10 PC games EVERY PC gamer should play

New to the PC? Step inside….

Welcome to the wonderful world of PC gaming. Take a look around. 3… 2…. 1… You’re overwhelmed aren’t you? You’re just looking at the literally thousands of titles your friends who do play on PC have talked about and those you have never even heard of and wondering just what you have gotten yourself into.

But take heart, young one. We are here to help. Below is a list of 10 PC games to get you into the spirit of the platform. This list was NOT easy to compile and infact took help from a friend to complete. In the end, we managed to get down to 10 suggestions with the following in mind:

1. The games in this list must be easy to get. We could not in all good conscience make new gamers go scouring over eBay and half.com for old and rare games. No one wants to scare away new players like that, since as I said, we are here to help.
2. These games represent a wide range of the kinds of games available to PC gamers. No list comprising mainly FPS, RTS, or MMOs will have something to please everyone, so a lot of effort went into assuring as many different genres and sources were covered as possible.
3. This being a PC list, all possible efforts were made to try to pick out games that are ONLY on the PC. Sometimes, this proved impossible since the game was too good not to include, but where this is to introduce players to PC gaming this was a standard we strived for (and for the most part achieved).

And now, the games ALL PC gamers should play…

Portal: A first person puzzle game that asks you to bend the laws of physics to your whim and gives you the tools to do so, Portal proves itself to be fun, addictive, and maddening at the exact same time. Yes this game is on the consoles as well, but when you add custom levels to the picture, some of which have proven good enough they were released as a paid DLC for the 360 (Portal: Still Alive), this game had to make the list. (Available on Steam.)

Sam & Max Seasons:  Funny, smart, and full of all the psychosis any warped mind could want, TellTale Games created a masterpiece when they rebooted the Sam & Max franchise. Not only is this a great example of what a good point and click adventure has to offer, but it both re-established the genre AND showed the world just how you make Episodic Games work! (Available on Steam and from Telltale Games directly.)

Dawn of War Series: When gamers think about what genres PCs and only PCs have down pat, RTSs tend to make the short list. So this list definitely could not go without an example of these games. Dawn of War came to the scene with a bang quickly becomming one of the best series of RTS games available. This tradition continues today with Dawn of War 2. Take your pick, just make sure you get your feet wet in one of these magnificent titles. (Available on Steam.)

Deus Ex: This title made the list almost completely on one word… customizability. Your stats, abilities, and weapons are all customized by you to the point that no two people will necessarily be even playing the same style FPS by the end of the game. For me, the game quickly became about stealth. Someone else might make it about big guns and charging head long in… others may yet have another pather through the game. Add this to one of the best conspiracy stories in a video game to back everything and this is an old classic I could not reccomend enough to anyone. (Available on Steam)

Civilizations 4: Global Domination games have for the longest time been a PC only realm, so it was a no brainer to include the latest installment from the king of the genre into this list. Be ready to watch time slip away. This title is unrushed and involving. Once again, expansion packs abound in this title, letting you take your game to any time-era you like, including space. Highly reccomended you enjoy this title with friends. (Available on Steam and in stores as this is typed.)

World of Goo: What list of PC games would be complete without at least one indie game on it? Xbox Arcade may try to encouage these games being developed for it, and might even buy into distributing a few, but PC is king here, and among the best of the best is World of Goo. This physics game will ask you to build structures out of “goo” in order to get the living goo itself to the next location. This game is fun, artsy, and addictive as hell. (Available on Steam and Impulse.)

Diablo 2: If there is any one game out there that people think of when they think of PCs, it’s Diablo 2. This old classic still holds up today and has a massive fanbase of gamers STILL playing online. Hop on and join your fellow players in their attempts to stop Diablo’s diabolical plans as a team… or go crazy and kill your fellow heros for honor and the sheer hell of it. Just have a blast in Hell! (Available in stores as this is typed and on Blizzard’s own online store.)

Half-life family: Since it first dawned it’s head, Half-Life has been synonymous with amazing straight-up first person shooter gaming. Since that day, the series has spawned 3 direct sequels and MANY expansions for both. The main games have also been ported to PS3, 360, and PS2… however, the definative versions are still the PC. After all, the official expansions and user mods only live here in PC land, indefinitely expanding the Half-Life library for any fan who cares to click download. If you try only one FPS game, you could do little better then to make any title here your choice. (Available on Steam.)

Sins of a Solar Empire: You have now seen Civilization and the conquest games it represents. You have seen Dawn of War and the RTS games it represents. But what happens when you mix them? Sins of a Solar Empire is your answer: a hard core game with a steap learning curve and based primarily in the playing online… and it happens to be a hell of alot of fun. Gather some friends in front of their screens and be ready for an all-nighter. LAN party recommended! (Available on Impulse)

Plants vs. Zombies: And last but not least, we have to cover a very “dirty word” these days: Casual games. All casual means is that it’s designed for shorter sessions, and despite the reputation, there are some very fun games to look at. And this takes us to our last game in the list: Plants vs Zombies. In this tower-defense style game, you get to be the gardener for some VERY tough plants. Tough enough, in fact, to repell a full out zombie invasion. Highly addicting, and fun as hell, this game only leaves one question….

Is there a zombie on your lawn? (Available on Steam, Impulse, and any place that sells casual games.)

So there you have it. Ten games that should give you a good idea what playing on a PC is all about and maybe even help you pick out your favorite types of games. Please play these, enjoy them, and from me and my friend Matt…. welcome to the PC gaming world.

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