Xenogears. It was a life-changing game for me. The concepts and philosophy it introduced to my teenage brain tangibly altered my world view over time. It broke me out of a mold I didn’t even know I was in. Nothing compares to it for me. As a game, it’s well made, but has it’s share of sticking points. But it did for me something no other game has.

I’ve had similar feelings of wonder and awe in other games but not the same life altering impact to my world view.

In a more light-hearted “omg such game, much amazing, very nostalgia” category though, Doom, Duke Nukem 3D, Quake 1, HL1, Stalker, Morrowind, and Oblivion all hold special places in my memories.

Three more modern games that really brought a sense of wonder to me are Nier Automata, Mirror’s Edge 1, and Outer Wilds.