Qix for NES is the definitive home version due to its spot-on emulation and availability, although it was also resurrected on various PC platforms and Nintendo even published a GameBoy version featuring characters from the Mario pantheon. Featuring a half-and-half game design that blends two distinct types of gameplay into one excellent whole, The Guardian Legend is one of the most influential games in the history of the gaming industry. Many gamers wanted a port of Konami's arcade beat-'em-up of the same name instead, but had to wait until 1991, when a port of the arcade classic came to the NES under the TMNT 2 moniker. This is also one of those games that might not have been given a lot of attention if it weren't for the influence of the magazine, Nintendo Power, which featured it on the cover of its April 1991 issue. Alternating both horizontal and vertical scrolling levels with cool 3D-imitating third-person view stages, Contra was designed with short attention spans in mind. From simulated parallax that means multiple backgrounds moving at varying speeds to precise, multi-celled animation, this mech platformer pushes the NES to the very limits of its hardware capabilities. There are over a hundred single-screen levels to conquer in Bubble Bobble, clear all the enemies before you timer is up and you are safe to move on. While The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. are unarguable pinnacles of videogame creation, if we were stranded on an island with a power source, an NES and a single game, it would unquestionably be Super Mario Bros. 3. Kickle Cubicle's appeal seemed to be centered in its balanced approach. Nevertheless, I spent many hours with this awesome sequel in the game, the cover model was substituted with a protagonist tastefully clad to the nines in iron plating. Little Nemo, an American comic strip, had received the anime treatment in Japan at the time and thus the game was created, but the license was no doubt long forgotten by American audiences when Nemo came stateside. Thankfully, unlike Nintendo's release of Tetris, Dr. Mario reveled in its two-player glory, and Nintendo's new hit proved not only to be a favorite among puzzle fans, but a game consumed by multi-player purists as well. Cue Fester's Quest, a 1989 offering from Sunsoft that put gamers in the role of Uncle Fester, a character from the 1960s sitcom The Addams Family. That was the cryptic fantasy tagline offered up on the box of Faxanadu, one of the best and least-known Nintendo-published adventures to hit the NES throughout the 8-bit systems lifespan. And if the gamer managed to finish with $10 million in funds and has two special hidden treasures, a unique ending can be unlocked, as well. Built side-by-side with Metroid on the same engine and released at identical times, Kid Icarus is often the brother that's overshadowed. Even though Dragon Warrior IV approached the act of storytelling in a unique way, most of Dragon Warrior's gameplay conventions remained unchanged. What was most interesting about Mega Man 4 was its ability to tell a deeper story than what was told in the past three iterations in the series. So what if it wasn't originally a Mario game? Opening up the initial level of Robot Masters from six, as seen in the first game, to eight as seen in each subsequent Classic Series title, Mega Man 2 was also the only Classic Mega Man game to have a difficulty setting. In a sort of desperate-sounding effort to distinguish itself from other puzzle games that may happen to feature falling colored blocks, Klax's title screen boldly proclaims that "It is the nineties, and there is time for Klax." Maybe most surprising of all, though, is that the NES was also the first place Americans ever met Solid Snake. Its top-down view makes it a bit of an action-shooter, while its emphasis on collecting items and upgrading weapons lends it more to the RPG and adventure crowd. Shotgun, Mario. I guess some things never change, eh Ikari Warriors? I remember seeing this game being pushed on the Home Shopping Network months before it was available in stores. The beloved NES game is every bit as addictive today as it was 20-plus years ago, which is a testament to the quality of its design. When the eight stage select-bound stages were defeated, players entered a more linear part of the game, where both Protoman's and Dr. Wily's multi-stage castles had to be completed for the gamer to see any light at the end of the tunnel. Gamers' apprehension quickly dissipated, though, when what resulted was an amazing game full of an inordinate amount of depth. Plus, the guy who lost the fight was the one sent to the penalty box, whether he started the brawl or not. While it clearly adopted its non-linear level select structure from Mega Man, the similarities end there. It's a familiar premise, but with a pretty unique protagonist and his weapon is what makes the gameplay a winner. But that didn't matter. Following the success of DuckTales, the iconic Disney chipmunks Chip 'n Dale received an action-packed, after school cartoon series in the late '80s. Konami's The Goonies II followed on the heels of a little-known Goonies game for Nintendo's PlayChoice-10 arcade machines. Capcom listened to clamoring gamers' wants and introduced Mega Man's brother Protoman as a character of consequence. Although "licensed software" is a term that causes the blood of today's game reviewers to run cold, in the late 1980s, Disney and Capcom formed a union that inexplicably resulted in a steady series of excellent titles for the NES based on Disney trademarks. As usual, the game introduced eight new Robot Masters to defeat in any order the gamer desired, inheriting defeated boss' weapons to use on other less-fortunate foes. But after Baseball Stars hit the shelves (and subsequently flew off of them), expectations on what a sports game could do changed forever. And that's where Lolo's difficult gameplay comes in, because it's getting those icons that are the true feat. Let's be honest if you are going to play Maniac Mansion, you really should try the uncensored Commodore 64 version. Sunsoft's Batman, released Stateside in 1989, bucked convention, both old and new, and provided gamers with what proved to be an awesome action-oriented experience full of deep gameplay and immense difficulty. What stuck out most for me about Double Dragon II was how varied the game was. In 1991, Turtlemania was in full swing, and every marketer worth his or her weight in branded merchandise wanted a piece of animals-that-kick-ass pie. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Millipede Nintendo Entertainment System NES 1988 Box and Manual only Authentic at the best online prices at eBay! In the original Dragon Warrior, the hero was on his own. From the blade-throwing Cutter to the hard-pounding Stone, the prickly-bodied Needle to the electrifying Spark nearly all of Kirby's classic transformations owe their origin to this late 1992 NES release. In Klax, a conveyor belt feeds tiles that can be stacked in columns. Once you beef up your defenses, you're free to start amassing a sprawling arsenal, making aiming your shots somewhat irrelevant. Kung Fu is an enigma. I had hoped there might be some special secret, which there wasn't. When the game culminates on the sixth and final stage, Scrooge is a force to be reckoned with. An early attempt by Nintendo at copy protection? Simon's Quest took you away from the all-too-familiar atmosphere of Dracula's castle and instead set you loose in an Eastern European locale full of mysterious villages, haunted mansions and, ultimately, the remnants of the castle Simon Belmont destroyed in the original. You sped through a scrolling track, weaving up and down into and out of four parallel lanes filled with obstacles, traps and humongous hills. Awesome! Thankfully, Sunsoft didn't throw this game into the dumpster after losing the Terminator license, because Journey to Silius is one of those seldom-played but everyone-should-play-it NES gems. Rescue Rangers also ratcheted the difficulty down quite a bit, making it a good experience to share with a less-skilled partner. ** No Japanese exclusives ** The likes of Jackal doesn't count but Gunsmoke does because the screen automatically scrolls up even though it's not your traditional. The Micro Machines concept of incredibly little cars racing each other was adapted into this NES racing design, a game that featured overhead, birds-eye view action behind the miniature wheel and environments all designed to emphasize the diminutive scale of it all. 8 posts Page 1 of 1. It has its quirks, and the water level is insane, but it crams a lot into an NES cart. Yeah, it can do that too. Axelay combines top-down and side-scrolling shooting stages into a masterful SNES shooter that really has fun with the console's Mode 7 techniques. The versus play is simple and even repetitive, but it holds up today. If you fully power up your weapons you turn into a flaming, butt-kicking phoenix. Unfortunately, almost everyone agrees that Tengen's version of the game was far superior to Nintendo's, even including a two-player mode which Nintendo's version sorely lacked. When I got the box in my hand, however, it was Castlevania III. Buy Buy Buy. Add it to the list! It was much harder than the first game, which I liked, and even though I played through it a couple of times, it didn't leave me with a "been there, done that" feeling that so many other games did. Even as a young'un, I felt some injustice every time a guest brought the Zapper up against the television's bubble screen. I added level configs for 102 NES games in CaD Editor. The game also offered the sibling heroes an upgrade to their fighting repertoires, with several impressive new skills like the unforgettable Cyclone Spin Kick, and some iconic new set pieces in which to do battle, like a stage that took place aboard a helicopter in-flight thousands of feet above the ocean. Well it wasn't. But the action/platforming was a lot of play to fun regardless. Before you knew it, your screen was full of viruses with scant a place for your pills to go. Seriously, those Turtles love eating pizza. Mega Man is one of the few franchises on the NES that made it to four games. An arcade-inspired action run and gun starring sweaty shirtless men charging through tropical jungles and blasting everything in sight with an overhead, birds-eye perspective, Ikari Warriors was the definitive videogaming outlet for bottled-up aggression. You play as Gizmo from a top-down perspective as he travels through a vast building to eliminate the gremlins using a variety of weapons, including a crossbow. There's nothing wrong with combining RC Pro-AM with boats, guns, and dragons. I found it hilarious that Nintendo had to shrink down Little Mac to a third the size of his replicate the arcade version's over-the-shoulder effect on the NES hardware, but even with the compromise, the game was better on the NES! Navigate up the ramp of a moving semi and you'll instantly up your arsenal. In fact, I liked Willow so much that I'd put it up there on my top list of NES RPG favorites with games like Dragon Warrior, Final Fantasy and Crystalis. Arcade, Famicom, NES: Nintendo: A 1984 light gun shooter adapted from a 1974 EM arcade game. I can't tell you how many hours I left my NES on simply because I wanted to show off my created course to a bunch of my friends. River City Ransom's excellent amalgamation of action, adventure, beat-em-up and RPG game elements has won it many vocal supporters, yet it seems destined to remain in the shadow of big name brawlers like Double Dragon. Skate or Die brought gamers several different skateboarding events including downhill races, freestyle ramp competitions and a joust match fought in a drained swimming pool. Released in 1988, Zelda II proved to be an entirely different experience from the first and that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. And for the most part, franchises that did flood the NES were of a high quality. Now you can see why I'm so messed up. Instead of focusing on just one character or one group of characters, Dragon Warrior IV tells its fragmented story in chapters, which the gamer takes on one at a time. Or do you crank your ships thrusters to their max, relying on a quick trigger finger to clear a path? He then leaps down a nearby hole in the ground and disappears into a vast subterranean labyrinth without a trace. Another epically popular franchise to this day, Nintendo's Metroid came to the United States in 1987 and immediately floored gamers not only with its slick presentation, interesting protagonist and open world, but from the fact that it was non-linear in nature. All the while, Pit must work his way through four unique worlds, each with multiple unique stages and an end fortress where Pit must navigate through a labyrinthine set of screens to reach the boss. From Link and Samus Aran to Mega Man and Bowser, Nintendo's 8-bit machine was the debut platform for countless classic heroes and villains that are still active in the industry today. Your objective is to take them all down for the joy of the audience. Instead, it was a lot easier to take your time and advance through each level slowly, as waves of soldiers spawned from all direction to charge you and kill you dead. In fact, all the negative feelings around this one almost kept it off the list, but when it comes down to it Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was one of the greats, and a dang good title. Debate ensues to this day surrounding Zelda II's place in The Legend of Zelda franchise as a whole, but most everyone agrees that Zelda II is a stellar standalone title. Baseball Stars is unequivocally the best baseball game, and overall sports simulation, the NES ever saw. These mysterious monoliths eventually became a series standard. RPG parties with role characters, like healers and fighters, were brought to the forefront of Dragon Warrior III, and just about every J-RPG made ever since. When Ikari Warriors came out I went berserk for it, and having no income of my own I had to beg my brother Matt (12 years older than me) to go out and rent it, which he denied time and time again. Konami's classic NES hockey sim started out with exactly that, which was incredibly impressive for the time. You have to deal with enemies galore and traps aplenty; the game even gave the player the option to kill his or her character off by pressing the Select button if they found themselves trapped or unable to proceed, a true testament to Lolo 3's deep and difficult gameplay built on a deceivingly-childlike facade. Funny that both of these defining characteristics have carried over through the years into modern day Gaiden sequels. Natsume may be completely stuck in the rut of cranking out nothing but Harvest Moon sequels these days, but back on the NES the developer had some unique and inventive adventures like Abadox, Shadow of the Ninja and this game, Power Blade. Not one, not two, but three games in one. Post by dink Mon Jul 05, 2021 1:32 pm. While not entirely innovative, Final Fantasy did make some interesting iterations on the RPG formula. If that was your name in high school, nobody would have ever messed with you. Gradius was hard but fully powering up the Vic Viper made things a lot easier. Though the company's probably best known for its stint as a Nintendo second-party developer in the SNES and N64 eras when it produced the Donkey Kong Country series, Killer Instinct, Banjo-Kazooie and Conker's Bad Fur Day, there was an earlier age when Rare was making the kinds of games that made Nintendo take notice to begin with, with games like Cobra Triangle. It's all a bit confusing, but with little perseverance and a lot of hitting walls with your hammer you'll discover a unique hybrid adventure game worthy of the Goonies license. Yes, Fred who's just hopped into the backyard and touched a radioactive reactor that mutates him into an enormous amphibious monster. 6 yr. ago. Nevertheless, it was still pretty cool when the NES finally made it possible to hunt spies in the comfort of your own home. Astyanax is armed with a massive golden axe which has a unique mechanic attached to it it's linked to a power meter at the bottom of the screen which depletes and refills after every attack. I used to apply the Konami code to every game from Konami just to see what would happen. Fester's Quest was an amazing game that was both deep in its delivery and excruciatingly difficult in its execution. Really, really good. Choreographing delicate rescue operations with my cousin was a blast, sending one Jeep to collect P.O.W.s while the other threw out cover in the form of myriad bullets and grenades. Plus, being able to build an "ultimate weapon" out of blades I already had was a great touch. If you nibble enough of the Nibbleys, your snake's body would grow, his tail extending longer and longer behind his comical head and forked tongue. Metal Storm's awesome tech inspired me to seek out games with superior graphics, ultimately leading me to the used game store to trade in my NES and all my games, including Metal Storm, for a Genesis. - Jeremy Dunham, IGN Games Editorial Manager. What makes the gameplay a winner the one sent to the penalty box, whether he started the brawl not. Followed on the heels of a moving semi and you 'll instantly up your weapons you turn into a,! That mutates him into an enormous amphibious monster some things never change, eh Warriors... 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