Top Ten Back to School Games (College Edition)

 

It’s that time of year again when the sun starts going down earlier, back to school supplies are on the shelves, and college students around the world gather in each others’ rooms to play video games.  This is your guide to the top ten best games to play in your dorm room/apartment/frat house/common area.  Games can open up so many doors! You may be playing with your future BFF, a possible one night fling, or  – on the rare occasion – your psychology professor.


10. Halo series (Xbox 360)

This is really a good standby for anyone that has an Xbox 360.  Halo has been around for almost ten years and is one of the gold standards for shooters.  If you’re looking for the best way to keep it casual, playing the campaign with a buddy is good way to go.  With multiple save points, colorful enemies and vehicle combat, it’s hard to go wrong with any of the Halo games.  If there is a “best” mode to play when getting to know someone, try out Halo 3: ODST‘s Firefight. With waves of enemies coming at you and coordination of ammo and health a must, it’s a good way to get talking.


9. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – Spec Ops (Xbox 360 and PS3)

Modern Warfare 2 is a pretty easy choice for male roommates to chum it up.  The game has been out for almost a year, and most likely, two guys between the ages of 18-24 have played it. Spec Ops offers a lot of great nail biting teammate moments of covering your squad member, healing them or sprinting to the end of the level (Snatch and Grab on the hardest difficulty?).  Spec Ops mode is a great way to team up and get to know someone in a casual setting.  


8. Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (Any beat-em-up) (All systems)

Even though Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 (MUA2) didn’t blow critics out of the water, it’s a great game to play as iconic comic book characters and smash buttons.  With the popularity of comic book characters in movies (Iron Man, Spider-Man, Thor, etc),  MUA2 provides a pretty safe conversation zone.  Also, if the person you are playing with isn’t really accustomed to video games, slamming buttons doesn’t take a lot of talent and anyone should be able to pick it up in a matter of minutes. Unless your roommate is an excessive DC comics fanboy, the game is perfect for casual and hardcore gamers.


7. Boom Blox (Wii)

Steven Spielberg doesn’t only make movies, he makes games about knocking down blocks.  Boom Blox only involves a Wii-mote, your arm, and a keen sense of aiming.  Up to four players can play, and there are a ton of game modes ranging from knocking down towers a la Jenga, an air hockey type game, and simple target practice.  Usually the problem isn’t getting people to play or talk; it’s getting people to hang on to their Wii-mote when they make the throwing action towards the TV. Even though it’s a great story, watch for flying remotes while playing.


6. Mario Party 8 (Wii)

An oldie, but a goody.  Mario Party was one of the first games to introduce a collection of mini-games to play, and it hasn’t changed the formula since.  Both boys and girls were able to play this game even from a young age, so the learning curve should be pretty low.  This game in particular is a great way to get everyone involved because the controls are explained every single time a new game is introduced.  With simple mechanics and a low barrier of entry, anyone can pick up a controller and play Mario Party.  But things might get awkward when you do the action for the soda can mini-game.


5. Castle Crashers (XBLA)

Castle Crashers takes the side-scrolling format and adds a few RPG elements into the mix, but what the game really boils down to is moving your little guy left to right and wacking things with a sword, mace, spear or whatever is lying around.  The game is great for casual and hardcore gamers alike, making an easy game to get into if you are a well trained athlete or a geeky English major.  The game also incorporates mini-games like volleyball and a button-mashing game to see how much food you can eat (which should be hard for college kids).


4. ModNation Racers (PS3)

ModNation Racers (Modnation) puts a custom spin on a very familiar kart racing formula.  ModNation allows players to build their own custom tracks and have up to four players locally play on them.  The controls are pretty simple, making it easy for people both new and familiar pick up ModNation and tear up the tracks.  Just about everybody has played a racing game at some point in their life, and ModNation just makes it more creative.  If nothing else works, you can always check out the user-generated tracks and racers and mock them.


3. Wii Sports (Wii)

Wii Sports was the game that introduced everyone and their mom to the Nintendo Wii.  Bowling, tennis, golf, boxing, and baseball all make an appearance showing off the Wii’s capabilities.  Because the game played like a polished sales floor demo, everyone could learn how to play within a matter of minutes. With short and simple games, along with showing statistics, Wii Sports can become an oddly addictive game everyone can play.


2. Little Big Planet (PS3)

You can never go wrong with a side-scrolling format.  Little Big Planet allows four players to jump around, race, complete funky objectives, and a host of other zany things within the game.  Playing as sackboys never gets old and making your own character by grabbing stickers and other accessories is fun as well.  Even after finishing the pre-loaded levels, making your own is a blast and playing through them with friends is just as entertaining.  If you can make your sackboy run and jump, you can have fun with Little Big Planet.


1. Mario Kart (Wii)

Mario Kart is the age-old standby. No matter where you come from, vritually everyone enjoys a good game of Mario Kart.  The game offers so many ways to use the controllers that somebody should be able to find a way to play.  In addition, levels range from downright mean to happily nostalgic, pleasing any Mario Kart player new or old.  It’s an easy game to pick up and set down in a jiffy, and a single race never take longer than a few minutes.  Mario Kart Wii is one of the best games to break the ice, get to know someone or just pass the time waiting for a party to start.