1. Mass Effect (2+3 only)
- probably my favorite game from last gen. first one has aged terribly and entirely skippable, but the sequel has some of the best characterization in a video game ever. the third has the most polished and fun combat system, while giving you huge pay-offs for all your narrative choices in previous games (I even liked the ending).

2. Metal Gear
- I didn't realize it at the time, but the original Metal Gear Solid for PS was sort of the end of gaming for me. it's one of my favorite games ever, but the whole experience of "making a video game a playable movie" has breed a thousand horrible offspring. enough with the fucking cinematics. the dramatic convoluted storylines. the overdone voice-acting. if I want to see a movie, I'll go see a real movie. I don't want to sit through a video game producer's idea of a movie. Snake Eater was dope though.

3. Bioshock
- engrossing atmosphere games. the actual play mechanics can be really stilted (I believe someone here posted it best, saying the gameplay is a generation behind). it's all about the world around you in this series. first is the best, third really great, and there's no need to play the second one.

4. Resident Evil 4
- fourth one is hands down one of the most fun game experiences of all-time. amazing how many "oh shit" moments they put into one game, without hardly any downtime. the rest of the series isn't very good to me, even though it popularized "survival horror." mainly due to the first three having shitty controls and the latter two never recapturing the magic of 4.

Fallout
- I remember when the *first* Fallout came out. fuck. anyway, I messed with New Vegas for 20 minutes and never got invested. not for me.

Assassin's Creed
- bought one of them on Steam recently and was bored to tears. I can barely make it through these long-cinematic intros with zero action anymore.

Batman: Arkham Series
- tried the first one and couldn't get over that hideous camera angle; offset over the shoulder. horrible gameplay design.