My list overlaps a lot with yours (at least in what I've played).
Along with Chrono Trigger I'd definitely add Secret of Mana: Great aesthetic and story, co-op multiplayer, that brilliant, brilliant Hiroki Kikuta soundtrack (check out the intro theme, this theme from the leadup to the final stage, and the best boss battle theme of the SNES era).
Along with Planescape: Torment I'd mention Fallout and Fallout 2. While the writing and setting isn't quite as amazing as that of Planescape, the 50's retro-future extrapolated out to the 50's retro-post-apocalypse is a darn good setting, the writing is really strong, and it's combined with some interesting and very well designed turn-based tactical combat (the combat mechanics in Planescape are a bit of a weak point).
I'd go with The World Ends with You above Kingdom Hearts (though there's much to like about Kingdom Hearts). I thought that also had a great setting and premise, a great aesthetic, and the split-screen combat mechanics in the original DS version were quite interesting and clever.
Along with Portal, I'd put Mirror's Edge. Sure, the execution on that game wasn't perfect, but I found something really compelling in a first-person game that gave the character a real sense of physicality. The two games share a focus on traversal over combat and have a colorful aesthetic, both things that set them apart from trends in first-person games of the time.
Link's Awakening is great, but in terms of "most philosophically interesting" Zelda game, it doesn't hold a candle to Majora's Mask. That's a phenomenal game that does interesting things with its time-travel mechanic, and has very deep themes about how people cope with their knowledge of the inevitability of death. Not exactly what you'd expect to see in the immediate sequel to Ocarina of Time.
A few others:
Super Metroid: Great exploration-focused adventure game that for me seemed to really capture the feeling of being alone on a hostile alien world.
Super Mario 64: I was amazed by this game when I first played it. It's a great example of a 3D platformer, which is remarkable because that was basically a new genre at the time. The really interesting thing to me is how well it retains it's mechanical and aesthetic identity as a Mario game despite so substantially transforming the mechanical structure and the graphical style.
Monument Valley: A jewel of a perspective-illusion puzzle game. It's short and the puzzles aren't that complicated, but it's incredibly elegant. Very worth a play, including the Forgotten Shores DLC.
Katamari Damacy: Clearly the product of divine inspiration or at least "the good drugs".
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Date: 2016-06-26 02:46 am (UTC)Along with Chrono Trigger I'd definitely add Secret of Mana: Great aesthetic and story, co-op multiplayer, that brilliant, brilliant Hiroki Kikuta soundtrack (check out the intro theme, this theme from the leadup to the final stage, and the best boss battle theme of the SNES era).
Along with Planescape: Torment I'd mention Fallout and Fallout 2. While the writing and setting isn't quite as amazing as that of Planescape, the 50's retro-future extrapolated out to the 50's retro-post-apocalypse is a darn good setting, the writing is really strong, and it's combined with some interesting and very well designed turn-based tactical combat (the combat mechanics in Planescape are a bit of a weak point).
I'd go with The World Ends with You above Kingdom Hearts (though there's much to like about Kingdom Hearts). I thought that also had a great setting and premise, a great aesthetic, and the split-screen combat mechanics in the original DS version were quite interesting and clever.
Along with Portal, I'd put Mirror's Edge. Sure, the execution on that game wasn't perfect, but I found something really compelling in a first-person game that gave the character a real sense of physicality. The two games share a focus on traversal over combat and have a colorful aesthetic, both things that set them apart from trends in first-person games of the time.
Link's Awakening is great, but in terms of "most philosophically interesting" Zelda game, it doesn't hold a candle to Majora's Mask. That's a phenomenal game that does interesting things with its time-travel mechanic, and has very deep themes about how people cope with their knowledge of the inevitability of death. Not exactly what you'd expect to see in the immediate sequel to Ocarina of Time.
A few others:
Super Metroid: Great exploration-focused adventure game that for me seemed to really capture the feeling of being alone on a hostile alien world.
Super Mario 64: I was amazed by this game when I first played it. It's a great example of a 3D platformer, which is remarkable because that was basically a new genre at the time. The really interesting thing to me is how well it retains it's mechanical and aesthetic identity as a Mario game despite so substantially transforming the mechanical structure and the graphical style.
Monument Valley: A jewel of a perspective-illusion puzzle game. It's short and the puzzles aren't that complicated, but it's incredibly elegant. Very worth a play, including the Forgotten Shores DLC.
Katamari Damacy: Clearly the product of divine inspiration or at least "the good drugs".