These are my 5 favorite video games, not in ranked order because it would be way too hard to compare and there are so many others that could be honorable mentions. I'll put them in chronological order of when I first played them. These are games I put many hours into because I enjoyed them so much, I couldn't stop playing.

Pokemon Blue

This was the first game I put any significant time into. I remember playing it during long car rides on my Gameboy Color with a little attachable light to see the screen. Yellow was great too, but nothing compares to the nostalgia of the original. Squirtle was my go-to starter. Tips and tricks and rumors of secrets were all spread by word of mouth. It was an epic adventure on a tiny screen. Having the Blue version, I traded with my friend who had Red to try to "catch 'em all." I may or may not have exploited the MissingNo glitch for some extra Master Balls. ;)

Age of Empires II

Age of Empires II is a classic RTS that really stands the test of time, as evidenced by the release of the HD version and continued support with new civilizations and campaigns. I'm not good at competitive RTS's, but I love the building of bases and having armies clash. There is no better setting for clashing armies and base defense than Medieval times. Arrows flying, trebuchets launching, walls crumbling... good times! It was also great for learning about that era in history through both the campaigns and the in-game encyclopedia.

Starcraft: Brood War

Another classic RTS! The conflict between 3 completely different space-faring races was gripping. You could min/max the strengths and weaknesses of units or just amass a giant fleet of carriers to unleash destruction! I enjoyed the singleplayer, but the most fun I had playing the game came from multiplayer custom maps. The game came with a phenomenal map editor that really opened up the possibilities. The tower defense maps were my favorite.

Minecraft

The quintessential sandbox game with truly infinite possibilities. I spent countless hours mining, exploring, building. At it's core, it's a very simple game: collect blocks and items, craft, build. It can also be incredibly complex when you start adding mods. What you do in the game is entirely up to your imagination. I built a lot of structures, both copied from real life and original creations. This image is a rendering of my best build, a recreation of the Space Center from Kerbal Space Program (another great sandbox game).

Skyrim

An action RPG set in a beautiful open world medieval fantasy realm. You choose your own path and your own style of combat. I'm partial to using a bow and the ragdolling effects of an enemy's body flying off a bridge after being hit are quite satisfying. I played through the game twice using different combat methods and additional content mods the second time. Morrowind and Oblivion are also good games, but I think the combat and travel are much better than in Morrowind and the setting and story are much better than in Oblivion.

Some Honorable Mentions

Brutal Legend, Euro Truck Simulator 2, Kerbal Space Program, Okami, Orcs Must Die! 2, Poly Bridge, Portal 2, The Sims, Star Wars: Battlefront II (2005), Torchlight II