Must-Buy PS3 Exclusives

The Last of Us.

I'm getting all emotional just thinking about it. Seriously. It's one of the most hard-hitting, honest stories I've ever experienced. Truly an exceptional game.

Get it.

 

Best exclusives imo, going by some combination of critical acclaim and personal favorites:

Metal Gear Solid 4 - probably the all around best, just an amazing game
Killzone 2 (and 3) - insanely difficult and imo one of the best shooters ever made (Killzone 3 is much less difficult than 2)
Infamous (and 2) - GTA with superpowers, similar to but better than Prototype
Uncharted 2 (and 1 and 3) - world's best Indiana Jones simulator
Last of Us - haven't finished it yet but I'm recommending it just based on Uncharted (same developers)
Heavy Rain - more of an interactive movie than a game, better with PS Move
Beyond: Two Souls - see Heavy Rain
Valkyria Chronicles - I've barely ever played this, but it's a great rpg with an unusual turn-based / third person control scheme
Demon's Souls - also insanely difficult, basically the same game as Dark Souls, but was released earlier
God of War 3 (plus 1, 2, and Ascension) - worth playing just to see the epic set pieces
Journey - haven't played these two yet, but they got a lot of acclaim as innovative downloadable titles
Flower

A lot of PS3 and 360 games are selling used in the $2-10 dollar range now. If you take a look around for good prices you can pretty much have them by the bucketful, with the new console generation being out, pushing the prices down and all.

 

In no particular order:

Valkyria Chronicles. Just fun. Interesting story, flavorful combat system. You feel like you earn your victories after a while. It's also one of those "death is permanent" games.
Demon's Souls. You'll die a lot. You'll also feel incredible when you start taking down bad guys and giant monsters.
Flower. Probably the sweetest game I've ever played. For most of the game, you bring flowers to life. The last level or so changes that to... I'll let you find out. An easy way to get this game is to pick up the disc version of--
Journey. This is the greatest game I have ever played. There is virtually no text, no death, no killing, just a journey, one that is profound once you reach the top of the mountain. I've heard stories of how this game has brought people back from the edge of suicide, that's how good it is. It'll take four hours to play and you'll never have a greater emotional connection to a video game.
Ico / Shadow of the Colossus. An amazing pair of games. One is a traditional puzzle game with some combat elements. The other is a battle against titans that uses combat to solve puzzles. Both present vast locales full of fun fantasy elements.
Shin Megami Tensei games. (Especially Persona 3 & 4, Digital Devil Saga, and Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne). Crazy blend of cyberpunk, dark fantasy, and urban fantasy. Each game presents a dark setting where your character has to battle against various powers of the cosmos.