P-Wing

SNES / Super Famicom Recommendations

Chrono Trigger

Choas – One of the best RPGs ever made, and maybe the best game on the SNES. This is a game I grew to appreciate more and more the older I got. Because I’d beaten it so recently, I decided to play through with the Retro Achievements emulator, and I admit that it did add a bit of entertainment to my run. The music is outstanding and features several memorable tracks, most of which enhanced the game’s already extraordinary atmosphere. The battle system is simple enough to keep the player engaged, though it does get a bit stale after a while. Graphically, I’ve always disliked Akira Toriyama’s art style, but luckily that’s not much of an issue when you’re dealing with sprites.
Despite utilizing the awkward Giant Space Flea From Nowhere trope, the story is great, and they actually managed to make said Space Flea believable as a villain. The characters and dialogue all suffered from Nintendo’s overbearing ’90s censorship crusade, as well as Ted Woolsey’s inability to give different voices to different characters without resorting to Ye Olde Butcherede Englishe or Hulkspeak, but it still manages to work, and each character still somehow maintains their individuality. The sidequests were fun and worthwhile, and I especially appreciate that you’re actually directed toward them rather than running around aimlessly until you happen to stumble across them. I intend to get each of the endings at some point, so this is definitely a game I’ll be revisiting in the near future.

Barbaloot – Absolutely a perfect game Seriously, nothing about this game could be considered flawed. A perfect story, a perfect soundtrack, several amazing characters. Just absolutely wonderful.

gamma – I used to collect video game soundtracks, and this game’s soundtrack is one of the first I bought, because I’ve heard nothing but good things about anything involving Chrono Trigger for over 10 years. Oddly enough, I’m more familiar with the brilliant work by Nobuo Uematsu and Yasunori Mitsuda than with the actual game. But now that I’ve completed it for the first time, I’m able to say that it didn’t live up to my expectations–88 is a great score, but it probably would have been 95 if I were playing in the past. Nostalgia can easily compensate for the ugly and inefficient menus, the slightly too quick story progression, and the eventually boring battle system. Nevertheless, Chrono Trigger has the elements that a significant JRPG needs. Most of the characters actually seem like individuals, with their dialogue not having any glaring annoyances. The design of the overworld and, very different, time periods is satisfying to look at. I wouldn’t mind having games based on each era so that I could experience and understand their respective worlds in a more in-depth way. Finally, I’ve never seen so much closure in a video game; the side quests, which should absolutely not be optional, and the ending as a whole earn many points. Now I know what I’m listening to when I hear the soundtrack, memories to go along with it.

Yoshi
definitely one of the best RPGs ever (although I don’t enjoy this genre the way I used to). I played this about an hour on the DS, but switched back to the SNES because they ruined the amazing translation. The story, characters, & eras are all greatly fleshed out and wonderful to experience. The battle system is easily my favorite in any JRPG and it never got too stale for me. It’s on the easy side, but I play RPGs more for their story and characters anyway. The music is good, albeit very overrated. I’d love to go through and experience every ending to this game as well, and I find that to be a really cool feature. I also went through every sidequest, and I found every one of them very interesting, and they gave great closure to several plots going on with the characters. Would recommend and even if you aren’t a fan of the genre, you should have no problem loving this game.

Donkey Kong Country

Apple – The best feeling platformer on the SNES, right there with the other two and Super Mario World. Nostalgia is strong with this one too! Fun bosses, loads of secrets and lots of GREAT HOP AND BOP platforming! LOVE THE SNES TRILOGY!!!!! (dont even GET ME STARTED ON THAT SOOUNDTRACK!!! LMMFAO WOOO)

gamma – not feeling it as much as other people might feel it, but it has some unique animals to use and inspirational ambient music. also if you are new at the game there are parts to repeat a lot of times until you can do it and that’s perfectly okay and nice. most bosses are forgettable i forgot them.

Strife89 – It’s a landmark of a game that is memorible for its notorious advertising campaign (“Where you gonna find it?”) and eye-popping visuals for its day, plus it kicked up a pretty cool sub-franchise. I think it holds up pretty well to this day, but some of its sequels – DKC2 and the Returns games – are even better (and deeper) games, so I can’t quite give the original the highest marks. By all means, play it!

Dragon Quest V

Refia – The story is very good here, and although the grind is typical of a normal JRPG the characters are very strong in this one and the plot line has a million twists and turns I didn’t really see coming. I think this is my favorite dragon quest game overall. I don’t want to spoil what I like about the story but it is a very emotional game and it will stay with me forever so get out there and try it gamers!!!!

EarthBound

Apple – One of my favorite games ever. The charm, the wit, the art… This game really stands out as something special! There isn’t really a single thing I don’t like about the game and I’ve often revisited this game despite never doing so with other rpg games. So prepare to laugh and be swept away by the innocent and sweet nature of the game. It’s an all-time classic.

Barbaloot – Extremely witty, extremely charming, extremely great. Wonderfully random but still makes sense. Has one of the greatest final bosses of all time.

Final Fantasy V

Refia – This game has always left a lasting impression on me, and in addition to really liking the story and characters (I mean, you have an old man in your party for one thing, that’s cool as fuck), I have always loved the job system in RPGs, and I think FF5 is one of the best games at implementing it. There’s so many viable options for your party and they are all fun, and you can do so many different things with your builds. Really solid Final Fantasy and my personal favorite.

Final Fantasy VI

Barbaloot – Square produces an amazing set of characters, a great story, and a wonderful soundtrack to arguably the best Final Fantasy game to date. Love the customization of your party, and just how unique each member of your huge party is.

Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

barbaloot – This quirky little spin-off has you ushering Pac-Man around the world to meet his goals. That sounds easy, but it’s not always so simple. Since you have no direct control over Pac-Man, you need to use your trusty slingshot to interact with the environment to get Pac-Man where he needs to go. Sometimes frustrating, but mostly rewarding as you try to balance Pac-Man’s mood with how he would react to any given situation. Sometimes it’s better to keep him happy, sometimes it’s better to make him mad or sad. It all depends on what is going on. A fun game overall with some flaws that are easily overlooked for it’s charming approach to this icon of a character.

Sunset Riders

Barbaloot – Play in one of four characters in this wild-west inspired shoot-em-up. An overall solid Arcade experience, this game is actually a bit different on each edition, though I’d frankly recommend them all. Equipped with your pistol (or shotgun), you are out to take down the local bad guys, but it’s easier said than done. Some of these levels aren’t the hardest. but some bosses can lay down the hurt. Thankfully you have a few solid moves at your disposal, like the ever handy slide, or the ability to jump straight up to the next floor of a building. Overall solid title. Great for Co-Op.

Uniracers

Christopherzilla – Uniracers for SNES has some great fast-paced competitive gameplay for 2 players. You race through tracks avoiding obstacles and taking advantage of shortcuts. Successfully preforming tricks gives you a boost in speed, though if you don’t stick the landing you’ll suffer a lose of speed. There are also stunt tracks, hit some high jumps and rack up more points than your opponent before time runs out. The unicycles themselves have personality, they’re animated display emotions such as frustration, excitement, disappointment, and glee. Who knew unicycles could be so expressive! This intense racing game is all about showing off your sick skills!