Some people might argue that the closer you get to video games, the farther you get from having a normal love life. But that's only because those people don't know that some pretty powerful romantic relationships have been portrayed in video games over the years. OK, so watching two people get all lovey-dovey in-game is no substitute for the real thing, but that doesn't mean the love of two game characters can't teach you valuable lessons about what to do, and in many cases, what not to do, and perhaps most importantly, whether or not you should totally beat up your twin brother.

Without an equivalent to the "romantic comedy" movie in the video game world, love stories have popped up in a number of different genres, and sometimes in the most unlikely places. Most notably found in adventure games and RPGs, love can also be found in brawler, action adventure, and platforming games. And, like the love stories told in movies and books, game characters must endure some of the most fantastic situations.

So take heart this Valentine's Day. You won't have to rewind time to make your love forget you, and you won't have to face fire-breathing dragons only to find out the object of your affection is in another castle. And hopefully your love is more of the happily-ever-after variety than the she-gets-shot-at-the-beginning-of-the-sequel type. So snuggle up with our Great Loves for Valentine's Day, and if your favorite video game lovers are missing from the pack, head on over to GameSpot's feature story forum to wax poetic about them.

As a gentle warning, there will be spoilers to the plot of all of the related video games, so please, if you still don't know what happens at the end of Super Mario Bros., don't keep reading and then write a nasty letter. I mean, haven't you people ever heard of a statute of limitations? Sheesh.