The 52 Most Important Video Games of All Time (page 2 of 8)

• By Boba Fatt and the GamePros
• April 25, 2007 14:53 PM PST
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39. Spacewar

Spacewar was the first true video game ever created. This simplistic interstellar action game took a monumental programming effort. Developed by some obviously intelligent people at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for the DEC PDP-1 computer, Spacewar featured two spaceships -- the needle and the wedge -- battling it out on a plain black playing field dotted with stars. Despite its simplicity, the game had some innovative features, including actual physics (gravity would affect the trajectory of player shots) and an accurate representation of the night sky. Oh, it also had one feature that we've all come to take for granted these days: multiplayer deathmatch! Spacewar is as important to the history of the video game industry as the invention of the wheel was to the automobile industry.

38. Mortal Kombat II

Arguably the best Western fighting game to date, and certainly the title that defined Mortal Kombat as a brand, this game launched a thousand imitators en route to becoming one of the most famous -- and infamous -- video games ever made. Its technical and artistic mastery is only matched by its gushing gore.

37. Devil May Cry

What may go down as the PlayStation 2's first true killer app, Devil May Cry's epic size and scope served the industry's game designers as a reminder that the imagination-instead of technology-is the true frontier. Its influence is obvious: without Devil May Cry, games like Ninja Gaiden and God of War simply would not exist.

36. Diablo II

Although its predecessor was a groundbreaking genre creator with a truly revolutionary random dungeon generator, Diablo II launched the franchise into accessibility by streamlining the interface and developing an extremely important, well-maintained online component in its free Battle.net service. That it's still popular seven years after its introduction speaks volumes.

35. Geometry Wars

A classic shooter in its own right, we bestow immortality on Geometry Wars because it redefined how games are distributed. Rather than create an epic 40-hour game experience released on an expensive DVD, developers Bizarre Creations instead built an immensely polished little shooter that could have easily found enormous arcade popularity in the mid-80's...had it not been released in 2003. Its infinite accessibility and its pioneering digital distribution over Xbox Live make it a vastly important game.

34. Dragon Warrior

Although only a cult hit in America, Dragon Warrior's arrival in Japan powerfully affected the industry by delivering the definitive console role-playing game. In many ways, the road to Final Fantasy and Zelda started here.

33. Deus Ex

A landmark blending of genres that introduced a whole new level of role-playing-style depth to first-person shooters, Deus Ex quietly changed the way you play run-and-gun games forever. Even the conspiracy-laden storyline stands alone. But did Deus Ex (or its in formal predecessor, System Shock 2) get the respect it deserved? Hardly.

32. Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty

Westwood Studios' groundbreaking Dune II established the modern control structure for real-time strategy titles. Without this game, there would be no Command & Conquer, WarCraft or Age of Empires.

31. Dance Dance Revolution

Video games as calisthenics, the Japanese phenomenon didn't take make as big a splash as expected with us lazy Americans, but it did spark major ideas with game developers, many of which are still to be realized.

30. Zork

Fantasy gaming took a major step into the virtual world with this, the most famous text-based game title. The road to World of WarCraft took a major turning point here.

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