‘My Favourite Games’ is a regular MossRanking feature which gives us a chance to get to know our fellow Spelunkers a little better. In each edition, we put the spotlight on one member of the community, as they pick three of their most treasured video games ever and give their reasons why. Featured members are allowed to pick whatever games they want... except for Spelunky. The tenth entry is also the season one finale, and who more fitting to speak to than MossRanking boss saturnin55. A vital member of the community, Saturnin's contributions over the years cannot be understated -- and he is an excellent Spelunker to boot. Here are his three games... “As a young 5- or 6-year-old, I wanted to fight dragons, solve puzzles, and save the world. When I discovered that I could do all of that in Adventure, I was hooked!” Adventure (Atari 2600, 1980) For Saturnin’s first game, we have to travel back to 1980. Roguelikes may be commonplace nowadays, but nearly 40 years ago, this Atari 2600 game had randomised elements which encouraged repeated playthroughs. Adventure sees the player tasked with going out into an open-ended environment and bringing a chalice back to the castle. “There are three dragons -- green, yellow, and red -- each more and more ‘intelligent’ and difficult to kill,” Saturnin explains. “You also can’t move more than one object at a time, so being without your sword is risky -- but it is often needed because you have to juggle a bunch of items.” Speaking about the game’s replayability, Saturnin describes: “The items are coloured keys for each of the three castles: sword, magnet, bridge, and chalice. When playing on the hardest difficulty, the starting locations of the items are randomised throughout the four mazes, three castles, and the many paths. Also, a bat roams around and shuffles the items, and can steal whatever you are holding. So each game is different. “It even had a fog of war effect in some mazes!” Most impressive for its time, for sure. “I can say without a doubt that playing this game opened up a world that fueled my imagination and got me in fantasy. It got me interested in everything Dungeons & Dragons-related for the rest of my life,” Saturnin adds. “Playing Adventure today, knowing what we all know today, would probably be quite boring. But if you place yourself back in the early ‘80s, it wasn’t. At least for me!” “One of the first games I bought with my own money, and it is still today the game I have the best memories of.” Crystalis (NES, 1990) While many NES owners were enjoying The Legend of Zelda, Saturnin was charmed by SNK’s action RPG named Crystalis -- and it all started with the packaging. “I basically bought the game blindly, looking at the box and thinking it looked cool,” he says. “I bought this game knowing next to nothing, and I was blown away by the amount of content the game had. So many quests, and everything about it felt right and kept me captivated. It was an all-around surprise to discover I had such a game to play.” In the game, the amnesiac protagonist sets out to combine the four elemental swords into the legendary Crystalis -- and defeat the main villain. One of Crystalis’ greatest strengths lies in its mechanics and how well it plays. “The controls are so smooth compared to most similar games of the time,” Saturnin explains. “You can move in any direction and change direction quickly, unlike in The Legend of Zelda which had more rigid (and painful) controls. The character in Crystalis moves quite fast, too. I remember spending a long time playing this game, exploring dungeons, figuring the puzzles out, and leveling up. “There were a lot of items, puzzles, magics, bosses -- and the music is great, too! There is a lot to explore.” “Since playing this, I’ve been interested in Ancient China history. The movie Red Cliff -- in which you see many of the main characters -- is one of my favourites of all time because of the connection I have with this game.” Destiny of an Emperor (NES, 1990) Saturnin’s final pick is the strategy game Destiny of an Emperor. “I fell in love with this game because of the unique combat mechanics and the deep historical plot which is based on Romance of the Three Kingdoms with Liu Bei, Zhang Fei, and Guan Yu,” he shares. “The game is quite long, has a rich map to explore, and has many caves and fortified cities.” Destiny of an Emperor is a title that was ahead of its time in 1990. Although the player starts off with only a few units, they can recruit unique generals -- often through bribery of money or horses -- after defeating them and their armies in battle. This adds to 150 playable characters. “You can have up to seven generals in your active army, but up to 70 in total in reserve,” Saturnin says. “Some generals are more into magic, others are more melee type. Boss battles are quite tactical and require a lot of micromanagement each turn. I just loved that I could do different styles of combat, and it was very rewarding.” Much care was given to ensure that the 150 generals actually felt like individuals, as Saturnin explains. “They all had their own specific artwork and abilities, which made the game even cooler. And that they could betray you or you could have notorious bad guys join your party made it really unique.” Honourable Mentions: Uncharted Waters (NES, 1991), Romance of the Three Kingdoms II (SNES, 1991), The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1992), Tecmo Super Bowl (NES, 1991), Baseball Stars (NES, 1989), Final Fantasy II (SNES, 1991), The Faery Tale Adventure (Amiga 500, 1987). 'My Favourite Games' goes on hiatus as the All Shortcuts + Olmec Tournament kicks off on Friday, September 8. Season two will start later this year. 'My Favourite Games' season 1 in full: saturnin55 (#10) SAIBOT (#9) MrEikono (#8) Kazzy (#7) Konato_K (#6) ShinGraywords (#5) Meowmixmix (#4) MikeIsMyIke (#3) Twiggle (#2) Kinnijup (#1)