Games released on November 9

Nine games that still hold up, from Counter-Strike in 2000 to Forza Horizon 5 in 2021

1. 

   Counter-Strike 2000

   Turned 26 this year

   Terrorists against Counter-Terrorists over rounds of bomb defusal, hostage rescue and VIP escort, in a game that began as a Half-Life mod by Minh Le and Jess Cliffe and became an esport by 2001.

2. 

   Gradius Galaxies 2001

   Turned 25 this year Game Boy Advance

   The Vic Viper flies against a planet turned into a mechanical fortress, picking one of four weapon setups, in a Gradius shooter for the Game Boy Advance set between the third game and Gradius Gaiden.

3. 

   Halo 2 2004

   Turned 22 this year Xbox

   Master Chief and the Arbiter, a disgraced alien commander, share a campaign against the Covenant and the Flood. Its online play made matchmaking, lobbies and clans the standard that later games followed.

4. 

   Shaman King: Master of Spirits 2004

   Turned 22 this year Game Boy Advance

   On the way through the Shaman Tournament, Yoh Asakura and his friends meet Magister, who means to raise the demon king Mephias, in a Metroidvania where Guardian Ghosts open the way.

5. 

   Jak 3 2004

   Turned 22 this year PlayStation 2

   Jak and Daxter explore a vast desert wasteland by buggy and leaper lizard, with a Light Jak form and twelve weapons, in the Naughty Dog adventure that concludes the trilogy.

6. 

   Viva Piñata 2006

   Turned 20 this year Xbox 360

   A garden is tended so that piñatas, candy coloured creatures that live like horses, foxes or bees, come to visit and decide to stay, in Rare's game that began as an idea for a handheld.

7. 

   Call of Duty: Black Ops 2010

   Turned 16 this year PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

   A first person shooter set in the Cold War of the 1960s, with a campaign that follows the CIA operative Alex Mason, released in 2010 for Windows, PlayStation 3, Wii and Xbox 360.

8. 

   Tetris Effect 2018

   Turned 8 this year PlayStation 4

   Tetsuya Mizuguchi's Tetris ties every falling piece to the beat of the music, across more than 30 stages that each have a sound and look of their own.

9. 

   Forza Horizon 5 2021

   Turned 5 this year Xbox One