It doesn't matter how many teraflops you give a console or whether it outputs in 4 or 8K; just give me a bunch of retro games and a CRT, and I'll be happy. Some games come and go, while others leave such an impression that we're still thinking about them decades later. They pounce into our heads at 3 am when we're supposed to be sleeping, make us recite niche lines of dialogue to see if there are other gamers in the area, and sometimes just use a broom handle as a sword.
We took 16 of the most influential games of all time and put them against each other, games that have made a huge impact on all of our lives and that are still cited by devs today as giving them inspiration in one way or another. Heck, all of the games on this list have been influential in my fantasy book writing, and had I not played them as a child, I don't think my head would be as full of adventures and creatures as it is right now.
But this isn't just a list of games I enjoy; the 16 games were chosen by the Retro Dodo community, and you all came out in force to vote for your favourite. I remember someone on Facebook saying that Final Fantasy VII was destined to be in the final, but it fell at the first hurdle. GoldenEye 007, Skyrim, Super Mario World; they all looked like they might take the top prize, but after 100K votes, the final came down to Pokémon Red/Blue vs Ocarina of Time.
Yes, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the winner of our Ultimate Retro Game Championship, and what a worthy winner! The amount of love that still resonates for this game makes me incredibly happy, and it's amazing to see that it was as meaningful and influential a title for you all as it was for me. It beat some incredibly tough opponents in Crash Bandicoot, Metal Gear Solid, GoldenEye 007, and Pokémon Red/Blue too! I suppose it's the highest-rated game ever on Metacritic for a reason, and it's also our top choice for our list of the greatest N64 games ever released.
Nintendo are doing very well in our last two competitions after winning our Ultimate Retro Handheld Competition with the legendary Game Boy Advance. They must be pretty happy now that we've added Ocarina of Time to their win list. Heck, if they carry on like this, then they might become a household name one day...
