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3. Almost breaking the fourth wall- Video games are ridiculous and writers pointing this out without breaking the fourth wall is funny. I especially love when it's done with how ridiculous or impractical a game's mechanic is within a story context, like when Shepard and Liara talk about how you can't use omni gel to hack doors anymore in Mass Effect.

2. When a random NPC turns out to be a boss- Bonus points if he/she comes off as a joke character. These are always fun surprises because every RPG has its unimportant characters so I never see it coming. Persona 4 did this especially well without spoiling anything.

1. Recruiting a sociopath in a Bioware game- Characters like Black Whirlwind, Wrex, HK-47 and Shale have the funniest one liners, the most interesting outlooks on the universe, and the best backstories. I make sure they're always in my party. 

Chrono Crossing 

My 1994 pick is Sonic 3 and Knuckles. Both parts came out in 1994 and they wouldn't make it separate but together the two created sidescrolling perfection. There's nothing like a Genesis Sonic level where levels encouraged both rushing through as quickly as possible and exploring for secrets which was enhanced by three unique characters. There's a reason why twenty years later after so many underwhelming games I'm still a Sonic fan.

Also "And Knuckles" might be my favorite meme ever

It's a hard pick for me between CTR and MK8. MK has better mechanics, customization, and courses, but CTR has that awesome story mode, less bandy AI, and I prefer its weapons. Also really love ND era Crash, those are some of my all time favorite games. They're also the only two racing games I'd ever consider calling my GOTY their respective years.

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Suda 51- If they're going out with a bang, it needs to be nuts. Suda is really freaking nuts. Wildly inconsistent, but I hope the others can keep him at bay.

Kojima- Pairing him and Suda together might be overkill for having crazy developers together. Or it might be genius. But either way it won't be boring.

Hideki Kamiya- The figure behind Platinum Games knows how to make fast paced, fun action. He would ensure the game is as polished as possible. Also he's really good at being an asshole when it's necessary. It may be necessary for him to be an asshole to some of these other guys. I don't know. I've never met them. But it's possible.

Scott Cawthon- Say what you will about Five Nights at Freddies, but if this dude can make the lore of murderous animatronics in a Chuck E Cheese rip off that interesting, he needs to get in on this.

Yuji Naka- The rest can do a good job with individual components, but Naka's games have a strong fluidity to them. I think he'd do a great job of having everything really come together and make the game work.

I fully expect this to be an absolute disaster, but if it works, there could be something amazing here. 

Chrono Crossing:

My CC for 1995 is Chrono Trigger. I'm not a Squaresoft fan at all, but I can't deny this is basically the perfect RPG. There's not a single dull moment in the entire playthrough and it has the best New Game Plus ever.

Damn that was a great episode. A lot of fun with that one and makes me want to check so many games out

Chronic Crossing

Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back- In some ways this is better than Warped. More platforming levels is a huge bonus, but the locations repeated themselves more and there's no time trial mode like Warped. Also, to bring up your point on MGS cutscenes this episode, go watch 2's. There's fewer and in a less complex story but you can't deny Naughty Dog understood cutscenes before everyone else.

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3. Pokemon Firered/Leafgreen: Lavender Town- This town has four different remixes across four games but this was by far my favorite of them. I love how creepy the theme is, contrasting with the friendly nature of every other town theme which fits well because of the Pokemon cemetery in it. This theme always pops into my head whenever I see or play anything scary, it's just that good.

2. Wind Waker: Dragon Roost Island- Zelda games always had great tracks and WW has by far my favorite of them. It's track was a huge source of the games charm and I feel this island/town had the most upbeat and fun tune to it. That said, the title screen theme still dominated any other track

1. Jade Empire: Metropolis 1 and 2- Made simply roaming a city feel epic. I enjoy towns in other games, but I haven't been pumped exploring one like JE made me.

I like that you put Phantasy Star 4 on there.

Like most Zeldas, there's a strong case for it being the best in the series. It's a very different game from the past 3D Zeldas, so I can see some preferring TP, WW, or OoT. Depends on what you're looking for. If the original is one of your top Zelda games, this has a very good being your favorite. 

Either way what I can say is that this is exactly what the series needed. It's familiar in the right ways and different where it needed to be. It's a breath of fresh air (pun not intended) and will go down as one of the best in the series.

I played the trial and as a huge ME fan ended up canceling my preorder. I love the new additions they made but damn is the execution awful. And the dialog, which has been one of Bioware's strongest suits, was abysmal. Bought Nier instead.

Because it makes me think of Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess' Temple of Time? There's also a lot more that separates them apart than the stamina bar. Dark Souls is combat focused while Zelda it's just a piece and the combat reflects that. Dark Souls has so many more options because of this, while Zelda is mostly dodging, sword attacks, and a couple useful items. 

Skyward Sword is the only combat focused Zelda (which admittedly was pretty similar to Dark Souls in gameplay, but not so much story or atmosphere), the others either focus on puzzles or exploration. Dark Souls has combat as the top pillar and its exploration just has such a different take on the concept. Zelda you see a room and immediately run in to advance the plot. Dark Souls, you cautiously inch your way in looking for a surprise, only after returning to the bonfire 8 times prior to make sure you're prepared. 

5. Pokémon Red/Blue- Going back to this game is really rough. A lot of its mechanics are broken and the interface is kind of a mess. But Pokémon has such a great formula that it's still very addicting today.

4. Metal Slug 2- Metal Slug was always my go to arcade game as a kid. It was addicting with a great sense of humor. Plus someone mounted lasers onto a camel. Awesome. 

3. Metal Gear Solid- Didn't play it until almost a decade later but it stood the test of time. Not that great of stealth, but had excellent pacing and a crazy but fun story.

2. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time- Very few games from this era hold up so well. I played it almost ten years later after Wind Waker and Twilight Princess and was surprised at how it felt just as fun and epic as those games. That being said, people who had an N64 as a kid need to get over that there were better Zeldas before and better Zeldas after. Yes that means you Patrick.

1. Crash Bandicoot Warped- I played this more than every other PS1 game combined during the 5th gen. I obsessed over this game and its the only game where I can go for 100% completion and enjoy every second of it. Most PS1 games have aged horribly in my opinion but Crash is still just as much fun to play today.

Nah I didn't mention it because it lies under when I mention you have to be prepared for combat. The review was already long as is and wanted to keep ithe from going too long.