GameInformer

Getting decimated in a boss battle dozens of hours into a video game isn’t very fun. That’s exactly what happens in Final Fantasy Tactics when the player comes face to face with Wiegraf Folles. Wiegraf becomes a revolutionary after he isn’t paid for fighting in a war preceding the game... More

I have only earned platinum trophies in two PlayStation 3 games. Infamous and Infamous 2 did something for me of which few games are capable: they inspired an immediate, second play through. When I played both of Sucker Punch's open world superhero titles, my first time through was as a hero. My... More

When we're young, nothing is more important than our pride. We want to do everything ourselves, and carve our own way in the world. However, with adulthood comes understanding that our previous triumphs only could have occurred with the invisible hands of those that we love. This rings true with... More

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater is remembered as a classic, but it wasn't always so. Back in 1999, it was an unknown game from an unheralded PlayStation developer in a genre that many thought could never be successful. I still recall the first time I saw it. The events of my career at Game Informer have... More

BioShock Infinite comes out in a matter of days, which means that now is the perfect time reminisce about one of the encounters that established the original BioShock as a legendary game. Warning, spoilers follow (for the original…not Infinite). From your arrival in Rapture, Andrew Ryan is central... More

I’m a fresh-faced hunter, new, bottom of the pecking order: a noob. I sit in a room of four, drinking brews, staring in awe of the hunters before me. These men – no, these gods – chat breathlessly about what creatures made of legend should be cut down. I remain an observer; hunting... More

I clearly remember my first time playing Guitar Hero. I had only been at Game Informer for a couple of years in 2005, and I’d made it clear to my co-workers that I had an intense enthusiasm for all those quirky Japanese music games. I also adored the work from a little developer called Harmonix... More

There is only one game I will pledge as my childhood companion, a lifelong friend I can never shake regardless of its deceptions forced upon me. I can still hear the music, sound effects of losing armor, resonances of the weapons, enemy grumbles, and environment gurgles. I’ve come to know Ghouls... More

I remember playing video games in my cousins’ dark basement when I was a little kid. My family had the Sega Master System, his had the Nintendo Entertainment System. We had Alex Kidd and Shinobi, they had Mega Man and Mario. Mega Man 2 specifically wowed me. I was wowed the first time I saw the... More

Years have passed since my trek to Zorya in Mass Effect 2, but I still can’t get Zaeed’s loyalty mission out of my head. I vividly remember dropping my controller, filled with conflicting emotions. Now don’t get me wrong; I’m not endorsing Zaeed as a strong character; in fact... More

As is common with mobile games, I came across 10000000 via good word of mouth. At first, I didn’t see what the big deal was, but before long I was hooked and vowed not to stop until I had shattered the titular score. For those unfamiliar with 10000000, you play match-three with sliding tiles while... More

Mario 64 is universally acknowledged as a wonderful game. It brings back pleasant memories of the world’s greatest plumber and his transition into the third dimension. But amidst all that joy, it struck terror into my heart. Mario burst onto the 64-bit scene in the summer of 1996 with some slick... More

What happens when you combine narration, gameplay, and a beautiful voice? You get one of the best levels in a phenomenal XBLA game. You download a game called Bastion for your 360. You pick up your controller and play as the character The Kid. He is full of life. It’s funny because The Kid ain’t... More

Final Fantasy IV has plenty of moments that I remember fondly, but none of them rank as high as Cecil's battle with his dark half on the summit of Mount Ordeals. It's a symbolic fight where Cecil grapples with the evil deeds he performed as a Dark Knight, hoping to find redemption as a Paladin... More

I was in college when Mario Party came out on the N64, because I am an old person. It was actually the best possible circumstance for the game, since I had roommates who were into the game as much as I was. But then things took a turn for the worse. If you went back and played the original Mario Party... More

The Legend of Zelda needs no introduction. It’s one of the few series that had its start in the infancy of console gaming, but still remains strong. With 25 years of sacred temples, mystical sages, and fierce battles, one moment shines the brightest to me. The last confrontation with Ganondorf... More

Konami’s classic vampire-killing series changed gaming when it arrived on the PlayStation in 1997. It combined a gigantic, sprawling, Super Metroid-style castle with light RPG elements. The huge castle is littered with crazy enemies, room-filling bosses, and tons of weapons to experiment with.... More

Condemned: Criminal Origins is a creepy game from beginning to end. Between the atmosphere and sounds, the gritty close-quarters combat with deranged enemies, the supernatural storyline, and the possibility that something could be lurking around every dark corner; Condemned has plenty of ways to keep... More

It’s not who Minerva is, or the content of her message that was so memorable, but rather how she delivered it that made Assassin’s Creed II’s endings one of my favorite moments in the series. We’re talking about the ending of Assassin’s Creed II here, so if you want to keep... More

My allied city-states are lined up behind me, ready to endorse my election as the inaugural Secretary-General of the United Nations as soon as we cut the ribbon on the proper facility for such a momentous treaty. Before that seminal construction project has any chance of being completed, though, the... More