Welcome, welcome, welcome. It’s getting to the end of the year so it’s time for lists. But it’s not close enough to end where we can’t do a “best of the year” list, so decided on this. The title pretty much says everything I need to, if you’re still uncertain what this list is, you’re not my target audience. Only 3 rules:

1. They have to be on the SNES (obvious, but if I didn’t mention it….)
2. One from each series if direct sequels.
3. I have to have played them. Now this is the most restrictive one, and means I’m missing out on Zelda, Castlevania, Metroid and Final Fantasy. I know, I’m a terrible person but I wasn’t into those kind of games when I was that age and now they’re not easy to find.

10 Lemmings

This was the last one I put on the list. Originally I put NBA Jam to take this spot. Mainly because I forgot this game existed for a while. Even once I remembered I had this I didn’t add it to the list because I mainly associated it with PC gaming. And then I remembered exactly why I brought Lemmings 2 on PC back in the day; it was because I hired out the original for SNES from a video game shop back in the day. So it gets on the list based solely on the fact it introduced me to a whole new area of gaming. It taught me gaming isn’t about speed or reactions, it was about thinking, about looking at a complex situation and figuring out exactly what tools you needed to solve it. This path has led me to games like Portal etc so is personally a very important game for me.

9 Aladdin

I know, movie licensed game before Goldeneye made them acceptable, but hear me out. This game is actually good. Odd fact for this; this game was available on the Super Nintendo and Mega Drive, but both games were different. Virgin Games (makers of Earthworm Jim and other fine games) had the disney license for video games, but Capcom had the license for Disney video games on Nintendo consoles. Very weird situation that would be unthinkable today but it led to two different, both very good games.

8 Earthworm Jim

 

See, I told you this was a fine game. Now, this game is weird, very very weird. It’s a tale as old as time itself, an earthworm finds a super suit and tries to save Princess Whats-Her-Name who is sadly crushed by a flying cow. Yeah, it’s a strange one, but it’s also fun, and actually funny.

7 Mario Is Missing

A lot of people dislike this game. And I can see why. It’s a mario game where you can’t kill mushrooms by jumping on them, and it’s educational. But for some reason I like it, I have warm memories of playing this as a child. Particularly the fact that the villains plan involves melting the polar ice caps with hundreds of hair dryers. And you controlled Luigi. And I liked Luigi. For some reason I preferred sidekicks to main characters. Not just Luigi, I preferred Tails to Sonic, always found Sonic and arrogant prick, and always felt Luigi was underappreciated. Even in Super Mario World when you beat a castle with Luigi the in-game text thanked Mario. Luigi gets no respect.

6 Street Fighter 2 Turbo

I imagine most of you know this game, so I don’t need to say much about it. This is one game where multiplayer is key. Beating the computer is fun and all, but not quite as fun as slapping your friend in the face as E.Honda. And it taught
us an important lesson, whether you’re Japanese or not, all good people are white.

 

So, that’s that, and part 2 will be next week. In the meantime, keep watching the skies! Oh wait, that’s not my sign off. Buy me cake! That’s better.