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How to read the 1999 rankings
Critic aggregates, website traffic and sales answer different questions. Metacritic’s scores aggregate reviews; GameFAQs counted visits to pages on its own site; and the IDSA table reports a defined period of sales. None is a universal measure of quality or a complete account of every player’s preferences.
For a cross-platform shortlist, Metacritic provides a useful starting point, while the other sources show which games drew attention or sold well by their respective measures. Metacritic’s current 1999 all-platform browse page reports 47 results. Its scores and ordering are current aggregator values and may change; they are not the games’ original review scores.
Which games were best reviewed?
On Metacritic’s current all-platform 1999 page, SoulCalibur is first with a 98 Metascore. Gran Turismo 2 and Homeworld follow at 93 each. System Shock 2, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri and Medal of Honor each have a 92 Metascore; FreeSpace 2 has 91. The page also lists Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, Planescape: Torment and Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver among the year’s releases.
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| Game | Original release date shown by Metacritic | Current Metacritic score |
|---|---|---|
| SoulCalibur | September 8, 1999 | 98 |
| Gran Turismo 2 | December 23, 1999 | 93 |
| Homeworld | August 31, 1999 | 93 |
| System Shock 2 | August 11, 1999 | 92 |
| Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater | September 29, 1999 | 92 |
| Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings | September 30, 1999 | 92 |
| Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri | February 12, 1999 | 92 |
| Medal of Honor | October 31, 1999 | 92 |
| FreeSpace 2 | September 30, 1999 | 91 |
Dates and scores in this table are from Metacritic’s current all-platform 1999 listing; the listing’s score values can change. Its ordering supports calling SoulCalibur the page’s current top-scoring entry, not a definitive cross-platform winner.
What was the most popular game in 1999?
By GameFAQs’ measure of visits to game FAQ and code pages, Final Fantasy VIII was the most popular entry on that site’s year-end list. Its page received 1,407,255 hits during 1999. The ranking then placed Pokémon (Game Boy) second, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time third, Final Fantasy VII fourth and Silent Hill fifth.
The rest of the list was Xenogears, Star Ocean: The Second Story, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, Legend of Legaia and Metal Gear Solid. This is a snapshot of activity on one website—not a sales ranking, count of players, or representative poll. GameFAQs explains the measure on its December 1999 top-games page.
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Which games sold well?
The ESA-hosted 1999 IDSA State of the Industry report gives a “Top 20 Video Games for 1999” table based on NPD Group data, but its note specifies sales from January through September 1999. The first ten entries are Pokémon Blue, Pokémon Red, Super Smash Bros., Mario Party, Syphon Filter, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Pokémon Pinball, Gran Turismo, Frogger and Driver.
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Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What made 1999 notable across platforms?
The year’s standouts were not confined to one platform or genre. The games surfaced in the review, traffic and sales records include console favorites, PC strategy and role-playing titles, racing games, action games and more. GameSpot’s 2019 retrospective frames the year around the Dreamcast’s debut, the PlayStation’s continuing strength and increasingly engaging online experiences on PC. Its editorial selection includes Silent Hill, Super Smash Bros., Sonic Adventure and SoulCalibur; that is a retrospective choice, not a statistical ranking. See Alessandro Fillari’s GameSpot retrospective on the games of 1999.
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For PC players, Unreal Tournament is another notable release. GameSpot’s PC review, published December 9, 1999, called it “the most complete first-person shooter available” and gave it 9.5. GameSpot lists its first release date as November 30, 1999. That review is a contemporary critic’s judgment, distinct from the current aggregate rankings above. Details are on GameSpot’s Unreal Tournament (1999) reviews page.
Which 1999 game should you start with?
Choose by the kind of evidence and experience you care about rather than treating the lists as interchangeable. The following are grounded in the measures above; they are not claims that one game is best for every player.
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- For the strongest current critic-aggregate position: start with SoulCalibur, the top entry on Metacritic’s current 1999 all-platform page.
- For the clearest site-traffic signal: Final Fantasy VIII led GameFAQs’ 1999 FAQ/code-page visits, a measure of attention on that site.
- For a seller from the report’s partial-year list: Pokémon Blue, Pokémon Red or Super Smash Bros. appears among the IDSA report’s first ten entries for January through September.
- For a PC-focused option: Unreal Tournament has a strong contemporary GameSpot review, while Homeworld, System Shock 2, Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings, Alpha Centauri and FreeSpace 2 also appear near the top of Metacritic’s current page.
These sources establish historical titles, dates, scores and selected period-specific measures; they do not establish present-day stock, edition availability, regional compatibility or whether a particular version will run on your current hardware. Check the specific platform and edition before buying or installing.
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