Our first destination is in Central America through Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. Largely taking place in Costa Rica (and a bit in Nicaragua) in 1974. As the legendary Big Boss, you must once again prevent the Cold War from going nuclear. In conjunction with where it takes place, you primarily explore and do combat in the jungle (where you really do get fun and games). It also portrays the left-wing revolts going on in that region during that time, emphatically with the Sandinista rebels who would eventually take over Nicaragua.

The rebels who make contact with Big Boss tend to compare him to the controversial Che Guevara. If you bother listening in on the conversations, they can educate you on factual history of the United States foreign policies in that region, especially in regards to Nicaragua’s former military governor during the middle of the nineteenth century, William Walker, a Confederate sympathizer.

Debuting as a World War II first-person shooter, the Call of Duty franchise has evolved into the future and explores a certain what if in the instance that South America, Central America, and Caribbean nations become a superpower. And what’s worse, the US and these nations are now at war. Now you go around the Southwestern US, parts of Mexico and South America to prove that the USA is always number 1!

Considering that this game takes place during a war, places you wage battle in such as Las Vegas still retain its architecture but are now in ruins thanks to the war. In addition, you also visit the deserts and jungles for a good range of environments in the Americas that will make you re-evaluate how you engage in your missions.

While some of you are familiar with the movie starring Michael Cera, this game takes its influence from the original comic in terms of its design. Just like the comic and movie, this game takes place in Toronto, Canada. Considering this game is a beat ‘em up, it captures an urban setting by allowing you to hit downtown and take out the seven evil ex-boyfriends of Knives Chau. But just like how Canada is famous for being cold and snowy, a good portion of the levels masterfully portray that. Heck, even Toronto’s CN Tower is largely featured in the game. So if you want an homage to 16-bit, anime, and beat ‘em ups by taking out some hosers, try out Scott Pilgrim, eh?

A lot of people may hate how vampires have been bastardized in the controversial Twilight series, but that doesn’t stop BloodRayne from being an awesome game. Though the last part of the game takes place in Germany during WWII, a majority of the game takes place in Louisiana and Argentina. Despite the game taking place in the 1930’s, it doesn’t change the fact that Louisiana has always had Napoleon era inspired French architecture surrounded by swamps (with some good old Southern hospitality).

With Argentina, it portrays its Spanish inspired architecture but a lot of it will be inside Nazi bases. This game provides an alternative history as to why Nazis had a great presence in that country. So if you want to take out Nazis and vampires, bust out your PS2 for some BloodRayne.

As a foundation, Watch Dogs 2 can be called a mix of Metal Gear and Grand Theft Auto, but with a hacktivist twist. In this game, you freely explore San Francisco and other parts of the Bay Area to take out security systems and fight the man. While hacking, you have the option to use stealth but when it comes down to it, you may have to fight fire with fire. But as a hacker, you can alert local gangs and police by providing false information to provide a cover for escape.

All we can say is if you want the ultimate virtual trip to the Bay Area, Watch Dogs 2 is it. You can visit Fisherman’s Wharf, the Golden Gate Bridge, and use local transportation to get around. Heck, you can even explore the sea by boat like in GTA. The game masterfully portrays the area’s tech industry and real-life hacktivist activities. So if you want a different taste of California in comparison to the Southern side of the state, Watch Dogs 2 provides that.

Just like Watch Dogs 2, Crazy Taxi’s setting takes influence from San Francisco with its infrastructure, sights, and its trolley system. As the title suggests, you play as a taxi driver and you take a passenger to their destination without any regards to traffic rules. For certain stunts, your pay goes up exponentially.

In addition to its setting, the game truly embraces American capitalism by featuring advertisements of Pizza Hut, Tower Records, KFC, and Levi’s. What also defines its culture and generation is its inclusion of tracks from hot bands of the late 1990’s and early 2000’s such as Offspring and Bad Religion, whose songs perfectly compliment Crazy Taxi’s anti-establishment gimmick.

Nathan Drake is a modern day Indiana Jones who goes around the world and retrieves rare artifacts. Just like how the fourth movie of Indiana Jones goes out to find the lost city of El Dorado, so does Nathan in the first ever Uncharted game. Uncharted largely takes place in the jungles of Central America. In these mysterious jungles, you get to raid and do battle in lost Mayan temples. Not only that, you can also visit mysterious villages, rivers, and waterfalls.

The graphics beautifully brings you into this world of wonder and danger that will make you want to seek out these treasures and sights in real life, too. In addition to standard running and walking, you can explore this open world through the best means possible, four-wheel drive! When out in open waters, you travel by boat, but in the rivers, you can go by Jet Ski! So if you enjoy action, adventure, and mystery, Uncharted is the game to play!

During the final years of the Wild West in 1911, you can explore fictional border towns in addition to crossing into Mexico itself. The game masterfully shows how the world was technologically progressing during that time period with the transitions of horses to automobiles, and standard firearms to automatic firearms. You can explore the open frontier, local towns, ranches, and everything that defines the Wild West and take part in its activities. You can enjoy drinking at a local saloon, rattling up cattle, collecting bounties, playing cards, hunting, or taking out some dirty varmints in a duel. So if you want a true Western, nothing can even top Red Dead Redemption (but a sequel is coming in 2018).

Just like Red Dead Revolver, Assassin’s Creed III takes place in a historical period of the United States, most notably during the Revolutionary War for Independence during the 1770’s. As suggested, this game takes place during the Colonial Age, so you get to explore not only Boston and New York of that time period, but also its yet to be discovered frontiers and even the Caribbean! In this game, you get to meet the founding fathers of the US such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Ben Franklin.

Some of you American readers probably learned about the Boston Massacre in your high school history classes, and that particular event plays a large role in this game. The series not only portrays the beginning of American history with the colonists but also explores the lives of the indigenous residents and the complicated relationship they had with colonists. So if you want to relieve and change American history, Assassin’s Creed III is your chance to do that!

So if you want to experience Los Santos, the digital equivalent to modern day Los Angeles, what better game than Grand Theft Auto V. This game lets players experience every part of the city from its harbors, upper-class neighborhoods, its ghettos, downtown scene, highways, military installations and even some of its mountains! Considering the controversial nature of the GTA franchise, it lets you take full creative control with how you live in that world as a criminal to new levels of creativity. Since Southern California is a car-oriented area, as the title suggests, you can jack any car you want and go crazy, or just enjoy a simple ride. In some instances, you can even get a tank or a plane!

Beyond its insane gameplay, the story serves as the ultimate satire on present-day American society. It equally bashes both sides of the political spectrum, modern entertainment, and even how people can be addicted to games! This is a game to truly experience what people like to scream ‘Murica these days.