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Hello YouTube, it's Tango Echo Alpha here, armed with my cup of tea as always. As with
movies, video games have to grab their audience right from the start. A great introduction
is so outstanding that switching the console or PC off is absolutely out of the question
- whether this is a result of a simple cut-scene or the first few moments of gameplay itself....
Some games start with a blood-soaked ***, grabbing players by the throat and hitting
them with non-stop action, while others pull us into their world gradually, building an
immersive atmosphere with a strong story or characterisation. The best openings are unforgettable,
and powerful enough to make you lose track of time as you get sucked into the game. Here
are five of my favourites.... Number 1 - Batman Arkham Asylum. Sometimes it's easy to forget
that Arkham Asylum was released six years ago - the intro to the game absolutely nails
it. For long-time fans of the Bat, the first few moments into Batman’s world with the
then-cutting-edge graphics is stunning enough - but how the game drags you in was a real
master stroke.. Beginning with a cut-scene of Batman pulling up to the infamous asylum,
Arkham Asylum starts with a common scenario: the Dark Knight bringing the Joker back to
Arkham – yet again. Obviously, things don't go to plan, but as the game begins with Batman
taking the Joker back to his cell, we’re given a clear glimpse of the asylum, and are
introduced to the game's mechanics as we go. Arkham Asylum boasts a dark, brooding, brilliant
opening that sets up what is in my opinion, the best Batman game ever made. Number 2 - Far
Cry 3. Far Cry 3's opening is so memorable and so compelling because the introduction
takes the player from what appears to be enjoying a holiday with friends to being captured by
a group of militia on a tropical island. The game drags you into its world in no small
part because of what is probably one of the best villains ever - I'm talking Hans Gruber
in Die Hard kind of level of villain. The game begins with you trying to escape the
clutches of your captors and this process integrates an in game tutorial which is totally
seemless. Some time after your escape, you will realise that you've just liberated half
the island, completed a bucket load of missions and will be wondering where all the time has
gone! For me, Far Cry 3 is easily the best game out of the Far Cry series - simply a
must play! Number 3 - Mass Effect 2. Mass Effect had to feature on this list somewhere,
somehow - the only question was which game out of the trilogy? For me and many others,
Mass Effect 2 is the best game out of the trilogy, starting with the destruction of
the Normandy and what appears to be the loss of Shepherd. But what really sucks you into
Mass Effect 2 is that the choices you made in the first game carry over into the second
- and continue to have an effect on the storyline as you progress through the game. If for some
unimaginable reason you hadn't played the first game, then Mass Effect 2 opens with
a comic style storyboard, allowing you to make the choices as if you had played the
first game - the options you choose in that storyboard set the second game up. The Mass
Effect trilogy is brilliant, an epic trilogy which any gamer owes it to themselves to play.
Just be ready to be sucked in from the get go and lose many hours to these games! Number
4 - Bioshock. Regarded by many as one of the best games in the series, Irrational's masterpiece
is a dark, atmospheric experience that takes place in a secret underwater world. The opening
is amazing, putting players right into the middle of an extreme life-or-death situation
that not only shows off the game's impressive visuals, but also sets up the experience yet
to come. Players start on a plane during a night flight but the plane suddenly crashes
into water, leaving the player stranded in the middle of nowhere - surrounded by the
burning wreckage. As your character swims around the sinking plane, they encounter a
mysterious lighthouse. As players reach it, they’re taking their first steps into a
mysterious world filled with bizarre creations, metal hulks with drills instead of hands and
freaky children with glowing eyes and needles. The first sight of Rapture, a failed city
under the sea, is a real wonder to behold - and it remains without equal, even today.
BioShock’s opening establishes a sinister tone early on, with the scares and twists
continuing until the game’s grand finale. Number 5 - Fallout 3. Whilst Fallout 4’s
opening gave players a chance to experience the world before the nuclear bombs fell, Fallout
3’s intro is arguably better constructed. After a brief cut-scene that sets up the basic
premise, the game takes us to the hero’s entrance into the world (and life itself).
How many games start with the main character's birth? How many disguise the gender and name-selection
options as parents learning about their newly-born child? This is all followed by multiple moments
from the character’s early life, including first steps and a birthday party. It is an
ingenius way to not only introduce the character and world, but also to ease players into the
gameplay mechanics. I
hope you've enjoyed this video - let me know in the comments section below whether you
agree with my favourites or not - and why. If you have some favourites I've missed let
me know. I'm Tango Echo Alpha, armed with my cup of tea and I will see you all in the
next video - bye now!