Favorite Level/Areas in a Game?

[scott]

I was talking to a friend about Splinter Cell (The original) the other day and go to thinking how awesome the Langley area was in that game. Just sneaking through the FBI headquarters and being restricted to non-lethal means was sooo epic. It's high on my favorite levels of any game of all time.

Another that always gets brought up when talking about cool areas is the Golden Saucer from FFVII, all the minigames and chocobo racing? What isn't win about that place?

So, what are some of your favorite areas/levels in video game history?

[soera]

Kraid's lair in Metroid (I love the music ... makes me think of an Alice in Chains song).
Final dungeon in Final fantasy 1
Rainbow road in mario kart 64

Im sure there are more!

[jcalder8]

By far it is Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 Marseille. I spent hours perfecting my run until I could go around the whole course without touching the ground apart from a couple of manuals.

[faxmachine]

I loved the music on Rainbow Road in Mario Kart 64, that level was just fun!

I don't know if this counts, but Hyrule's Castle on Super Smash Bros 64.

Casino Zone on Sonic made me want to live in Vegas SO MUCH!

[madmax]

I really dislike the golden saucer in FFVII

I really like the airport in GTA:VC, it's a great area to do easy tricks.

[varkias]

One of my favorites areas was Creed's House in Shining Force II where you get shrunk and have to fight your way through.  So much fun!

[kirbysuperstar]

Chemical Plant Zone (Sonic 2)
Return to Shadow Moses (MGS4)
Hengsha (DX:HR)

[monochrome]

Donkey Kong Country - Coral Capers level

Sonic Adventure - Emerald Coast (killer whale!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

Mario Galaxy - Princess Rosalina's spaceship (most enjoyable hubworld I've ever seen).  Also the level with the giant worms going through the apples, Gusty Garden Galaxy.

Mario Galaxy 2 - The first level where you become Cloud Mario, Fluffy Bluff Galaxy.

Super Street Fighter II - Ken's Stage, the one with the yacht, not the tugboat

[htimreimer]

bowser's castle from mario kart 64

[amauriel]

Sonic Adventure 2 - City Escape (my little sister can still sing every word to the theme song, and she's NOT a gamer.)
Goldeneye - Facility (more battles there than any where else, and the music was epic)
Bubble Bobble - Level 25 (The Popcorn Level. Always felt like we'd achieved something as kids when we got there!)
Jumpman Jr. - Figurit's Revenge (If you've never played Jumpman Jr., you should really watch a video of that level. Evilly awesome.)
Super Mario RPG - Tadpole Pond (Organizing the tadpoles for music notes is one of my favorite parts in the game. Also the animation of Toadofsky when you actually get it.)
Earthbound - Magicant (Such a fantastic trippy level. Also I love the Flying Men. And in the Japanese version, your character is wandering the map naked, which gets points too.)

[kirbysuperstar]

Ah, that reminds me. Moonside.

Welcome to Moonside. Wecomel to Soonmide. Moonwel ot Cosidme. Welcome to Moonside, where yes is no and no is yes. Got that?

[amauriel]

Ah, that reminds me. Moonside.

Welcome to Moonside. Wecomel to Soonmide. Moonwel ot Cosidme. Welcome to Moonside, where yes is no and no is yes. Got that?

I almost put Moonside instead! But, well, to me, Flying Men > Dali's Clocks, I guess. And the switching to different quadrants of the map gets a little old. But that cafe is AWESOME. And the invisible man with the gold tooth and the connected eyebrows...hehe.

[kirbysuperstar]

Hello! ...and goodbye! *WARPED TO GOD KNOWS WHERE*

[scott]

Return to Shadow Moses (MGS4)

YES! That was so epic and made me feel like playing MGS1 all over again. Kojima totally hit the nail on the head there.

Also, the area you have to fight The Boss in, from MGS3, is amazing. The boss fight is also one of my favorite end bosses of all time as well.

I usually love pretty much any Clockwork Tower level/area from any Castlevania game. Standouts include Dracula's Curse , Castlevania 64, Rondo of Blood & Lords of Shadow.  The Clockwork Tower and the Music Box levels from Castlevania: Lords of Shadow were pretty cool. They were both platforming and puzzles and the few parts of that game that actually felt like Castlevania. (Lords of Shadow as a whole is 'meh', imho)

[hexen]

Viridian Forest - Pokemon Red/Blue
Forest Temple - Ocarina of Time
World of Ruin - Final Fantasy VI
Rainbow Road - Every Mario Kart (SNES most specifically)
Raphael the Raven's Moon - Yoshi's Island