Star Fox 64

„Do a barrel roll!" A single line known even to players who never once launched Star Fox — and it comes from right here. Star Fox 64 from 1997 (released in Europe as Lylat Wars) is a zippy cosmic rail shooter in which you pilot the Arwing fighter of fox captain Fox McCloud's team and shoot your way through space battles.

The game from Nintendo EAD guides you along a predetermined path most of the time, but it gives you the freedom to dodge, weave and pull off acrobatic manoeuvres — including the famous barrel roll to the side, which deflects enemy fire. The great feel of the controls is complemented by the tension of boss battles and hectic firefights, where every downed ship is another point.

The cleverest idea is the branching progression. Depending on how well you do in a mission — who you save, which objectives you complete — different paths through the galaxy open up, so seeing everything requires playing through repeatedly along various routes. This gives it surprising replay value for a fairly short campaign.

Star Fox 64 also went down in history as the title that introduced the Rumble Pak — a controller accessory that added vibrations reacting to hits and impacts. It was one of the first widely adopted examples of haptic feedback in console games, something that is now an absolute given for every gamepad.

The characters and their constant chatter during flight are unforgettable too — teammates Falco, Peppy and Slippy give you advice, beg for help and comment on events, lending the battles a distinctive charge and humour. It was Peppy's call to barrel roll that became one of the most quoted video game lines of all.

Why play it: A still-fun rail shooter with the debut of the Rumble Pak, branching paths and a famous line the whole gaming world knows.