In our countdown of the top 25 games of the old generation of consoles, we have gone from playing college basketball to becoming an elite assassin and even to becoming an international super spy. In case you missed this gamer dad’s list be sure and check out the Top 25 Old Gen Games: 25 – 21.

So to continue our countdown of the top 25 current generation games I present to you…

20) Yakuza 4

20th Century Italian mob stories have been best told through movies like the Godfather or the Untouchables…however for the Japanese Yakuza crime stories, there may not be a better series in film or games than the Yakuza games by Sega. In Yakuza 4, Sega bounces you around through 4 different characters, all with different motivations, skill-sets, and connections to the Japanese criminal underworld.

The reason I have put in place Yakuza 4 on the list is based off of the game going one step further in regards to gameplay and story from its predecessors. From the varying fighting styles of each of the now 4 characters to the multiple layers of Kamuocho, the main city in the game – Yakazua 4 is able to create something very few games have done well…tell a great cinematic crime story.

If its gameplay you want, the Yakuza series has plenty of it. From exciting fight sequences with brutal finishing moves, to tons and tons of mini games – you will always have something to do or go back to. Better yet, there are weapon customizations, gambling, and collectibles galore. If you have any interest in Japan, the Yakuza, or just need a good crime drama to play through, Yakuza 4 will take you there. Be sure and set aside a lot of time though because you will be fighting your way through the streets of Japan for a solid 30 to 40+ hours.

19) Dead Space

The haunting hour is almost here as October quickly approaches. There is probably no other game this generation than Dead Space, which has created so much fear and anxiety out of me. I love sci-fi horror movies like Aliens, or Event Horizon, but what those movies fail to do, which Dead Space has in spades, is total immersion and palm sweating fear. Sure you can watch a scary movie and jump from time to time, but its another thing to control your character in a darkened room, gaming headset on, knowing that when you take another step it could be your last.

Dead Space drops you on the decks of a derelict ship, the Ishimura, and its your job as part of an investigation team to a) figure out what happened and b) to make it out alive. The gameplay is done from a 3rd person stand point with no visible HUD which again helps further the players immersion.  Don’t mistaken this to be just a regular shooter because instead of the usual head shot that most games have you do, in Dead Space  you will need to shoot off the limbs from your attackers in order to stop them.

The weapons are unique, the pure sense of terror and isolation is always presence, and the game is one of the best examples of a survival horror game to have ever come out. Dead Space is game that must be played by yourself and in the dark, so come this Halloween do yourself a favor and go play this game.

18) Uncharted 3

So last November or thereabouts my original launch 60gb backward compatible Playstation 3 died….let us have a moment of silence in memory of the BEAST…

But in all serious when this small disaster struck I knew I had to act fast and pick up a new PS3.  I didn’t know which model to get but thankfully Sony had a great bundle with Uncharted 3 and a ps3 slim. Not only did I get a great piece of hardware but I also got one of the most iconic games to hit the Playstation.

If you have a Playstation then you know Nathan Drake and you know the Uncharted Series. While the game is not perfect, sorry Greg Miller over at IGN, it does tell a good story and in a very cinematic and fun way. When you throw in any Uncharted game, you know what type of experience you are going to get. You are going to get some crazy fun story with great voice acting and hilarious dialogue. You are going to get fun traversal, tons of variety in locations, and lots and lots of killing.

One of my biggest gripes with the series and Uncharted 3 as a whole is with the end of each game. For some reason Naughty Dog always has to throw in some supernatural / over-powered and over-whelming force against you. Its more a battle of wills for me to finish the game than skills and enjoyment. That being said, Uncharted 3 is a must play game that is iconic to this generation and really shows just how far games have gone throughout the years. I haven’t even mentioned the great multi-player, that I even enjoyed which is saying something.

17) Infamous

Ah yes, Infamous. A Playstation 3 exclusive that brings the power and joy of a comic book super hero to life. You play as Cole MacGrath who has been given the power to control electricity, and control it you will. I have never felt so powerful and yet so in control as I have playing as Cole in the Infamous games. The story while not the greatest still has some draw to it and has a nice twist at the end that will make you go hmmmm.

What matters most to the Infamous world though is the gameplay and for me it was a combination of things that made this game so memorable to me and one of my all time favorites. From the ability to coast through the air, climb tall buildings, or just lay waste to foes with varying electric based powers, Infamous brings a level of fun that just doesn’t come around very often.

Don’t get me started on the collectibles or specifically the shards. I wanted to clear them out and get the platinum so bad with this game, but for some damn reason I could never find the final shard. At least they fixed this issue with Infamous 2. If you love comic books, or just love 3rd person action / open world games, then Infamous is a must buy.

16) Bioshock

One of the most talked about and widely loved games of the current generation of games, Bioshock did for gaming what the Avengers did for the summer Blockbuster. Bioshock brought the awesomeness back!

Set in a 1960′s surreal undersea world of Rapture, that is part classic Americana and part mad scientists dream gone wrong. You take on the role of Jack, a plane survivor that in order to survive must help unravel and fix a designed city gone terribly wrong. What made BioShock such a revelation to gamers was a combination of three things: story, the world of Rapture, and the unique gameplay. I won’t spoil the story or speak to the world of Rapture much as its something that I really suggest you come out from under your rock and experience first hand. What I will speak to is the way it flipped the FPS world upside down. Alright that might be a bit of an exaggeration but still the fact that you could shoot and use some unique magical like powers almost simultaneously was just so enjoyable. Put that together with some RPG elements of having to build out your character with certain abilities and the choices of whether to save or destroy little sisters was just too much for the gaming world not to take notice.

Disclaimer: This best of list is one I wrote many years ago for one of my old websites that no longer exists.