Top 5 Gaming Studios

We all have our favorite games and therefore our favorite gaming studios. Why? If a great game comes out, we believe the company might just be on to something. Trust me, if Rockstar comes out with a new game, I want to know all about it because I know their history for outrageous games. I'm sure everyone's favorite gaming studios list is as varied as everyone's favorite games list. For the sake of a lively debate, here are mine.

Terry's Top 5 Favorite Gaming Studios

1. Electronic Arts - Yeah, yeah I know. Liking EA is like rooting for the house in poker. I don't care. They produce a number of really good games for a wide variety of genres. Because they are such a big name, nobody has a bigger target on their back and they still produce. Another one of the reasons that I like them so much is how they go out of their way to provide columnists games. As a huge company, they could easily ignore a guy like me who writes for a paper with a circulation of only 100,000 but instead they make sure I have whatever I need. That's a first class operation, at least from my perspective.

Worst Game: The Sims series

Best Game: The Madden series

2. Bungie (owned by Microsoft) - A studio famous for only 2 games making a Top 5 Gaming Studios list? When those games are as important to a console as the Halo series is to the Xbox, you better believe it. I don't know one gamer with an Xbox or a 360 who doesn't own a Halo game. Its almost a requirement. Not only have the first two Halo games been huge for Microsoft but Halo 3 could have major consequences for the PS3 as well. Now that's a company with some clout.

Worst Game: Pimps at Sea :)

Best Game: Mmm..let me think...Halo 2?

3. Rockstar - This studio is a favorite among gamers because its one of the rare developers that can cover controversial topics in a fun and humorous way. Nobody handles controversy better and no company gets more publicity from it. Sure those State of Emergency games suck but you can always count on Grand Theft Auto for a great time.

Worst Game: State of Emergency

Best Game: GTA: Vice City

4. 2K Games - With MLB 2K6, Prey and especially Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (the game of the year so far in my opinion), 2K has had a monster year. A company known for being consistently good, this year 2K has been so hot that if it were a dude, Lindsay Lohan would be all over him like a wet t-shirt. The big question is: Can they keep it up?

Worst Game: Torino 2006

Best Game: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

5. Konami - Who tells better stories in video games than Hideosan? Nobody. Which is why the Metal Gear series is the feather in this studio's cap. Aside from Metal Gear, Konami (which means small waves in Japanese) also created the Contra and Silent Hill series. Not too shabby.

Worst Game: The Goonies

Best Game: Metal Gear Solid

Honorable Mention: Activision, Nintendo, Ubisoft, Blizzard