Resident Evil 4 (PS2)

Let’s not sugarcoat this, Resident Evil 4 marked the beginning of the end for the Resident Evil franchise. The shift from careful item management and careful character positioning to a focus on gunplay and action set-pieces was a watershed moment in not just the history of Resident Evil, but also the history of video games. There is little doubt in my mind that Resident Evil 4’s glowing critical reception affected both future horror titles and action games in general. 

Alan Wake's American Nightmare

The original Alan Wake was one of the most promising titles to come out of the Xbox 360. It was the first post “Max Payne” title that Remedy worked on and it put forward interesting concepts that were made it an under-the-radar hit in 360 gaming circles. A sequel was fast-tracked and in 2012, we got the XBLA sequel, “Alan Wake’s American Nightmare”. Be warned though, American Nightmare is not the sequel that Alan Wake fans wanted, far from it in fact.