I like most kinds of games, from RPGs to hack & slash games; from strategy games to 3D shooters. So far I've finished about 50 games from all kinds.
RPGs are probably one of my favourite game genres, especially because they are so immersive. The RPG series that struck me the most was the Ultima series. Almost every game in the series allowed you to travel all around a world, solving quests and interacting in amazingly realistic ways with objects in the world. I loved the series so much that I made my first website - Dino's Ultima Page - for the Ultima series. Unfortunately, Ultima deteriorated when it was bought by Electronic Arts in 1992 (during the production of Ultima 7). The games after Ultima 7 got worse one after another, but the games before that were masterpieces (particularly Ultima 7, Ultima 4 and Ultima 5 in that order).
These are my responsibilities in the Ultima community:
I also enjoyed other RPGs, especially the SSI games (including titles such as the Eye of the Beholder trilogy, Darksun 1 and 2, and Menzoberranzan). These were more linear than the Ultima series, but had interesting plots and gameplay, and were great fun to play.
I first discovered the strategy genre when playing Warcraft 2 on my brother's computer when I was about 10 years old. This game has since remained my favourite of this genre. I also tried Starcraft (by the same company - Blizzard), and I was also impressed. Fantastic. It didn't take much to make me realise that Blizzard is the king of strategy games.
Apart from the Blizzard strategy games, I also played Sid Meier's Civilization 1 and 2, and loved them too. The Civilization games are quite different from Blizzard's games mostly because they are turn-based as opposed to Blizzard's real-time strategy games. But there are also other factors that differ, such as the fact that Civilization offers a realistic setting, spans thousands of years all at once rather than being a series of missions, and features a wider variety of units and buildings depending on what scientific areas you choose to research.
So far I've mentioned strategy games that are now considered old. But I've also tried more recent strategy games, such as Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos, its expansion set (The Frozen Throne) and Civilization 3. Unfortunately, I haven't been too impressed. Although playing through Warcraft 3 a second time made me appreciate it better, there's no denying that the Upkeep system and the Heroes system are replacing the strategy element with an RPG presence. While its expansion set brought many improvements, the lack of an Orc campaign was certainly a disappointment and the bonus campaign is hardly a replacement for it. Civilization 3 is a very different game from any of its predecessors, because for the first time all the civilizations playing will occupy every bit of land in the world, making it difficult to even move, and even harder to take over the world.
I've played quite a few 3D shooting games. My first one was Wolfenstein 3D, when I was about 7 or 8 years old (and if I'm not mistaken, it was my first game ever). It was quite fun, even though it can't be compared to RPGs because it is linear and only involves combat. I've also played other old 3D shooting games such as Spear of Destiny (sequel to Wolfenstein 3D), the Ultimate Doom trilogy and Catacomb Abyss.
More modern shooting games seem to be always getting better. Indeed, I think the 3D shooting genre is the only one which is getting better as time goes by, as RPGs and strategy games seem to get worse all the time. Unfortunately, realistic graphics are becoming more important to developers than a solid plot, interesting gameplay and a simple interface. However, shooting games are becoming increasingly interactive and immersive, and while 3D shooters were once linear games with a boring plot (finish each level the same way, kill a boss at the end), modern shooters are having plots and interactivity that modern RPGs should envy.
Some modern 3D shooting games I've played include Serious Sam, MDK2, Return to Castle Wolfenstein (late 2001) and Deus Ex (2000). My favourite is Return to Castle Wolfenstein, which is incredibly realistic and interactive. The latest I've played is Deus Ex - I loved its plot even though the weapons weren't very powerful and inventory management was a little annoying.
