A lot of the time, you don't know that you're living through an absolutely incredible year while you're in it. Hindsight really shows you what a magical time it really was. This isn't to say that gamers didn't appreciate the incredible bounty they had on their hands in 1998, but looking back at it really shows you: That genuinely could have been the very best year for games ever.
The 10 Greatest Video Game Masterpieces Of The Last 15 Years, Ranked
We are living in the greatest era in video game history, and over the last 15 years, several outright masterpieces have hit the virtual medium.
Not all of these titles launched exclusively in 1998. For instance, in one very high-profile case, a game debuted in arcades the year prior. However, this list will focus on the very best titles that gamers in North America could first play on their consoles in 1998. It's a stellar line-up.
10 The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time
Not Quite Timeless, But Legendary
Needless to say, 1998 N64 3D graphics aren't going to be beautiful to behold almost 30 years later. It'll take more than jagged edges, though, to detract from Nintendo's sheer triumph here. This was a time when the finest designers on the planet were learning how to add this literal new dimension to their work, and there was naturally some trial and error. It was daunting, but it also provided the scope to make game worlds that feel bigger and on a grander scale than ever before. Millions of gamers of the time surely still remember the first time they leaped out of Lon Lon Ranch on Epona's back to speed through Hyrule Field, and that moment alone shows how successful the team were at just that.
Ocarina of Time isn't necessarily the best Zelda game from start to finish, but what it added to the series was a world that felt bigger than ever. Galloping from area to area provided that sense of scale so well. As well as this, the plot beginning in Link's childhood and concluding seven years into the future with adult Link emphasizes that the battle to thwart Ganondorf isn't one that will be over quickly, but will span different ages of the young hero's life. It also added so much additional depth to the world, with particular areas and NPCs being distinctly different between the time periods. Even Ocarina of Time isn't perfect, but it's acclaimed as one of the games that's got closest to it. It even did a solid job with the camera controls thanks to the ingenious targeting system, which is far better than so many of its contemporaries.
9 Crash Bandicoot: Warped
Another Time-Traveling Classic
Some platformers are extremely daunting. Gamers don't all have the enthusiasm for collectathons set in huge, open levels, after all. The original Crash Bandicoot trilogy, however, mastered just the opposite: Challenging, varied, linear levels, not so long that they outstay their welcome. The time travel mechanic is a very convenient one when it comes to varying the themes of levels in a platformer, and this was exactly what Naughty Dog made use of through the Time Twister Machine, a system that allows users to jump into 'portals' in time. The bandicoots (both Crash and Coco) use it to retrieve crystals from Ancient Egyptian tombs, medieval-era villages, futuristic cities, and all kinds of other locales.
Crash Bandicoot: Warped is what some might consider the ideal sequel, and another fine sequel for a real 90s gaming star. It retained Crash's familiar moveset, but extended it with new abilities unlocked from defeating bosses. It took the music and visuals to a different level. It further varied the action with the addition of new vehicle levels (motorcycle racing and airplane flying). It also expanded the number of challenges and hidden levels, introducing the now-notorious Relics to the series.
8 1080° Snowboarding
A Sporting Masterpiece
Fans of sports such as soccer, basketball, and skateboarding have historically had quite a wealth of video games to play in which to celebrate them. Snowboarding, meanwhile, is rather more niche in comparison. That doesn't mean that there haven't been fantastic games dedicated to the art, with 1080° Snowboarding being one of the most renowned.
The Rarest N64 Games (& How Much They're Worth)
The rarest Nintendo 64 games can set collectors back thousands of dollars, particularly those on the lookout for new and sealed copies.
In terms of physics, snowboarding can be a tricky one to adapt for a game. You want it to feel rather realistic without being a nightmare to control, and this title achieves a very satisfying balance there. The nature of the sport itself also lends itself well to a healthy crop of game modes, with both pure racing and high-score hunting modes involving the performance of tricks. One of the best things about the game is that there's more complexity than meets the eye. If you really want to beat all opponents, you'll need to put in the time to engage with the finer points of everything your rider can do in every spot on each course.
7 Spyro The Dragon
A Platforming Star Is Born
Crash Bandicoot has been enjoying something of a resurgence in recent years. By contrast, 2018's Spyro Reignited Trilogy was the last release the beloved little dragon has seen since The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon in 2008. They're both classic characters who started their careers on the original PlayStation, but Spyro came along a little later: He debuted in 1998, when Crash was wrapping up his original trilogy with Warped. Spyro the Dragon has a similar fantastical, cartoonish feel and silly sense of humor, but also added a suite of new additions to the genre.
Spyro's quest revolves around saving the Dragon Kingdom from Gnasty Gnorc, who has imprisoned the rest of dragonkind by turning them to stone (or technically crystal). He must travel between the different areas of the kingdom to solve the plights of the dragons there, battling enemies and collecting different types of treasure in time-honored 3D platformer fashion as he goes. Conversations with each of the rescued dragons cements the feeling that Spyro is steadily working towards a grand goal and making a difference. His range of powers, crucially, makes him feel very different to control than your standard run and jump platformer. Spyro can glide, breathe fire, and charge with his horns, and all his talents are turned to puzzle-solving as well as battling. Spyro the Dragon was an excellent and very creative foundation upon which the series would build.
6 Tekken 3
Still The Definitive Series Entry For Some
Technically, yes, Tekken 3 made its debut in 1997. This was the arcade version, however, meaning that the home console port that released in 1998 will probably be the edition that most players are familiar with. The PS1 version, after all, made some critical additions that set Tekken 3 apart as one of the most content-rich fighters around at the time. A lot of the time, fighting games (particularly of the era) are largely restricted to a story mode that changes a little for each member of the main cast, one-on-one modes for multiplayer, and maybe a practise and survival mode, but Tekken 3 was a generous package indeed.
Tekken Force Mode, for instance, was a fully-fledged scrolling beat 'em up, and one that could be a considerable time sink itself for genre fans. The game was also fleshed out with Tekken Ball Mode, which, while all about silly fun (think of it as beach volleyball), was a welcome addition for those who wanted something a bit different to do in Tekken with friends. Among the established and already rather iconic roster, it added a range of new fighters who would become legends themselves, including Hwoarang and Jin Kazama himself. This was the deepest take on Tekken's core combat yet, and the fact that it added some entirely new fighting styles to the mix on top of that cements its legend.
5 OddWorld: Abe's Exoddus
A Harrowing, Heroic Adventure
The OddWorld titles all have such an utterly unique atmosphere, characterized by dark humor and a wonderfully quirky cast of creatures. OddWorld: Abe's Exoddus continues the tale of Abe the Mudokon, who rescued his people from the RuptureFarms factory in the previous title, Abe's Oddyssey. The Mudokons are again in terrible danger from the ruthless and greedy Glukkons in the sequel, forced to extract the parts of deceased Mudokons that are used as ingredients in the new product SoulStorm Brew.
In his new quest to end this business and lead the Mudokons to freedom, Abe has access to a more sophisticated version of GameSpeak. This is the system whereby button combinations allow you to speak different phrases, and the number of applications for it is remarkable. He can greet fellow Mudokons with a simple "hello," ask them to follow him, or tell them to "work" to make them perform a context-sensitive action (if there are three wheels to turn at the same time, for instance, you'll need two friends to help you do so). Abe can also directly take control of other characters, such as Slig guards, issuing simple commands or blasting allies (Abe's enemies) to clear a path for our hero later. It's elegantly simple and effective. The system is used in countless ingenious ways in puzzles throughout the game's areas, from the Sligs' Barracks to the brewery itself. Each separate screen gives you an elaborate trap to disarm, a deviously-positioned Mudokon to rescue, or a deeply emotional moment to behold. There's really no platformer quite like it, and though the controls can be very clunky, it's as fantastically atmospheric as it ever was.
4 F-Zero X
Burning Around The Track
When it comes to Nintendo racing games, many would immediately think of Mario Kart. While the series is legendary in the field of kart racing, it's usually more about multiplayer carnage and horribly-timed Blue Shell strikes rather than the pure experience of simply racing very, very fast. In that arena, it's F-Zero you're looking for. The games made their 3D debut with F-Zero X, and though it's far from the best-looking game on the system, this helped the team to keep performance at the forefront. As was crucial.
6 Best Racing Games That Get Better As You Play, Ranked
Sink more hours into these racing games from Forza Horizon 5 to Gran Turismo 7, and they'll just keep on getting better and better.
Rocketing around Big Blue, with the incredible soundtrack blaring and the terrain beneath you shifting like a small planet beneath Mario in Super Mario Galaxy, is a life-changing, exhilarating experience. Along with rather standard Grand Prix modes, players could also engage in the even more intense Death Race, an endurance twist, as well as compete with friends. Unlike some racing games of its era, it boasted a generous crop of varied tracks, too, making it a game to come back to again and again. Even after all these years.
3 MediEvil
You Just Can't Keep Sir Daniel Fortescue Down
Immediately, MediEvil draws the eye for its distinct visual style. This is a game that revolves around a necromancer summoning a horde of zombies to take over the realm of Gallowmere, a place full of witches, gigantic pumpkin monsters, and the Stained Glass Demon. The only one who can prevent all this is a formerly-dead knight, who was also inadvertently revived in his crypt. As such, MediEvil could have fully embraced the horror angle, and been an entirely different game as a result. Instead, it has an eerie charm and a dark sense of humor, the trademark traits for which it remains such a classic.
It's also fortunate that it isn't really a platformer, because Sir Dan's movements are rather awkward and (yet again) the camera isn't the player's friend for some of the time. Nonetheless, the hack and slash action is satisfying and quite nicely varied, with the wide arsenal of weapons (from swords to axes, throwing daggers, various bows, a magical chicken leg, magical lightning and more) the player has access to. The journey to confront Zarok takes you from a spooky farm to the crystal caves and a pirate ship, and the additional challenge of finding the unique Chalice in each stage to earn a reward from the Hall of Heroes adds an extra dimension. If you want them all, you'll need to defeat almost every foe in each stage and solve puzzles to find them. Memories of doing just that are surely how so many players still remember MediEvil so well.
2 Half-Life
One Of The Most Acclaimed FPS Titles Ever
What's the most important FPS game ever? Of course, there's no single right answer. Doom, with all it did to transform the genre as we know it, would be an excellent pick. As would the first installment of Call of Duty, for essentially the very same reason. There's no denying the impact of Half-Life, though. As the continued jokes about Valve's inability to count to three demonstrate, Half-Life and its sequel continue to have an astonishing hold on the industry.
In the first game, scientist Gordon Freeman quickly learns that mysterious artifacts should be treated with care, when his experiments upon one open a portal to a different dimension. Beset by both aliens and soldiers, he must attempt to reverse the damage he's helped to cause. Reflecting the fact that Freeman isn't a soldier, the action isn't all about pure aggression and wielding ever-stronger guns. Half-Life offers a change of pace in the genre by also being more cerebral, offering routes to avoid confrontations and use the assets you see around you in clever ways to prevail. Also more important than the gunplay is the overarching plot, which has been expanded upon across the games since, even up to 2020 VR title Half-Life: Alyx. 1998's Half-Life was the title that started a now-beloved phenomenon in motion.
1 Metal Gear Solid
A Deep And Engrossing Experience
The Metal Gear series has always had something significant to say. About conflict. About history. About who we really are and why we do what we do. As with some other titles on this list, Metal Gear Solid was the game that brought the series into three dimensions, and though it looked very different, it was still just as ready to get astonishingly deep.
As he infiltrates Shadow Moses Island's facility, Snake does not simply have a series of boss battles. His foes are soldiers too, many of whom embark on long, heart-wrenching conversations with him as they lay dying. Motivations for their actions, regrets, threats, warnings, and more are shared with some of these characters, making them so much more than just enemies with big health bars to blast away. Allies that Snake meets, like Otacon and Meryl, become closer to him too, and the characterization (a strength of the series ever since) in a brief span of time is very well done in what could have simply been a rather shallow action game. At the same time, it's full of thrilling setpieces, from rappelling down the building before battling the Hind helicopter to the harrowing torture sequence. An incredible achievement and one of the most sophisticated games of the late 1990s.
37 Games With The Saddest Storylines, Ranked
Games have, over the decades, evolved to place greater emphasis on their narratives, and here are some which deliver stunningly emotional stories.