5 for Friday: Super Nintendo Games

Its on like, well, you know.

I play a lot of video games today. Probably more than I should. But for all of the time I spend in front of my PlayStation, I feel like the best gaming experience I had was as a kid.

I’m a major proponent of unique gameplay and “fun” games. Instead of titles like Call of Duty and Halo, my game collection tends to feature more discs that allow me to roll things up in a ball or play “Everlong” on a plastic guitar. That’s kind of my thing.

For me personally, the idea of fun gaming was at it’s peak with one system in particular: the Super Nintendo. The system featured a huge collection of great sidescrolling adventures with fun characters and brilliant animation (for the time). So with that stated, here are 7-year-old me’s favorite games for the Super Nintendo (warning: this list is based completely on what he owned/played at the time).

Fatal Fury Special
When you think of fighting games for the Super Nintendo, what comes to mind? Super Street Fighter 2? Mortal Kombat? Killer Instinct? Yes, these were classics, but the fighting game of choice at my house was Fatal Fury, a port of a fairly popular fighting game franchise which we found randomly at a used video store. It had everyone: A guy named Duck and guy named Geese, the British dude with the cane, the little Japanese guy who could turn big and the main protagonist who wore a trucker cap. It was not the best of games -- it wasn’t even the best fighting game -- but we had a lot of fun with it and it was always one of the first things that came on when friends were over.

Aladdin
I think I already stated that in the 1990s Disney made some good choices, and one of which was Aladdin. And with the movie came a variety of tie-ins, from toys to TV shows, and this game. There were a few Disney games my family owned at the time -- The Lion King, Jungle Book, the Magical Quest featuring Mickey Mouse -- but I remember and played this one more than any of the others. These games were fun, challenging and probably still hold up for their creativity and use of the source material. Unlike the games I see today based on Disney properties, I feel like these were games first and money makers second.

Mega Man X
Because my exposure to the original Nintendo was limited, my relationship to Mega Man also was limited and as such, this was my first real experience with the series (I believe I may have played an earlier Mega Man game at a babysitter’s once or twice). At the time it felt like a game that really used the potential of the system to the fullest, with amazing graphics and sound, and really sharp game play. Like Fatal Fury, Mega Man X was an impulse buy from a used game store and it was one of the games I also spent a ridiculous amount of time playing, although I owe it to a friend for finally beating it. I know there were some others produced in the series -- and those I have seen were nothing special -- but I don’t think they’ll ever compare to my experience with this title.

Donkey Kong Country
When my parents bought our Super Nintendo it was very late into the system’s life span. Although it would only be a few years before the release of the N64, we had made it to the party just in time to get our hands on a copy of Donkey Kong Country about the time of its release. Then most games were still relying on 32-bit sprites to portray their characters, but this game was incredible to look at for it’s use of computer generated graphics for its characters (which we thought were so life-like at the time). It also boasted a soundtrack that I believe rivals almost any other game ever made (sorry Zelda, your music is classic but I think this score was better). DK also was an example of how pedestrian I was at video games at the time as I have only seen the closing credits once in my life -- about a year ago when one of my college roommates and I beat it over an extended afternoon and evening. Regardless, of the difficulty curve, I will always look at this game with fondness.

 

Super Mario World
I have already talked about my love of Mario , or at least Super Mario Bros. 3, but the Mario game that stands out (still) is Super Mario World, one of the earliest titles for the Super Nintendo, it was the first game we owned and probably the one we played more than any other in the series. Even today this game provides a brilliant challenge and a fun environment. It was fun enough that every member of my family could play it, but hard enough that none of us have beaten it to this day. And to be honest, I think it would be too much of a challenge for most kids today. Just recently I gave two 4 year olds the controller to my N64 to play Mario Kart and they had no idea how to use it. I hope that’s not a sign of me getting old.