Modeled after the late Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" list, as well as the National Film Registry, this is to highlight video games I feel went above and beyond the normal pale to become genuine pieces of high art. Whether it's through emotionally-captivating narratives, evergreen gameplay systems, and/or extraordinary creativity, these are absolutely worth playing at some point in your life.

Note #1 -- many may not hit a 5-Star rating, to which I respond a game doesn't have to be perfect to be great.

Note #2 -- "inductees" are not set in stone and may be removed/added from the list. Unfortunately, one thing I've found is that nostalgia can play a part in masking a game's flaws.


Note #3 -- not every title has had a review/analysis crafted for it, something I hope to ameliorate in the future.