2004 and the Games That Made It Amazing
Hello everyone, my name is Shaun, and I’m a brand new writer here at Fandom Fanatics, but I’ve been a video game-based writer since 2012. It’s nice to meet you all, and I have been contemplating what to write for my first article. I largely specialize in indie and retro games (Of which, I’m a huge supporter), so I decided to start with my love of retro gaming.
Ultimately, I decided to write about the games that made 2004 such an amazing year in gaming. 2004 brought a huge amount of improvements technology-wise, especially in the PC gaming sphere. The jump in technology and graphical fidelity that year was incredible. There were also a lot of noteworthy console/handheld games that were released that year as well.
It’s worth noting that I’ll largely be featuring games that I’ve actually played, and beaten, so, I may wind up leaving out some of your own favorite games, so definitely don’t take it as a slight towards those games, I more than likely never got the chance to play it.
With our introductions out of the way, let’s get this list going!
1. “Burnout 3: Takedown” by Criterion Games
Many long time fans of the Burnout franchise, like myself, consider Burnout 3: Takedown the pinnacle of the franchise, and with good reason. It was released on September 8, 2004, in the US, and was an immediate success garnering high scores from reviewers and widespread popularity among players. It’s also considered one of the greatest video games ever created by many, including myself.
For those who might not be familiar with the game, Burnout 3: Takedown is an arcade style racing game that introduced a lot of series firsts. The most notable upgrade was the introduction of the takedown system, which has since become synonymous with the Burnout franchise.
This release of the game also saw the introduction of the Road Rage game mode, which is one of my favorite game modes in the later Burnout Paradise, but I digress. In this game mode, you’re given a small window of time to wrack up enough takedowns in one go. Also added was the aftertouch feature, which allowed you to manipulate your crashed vehicle to take down opponents who may be nearby. Crash Mode also saw a return, which was first introduced in Burnout 2: Point of Impact, and with some tweaks to accommodate the Aftertouch feature.
To close out this game I’ll mention that, after Burnout 3: Takedown’s success, a year after its release, EA acquired Criterion Games in full and they’ve largely spent recent years making Need for Speed games. I’ll admit that I’m still hoping that we’ll see a new Burnout game one day. I would also love to see a remaster of the classic Burnout games as well because I would absolutely love to replay them all again. A man can dream…
2. “DOOM 3" by id Software and Activision
One thing I’ve never truly understood is the hate towards DOOM 3 that has evolved over time since it first launched. The game was a technological marvel for its time, and it’s technically the only game in the DOOM franchise that can be called an actual horror game.
DOOM 3 was built using id Software’s id Tech 4 engine which wound up being a pretty humongous upgrade from the previous version of the engine. It featured an amazing lighting system, which some excellent shadow work, and vastly improved animations, which you could plainly see in the game itself.
It’s also worth noting that DOOM 3 was also designed as a remake of the original DOOM, and there was a lot of internal strife regarding that decision. The owners of ID at the time, Kevin Cloud, and Adrian Carmack, were against the idea of remaking the original DOOM, but the vast majority of the team behind the game believed remaking DOOM was the best course of action following the success of Return to Castle Wolfenstein.
To close out this game, I’ll say that DOOM 3 is actually among my favorite horror games. It tends to get a lot of hate these days, but I still enjoy the game quite a lot, and I even wrote a positive review for the BFG Edition a few months ago when I replayed the game and its expansion packs.
3. “Fable” by Lionhead Studios and Microsoft
Fable has been a very long time favorite of mine, but I didn’t get the chance to play the game until the PC version of Fable: The Lost Chapters was released in 2005. The original release of the game is still a pretty fantastic game, but The Lost Chapters definitely elevated the game to new heights.
I imagine many of you are probably familiar with Fable, but for those who aren’t, I’ll do a quick recap. Fable follows the story of a young boy whose family is murdered during a bandit raid but is saved by a wizard to be trained as a hero. The game features the ability to change not only your character's appearance but also how the world views you through your actions. This is an evolution from Lionhead’s previous series Black & White, and you’re able to be good or evil on a whim. The game also allowed you to romance an NPC, get married, invest in property, and play mini-games, if you so choose. The game’s world may have been relatively small, but at the time it felt like a huge sprawling adventure and I wound up loving every second of it.
The game wound up being hotly anticipated leading up to its release, namely because of Peter Molyneux’s famous hype building and wound up being receiving positive reviews from both critics and players alike. The game also went on to be remade as Fable Anniversary but admittedly, I think the original The Lost Chapters release is far superior to the remake, not only in appearance but in gameplay. The game also saw the release of an even better Fable II and a so-so threequel in Fable III. There’s also a brand new game in the Fable franchise being developed by the creators of the Forza series, Playground Games, which I’m definitely excited about.
4. “Far Cry” by Crytek and Ubisoft
Far Cry was a pretty landmark release when it came to graphical prowess and fidelity. It was the first game to utilize Crytek’s CryEngine, and with it came one of the most detailed and beautiful open worlds that had been created. Far Cry 1 is largely overshadowed by Far Cry 3 these days, but if you play it today, the game holds up incredibly well for a game that was released in 2004.
Far Cry was essentially the Crysis of its day because you needed a pretty powerful PC to be able to run it at max settings, but if you could, it was an impressive sight to behold. Another area that was really impressive for its time was its AI design. If you’re spotted, the enemy will often signal for reinforcements and they’ll work as a team to outmaneuver you during the fight, requiring quick thinking and stealth on the player’s part. Sound also plays a large role in the game as well, and you can often tell where enemies are simply by the sound of their footsteps.
As you all know, Far Cry has had a pretty lengthy legacy, spawning numerous spin-offs and sequels. I’ll admit that, after Far Cry 3, the series wound up falling into the same tired trends and the series could definitely use some new and innovative ideas at this point. Every subsequent game has felt like they copied Far Cry 3 to milk its success into oblivion and back. Still, Far Cry 1 is still wholly worth playing, even today, and it holds up well despite its age.
5. “Grand Theft Auto”: San Andreas by Rockstar Games
When I first played through Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas back when it first launched, I was pretty blown away by how huge the game world was, and how much customization the game had compared to its predecessor, Vice City.
I’m pretty sure just about every gamer has at least heard of GTA San Andreas at this point because it’s pretty synonymous with the GTA series as one of the greatest entries in the series. It also marked many firsts in the series, and wound up being quite controversial, like all GTA games. The Hot Coffee feature comes to mind as being the biggest controversy to stem from this release.
The game puts you in the shoes of CJ, an African American man who returns to San Andreas to bury his mother after she is murdered. This sets the stage for a lengthy journey that takes CJ and his crew through 3 separate cities, and ultimately reveals one of the biggest plot twists in gaming, at the time anyway.
The game introduced many unique features such as car customization, character skill progression, the ability to mold your character through exercise or overeating, and general character customization, like buying new clothes and haircuts, which ultimately created a meme of how hair magically grew on CJ during a haircut. The game has since become a pretty large melting pot of memes, but it was an utter blast the first time through.
It has since received a modern remake in the form of a Definitive Edition, but I’ve not played it yet, and I don’t really plan to, to be completely honest. I’m probably one of the few people who doesn’t get all that hyped about the GTA series these days. After 10+ years of GTA 5, I’ve lost interest a bit. I still have fond memories of the early GTA games like San Andreas, but I don’t really play them as much today.
6. “Jak 3" by Naughty Dog Studios and Sony Computer Entertainment
These days, the Jak and Daxter series has largely been overshadowed by Naughty Dog’s more recent outings Uncharted and The Last of Us, but for those who grew up with the series like I did, we have very fond memories of Jak’s platforming adventures.
Jak 3 was the conclusion of Jak’s adventures and followed Jak on his adventures through the Wasteland, which is a huge sprawling desert region of the unnamed land that Jak inhabits. Much like its predecessor Jak II, Jak 3 combines elements of platforming, driving, and shooting and features a large open world for you to explore. This one also features a counter to Jak’s dark form, known as Light Jak which offers many unique defensive abilities.
Jak 3 wound up being a pretty popular addition to the franchise garnering positive reviews across the board. It was frequently praised for its animation, art style, and high production values. The game went on to being re-released in an HD Remaster collection for the PS3 and PSVita, as well as being ported to the PS4. I’m secretly hoping that a modern remaster or remake of all three Jak and Daxter games gets released, but since they keep remastering The Last of Us needlessly, I don’t see that happening anytime soon, but I can dream.
7. “The Sims 2” by Maxis and EA
The Sims 2 was among the first of many modern PC games that I wound up getting into and it inevitably paved the way for me to becoming a full-time PC gamer.
Admittedly, the game ran like utter garbage on our HP computer at the time. It took upwards of 20–30 minutes just to load the main menu, let alone an actual house, but it was some of the most fun I’d had in PC gaming since I first got into The Sims 1 and SimCity 3000. It’s actually kind of funny looking back on it, because I would be sitting there eagerly waiting for the game to load, and today when I boot it up, it loads in less than 2 seconds. You have to love technological advancement, am I right?
I still play the game from time as well, and personally, I still think it’s the best game in The Sims franchise to date. Still a great game, despite it being close to 20 years old now.
Well folks, that concludes this article, and I thank you all for taking the time to read it. Admittedly, there are still a lot of games from this year that I haven’t played or beaten yet, but I’ll list some honorable mentions for big titles released that year below.
Honorable Mentions:
Armored Core: Nexus, Call of Duty: Finest Hour, Dragon Quest VIII, Evil Genius, FlatOut, Gran Turismo 4, Half Life 2, Katamari Damacy, The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap, Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater, Ninja Gaiden, Onimusha 3: Demon Siege, Pokemon FireRed/LeafGreen, Rome: Total War, Shin Megami Tensei: Digital Devil Saga, Tales of Rebirth, Unreal Tournament 2004, Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines, Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War, Xenosaga: Episode II, Zoo Tycoon 2
Thanks a lot for taking the time to read the article folks, and I hope you enjoyed this tour through the year 2004, and my mid-teen years. I look forward to writing more for you all soon.
-Shaun/Daily Game Bytes
