Invalid characterset or character set not supported The Top 10 "Whoa!" Introductory Levels





The Top 10 "Whoa!" Introductory Levels
May 13, 2008

October 11, 2006
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Update 2008: Contra: Hard Corps; Apollo Justice; Space Megaforce; Project: Snowblind

First impressions last. For every video game, this holds especially true for me. Being a veteran gamer for 15 years now, I have been exposed to many quality titles, and for some of them, the opening level shows some of the most inspiring moments ever. After playing for the first few minutes you begin to salivate, your hunger intensifies, and you feel compelled continue on to the meat of the game. These games hook you in right from the start. But enough talk, here are my top 10 intro levels, have at you.

10:Space Pirate Frigate - Metroid Prime (GC)
I begin with the first 3D instalment of a most wonderful franchise. Metroid Prime was an all new genre in itself - the First Person Adventure - and many wondered how it would work out with the 2D to 3D transition. Well the opening Space Station level was a nice way to introduce the new control style and interface. The ambience was appropriately brooding and mysterious as Samus seeked to find out what was going wrong there, dead creatures and all scattered about some impressive architecture. The first boss encounter occurs in this level and then in classic Metroid-style, it is time for your swift escape. A mini-episode in itself and whets your appetite for more to come.

9:Tanker - Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS2)
The famous Tanker level featuring Solid Snake is definitely one of the most memorable. Many got to taste it early with the demo bundled with Z.O.E. and it definitely warrants as the best demo I've previewed ever. Building on the successful formula shown in the prequel, MGS2 showed impressive graphics, incredible animation, interesting AI, unsurpassed interactivity (at the time) and a lot of spunk. And this was only in the opening Tanker level which lasted what.. 1-2 hours? But it really was an amazingly immersive experience, so good that more than a few were extremely disappointed at how the rest of game ditched Snake as the main protagonist.

8:Mako Reactor No. 1 - Final Fantasy VII (PS)
RPGs have a tendency to start real slowww... But in the system-seller FF7, things were hectic right from the get go. You are thrust into a covert bombing mission with urgency of the utmost importance. The music is pumping and you blast through the random battles briskly. As you make your way through some impressive pre-rendered backdrops of the Mako power plant, you eventually reach you goal, face your first boss, and then it is time to jet out and blow the place before the situation can get further compromised. A great fast-paced prelude to one of the best RPGs with an amazing legacy.

7:A Crazy Party - Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening (PS2)
If your jaw has not dropped within the first half hour, maybe you should take some antidepressants. The opening cinema is utterly ridiculous action which will make you lol, wtf and o.O all at the same time. And following on as you gain control of the main man Dante, you will be pulling off some of the craziest, stylish actions ever seen in any visual medium. A bunch of demons try to tear up your crib eh? Well then lets take it to them by smacking that one into a pulp, thrusting him into those two at the last minute, doing a backflip to avoid the one behind you and coming down with a powerful downward thrust, jumping on his floored body and riding him like a skateboard while spinning around and shooting up all who get in your way. Yes. So much carnage in just the first level. Satisfaction guaranteed.

6:Bloodlines & Castle Entrance - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS)
My favourite series of all time deserves credit where credit is due. I love all the opening moments of nearly all the 20-odd games, but if I had to pick one, you guessed it, it has to be SotN. I deem the "opening" to be split into 2. First you have the re-enaction of the final boss battle as witnessed in the direct prequel, Rondo of Blood; this must be the strangest way to begin a game! After those first intense minutes, you begin your main quest as Alucard, son of Dracula. You enter the dark castle and the air is quiet except for a faint breeze. As you fight of some of the monstrous residents, soon the lights come on and the music sweeps you of you feet in grand fashion. Welcome to Castlevania!

5:Siberia, 1990 - TimeSplitters 2 (PS2)
The opening level here is clearly a tribute to GoldenEye 007 for the N64. TS2 introduced a mission-based single player game into the series, and to start it all off, they begin with an updated rendition of the classic Dam level with all the quirkiness of TimeSplitters imbued within. When playing on the medium/hard difficulty, this (long) mission has elements of stealth, tactics, wackiness and all-out shooting. You infiltrate the dam, make your way to obtain classified info, have a run-in with some mutants, and finally make your way out to be extracted only to find yourself toe-to-toe with a hulking battle-copter! Thrills and spills aplenty; this is one solid, hefty first mission Sergeant!

4:Arkengelsk, USSR - GoldenEye 007 (N64)
To follow on from the "remake" I now bring you the "original"! The first mission here is comprised of 3 sections: infiltrating the dam, wrecking havoc within the top-secret facility, and finally making your escape via plane. GoldenEye was the first FPS to really make your objectives important; the goal was not to just make it to the end, but to accomplish your prescribed tasks whilst maintaining your secret agent status. This opening mission in Arkengelsk closely followed the film, and really did make you feel like you were in the shoes of the legendary James Bond. Follow the directions of your superiors, use whatever means you have to carry out your mission, improvise an escape. An intense start to a game which never lets down until the very end.

3:Bob-omb Battlefield - Super Mario 64 (N64)
Everyone was expecting big things from Mario & co. with the advent of the N64, and nearly everyone had their expectations shattered with the revolutionary outcome. Super Mario 64 was the first full 3D-platformer that did just about everything right, and in the introductory Bob-omb Battlefield course greatness was highly evident. These was a wide expanse of land, chaos ensuing, bright, bold colours, and lots of tasks to accomplish as made your way to the King of the hill at the top of the hill! The battlefield was a brilliantly realised realm straight out of a cartoon, and not only did it look good, sound good and play good, but it felt damn good too. Even to this day (especially with my portable DS) I still get fuzzy feelings upon entering this benchmark level.

2:Aegean Sea - God of War (PS2)
Wow! This introductory level staged on a ship at a stormy sea is the most visually breathtaking start I have ever seen. The presentation is unbelievable. As Kratos you make your way around the bombarded, crumbing vessel laying hurt to any monsters that cross your path. Water is spilling in due to all the damage on the sides, the thundery overcast is ominous, the most direct routes are breaking apart. All hell is breaking loose and you have to stop the damn Hydra from totalling the only thing separating you from the endless sea. Words can only express so much, you must experience it for yourself to appreciate just how epic the whole scenario is. The opening level here is better than 90% of action movies climaxes, and so good that it is a shame the rest of this bloody, brilliant game cannot match it.

1:The Highway - Mega Man X (SNES)
My number one goes to a game which does not have any fancy post-2000-era graphics, but still remains a classic to this day in my mind. Mega Man X was the original 2D action, before Capcom went on a rehash spree. I fondly remember the opening city stage, making your way as a more adult-like Mega Man through robot after robot, until reaching the cause of the chaos, Vile. You face off against your nemesis, but at your current state, he is too much for you too handle. All hope seems lost and then bang! - your teammate Zero helps you out the pinch and forces Vile to retreat for now. You need to gain more power if you hope to defeat Sigma, Vile and the whole host of Maverick warriors. It is now time to begin your quest. Simple, but very effective. Backed by an awesome BGM track and some neat animations this scene plays out like the start of something much bigger, and look at where we are now, because it has! I'm sure many would agree that this introductory level is a classic in all respects, and I'm thrilled to see that Capcom thinks so too. Maverick Hunter X has done a great 2.5D representation of it, and the more recent Mega Man ZX has done a new take on it as well.

So that's all folks. Those are my top 10 introductory levels over the past 15 years of gaming. It was an extremely tough call to make between the top 3 especially - heck it was already tough to single out games out of my top 10 the the first place! There are some other great beginnings worth mentioning such as Medal of Honor: Rising Sun, Time Crisis 3 and um, the rest of the Castlevania games :p But these stand out in my mind for many reasons, be it they look incredible, the experience is surreal, the gameplay is inspiring, or just that it is so complete that I can happily replay the (not always) brief beginning anytime, anyplace, anywhere. Thanks for reading.

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