Love Call of Duty or loathe it, there's no getting away from the fact that Modern Warfare is the definitive FPS experience. In fact, if you are a CoD hater, it's probably because you wish today's efforts were closer to recreating the magic of 2007.

Praise goes to Infinity Ward for the game's graphical fidelity and well balanced mechanics, of course, but it was Modern Warfare's online mode that really kicked off the Call of Duty phenomenon.

Fast-paced, accessible, rewarding and incredibly addictive, Modern Warfare came with a multiplayer formula that has informed how we expect to go into online battle ever since. Many have tried to replicate the Modern Warfare feel, none have truly matched it.

Mario and Sonic aside, we can't think of a bigger household name in gaming than Lara Croft. The original Tomb Raider quickly propelled the perfectly proportioned protagonist to iconic status, as she somehow managed to be both a sex symbol for blokes and one of strength and empowerment to girls of all ages.

Let's not forget the actual game itself. Tomb Raider kicked off the action-adventure genre as we know it today with vast environments packed with puzzles, traps and treachery around every corner.

It's a formula that's been replicated over and over and we're sure the developers of a certain other jungle-based actioner wouldn't mind admitting they took some inspiration from Core in 1996.

Metal Gear Solid is now considered the pinnacle of stealth action, but Hideo Kojima's original espionage adventure was the beginning of something much bigger than a bag of great game mechanics.

The story, flavour and legacy of the Metal Gear Solid universe has since become just as legendary as the creator himself. With plots more twisted than an evil pretzel and characters that would look epic eating a banana, Kojima created a world that wrapped people up for the duration, so much that they had to readjust to the real world once they slipped out the other side.

Okay so the cut-scenes are a bit long and there's a lot of talking but never has a title been so cinematic and involving, and so prolific in its gaming credentials at the same time.

In a world where the AK47 is king and kids aren't satisfied unless something is blowing up in their face, LittleBigPlanet was fresh and original but also incredibly positive in terms of the message sent out about video games.

With little Sackboy taking the never previously established role of PlayStation mascot, the platforming title added a creative visual approach to some solid gameplay elements.

LittleBigPlanet shone though because of the way in which it empowered gamers, giving them the tools to create their own LBP levels. And we're not talking about the equivalent of a basic track editor here; the LittleBigPlanet online community suddenly blossomed with bedroom designers creating and sharing platforming levels of such ingenuity that developer Media Molecule actually felt compelled to hire a few of them.

Before 1999 the idea of basing a racing game around high-street garage cars and giving players the power to tweak every aspect of their ride in such depth was... Well, actually, it just wasn't.

Gran Turismo was the first time outside of Formula 1 that console racing became a driving simulation, where understanding, control and subtlety was placed before the notion of stamping on the gas and pelting towards the finish.

Not to mention the sheer amount of cars available to racers. Everything from the Honda Accord to the Aston Martin DB7 was ready and waiting to be taken around the track. Oh, and all this was presented with a pioneering graphical quality for its time.

You'll probably have noticed by now that most of these titles are here because they sauntered into a particular genre and said, "You're doing it wrong, copy me from now on."

Resident Evil represents the best in survival horror and has become a nostalgic landmark in the memory of most gamers. Sure, it had a few mechanical issues but in a way the odd control system and struggling character movement only seemed to add to the fear that the game created.

The world of Resident Evil was eerie, jumpy and always incredibly threatening. Like the Dead Space of today, opportunities to relax were few and far between, just how survival horror should be.

Who would have thought that tapping a few colourful buttons in time to a backing track would ever even make it past the draft stage? If it hadn't been for the growing prominence of arcade dance machines, Guitar Hero might well have fallen at the first bar chord.

But it didn't and since then rhythm-action has become a ridiculously dominant force in the games industry. Combined with rival franchise Rock Band, Guitar Hero sparked countless band specific spin-off and plastic peripherals.

How did Guitar Hero change the world of gaming? Today you can buy a Keytar and sync it with your Xbox 360. That's how.

Deus Ex doesn't make too many of today's gaming accolade lists, but if you see a "Best games in the world ever" list that doesn't contain the sci-fi RPG then it's probably not worth reading.

In fact, many would go as far to say that Deus Ex is the best game ever, so to say it's the pinnacle of the action RPG is a given.

Its success was based on its engaging story, fantastic characters and extensive interactivity. It was a level of freedom and immersion that had never been seen in games before, and probably deserving of thanks for the likes of Mass Effect.

The thing that characterised Deus Ex the most though was the bredth of options it gave the player, enough to make them feel intelligent. There was satisfaction when you reached a goal that is rarely matched even today because it felt like you had had to craft your own tactical approach in order to get there rather than just follow a sequence of triggers and signposts. That it's over a decade old and still considered the best says all you need to know.

And so we arrive back in the depths of action-adventuring with a protagonist who, like Lara, has quickly gained a place in gamers hearts.

While Uncharted didn't define the third-person action genre that Tomb Raider kicked into the 3D generation, it did do it better than anyone else before. It's hard to put your finger on why Naughty Dog's title has been so successful and most people would say that rather than being a game changer it simply takes every element of the genre it occupies and shines with quality.

Uncharted may not have changed the world of gaming in terms of concepts and ideas, then, but it certainly set a new standard for development right across the board.

Agreed, CoD4 is best FPS ever IMO