GameSpy has published the top 25 PC Games of the 2000’s and Sins of a Solar Empire has made the list!

“Sins of a Solar Empire may have an awkward title, it may not be the most famous game ever, and it may not have sold billions, but it is -- without question -- one of the best multiplayer real-time strategy games ever made.”

Read more at GameSpy.

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Comments (Page 2)
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on Feb 01, 2011

Darvin3
WoW as #1 should come as no surprise; I may hate it, but there's no questioning it has definitely been the most influential PC game by a wide margin...

When the list is called "Top 25 Games of the 2000s" including World of Warcraft on it really devalues the entire list.  Is it popular?  Sure.  Is it selling well?  Of course.  Is it making Activision Blizzard over $200,000,000.00 a month on subscription revenue alone?  You better believe it.  However, to qualify for the "Top" list, I believe a game needs to be more than simply a source of significant revenue.  World of Warcraft makes little to no attempt to really tell any kind of meaningful story, it's gameplay mechanics are repetitive by virtue of design and it's player based is conditioned - Skinner Box conditioning, to be exact - to continue playing rather than compelled by the experience of the game itself.
World of Warcraft is a "game" in only the strictness of definitions, and considering Activision Blizzard as a whole actively works against innovation, compelling story telling, and any kind of meaningful experiences within their games in order to allow them to continually sell the same games time and again, I find it's inclusion frankly insulting.

on Feb 01, 2011

I guess that's why we have the internet then - so we can don't have to take every source we read at face value.   But I do agree that WoW does sort of have the "peer group pressure" feeling about it.  (ie. so many people are playing it so it must be good. )

Best regards,
Steven.

on Feb 01, 2011

Well, 'top' can mean so many things. A small paragraph in the article which explains why they went the direction they did and the factors involved might help. But if you think about how many shows have made the reference and the fact that even those that hate it have it come immediately to mind, it at least has a fair pop-culture impact.

But yes, I hate it as a game.

on Feb 01, 2011

ZehDon

Quoting Darvin3, reply 11WoW as #1 should come as no surprise; I may hate it, but there's no questioning it has definitely been the most influential PC game by a wide margin...
When the list is called "Top 25 Games of the 2000s" including World of Warcraft on it really devalues the entire list.  Is it popular?  Sure.  Is it selling well?  Of course.  Is it making Activision Blizzard over $200,000,000.00 a month on subscription revenue alone?  You better believe it.  However, to qualify for the "Top" list, I believe a game needs to be more than simply a source of significant revenue.  World of Warcraft makes little to no attempt to really tell any kind of meaningful story, it's gameplay mechanics are repetitive by virtue of design and it's player based is conditioned - Skinner Box conditioning, to be exact - to continue playing rather than compelled by the experience of the game itself.
World of Warcraft is a "game" in only the strictness of definitions, and considering Activision Blizzard as a whole actively works against innovation, compelling story telling, and any kind of meaningful experiences within their games in order to allow them to continually sell the same games time and again, I find it's inclusion frankly insulting.

All of these are basically your opinions. In fact, the things you listed to start your commend is the only true way to determine a "top" game. If the game is making $200 million in monthly subscriptions, obviously a great many people are finding it fun enough to play to justify subscribing to it. If that many people are finding it fun enough to play, that makes it a "top" game, regardless of what you feel it offers. And, in fact, this makes it the most objective pick in the list. You can argue the psychology of MMOs to keep people playing, but that's also irrelevant because the whole point is to make it just fun enough that people will let you lead them around the same repetitive activities for an end result. It's not like it's some sinister torture that sucks the life out of people.

on Feb 01, 2011

Annatar makes a point.

What I was just thinking too is that Supreme Commander came out around 2007. That game was a big step up with RTS games. It's sequel was weak, but the original gave you the same scope design that Sins uses (give or take) and I still play it to this day. I feel that it should have been there. Moreso than DoW, which, as I said earlier, doesn't do much more than Starcraft did for RTS games.

on Feb 01, 2011

Draakjacht

What I was just thinking too is that Supreme Commander came out around 2007. That game was a big step up with RTS games. It's sequel was weak, but the original gave you the same scope design that Sins uses (give or take) and I still play it to this day. I feel that it should have been there.

How could they? Poor GPG.

Oh well, I think that at least Sins deserved it.

on Feb 01, 2011

Eh, it is a flawed list. Tropico 3 is inferior, outside of visuals, to either of its predecessors. It was simultaneously dumbed-down and injected with game-lengthening tedium and busywork. The mere fact that it's on the list makes me rather suspicious.

on Feb 01, 2011

Annatar11


All of these are basically your opinions. In fact, the things you listed to start your commend is the only true way to determine a "top" game. If the game is making $200 million in monthly subscriptions, obviously a great many people are finding it fun enough to play to justify subscribing to it. If that many people are finding it fun enough to play, that makes it a "top" game, regardless of what you feel it offers. And, in fact, this makes it the most objective pick in the list. You can argue the psychology of MMOs to keep people playing, but that's also irrelevant because the whole point is to make it just fun enough that people will let you lead them around the same repetitive activities for an end result. It's not like it's some sinister torture that sucks the life out of people.

I always thought of WOW as extremely high quality for its time. And the expansions have done a good job at keeping up with other MMOs.

on Feb 01, 2011

Well, everyone here understands, i hope, that no list will make everyone happy. I'm sure the reasons for putting the games on the list also vary from one to the next. I'm sure WoW was more for its marketing impact than SoaSE. The list makes little difference to the world, except that it gives exposure to a few more people the variety of games out there. If nothing else, a couple of people might see SoaSE on the list and look into it, adding two more to the online community.

on Feb 01, 2011

TorinReborn
Hey, don't piss on Plants vs Zombies

That game is soo cool

I'm not that surprised to see Plants vs Zombies there either, if just as a nod to the casual game market. These games are huge and popular with a lot of people. The entry for this game outright said that they had to list one game of this type. And it is just a fun game.

Tropico 3 was a stranger pick. I actually do think the original was a classic, and that Tropico 3 was a little better then the original. But still it really was such a small improvement that I don't think it's a classic in it's own right.

And of course WoW's commercial success and influence is due to the fact that lots of people (myself included) think it's a great and well designed game. I doubt that there is a single highly popular game they could pick that wouldn't have someone writing a rant about how awful it actually was.

on Feb 01, 2011

However, to qualify for the "Top" list, I believe a game needs to be more than simply a source of significant revenue


I have no love of WoW, and I fully agree with your criticisms.  The fact remains that it's pretty much defined and continues to define its genre, and is definitely one of the most polished and expansive games with widespread appeal ever made.

on Feb 01, 2011

WoW will always have its haters and its lovers.

I have gotten years of enjoyment out of it myself.  The storylines are entertaining if you take the time to follow them.
Blizzard injects a lot of humor into spots as well.

I have been in a great guild of friends for the entire time and we have had as much enjoyment playing together as we have in Demigod or Sins or TF2, etc.

The expaansions just keep getting more polished. Cataclysm moves the storylines along well.  If you know the zones and quests and factions well it is very entertaining to see how things have gone.

on Feb 02, 2011

If you don't think WoW has a storyline, then you're not paying attention. It's got more story packed into it at this point then most trilogies. The mechanics are among the best in the genre. The stability is among the best in the genre. The UI easily destroys everything else in the genre, to the point where some of them are embarrassing to be released years after WoW (I'm looking at you, Final Fantasy 14). It redefined and radically expanded the genre, and has systematically crushed everything that came out to compete with it for years. Hell, it even has the #2 game on the list (Plants vs Zombies) built into it as a mini game for a pet.

If you think that's a bad game of the decade, I'd like to hear what you'd put in there instead.

on Feb 02, 2011

TorinReborn
Hey, don't piss on Plants vs Zombies

+1

Also agree its BS that Supreme Commander isn't on the list. At the very least Tropico 3 could be demoted.

I think they had to put WOW in there somewhere simply because MMORPGs have been one of the biggest trends in computer gaming and there is no obvious better alternative to put in its place.

Also I think its a shame they put so many Valve games on there. There had to be a few no doubt but I think they put more than they had to.

on Feb 03, 2011

Not a bad list. Glad to see Sins and RON. I liked Bioshock but I don't understand why its so high at 2nd place. Wish ME, DA and HW2 were in there but that's me. Remember you can never have the perfect list because you will be pissing in someones cereal.

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