Unreal (the original)
Unreal Return to NaPali
Half-life (the original)
Half Life Blue Shift
Quake
Duke Nukem 3d
Radix Beyond the Void
Doom
Doom II
Terminator Future Shock
Blood (the original)
Unreal 2

Ok my all time favorites:

1. Terminator Future Shock / Skynet - dont know why i love this game so much. it could be the films or the gamplay or the athmosphere, i really dont know...
2. Battle Isle 2 + Titan's Legacy - simply the best turn based hardcore strategy game ever!
3.System Shock - a groundbreaking game of its time.
4. Frontier: First Encounter - ive played it over years. this game is unreachable.
5. Total Annihilation - one of the best RTS games ever developed. still playing it frequently with a mod called " The Pack".
6. Tie-Fighter Collectors Edition - with SVGA graphics, needs no explanation...
7. Dungeon Keeper - awesome gameplay still timeless. i recommend the keeperfx mod.
8. Outcast - great voxel engine, music and athmosphere. still playing the gog version with hires patch.
9. Pro Pinball Timeshock - probably the best pinball game ever created...
10. Diablo II + LoD Exp - needs no explanation, played it countless hours.
11.Creature Shock - it shares the place with cyberia and rebell assault.
12. Robinsons Requiem - a hardcore survival game. it was an awesome experience finishing it...

I'm glad someone else likes terminator future shock:)

This was incredibly difficult. I had ended up with a list three times as big as this. But I narrowed it down to the essentials. I actually surprised myself. I tried to come up with as many genres as I enjoy as possible and tried to represent them all. I made this list also from a perspective of 'if I had to choose 12 games to limit myself to play for the rest of my life'. The 'desert island' or 'zombie apocalypse' scenario if you will. Not in any order of priority:

The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall - I enjoy all the Elder Scrolls games. Daggerfall is the only one I haven't played an entire lot of. It's not as completely procedurally generated quest-wise as Arena which makes it more interesting but there's a heck of a lot more content than Morrowind at the same time.
Half-Life - Best FPS ever hands down. And the mod tools would keep me busy for a while
Duke Nukem 3D - Great action FPS. Just shoot things. Plus there's Build.
Unreal Gold - Right up there with Half-Life. An amazing atmosphere in this game that the series has never returned to, sadly. Also has an editor. Also has a killer soundtrack (Andrew Sega! I'm glad his music is represented in a game on this list seeing as I had to remove Crusader)
King's Quest V - Out of all the Sierra games I chose this one because it is the most iconic, it has a great story, soundtrack, and puzzle design (yes I said puzzle design). I'm surprised I didn't choose Space Quest IV which is my favourite title of my favourite Sierra series, but this one just has more atmosphere.
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - Out of all the LucasArts adventures I consider this the best in the end. Great replay value (3 paths) and one of the only 2 serious adventure games LucasArts ever made. Not that serious is better than comedy, but I really enjoyed this game.
Star Trek Judgment Rites - Good ol' Star Trek adventurin'. Classic game.
Star Trek A Final Unity - Never finished it, would always like to. TNG is my favourite Star Trek series.
Tie Fighter Collector's CD - Best simulator evar.
Age of Empires II + Expansion - Best RTS evar.
Blackthorne - Just great fun and a great atmosphere. Good gameplay design.
Scorched Earth - It's a blast. Love it.

MusicallyInspired, glad you enjoyed the challenge. I had a hard time coming up with my list. I would probably want to edit it a smidge if I were heading on that interstellar trip tomorrow, though. I would love to take all the Infocom games, and probably also Nethack. Its realy hard to limit to just 12. I could probably easily think of 50 games.

If I really were going on some crazy trip to Alpha Centauri I'd probably want a wikipedia dump, a Project Gutenberg dump, books on programming, etc. in addition to the games. And spare laptop parts 😉

Anno 1602
Caesar III
Age of Wonders
Age of Wonders II WT
Dragon Age: Origins
Age of Empires
Age of Empires II AoK
Fallout NV
Bully SE
Left 4 Dead
DoTA
HoN

- StarCraft: Brood War <--- the quintessential RTS.
- Quake II <--- I'm so addicted to the multiplayer on this it's not even funny 🤣
- Unreal Tournament '99 GOTY <--- great FPS if you're looking for something a bit different from Quake
- Quake III: Arena <--- even though I slightly prefer Q2's multiplayer overall, Q3 still deserves a spot on my list
- Carmageddon <--- probably the greatest driving game ever 😁
- Super Metroid (SNES) <--- few other games can completely engross me the way this can
- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES) <--- best game in the whole series by far
- Diablo II <--unfortunately Lord of Destruction came out in 2001, so it would just be the vanilla game 🙁
- Tetris
- Worms Armageddon <--- insanely replayable multiplayer with a good amount of strategy 😁
- Perfect Dark (N64) <--- so awesome, it's hard to believe it's a console shooter. 😁
- Warlords III: Darklords Rising <--- I wanted to put Fire Emblem but this is the closest I could think of in the timespan. 🤣 Still a great game though. 😁

I had to put a fair amount of thought into this list, though truthfully if the selection spanned until 2005, then I would have had a MUCH harder time choosing only 12, since it just happens that many of my all time favorite games were released from 2001 to 2005. Say what you will, but the Gamecube and the GBA kicked ass. 😁 The PS2 and the original Xbox had a few choice titles as well, but not nearly as much as Nintendo's offerings.

EDIT: Took out Ocarina of Time, replaced it with Tetris. Ocarina of Time is a decent game, don't get me wrong, but it has hardly any replay value and the camera is frustrating to deal with. Also, I already had A Link to the Past, which in many ways is actually a superior game.

Well I guess I'd have to cover most genres I like and include games that offer fun gameplay for long periods of time and/or high replayability.

This was quite difficult as there are so many games that deserve a spot on this list. I don't care for sports games, so there aren't any on the list. I tried to cover all genres that interest me and limited myself to the PC platform.
It's a little bit RPG heavy, but that's a good thing. These games would have to last for a while. I chose games that offer either huge game worlds or large amounts of randomization so they'd last for a long time. Customization (map editor, character development) was also important so I can make games interesting again by playing fresh content or trying different builds.

I also chose games that were indipendent from online components. So no MMORPGs or games that are only fun when played with other people.

These aren't necessarily my favourite games. If I made a list like that I'd end up with less variety and more shorter games with less replayability spanning multiple platforms. I was specifically thinking about games I would choose if I couldn't play anything else for the rest of my life.

My list is limited to PC games only, because otherwise it would be even more difficult:
Doom - classic game, I already know it inside out, but always come back to play it. No randomization or rpg elements, but it has great difficulty options and you could always do a custom playthrough with restrictions, speedrun etc. so it'll last for a while

Diablo - I prefer the first game. Simple but challenging and tactical. Large amounts of randomization, different classes, multiple difficulty levels and when that's not enough one can try custom challenges like ironman, nm/bnm etc.

Deus Ex - Very long game with high replayability value and room for experimentation. RPG elements, one playthrough lasts 40-80 hours, multiple difficulties, lots of stuff to try out (character builds etc.) and there's sooo much to discover

Nethack - tbh, this game alone would be sufficient if I had to choose only one. It's extremely complex and completely randomized, so it's guaranteed to last for ages.

StarCraft - When I'm in the mood for RTS, StarCraft is perfect. With the map editor and AI it'll also last for a long time. Difficulty settings, story driven single player campaign and simulated multyplayer.

4D Sports Driving - track editor, replay function, highscores. I like driving against the clock and my own best laps so this will suffice whenever I'm in the mood for a racing game

Colonization - I'm not a huge strategy fan, but I always liked colonization. Don't know that much about it, but I hope it'll offer enough gameplay for a long time. Or maybe Civ2 is better suited for this list?

Complete Ultima VII - Classic RPG with a huge game world and lots of stuff to explore and discover. You can sink hundreds of hours into this game if you do everything.

Might & Magic: World of Xeen - gotta have at least one classic crawler and the 4+5 Combo offers a huge world. Not that much replayability, but it'll take ages to explore the whole world.

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - Great oldschool Adventure with multiple endings. One of the best in the genre. Okay replayability, not that long and no customization etc. but that's to be expected from an adventure game. Still, got to have at least one on the list.

System Shock 2 - fantastic horror/fps/rpg mix with tons of replayability. Character customization, many things to explore, different ways to play the game and pretty long, too.

Tetris - No list without at least one puzzle game and tetris (even though the 87 dos port looks like crap) should suffice. Completely randomized, increasing difficulty. Great game.

Complete Ultima VII
Lands of Lore
Betrayal at Krondor
Doom II
Diablo I
Diablo 2
Darksun:Shattered Lands
Day of the Tentacle
Warcraft 2
Warlords Battlecry
GTA 2
Ultima Online - wins for playability.

1. Daggerfall, greatest rpg ever, never gets old.
2. Gran Turismo, classic racing game.
3. XCar: Experimental Racing, my first game ever.
4. Lemmings, always will be one of the greatest games
5. Arena: It got a bit boring for me, but I can't just eave that game.
6. DOOM, Greatest shooter
7. DOOM 2, Sequel to greatest shooter
8. Revenge of Shinobi, great platformer
9. Pokemon Blue, this game is amazing I don't care how old I am.
10. Heretic, just a great game
11. Shadow of the Colossus, never gets old.
12. League of Legends, greatest multiplayer game ever.

maverick85 wrote:

Anno 1602 Caesar III Age of Wonders Age of Wonders II WT Dragon Age: Origins Age of Empires Age of Empires II AoK Fallout NV Bul […]
Show full quote

Anno 1602
Caesar III
Age of Wonders
Age of Wonders II WT
Dragon Age: Origins
Age of Empires
Age of Empires II AoK
Fallout NV
Bully SE
Left 4 Dead
DoTA
HoN

I'm pretty sure Fallout NV, Dragon Age: Origins, Bully SE, L4D, DoTA, and HoN were all released after 2000. 🤣

Grand Prix 2
Grand Prix Legends
TOCA 1
NASCAR 1999
European Air War
Mig Alley
Quake 1
HalfLife 1
System Shock 2
Outlaws
Myst
Riven

EDIT 3: Switched out a couple of date-incorrect games

A hard choice indeed. For my selections, I tried to select a variety of games and genres that I actually like and want to play. if I could only choose 12 PC games, these would probably be the ones :

SimCity 2000 - I have never played this game, but as I like long, replayable games, if I need some kind of sim game, this would be it. I am strongly considering Star Control II instead for this slot.
Ultima VII : The Black Gate + Expansion - Its on my bucket list to complete Ultima VII Part 1 and 2, but since I can only choose one game, this is it. Rarely has a world ever felt so alive and seamless. Plenty of quests and criticisms of Scientology before it became fashionable.
Wing Commander II + Expansions - Tough choice between WCI, II and X-Wing or Tie Fighter. The replay value of this game, along with its reasonably intuitive flight controls, makes it a great choice for a flight simulator.
Gabriel Knight : Sins of the Fathers - For me, no list can be complete without a Sierra game. It was extremely difficult to choose between GK, KQVI, QGIV and LSL3 and LSL6. This game wins it on general maturity, a well-written story, excellent voice acting, fabulous score and memorable characters.
Grim Fandango - The Perfect Adventure Game. The art direction alone is worth the prices on ebay, then there is the music, the dialogue, the voice acting, strong noirish story, challenging puzzles and no dead ends or cheap deaths.
Planescape Torment - Is it an adventure game, an RPG or one of the most well-written games ever made? Its all the above, and replayable to boot. A tough choice over Fallout, which is also well-written.
The Elder Scrolls - Daggerfall- If you can have only one open-ended, sandbox game, this must be it. Didn't you always want to play as a Vampire or Werewolf? You can in this game.
Pinball Fantasies - Fast paced gameplay, several very satisfying tables, great variety, music is great on an Ultrasound. There are times were you need to shift gears and let your , and this is a good game for that. Tyrian is another great game for this.
Quake - Multiplayer Quake in The Bad Place, a recipe for fun. For singleplayer, however :
System Shock 2 - Unparalled atmosphere, one of the most memorable villains of all time makes a comeback, realistic level design, killer midwives, zombies that apologize as they bash your brains in and C-3P0 gets his revenge by proxy
Starcraft + Expansion - A RTS that you can pick up and just play, play with friends, easy to learn, hard to master and you can finish a level before bedtime.
Stunts - With a driving wheel, this sim is awesome. So customizable too!

Hmmm, let me see.....

Doom & Doom 2 - The FPS that turned me into a PC games junkie in the 90s. Still play them frequently.

Descent & Descent 2 - One of the very few "flying" games I just love to play over and over.

Unreal Gold - The atmosphere, weapons, enemies, levels, sounds, and music just blend into an immersive experience.

Wolfenstein 3D - My very first FPS game. Lots of fond memories just trying to finish it.

Duke Nukum - My very first computer game ever. Fun, fun times all around.

Duke Nukem 3D - "It's time to kick ass and chew bubblegum. And I'm all out of gum....."

Rise of the Triad - "Outsider! Gimme That! No, Don't Shoot! PLEASEEEE!"

Jill of the Jungle - The shareware version just drew me in. Then I bought it.

Megarace - Lance Boyle for President! Lance Boyle for Prime Minister! Lance Boyle rules! 🤣

Epic Pinball - This turned me into a pinball junkie. Now I have several that demand my attention.

Bio Menace - A funny thing happened on the way to the CIA local office, boss....

Midtown Madness 2 - If only I could drive like this in real life.... 😁

Only 12? I can't.

1. Odd world Abe's oddysee
2. Crash Bandicoot
3. Ridge Racer Type 4
4. Metal Gear Solid
5. Galaxian
6. Pokemon Ruby
7. Crazy Taxi
8. Diablo 2
9. Warcraft 2
10. Quake
11. Barrack
12. Mars Rising

But if just PC games:

1. Diablo 2
2. Warcraft 2
3. StarCraft
4. Quake
5. Worms
6. Redline Racer
7. Heretic
8. Jill of the Jungle
9. Grim Fandango
10. Quake 3
11. Creep night pinball
12. Ultimate race pro

these are pc games:
1. Odd world Abe's oddysee
4. Metal Gear Solid
5. Galaxian
7. Crazy Taxi
😉

In no particular order:

- King's Quest VI - was a great adventure game...just easy enough to not frustrate me and hard enough to keep me thinking. It still had the feel of Kings Quest IV and V, but more refined

- Space Quest III - who can forget this great game that had a great game within the game - Astro Chicken!

- XWing - I played this a lot in my youth....even more when I discovered editing tools like XMB to create my own missions.

- Falcon 3.0 - An pivotal flight simulator game that never got old for me (until Falcon 4.0 came out). The first time I ever experienced multiplayer mode (over a 2400 baud modem!)

- Scorched Earth - a classic that I remember was the only game that could bring so many of my friends together in front of a 286 PC...we played this for hours on end

- Jones in the Fast Lane - this simple game was so addictive for some reason. Maybe I liked it because I didn't have to think too much to play it..played it a lot during typing class when I was supposed to be doing schoolwork

- Leisure Suit Larry 1 - first played this on a friends Atari ST...I was too young to play this game back then, but I did anyway (yes I was a big time rebel....haha). Imagine kids these days playing this game....*yawn*

- Might and Magic - World of XEEN - Wasted some of my youth on this one...cool voices and graphics for a traditional RPG of that time...I had to cheat to finish it....would like to play it again without cheating

- SIM City 2000 - I remember playing this over and over again...'replayability' is high

- Raptor - I love the 'replayability' of awesome action overhead shooters like this

- EGA Trek - had to use your imagination for this one...maybe that's why I liked it so much. It really is a much better game than how it looks especially if you're a Star Trek fan. I still can play this game today without getting (too) bored!

- Civilization I and II - (had to cheat and put both I and II here for my 12th choice)....a classic that is still a classic.

So hard to choose just 12....It's all about bringing back the nostalgia for me.

Ok usually i install these first games in my retrorig:

Wolfenstein 3D
Doom
Doom II Hell on Earth
Quake
Warcraft II
Supaplex
Jazz Jackrabbit
Star Wars : Dark Forces
Duke Nukem I
Biohazzard
Rise of The Triad
Blood

Not in any real order

1. Doom 2, feels bigger then 1
2. NFS3, My favourite out and out racing
2. NFS Porsche, loved going though the years in Evolution mode and the less arcadeish handling
3. C&C, RA was pretty good but C&C felt just right.
4. Simcity 3000, Before you know it you've stayed up way to late
5. Age of Empires 2 + Expansion, its like C&C and Simcity combined
6. Diablo 2/LOD Can play this millions of times and it's still enjoyable.
7. GTA Vice city, The music it what sets this apart form the others
8. The Original GTA. Me and my brother made so many sub games, from this. Was the 1st open world game in my books
9. Epic Pinball, When I grow up I want to get a real pinball machine
10. Duke Nukem2, I feel I should include at least 1 platform game and this is the one I go back to the most
11. Tetris, Sometimes you just need something simple like a quick game of Tetris
and
If someone is on my remote island or whatever Micro Machines 2, that games so much fun your playing with someone
If I'm stuck alone on the island, Tomb Raider, I'm sure I dont have to explain why 😉