With this peek back into the annals of gaming, I'll be investigating what could possibly be the finest year of PC gaming in the history of PC gaming: 2000. Immediately, one monumental title should be popping into your mind's eye, scalding it with fire and ice and the summoned skeletons of a level 72 necromancer. That's right children and elderly folk: Blizzard's own Diablo II, heir to the throne carved by its older brother, reinventor of the action-RPG, the first dose of cocaine before millions had the crack that is World of Warcraft unleashed upon them. I've been addicted –twice- and the results are not pretty. The first time was my junior year of high school; I was naïve, young, and lacked the willpower to fight off addictions as powerful as Baal runs at 2am. And the most recent craving was brought upon me by my now-brother-in-law, who haphazardly began conversations of it during the planning stages of his wedding last summer. Regardless, I've toyed with all clases [sic] excepting Amazon, and all through level 70+ (all but Necromancer 80+). But alas, I'm not here to speak of myself anymore. Diablo II is surely amongst the crown jewels of gaming in its entirety. Everything from the farming to the level crashing to the rushing to the five acts pulls players in again and again. If this isn't an amphetamine, I don't know what is (I'm going to leave that one alone right at the door).
What could possibly trump Diablo II, holder of the action-RPG crown eight years running? (I say this as I install Titan Quest mind you.) I won't be as bold as to compare the two, but Shiny Entertainment's Sacrifice stands proud as a spiritual successor to Bullfrog's epic Magic Carpet series. Sacrifice combines epic and powerful story with the glee of guiding slain souls to one's altar to be sacrificed as resources. In addition, free will in choosing missions and building a unique army makes a truly unique and spectacular gaming experience. Sacrifice threw fast-paced action in the faces of gamers worldwide and backed it with absolutely gorgeous graphics, bloody carnage, and the forte of Magic Carpet's action elements. Let me tell you, if there is some way to dig up a copy of Sacrifice and play it, do so. And I mean first clas [sic] air mail; damn owl-fly it to your PC.
And if you thought graphics were a strong point in Sacrifice, Planet Moon Studios had another thing coming two days after my millennium birthday. PMS (excuse the acronym: I didn't name the studio) not only unleashed one of the pillars of gaming, it damn-near carpet-napalm-nuke-shrink ray-Cloverfield bombed the collective bowel movements from every gamer who ever experienced this glorious game. Of what do I speak? Giants: Citizen Kabuto, obviously. I detailed my passion for Giants in my previous entry of The Good Old Days, but I cannot stress how original, hilarious, and downright entertaining this game really is. Do yourself a favor, spend the five bucks on amazon.com and order yourself a copy before I buy them all up and sell them for $100 apiece.
Honorable mentions: Deus Ex, a game I've never given its due credit, whose sequel still sits unplayed in my Shelf of Gaming Glory. And, of course, the father of it all: Hitman: Codename 47, a game who is as broken as it is original, a game I can sit down at and wonder how such glory spawned from such a mess. And even in all its foulness, 47 is still a dream to play.
DIABLO SAYS: Slay me before I eat you