Best. Minigame. Ever.

The best mini-game ever was the Cooking Duel from Suikoden II. This was given to America shortly before Iron Chef hit our shores, so the idea felt fresh and original. The execution was simple enough but it was still addictive and you could count upon certain Army members to award full points to certain dishes each time.

Along this line was the Cooking Duel from Star Ocean 2. It actually had a better mechanic than Suikoden, since the skill of the chef and tools used mattered for once. But you always fought against some interdimensional whackjob and the judging was based off a computer AI who was notoriously biased against you. But the fun was in watching the dishes get "prepared" in front of you. (Wilted Salad? Let's pretend that didn't happen.) I never stopped getting a kick out of the "woob-woob-woob-woob-woob" sound they made as those huge polygons shifted about.

Also from Suikoden II was "Chinchirorin", that dice game you played with Shilo in Two Rivers. Some felt the game was annoying, but I thought there was a subtle strategy involved. I spent a lot of time playing it. I don't remember how it works anymore but if I had a copy of Suiko II still, I'm sure I could waste an hour or two refreshing my memory.

"Liar's Dice", from Leisure Suit Larry 7: Love for Sail (PC), was such a great mini-game that a friend and I made our own version with some plywood beams and a couple magic markers. It's definitely a thinker's game with tons of bluffing. Larry added the "strip" factor but the game works just as well without.

Breath of Fire III and IV had some of the best fishing mini-games during a time when seemingly all RPGs had some quasi-fishing game available. But most sucked (Lookin' at you, Legend of Legaia). The tugging patterns suggested by the game were annoying but thankfully you never truly needed them. I caught plenty of marlins and blue whales without any strategy other than casting my line by the huge, shady silhouettes in the water. Fish could be redeemed for prizes and a special bait allowed access to a "rare-item" shop, which I thought was a neat touch.

One of the best and most addictive mini-games was "Tekken Bowling" from Tekken Tag (PSX). You could play as most of the characters, choose your techno-track and have at it amongst friends. It was nice since one of my friends would cheese up the battlefield with Hwaorang but he couldn't touch me at Bowling when I used King.

Also, I must be the only person who spent hours and hours perfecting the Basketball Throw mini-game from FFVII. It was annoying and required split-second timing. But with practice, it became like second nature and it proved to be the quickest and easiest way to earn tickets. I also liked the flashy hoop. I'm easy to please.

Jam it back in, in the dark.