The greatest SNES games circa right now
Since Steve mentioned something about how his SNES emulator was a constant source of distraction, I've decided to whip up my personal list of the greatest SNES games of right now. So these are all games that are still fun to play, and not necessarily the most influential or important when they came out. Also certain games have been obsoleted a lot more than others. Anyway, without further ado ...
10. Tetris Attack
Known also as Puzzle League this game actually has nothing at all to do with Tetris other than the fact that it's a puzzle game. It is, however, amazing addicting. You have to flip panels so that they match in colours. Sounds simple. It isn't.
9. Tetris/Dr. Mario
The greatest puzzle game ever, mixed with the puzzle game your mom can't stop playing! What's not to love?
8. Final Fantasy VI (released as Final Fantasy III in North America)
This one would probably rank higher if this list was put together in 1995. RPGs have advanced to a point where going back and playing this type of old style game, with its way too frequent simple battles and giant plot holes, is tough. But still, it's just so epic!
7. Mega Man X
This game probably has the best balance of bad guy abilities to grab of all the Mega Man games other than perhaps Mega Man 2 or Mega Man 3 for the NES (when there are literally 20 mainstream Mega Man games, this is actually a complement). The controls are tight and the addition of the wall grab and bad guy weapons that could be powered up added to the game. Also, it had some easy levels to cut your teeth on followed by some totally hard, but not impossible levels. Truly a side scrolling classic.
6. Mario Kart
Still totally fun after all of these years. Another game that would rank higher if not for far superior sequels. Although, honestly, who doesn't love that old school battle mode with just two people?
5. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Though, it probably isn't the best Zelda any more (that honour goes to Ocarina of Time), in my mind it stands up. This was the first game I ever actually played all the way through on an emulator, which was strange because I had the real game sitting in a closet next to me. I also finished the excellent GBA port of the game as well. Actually I think I've beaten this game at least twelve times all told.
4. Super Metroid
Still the best Metroid game (or even Metroid style game) ever made, and probably the only 2D platformer that is able to seriously wig you out with its mood and ambiance. The game is a touch short if you know where to go, but for first timers it's a true treat. And remember folks, even though Mother Brain looks dead, she isn't dead till she's dead.
3. Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger holds up much better than its Squaresoft brother FFVI/III because it does away with some of the dumber conventions of Japanese RPGs. The skipable, less frequent and more fun battles, and the fact that everything happens on one screen, make the game intensely playable. There are so many cool little moments in the game that make you just want to keep playing.
2. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
Although I'm still torn about its postmodern storybook look, and I find the mechanic of throwing eggs to be a bit clunky, this sequel to Super Mario World is downright huge, and contains some of the best platforming on any console ever. The last boss fight is amazing. Why aren't you playing it right now?
1. Super Mario Allstars + World
Yes, this is sort of a cop out, but the cart containing Super Mario 1, 2, 3, Lost Levels and World is one of the greatest game carts ever created, if not the greatest. I would probably rank at least two of the games contained higher than anything else on this list all by themselves (Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World) and the rest would be close behind. If there is one SNES game to play, this is it.
Since Steve mentioned something about how his SNES emulator was a constant source of distraction, I've decided to whip up my personal list of the greatest SNES games of right now. So these are all games that are still fun to play, and not necessarily the most influential or important when they came out. Also certain games have been obsoleted a lot more than others. Anyway, without further ado ...
10. Tetris Attack
Known also as Puzzle League this game actually has nothing at all to do with Tetris other than the fact that it's a puzzle game. It is, however, amazing addicting. You have to flip panels so that they match in colours. Sounds simple. It isn't.
9. Tetris/Dr. Mario
The greatest puzzle game ever, mixed with the puzzle game your mom can't stop playing! What's not to love?
8. Final Fantasy VI (released as Final Fantasy III in North America)
This one would probably rank higher if this list was put together in 1995. RPGs have advanced to a point where going back and playing this type of old style game, with its way too frequent simple battles and giant plot holes, is tough. But still, it's just so epic!
7. Mega Man X
This game probably has the best balance of bad guy abilities to grab of all the Mega Man games other than perhaps Mega Man 2 or Mega Man 3 for the NES (when there are literally 20 mainstream Mega Man games, this is actually a complement). The controls are tight and the addition of the wall grab and bad guy weapons that could be powered up added to the game. Also, it had some easy levels to cut your teeth on followed by some totally hard, but not impossible levels. Truly a side scrolling classic.
6. Mario Kart
Still totally fun after all of these years. Another game that would rank higher if not for far superior sequels. Although, honestly, who doesn't love that old school battle mode with just two people?
5. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Though, it probably isn't the best Zelda any more (that honour goes to Ocarina of Time), in my mind it stands up. This was the first game I ever actually played all the way through on an emulator, which was strange because I had the real game sitting in a closet next to me. I also finished the excellent GBA port of the game as well. Actually I think I've beaten this game at least twelve times all told.
4. Super Metroid
Still the best Metroid game (or even Metroid style game) ever made, and probably the only 2D platformer that is able to seriously wig you out with its mood and ambiance. The game is a touch short if you know where to go, but for first timers it's a true treat. And remember folks, even though Mother Brain looks dead, she isn't dead till she's dead.
3. Chrono Trigger
Chrono Trigger holds up much better than its Squaresoft brother FFVI/III because it does away with some of the dumber conventions of Japanese RPGs. The skipable, less frequent and more fun battles, and the fact that everything happens on one screen, make the game intensely playable. There are so many cool little moments in the game that make you just want to keep playing.
2. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
Although I'm still torn about its postmodern storybook look, and I find the mechanic of throwing eggs to be a bit clunky, this sequel to Super Mario World is downright huge, and contains some of the best platforming on any console ever. The last boss fight is amazing. Why aren't you playing it right now?
1. Super Mario Allstars + World
Yes, this is sort of a cop out, but the cart containing Super Mario 1, 2, 3, Lost Levels and World is one of the greatest game carts ever created, if not the greatest. I would probably rank at least two of the games contained higher than anything else on this list all by themselves (Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World) and the rest would be close behind. If there is one SNES game to play, this is it.
posted by Daniel Kaszor at 2:08 PM
10 Comments:
Note: This was cobbled together during a half hour break I took from noveling. I'm going to leave all of the grammar and style mistakes in there because of that.
Wow, I'm glad I found this. A few remarks:
A) If you're any good at Tetris Attack, I've been looking for fierce competition for the past 10 years. As in most other puzzle games (Dr. Mario being the notable exception), Nick just doesn't cut it when we play each other. Also, Tetris Attack should be higher up on the list, #5-6 ish. Bump MMX down a few spots.
B) As much as I love Tetris and Dr. Mario, I think to leave out the original Donkey Kong Country would be a huge mistake, and #9 seems like a good place for it.
C) Super Metroid was definetely the series-defining installment of the game, but I sincerely do believe that the best Metroid game goes to Metroid Prime (with SM right behind it, naturally). The main reason is that Super Metroid, despite excellent design, is easily 'breakable' once you master the wall-jump (Spazer and Wave are just way too easy that way), and its hard to imagine that the programmers/testers didn't catch those. You genuinely have to work for your sequence breaks in Prime. The second reason is that the Super Metroid fight with Ridley is nowhere near as cool as the Ridley fight in Metroid Prime.
D) Your #1 and #2 games are ranked too high. There is no way that Yoshi's Island is a better game than Chrono Trigger. While YI might have the graphical edge because of the FX chip, Chrono Trigger's amazing story, multiple endings and unparalleled soundtrack carry the day. I will however hold that getting 100% in all 54 levels of YI must to this day remain one of gaming's most difficult challenges.
Responses:
A) I'm not good enough at it to be good against someone who would say that they are good. I am pretty good at Tetris though which leads too ...
B) Leaving Dr Mario out of this, I still think that Tetris > Tetris Attack hence the ranking. As for Donkey Kong Country, while I think that it has been retroactively undervalued by the geekerati, it isn't top ten material. And if there was a DKC to get on the list it would probably be DKC 2 or DKC 3, both of which were bigger games than the original.
C) I generally don't power game my Metroids so sequence breaking doesn't really factor in when I rank them. Also, though I find Metroid Prime an excellent game that captures the Metroid feel quite well, I think it's different enough to not really be categorized as a Metroid style game. Yes, this does mean I consider there to be the same number of Metroid style Castlevania games as Metroid style Metroid games. Also Ridley in Prime may have been cooler, but Ridley in SM is creepier.
D) Despite being revolutionary, CT is still a game that isn't nearly as universal as the Mario games. Although it's aged better than 99% of SNES games, it's still aged. The way I look at it is this: in the almost eleven years since CT came out, are there innovations that would have made it better? Yes, notably, spoken dialogue, and more arguably 3D graphics. You could add both of those to CT without really changing what made it great. The Super Marios on the other hand are almost perfect as they are. Add spoken dialogue to them and you don't really get much added value (see the GBA Marios), and add 3D graphics to them and you get a totally different type of game (see Mario 64/Sunshine). The Marios are simply the best examples of a genre that I find to be one of the best in gaming, if not the best in gaming. A genre that isn't really around anymore.
Also, when I fire up my emulator, I don't get the urge to play CT, I get the urge to play Mario, which is, I guess, the best reason I ranked it there.
Of course, it should be noted that we seem to mostly agree, since most of the quibbles seem to be about placement.
Oh, we're getting down to very nitty-gritty details indeed. Like I said, the general is good, I suppose the rest is a matter of personal taste. I take Metroid over Mario or Zelda any day, that's just me...
Also, for all the small innovations that DKC2 and DKC3 had, I'm not entirely convinced that the game was that greatly improved for it, but I can definitely see why you would argue the contrary.
Now, with all those exciting games on the list, let me round it out by adding a few honorable mentions:
- The Donkey Kong Country series.
- The Secret of Evermore
- The Secret of Mana
- Earthbound
- Street Fighter II Turbo
- Super Mario RPG
- Star Fox
So that's that. Now you just need to improve at Tetris Attack so that I can finally have a worthy opponent. I'm counting on you!
Oh, and despite its many blatant flaws, Illusion of Gaia holds a special place in my heart...
I'd just like to point out, Dan, that I am clearly better at Tetris than you are.
Also, the fact that neither of you mentioned NHL 94 sickens me.
The computer in NHL '94 sucks. You can one-time anything past any goalie in that game. I think I won a game against the computer on 'hard' something like 23-2 once. Good games actually have a certain level of challenge associated with them...
They fixed this in NHL '98 for SNES (yes, '98, I was amazed too when I saw a SNES game published in 1997).
I would agree that all of those honurable mentions are good ones. Secret of Mana might even be a bit higher except that it actually isn't very fun to play by yourself. Evermore was actually also a lot better than the geekerati make it out to be, but it gets hurt by the lack of multiplayer.
As for my honourable mentions that really shouldn't be on any lists they are E.V.O. a game whose gameplay is quite lame, but whose Concept is so good it needs to be capitalized and Earth Worm Jim 2 which was way too hard, and not nearly good enough to get on any list, but had the arguably the best ending of any game ever.
Long live cows and princesses and combinations of the two.
Post a Comment
<< Home