They take up so much of our time, or at least they used to. Now days it seems as most games are nothing more than the tutorial for the online play. In my day video games were a singular experience in a simple and engaging story. I actually remember taking note and doing research at the library in order to complete some of the early video games, but that was computers for you. Then consoles came along and you did not need as much but they were still fun. Here are my top five games.

5. Pirates (NES). This was simple idea. You came to power on a pirate ship and try to make your way and your name in this world. Simple idea. However we used to play massive marrathons of this game. You had to block out at least three hours for a single sitting and even then that was not going to get you where you wanted to be. You spend hours and hours of game play amassing wealth a crew and powerful ships then retire and be a farmer with a small plot of land. It was challenging and fun. Like Sim City you could spend several hours realize where you went wrong and then restart to fix it. Then after a few more hours of play you would repeat the process.

4. Seal Team (DOS). This was really my first history based game. Not so much a first person shooter but not really a squad based strategy game. You did control a squad on a mission but you were also one of the guys. You could change between squad view and first person view. The real kicker came after you completed the mission you got to read the after action report of the seal team in Viet Nam that had run your mission. It was somehow gratifying to know that it went bad for you in the same way it wrong for the actual team. It was also rewarding to know a mission you blew through was not so simple for the actual team. This took up many hours of my life in the early 90’s.

3. Legend of Zelda Link to the past (SNES). This is so good I still find my way back home to Hyrule through this portal. I like the depth the controls the story. Of course the story is basically the same as any RPG of the last oh….century! You awake not knowing what is happening and then have a quest to save the world thrust upon you. The depth here is excellent and it takes several hours to complete.

2. Fallout 3 (XBOX360). I have been in the wasteland many times. You find yourself in a vault after a nuclear war then suddenly things go horribly wrong and you must leave the vault. The side missions combined with the main story provide hours of fun. You are looking for you dad and seem to be a step behind him everywhere you go. The best part of the game, or at least one of, is the radio stations and music. You can track your progress by listening to galaxy news radio and three dog. Updates on what you are doing in the world pop up from time to time. The side quests really make this world feel as real as any game can. My first run through was quick. I had been out of practice on RPGs and neglected to do the side quests, which is probably why many of the creatures I encountered literally scared the hell out of me and sent me running. On subsequent play throughs I got more confident and better stats. I do not think I have officially completed the game in its entirety, guess I need back in the waste.

1. Skyrim (PC). Like you did not see this one coming. You begin as a prisoner being hauled off to have your head removed. A dragon attacks and you escape. Now you are on the run in a world filled with magic, crime, oh yeah and dragons. I seriously doubt I have completed half of this game. I have spent hours running around killing stealing and fighting dragons. The leveling system is excellent and diverse. You literally can be whatever you want to be in this game. The graphics are great. The world is real. It is definitely one of my absolute favorites of all time.
Those are five of my favorite games. Did I miss one of yours? Let me know in the comments. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite.