Games' Most Wanted: The Top 10 Book of Players, Pawns, and Power-Ups

33. Future Tense

253 33 Future Tense Many find futuristic settings to be an interesting exercise in imagination. In many games set in the future, the world is portrayed as a war-torn environment full of aliens, corrupt corporations, and/or space combat. Sci-fi gaming is a bit more relatable than fantasy, as the majority of main characters tend to be humans fighting for survival against a common threat, but if you think about it, reliance on technology is similar to fantasy’s reliance on magic. What counts most to gamers is the depth of the story and how immersed the player can be within the presented universe. The following are what we consider to be ten of the best science fiction computer games of the last few decades. All of these have immersive and impressive settings and stories, and have had some impact on the gaming world in general. 1. EVE ONLINE Released in 2003, EVE Online is considered the largest science fiction–oriented MMORPG, a space simulation that involves over 7,500 different star systems. Players of the game pilot their own customizable ships throughout the universe and can participate in a wide range of professions and activities , including mining, manufacturing, trade, piracy, combat , and exploration. What direction the character takes is entirely up to the player; characters can gain experience and train even when players are not logged in to the game. 254 Games’ Most Wanted™ EVE Online’s gameplay focuses on alliance building, trade, and corporate relationships, and less on combat. As such, the game has been the center of various discussions with regard to in-game scamming, deception, and infiltration by characters. The in-game economy developed organically over time and is rarely touched or manipulated by the developers. 2. HALO: COMBAT EVOLVED Unleashed in 2001 on the Xbox consumer, Halo: Combat Evolved sold over a million units within six months and was the key to the Xbox console’s success in market penetration. Done in the first person shooter perspective, the initial offering of the Halo series set standards in gameplay and experience that benefitted later FSP projects across the console landscape. In the game, the player assumes the role of Master Chief—a futuristic cybernetic soldier in green battle armor— as he fights for the control of the ring-like Halo construct against the alien Covenant. During the fighting, a third adversary is unleashed called the Flood. As the game progresses , hints of the backstory and plot are communicated through cinematic cut scenes. Halo was an instant hit with the console crowd. It was easy to learn, with a beautiful graphic backdrop and powerful cinematic score, and the story engaged players. It spawned several sequels as well as a novel line, board games, comic books, and figurines. The use of save points and a slowly recharging health and shield bar were innovative and became standards in later sci-fi FPS games. 3. COMMAND & CONQUER In 1995, Westwood Studios released the original Command & Conquer war game, an RTS game set in the near future that required a balance of resource management and tactics Future Tense 255 in order to defeat the computer opponent. While not the first RTS released for the desktop computer, it was the first to achieve major success, popularizing the genre among gamers. Competitors and successors have since used many of its elements. In Command & Conquer, players could play either of the game’s two factions and follow a separate but parallel plot as they vied to protect or conquer the world. The factions—the Global Defense Initiative and the Brotherhood of Nod—had similar but distinct building and weapons options. Players had to juggle the various strengths and weaknesses of each in order to attain a successful mission. The most revolutionary part of the game was its instant multiplayer capability. Each game box included two copies of the game: “a second copy, so you and your friend can destroy each other” (according to the game’s packaging). A player could connect with up to three other players online in competitive play. With this instant capability, Command & Conquer became the first RTS game to feature online competition , one of the biggest factors of the game’s initial success. 4. MASS EFFECT 2 Bioware’s futuristic sequel Mass Effect 2 (ME2) hit the U.S. market in early 2010 and shipped nearly two million copies within a week. The game is a...