Here's a list that any of you should have seen coming… A list so important that needed to be a top 10 instead of the regular top 5.

Top 10 best games I've played so far.

When you've spent so many years in videogames of almost any shape and size, it is inevitable to, one day, wanting to make a list of your favorite free-time's killers… Needless to say, it's a strictly personal list, therefore there could be titles that you've never heard of before and for that, I hope to catch your interest on them. Plus, I will only consider one game per franchise (if it became a franchise, that is), except for a couple of more than justified cases. I will also add to the game's title, the year of its release, the publisher and / or developer, and the platform I've played it on. Let us begin:

10) Psychonauts (2005, Majesco/Double Fine, PS2).

For most of you, the name Tim Schafer, won't probably tell you much… Let's just say that before this game, which he developed with his own company (the Double Fine), he used to work for the Lucasarts games where he created one of the most praised graphic adventure games ever: Grim Fandango (a story based upon the Mexican "Dia de los Muertos", Nightmare before Christmas and Casablanca, among other things) and one of the most original games in history. Currently, he's working side by side with EA Games for the upcoming release of his latest blockbuster, "Brutal Legend", a kickass heavy metal action game, dubbed by Jack Black and some rock legends, like Ronny James Dio and Lemmy of the Motorhead. Did I grab your interest? Good, because "Psychonauts" deserves its proper attention… One of the best, and sadly, most overlooked, titles of the never aging PS2. A psychedelic experience among psychedelic trips! Just imagine: you are a young esper that can travel through other people's minds, live their own fears, nightmares, feelings, emotions, and fight their own demons through an utter original and variable gameplay involving, classical mental powers like pirokinesis and telekinesis, laser eyes and the ability to see things from the others' point of view… And the plot was absolutely hilarious too! In what other game can you see how the head of a giant, mutated lumpfish works? Do not waste your mental energy, folks…

9) WWE Smackdown vs RAW Series (2003 - 2007, THQ, PS2 - PS3).

Yes, you're guessing right… I happened to be a huge wrestling fan until not long ago, and every year I used to drown in my own saliva in anticipation of the latest THQ's awesome wrestling simulation, for the chance of playing with my favorite superstars in every kind of possible match they had to offer (Royal Rumble, Tag Teams, Hell in a Cell and so on), and ultimately giving a whole new meaning to the word "Pawnage!" Beating the hell out of your bleeding opponent while disrespectfully taunting him, right before placing your devastating finishing move and pinning him to the ground, was for me, the ultimate ass kicking experience. Since I couldn't possibly tell what the best game of the series was (they were basically all the same), I decided to put the entire franchise on the list, the games I've played of it, at least. Nowadays, I've lost my interest towards those games lately, but I could never forget the sheer fun I had with them… And that's the bottom line, 'cause Stone Cold Madhog said so! You can't see me! You will rest in peace… 'Cause I'm the Showstopper! If you sssmeeeeeeeeelllll… What The Madhog… Iiiiiiiiiissssss… Cooking! And I don't say more about that… Except for this: Madhog 3:16 has just whipped your ass! Rated E10+.

8) Super Mario Galaxy (2007, Nintendo, Wii)

For this spot, I was torn between this game and Super Paper Mario and, although the latter had something most of the Mario games lacked (which is a real defined plot), this right here, was The Game that truly captured not only the spirit of the original games, with its sheer fun and casual gaming style, but that also showed us the true potentialities of the Nintendo Wii and its Wii-mote… The result, is a marvelous looking, well musical composed, awesomely done never ending gameplay, that once again proved to the world the undeniable superiority of Nintendo when it comes to make games that can please both old school and new school fans. It's-a me, Shigeru!

7) Metal Gear Solid (1998, Konami, PS1).

Here's a game that doesn't need introduction… The most pondered, mind bumbling storyline ever conceived, combined with one of the most fulfilling playable experiences in the business, means, a uber masterpiece! The deepest characters for the most complicated yet, attracting plot in gaming history, the story of the super soldier, Solid Snake, and his dystopian future, which is dreadfully close to our time, an apocalyptic doom device (the Metal Gear Rex) and the suffering relationship between Man and War, are the center of Hideo Kojima's iper realistic universe… Its only defect? Its own obsession of being like a movie has turned against it: the cut-scenes had always steals valuable playing time, and the more the series has proceeded, the worse they have become. Other than that… Snake! Snake? SNAAAAAAAAKE!!!

6) Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure (2007, Capcom, Wii).

(A/N: the following rant is just an opinion, so please don't be offended if I happen to insult something you like, thank you).

It is a shame to apprehend that one of the most critical praised games of 2007, is also one of the most overlooked… Despite the fact that it was published by Capcom! As we all know, pirates are very popular nowadays, mainly thanks to "Pirates of the Caribbean" and the famous "One Piece" manga by Eichiro Oda… Two things that I utterly despise! It turns my stomach to see how pirates are depicted these days, they are either complete douchebags (like Jack Sparrow) or obscene DBZ's rip-offs (Oda was Akira Toriyama's apprentice, did you know that?)… Yet, there was a time, not very long ago either, where pirates where absolute fun and, most of all, full of resources. There was a time when a pirate's best friend was not his sword, but rather his scornful mouth, his personality and, more importantly, his brain! That's right folks, I'm talking about the videogame series that defined the classical "point & click" adventure games in the 90's, I'm talking about the most famous videogame would-be pirate of them all, Guybrush Threepwood, and the great "Monkey Island" series, produced by Lucasarts. What does all of this have to do with "Zack & Wiki"? They are the proud descendant of those games, the adventure games, they are pirates, they seek for treasures through gazillions of awesome stages that are a true mind challenge, and they fight monsters and unearthly creatures with their greatest weapon… Intelligence! Or at least, Zack does, the golden monkey Wiki just flies around, making obnoxious sounds. The story is great, the puzzles are greater, the overall game is a challenging an addicting experience like no others… It's the game of the year 2007, in my humble opinion. I thank you, Capcom, for making this overlooked masterpiece for the people (ultra-nerds) who could appreciate it. Towards the Adventure, mateys!

5) Lucasarts Adventure Games (1991 - 1993, PC)

And thus, we reached the top 5. By now you already know how I loved the old fashioned adventure games, therefore I couldn't possibly omit to the list the 4 games that basically defined my childhood and my growing imagination… Since it's impossible to me to tell you which was the best, I'm going to put them all in one single spot, and there they are:

- "Monkey Island 2: LèChuck's Revenge" (1991), sequel of "The Secret of Monkey Island" (1990), the second adventure of the boy who wanted to become a pirate, Guybrush Threepwood and, by far, the best… It had Voodoo magic, living dead cooks, cursed zombie pirates and… Dancing skeletons!

- "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis" (1992), the best Indiana Jones game ever! A pearl of infinite geekiness for all the fans of the good old professor.

- "Day of the Tentacle" (1993), sequel of "Maniac Mansion" (1987) the father of the genre. One of the first dubbed games is also The Most hilarious and crazy game ever made, aside for "Earthworm Jim", but this came out before.

In what other game can you find mutated tentacles taking over the world and turning humans into pets for beauty contests? Do not answer… Tim Schafer is the co-director of this jewel, along side with Dave Grossman, who's currently the head of Telltale games, creators of the Season 1 and 2 of Sam & Max, which the first is available for the Wii.

- "Sam & Max Hit the Road." My first taste at the most beloved freelance police officers (and luckily, the only) in American comics' history, and it also featured a good Italian voice acting… As for the English version, Sam was dubbed by Bill Farmer (Goofy's voice, people!).

These are the games that inspired my passion for videogames… Too bad, Lucasarts turned its back to the same genre it made famous, this is one of the reasons of why I hate George Lucas so bad… Other than what he and Spielberg did to Indy! YOU BASTARDS!!! Where is my 50 cm long handgun when I need it?

4) Shadow the Hedgehog (2005, Sonic Team/SEGA, PS2).

Oh yes, people! Can you see all of me, walk into my mystery, step inside and hold on for dear life!? A badass platform game for badass people and my favorite game of the Sonic franchise (which, sadly, says something). I think there is no need for me to tell you about it, because you ALL know what I think of this awesome game. So let's move on to the next one…

3) God of War (2005, Sony, PS2).

Uber powerful blades of Chaos, divine powers, a thirst for blood and a quest for killing the Greek God of War himself… There could be anything more appealing than this concept? The absolute, undeniable, unbeatable, unmovable, best Playstation 2 exclusive… EVAAAAAR!!! A vengeful Spartan warrior, alone against millions of mythological freaks, in a long and gory trip to retrieve the Pandora's Box and slash the hell out of his tormentor, none other than the fiery bearded Ares! An immense path filled with the most violent and amusing combos ever seen in any game, genuine platforming, deadly traps, adversaries and terrific puzzles… The apotheosis of the Action/Adventure genre and also the game that made "Quick Time" events famous. I'm overwhelmed by the excitement as I impatiently wait for the third installment of the series… God of War III, which is a PS3 exclusive. Yay for PS3 owners! Kratos's path will always be written in blood… And that's how we like it.

2) Resident Evil 4 (2005, Capcom, PS2).

I am yet to play RE5 so this spot will may change… Or maybe not, since I find it rather difficult to make a better RE than this one!The complete and utter revision and revolution of the Survival Horror genre, that brought us into the ultimate killing evil experience, with new visuals, gorgeous customizable weapons, hours and hours of gaming, Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong from RE2 (oooooooh, yeeeeeeah) and several, over the top, extras and secret treasures, like the Ada's chapters. No more zombies in here and, quite frankly, I didn't miss them at all… Just remember, whatever you do, do NOT shoot those rednecks in the head… Oh crap, I accidentally did it. Nooooooo, stay away from me, AAAAARRGH!! You are dead. Continue? Ehi, I can restart from the very scenario I died, another useful add! Okay, time to kick some ass and chew bubble gums… And I ran out of gums. Hail to the king, baby! Oh, I almost forgot, this is the game that invented "Quick Time" events… What could possibly be better than this title? Here it is…

1) The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006, Nintendo, Wii).

The time has come, oh Chosen Hero by the Goddesses, holder of the Triforce of Courage, to once again wear your legendary green cap, grab your shield, your ludicrous but cool items and, more importantly, your loyal Master Sword… The time has come, oh young silent warrior, to once again face the ultimate incarnation of Evil and save Hyrule from its otherwise impending doom, while your more than famous theme plays in the background, as you ride Epona… The time has come for The Legend of videogames, to once again gift ourselves with its presence within the awesome powers of the Wii-mote, combined with its sidekick, the almighty Nunchak. In other words: it's once again Link and Zelda time! And this time, it's their largest adventure yet, Link becomes a wolf and gets the help of a certain imp-like princess, who happened to be one of the best characters in the whole series… When certain people came as far as to say that this was The Best game ever made for a gaming system, they weren't exaggerating… At least, not that much. The gaming experience among gaming experience, 40-50 hours of adventuring all over Hyrule and beyond that never, EVER, gets repetitive, and an ending that made me cry, such was my affection for the two main characters (which one of the two, was NOT Zelda). Awesome music, awesome action, awesome plot, awesome everything… Seriously, the only letdown of this game is the fact that you already know they won't make a direct sequel of it, but ehi, that's how his majesty Shigeru Miyamoto does business… And we all dig with that. Okay, time to beat fascinating dungeons and get over joyful every time a new item is collected… Because this, is what true heroes does! TA-NA-NA-NA!!!

Well, that's pretty much it. Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Ciao!