With titles such as FIFA 17 and NBA 2K17 expected to be popular gifts this holiday season, Onion Sports looks back on some of the best sports video games of all time.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater: Groundbreaking in its gameplay as well as its hit soundtrack featuring Vivaldi, Stravinsky, and Chopin
Madden Lockout: The eighth edition of the franchise lacks any gameplay modes until the player successfully mediates a collective bargaining agreement between the AI owners and AI players’ union
NHL ’94: The first-ever hockey game to allow players to shoot the puck
NFL Blitz: While wildly popular, this over-the-top football favorite has been roundly criticized for its glorification of the painful flames that pour out of receivers’ feet when they run too fast
Wii Tennis: Mom liked this one
PGA Hunter: Players take aim from the bushes of some of the world’s most famous courses to shoot down the biggest names in golf
Sports ’14: The first sports video game to be entirely composed of create-a-player, create-a-team, and create-a-sport options
Michael Jordan’s Global Domination: Users control the Chicago Bulls great as they forge alliances, amass troops, and wage war in a quest to exert control over the entire world
Mario Kart 7: The last edition of the franchise to feature Wario before his refusal to license his likeness
NBA Jam: Noteworthy for being the first basketball game to include the famed Coastal Offense, which emphasizes half-court shooting and dunks from the three-point line