The thing you remember most about a game once you’re finished with it can vary greatly depending on the experience you’ve had. For instance, it could be an encounter with a specific NPC, an interesting quest or, if you’re unlucky, a game-breaking bug.
However, arguably the two points of any story-driven game most likely to leave an imprint on you are the beginning and the ending, the latter of which can certainly colour your experience if it leaves you unsatisfied.
That said, it’s the former that currently has some gamers on ResetEra talking, with one player having initiated a discussion about the best intro sequences in gaming.
Which game has delivered your favourite curtain-raising clip?
The ResetEra thread on this topic was kicked off by a post from user Emwitus, who revealed that coming across a video of God of War 3’s opening in a thread about God of War Ragnarok had reignited their love for it, leading them to wonder whether it might be the best intro cinematic of all time.
With Emwitus having invited others to nominate their own favourite intros, a number quickly obliged, either declaring their own love for the God of War series' ability to launch you into its world of myths and legends or providing examples from a range of genres and titles.
For example, JRPGs were well represented, with SkinnyIndonesian declaring that, for them, it’s a tie between the intros to Persona 4 and Persona 5. Meanwhile, SolidSnakeUS opted for Final Fantasy 8’s preamble as one of their picks, Shoot declared their love for the way Final Fantasy 14’s Shadowbringers expansion kicks things off and KingFrost92 went for a different expansion for that game in the form of Heavensward.
A few western RPGs also featured in the thread, with user hydruxo nominating the first Mass Effect game’s interstellar intro, while Ostron, Henry Parrish and FarSight XR-20 shouted out three different flavours of Fallout intro, including the 1997 original’s haunting zoom-out, Fallout 3’s version of it and Fallout 4’s black and white flashback to a time before nuclear devastation.
Also on the list were the likes of The Last of Us, Bioshock and Uncharted 2, all of which go for a similar cinematic style to God of War, but make sure to ground it in their own themes.
Regardless of which game intros have perfectly served to supercharge your level of hype as you embark on a fresh adventure, make sure to follow us for some great guides that’ll help you to master God of War Ragnarok.