There is nothing like the launch of a new video game console. The excitement and anticipation builds as more and more information about new games slowly leaks out. As the day gets closer, rumors and speculation run rampant. The possibilities for next-generation software always seem endless, and we can’t wait to play games worthy of that.
Launch games are under tremendous pressure to succeed, both critically and financially. They are the first and most important showcases of new hardware and its capabilities. They are built up for months and months and then expected to deliver. These launch games lived up to the hype and then some, somehow eclipsing our wild imaginations and delivering a cutting edge, memorable and well-crafted first experience on brand-new hardware.
10 Wii Sports: Nintendo Wii
Instantly fun, captivating for all ages and exquisitely simple, the pack-in Wii Sports is the perfect example of launch software that delivers. It remains remarkable just how pick-up-and-play Wii Sports was: the game drew everyone in immediately. With Baseball, Boxing, Golf, Bowling and Tennis, as well as challenge and training modes for each sport, Wii Sports expertly showed off the unique new controller’s features. Pure fun is at the heart of this charming game.
While the experience is regarded as a more casual affair by most, barring it from placing any higher on this list, the captivating and joyous experience that was Wii Sports on launch day can not be discounted. Wii Sports remains fun today with friends on a lazy afternoon. Its legacy is still evident in the captivating activities available in Nintendo Switch Sports.
9 Halo: Combat Evolved: Xbox
A word of mouth force of nature, Halo: Combat Evolved became a killer application, the must-have game, in just a matter of weeks. Halo featured unparalleled console FPS graphics and an acclaimed soundtrack. The physics engine, control scheme and the sublime feel of the movement captivated millions. The multiplayer hype caused LAN parties worldwide.
While the campaign is critically acclaimed and very impressive, the sprawling nothingness of Sidewinder and other maps hold it back on our list, as well as the lack of any bots in multiplayer. Nonetheless, the Halo hype was well deserved, and the multiplayer remains a blast to play today.
8 Dynasty Warriors 2: PlayStation 2
An extremely satisfying and engrossing hack and slash, Dynasty Warriors 2 is an excellent escape into history. The massive environments and incredible on-screen enemy counts were unmatched, making for an impressive new experience. The rising challenge and different scenarios created great replay value, as did the variety of playable characters. A cinematic tone and scale also helped this game stand as truly next-gen.
All the events are based on real history, so you might even learn a little something. Continuously slaying nameless enemies until your problems melt away is enough of a plus in itself, though. While the simplicity and repetitiveness can wear on some, there is something to tuning in and dropping out with this game to this day.
7 Sonic Adventure: Sega Dreamcast
Known for a fantastic sense of speed, great use of color and a phenomenal grass texture (yes, really) Sonic Adventure ushered in a new era of presentation and graphics. When that huge whale broke that dock, everyone knew they were in the next generation of gaming. Rich colors, bouncy and quick gameplay and a fun cast of strange characters (Big The Cat and friends), Sega’s answer to Super Mario 64 felt ahead of its time.
While the hype for Sonic Adventure (and for the Dreamcast), didn’t last very long, it was still an incredible launch day experience. Many feel some of the control mechanics or even Big’s fishing games are not perfect, holding it back on our list, but this is still one of the most stellar launch titles for any system ever created.
6 Soulcalibur: Sega Dreamcast
For the first time, a game actually looked better at home than at the arcade! What a revelation Soulcalibur was. The game’s incredible polish and presentation situated it far above any other fighter, a true genre benchmark. The excellent cast of characters and the unique and rather loose feeling of combat is still excellent.
While some of the locations (or maybe even the graphical style of the entire game) can get a little bit samey, the general presentation of this game on 9.9.99 must not be understated or taken for granted. The weapon-based combat is still something of a novelty in the genre.
5 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Nintendo Switch
A stellar, massive accumulation of everything Nintendo had learned about making games. The amount of time and care on display within The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s massive environment is unmatched. The game really feels like the culmination of the series, featuring familiar narrative themes, enemies, areas, and friends, all brilliantly re-imagined. Smart visuals also add to the charm.
The game’s rather lacking use of music, and the fact that it also released on Nintendo’s Wii U console, holds it back on this list. Nevertheless, the sense of wonder and discovery that occurred on launch day for players of this game is hard to top.
4 Super Mario World: Super Nintendo
The only game worthy of being deemed a sequel to the legendary Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World somehow improves on one of the best games ever made. Without reinventing the formula, it expands on the experience in every way, with bigger, bolder levels and even a new ridable dinosaur buddy.
As a launch title, this is extremely hard to top. It is more polished and well-crafted than any other platformer on the Super Nintendo. The secret switch palaces, the ghost houses, Bowser’s secret hideout … everything is well thought out, finely tuned and masterfully placed. To follow up, expand, and improve on Super Mario Brothers 3 in a launch title is a feat only topped three times in history.
3 TimeSplitters: PlayStation 2
One of the fastest and most satisfying-feeling FPS titles ever made, TimeSplitters was a frantic and brilliantly absurd experience. It boasted a time-traveling campaign, an excellent and varied soundtrack, well-designed and fun multiplayer maps, a map creator and even bots in multiplayer. This game had it all. The total FPS experience, TimeSplitters is a masterpiece and the series is still beloved and much-missed today.
Some FPS fans cannot get behind the game’s cartoony and playful style, leaving it just short of the top 2 on this list. Don’t get hung up on that, though. TimeSplitters was white-hot, lightning fast action that had to be played to be believed, even if it wasn’t the most challenging and serious FPS around.
2 Super Mario 64: Nintendo 64
With this hallowed launch title, Nintendo laid the groundwork for many of the 3D mechanics of the entire modern video game industry. Super Mario 64 created a bar that was never topped in 3D platforming during its era, as most competitors were merely doing their best just to copy it. To create such a watershed, pivotal game that defined the 3D space for years to come is remarkable.
A world hub and smaller levels (including unforgettable worlds like Cool Cool Mountain), a player controlled camera, dynamic sound and music, pressure sensitive walking controls; Super Mario 64 is perhaps the most revolutionary title in history. People remember when and where they first played this game, such was its impact. The only thing holding it back is that it, in turn, was built upon another launch title that came before it.
1 Super Mario Bros.: Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Mario Bros. is the best launch title of all time, if not generally the greatest game ever. What this title did for the industry cannot be overstated. The launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System was a gamble, as Atari had failed rather badly. Home video games just were not respected or adored at the time. Then, there was Super Mario Bros.
No more were games just one-screen experiences, or even a few screens that repeated in an arcade-like fashion. Mario could duck, run, jump, anything felt possible. To launch any system with such a monumental and historical game is something we will surely never see equaled again.
