The Highwind (Final Fantasy)
This is a ship that many gamers will know quite well, courtesy of the beloved Final Fantasy VII. Created by your ever reliable friend Cid, it serves as your primary airship for the run of the game, a place where you can kick back and transport any Chocobos that you come across. But of course, it’s not yours right away; you’ve got to arrange a mutiny and steal it back from the President, Rufus Shinra.
Once it’s yours, though, it’s pretty cool to have control of. Back in the day, it was pretty much like you had control of the SHIELD Helicarrier, and it’s doubtful that feeling will ever go away. In fact, with the Final Fantasy VII Remake arriving (hopefully) soon, getting the Highwind and seeing it in beautiful 1080p glory is going to be one of the many reasons to look forward to the “new” game. Except when you have to lose it during the final battle again, that’s gonna be pretty shitty. Still, we love it because of the work that went into acquiring it and the time that was spent talking with the other misfits that Cloud acquired over the course of the game. The Shera’s got nothing on you, Highwind.
USG Ishimura (Dead Space)
Is it a bit crazy to say that we’re in love with a gaming ship home to evil aliens that killed our friends and want to kill us too? Well, that’s too bad, because we are. Even though the original Dead Space is pretty much reading the script to Alien and Event Horizon and tweaking it, there’s no denying the new sense of creepiness that comes from arriving on the Ishimura for the first time to investigate a distress beacon and learning that things are far worse than you imagine.
The planetcracker turned horror show is also where Isaac’s girlfriend Nicole works, whose tragic fate makes the location all the more memorable. As Dead Space 2 showed us, it’s not a place that Isaac will ever truly be able to escape from; it’s a magnet of freaky and tragedy that will always come pulling him back. It’s only once he’s able to accept his guilt that he can truly escape the hold of the Ishimura, and in the end, isn’t that what love truly is? Being haunted by memories of your dead ex while also worrying about if someone with worse dementia than you is gonna put a screwdriver in your eye or a freakish monstrosity will tear your arms off for giggles?…Don’t answer that.
The Hyperion (Starcraft)
Ah, the Hyperion. The Behemoth-class battlecruiser has served Jim Raynor (and the players) many years over the endless hours and hours of Starcraft and its sequels. It’s perhaps one of Blizzard’s most iconic locations, second only to Azeroth, and it’s easy to see why. The size and scope of the thing is simply massive, which makes it all the more impressive that Raynor and 400 soldiers were able to take the thing for themselves from Arcturus Mengsk.
It’s hard to imagine either the Hyperion or Raynor’s Raiders not appearing in some capacity in the Starcraft universe. The battleship has been home to countless allies and battles that players got to take part in, and serves as a turning point for Raynor himself. Hijacking the ship effectively turned his relatively small forces into a power to be reckoned with, one that was able to survive the Battle of Char and become the flagship of the Terran Dominion.
The Jackdaw (Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag)
With pirates, they’re only as good as their ships, and the same holds true in gaming. While the naval missions in Assassin’s Creed III weren’t anything to to write home about, sailing around the high seas is the best part of the sequel. Just like any pirate, Edward Kenway has to get his eventual ship first, which is one of the best parts of the game in and of itself. Not only do you and he have a new ship for your troubles, you get to name it the Jackdaw and already have a crew and quartermaster that have helped you take it for your own.
What makes the Jackdaw so great isn’t just that you take it for yourself in a totally boss fashion. It feels like a location that grows as you do, whether that involves you upgrading your armor and cannons through coin or finding new sea shanties for your crew to sing. Just steer the ship towards anywhere you want, listen to some tunes, and enjoy the grand ride of piracy.
SSV Normandy (Mass Effect)
There have been numerous gaming ships over the years, but of all of them, the Normandy is the best. Part Millennium Falcon, part Starship Enterprise, it’s easy to see why it stands as the pinnacle of human achievement in the Mass Effect universe and control was given over to Commander Shepard.
Over the course of the trilogy, the ship may change in terms of crew and structure, but it’s always the same in the hearts of fans. Whether that’s going up to the CIC to pick a new planet to warp to or heading down to inspect your armory and catch up with Garrus while he’s calibrating, there are memories to be made aboard the ship. Not even being blasted apart by the Collectors can keep the good ol’ Normandy down. With a memorable crew of characters and being powerful enough to bring down a Reaper and Collector ship, there’s no denying how great of a ship the SSV Normandy is.
What are some of your favorite ships in gaming? Let us know in the comments below.
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