I'm suprised no one's mentioned the "father of modern FPS's" according to some people.


I've only played one or two levels of the original Doom, but I know it was a classic in the minds of gamers everywhere. The thing that kept it going was the gameplay - not the fancy graphics or weapons, etc.
I'm most familiar with Doom 3 though. It doesn't match up to the classic, but it's still pretty good. After beating it more than 10 times, I've practically memorized the entire game, so the monsters poping out here and there aren't as scary anymore ... unless it's with headphones in the middle of the night. Pretty cool plot, going to hell and all. Here are some random pictures, hopefully you can tell which is which.


While I'm on the topic of scary games, there's another one that's worth mentioning.
F.E.A.R.The next game to give me a decent scare since my first playthrough of Doom 3. The story was pretty good, playing usually involved shooting a ton of guys, some scary scenes, shooting a ton of guys, end of level. With a good graphics card, the slow-mo effects were amazing, but the enviornments got repetative and sometimes dull. The expansion packs were a plus for me, basically the same kind of action in the original F.E.A.R. with another 8-10 hours for both.
I apoligize for the massiveness of this post, but I feel there's one more game that would leave a hole somewhere inside if I didn't mention it. A game ahead of its time, and one that I won't soon forget. It led to countless mods, expansions, and sequels.
Half Life 2