by Thunderhulk
Busy week for the other Super GG Bros this week, so I’m flying this week’s Top 10 list solo. Without further ado, here are 10 games I played the crap out of, but most people either haven’t heard of or didn’t like. Actually, some further ado: I figure that at least one of these games has some kind of hardcore internet following that I just haven’t encountered yet, but I grew up in a tiny village, and things that weren’t Madden weren’t talked about much.
10. The 7th Saga
I’ll be honest, I barely remember the storyline for this game, but young Thunderhulk thought it was awesome that there were 7 different characters, including a robot! Damn though, this game was hard.
9. 8 Eyes
Another game that I really can’t remember the storyline for, just that this is what we had instead of Castlevania or Metroid or Mega Man until the Super Nintendo came out. Again, hard as hell.
8. Cybernator
Probably the first game on this list that I ever actually got “good” at, this was a pretty fun and different take on sidescrolling shooters at the time. Playing as a big-ass mech didn’t hurt either.
I used to get wicked bummed out because I never had anyone to trade/battle with in this game; I just liked Pokemon so much that when I beat it I wanted something like it. Unforgiving, difficulty-wise, but fun as hell. Breeding was a blast, since I never had any clue how to get the rare monsters.
I remember Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2 getting pretty decent press at the time, but if there were sequels after that, I didn’t know about them. A modern-setting turn-based strategy game that could keep you entertained for a long time.
Now this is the game I get embarrassed to admit I played a lot as a kid. The graphics were god-awful, and I don’t even worry about graphics in video games. The gameplay was terrible, and the storyline was complete crap, but I played it, and beat it, and wear that as a badge of honor. Or shame. Next!
4. Flying Dragon
When Flying Dragon came out, it was a big deal because it had two different fighting games in it: the serious one with adult fighters that was trying to be N64 Tekken, and the one pictured, that was a bunch of anime dudes and dudettes with some added RPG elements. I love me some RPG elements, and basically never touched the “serious” mode.
Actually available on Steam at this very moment, Age of Wonders is another turn-based RPG/strategy hybrid. Basically, there are 12 races (elves, dwarves, orcs, goblins, etc.), each with their own unique units and bonuses. Of course, the easiest way to get through the game is to just buy dragons, but hey, it’s still fun!
A game I wish was available on Steam. Using the same Infinity Engine that brought Baldur’s Gate so much praise, Icewind Dale put you in the same setting as the popular Drizzt Do’Urden books, with the 3rd edition D&D rules (meaning you could actually understand them). My brother and I must have rolled up 100 different parties between us in this game (and its sequel).
1. Ogre Battle
Now, if you’re an avid follower of this blog, you’re probably saying “hey wait a minute Thunder, you already wrote an entire article on Ogre Battle!” Well, here’s the thing: this game is RARE. Only a small amount of copies were shipped upon its initial release (10,000 if memory serves me right); most people have only played it via emulator. Plus, it’s my list, I can do what I want. This game kept me so enthralled I’m pretty sure it’s what killed my Super NES.
GG!