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BurntWits @sh.itjust.works

If every video game was to be destroyed but you had the chance to save five games, what would you choose to save?

Assuming the equipment was also saved so you could still play the games, and every game in existence you don’t mention gets permanently destroyed, and no new games are ever to be made.

Inspired by a video by OutsideXbox from a few years ago, I thought it would be a fun idea to see what this community would choose. You can choose to be selfish and pick games you personally want to always play, or try to figure out what games would be best chosen for humanity to save for whatever reason. I’d also love to hear why you chose your games. Do they have a special meaning to you? I want to hear your stories.

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    • Chrono Trigger
    • Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
    • Pokémon Red
    • Stardew Valley

    Think I’m good with those 4.

    Throw in Math Blaster so I can pretend to value humanity or something.

  • I’ll start the ball rolling. For me, I’d probably have to go with:

    Skyrim - first off, it’s my most played game ever, and also my most purchased game too. Is it the best game ever made? No, I don’t even think it’s the best Elder Scrolls game. But there’s something so captivating about it for some reason and I can’t help but always go back to replay it all these years later. If mods are allowed to survive the video game apocalypse then it makes it a very easy choice but I’d still choose it even if it had to stay vanilla.

    Pokemon Soul Silver - something for kids to play, but also my favourite Pokemon game and one of my most replayed games ever. Between having your Pokemon follow you around, the Johto region plus Kanto, and also the music, I think it’s the best Pokemon game ever made, and a game I can’t go without playing the rest of my life.

    Elden Ring - I was torn between this or Dark Souls III, but I went with ER because (1) it’s more accessible, and again remember every other game is permanently destroyed so this does affect everyone, and I’d like to be at least a little nice in my choices, and (2) I find myself able to replay it a bit more, especially with the DLC. I’ve mentioned it many times before but I truly believe SotE is the best content FromSoft has ever put out, so it would be a shame to have it destroyed.

    Hitman: World of Assassination - it’s sort of cheating as this was originally three separate games, but they’re all bundled together now and Steam recognizes it all as a single game in my library, so I’m including it. Plus it’s my list and my post so I say it counts. Anyway, I don’t see Hitman posted a lot on Lemmy, but it’s my second most played game ever and I really do think if you can get over the admittedly high cost to get all the content it really is a masterpiece of a game. It’s also got way more replayability than you’d initially think just looking at it, so it’s a great contender for this post. This is another Skyrim situation where I don’t think it’s a top pick for greatest game of all time but it’s just so easy to replay that I couldn’t omit it from here.

    Dishonored - I really didn’t know what to put for my last choice. I was tempted to do another massive open world game like Red Dead Redemption 2 or cheat again and do another bundle game like Mass Effect Legendary Edition or Halo Master Chief Collection, but I decided to go with a game that is a bit less intensive to complete but is still really fun to jump back into and try a new style with. I feel like it’s a bit of an underrated game these days. I know it was very well received and sold well but I don’t hear about it enough when talking about modern-ish classics. This is probably my favourite game that’s not a sandbox or open world, aside from the FromSoft games. The art style is gorgeous, the story is engaging, the DLC is a great add-on, the gameplay is diverse and super fun, it’s just such a great game all around.

    My list is probably going to be very different from everyone else’s, but that’s part of the fun.

  • Fallout 4

    Baldur’s Gate 3

    Sekiro

    Super Mario World

    Kingdom Come Deliverance 2

    • Morrowind
    • Chrono Trigger
    • The full motion Afterburner arcade machine (that thing was so much fun)
    • A link to the past
    • Tetris
    • Chrono Trigger - It's pretty much the perfect RPG: great story, cool art, replayable, not too long or grindy.
    • Earthbound - I admit I have a lot of nostalgia for this one, but it's still a game I've replayed at least a half-dozen times.
    • Final Fantasy Tactics - Fantastic story, plenty of character customization, and some extremely broken builds if you know what you're doing. Also, did I mention the story?
    • Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - THE metroidvania. Great gameplay, soundtrack, and visuals.
    • Hollow Knight - Fun to play, difficult to master. Has a lot of charm and plenty of secrets to discover.

    There are plenty of other games I would love to throw on the list, but some would require a ton of mods or just didn't quite make the cut for me.

  • TitanFall 2: Its the Portal 2 engine, but better. Also runs on almost anything these days, looks good, could easily be a basis for a ton of different kind of multiplayer shooters via modding. You could basically rebuild any Source game/mod between 2000 and 2015 ish in it.

    Deus Ex (the original): Lower fidelity but that means it can run on more things, is also highly moddable, also has a working multiplayer framework that it's had since almost day one that I guess everyone forgot about, could also be modded into nearly anything, including lower fidelity than TF|2 multiplayer games of basically any kind.

    VintageStory: Minecraft, but better. Also highly moddable. Also networkable.

    Fallout Online (2/3): Assuming the likely near apocalyptic setting accompanying this hypothetical, we're gonna want a 2.5D turn based tactics platform, FOnline is highly detailed and highly moddable, and is networked. You could also basically rebuild nearly any 2D JRPG in this, yes, even Pokemon, if you can handle 2.5D isometric sprites.

    (I was originally going to say either Xenonauts 1 or 2, but then realized you could basically build X1 or X2 in Fallout Online, and FOnline is already networked.)

    No Mans Sky: Beyond being essentially the most advanced procedural generation game that I am aware of, in breadth and depth, you're going to want to have all that code to be able to decompile parts of it and thus be able to rebuild other or new digital worlds with it.

    I reject the concept that no new games will ever be built.

    I've been using and making mods since the 90s.

    There will be new games, apocalypse be damned.

    Also, as much as I love some Bethesda games, their engine is a heap of broken garbage.

    Rebuild FONV or Skyrim in TF|2 or Deus Ex instead.

    They are entirely capable of being modded into that.

  • First place has to be Kerbal space program. I can't think of another game as profoundly educational as this. If you can land a craft on the Mün, then you have a better understanding of orbital mechanics than the average NASA engineer.

    Second place goes to Nier: Automata. It's a selfish pick, but I struggle to think of a more flawless game.

    I want at least one multiplayer PVE game and one PVP game, so third and fourth places go to Minecraft (version 1.18) and Team Fortress 2.

    Lastly, for fear that it will count as a video game and otherwise be deleted, I save Lichess.org from annihilation

  • It's impossible to pick out just five of the most important games ever, but I'd try to pick games that have important historical significance, have some degree of genre diversity, all while still being fun and thought-provoking games you'll always want to pick back up.

    1. Ultima IV.
    2. Resident Evil 2.
    3. Flower.
    4. Nier Automata.
    5. Baldur's Gate III.

    If this were a top 10 list, I would add Fallout: New Vegas (for a purer open-world sandbox experience), Super Mario Galaxy (a 3D platformer in a well-known franchise with a strong story), Celeste(the pinnacle of 2D platformers and speedrunners love it), Minecraft(an important social game with constructive cooperative mechanics), and Stardew Valley (best cozy game representative).

  • I'm assuming there'd be no online multiplayer or modding, as they'd be outside the realm of the game - it's content made by other people (and it's more interesting if you exclude them anyway), and I'm assuming there'd be no more updates (so only current or previous patches)

    So we'd be looking for replayable single player games

    1. Minecraft. If that's not on your list then you're joking
    2. Terraria. Sandbox like minecraft, but the more legacy-focused scope of the game would be a nice change
    3. Factorio. This game is called cracktorio for a reason
    4. Monster Hunter world. Very replayable when you want to hit big monsters with big swords
    5. Maimai. Bet you didn't expect a rhythm game to be here, removed! With all other video games gone, maimai would explode in popularity, and I'd finally be able to play maimai locally instead of only in the city on the occasional day off. Yes, this list is just a place holder for the real number 1

  • Skewed towards my taste in gaming, but still trying to think about humanity:

    • UNDERTALE. My favorite videogame OAT, amazing storytelling, characters and soundtrack. This is my least replayable pick, but one that I would not want to lose
    • The Binding of Isaac. Contender for the best Rougelike ever made, with an absurd level of replayability and great modding community
    • Minecraft. Even though i don't care about Minecraft that much, the things that this game has accomplished is crazy. I would not want to lose Redstone or the amazing modding community it has. Tons of ways to play and, it's the most purchased game in history, I think it's worth perserving.
    • Geometry Dash. I would not want to leave the "rithym game" (debatable) community with nothing. GD is also a game I'm super in love with. The community is great and at this point it's close to being its own gaming engine, so I think it fits here.
    • Skyrim. This game I haven't played ever, but I know what it means to a lot of people. Considering the rest of my cartoony and slightly niche picks, I think having one, extremely moddable medieval single player helps to have variety.

  • Based on current tastes...

    • Super Metroid
    • SSBU or a Street Fighter
    • FFVI (because I still haven't finished it) or Chrono Trigger
    • a shmup, any vertical shmup, Crimzon Clover WE probably
    • Mega Man X

  • If I could choose, then I'd choose for humanity, games that most reasonable people would go "yeah, fair enough".

    (Note, if it were just for me, I wouldn't pick any of these lol)

    • Portal + 2
    • Stardew Valley
    • Grand Theft Auto V
    • Elden Ring
    • Final Fantasy VII (or X)

  • Since all of humanity will only get the 5 games

    To encourage local play with your friends we will keep the n64 versions of Mario kart, super smash brothers, and Mario party 2. These are universally enjoyable to all ages and the top 3 local experiences imo.

    For people inevitably desiring a strategy game I will choose StarCraft 1. And the RPG shall be Baldurs gate 3 because it allows full custom campaign mods and people can thus create any rpg in it.

    Mario kart 64

    Super Smash Brothers (64)

    Mario Party 2

    StarCraft 1

    Baldurs Gate 3

  • Elder scrolls Skyrim all expansions dlc

    Age of empires 2 with expansions

    Halo master chief collection

    If it counts World of Warcraft classic as a private server

    Baldurs Gate 3

  • I'll pick 5 genre (4x/building sim/strategy, RPG, Sandbox, Sport, and maybe racing) then choose the best open source game in each genre.

    A very good closed source, mod-able game will be limited on what technology exist when it was made. While an open sourced game would have a lot of possibilities. It will count as an update, not a new game.

  • For me I'd say...

    Borderlands 2 Left4Dead 2 Destiny 2 Zombies Ate my Neighbours (SNES) Pokémon (ZA has me at the moment but I'd say keep Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire)

    CO-OP shooters with single player elements are what I'd play more than anything else to avoid it being the same thing over and over, Destiny has hit hard times recently but still has a lot to give.

    ZAMN is just cool.

    I can lose hours shiny hunting and mucking about in the Pokémon games so easily has to be one around.

  • Well, I think games that have the greatest possibility between them make the best choices. So...

    Stellaris. - I want a 4x and grand strategy and this one is a bit of both. Also considering how much it's changed since 1.0, the various versions of it provide a lot of variety in themselves. Also it's got great mod support. Its core systems have also been rebuilt a couple times, so I know it has a good deal of potential and isn't locked too hard into certain mechanics.

    Conan Exiles. - This is a really weird choice cause the game isn't amazing in and of itself, or even all that good, and it's pretty buggy, but it's one of the most customizable, mod supported multiplayer games I know of. Maybe there's a better choice and if I had time to research it I'd pick that one. I know there's a multiplayer mod for Skyrim, for example, but I'm not technical enough to know if that has better possibilities than Conan. Hell, maybe Minecraft has potential here? I have never liked it much. It would be absolutely necessary to me that it can be updated to decent (not blocky) graphics though.

    Elite: Dangerous. - This is another choice I'd like to research a better option for. The thing is I want a flight/space game, but I don't know enough about the genre, and this is the only one that immediately comes to mind. Its kind of my one mostly unselfish pick cause I haven't played this type of game in a long time.

    Baldur's Gate 3. - It's not actually my favorite rpg or even my favorite Baldur's Gate, but Larian designed it with good mod support and tools. Also it can support multiplayer very easily. Like the others on this list, it's here for future adaptability; if we're never getting new games, mods of these 5 have to be as much like new games as possible.

    An MMO. - This is the toughest one to answer myself cause I don't know enough about the back end of them. The trick is choosing the one with the most broadly applicable technical side. I want as much possibility in future development as I can get, and I'd really like one that isn't inextricably linked to the target based gameplay we currently know from most of them. If required to pick without research, I would reluctantly choose Guild Wars 2, cause it at least isn't tied to tab targeting, but I have no idea if it's good with my other criteria.

    Now, you'll notice I didn't pick any games without multiplayer, and that's cause if these are going to be the only 5 games left until the end of time they should all support multiplayer. No single player only need apply.

  • if anthologies are allowed:

    Activision Anthology: Remix Edition
    Atari Anthology
    Sega Genesis Classics
    Namco Museum Archives
    Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition

    I'm a novice gamer, so someone who's got more experience with retro gaming history could probably come up with a list that includes the greatest possible number of titles for preservation

    could we have a link to the video you mentioned?

  • I'd probably go for historic impact if there's no more games I'd want a good selection of what people considered major titles of video game history. Maybe one classic, one old console, one arcade fighter, one modern PC, and one online shooter.

    Pong

    The legend of Zelda

    Tekken 3

    World of Warcraft classic

    Team fortress 2

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