The 2000s were one of the most profoundly transformational periods for gaming in the industry’s history, a decade that shook and re-defined the very foundations of video games with the sixth and seventh generations of game consoles. It has always been a preciously rare occasion to run into a game that’s genuinely amazing throughout and from start to finish, and the games delivered throughout those 10 years were no exception.
From Nintendo masterpieces like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess to Xbox 360 system-sellers like Halo 3 to multi-platform blockbusters like Half-Life 2, the most thoroughly amazing video games of the 2000s have continued to age beautifully as the years have passed. Both for people who played these masterpieces when they came out and for people who haven’t tried them out, these are all must-play titles.
8
‘The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess’ (2006)
The Legend of Zelda franchise has been one of Nintendo’s flagship IPs since the NES days, making the release of any new Zelda game a massive pop-cultural event. The launch of Twilight Princess was no exception. Upon release, the game earned tremendous critical acclaim and won several Game of the Year awards; and after the polarizing style of the GameCube’s The Wind Waker, fans were happy to go back to an aesthetic closer to Ocarina of Time.
One of the most essential adventure video games of all time, Twilight Princess has endured the test of time as many fans’ favorite title in the series, and for good reason. For one, the dark tone and gritty art style are incredibly atmospheric and compelling, never making the game feel like it’s being edgy just for the sake of it. Combine that with some of the most masterfully designed dungeons and some of the best writing in the whole franchise—as well as Midna, easily the series’ best companion—and the reasons for the near-universal praise of Twilight Princess should no longer be mysterious.
7
‘Halo 3’ (2007)
Halo: Combat Evolved was such a colossal critical and commercial triumph that it immediately enshrined Microsoft as a major force in the console gaming market. Its sequel also performed phenomenally well, but it’s Halo 3 that’s still remembered by many as the greatest game in the series. It is, at the very least, one of the best first-person shooter games of the last 25 years, and then some.
Much like the rest of the greatest and most influential video games of the 2000s and the 21st century as a whole, Halo 3 was a near-unprecedented pop-cultural phenomenon, thanks to both an absolutely masterful campaign and multiplayer that’s still considered the gold standard for seventh-generation gaming. The score is iconic, the sound effects and voice acting have aged wonderfully, and the gameplay still feels so complex nearly two decades later that it’s hard to believe Halo 3 came out in the 2000s.
6
‘Grand Theft Auto IV’ (2008)
Before the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV in 2008, the GTA franchise was already a massive global powerhouse in the gaming space. However, by shattering sales records, elevating the series into the HD gaming era, and re-defining the standards of the open-world crime game genre, not only did GTA IV substantially boost the popularity and significance of the franchise, it completely revolutionized open-world gaming as a whole.
On the one hand, you have the incredible writing, which features one of the most grounded and emotionally compelling stories that any video game had ever seen. With Niko Bellic having one of the best arcs of any video game character, GTA IV proved how powerfully cinematic storytelling in video games could be. On the other hand, you have the technical aspects and gameplay, with a map that feels truly alive from top to bottom and groundbreaking physics and mechanics with, together, offer some of the most unforgettable set pieces in action gaming history.
5
‘Metroid Prime’ (2002)
Metroidvanias are a subgenre of action-adventure gaming focused on non-linear exploration in an open map, guided progression, and constant backtracking. The two franchises that gave the genre its name were, of course, Castlevania and Metroid. Nintendo’s Metroid franchise had remained 2D since its inception in 1986, and it was with the GameCube’s Metroid Prime that the franchise made the jump to 3D. What fans were initially afraid would be a generic FPS and a blasphemous destruction of the Metroid formula instead ended up being one of the best Metroidvania video games of all time.
Metroid Prime took every core pillar of the franchise (from an isolating atmosphere to a constant sense of wonder and discovery) and successfully translated it into three incredible dimensions. What’s not to praise here? The environmental storytelling is a masterclass in atmospheric world design, the music is still some of the best of any modern Nintendo game, and the classic Metroidvania progression works just as well here as it always has in 2D.
4
‘BioShock’ (2007)
Nowadays, the BioShock franchise is widely recognized as one of the best and most influential in the history of gaming, but it all had to start somewhere. That “somewhere” was the eponymous game, which originally released on Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360. In terms of tone and atmosphere, the game borrows greatly from classic RPG mechanics and the survival horror game genre. In terms of story and themes, it was heavily influenced by philosophical ideas explored by 20th-century dystopian and utopian thinkers like Ayn Rand and George Orwell.
One of the titles that are most often brought up when talking about video games being a full-on art form.
The result of such an ambitious premise is one of the most widely studied and discussed games in history, one of the titles that are most often brought up when talking about video games being a full-on art form. Indeed, BioShock is one of those sci-fi games that are perfect from start to finish, and it proved early on that the medium could provide intellectually and philosophically complex experiences the likes of which you couldn’t find anywhere else. Add to that some of the most immersive combat of any game from the 2000s, and you get an idea of why this is still such an impressive game.
3
‘Half-Life 2’ (2004)
With the original Half-Life being considered not only one of the most influential FPS games of all time, but downright one of the most influential video games of the 20th century, it should come as less of a surprise that its sequel has historically been even more strongly and widely acclaimed throughout the years. Indeed, Half-Life 2 is a masterpiece unlike anything else gamers have seen since 2004, combining cutting-edge technology with immersive storytelling and revolutionary physics to completely reshape the video game landscape forever.
For one, the game’s physics were absolutely groundbreaking back then and are still every bit as impressive today, making the environmental puzzles thoroughly delightful. The world-building and environmental storytelling are just as great, never taking control away from the player with pre-rendered cutscenes or camera locks. From the pacing to the animation to the music, everything else about Half-Life 2 is perfect as well, offering a gaming experience so well-rounded that it’s almost unbelievable that it’s 22 years old.
2
‘Resident Evil 4’ (2005)
Though the 2023 remake is almost undeniably the definitive way to play Resident Evil 4, in no way does that detract from the fact that the original is one of the greatest and most influential survival horror video games in history, let alone of the 2000s. Originally released for the GameCube and quickly ported to many other consoles, the game didn’t only save and revitalize its own franchise, it fundamentally re-defined the basic DNA of third-person action games forever.
Over two decades later, Resident Evil 4 is still one of the best horror video game masterpieces of all time, and oh so much more than that as well. Where third-person shooting used to be far clunkier before 2005, RE4 changed that. Where combat in games of this kind used to be more prone to being reduced to mindless button mashing, RE4 fleshed it out tremendously. Great pacing, perfect inventory management, satisfying arsenal upgrades, and a dynamic difficulty system are but a few of the other reasons why this is still widely remembered as one of the greatest video games of all time.
1
‘Super Mario Galaxy’ (2007)
After Super Mario 64 successfully brought Nintendo’s poster boy to the third dimension, 3D Mario games became a staple of the company’s catalog. When Super Mario Galaxy was announced, many fans and critics were puzzled by the premise of bringing Mario to space; but once people actually got to pick up a Wii controller and play the game, they realized that not only had Nintendo just made a game that many still recognize as the best Mario game of all time, they had made a title worthy of being counted among the greatest video games of all time in general.
Almost two decades later, Super Mario Galaxy is still every bit as iconic and universally praised as it always has been, and you’d be hard-pressed to find any gamer who has played it yet would consider it unworthy of the title of “most amazing video game of the 2000s.” The game offers a level of pure, unadulterated creative joy unlike anything else that any video game in history had ever offered before. The music is amazing, the level design is amazing, the physics and mechanics are amazing, Mario’s movement is amazing, and even the story—typically not the strong suit of most Mario games—is amazing. From beginning to end and from top to bottom, Super Mario Galaxy is a masterpiece.
