The Angry Video Game Nerd has become a hit on the web. Since debuting on YouTube in 2004, The Angry Video Game Nerd (often abbreviated AVGN) has created a series of videos doing comical reviews of terrible video games, consoles, and accessories. It stars James Rolfe as the writer, producer, and lead character. The AVGN highlights and ridicules many video games’ horrendous gameplay, control, story, difficulty, or simply mocks some aspect of the game. His rants about these terrible video games usually involve physical comedy and a large amount of foul-mouthed tirades.
There are two things I love about The Angry Video Game Nerd videos that really separate him from the other people out there doing videos. One is his ability to find little subtle issues, design flaws, or characteristics of a game. They are things that most viewers never would have noticed or information no one would ever know. However, he can find them, and hilariously mock them or rant about them. The other thing I love about the videos is his mix ins of historical retrospective. While comically making fun of these terrible video games, consoles, or peripherals, he’s often able to mix in some perspective of them in video game history. I recommend readers look through the library of AVGN videos not on this list to learn more about the older console systems like the CD-i, Intellivision, Colecovision, and the Magnavox Odyssey.
The following are my top 10 favorite Angry Video Game Nerd videos. Warning, many of these videos include profanity, and may not be safe for work (NSFW).
10) The Wizard of Oz (SNES)
GameTrailers Video
YouTube Video
While this video doesn’t possess as much ranting and profanity as others, I like this video a lot because the AVGN goes into a bit more detail on the design and control flaws of this terrible SNES game based on The Wizard of Oz movie. The Cowardly Lion also makes a foul-mouthed apperance in this video.
9) Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties (3DO)
GameTrailers Video
The AVGN goes over the complete disaster that is this game for the 3DO. The game is more akin to a poor college art project than a video game that was supposed to show how powerful the 3DO was.
8) Dragon’s Lair (NES)
GameTrailers Video
YouTube Video
Another great review of a terrible NES game adaption. He covers some history on the original Dragon Lair’s legacy, then goes on to describe how the NES adaption is pure trash. What makes this video so special is how the AVGN can barely get past the first screen of the game.
6 and 7) Sega CD / Sega 32X
GameTrailers Video (Sega CD)
YouTube Video (Sega CD)
GameTrailers Video (Sega 32X)
YouTube Video (Sega 32X)
In these two videos, the AVGN covers the travesty that is the Sega CD and Sega 32X add ons for the Sega Genesis. He goes over how terrible these devices were, why they were so poor, and collectively goes over 20 games on the systems, most of which were absolutely terrible.
4 and 5) Bible Games / Bible Games II
YouTube Video (Bible Games)
GameTrailers Video (Bible Games II)
YouTube Video (Bible Games II)
Twice the AVGN has covered Bible based video games for various systems and includes some info on their history. Many of the games are unlicensed or unauthorized, including the legendary Super Noah’s Ark 3D for the SNES. Believe it or not, the AVGN actually finds one Bible based video game he thinks isn’t half bad.
3) The Wizard and Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)
GameTrailers Video
YouTube Video
This video is one of the few times that the AVGN has reviewed a good game, the classic Super Mario Bros. 3. However, he doesn’t avoid his trademark profanity laced tirades. He instead unleashes it upon the movie The Wizard, the movie that introduced Super Mario Bros. 3 to North American audiences.
2) BattleToads (NES)
GameTrailers Video
YouTube Video
The AVGN mocks the multi-player on one of the NES’s most cherished games. What makes this video so great is Kyle Justin, the singer of the AVGN theme song, breaks the fourth wall and comes out to ridicule the game along with the AVGN.
1) Atari Porno! (Atari 2600)
GameTrailers Video (Warning: NSFW)
The ultimate video in the AVGN’s career. It combines everything that anyone could love about the AVGN. The AVGN goes over some of the history behind how pornographic video games could even appear on the Atari 2600 (compared to how they cannot appear on modern day consoles). He then rants on a series of tragically 8-bit pornographic games that myself, and probably many others, had absolutely no idea had ever been developed for the Atari 2600. The graphics for the Atari games are so comically poor, and the gameplay so comically juvenille, one wonders if they can even be called pornographic.
Resources:
The Angry Video Game Nerd Homepage
GameTrailers Home
YouTube Home
Sources:
“The Angry Video Game Nerd”, Wikipedia
