10 Video Games So Good They Ruined Genres

4. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

Though its narrative was actually relatively disappointing, Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain nevertheless raised the bar for not only open-world third-person shooters, but the stealth genre.

More than any stealth game ever, MGSV gave players a mind-boggling level of choice when it came to approaching an individual sortie.

Thanks to the utterly ridiculous array of toys made available to the player, from Fulton balloons to air strikes, decoys, vehicles and all the typical guns, experimentation is a pure joy no matter the repetitious nature of the missions, making MGSV in many ways the definitive sandbox title.

Between the gorgeously realised open world and the sheer insane depth of the combat, stealth and traversal mechanics, it is a game that caters to all play-styles equally well, proving a rare democratic offering that doesn't feel like a compromise in any way (gameplay-wise, at least).

That the game still rules the stealth genre despite so blatantly fumbling its incomplete story is really the ultimate testament to how mechanically perfect it truly is.