Outstanding Openers Vol. 3

Not every game immediately thrusts you into the gameplay. While its common place to have some kind of introduction scene in games these days, even before the HD era, we had games that took a bit of time to provide some plot before placing you in control. Outstanding Openers centers around intros that managed to grab my attention, make my jaw drop or say, "Wow, that was neat." Just click on the title of the game to see the opening unfold.

Super Street Fighter II (ARC)

Flames are like the word "Super" add it to the front of something and it just sounds a whole lot cooler. While I do feel the best of the Street Fighter II games is Street Fighter II': Hyper Fighting, I must give credit where credit is due, SSFII introduced new moves, four new characters and one of the most badawesome intros in a fighting game. The poster boy of the Street Fighter series, Ryu is looking like a total boss as the screen flashes. He charges up a Hadoken that is followed up by literally an electrifying title drop. I still get hyped watching this brief opener.

Super Metroid (SNES)

Did you miss out on the previous two Metroid entries? Don't sweat it. Super Metroid fills you in on the story elements of the last two games, bringing you up to speed on how we arrived to the point we are in Super Metroid. Samus would have saved herself a world of trouble if she had killed that last baby Metroid in Metroid II. But that same Metroid ends up saving Samus' life not once, but twice over. This opener isn't really action packed, but is more text heavy and story driven. The plot of Super Metroid isn't overly complicated but seeing as how some games have stories that get too convoluted for their own good, I really like the simplicity of this one.

Mega Man 8 (PS, SAT)

Mega Man seems to be popping up a lot in this series, doesn't he? What can I say, the blue robot really knows how to hook me with his intros. Mega Man 8 opens up with a high octane anime cutscene showcasing Mega Man taking on Robot Masters from the first seven Mega Man games. We'd have killed for a Mega Man anime series like this. That is, until Mega Man opened his mouth. Thankfully, we're spared actually voice work in this flash first opening sequence. In the second one that gives us some of the plot, we're not so lucky.

Tekken 2 (PS)

The first Tekken game I ever played and the one that really got me take notice of the series and the boom of 3D fighters. Everyone has their reasons for entering the tournament in Tekken 2. King needs to get out of his drunken slump, Michelle seeks her mother's kidnapper. Heihachi is seriously peeved at his son Kazuya for dropping him off a cliff and wants revenge, This intro is exclusive to the PlayStation version of Tekken 2. This won't be the last time the Tekken games pop up in this feature.

Parasite Eve (PS)

Billed as "the cinematic RPG", Parasite Eve is loaded with cut scenes across this three disc Resident Evil meets RPG title. The opening is one that uses different scenes from the game all rolled into a spiffy intro to get you jazzed up to play the game, Throw in a sweet music number by Yoko Shimomura and consider my attention got.