Arcade · 1980 "The whole thing actually started with me walking around arcades watching how many boys were playing and the fact that all the machines were about killing aliens, tanks, or people. Girls were simply not interested, and I suddenly had motivation for my work: I wanted game arcades to shed this dark, sinister image, and it seemed to me that the way to raise the atmosphere of a place is to entice girls to come in. [So] the whole purpose of Pac-Man was to target women and couples, and get a different type of player involved. "So there I was, wondering what sort of things women would look for in a videogame. I sat in cafes and listened to what they were talking about; mostly it was fashion and boyfriends. Neither of those was really the stuff of a good videogame. Then they started talking about food--about cakes and sweets and fruit--and it hit me that food and eating would be the thing to concentrate on to get the girls interested." --Toru Iwatani, Pac-Man creator, in an interview with Times Online "If I may be so bold as to compare Pac-Man to the Beatles' 'Yesterday'...in the same way that 'Yesterday' is the standard [for a good song] in the music industry, I also believe Pac-Man has become the standard in the game industry. For this reason, I believe Pac-Man will withstand the test of time and continue to be enjoyed by gamers in the years to come." --Toru Iwatani in an interview with EGM Over 10 Billion Served Videogame record keepers Twin Galaxies believe Pac-Man has been played over 10 billion times in the 20th century, based on a study they did.

Virtua Fighter Arcade · 1993 "The boxy characters and stark arenas look bizarre now, but back in the day this stuff looked like the future. Which it was. But VF's quality wasn't based on visuals--spectacular gameplay (a simple three-button setup masks oceanic depth) and real-world fighting styles (no fireballs or babalities here) truly advanced the genre." --S.B.

Super Mario Kart Super NES · 1992 "Trigger a speed-boosting 'shroom right before you hit the jump bump in this game's first Ghost Valley course and you'll soar to the other side of the track, shaving seconds off your time. Try finding shortcuts that cool in Gran Turismo." --C.B.

Pitfall! Atari 2600 · 1982 "The working title was Jungle Runner, and it came dangerously close to going to market with that name. The second choice was Zulu Gold. Without Cheech and Chong as spokespeople, I don't think that name would have worked." --David Crane, creator of Pitfall!

Halo: Combat Evolved Xbox · 2001 "Halo is awesome because it's solid and familiar. It's not necessarily groundbreaking--much of the fiction is derivative. But, it's put together well and it knew exactly what to borrow and what to invent." --Randy Pitchford, president of Gearbox Software (Halo for PC) "Ask any hardcore PC first-person shooter fan how to play their favorite genre and they'll always respond 'keyboard and mouse.' And yet Halo controls flawlessly on the Xbox controller, proving to an entire generation that the genre is doable on a console. Millions of gamers can't be wrong. "[But] Halo didn't become a hit simply by having great controls. Bungie kept a clear and obvious visual consistency for the player; you could always figure out where to go, what your objectives were, and how you were affecting the enemies' artificial intelligence. Add in a memorable theme song, some great vehicles, and simple but deep multiplayer and you've got yourself a breakout phenomenon." --Cliff Bleszinski, lead designer at Epic (Unreal, Gears of War)

GoldenEye 007 Nintendo 64 · 1997 "[Back when] PC shooters [ruled the genre], a company called Rare proved that you could, in fact, make a great console FPS. GoldenEye wowed everyone with a stellar single-player campaign and an addictive splitscreen multiplayer mode. The world would never be the same." --Cliff Bleszinski, designer of Unreal

Donkey Kong Arcade · 1981 "If there had not been Donkey Kong, I might be living a different life today. I don't know if it would be better or worse, but I like being surrounded by Donkey Kong and Mario and Pikmin and my other friends. [Maybe] it is about time to create new companions...." --DK creator Shigeru Miyamoto

Super Mario Bros. 3 NES · 1990 "I still remember the first time I ran, then launched into the air to follow a secret trail of coins hidden in the sky. Mario can now fly! From that very first level to the airship armadas at the end, SMB3 is unforgettable. Many (including me) still argue this is the best Mario game ever made." --Shoe

Adventure Atari 2600 · 1978 "Before there was Zelda, there was Adventure. I played this game so much that I could actually navigate the entire game--including the catacombs--with my eyes shut. It was the first time a game felt like its own little self-contained world for you to explore. And they aren't ducks, dammit, they're dragons." --M.M.

Metal Gear Solid PlayStation · 1998 "[Metal Gear creator Hideo] Kojima really knows how to create characters and surprise players. It shouldn't surprise you that Metal Gear Solid was a huge inspiration for Splinter Cell. It was a pioneer for both the genre and the quality of directing, and I'm always flattered when people make comparisons between the two series." --Mathieu Ferland, executive producer of Splinter Cell "MGS brought story, script, characters, voice acting, and cinemas to amazing levels. It was not only a landmark--it's a guiding light to the future of videogames." --Denis Dyack, head of Silicon Knights (MGS: The Twin Snakes)

Metroid NES · 1987 "When we were working on the original Metroid, we didn't have much development experience. We were trying to establish a brand-new type of game: the sci-fi adventure. Even though we [had to feel] our way to completion, we never lost our ambition. "Now, looking back at how we were at that time, our attitude was like that of Samus Aran, who had to rush headlong into the vast and dangerous planet Zebes without hesitation. "We will keep on fighting and evolving with her in order to reach the goal that nobody has ever seen before." --Yoshio Sakamoto, director of Metroid