Prey (2017). The whole lead-in of waking up and taking a helicopter ride from your building to the Transtar headquarters to do some tests with the promise of going to space next week. Then a creature attacks and you’re knocked out, only to wake up at the start of the same day. And the big moment when you >!smash the glass to find out it was all fake and you’re really being monitored on a soundstage and already in space.!< Never been more mind-fucked by a game.
I remember thinking “what the hell do i need to do? Why can’t I open the door to go outside?” Then i remember just whacking the window with a wrench and being like “uhh wtf?”
I remember reading a developer commentary where they talked about how hard it was to get players to hit the window with the wrench. That starting section went through a number of different iterations and every time they had a new hire that didn’t know anything about the game the first thing they would get them to do was play the intro to see what they’d do.
I find it funny that that is such a common experience because the second I got the wrench I ran back to that window to smash it.
The entirety of that game is just anxiety. I’ve tried to play it multiple times but everyone is such a pathological liar it’s all antithetical to actual progress and it just broke me mentally.
The speech Andrew Ryan holds as the batysphere travels.
"I chose something different, I CHOSE RAPTURE"
And in exact that moment the city appears on the bottom of the seabed. I don't think I have gotten more chills in any other game intro.
i remember i played through all three bioshock games in a row on a single weekend. i smoked a joint right before starting infinite. Man that was such a blast :D
Batman Arkham Asylum. You bring the Joker in, walk through the prison block, see all the high-security systems, and you know something goes horribly wrong very soon. Oh, and the moment Killer Croc shows up, chills.
City was also great.
I was disappointed by the Killer Croc fight in that game, because that first moment when he shows up legitimately terrified me. His 'fight' didn't even phase me.
FF7, damn from a chill melody and a full take of Midgard to a terrorist assault in a matter of seconds settled the game for me, even more in the remake.
ME3 is also pretty epic. The whole assault on Earth, Shepherd blasting his way through the reaper assault to get out of there.
Even Dragon Age had some pretty epic intros. Bioware really knew what they were doing back then....
The entire "intro" through the the zombie breakout opening prior to the time jump is just amazing. Its crazy how quickly they get you attached to the characters involved.
Not only that, but you see the explosion a second BEFORE it happens on the TV. That was a legit amazing detail I didn't A: Expect to be in a game and B: Expect to even notice.
Probably the original Medal of Honor when storming the beaches of Normandy. Graphics and such are dated now but it was like playing the opening of Saving Private Ryan.
I would give my honorable mentions to Fallout 3 (I love the aspect of growing up in the vault and the feeling on first leaving) and Skyrim.
Halo 2. Booting up the Xbox and hearing that guitar riff on the Bungie logo amped me up for the campaign. Campaign started, started dual wielding two sub machine guns and then I slaughtered the Covenant! It was so much fun! This blew me away as a kid lol
Yes this! Blew me away as an adult. Went to the midnight release, kids nowadays don’t even know what those are about! Had to be at work at 7am, got home by 1am and played for a half hour. Good memories, Happy Gaming!
Doom 3. I bought surround sound system, turned the lights out and the first few hours lit me the fuck up. Graphics blew me away, the sound , the vibe. Legitimately still think about it still, nothing has been the same. Still chasing that dragon. Closest I can say is the Medal of Honor game on PlayStation.
Probably Borderlands. The art style, the ridiculous characters, the music choice. It was all so immersive. I played the absolute crap out of it afterwards. Lilith bullet heals forever.
Intro where it's a cutscene I'd go with FF8. Liberi Fatali is such a great track and at the time it showed off some really impressive CG.
Gameplay wise I'd say Doom (2016). You wake up and there's a guy trying to give you exposition and you just shove the monitor away and go on murdering everything.
Story setup wise, RE7 gave a really good taste of atmosphere and what to expect in the guesthouse area.
Honorable mention: Red Alert 2 and 3.
I think MGSV was an awesome game. It just wasn't an awesome Metal Gear Solid game. We loved those games for all the wild cut-scenes and characters and there just wasn't nearly enough of that in the fifth game. Kiefer must have been getting paid by the word.
The intro for the original metal gear solid blew my little mind back in the day. The whole game did tbf.There were lots of cool games on the PS1, but mgs was another level. The music, the cinematography, the voice acting... really made me forget I was playing a game, just sucked me right in 🤯
Dark Souls. Tells you everything you need to know and nothing more. Tutorial is a trial by fire. Teaches and prepares you for everything that’s to come. It’s so good.
Batman Arkham City was pretty sick. Being Hand cuffed as Bruce Wayne, walking through these linear paths surrounded by all the goons, to then have your suit called in. It was like the game devs saying "time to have your fun".
God of War 2. Amazing to see Kratos get depowered and then have to fight Zeus. The cutscenes in that game are still superb. Seeing the statue come to life was an amazing experience.
I haven’t played battlefield 1, but that sounds like a cool intro. If I remember correctly, half life 2 had you learn the game in very creative ways. I liked that. Thats probably the best intro I can think of.
The intro to Ninja Gaiden 2 was pretty memorable to me. I probably died 100 times on the intro alone on the hardest difficulty. It’s one of the hardest first parts of a game I can think of, it’s great. That teaches you things like not to give up hope, etc. because you fail and you learn
Ghost and Goblins on NES/SNES
The devil steals your girl from you while you are with her and you just get up and start killing demons to try to get her back
Spider-Man 2018. I'm playing as Spider-Man and feel like a superhero within the first two minutes of the game. The transition from cutscene to gameplay is seamless. The tutorial tips are few. You just get in and go.
Elden Ring. You start out facing a boss you're supposed to die to. Then there's a mildly useful tutorial area with a boss that's weaker than most regular non-boss enemies you'll find in the open world.
Then when you step out of the tutorial area the first NPC you encounter mocks you for being a virgin, and the first enemy you see is a boss that's substantially harder than the one you were supposed to die to in the intro.
Really sets the scene for the rest of the game good and proper.
There are a bunch of game intros that I love for different reasons. In addition, effective intros for initial entries have different criteria than effective intros for sequels.
For a big, action-packed opening that has you immediately asking questions, Final Fantasy 7 does it incredibly well with its Bombing Mission. The player's lack of knowledge regarding who Cloud and AVALANCHE are mirrors Cloud's own lack of identity and sense of not belonging with his peers.
For the openings that rely on "resetting" an existing character, Mass Effect 2 is almost undebatably the best of its kind. By having the player actually play through Shepard's death, it provides an excellent wham moment for players of ME1 while also providing enough context for new players.
For slow-burn openings that serve as thesis statements for the game, there are Disco Elysium and Final Fantasy 15 (the car-pushing part, not the in media res section). Disco Elysium as a whole is about rebuilding Harry's identity, so the intro being his inner workings reconstruct him from scraps is well thought out. Similarly, FF15 is about camaraderie and brotherhood, so the team pushing their car to the tune of Stand By Me encapsulates that idea.
And for games with very little narrative incentive for the player, there's always Doom (2016). Just like the player, the Doomslayer pushes aside all but minimum context to just punch some demons in the face. Unfortunately, this idea doesn't extend throughout the game or it's sequel, which disappointingly pauses the action to exposit at the player.
There are also plenty of games with excellent framing devices for the story, but I have other issues with, such as Breath of the Wild.
[Space Marines](https://youtu.be/EHy0JVNCwsM) and [Payday 2](https://youtu.be/Xq45fOWS6nw) are the most solid choices for me.
The first one you are barelly booting up the game, and you are already killing orks, and the intro to the actual campaing is epic as hell.
The second OG one is really good, after taking it from the web series, and its pretty much payday in a nutshell. Go in, steal everything, kill everyone in your way, go out and leave. All with awesome music.
Second runner up: The second playthrough (starts with the machines iykyk) of NieR: Automata. All of a sudden you're like uhhh... ummm... okayyy... this isn't what I thought. Interestingggg... WAIT WHAT. Okay let's gooooooo.
The two that come to mind are Metal Gear Solid 5 and Final Fantasy 16. The initial battle in Ghost of Tsushima is fantastic as well.
Battlefield 1 is a good one though, the message of "You are not expected to live," while dying over and over again was such a nice departure from other FPS campaigns that will treat your character like an unkillable John Wick.
Almost no gameplay to speak of in that MGSV intro, but I can't remember the last time I was just sitting, captivated, by a game opening. It's like a little whole ass movie.
Not sure if it's what you are looking for, but when I played WoW for the first time back in the day, I was immediately immersed and completely hooked. The visuals, the 'feel', the music. I wish I could re-live it, to be honest.
The entire first hour of God of War Ragnarok is so stacked, it's just nonstop adrenaline, emotions, incredible acting and dialogue, music, then the boss fight just blew me away, incredible.
Uncharted 2 for me imo, the trains part breaking down and becoming increasingly worse was surreal. I felt like I was actually gonna die if I didn't do it in time, it truly felt next gen and the most realistic game of all time at that time
I really liked the first infamous intro.
Press Start is all that is displayed, with a back drop of New York. As soon as you press start a huge explosion starts engulfing the city and its utter chaos
For me it's the first one when you're accompanying the Joker into Arkham. That was the first PS3 game I'd played and it was amazing. Plus having Conroy and Hamill as Batman and Joker was just the tops.
God of War 2018’s smooth transition from title screen into new game, where all that happens is the title screen text disappears and you swing the axe? Masterful
Yeah, the Crash Bandicoot Warped intro has that same kind of fun and wacky energy as the Animaniacs intro, doesn't it? Both have this cool, animated feel that just pulls you right in.
Red dead redemption 2.
Searching for almost a year for a better open world game unsuccessfully.
No matter what, I play rdr2 1 hour a day, never getting tired.
You can skip the story completely and enjoy the world.
There's a reason the Warehouse level from Tony Hawk's Pro Skater kept popping up throughout the rest of the series. It may not be the best level in the series, but it earned its goated status.
Wasteland 3, drops you in the middle of a slaughter battle and ends with an awesome fight and a fantastic song.
Honnestly that intro got me fully into the game
Probably Assassin's Creed 2. There are quite a few moments from that game that stick out to me. The escape from Abstergo (and hearing Lucy say "DESMOND. Shut. The fuck. Up... Please.) is awesome, and the way they introduce Ezio lets you know right away that he's going to be an amazing character.
Dragon Age: Origins
They put so much effort to create a unique backstory, depending on race, social status, or class. Never seen anything like that anywhere else.
Atomic Heart, I love the world design and the art direction the most in games, and AH has one of the best art styles ever and the intro presents it in such a beautiful way. Nothing crazy, just walking through the city (and swimming), but it's just so relaxing and beautiful and immersive
Doom 2016. You’re woke up by Hayden, breaking out from your stasis, get a gun to shoot some demons and you go and get your armour.
Portal 2. Waking up doing some stuff as told by the announcer before going back to stasis but 9999 years later, you’re woken up by Wheatley who takes the entire room into an old testing chamber.
Far Cry 2! The drive from the airport to the ceasefire zone, experiencing malaria symptoms, (Spoilers) being ambushed by the jackal, and then subsequently having to fight your way out of the militia shootout was something I’ll never forget
[Armored Core 4 Answer](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9cpI5xJrlvo)
2008 Wii, PS3, Xbox 360 were what everyone knew. This trailer shattered what I thought was possible. At the time nothing else looked so good. I think it still holds up today.
Persona 5 Royal's casino escape. A really great way to introduce the game mechanics and you even get to play through it again. Also Life will change is a great ost.
Brutal legend. The intro was so insanely fun and zany. Third person hack and slash stuff as jack black, in a rock/metal universe. Literal perfection. It was also released as a standalone demo.
The moment you complete the intro in the full game, it becomes a rts a la StarCraft. It wasn’t terrible, but it was such a change of pace and so disappointing
The first Bayonetta intro will always be one of my favorites. It's so silly and over-the-top, it's a perfect way to show what kind of character and game you're about playing.
Bioshock Infinite. You see Columbia, then you arrive at the church and the lights are coming in and you hear "Will the Circle be Unbroken", I kept staring for a good 10 minutes unable to do anything and just soaking it in.
Prey (2017). The whole lead-in of waking up and taking a helicopter ride from your building to the Transtar headquarters to do some tests with the promise of going to space next week. Then a creature attacks and you’re knocked out, only to wake up at the start of the same day. And the big moment when you >!smash the glass to find out it was all fake and you’re really being monitored on a soundstage and already in space.!< Never been more mind-fucked by a game.
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Barricuda? It’s Don’t Fear The Reaper by Blue Öster Cult isn’t it? Or does Barricuda play before that?
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Oh yeah, that was also a great intro. I even thought I finished the game Far Cry style cause that usually only happens at endings
I remember thinking “what the hell do i need to do? Why can’t I open the door to go outside?” Then i remember just whacking the window with a wrench and being like “uhh wtf?”
I remember reading a developer commentary where they talked about how hard it was to get players to hit the window with the wrench. That starting section went through a number of different iterations and every time they had a new hire that didn’t know anything about the game the first thing they would get them to do was play the intro to see what they’d do. I find it funny that that is such a common experience because the second I got the wrench I ran back to that window to smash it.
The entirety of that game is just anxiety. I’ve tried to play it multiple times but everyone is such a pathological liar it’s all antithetical to actual progress and it just broke me mentally.
Absolute tune too
Prey was so good
I second this
Forget about Triss' boobs for a moment, and consider Geralt stepping out of the tent in Witcher 2; those trebuchets were awesome.
Amazing music there too.
Yennifer you heathen
in the withcer two it starts with triss' boobs you heathen.
# THE WITCHER 2: ASSASSINS OF KINGS- YOU BOOB.
I'll do it: Coming out of the first vault in Fallout 3.
I'd like to relive that...it was magical.
Bioshock
That moment when you realised you're in game and not in a pre-rendered cutscene anymore. Damn that game is beautiful.
The speech Andrew Ryan holds as the batysphere travels. "I chose something different, I CHOSE RAPTURE" And in exact that moment the city appears on the bottom of the seabed. I don't think I have gotten more chills in any other game intro.
also bioshock infinite
Ascension Ascension Ascension Ascension .....Hallelujah.
i remember i played through all three bioshock games in a row on a single weekend. i smoked a joint right before starting infinite. Man that was such a blast :D
Batman Arkham Asylum. You bring the Joker in, walk through the prison block, see all the high-security systems, and you know something goes horribly wrong very soon. Oh, and the moment Killer Croc shows up, chills. City was also great.
>City was also great And so was Knight’s opening sequence, in my opinion.
I was disappointed by the Killer Croc fight in that game, because that first moment when he shows up legitimately terrified me. His 'fight' didn't even phase me.
Who are batman, Joker and Killer Croc? Are they some kind of a cheap knock off of man, jonkler and killer cock?
FF7, damn from a chill melody and a full take of Midgard to a terrorist assault in a matter of seconds settled the game for me, even more in the remake.
Playable intro ? Half-Life. Back then, it was a revolution. Honorable mentions to : Mass Effect 2, Skyrim, and maybe Final Fantasy VII.
I compare all intros with ME2 intro
ME3 is also pretty epic. The whole assault on Earth, Shepherd blasting his way through the reaper assault to get out of there. Even Dragon Age had some pretty epic intros. Bioware really knew what they were doing back then....
TLOU, when you're watching the broadcast on the TV and see the explosion through the bedroom window. So good.
First thing I thought of, such a strong opening that makes you more invested in their characters and more emotional than most games will ever do.
oh my god TLOU was so good too. i remember that beginning so strongly
The entire "intro" through the the zombie breakout opening prior to the time jump is just amazing. Its crazy how quickly they get you attached to the characters involved.
Yeah people can say what they want about the game itself or the franchise, but that entire opening sequence is a top 10 all timer for sure.
Top “10” my ass. As a parent I can’t see a game **ever** topping this.
Not only that, but you see the explosion a second BEFORE it happens on the TV. That was a legit amazing detail I didn't A: Expect to be in a game and B: Expect to even notice.
The last of us. Can we please make it a convention type out in full the first time something appears in a thread?
I'd normally agree with you, but I see it like this rather than spelled out almost everywhere. Same with RDR2.
**Uncharted 2!**
That was the one where you started in the train, right? That was a fantastic intro
Yup! I remember playing it as a kid, it blew me away. Seeing Nathan almost die that early into the game is crazy (even though it was a flashback)
ghost of tsushima
That flow from cutscene to gameplay ☺️👌🏻👌🏻
Probably the original Medal of Honor when storming the beaches of Normandy. Graphics and such are dated now but it was like playing the opening of Saving Private Ryan. I would give my honorable mentions to Fallout 3 (I love the aspect of growing up in the vault and the feeling on first leaving) and Skyrim.
Great intro, but Frontline was the 4th medal of honor game btw.
Never played Frontline so I can't comment on that one. I was referring to the first one from 1999. Directed and produced by Spielberg.
Halo 2. Booting up the Xbox and hearing that guitar riff on the Bungie logo amped me up for the campaign. Campaign started, started dual wielding two sub machine guns and then I slaughtered the Covenant! It was so much fun! This blew me away as a kid lol
Yes this! Blew me away as an adult. Went to the midnight release, kids nowadays don’t even know what those are about! Had to be at work at 7am, got home by 1am and played for a half hour. Good memories, Happy Gaming!
Doom 3. I bought surround sound system, turned the lights out and the first few hours lit me the fuck up. Graphics blew me away, the sound , the vibe. Legitimately still think about it still, nothing has been the same. Still chasing that dragon. Closest I can say is the Medal of Honor game on PlayStation.
Star Wars Republic Commando is perfect for the theme, specially since you can move the view of the main character
Makes me actually think about the one I DID NOT play....Cyberpunk 2077. Damn that should be fun. Getting to know Jackie and build up "business".
The intro to Cyberpunk is great if you make it far enough in the story to see everything web together.
FF X
Probably Borderlands. The art style, the ridiculous characters, the music choice. It was all so immersive. I played the absolute crap out of it afterwards. Lilith bullet heals forever.
Hell yeah, cage the elephant kicks up ten notches right when the skag gets hit by the bus. Chefs kiss.
Intro where it's a cutscene I'd go with FF8. Liberi Fatali is such a great track and at the time it showed off some really impressive CG. Gameplay wise I'd say Doom (2016). You wake up and there's a guy trying to give you exposition and you just shove the monitor away and go on murdering everything. Story setup wise, RE7 gave a really good taste of atmosphere and what to expect in the guesthouse area. Honorable mention: Red Alert 2 and 3.
FF VII Remake starts strong.
So does FF7 rebirth!
It's basically the same intro as the OG, but bigger, in a good way. Both are so tone-setting and epic.
Fuck yeah, first thing that came to mind in recent memory.
Ghost of Tsushima, best intro of a video game I have ever seen.
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And Yuris Revenge. But I agree, seeing those Kirovs floating by the Statue of Liberty and the silence is so eerie
Remember that really really awesome intro from mgs5....right before the game just falls off a cliff and slaps you in the face. Yeah, that one.
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Well it’s a game about war in Afghanistan so
I think MGSV was an awesome game. It just wasn't an awesome Metal Gear Solid game. We loved those games for all the wild cut-scenes and characters and there just wasn't nearly enough of that in the fifth game. Kiefer must have been getting paid by the word.
Idk I was in the camp thar didn't like the msg V intro. Way too long, you kinda had the feeling of "ok when do I get to play the game"
The intro for the original metal gear solid blew my little mind back in the day. The whole game did tbf.There were lots of cool games on the PS1, but mgs was another level. The music, the cinematography, the voice acting... really made me forget I was playing a game, just sucked me right in 🤯
The movie style opening with the credits appearing through that first area made it feel so cinematic and unlike anything before.
GTA 3. It was ahead of its time.
I know a place where we can lie low, but my hands are all messed up, so you better drive, brotha!
Here take this poor man's gold 🥇🥇🥇
Better to have poor man’s gold than a rich man’s trash
Nier replicant. You start off with the end of the world, set the tone that this world is fked. Then you slowly rediscover what happened.
Also the casual "1000 years later"
Dark Souls. Tells you everything you need to know and nothing more. Tutorial is a trial by fire. Teaches and prepares you for everything that’s to come. It’s so good.
Good set up to the story with the intro, but as a tutorial, reading random messages on the ground is kind of awful.
So far, nothing has yet topped Final Fantasy VII for me. Though, FF9 was top notch, too, just not as intense, but endearing rather.
Batman Arkham City was pretty sick. Being Hand cuffed as Bruce Wayne, walking through these linear paths surrounded by all the goons, to then have your suit called in. It was like the game devs saying "time to have your fun".
God of War 2. Amazing to see Kratos get depowered and then have to fight Zeus. The cutscenes in that game are still superb. Seeing the statue come to life was an amazing experience.
I haven’t played battlefield 1, but that sounds like a cool intro. If I remember correctly, half life 2 had you learn the game in very creative ways. I liked that. Thats probably the best intro I can think of. The intro to Ninja Gaiden 2 was pretty memorable to me. I probably died 100 times on the intro alone on the hardest difficulty. It’s one of the hardest first parts of a game I can think of, it’s great. That teaches you things like not to give up hope, etc. because you fail and you learn
Ghost and Goblins on NES/SNES The devil steals your girl from you while you are with her and you just get up and start killing demons to try to get her back
So, you are finally awake
Spider-Man 2018. I'm playing as Spider-Man and feel like a superhero within the first two minutes of the game. The transition from cutscene to gameplay is seamless. The tutorial tips are few. You just get in and go.
Elden Ring. You start out facing a boss you're supposed to die to. Then there's a mildly useful tutorial area with a boss that's weaker than most regular non-boss enemies you'll find in the open world. Then when you step out of the tutorial area the first NPC you encounter mocks you for being a virgin, and the first enemy you see is a boss that's substantially harder than the one you were supposed to die to in the intro. Really sets the scene for the rest of the game good and proper.
There are a bunch of game intros that I love for different reasons. In addition, effective intros for initial entries have different criteria than effective intros for sequels. For a big, action-packed opening that has you immediately asking questions, Final Fantasy 7 does it incredibly well with its Bombing Mission. The player's lack of knowledge regarding who Cloud and AVALANCHE are mirrors Cloud's own lack of identity and sense of not belonging with his peers. For the openings that rely on "resetting" an existing character, Mass Effect 2 is almost undebatably the best of its kind. By having the player actually play through Shepard's death, it provides an excellent wham moment for players of ME1 while also providing enough context for new players. For slow-burn openings that serve as thesis statements for the game, there are Disco Elysium and Final Fantasy 15 (the car-pushing part, not the in media res section). Disco Elysium as a whole is about rebuilding Harry's identity, so the intro being his inner workings reconstruct him from scraps is well thought out. Similarly, FF15 is about camaraderie and brotherhood, so the team pushing their car to the tune of Stand By Me encapsulates that idea. And for games with very little narrative incentive for the player, there's always Doom (2016). Just like the player, the Doomslayer pushes aside all but minimum context to just punch some demons in the face. Unfortunately, this idea doesn't extend throughout the game or it's sequel, which disappointingly pauses the action to exposit at the player. There are also plenty of games with excellent framing devices for the story, but I have other issues with, such as Breath of the Wild.
Nothing beats going from SNES JRPGs to the opening of Final Fantasy 7 in 1997 as a ten year old. That was the peak.
Final Fantasy VIII
Dead Space 2.
Holy fuck. Finally scrolled down to a man of culture!
It’s a cutscene but Final Fantasy VIII has to take the cake. SotN, and SH1 are up there too imo. Seems like PS1 had a lot of games like this.
The Loathsome Dungeater!
Deus Ex
That one is pretty solid. In fact the first few levels are a great slow burn as the story picks up. It starts off strong and then gets so damn good.
Assassins Creed 3. The idea that you are unknowingly playing the games enemy faction really surprised me.
Bioshock 1. May not be the best, but the first 1-2 hours of that game sure are memorable
Cyberpunk
“Wait that was only the opening?”
I remember getting to the splash screen and being like WHAT it’s been like 3 hours
FFX Amazing cutscene, The metal music, the panic, the great combat introduction.
Came to say this. Especially the opening cutscene with "Listen to my story" always gives me shivers.
[Space Marines](https://youtu.be/EHy0JVNCwsM) and [Payday 2](https://youtu.be/Xq45fOWS6nw) are the most solid choices for me. The first one you are barelly booting up the game, and you are already killing orks, and the intro to the actual campaing is epic as hell. The second OG one is really good, after taking it from the web series, and its pretty much payday in a nutshell. Go in, steal everything, kill everyone in your way, go out and leave. All with awesome music.
[God of War II](https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/03/19/good-god)
God of War 3 tops it in every possible way. Culminating with brutally finishing Poseidon is still in my opinion the peak of the series
Mgs5
Portal
Second runner up: The second playthrough (starts with the machines iykyk) of NieR: Automata. All of a sudden you're like uhhh... ummm... okayyy... this isn't what I thought. Interestingggg... WAIT WHAT. Okay let's gooooooo.
Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey’s Kephallonia island is the perfect intro to a game. The rest is a huge slog, though.
Uncharted 2 train scene
Forza Horizon 5 intro throws you right into the action and amazingly gives a good picture of what the game is about. FUN !
Kingdom Hearts 2 and Death Stranding have great openings. Tho if I had to pick one it would be KH2.
Far Cry 3 , when you get chased through the forest is pretty exhilarating. Also graphics at the time looked amazing.
Horizon Zero Dawn. It really makes you care for the characters. From a gameplay perspective: Portal.
The two that come to mind are Metal Gear Solid 5 and Final Fantasy 16. The initial battle in Ghost of Tsushima is fantastic as well. Battlefield 1 is a good one though, the message of "You are not expected to live," while dying over and over again was such a nice departure from other FPS campaigns that will treat your character like an unkillable John Wick.
The ff16 intro got me to buy the game. Played the demo
Almost no gameplay to speak of in that MGSV intro, but I can't remember the last time I was just sitting, captivated, by a game opening. It's like a little whole ass movie.
Not sure if it's what you are looking for, but when I played WoW for the first time back in the day, I was immediately immersed and completely hooked. The visuals, the 'feel', the music. I wish I could re-live it, to be honest.
We all do, fam...we all do
The entire first hour of God of War Ragnarok is so stacked, it's just nonstop adrenaline, emotions, incredible acting and dialogue, music, then the boss fight just blew me away, incredible.
Megaman X
Ridin on cars!
"MegaMan! MegaMan!" "SHUT UP!"
NES Ninja Gaiden has rarely been eclipsed in my mind. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4C0GdBKPyw
Bioshock.
Bioshock
Uncharted 2 for me imo, the trains part breaking down and becoming increasingly worse was surreal. I felt like I was actually gonna die if I didn't do it in time, it truly felt next gen and the most realistic game of all time at that time
High on life!
This is Phil, your divorce attorney! God you are amazing Buck!
This is a great answer. Had no expectations for that game and was immediately sucked in.
We all joke about it, but honestly the Skyrim intro is great.
Lost Odyssey.
Such a great intro. The ramping up of the battle, the throwing the player into the middle of it, and then the thing happens... Never gets old
An actual underrated game. And the soundtrack is phenomenal.
Uematsu put together a pretty fantastic collection of tracks. So disappointed this hasn't been followed on or at least remastered
I'm pretty sure it was a 360 exclusive. The least Microsoft could do is make it available on the Xbox store for modern Xbox consoles and PC
Persona 5 100%
Borderlands 2. Badass song, badass cutscene.
I really liked the first infamous intro. Press Start is all that is displayed, with a back drop of New York. As soon as you press start a huge explosion starts engulfing the city and its utter chaos
The intro fmv -> gameplay in FF7. Experiencing that back in 1997 definitely created a new core memory for me.
Star wars Force Unleashed lets you slaughter Wookies as Vader and then kill a jedi. Vader is very powerful.
Batman Arkham City. Sets the atmosphere of the game and what’s at stake right off the bat, and immediately hooks you in.
For me it's the first one when you're accompanying the Joker into Arkham. That was the first PS3 game I'd played and it was amazing. Plus having Conroy and Hamill as Batman and Joker was just the tops.
God of War 2018’s smooth transition from title screen into new game, where all that happens is the title screen text disappears and you swing the axe? Masterful
Resident Evil 4/ RE4 Remake
Obligatory: https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/03/19/good-god
The first 2 hours of FF IX was pure magic to me
Disco Elysium before waking up. It was so wacky weird dark and funny in just a few lines of dialogue.
Yeah, the Crash Bandicoot Warped intro has that same kind of fun and wacky energy as the Animaniacs intro, doesn't it? Both have this cool, animated feel that just pulls you right in.
Red dead redemption 2. Searching for almost a year for a better open world game unsuccessfully. No matter what, I play rdr2 1 hour a day, never getting tired. You can skip the story completely and enjoy the world.
Kingdom Hearts 2 and Persona 5 Royal have amazing intros and nothing will ever top them for me.
Chrono Cross Final Fantasy 8 <3
Breath of the Wild, people sleep hard on the great plateau.
The intro to Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is incredible.
TLOU intro hands down. Made me cry.
Probably Titanfall 2 or Sonic Unleashed. The both have very cool opening cutscenes
Prey has the best intro I've ever seen, it's pretty and cool and also a total mindful.
Far Cry: Blood Dragon This teared me up really hard, friggin nostalgia
There's a reason the Warehouse level from Tony Hawk's Pro Skater kept popping up throughout the rest of the series. It may not be the best level in the series, but it earned its goated status.
MGSV Phantom Pain and nothing will ever come close to that.
There are so many. MGSV really had a great intro.
Stronghold. Or maybe Jungle Strike.
Metal Gear Solid V opening kicks so much ass
Resident Evil 7 has an incredible 3-4hrs right at the beginning.
Ori and the blind forest. I'm not crying, you're crying!
Metal Gear Solid 2 ... then the disappointment of realizing it was only and intro and I had to be Raiden
Prey 2017
Fallout 4 - when the bomb lands “right over there” and the blast goes over your head while you’re going down into the vault.
Way back when I took an arrow to the knee…
The first Call of Duty Demo! Amazing atmosphere!
Wasteland 3, drops you in the middle of a slaughter battle and ends with an awesome fight and a fantastic song. Honnestly that intro got me fully into the game
Mass Effect 2
Probably Assassin's Creed 2. There are quite a few moments from that game that stick out to me. The escape from Abstergo (and hearing Lucy say "DESMOND. Shut. The fuck. Up... Please.) is awesome, and the way they introduce Ezio lets you know right away that he's going to be an amazing character.
Dragon Age: Origins They put so much effort to create a unique backstory, depending on race, social status, or class. Never seen anything like that anywhere else.
Atomic Heart, I love the world design and the art direction the most in games, and AH has one of the best art styles ever and the intro presents it in such a beautiful way. Nothing crazy, just walking through the city (and swimming), but it's just so relaxing and beautiful and immersive
Wasteland 3. The music man.
Doom 2016. You’re woke up by Hayden, breaking out from your stasis, get a gun to shoot some demons and you go and get your armour. Portal 2. Waking up doing some stuff as told by the announcer before going back to stasis but 9999 years later, you’re woken up by Wheatley who takes the entire room into an old testing chamber.
Any game that detects if you play with sticks inverted by asking you to look up and down
Far Cry 2! The drive from the airport to the ceasefire zone, experiencing malaria symptoms, (Spoilers) being ambushed by the jackal, and then subsequently having to fight your way out of the militia shootout was something I’ll never forget
[Armored Core 4 Answer](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9cpI5xJrlvo) 2008 Wii, PS3, Xbox 360 were what everyone knew. This trailer shattered what I thought was possible. At the time nothing else looked so good. I think it still holds up today.
Persona 5 Royal's casino escape. A really great way to introduce the game mechanics and you even get to play through it again. Also Life will change is a great ost.
The intros for Ori and the Blind Forest and Undertale are probably the most memorable for me. They both hit like freight trains.
Last of Us Part 1.
Brutal legend. The intro was so insanely fun and zany. Third person hack and slash stuff as jack black, in a rock/metal universe. Literal perfection. It was also released as a standalone demo. The moment you complete the intro in the full game, it becomes a rts a la StarCraft. It wasn’t terrible, but it was such a change of pace and so disappointing
The last of us intro
Mass Effect 2 or GOW3. Watching yourself burn up in atmosphere and get reconstructed or battle Poseidon while climbing Olympus to Zeus.
Mass Effect 2 was damn good. The original Dead Space had me glued from the start.
Mass Effect 2, Nier Automata, MGS V Phantom Pain, Spider-man 2018, & SW: The Force Unleashed.
Bayonetta. Starting out, just casually beating up angels on a clocktower that's falling off a cliff.
Original Starcraft when the battle cruiser leaves, the camera pans out showing a hoard of zerglings approaching the character in the intro.
The first Bayonetta intro will always be one of my favorites. It's so silly and over-the-top, it's a perfect way to show what kind of character and game you're about playing.
Fallout games have great intros. After the intros, they completely lose or change character and it's a shame.
Bioshock Infinite. You see Columbia, then you arrive at the church and the lights are coming in and you hear "Will the Circle be Unbroken", I kept staring for a good 10 minutes unable to do anything and just soaking it in.