Rankings

As far as I can remember, the very first PC game I played was when I was 6 years old. My older brother had this really advanced computer back then and we were playing this game called "Decathlon". I think the computer was the Commodore 64, and the game had to be run on a floppy diskette, the 360k type!

Since then, I was hooked on computer games, following the evolution of operating systems, from the word-based DOS 3 to the current windows-based Windows 7, whenever new games needed to be run on new operating systems. I was playing all sorts of computer games, from adventure to role-playing to real-time strategy to first-person shooting...

It was a rather expensive "investment" thoughout the years, but I believe that by playing computer games, it had helped tune my reflexes, as well as "upgraded" my intelligence and improved my English grammar.

Anyway, I reckon playing games with friends should be like this:

Classic PC Games are forever...

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Avenwood's PC Games Ranking
(as at 11 September 2023)

1. Ultima VII: The Black Gate & Ultima VII Part Two: The Serpent Isle

Ultima VII Part II: The Serpent Isle - An excellent follow-up to the best RPG game ever, Ultima VII Part Two: Serpent Isle continues the story where Ultima VII left off.

After the fall of the Fellowship and the apparent defeat of the Guardian, Lord British and his "minions" found Batlin's (the leader of the Fellowship) possessions. They found out that the Guardian has commanded Batlin to travel to a place called the Serpent Isle in the event that the Guardian failed to enter through the Black Gate.

Thus, Lord British sent the Avatar and his companions Dupre, Shamino and Iolo, along with many cool weapons and armour, on a quest to stop Batlin and the Guardian on an isle that used to be part of Sosaria (now known as Britannia).

Nothing much has changed from Ultima VII to Ultima VI Part Two in terms of player interface, except that now the portraits of the character changes when you equip him/her with different armour or weapons.

I have ranked both Ultima VII and Serpent Isle together as #01 because they are both really just one whole story, separated into 2 stand-alone games.

"Thou hast best not do that, Avatar..."

Release Date: Q2 1993
Developer: Origin
Multiplayer: No

Ultima VII: The Black Gate - This is the best PC game ever. Regardless of it's release date in 1992, its graphics and interface are still very much "acceptable", perhaps because it is in SVGA and the buildings and characters are almost to scale. Thus, making Ultima 7 an excellent game to play over and over again.

Unlike most RPG games at that time, Ultima VII allows the player to recruit "companions" to assist in completing the main quest and the many sub-quests. The maximum in a party is 8. And most of the time I find myself giving "hand-me-down" weapons and armours to my next best companion (usually Dupre), whenever I pick up or buy or steal a better one.

I have played this game for more than 5 times so far, and I still have not gotten sick of it yet. The ability to perform many real-life day-to-day functions (like making bread from flour) in Ultima VII makes this game a true getaway from the hectics of the real-world.

"Welcome back to Britannia, Avatar..."

Release Date: Q1 1992
Developer: Origin
Mutiplayer: No

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2. Starfield

Bethesda has finally merged Space Sim and Sci-Fi RPG correctly with their release of Starfield! It is the first new universe in over 25 years from Bethesda and it definitely did not disappoint when it was first released on 6th September 2023 (1st September 2023 for those who bought the Premium Edition). 

Starfield has everything for any aspiring Space Trucker / Bounty Hunter / Space Explorer / Space Miner etc. As a member of the Constellation, you are thrust into a mysterious scenario involving several alien artefacts and the people who are either trying to find answers or preventing you from your mission.

However, if you want to go out on your own and explore other areas, it is an open-world, nay, open-universe game where you can persue other things like mining, joining the law enforcers, pilfering with space pirates or even getting involved in corporate espionage.

Another great aspect of Starfield is the ability to design your own spaceship! Many netizens have already showcased their creations on the Internet, recreating ironic spaceships from great sci-fi series like Star Trek, Star Wars and Firefly to name a few.

One downside is the lack of multiplayer, but it does not hinder the excellent gaming experience as there are just too many missions/activities for you to do in Starfield.

As I grow older, I hardly put any game on my ranking, and when I do, it will always be at least one rank below my all-time favourite game, Ultima VII. Again, the reason why Starfield is not ranked #1 is because I was born 25 years early.

Release Date: September 6, 2023
Developer: Bethesda Game Studios
Multiplayer: No

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3. Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2 & Mass Effect 3

Mass Effect 3 - The conclusion of the Mass Effect series! The Reapers have finally arrived on Earth and Commander Shepard had to seek out unlikely allies throughout the galaxy to help defeat the Reapers.  The ultimate question is: will he succeed?

Shepard is now THE man (or woman, depending on the gender you choose, or depending on the import from Mass Effect 2 savegame!), out there rallying the galaxy to save Earth!

Yes! Bioware developed the series so that the whole Mass Effect saga is told based on previous choices you made in the past, and this time, all of these (from Mass Effect 1 & 2) will come to an ultimate end in Mass Effect 3.

So, how will you as Shepard, make the ultimate choice when it comes to saving Earth?  The ending of Mass Effect 3 had sparked quite a controversy on the Internet, but I personally feel that it is a fitting ending to one of the best Sci-Fi RPG of all time!

Regardless, Mass Effect 3 still ranks #3 (same as Mass Effect 1 & 2) and the same reason remains: I was born 14 years early.

Release Date: March 6, 2012
Developer: BioWare
Multiplayer: Yes

Mass Effect 2 - An excellent continuation of the Mass Effect series! The unthinkable happened! Commander Shepard is killed off at the beginning of the story, only to be "reanimated" (one cell at a time literally) by the poweful organisation called, Cerberus, lead by the secretive Illusive Man.

Shepard is once again a man (or woman, depending on the gender you choose, or depending on the import from Mass Effect 1 savegame!), out there saving the galaxy.

Yes! Bioware developed the series so that the whole Mass Effect saga is told based on previous choices you made in the past, and this will have an impact on future story ie. Mass Effect 3!

So instead of a pre-determined story, you, the player makes the choices, and lives (or dies) with the consequences. Dynamic!

Regardless, Mass Effect 2 still ranks #3 (same as Mass Effect 1) and the same reason remains: I was born 12 years early.

Release Date: January 26, 2010
Developer: BioWare
Multiplayer: No

Mass Effect - After 15 years since Ultima VII, I have found my next best RPG game, in the form of Mass Effect.

Set in the year 2183, humanity has joined the galactic community as a member, to further their space exploration and their understanding of aliens. However, there is a certain evil which threatens to destroy everything that the galactic council has built for the past millenniums.

Enter Commander Shepard, humanity's (or rather galaxy's) last hope of survival. Can Shepard stop the evil and restore peace to the galaxy? Or will he take this opportunity to wipe out the galactic council so that humanity can be the leader of the galaxy?

In BioWare's Sci-Fi RPG, you control Commander Shepard (as either a male or a female character) and command the state-of-the-art spaceship, the SSV Normandy to travel to other star systems and rid the galaxy of the evil that has laid dormant for the past millenniums.

The decisions you make throughout the game affect the outcome of the story, like how to get things done, who to kill off, or even who to have sex with!

The only reason why this game is not ranked #1 here is because I was born 10 years early.

Release Date: May 28, 2008
Developer: BioWare
Multiplayer: No

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4. Guild Wars & Guild Wars 2

Guild Wars 2 - 7 years and 4 months later (ie. 200 years later in Tyria), welcome back to the world of Tyria. You write your own story...

ArenaNet has done it again! They have created yet another wonderful MMORPG game in the form of Guild Wars 2.  And again, the game does not require you to pay for monthly subscription, thus only charging you for the price of the game, and you are off to join the millions of heroes in perhaps ArenaNet's most successful game of all time, after Guild Wars.

Players can create their characters based on these professions: Warrior, Ranger, Elementalist, Mesmer, Necromancer, Guardian, Thief, and Engineer. This time, players can also choose different races as well: Asura, Sylvari, Human, Norn and Charr.  Each profession and race has its own unique attributes, skills, style and back story.

As for quests, you get to group up with other players and help one another. Again, you can also join existing guilds or set up your own guild, and fight against other players.  But this time round, you get to participate in Special Events and World vs World (WvW) even if you are not part of a guild!

And yet again, the world of Tyria changes constantly, like in the real world...

Release Date: Aug 28, 2012
Developer: ArenaNet
Multiplayer: Yes

Guild Wars - Welcome to the world of Tyria. A destiny waits you in these troubled times...

Guild Wars is one of those MMORPG that does not require you to pay for monthly subscription, thus only charging you for the price of the game, and you are off to join the millions of heroes in ArenaNet's most successful game of all time.

Players can create their characters based on these professions: Warrior, Ranger, Monk, Elementalist, Mesmer, Necromancer, Ritualist, Assassin, Dervish, and Paragon. Each profession has its own unique attributes, skills and style.

As for quests, you get to group up with other players and help one another. You can also join existing guilds or set up your own guild, and fight against other players.

And perhaps the most interesting thing in Guild Wars is that the world of Tyria changes constantly, like in the real world...

Release Date: Apr 26, 2005
Developer: ArenaNet
Multiplayer: Yes

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5. Torchlight II

After a rather engaging but disappointing Diablo III, I turned my attention to an intriguing Indie game called Torchlight II.

At first, I thought it was another Diablo rip-off.  But as I heard very good reviews for Torchlight I, I thought I gave Torchlight II a try.  And I was not disappointed at all!

You play one of the heroes in Torchlight II, choosing as one of these professions: Berserker, Embermage, Engineer and Outlander.  Each has its own unique skills.

But the best part is that you get to bring along a pet, who acts as your personal assistant, from carrying your junk to travelling to town to sell off those junk!  You don't need to teleport to town any more!

And any profession can wield any kind of weapons! There is no limit to this excellent Action RPG!

Release Date: Sep 20, 2012

Developer: Runic Games
Multiplayer: Yes

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6. Dragon Age: Origins

After 16 years since Ultima VII, I have found yet another excellent RPG game, in the form of Dragon Age: Origins.

You, the player, are a Grey Warden, destined to destroy the darkspawn and stop the next Blight, recruiting companions along the way to achieve just that.

There are 3 different races with 3 different classes to choose from, the player can have many possible beginnings as well as endings. And don't forget Bioware's famous "choose-your-own-sex-partner"! (there is no nudity though, but hey, it is fun!)

As with the Mass Effect series, whatever you do in the game will have consequences in the future, so it is also a "choose-your-own-adventure" game!

And you ask why is this game not better than the Mass Effect series in my ranking? I seriously cannot think of any, just that Mass Effect came first...

Release Date: Nov 3, 2009

Developer: Bioware
Multiplayer: No

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7. Diablo II & Diablo III

Diablo III - More evil threatens the world of Sanctuary when a fallen star hits the town of Tristram, where it all begun many, many years ago...

A continuation of the Diablo story, 20 years later, new heroes emerge out of everywhere to battle the two Lesser Evils: Belial, Lord of Lies; and Azmodan, Lord of Sin.

The player has the option to play five different character classes: Barbarian, Demon Hunter, Monk, Witch Doctor and Wizard in this amazing 3D world that is Sanctuary...

Release Date: May 15, 2012
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Multiplayer: Yes


Diablo II - Diablo II begins after Diablo ended, with the hero from the first game smashing Diablo's soulstone into his forehead in order to contain the demon. Unfortunately, the demon took over the body of the hero. Thus, a new Diablo is "spawned".

Now, a new hero emerges out of nowhere, to battle the three Greater Evils: Diablo, Lord of Terror; Mephisto, Lord of Hatred; and Baal, Lord of Destruction.

The player has the option to play five different character classes: Amazon, Barbarian, Sorceress, Necromancer and Paladin. The game is so successful that it "spawned" one of the best expansion set, along with two new character classes: Assassin and Druid.

Release Date: Jun 29, 2000
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Multiplayer: Yes

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8. Starcraft & Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty

Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty - 12 years after the release of Starcraft, Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty continues the story from Starcraft: Broodwar.

The story telling is excellent and the interface is very similar to the Wing Commander series, where you choose to talk to whoever is available before proceeding on with the next mission.

However, the focus here is not the single-player mode, but rather, the multi-player mode. While it offers the standard ladder system in every MMO, I stopped playing it not because I get maimed almost every time I played PvP. But rather I felt different as compared to playing Starcraft via LAN in the past.

Perhaps my friends were not physically at my place, and thus lost that "after-battle" conversation.

Because of that, the ranking stayed the same as Starcraft.

Release Date: Jul 27, 2010
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Multiplayer: Yes

Starcraft - Blizzard did a fantastic job in creating a RTS (real-time strategy) that actually balanced the forces of three different races: no one race is more powerful than the other.

Welcome to the world of Starcraft. It has an excellent science fiction storyline as well as an easy interface to command your units. Players get to choose one of the three races to start the game: Terran, Zerg or Protoss.

As with other popular Blizzard games, Starcraft spawned not only a great expansion, which continued the story after Starcraft ended, but a legion of fans worldwide.

Ten years after the release of Starcraft, a sequel is in construction...

Release Date: Apr 1, 1998
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Multiplayer: Yes

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9. Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty

Dune II is without a doubt, the very first Real-Time Strategy game, that sets the standards for Command & Conquer, and its later incarnations. This game is based on "Dune" the best Sci-Fi book in the "known universe" by Frank Herbert.

The player is given a choice to join one of the three great houses: House Atreides, House Harkonnen and House Ordos. Each house has its own unique units to battle its opponents, while harvesting the most precious substance: Spice, melange.

Although the story in Dune II is nowhere near the actual story of the book "Dune", it nevertheless provides players a feel of the Dune universe, as well as the ability to command vast armies of different capabilities with the sole goal of becoming the one House that controls Arrakis.

Release Date: 1992
Developer: Westwood Studios
Mutiplayer: No

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10. Romance of the Three Kingdoms III

This game is based on the novel, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century. It is a strategy-based game that has simple VGA graphics to show how your army does battle with the enemy's.

Besides the war aspect, you also control the economy of the territories that you conquer, by placing competent (and sometimes incompetent) men as generals, advisors, military officers, civil officers, etc... You can even send spies to inflitrate enemy territories to gather vital information prior to your invasion.

This game is the third in the long series of Romance of the Three Kingdoms (RTK) by Koei. The reason why this is on my list is because RTK1 has lousy graphics, RTK2 is excellent but too easy to play, RTK4's gameplay sucks, and subsequent RTK games were not translated into English (except for 11).

Release Date: February 5, 1992
Developer: Koei
Multiplayer: Yes

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11. Doom 3

Not so different from Doom and Doom 2 in terms of fighting monsters from hell. But this time round, it is a whole new story with much enhanced graphics.

You, the player, arrive at a Mars research station, where in a short time, all hell break loose, literally. Suddenly, the people around you are mutated into monsters, and you found out that monsters are coming out through a portal. And this portal leads directly to, you guessed it, hell.

This game "spawned" a movie, starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Karl Urban, and I must say, it is one of the better movie adaptation of a game.

Release Date: Aug 3, 2004
Developer: id Software
Multiplayer: Yes

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12. Quake 4

The war between humans and the alien Snogg continues in this latest instalment of Quake. Quake 4 began where Quake 2 left off.

The hero, ie the player, had killed some bad-ass alien boss at the end of Quake 2, without any help from his fellow comrades-in-arms, because they were all killed by the Snogg. He was then reassigned to Rhino squad and put back into the field again.

This time, he not only gets to visit his commanding flagship, but also gets to drive some pretty cool tanks and mechs. But in order to defeat the enemy, one has to become the enemy...

Release Date: Oct 18, 2005
Developer: Raven Software
Multiplayer: Yes

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13. Command & Conquer 3

12 years since the first Command and Conquer game was released, and one "joint-venture" later, EA released Command and Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars. The 3rd in the C&C series saw the return of the Messiah, Kane from the Brotherhood of Nod, along with some sexy babes from TV series Battestar Galactica (Tricia Helfer and Grace Park) and House (Jennifer Morrison).

Apparently, tiberium is an alien substance that fell from the sky, thanks to an alien race called Scrin. This race also sent one (or more?) of their huge spaceship and crashed onto Earth, which Kane is obsessed with.

That is pretty much the story of Command and Conquer 3. The player has a choice between GDI and NOD to start off the game. Regardless of which army you choose, the story ends the same way: Scrin invades Earth.

But the beauty of this game is its 3D units and environment. Unlike its predecessors, the soldiers are at least to scale when compared with the buildings and vehicles. And we cannot forget about C&C's famous live action cutscenes which gives the player a sense of reality.

Release Date: Mar 26, 2007
Developer: EA Games
Multiplayer: Yes

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14. Wing Commander II & Wing Commander IV

Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom - After the war ended with the Kilrathi, with the Confederation at an advantage, there was peace... for a while.

Colonel Christopher Blair, the hero of the Kirathi war to the humans, the "Heart of the Tiger" to the Kilrathi, has settled down as a farmer. But he is called back to active duty by Admiral Tolwyn to settle some Border Worlds conflict.

Once Colonel Blair has reacquainted with his old friends, Captain Esien and Maniac, he realised that something is amiss. Thus begin the startling discovery of a sinister plot that will affect all of mankind...

Wing Commander IV is a successful follow-up to Wing Commander III, in terms of storyline and excellent acting by Mark Hamil and Malcolm McDowell, even though the gameplay is very similar, with updated graphics.

Release Date: Dec 31, 1995
Developer: Origin
Multiplayer: No

Wing Commander II: Vengeance of the Kilrathi - Definitely the best space simulation game during the 1990s, because of its game play and storyline. After the events of Wing Commander I, our hero is accused of the destruction of the Tiger's Claw, the flagship of the Confederation, during the war with humanity's sworn enemies: the Kilrathi.

Apparently, our hero is convinced that the Kilrathi has developed cloaking fighters but no one in the Confederation believes him and he is subsequently demoted to the rank of Captain and posted to some far away space station for petrol duty.

Ten years later, an opportunity to prove his innocence arises from an old friend...

Throughout the game, old friends from Wing Commander I starts appearing as the story progresses.

Because this game was so successful, Origin later produced two add-ons to continue the storyline.

Release Date: 1991
Developer: Origin
Multiplayer: No

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15. Freelancer

Freelancer is actually an updated version of Origin's Wing Commander: Privateer. After all, the boss of Digital Anvil is the creator of the Wing Commander series; Chris Roberts.

But this does not mean it does not have what it takes to be an excellent game. For those who have played Wing Commander: Privateer, the concept is nothing new.

You fly a lousy freighter, with minimum fire-power at first. Then gradually, by taking on jobs like escorting and hunting down pirates, you use the credits to upgrade your weapons or trade-in your tin-can freighter for a more powerful fighter.

The gameplay has changed from controlling your fighter with the keyboard or joystick to simply moving and clicking your mouse. But unlike Wing Commander: Privateer, Freelancer comes with the ability for you to play with your friends to hunt down pirates, or one another.

Release Date: Mar 3, 2003
Developer: Digital Anvil
Multiplayer: Yes

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16. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

One of the most impressive adventure game during the late 1980s! Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade PC game is based on the movie of the same title. You play Indiana Jones and sometimes, his father, Henry Jones Senior in an adventure to discover the Holy Grail.

Set during the 1930s, Indy sets out to find his missing father, only to realise that his father is looking for the Holy Grail. Together, and with the help of some friends along the way, the "dynamic duo" made their way across Europe in the search of a chalice that everyone, including the Nazis, wants to lay their hands on.

Lucasarts did a fantastic job with this VGA adventure game which, by today's standards, is still very much enjoyable, with an easy user interface, Lucasarts-style graphics, and most importantly, Lucasarts-style witty dialogue. You will feel you are indeed part of the adventure!

Release Date: Jul 1989
Developer: LucasArts
Mutiplayer: No

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17. Sango Fighter II

This is one of the best fighting games ever to be made for PC, by a Taiwanese company called Panda Entertainment. It is based on the characters from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms novel, notably Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun... etc.

The difference between this game and its predecessor is that the player has many options to play the game. One option is to take on the role of rulers, Liu Bei, Cao Cao, Sun Quan or Lu Bu, to unify China. In this game play, the generals (fighters) duel with the enemy generals in order to conquer their provinces. In addition, you have a choice to use soldiers to fight against the generals!

The other game play options include 2-player duel, and the "one-man-kicks-everyone's-butt" mode.

Release Date: 1995
Developer: Panda Entertainment
Multiplayer: Yes

You can also download both Sango Fighter I and II @ http://www.superfighter.com/

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