

This being a Sonic forum, I almost feel obligated to say Sonic, but being a Sonic fan has been more of an emotional rollercoaster than any fan of a franchise should have to handle. I also want to say Metroid, as it's had an amazing overall track record, but I already chose Metroid Prime as my favorite game and besides, Other M exists, which took the whole series down a notch.

But there's one series that has never failed to entertain me. One series that uses new gaming technology and fads to its creative advantage rather than simply exploiting processing power. One series with more chaos than attention span, a sugar rush of the senses and a stress test of the mind:

I choose this as my favorite series because I believe in a good series, of any medium, a successor is enough of an improvement that it lives up to its name, but different enough that it doesn't replace it and similar enough that it wouldn't make sense to just stick it in a different franchise altogether, and I believe WarioWare takes that philosophy to heart. Every new WarioWare game doesn't come out to exploit the success of the previous by doing exactly what it does (even the ubiquitous nose picking microgame has found ways to evolve), it takes each new technology Nintendo makes or fad in the game industry and uses it to its full advantage, by which I mean using it in every way it possibly can. Touch screen? You can rub, poke, drag, draw etc. Wii Mote? They named and used 16 different poses for the Wii Mote and branched out from there. Each incarnation doesn't care about what the last game did, namely because it can't- it's dependent on whatever new technology it exists on or chooses to use, but it never finds nor needs a reason to stray from the framework and tone of the original, those being what the franchise is all about: rhythmic anarchy, contextless nonsense, technological focus and ceaseless challenge. If nothing else, it's the ultimate kind of tech demo, finding 100-200 different ways to use a gimmick and building a veritable game worth my time. No single WarioWare game may even be among my absolute favorite games, but it has my undying respect as a franchise for never trying to evade its initial strengths, but it nonetheless justifies every successor. I just hope Rhythm Heaven's success doesn't overshadow the studio's interest in making a new WarioWare game, as I'd love to see what they can do with the 3DS and Wii U.

Edited January 19, 2012 by SuperStingray

[Badnik Mechanic]

Day 4: Favourite Game Series

In a bid to think a little outside the box. I don't really have a favourite series since I just like games and if something comes out that I think is good I'll buy it... there were a few contendars that I thought I'd mention.

Commnd & Conquer (not the Generals series)

Resident Evil

Resistance,

Ace Attorney.

In the end, I decided to think outside of the box and pick this...

Star Trek

Before you roll your eyes at the very notion of me suggesting a movie license... let me explain why.

Movie licenses are traditionally this...

"Ok Ok! There is the movie! Lets make a game... ... ... ... ... And it has to be out when the movie is.... DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD BASE IT ON THE MOVIES PLOT!? Or set just before after the movie? THE MOVIE!"

Star Trek games however... don't really do that, yes there have been some games based off one of the movies, but usually, if a Star Trek game is announced, it's something original and it doesn't have to worry about being released in line with a movie.

Almost every game in the series is different to the other.

example.

Bridge commander: You are the captain of a Starship, you issue orders to your crew and you can even manipulate some finer details of how your ship opperates.

Starfleet command: you pretty much design your own starship and then take it out for a test flight, then if you like you can take it out into a campaign mode and. Tons of customisable options with this one.

Away Team: Think Commandos, and you get the idea.

Star Trek: Armada, an RTS game, you get to command one of 4 alien races, each with their own campaign which builds up into one huge story.

Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force

It's a first person shooter, you are part of Voyagers combat away team but one great feature they included was a mode that let you explore the Voyager ship and talk to the crew and play with the ships systems.

Star Trek: Borg

Think Dragons Lair/Point and click adventure you get the idea, only this had a live cast and even some familiar faces came to make the game.

It seems that every year theres a new Star Trek game out, some are better than others and others are absolute howlers, one notable game would have to be Star Trek Legacy, it looked stunning and almost like Bridge commander 2.0, sadly it had so many bugs and problems it left a bitter taste in the mouth.

But the out of all the Star Trek games, theres definately something for everyone, I can't recommend Armada 1 & 2 enough, great storyline and lots of units to play with as well as several races each with their own unique ships and devices to use. Bridge commander is another favourite of mine, for one reason I'll share with you later, and Elite force is one hell of a fun FPS, especially on the stages where you encounter the Borg and they adapt to your weapons, so you need to be very careful with what you do.

Now, one reason why Star Trek games get a huge thumbs up from me... would be the modding community, this community is enormous, and it's totally transformed some games.

Going back to bridge commander, that game is well over 10 years old... in that time almost every species in Star Trek has been added to the game, the options and customisation you can do is incredible, but.... they've expanded into other universes, wanna see who would win between the Death Star and a Borg Cube? Yup can be done. Wanna go one on one with A Galaxy Class Star ship and a Dalek mothership? Not a problem, how about a Sovereign class starship and a Goa'uld mothership? Of course.

As diverse as each Star Trek game is, what makes it one of my favourite series is mainly what the community does with it when the game is out, the games have totally transformed from what they were, not just adding ships or characters, but adding features and new ways to play, Bridge Commander was a single level experience... until the community found a way to make it into a full universe, letting players warp to new planets and star systems at will. Quite an amazing feet considering the original limitations.

For that I have to put it as one of my favourite series, just because it is a movie license, but is trying really hard to break the stereotype.

Oh yeah and... I kinda like the needlemouse series of games too.

Edited January 19, 2012 by Hogfather

[Cobalt_Bolt]

Well we're already on day 4 and the topic is favorite game series. Now this one is a bit difficult for me as I've played quite a few series over the years and it's hard to just pick one that stands out. So after much deliberation I've made my choice and it is:

Sonic the Hedgehog

This series stands out to me the most because it had the most impact on my childhood aside from my introduction to gaming with Super Mario Bros. This series has been a constant in my gaming library when I've played through all the other series and have finished with them after they lost their replay value. There is just something about the series that just can't be described in one area alone. From the music, to the level design and to the characters it just is incredible how many years the blue blur and his comrades have been with us. Sure there were some pretty low points in the series history such as the infamous Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic 06 games but where as other series get axed after such moments the Sonic series bounces back and tries again with better results most of the time. All in all this series will remain a top favorite of mine for years to come.

Honorable Mentions:

Need for Speed series: This series still is good in some aspects but is still going through some difficult times in regards to some poor choices by EA.

Megaman series (X1-X5 and Zero saga): These sub series of the Megaman series have been played more often than the main series due to the character designs, level designs, and story arcs.

Edited January 19, 2012 by Cobalt_Bolt

[Diz]

Day 4 - Your Favorite Video Game Series.

[Meow]

Okay so if you know me basically you know that Sonic The Hedgehog pretty much defined my childhood and inspired me greatly artistically. You'd also know that I am a huge Megaman nut as well, with that being more influential on me artistically as well the older I get, and the further I keep finding myself infatuated with sci-fi stuff. So then you'd be pretty reasonable to think "oh here comes Sonic and Megaman combined in a single post because he can't decide"

In which I'd tell you YOU'RE WRONG AND YOU SHOULD FEEL BAD FOR BEING WRONG. I also love BlazBlue BUT IF YOU GUESS THAT YOU'RE ALSO WRONG. Now don't misunderstand me, those are definitely way high up there and basically I'd say that technically you'd be right by guessing those to be my favourite series of all time. I generally can't pick out a favourite among them these days. But I've realized something more and more lately, the thing that inspires a lot of my music and artwork and generally gets me very excited whenever even the tiniest piece of news hits about it. It also has robots and is sci-fi.

Its this. Phantasy Star Online is my favourite series. I restricted it down to just the titles carrying the online moniker because I am not a fan of the original titles and Universe doesn't count (and still wouldn't be anywhere this high on my personal list). No, this includes both Phantasy Star Online Episode I and II, Episode III, and I will count Blue Burst in here as a new entry because of Episode IV. Phantasy Star Online 2 is also on its way so its reasonable enough for me to count this as a game series. So trust me, I am not insane.

However I am absolutely in love with this series' music and design. The monsters are all rather cool and the characters all rock. Episode III gets a special mention as being the oddball edition in the series, switching to its card based tactics game, but I actually really quite enjoy it. Phantasy Star Online Episode 3 probably has some of the slickest presentation values I have ever seen in a game. Everything reflects the style of the game so well, and we get a load of the fantastic artwork in the form of those comic book styled cutscenes. The music is as fantastic as ever in that iteration too. It is a bit of a shame it wasn't a standard PSO experience with that type of a presentation, but the core gameplay is still an amazing amount of fun. Which is why this is being listed as my favourite game series, because I love all the games within it.

Everytime I play something with the name Phantasy Star Online attached I have always had fun. Which is why I am extremely excited for Phantasy Star Online 2, and why this is my favourite game series.

Edited January 19, 2012 by SuperchargedBatteryKnife

[mcsleepy]

Favorites Series would Sonic the Hedgehog.

I didn't find out about him until I saw Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog when I was in elementary school, and I thought he was just the coolest dude. He was never scared, could get out of any situation, and he could turn into a buzz saw and become two dimensional by spinning really fast. It was awesome! I didn't know he was mainly a video game character until I played the Sonic Adventure demo at a friends house, and was like "wtf" when his spindash was 3 dimensional and not pointy and didn't make saw noises, but I still loved it.

The first game of this series I actually owned were Sonic Advance and Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, and I poured in so many hours towards Adventure 2. It game was so fast and exciting, and the story felt epic, the music was great, and the chao's were soooooo cuuuuuute. I spent so much time in the Chao garden with my brother, taking turns playing and raising our respective chao.

Nowadays I think Sonic his doing the best he's ever done honestly. The Unleashed style play is my favorite gameplay style for Sonic and to me surpasses the classics. I could play Unleashed or Colors way longer than I could Sonic 2 or 3. At this point I just wish I could play as Shadow or Knuckles. I hope that this series keeps its momentum going and I follow it until the day I stop gaming (if that ever happens)

Honorable mentions go to Smash Bros for it's concept and gameplay, and Kingdom Hearts for it's flashy and addictive action gameplay.

Edited January 19, 2012 by mcsleepy

[Nix]

Day 4: Favorite Video Game Series

The Ace Attorney Series.

This is the only series that I've ever played that made me give a shit about every single character it had to offer, even the villains and the dead characters you never meet. Some characters may not be as interesting as some others (some of the various case 1 characters in particular), but I still love them all regardless. The cases you get involved in are all amazing, even the ones that I consider the "bad" cases in the series are very good, they're just not as good as some of the fucking fantastic cases the series has to offer. It certainly helps that this game is completely over-the-top with its courtroom drama, you're always fighting against impossible odds and the journey to the top is certainly rewarding and worth multiple playthroughs (still playing Ace Attorney Investigations). The beautiful cherry on top is the fabulous soundtrack that contains many of my favorite songs from any video game ever.

At the end of the day though, there is nothing more satisfying then thinking hard about a witness's testimony, presenting evidence and hearing the background music instantly cut out as Phoenix/Apollo/Edgeworth shout out Objection!

Edited January 19, 2012 by Nix

[cdrom1019]

Favorite series? Undoubtedly the sonic the hedgehog franchise. Say what you will, there's nothing faster than Sonic. And I....Like....SPEED and adventure......the flash? pfft...that's no super power...HE's on METH! For me...sonic's move to 3D was amazing...and while some titles suffered....some were just simply outstanding....And the marketing? Who can forget a beautifully designed 3G model of sonic just flipping a wiimote? I sure can't! and the addition of boosting making an already fast character faster? INSANE! He's not just a guy that loves adventure...HE'S SONIC THE HEDGEHOG! HE IS ADVENTURE!

[#EndyGate]

[Indigo Rush]

*AHEM*

Need I say more?

Sonic the Hedgehog is my favorite, hands down. Since I was a wee lad of 5, I loved Sonic, and to this day, nothing can ever replace Sonic as my favorite video game series. EVER.

[\Lennox]

Day 4 - Favorite Franchise (depending on the reasons given)

Okay. Throughout the month, you'll see this a lot, especially coming from a fanboy like me. Well, anyway, I have four favorite franchises of all-time, and even when I don't necessarily play the games to the end, I still love them to death. Okay, here goes nothing.

Of course, this had to go somewhere. Me mentioning this franchise was fucking inevitable right from the start. Pokémon was one of my favorite games (of all time!) since childhood, and because I played it ever since Generation I (when I was 3, no less), this game was one of the most influential. It had shaped my friendships, personality, tastes and career path: a game designer willing to make his own spiritual successor to this series alone. Almost everything in my life was shaped by it, including console alignment (I own all three, but lean more towards the Japanese companies, i.e. Sony and Nintendo).

Even when you look at my drawing style or at least what I draw, if you can't see any Mokona Apapa or Tetsuya Nomura influences, you'll definitely see me draw things that look much like Pokémon, or at least draw human beings like Yuusuke Ohmura or Ken Sugimori. If I'm asked to design a monster or draw an animal from observation, chances are, I'll (sub)consciously add a little Poké-flair to it.

Well, you guys never knew I liked this? Shame, people, shame. This was the second-non Mario franchise I got to knew ever since I was a little lad, and I was also influenced by several Nintendo franchises when it came to art, living life and simply doing anything. At the time, I was playing Ocarina with the help of my uncle, but when we got to Majora's Mask--what could possibly be the most child-unfriendly installments in the franchise, I knew that this would be one of my favorite installments in the entire franchise. Just a few months ago, I begged my father to pre-order Skyward Sword, and pre-order he did.

Yes, Zelda, this is how much I love you. No matter what art style, no matter how hard the gameplay is, no matter how much people fight over which strand of the timeline is the true branch (when I, quite frankly, think all of them are canon), and no matter how divided your fanbase is as that of Sonic's, Final Fantasy's and by God, Pokémon's, I will always play each and every one of your games. Yes, I did like Wind Waker, thank you very much.

Of course, this being a Sonic forum, it'd be pretty weird if I didn't mention this one. Ever since I was in first grade, my hands fresh from playing Pokémon Gen III, I remember going to a friend's house just to play SA2. I loved it so much, that as soon as I got Heroes, I was obsessed about Sonic before the end of third grade! Now I'm in high school, and a few more fans/new kids made me to come crawling back to this franchise, especially with Colors and Generations being released. The continuity, fast-paced action and the fact that everything in the series is just damn fun compared to Mario is what keeps me going for more.

I've also been learning how to draw anthromorphs in this style, and I can say I've mastered the Sonic-style anthromorphic drawing techniques more than anything else, including (but not limited to) anime and Pokemon-style animal/creature drawing techniques. And I don't care about green or black eyes, OR voice actors--I just want my consistently good installments with more 3D than 2.5D back, okay?

I bet you, you guys didn't expect me to talk about this franchise. BlazBlue, was one of by far, the most groundbreaking fighting games I've ever played in my entire life. The most I've done was Brawl, Tekken and Street Fighter, but BlazBlue is an under-appreciated game that well, as said, needs more love. The button configurations are easier to understand than that of SF with its punch-kick-throw-combo configuration, and executing awesome finishers aren't as long and hard (lololololol) to execute. And for once, this has an actual story that doesn't really do the usual 'I-wanna-be-the-greatest-fighter-in-the-world-so-I-joined-a-tournament' crap.

Don't forget the anime aesthetics of this series. The FMV cutscenes are animated by GONZO of all people, and they actually look great on the 3DS/Xbox 360/PS3. BlazBlue has always fascinated me ever since these boards have been talking about it (thanks to Remz), and even I have become obsessed with trying to master the game (my favorite character being Noel Vermillion, with easy access to both Distortion and Astral Finishes).

Edited January 20, 2012 by Madame Amano

[Soniman]

Yes, im a tool.

While Zelda games easily rank up to be my all-time favorite games, there's just something about the Sonic series that I found immensely charming ever since I was 8. The characters, locales, THE FUCKING MUSIC, its all very appealing and addicting to get into. We can piss and moan about the current direction about the series to our heart's content but in the end, ill always love Sonic.

The thing is, the gameplay and the concept itself is wholly unique. Its the only series where you take control of a living character and control him at high speeds (competently of course). It's that felling that after you stumbled and meandered through stages on your first go, and after constant practice, you completed the stage in one perfect run of perfection, perfectly one with the stage and the character itself. It's a beautiful sight really, just look at perfect runs of stages from Sonic Unleashed and you'll see what I mean.

I was also always fond of the design concepts that go into creating a stage, Sonic has always had more imaginative levels that most other platformers (for the most part) and I love that. Sonic CD and Chaotix are perfect examples of what im talking about.

Super colorful out-of-this-world stuff that is varied and unique and oozes charm and style. I hope the next Sonic game can continue this trend because with what I seen of Colors, I know they can come up with fun and original ideas for stages.

And lastly the music, which is one of god's greatest gifts to man. I gaurntee that the entire library of Sonic will have something for someone, the sheer number of amazing varied tracks is staggering, very rarely will Sonic ever put out a bad soundtrack, from Sonic 2 to Sonic Unleashed, there games are always chock full of memorable songs that tend to get stuck in our heads. I genuinely believe that the Sonic series is at the top when it comes to amazing music, no joke.

And that's my passage, everybody. Hope you enjoyed it.

Edited January 19, 2012 by Grooseinator032

[Match]

FAVORITE SERIES? WELL SHIT, I DON'T KNOW. LEMME CLOSE THE WINDOW OF THIS SONIC THE HEDGEHOG FORUM AND SEARCH THROUGH MY GAMES.

Yeah, my favorite game series is Sonic the Motherfucking Hedgehog.

So, I suppose I need a reason. Well, Sonic is the only series that has me looking forward to each game. I got into Sonic for the first time when I played a game I don't remember at my cousin's house. The first time I owned a Sonic game was when I got the Gamecube re-release of Sonic Adventure, along with my brand new Gamecube. That birthday was amazing for two reasons: I got a then-next gen console for the first time, and got my FUCKING MIND BLOWN. Second, it got me into Sonic and I hungrily searched for what other games I could find. I had heard of Sonic before-- everyone has.

Ever since then I've been waiting for each release, even if it ended up disappointing me. The gameplay isn't always perfect or the same each time, but it always captures a sense of speed that no other series can hope to come close to. Sonic has been a major part of my life since I discovered him, and I wish I knew why. Is it because of his carefree attitude? His "just keep running" philosophy? I dunno. I'm tired at the moment, so I may extend this later.

[Kamicciolo]

Day #4 - Kami's Slendispherous "NinjaShark shouldn't even bother" Most Favourite Franchise to ever Chise the Fran!

Oh cool, I was worried that I wouldn't make it back in time to fill today's entry in. Anyway my favourite video game series would easily have to be the Sonic the Hedgehog Series (*crowd gasps*).

Yes it may be a little cliche for someone on a Sonic fansite to declare the Sonic series their favourite (and I say so what, cliches are there to be used >:V), but the series is just so close to me, and has been ever since I was a little kid. Most of the games have been pretty enjoyable for me (obviously excluding tripe like Shadow and 06), alot of the characters I've found to be pretty interesting and uniquely designed (which makes them particularly fun to doodle in spare time), and the environments and their accompanying music are always a treat to the senses.

So yeah, to sum it up. I like Sonic

Edited January 20, 2012 by Kamicciolo

[Sami]

Day 4 – Your Favorite Video Game Series

Did you expect any different? The Sonic series doesn’t harbor the best games I’ve ever played. Hell, it’s got some of the worst. I can’t physically play Sonic Heroes for over an hour; I get intense migraines if I do. It’s that awful. Even my favorite game in the series, Sonic Generations, pales in comparison to some of the other games I’ve played this year.

And yet… Something keeps me coming back. Something makes me value this franchise more than any other. Is it the fact that I grew up with it? Well, I grew up with Power Rangers, but I don’t care about that anymore. I grew up with Pokemon, but as much as I love that, it still isn’t my favorite franchise. So what is it? To tell you the truth… I don’t know. Something about the atmosphere, the music, the characters, *something* is just magical to me.

I’ve written multiple essays about different aspects of this series (yup, I spent two hours on this one: http://tinyurl.com/6oydq8q), I’ve made video reviews for these games, and I’ve debated countless things regarding them. If you were to randomly check my screen while I’m browsing the internet, I can guarantee there would be a tab open with the Sonic Stadium Message Board on it.

I’ve made tons of friends on several forums and YouTube (hell, as I type this, I’m talking to two people I met because of my Sonic 06 LP and someone I met on the SEGA Forums) and I wouldn’t value a single one of them less than my “real friends”.

Without the Sonic franchise, I doubt I would be nearly as good with words (several thousands of forum posts have to at least kind of improve your literacy), I’d probably be as socially awkward as I was a few years ago (trust me, it wasn’t a pretty picture. And to explain that, the friends I’ve met because of Sonic are ones I talk to almost all the time. SOCIAL RANK UP), and truth be told, without getting into all of the debates I’ve gotten into, I probably wouldn’t even want to be a lawyer “when I grow up”.

And now this essay’s getting long, so… yeah.

Sonic’s cool and stuff.

[MykonosFan]

I would have loved to have gotten the badge for participating every day, but I didn't feel like browsing through the forums with the SOPA blackout so I just decided to go to bed instead.

Anyways, continuing with trying to avoid Sonic via personal choice:

DAY 4: FAVORITE VIDEO GAME SERIES

Okay, so maybe the first game was a bit balls. That didn't stop me from loving it, and tracking down every flag and Templar. To me, the first game is a neat little package. Perhaps overly repetitive at times, but definitely engaging enough. This was the first non-Sonic title I saw in HD, and was I ever blown away. I think my jaw dropped the first time I used a view point, and even to this day the first game still looks wonderful.

Then came the second game, which took pretty much any complaint one could lodge against the first game, and completely obliterated those complaints. Here was a game with an appealing main character (though I liked Altair), more ways to play, more places to go, more things to see, more mysteries in the storyline...all of these things just put a one-two-punch to me and made me fall in love with everything about Assassin's Creed, whereas the first game was merely a fun game to me.

Since AC II, I've gone on to play Brotherhood and Revelations, which I also love. I am eagerly awaiting AC III since that will hopefully wrap up the story line. I'm very interested to see how they end it, hopefully with more focus on the present-day characters.

[null]

Day 4 - Your Favorite Video Game Series

The Pokémon Series - Multiple Systems - 1998-Present

I won't talk about how I got into the series, because I have a gut feeling that I'll have the chance to talk about that another day. But when it comes down to which hype-train is the most fun to ride on when there's a new game coming out, it has to be Pokémon. Who are the new starters? What's the new region? Who's the new syndicate? Who are the new gym leaders? How many new monsters will there be? Will there be new methods of catching them? Will there be a new elemental type? (lolno) How will trading and battling be improved?

All these questions are asked with the turn of each generation, and while the answers to some of them may disappoint others, they have had zero impact on minimizing the amount of fun I've had with each title. The element of mystery, exploration, and surprise is what has kept this series fresh for me for the past 9 years that I've been playing, and this music has permanently been embedded into my head ever since I truly felt that coming from a game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U495W97gSZ8

inb4 buttmad trumpet haters

Runner-Ups: The Legend of Zelda and Super Smash Bros.