Guitar Hero II

If Frequency and Amplitude were Harmonix's idea of rhythm action games in germination, Guitar Hero was the culmination of those ideas into something that resoundingly clinched the developer's spot as the new king of the genre, dethroning the mighty Konami in the process. The first Guitar Hero was addictive, sure, but the second added bass lines, true multiplayer battles and a track list that some feel may never be beaten.

In a word it ruled, and became nothing short of a cultural phenomenon. In dorm rooms and bars (to say nothing of inter-office throw-downs), it became the de facto standard for substance-fueled, clicky plastic instrument war, catalyzed by a generation of YouTubers throwing their accomplishments up onto the web for all to see. Future games may have improved on the ability to play against others and have certainly widened the track list, but Guitar Hero II was the perfect sequel at the perfect time; it capitalized on the success of the craze while adding a few new things here and there. It was and still is the prime example of instrument-driven videogames at the height of their boom. Sure, future games have enhanced the formula, but none of them will have the same kind of charm and freshness that Guitar Hero II had back in the day.Get it here

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness

Strategy role-playing games have been around for decades now, but it was Nippon Ichi Software's tongue-in-cheek approach to the macabre land of demons and angels that truly perfected the grid-based setup of classics like Ogre Battle and Final Fantasy Tactics. Plus, let's face it Disgaea superfans, the first game still has the best characters (and Prinny voice actors, d00d!); no offense to Adell and Mao, but Laharl, Flonne and Etna are where it's at.

It wasn't just the cute, dark world that NIS created though, it was the ease in which players could move their units around and make tag-team attacks. That you could cancel out of moves or stack multiple actions in quick succession lent itself far more to setting up ridiculous tag team strikes. The first game's then-ludicrous numbers have since been surpassed thanks to people that power-leveled through the game and influenced NIS to make its own adjustments to things, but for sheer amounts of depth, grind-ability, story and relatively newbie-friendly approach to executing actions within turns, nothing beats the original.Get it here

Jak 3

There can be no discussion of Ratchet & Clank without also mentioning the Jak and Daxter series. The twin developers of the games, Insomniac and Naughty Dog, respectively, had long enjoyed career parallels, both rising to fame as Sony-focused development houses before Naughty Dog was eventually acquired by Sony. Naughty Dog's first Jak game was, true to form, a fantastic platformer, with tight controls, some great characters and a massive world to explore.

The sequel bit the style a bit too hard off the GTA games and tried to go open world -- perhaps too ambitious for the development timeline. Jak 3, however, mixed elements of both games; Jak talked, but he wasn't a whiny, brooding emo figure like in the second game (well, not as much), but weapons were brought back to mix more with the platforming of the first game. The scale of the world and the storyline were both widened and everything was brought more or less to a close. It represents the height of Naughty Dog's considerable production values on the PS2 and like our Ratchet pick, is not to be missed.Get it here

We ♥ Katamari,

Synopsis: Bah… bah-buh-bah-buh-bah-buh bah-bah-bah -- oh, hey, didn't see you start reading this. Sorry. Sure, anytime we think of We ♥ Katamari, we start thinking about how much fun it is to roll trees, buildings and random junk into a big sticky ball, but we mainly get lost thinking about that hypnotic soundtrack with its simple beats and distant voice. Sigh. Still, if you're looking for a summary of what makes We ♥ Katamari awesome, we can sum it up in one word: quirkiness. Yup, it's a term that gets thrown around quite a bit nowadays, but from its simple blocky visuals to its goofy story -- you're the prince and you're rolling up stuff on Earth to make your father, King of All Cosmos, happy -- We ♥ Katamari is all quirk and a game so goofy you just have to love it. You'll start with a tiny ball and run it into tiny objects. When the ball gets bigger, you move on to bigger objects. Eventually, you're going to have a massive ball eating up anything and everything in its path. It's awesome. Get it here

GrimGrimoire

GrimGrimoire, it almost sounds like one of those knockoff Harry Potter toys you'd find in your local supermarket's children section. Here, you'll play as a new student in a magic academy that's got a bunch of devious students and creepy teachers and is run by "Gammel Dore." However, once you get past those Hogwart-like nods, you'll find a real-time strategy game so engaging that you won't mind some of the upper-tier battles taking 90 minutes to best. Once the Archmage of Fear is released, you'll keep reliving the same five days as you use the skills you've learned -- such as the ability to breed dragons, command the dead, and use fairies effectively -- to engage in massive sprite battles on a 2D plane representing the halls of your school. Our bet is that somewhere between managing your mana and ordering your massive chimera into battle you'll forget that this isn't a current-gen game, that there are no Trophies and that there are no HD visuals. This is one of those games that just consumes your life.Get it here