The Besties Battle Bracket: first stages (Patreon)

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The Besties Battle Bracket returns! This time, we're finding the best first level in video games. 

We're judging the first stages on three metrics:

Most fun to play

Most narratively or visually interesting (or the sounds)

Tie-breaker: Which has more good levels after the first one

Do those metrics sound vague? Or unscientific? How dare you make such accusations! These are official metrics! Solid as diamonds wrapped in impenetrable alloys buried at the center of the Earth! 

With that, let's begin!

Best first levels bracket

Super Mario Bros. 1-1 x Mega Man X’s highway battle

Metal Gear Solid 2's tanker vs The Legend of Zelda BOTW’s The Great Plateau

Bloodborne’s Central Yarnham vs Resident Evil 4's village

Dead Space's empty landing bay vs Fallout 3's Vault 101

Call of Duty 4's F.N.G. vs Uncharted 2's train sequence

Super Metroid’s Kraid sequence vs Doom 2016’s awakening on a surgical table

FF7’s blowing up the Mako Reactor vs. Half Life 2's train station

Bioshock's “Welcome to Rapture” vs. Goldeneye 007's Dam

For the comments convo: what makes an opening level unforgettable? Is it possible for a game to have too great of an opening, overshadowing the rest?