Four turtles through history, throwing Foot soldiers at the screen.
Anti-gravity ships to a Chemical Brothers soundtrack; the PlayStation as a club.
A run-and-gun of enormous levels and Chris Huelsbeck music; the C64 showing off.
Two dragons trap monsters in bubbles across a hundred screens; the co-op that needs a second player for the real ending.
Eight galaxies, wireframe ships and free trade; the game that invented open-ended space.
Isometric feudal fantasy on the C64, with one of the best 8-bit soundtracks ever written.
A dog detective and a rabbity thing on a road trip through American kitsch.
Handball with armour and bribes; the Bitmap Brothers at their most metallic.
Settle the New World, build an economy and declare independence from the king you serve.
The Genesis Sonic made by fans, officially; the best Sonic since 1994.
Yoshi carries baby Mario through a crayon world; the SNES platformer at its most inventive.
An 8-bit knight with a shovel; the retro platformer done right.
Britannia at its most alive, baking bread and solving a murder; the RPG Richard Garriott perfected.
Sixteen levels under Tristram's cathedral; the click-and-loot game begins.
Left click, right click, guess on the last square; the Windows game of every office.
Base building, research and squads that die in the dark; the 1994 original of the tactics genre.
The first big MMORPG, player-run houses and the murder of Lord British.
The Nokia 3310 game everyone played in 1999.
Dogfights against the Kilrathi and a branching campaign; Chris Roberts in 1990.
Fly for the Empire; the best space combat sim, from 1994.
Four players, the blue shell and Rainbow Road; the kart racer of every dorm.
Dual fighters and the captured ship; the shoot-em-up perfected.
Do a barrel roll; Arwings, the Rumble Pak and branching routes.
A physicist teleported to an alien planet; Eric Chahi's wordless cinematic game.
Jumpman climbs girders to save Pauline; Mario's first appearance, 1981.
Lara Croft in Peru, the T. rex in the valley and a whole new kind of hero.
Johto and then Kanto again, day and night; the biggest Pokemon game.
Strippers, pigs in cop uniforms and "it's time to kick ass"; the Build engine shooter.
The 1986 original: a gold cartridge, no map and "it's dangerous to go alone".
Tesla coils, Tanya and full-motion video generals; Westwood's alternate Cold War.
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