This article refers to an older Version of the Video Game Canon. View the Top 1000 to see the most recent changes to the list.
The Video Game Canon has been upgraded to Version 2.0 thanks to the addition of four new lists that were published throughout the last year. Edge Magazine’s “100 Greatest Videogames” issue, Jeux Video’s “Top 100 Best Games of All Time,” Polygon’s massive “500 Best Games of All Time,” and Stuff UK’s “50 Greatest Games of All Time” have reshuffled the ranking in a big way.
Let’s take a look…
- 1. Tetris
- 2. Super Mario 64
- 3. Half-Life 2
- 4. Resident Evil 4
- 5. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
- 6. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
- 7. BioShock
- 8. Super Metroid
- 9. The Last of Us
- 10. World of Warcraft
- 11. Grand Theft Auto V
- 12. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
- 13. GoldenEye 007
- 14. Red Dead Redemption
- 15. Shadow of the Colossus
- 16. Street Fighter II
- 17. Halo: Combat Evolved
- 18. Final Fantasy VII
- 19. Portal
- 20. Mass Effect 2
- 21. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
- 22. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
- 23. Super Mario World
- 24. Super Mario Kart
- 25. Doom (1993)
- 26. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
- 27. Rock Band (Series)
- 28. Chrono Trigger
- 29. Metal Gear Solid
- 30. Journey
- 31. StarCraft
- 32. Deus Ex
- 33. Metroid Prime
- 34. Minecraft
- 35. Super Mario Bros. 3
- 36. Ico
- 37. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
- 38. Grand Theft Auto III
- 39. Sonic the Hedgehog
- 40. Half-Life
- 41. Super Mario Bros.
- 42. Portal 2
- 43. Dark Souls
- 44. Pokemon Blue / Red / Yellow (AKA Pokemon FireRed / LeafGreen)
- 45. Tomb Raider (1996)
- 46. Counter-Strike
- 47. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater (Series)
- 48. The Walking Dead
- 49. Final Fantasy VI (AKA Final Fantasy III [US])
- 50. Fallout 3
- 51. Silent Hill 2
- 52. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
- 53. Grand Theft Auto IV
- 54. SimCity 2000
- 55. Ms. Pac-Man
- 56. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
- 57. Diablo II
- 58. Okami
- 59. Braid
- 60. Donkey Kong
- 61. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater
- 62. Super Mario Galaxy 2
- 63. SimCity
- 64. Batman: Arkham City
- 65. Secret of Mana
- 66. The Legend of Zelda
- 67. Resident Evil
- 68. Advance Wars
- 69. The Sims
- 70. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island
- 71. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!! (AKA Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream)
- 72. Grim Fandango
- 73. Star Wars: TIE Fighter
- 74. Civilization II
- 75. Mega Man 2
- 76. The Secret of Monkey Island
- 77. Guitar Hero (Series)
- 78. Lemmings
- 79. Super Mario Galaxy
- 80. Dota 2
- 81. X-COM: UFO Defense (AKA UFO: Enemy Unknown)
- 82. Final Fantasy Tactics
- 83. God of War
- 84. XCOM: Enemy Unknown
- 85. Team Fortress 2
- 86. Madden NFL Football (Series)
- 87. Space Invaders
- 88. System Shock 2
- 89. Rez
- 90. NBA Jam (Series)
- 91. Super Smash Bros. Melee
- 92. Pac-Man
- 93. Quake
- 94. Batman: Arkham Asylum
- 95. Shenmue
- 96. Elite
- 97. Pong
- 98. Street Fighter IV
- 99. Soul Calibur
- 100. Civilization
As you can see, Tetris remains at #1, but the remainder of the Top 10 has undergone a bit of a shift. Half-Life 2 and Super Mario 64 switched places, while The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time leapfrogged both BioShock and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. But with the addition of four new lists from 2017, all games released before December 31, 2013 are now eligible for inclusion in the Video Game Canon. This new batch of games includes two instant classics that debuted in the Top 15: The Last of Us at #9 and Grand Theft Auto V at #11. Valve’s popular MOBA, Dota 2, also cracked the Top 100 at #80.
Other changes to the Top 100 were less drastic, but some games did tumble in the ranking. Braid dropped 16 spots from #43 to #59, while Mega Man 2 dipped from #66 to #75, and Civilization fell from #75 to #100. The Walking Dead lost the most ground, dropping 27 spots from #31 to #58, and Contra (#82 to #110), Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn (#86 to #109), and Limbo (#88 to #106) all dropped out of the Top 100 completely.
But other games continue to impress critics and rose in the rankings, including Minecraft (which carved out a 12-spot jump from #46 to #34) and Super Mario Galaxy 2 (which jumped from #87 to #62).