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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 5, 2017 19:17:06 GMT
I'll chime in with the 60 I've on my NES Classic (30 hack added)... alphabetically. Adventure Island II B+
This one feels a bit in the Sonic the Hedgehog galaxy for me, you can play fast & get a lot done. Nice graphics, solid fun, nice degree of difficulty for what it is. I always felt like it landed in the sweet spot of the NES' golden era, before I knew what 16-bit had in store. Balloon Fight B+
This one is superb for what it is - single or two player battle game, + an obstacle course mode. 8-bit sprites never looked so perfect. Lots of fun & rather addictive, with enough of a challenge to keep me wanting more.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 7, 2017 6:48:34 GMT
Baseball Stars A Near masterpiece of a baseball game, esp for its era. The only downside is once a user team is maxed (or nearly), pretty much every game is all but guaranteed victory. I'm still only about 3/5ths of my way to a maxed team, so that journey is ongoing. SNK was all in back in the day
Batman A- Awesome visuals, outstanding music... the game gets tough thus curbing re-playability. It takes determined session to get far for me, & I will probably never defeat it. Still fun, & some of the finest controls also.
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theshape25
Sophomore
@theshape25
Posts: 877
Likes: 536
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Post by theshape25 on Aug 7, 2017 7:06:19 GMT
I loved Baseball Stars. It was ahead of its time with being able to make trades, sign free agents, release players as well as keeping track of stats and improving players.
Me and some friends spent a summer trying to play a full season, but it kept erasing and we would have to assemble our teams from scratch again.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 8, 2017 2:16:57 GMT
Bomberman II B I hack added this one mostly for completist purposes - I loved SBM on the SNES, & I just wanted to have the upgraded one from NES on my Mini. It's alright, nothing too easy which is nice, though it grows repetitive. Storyline cut scenes are a nice bonus.
Bubble Bobble B+ This one actually feels like an NES Black Box game, which is pretty cool. It's quite easy to dive right in, the controls are pretty good considering its original release date. I haven't played enough for truer judgment, so far so fun.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 10, 2017 3:47:22 GMT
Castlevania A One of the finest early launches on the NES, this game is awesome. Of course with the mini's save feature, I enjoyed it much more when I finally defeated it this winter. It can get cheap, yet only really a few specific places. The bosses are NES hard, which is the game's last line of defence.
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest C+ Since I played this as a kid, my friend's family had it, I have a history. It's better than haters suggest, it's also not as epic as its lovers would say. It really plays like a side scrolling semi-platforming RPG. I put it on a few months ago, & walked away after 20mins. I'll need a walkthrough one day to defeat it... that's not the greatest sign of legacy. Had the programmers not made just about every hint dialogue a lie/incorrect, this would be much higher. WTF is the point of talking to ppl in the towns if they're literally just wasting your time. Still, it does look & sound pretty f'n cool while you're in its grind.
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Post by mrellaguru on Aug 11, 2017 17:07:46 GMT
I'll chime in with the 60 I've on my NES Classic (30 hack added)... alphabetically. Adventure Island II B+
This one feels a bit in the Sonic the Hedgehog galaxy for me, you can play fast & get a lot done. Nice graphics, solid fun, nice degree of difficulty for what it is. I always felt like it landed in the sweet spot of the NES' golden era, before I knew what 16-bit had in store. I'm one of the few who prefers the original Adventure Island for its extreme difficulty. (It's just a port of the arcade game Wonder Boy with a different main character.) Finally beating AI was one of my greatest gaming accomplishments. AI2 is good too though.
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Post by mrellaguru on Aug 11, 2017 17:09:16 GMT
Baseball Stars ANear masterpiece of a baseball game, esp for its era. The only downside is once a user team is maxed (or nearly), pretty much every game is all but guaranteed victory. I'm still only about 3/5ths of my way to a maxed team, so that journey is ongoing. SNK was all in back in the day Batman A-Awesome visuals, outstanding music... the game gets tough thus curbing re-playability. It takes determined session to get far for me, & I will probably never defeat it. Still fun, & some of the finest controls also. I've beaten Batman without dying. The trick is to farm enemies when you're running low on health and ammo. But the Joker really is a pain in the ass. I can usually get to him without a game over, but I can't always beat him.
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Post by mrellaguru on Aug 11, 2017 17:12:24 GMT
Castlevania AOne of the finest early launches on the NES, this game is awesome. Of course with the mini's save feature, I enjoyed it much more when I finally defeated it this winter. It can get cheap, yet only really a few specific places. The bosses are NES hard, which is the game's last line of defence. Castlevania II: Simon's Quest C+Since I played this as a kid, my friend's family had it, I have a history. It's better than haters suggest, it's also not as epic as its lovers would say. It really plays like a side scrolling semi-platforming RPG. I put it on a few months ago, & walked away after 20mins. I'll need a walkthrough one day to defeat it... that's not the greatest sign of legacy. Had the programmers not made just about every hint dialogue a lie/incorrect, this would be much higher. WTF is the point of talking to ppl in the towns if they're literally just wasting your time. Still, it does look & sound pretty f'n cool while you're in its grind. The only hard boss in Castlevania is Dracula. The others can be easily dispatched with the holy water. Just keep pelting Frankenstein and Grim Reaper with the holy water and they won't even be able to move.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 11, 2017 17:33:28 GMT
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse A Near masterpiece, the only aspect from perfection is its frequency of stair attacks with no escape. Superb graphics, sound, multi-character play, topped by a choose your own fate path through the game. Era of apex NES production no doubt.
Contra A+ While I can't get far without the 30 lives code, this thing is amazing. I always remember Contra as the first game that felt so much better at home than arcade - mostly because of the NES controller. Nothing can take that legacy away. With the 30 lives cheating, it's easily one of the most fun experiences to date in the history of gaming.
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Post by mrellaguru on Aug 12, 2017 16:04:48 GMT
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse ANear masterpiece, the only aspect from perfection is its frequency of stair attacks with no escape. Superb graphics, sound, multi-character play, topped by a choose your own fate path through the game. Era of apex NES production no doubt. Contra A+While I can't get far without the 30 lives code, this thing is amazing. I always remember Contra as the first game that felt so much better at home than arcade - mostly because of the NES controller. Nothing can take that legacy away. With the 30 lives cheating, it's easily one of the most fun experiences to date in the history of gaming. I love Contra. The other day I made it to the end of the fourth loop without using the code. It gets harder with each subsequent loop, but you can rack up a bunch of lives. I've also no-deathed it once.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 14, 2017 17:53:57 GMT
Crystalis B+ I've only ever dabbled in it thus far, yet from what I see & read about, it seems to have earned its sleeper legacy. I added it because one day I'll have it on hand if I ever get around to it.
Donkey Kong B+ Terrific nostalgia, not a whole lot more than the original 3 ported levels on a loop. As with most NES games of its era, the controls take some time adjusting to. However, once you play a few moments, it takes. This is a game I throw on after a longer session of another, 2-3 mins or whatever.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 16, 2017 5:48:08 GMT
Donkey Kong Jr. B This one to me feels less iconic than DK, which along with its quirky controls, brings it down a notch. Still fun as an aside, esp right after a quick DK session.
Double Dragon II: The Revenge A Nostalgic bias here. Double Dragon was both the first arcade game I played and the first that I defeated (2 player). I had to own it on NES when I was a kid... alas its later stages were like one long dead end. 2 player &/or cheat lives code would've been most welcome. DD2 came out in arcades of course prior to the Street Fighter II era, & its looser controls & more enjoyable interface won me & my friends over huge (childhood lore: couple of my friends were beating it when the power went out at their arcade, Canada's Wonderland of all places). It still plays really well, still a lot of fun to get into. One day I'll commit to defeating it.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 18, 2017 4:06:44 GMT
Dragon Warrior B+ Classic I never played ever before, it's fine & fun for what it is - intro'ing someone to the RPG genre of yore.
Dragon Warrior IV A Steps up to close out its NES era, I'll devote myself to it one day.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 19, 2017 2:07:32 GMT
Dr. Mario A- Infuriatingly addictive. Level 20 is my starting point, ocd trying to conquer the sob. Not even Tetris can match this game's omg wtf it's been 90mins already time passage.
DuckTales A Easily in the top tier of masterpiece third party games for the NES, & even greater prestige as one of the finest franchise to game releases ever. DT excels with a bit of a SMB3 style non-linear level design while uncovering bonuses & unique pathways to success. Excellent music, visuals, sounds, & payoffs. Pogo jumping is icing on the cake.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 21, 2017 3:10:53 GMT
Are you reviewing these games on just playing them a few hours? Some. I didn't log many childhood hours on several of the NES Classic launch titles nor on several more I added based on critical acclaim & very minimal childhood experience. Nor have I been logging that much time at them even with them at the ready. I've played sessions of all of the 'new' ones for me, though not enough for full completist sessions, esp rpgs which I want to knock off one at a time instead of all over the place at once. I'm 3/5ths through Zelda - with map, & having never played more than 20mins until this year. I've emulated before, but just puzzle & sports games for time filler. Tis what she is dawg.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 21, 2017 3:17:42 GMT
Excitebike A Nearly perfect game save for how quickly I 'defeat' it. I wish level 5 was more than just repeating trying to clear it quicker each time. As it is, it's a ton of fun. Probably even the first NES game I ever played - my friend's cousin had it & we were afraid of it overheating & damaging their system. I was 7. At least now I can save up to 4 created tracks & try to beat times on those.
Family Feud: The All New B+ A fun bit of escapism, I've always liked its format, tv & vid game alike. More childhood memories - these were the types of games my younger cousins were allowed to rent & play at family cottage for the summer.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 23, 2017 3:53:38 GMT
Final Fantasy A- Excellent for its era, quite inviting & addictive. I really admire its storyline & scope, alas I'll need more time if I want to go farther & deeper.
Galaga B+ I appreciate this being more of an arcade legend than a Nintendo era one. Its loose controls & swift visuals are easy to pick up & get used to, though not for long sessions at a time. It's cute for a shooter & I'm glad they boxed it for the mini - I wouldn't have hack added it myself.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 24, 2017 5:44:25 GMT
Ghosts'n Goblins C- One of my least fav inclusions on the mini, this thing while a classic can be a pain in the @$$. I would probably enjoy it more if I knew the path to full completion wasn't clearing the entire f'n game twice over. Plus points for infinite continues.
Golf A All in subjective bias here... Golf was one of the first games I had along with the Action set circa Christmas 1988. It's become an addicting staple for me near the likes of Tetris. The controls offer nothing much other than trial & error to adjust for wind &/or slicing or drawing the ball - because the directional target is not a true 360. Needless to say, I've had the game nearly 30yrs of experience to excel. My current low score is -12 under 60... I will shoot a 59! It plays with zero music with only minimal bells & whistles... practically like a turn key pocket gaming sim in NES form. It's quite a relaxing experience.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 29, 2017 1:37:55 GMT
Gradius B Solid execution, not very memorable otherwise. I was never into shooters, & even if this is as old school as can be, I need better than loading up on weaponry only to lose it all from a cheap shot. Still has some of the tightest controls on the NES.
Ice Climber B+ More personal bias... One of the first games I ever played, at a friend's house. I always thought its platforming style was cool- jumping to break ice gave that action more purpose. Yes the controls are literally & figuratively slippery, yet also easy to grasp & use to your advantage (A button jumping + d-pad as a form of combo move to play). Very nice early NES graphics, sprites, & colours.
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Post by twothousandonemark on Aug 31, 2017 16:42:27 GMT
Ice Hockey B+ Childhood nostalgia. I played/debated this or Blades of Steel, I didn't want both. BoS plays quite sluggishly & deliberately, doesn't feel like video game hockey anymore. Of course IH doesn't fully either, it is more frenetic & fast paced fun. Misses points for player without the puck essentially becoming the goalie... hard to set the team up on defence with the goalie controls so integral. If we could elect to play as goalie or not while on the fly, this game would be nearly perfect with its already high degree of fun. Love the zambonis & huge shoutout no pun for the tight game 3rd period fan roaring.
Kid Icarus B- Another raw review, I've only dabbled. I like its varied stages, enemies, & controls. I read it's a difficult game which makes me wary to really get into it, considering the other titles I've prioritized ahead of it. Fun so far from what I've played.
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