From Wii Sports to YouTube Itself, Readers Share More Last-Gen Heroes

We’re nearing the end of our Last-Gen Heroes series, but that doesn’t mean our readers have any less to say about the games of the last eight years.

I haven’t run a roundup post for a little while, and our readers over at the Talk Amongst Yourselves blog have been busy. Here’s what everyone’s had to say:

Rathorial gives a nod to Gears of War 3, saying that Epic achieved excellence through iteration.

Zarnyx writes a lovely tribute to all the composers who gave us such great music over the last console generation.

Rathorial also gives a heroes nod to pre-loading, as well as the other many boons of digital gaming.

Damsonrhee gives his Xbox 360a last-gen zero. Womp, womp.

Aiden Ryan recognizes Namco for doing a great job localizing their Tales games on console.

GiantBoyDetective calls DJ Hero a Last-Gen Hero, and I gotta say, I kind of can’t believe I never managed to really play this game. Always wanted to.

Aestevalis pays tribute to Fragile Dreams, describing it as a cool game that isn’t without a few faults.

Rathorial bags on the numeric progression that went along with the “RPG Elements” that were added to so many games this gen.

Isaac Davis honors qualitative rewardslike in-game treasure maps in Red Dead Redemption and Assassin’s Creed IV

Rathorial returns for another post lamenting contextual actions, which he says reduced interactivity.

Brandon Taylor says that YouTube was a hero of the last gen, making it much easier for us to share our gaming experiences with one another. Great call, man – I totally agree.

Quiddity says that Infamous 2 demonstrated that while the “platformer” as we’ve come to know it is dead, it still lives on in some ways. Really liked this game.

While WingZero351 calls out hype, in general as a last-gen zero.

Pibbles rightly points to PlayStation Plus’ instant game collection as a significant last-gen hero, and I gotta say I agree.

And DocSeuss takes down Max Payne 3‘s overblown production values and cutscenes as a zero.

Zarynx says that Atlus was a last-gen hero, unlike a certain other Japan-based publisher whose name rhymes with “Bare Phoenix.”

Meanwhile Pink Zapper Helmet argues that Wii Sports is one of the greatest games ever made. Bold statement.

Yourmotherisaclassylady makes the argument that GameStop was a last-gen zero. I have a feeling there are some others who’d back you up on this, YMIACL.

General McFist says thatrabid console fanboys and fangirls are the zeroes of this gen (or really any gen). What? There are rabid console fanboys and fangirls? I had no idea.

TwinTurbo2 says that The Pinball Arcade was a last-gen hero. I too have a fondness for this game, and really liked watching how they recreated those classic tables.

Mash Naylor says thatthe LEGO games went from silly platformers to seriously open world. They really did undergo a metamorphosis this gen, didn’t they.

Cimeas appears to be doing his/her own retrospective, but hey, let’s include this defense of Mass Effect 2anyway.

DocSeuss says that Uncharted 2 “hurt gaming immeasurably.” Okay, Mr. Dramapants.

Peter Tieryas says that Heavy Rain was a last-gen hero – it certainly was one of the most talked-about games of the generation, that’s for sure.

Rathorial has some nice things to say about Red Faction: Guerrilla, a game that offered some excellent destruction.

And to close out on a positive note, Dexomega writes a super cool tribute to game developers around the world, who he says are the true last-gen (and every-gen) heroes.

For reference, our other two roundup posts are here and here.

Thanks to everyone at TAY for writing such great Last-Gen Heroes posts over the last month. It’s been a treat to look back with you.

Last-Gen Heroes is Kotaku‘s look back at the seventh generation of console gaming. In the weeks leading up to the launch of the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, we’ll be celebrating the Heroes—and the Zeroes—of the last eight years of console video gaming. More details can be found here; follow along with the series here

To contact the author of this post, write to [email protected] or find him on Twitter @kirkhamilton