I strive to be that person who doesn't give the viewer an ultimatum, and I felt like quite a few folks did, right, like they would be like "this game sucks, and you suck for liking it" and everyone jumps on the bandwagon, and a game gets an improper representation. I endeavor to be honest, but tolerant, because there's always good in everything bad.
I love the dichotomy of his overrated games boiling down to "games I couldn't git gud at", with his underrated games being "games you need to git gud at".
Yeah, I didn't want to use the dreaded h word, but it's kind of weird, especially with how many games on the "underrated" list he openly admits he hasn't even played. How are you going to tell people "oh yeah x game is SO underrated" but the immediate be like "why no, I haven't played it, how could you tell?" I love top ten lists and retro gaming stuff but this feels like low effort no try clock bait shlock.
@CommentDeletersStink I don't delete comments. I know who you're talking about, I reported that guy because he posted 30 of the same comments relating to Batman on the NES. I interpreted it as harassment, and let RUclips handle it, and they agreed. Otherwise I never delete comments, I rely on that feedback to grow. That being said, it shouldn't be an abstract concept, even if had never played Ocarina of Time, I'd know it was one of the best games on the system
@smurfette, if you read this, I'm not ill informed and I'm sure I've gained more exposure on video gaming in 6 years than you've had in your entire life. I maintain a library of 68 consoles, I play alot of stuff, beaten alot of stuff, have opinions on alot of stuff, there's no need to devolve into some pettiness alright. I'm a grown adult, father, veteran, and I'm sharing my passion with the world. You don't need to be here if you don't like my methods. There's many other producers that regurgitate common opinions and if you want to align with that, then be my guest.
Nice video but it's a little silly to say a bad game is 100% on the developers. Bad games don't get made in a vacuum. Publishers set the budget and the deadlines. If you underfund and set unrealistic deadlines then you get what you pay for.
Great list! I didn’t know about number one but compile is one of my favorite developers. Definitely will have to check it out. A few underrated games for me are Lode Runner and Sky kid. The former is a great puzzle game that once you get the hang of has the perfect NES difficulty you spoke of. Sky Kid is a unique shmup that has some forgiving mechanics and is co-op but has brutally hard rng like Doneky Kong. Love both of them and will play them through time to time. Can’t say that about many NES games that don’t start with Super Mario.
Good video as always my friend! And YES, by all means go through all the Nintendo Power mags! That would make for a cool series! I remember having them, when that 1st one with SMB2 arrived. We had a sub to it for a few years, I believe until 1993 if I’m not mistaken. Good times!
I haven't seen any videos where they have gone through Nintendo Power and talked about the games and how they were viewed at the time compared to how they are actually remembered. That would be an interesting video indeed. Great video as always, my parents felt video games were for holidays or birthdays, so I missed out on the chance to find gems like these because I knew I had only had a few chances to get games so I had to get it right the first time. But thanks to videos like this, I have gotten alot of these games as an adult and look forward to going back in time. Cheers as usual Sir.
I didn’t like Friday the 13th back then and I certainly won’t be giving it another try anytime soon. 🤣🤷♂️ Since you showed the cover art of Shatter Hand, I got to thinking that maybe someday you can make a video of your top 10 worst nes cover art boxes. Mega Man 1 is infamous for being one of the worst. Great video by the way! Nice work! 👍
These are some pretty good choices. I'd also pick Gun*Nac, Cobra Triangle, and Baseball Stars, the deepest baseball game you were likely to find on a game console in 1989.
Oh man, my brother, our friends and I LOVED Baseball Stars. Even 10 years later, we did a full season with all player controlled teams and did a draft to see what MLB players we could name our guys after.
I loved Friday the 13th. I had a friend that straight out gave it to me because he just couldn't "get it". I'll admit, the game isn't something you just pick up and play - but once you really learn how to play it there's just so much depth to it.
I tended to hate sports games as a kid, but I found myself playing a ton of Kings of the Beach volleyball. It was a good time for single players, but when we had four players going it became a party! Easy to play for a few minutes or for a much longer stretch.
I have core childhood memories of The Guardian Legend. My older bother and I rented it and got super into it. We ended up extending the rental period for a few extra days. I have a vivid memory of us beating it late at night with all of the lights off and the ending sequence being so bright.
There is a channel, just put in speedrun/console*/game* The Playlists are like, every game to every early consoles pretty much. EDIT: Hold up.... You're probably talking about the same channel I watched it lol
I've recently come across your channel and as someone who grew up with Pong, ColecoVision and the NES, especially, I love seeing your lists. For my money, one of the greatedt underrated games for the NES is Rygar. If ever there was a game on the NES that is the equivalent to comfort food, it'd be that game.
3:43 It often IS the publisher's fault, notably games made by Obsidian like New Vegas, had draconian time limits and lack of resources established by the publisher, or being told to remade it from scratch because the publisher wants a specific engine or online mode added, notably Andromeda being switched from Unreal to Frostbite. guys like Bethesda or EA are infamous for that. And AVGN is right to criticize games for being obscure, now with internet guides and know-how crappy games can be enjoyed because you can find a map and actually learn how to land that plane.
Friday the 13th has quickly become one of my favorite NES games. Probably a bit more praise than it deserves, but honestly the gameplay loop is so satisfying once you know how to get the torch. Also early Atlus game, which is cool.
For being a small RUclipsr, you sure are pushing out some good content. Definitely enjoy all your videos. I'll be around in the comments to support you for a long time to come.
I noticed a mistake at the beginning of the video: Kirby was not created in 1994, since he was actually created much earlier when he made his debut in "Kirby's Dream Land" on the original Game Boy back in 1992.
I agree, I just played it for the first time last week, it took some time to finish. The map is very small but the amount of back and forth and farming keep you busy for hours. Great game
Top 10 more very underrated games from my own library in alphabetical order Adventures of Rad Gravity Air Fortress Battle of Olympus A Boy and His Blob BreakThru Captain Skyhawk Castlequest Chubby Cherub Clu Clu Land Cybernoid: The Fighting Machine 10) Ah, Lolo...that little blue ball got me through some lonely times in college. That is one franchise I would love to see revived. 9) I love how all of the SF tropes in Street Fighter 2010 never came true. HM) I wish Friday the 13th was just a 100% Punch Out clone. 8) Faxanadu - awesome. 7) ShatterHand - yeah, Natsume is great. HM) Kickle Cubicle - Pengo but more fun! 6) StarTropics - Yusss! Good Sequel too! 5) Little Nemo - hard but fun! 4) Metal Storm - Great game! Yeah, Top 10 Games from Nintendo Power Cover Issues! 3) Magic of Scheherezade - Only people who know classical music or literature can pronounce this...great game! 2) Crystalis - Amazing Zelda Clo...uhhh...I mean, Action RPG! HM) Clash at Demonhead - Solid Game. 1) Guardian Legend - Top tier NES game.
Guardian Legend, Shatterhand, Whomp Em, Battle of Olympus, Startropics, Faxanadu, Gun Nac, Jackal are all amazing games that I rarely hear ppl talk about. Guardian Legend really is a must play though. So incredible.
Lot of my favorite NES games on this list! Monster Party is probably still my favorite underrated NES game, and was also my first NES game I got as a kid because my aunt got it for me strictly based on the cover. Because she knew I loved monsters.
Would love to see you go through the Nintendo power magazines would love to see you go through the Nintendo power magazines don't be showing them on screen though. Seriously, Nintendo suing anybody that takes any piece of those archives. And they are fucking serious about it!
It's good that you mentioned Natsume, specially because I think there's a game that, I think, is even more underrated, which is Dragon Fighter. They developed it, however Sofel was the distributor in US. For me, one of the best Famicom/NES games ever.
Star tropics is definitely one of my favorite games. Having to put the note in the water and playing the notes to get through the level. I freaking loved it. Beat it without the game genie, but damn using it was so much fun.
My list includes: Kabuki: Quantum Fighter - Slick action platformer by HAL. The control is really tight. Not a terribly long or difficult game but worth a playthrough. I believe it is on Wii virtual console. Snake Rattle n Roll - Isometric 3D platformer by Rare. It is very difficult at higher levels, but not Battletoads difficult. The graphics and sound are incredibly polished, and the presentation is great. Worth a try! Captain Skyhawk - Mainly an overhead shooter that plays like a fast and fun Zaxxon. The presentation is very slick. Solar Jetman - Another game by Rare, and a difficult one at that. It does have their great graphics, music, and polish. I know this is an acquired taste, but for anyone who likes gravity physics in their games this is really fun. I love the feeling of struggling against gravity to tow a heavy piece of equipment back to your ship. These were all $19.99 budget games back in the day, which is why I know about them. As far as Crystalis, Faxanadu, and Shatterhand - I am glad they were included but I also think those games have become such well known 'underappreciated' NES games that they now have the appreciation they deserved, and Friday the 13th has the cult following that it deserves.
I’d say The Adventures of Lolo and Star Tropics no longer have any level of obscurity since they’re on the Nintendo Switch Online. Underrated might be a bit of a stretch there.
When I clicked this, I was thinking this list screams The Guardian Legend. You know there's a fan site for The Guardian Legend that is still updated to this very day.
Wraith of the Black Manta,Magic of Sherazade,and The Guardian Legend. I'm starting to repeat myself...but these three games didn't get enough mention for as fun as they were. Also PowerBlade,a fun MegaMan like game.
I can't think of 10, but GI Joe (the first one, not the Atlantis Factor), was not only underrated, but one of the best NES games for the system. A ton of good boss battles, good graphics and good replay value. Copies now are expensive, but it is worth adding to your collection if you are a NES collector.
Isopropyl alcohol on a tip, or use a 1-up card. I have a video called "everything you need to know about the nes" it covers maintenance and troubleshooting:)
About the AVGN comment, I'd like to add that James did say that he has had the nerd hate some games that he actually liked. Friday the 13th being one of them.
I love that you mentioned friday the 13th. This is a survival horror OG that doesn't get enough love. I swear, this is gonna sound crazy, but all you have to do is READ THE MANUAL and you will have the basics down. If only we had the patients as kids to do that this game and many others would be remembered far more fondly.
@@FortefyreI totally agree. Friday the 13th was made on the premise that they expected us kids to be mature enough to sit down and read about how it works, instead of turning it on, getting confused, then getting mad. It was a game that was actually ahead of its time.
Let be real, the manual was the MASSIVE ERROR, get the torch and light fireplaces, NOPE, get the Lighter. Most people bitch about the map, but the map works perfectly if you use it like a real world map with the compass always facing North. I love this game.
As a kid a friend traded me their copy of Metal Storm for my copy of Dragon Warrior. Another friend that I met while in the military gifted me a copy of The Guardian Legend that I have still in it's original plastic wrapping.
@@Fortefyre I have 3 games that are still in their original boxes. The Guardian Legend (still in original plastic wrap unopened, but hasn't been graded), Tecmo World Wrestling (still with original plastic wrap but has been opened and not eligible for grading), and Taboo: The Sixth Sense (opened and missing original plastic wrap so not eligible for grading). All the rest of my games are loose games without the manuals.
Great video! I don't always agree with your opinion, but you are someone I know who has played a lot of games and has real knowledge, I highly respect your opinion regardless. Keep up the good work and F the haters, never stop being you bruv!
"Destiny of an Emperor" is not appreciated enough. It is where I was first introduced to the characters in the Dynasty Warriors games. (Romance of the three kingdoms)
River city ransom, dizzy, there was this one game i cant find or remember it was a sidescroller adventure, almost like zelda but theres no overworld. The only hint i can drop about it is theres a point where giant thornbushes block your way and you have to burn them away to pass, and another point you had to find an area with a sunset and play the harp for the pegasus to arrive. Its all i can remember but it was a fun but hard, think outside the box, kind of game if anyone can tell me what it was
@@Fortefyre yes I watched a playthrough on that and that's it. It was obscure to us, and we all tried to figure it our and have these meetings with notes, magazines, etc trying to finish it. It's weird, it's 32 years later, never Picked it up and the look of the game was imagined much more realistic than 8 bit. So it took a minute watching the game play for the first time again to catch on to the memory of playing it. ... I know, that's weird.
Adventures of Lolo, Faxanadu, Star Tropics, and Little Nemo were not hidden gems or even Underrated. All of those games were heavily featured in video game media during their time and never lost any popularity. The other games are pretty decent depictions of underrated titles however. One game that absolutely believe should have been on this list was Arkista's Ring. Its a little top down action game that has a similar feel to Zelda but with its grid style movement feels more tactical than reaction based. Its random loot drops also ensure that no two playthroughs are alike.
Maybe underrated 15 years ago, massive coverage from AVGN, HVGN, Pat the NES punk, etc. None of these constitute "hidden gems" anymore. For example, when HVGN did his first video on Metal Storm I went and picked it up for $20, now it's over $100. These games have had so much exposure.
I remember playing a game called Abadox. It's rarely ever mentioned in underrated lists but it was one of the best NES games I ever played and the graphics were ahead of its time. Check it out
I 100 percent agree with Willow. It's one of my go-to games when firing up the NES. I also have font memories of Xexyz although it is one of those attack at the air to make random items and powerups appear type games. It's actually a bit of a combo platformer and spaceship shoot em up game. I would say that another game I remember being quite fun is Dragon Spirit. It's a game where you start off playing as a guy who takes a sword and transforms into a dragon and you have an into sort of stage and a boss. If fail in your battle, you get to play the rest of the game as the gold dragon and play through many of the easier stages, but if you succeed in the battle, you get to play as the blue dragon through all of the stages. The game has some cool music and weird translations, but I would definitely recommend trying it out. Please note that this is not Dragon Power, the game based on the Dragon Ball series.
The Adventure of Lolo 1-3 were amazing and I have sunk HOURS into them. I love a good puzzle game and these REALLY scratched that itch for me when I was younger. Revisiting it as an adult showed it to still be a solid game that has aged well. Still engaging and I still found myself saying "I can fight this out!", shunning the sinful notion to check online. (To everyone that was born after the internet became a common household thing: Video games were way harder when you couldn't hop online and look up how to get past a part. Or find a cheat code. Or learn a secret. Or...anything. But you know what? My god, was it rewarding when you finally figured it out on your own. You felt like you actually accomplished something vs something holding your hand my god was it rewarding. Looking stuff up severely hampers that insane dopamine reward.) StarTropics is one of the best NES games ever made. Top 10 IMO. I play it annually and just beat it about 3 weeks ago. Will we ever get an updated version? MetalStorm also belongs in the top 10. And it's "kris-stah-liss", not "kre-stall-is". The word Crystal + the iss sound like "miss". :P
Your opening struck me as weird (“I’ve played a lot of NES games” seemed like a strange boast). Then I realized not everyone in the world is old and had played or read about these games growing up. Back in the day, I think everyone enjoyed Street Fighter 2010. Friday the 13th was played by everyone, cuz that series was still current when it came out, and most of us weren’t old enough to actually see the films. So we lived vicariously through that game. And like the films, we’d all die. As for the reviewing Nintendo Power issues, DO IT! I’m thinking of Cartoonist Kayfabe’s rise to fame on RUclips (RIP), a large part was likely due to having two active cartoonists reviewing the old 90s issues of WIZARD magazine.
Agreed that Friday the 13th is not as bad as the masses will have you believe. Faxandu I did not discover until later in life, but it was a fun play through, solid game. I had Street Fighter 2010 as a kid and always liked it. Kickle Cubicle is another fun puzzler as well as Fire N Ice. Both Star Tropics games are very good. Little Nemo is such a cool concept and solid game. Crystalis is widely regarded as one of the best on the system, but yes it's not as popular as say Legend of Zelda.
i didn't know crystalis was underrated i loved that game as a kid, hell we rented it for like 2-3 weeks because we got stuck even my mom was trying to help beat it
Bro help me out. There was a game that was a Standard platformer until the bosses then it became this board game of dice rolling. What was it called? It was on nes or Famicom but it was in English
I wish I liked Little Nemo and Startropics better than I currently do, but they just never clicked with me. Honestly, I find Startropics II way more enjoyable. Guardian Legend is really fun, though.
@@Fortefyre the only thing that ever bothered me about silent service on NES was that isochronic tone that was the background noise they used to imitate the engines.
Bro i would love to see a Nintendo power episode. Still have some of the issues, but there definitely not in good condition. 30 plus years have definitely shown the age.
Yesss! Friday The 13th is a really good game imo. It was the first game I beat as a kid. Took me little over a year but i did it with the help of friends and tips from the playground.
i always thought Motor City Patrol was underrated i remember your a cop car who pulls over speeders or shoot at red vans who were robbers, youll play day shift for one week about 30 mins irl. then switch to nights doing the same, i always got to night but couldnt see nothing so would loose. i had a friend who played Snake Rattle n roll but thats a bit more popular.
TGL is Top 5 all-time games for me. One of the few I own CIB and it will never EVER be in the store as an available piece. It'll likely be buried with my corpse.
I'd really enjoy a series going through Nintendo power, I've found a few videos but they are very short, skip around a lot and don't read most of it. If you do end up doing it please consider being a bit more thorough and actually reading through some of the articles and not just look at the pretty pictures lol Thanks
The Guardian Legend is my favorite video game of all time! Its great to see more love for this amazing and underrated gem!
I'm glad to have represent it here :)
I appreciate how you can inform the community about games that you don't even like, but can find the good in them.
I strive to be that person who doesn't give the viewer an ultimatum, and I felt like quite a few folks did, right, like they would be like "this game sucks, and you suck for liking it" and everyone jumps on the bandwagon, and a game gets an improper representation. I endeavor to be honest, but tolerant, because there's always good in everything bad.
I love the dichotomy of his overrated games boiling down to "games I couldn't git gud at", with his underrated games being "games you need to git gud at".
I am a walking contradiction lmao.
@@Fortefyremore like ill-informed hypocrite
Yeah, I didn't want to use the dreaded h word, but it's kind of weird, especially with how many games on the "underrated" list he openly admits he hasn't even played.
How are you going to tell people "oh yeah x game is SO underrated" but the immediate be like "why no, I haven't played it, how could you tell?"
I love top ten lists and retro gaming stuff but this feels like low effort no try clock bait shlock.
@CommentDeletersStink I don't delete comments. I know who you're talking about, I reported that guy because he posted 30 of the same comments relating to Batman on the NES. I interpreted it as harassment, and let RUclips handle it, and they agreed. Otherwise I never delete comments, I rely on that feedback to grow.
That being said, it shouldn't be an abstract concept, even if had never played Ocarina of Time, I'd know it was one of the best games on the system
@smurfette, if you read this, I'm not ill informed and I'm sure I've gained more exposure on video gaming in 6 years than you've had in your entire life. I maintain a library of 68 consoles, I play alot of stuff, beaten alot of stuff, have opinions on alot of stuff, there's no need to devolve into some pettiness alright. I'm a grown adult, father, veteran, and I'm sharing my passion with the world. You don't need to be here if you don't like my methods. There's many other producers that regurgitate common opinions and if you want to align with that, then be my guest.
Clash at Demonhead is one of my favs on the NES that I always recommend. Nice to see it get some recognition.
It's a neat little game!
Faxanadu, Star Tropics, and Sheherezade were some of my all-time favourite NES games. Glad to see them getting some love. ☺
They definitely deserve it!
Nice video but it's a little silly to say a bad game is 100% on the developers. Bad games don't get made in a vacuum. Publishers set the budget and the deadlines. If you underfund and set unrealistic deadlines then you get what you pay for.
That's actually a REALLY good point. Can we say LJN sucks now :P
Great list! I didn’t know about number one but compile is one of my favorite developers. Definitely will have to check it out. A few underrated games for me are Lode Runner and Sky kid. The former is a great puzzle game that once you get the hang of has the perfect NES difficulty you spoke of. Sky Kid is a unique shmup that has some forgiving mechanics and is co-op but has brutally hard rng like Doneky Kong. Love both of them and will play them through time to time. Can’t say that about many NES games that don’t start with Super Mario.
I LOVE Lode Runner, it almost made the list, but again, without playing EVERY single game ever, it's hard to isolate it to 10.
Good video as always my friend! And YES, by all means go through all the Nintendo Power mags! That would make for a cool series! I remember having them, when that 1st one with SMB2 arrived. We had a sub to it for a few years, I believe until 1993 if I’m not mistaken. Good times!
Nintendo Power was my jam and my subscription came with a free copy of Dragon Warrior. I was so stoked.
So glad to see The Guardian Legend getting some love. I bought that game on a whim back in the day just based on the box art and ended up loving it.
It's a wonderful game!
Props for ranking Crystalis and Scheherazade so highly!
You bet! Both are wonderful games.
I haven't seen any videos where they have gone through Nintendo Power and talked about the games and how they were viewed at the time compared to how they are actually remembered. That would be an interesting video indeed. Great video as always, my parents felt video games were for holidays or birthdays, so I missed out on the chance to find gems like these because I knew I had only had a few chances to get games so I had to get it right the first time. But thanks to videos like this, I have gotten alot of these games as an adult and look forward to going back in time. Cheers as usual Sir.
You bet! I hope to expose you to more fantastic games throughout time.
I didn’t like Friday the 13th back then and I certainly won’t be giving it another try anytime soon. 🤣🤷♂️
Since you showed the cover art of Shatter Hand, I got to thinking that maybe someday you can make a video of your top 10 worst nes cover art boxes. Mega Man 1 is infamous for being one of the worst.
Great video by the way! Nice work! 👍
You don't like the man with two right legs and a blaster pistol? :P
😂It’s a crime what they did to poor Mega Man on that illustration.
Looks like he got his costume from Spirit Halloween LMAO
These are some pretty good choices. I'd also pick Gun*Nac, Cobra Triangle, and Baseball Stars, the deepest baseball game you were likely to find on a game console in 1989.
Between Baseball Stars and Tecmo Super Bowl, both of those games have BAFFLINGLY good programming for stat retention and simulation.
I agree with Cobra Triangle. Great game and there is nothing else like it on the NES
Oh man, my brother, our friends and I LOVED Baseball Stars. Even 10 years later, we did a full season with all player controlled teams and did a draft to see what MLB players we could name our guys after.
I loved Friday the 13th. I had a friend that straight out gave it to me because he just couldn't "get it". I'll admit, the game isn't something you just pick up and play - but once you really learn how to play it there's just so much depth to it.
There really is!
I tended to hate sports games as a kid, but I found myself playing a ton of Kings of the Beach volleyball. It was a good time for single players, but when we had four players going it became a party! Easy to play for a few minutes or for a much longer stretch.
Kings of the Beach is phenomenal!
I have core childhood memories of The Guardian Legend. My older bother and I rented it and got super into it. We ended up extending the rental period for a few extra days. I have a vivid memory of us beating it late at night with all of the lights off and the ending sequence being so bright.
That's awesome!
Have you ever watched someone speedrun Friday the 13th? They make Jason look like a chump.
I watch speedruns when I feel my life is going too well lmao.
There is a channel, just put in speedrun/console*/game*
The Playlists are like, every game to every early consoles pretty much.
EDIT: Hold up.... You're probably talking about the same channel I watched it lol
Startropics is soooooooo good!
How do you feel about Zoda’s Revenge? That’s one I haven’t seen played, so I have no expectations for it.
StarTropics is pretty cool!
@@pharmcat8484 I haven't played it yet. But at some point I will!
I've recently come across your channel and as someone who grew up with Pong, ColecoVision and the NES, especially, I love seeing your lists. For my money, one of the greatedt underrated games for the NES is Rygar. If ever there was a game on the NES that is the equivalent to comfort food, it'd be that game.
Very nice! You might enjoy my generations videos, they cover the 1st and 2nd generation.
Man, this was a master class…learned quite a bit and well researched and presented. Well done
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
I’d never even heard of Scheherazade. Definitely underrated.
You know, it's moments like this, that make me feel amazing, because I feel like I've exposed a master to something beautiful!
You have a pleasant speaking voice and you speak clearly as well. Your videos relax me and I appreciate it
That's very kind of you to say, I appreciate it. I hope my videos continue to provide you a resource to relax and hopefully learn some stuff :)
3:43 It often IS the publisher's fault, notably games made by Obsidian like New Vegas, had draconian time limits and lack of resources established by the publisher, or being told to remade it from scratch because the publisher wants a specific engine or online mode added, notably Andromeda being switched from Unreal to Frostbite. guys like Bethesda or EA are infamous for that. And AVGN is right to criticize games for being obscure, now with internet guides and know-how crappy games can be enjoyed because you can find a map and actually learn how to land that plane.
I could see that. It makes sense to me.
Friday the 13th has quickly become one of my favorite NES games. Probably a bit more praise than it deserves, but honestly the gameplay loop is so satisfying once you know how to get the torch. Also early Atlus game, which is cool.
For being a small RUclipsr, you sure are pushing out some good content. Definitely enjoy all your videos. I'll be around in the comments to support you for a long time to come.
I appreciate that :)
I noticed a mistake at the beginning of the video: Kirby was not created in 1994, since he was actually created much earlier when he made his debut in "Kirby's Dream Land" on the original Game Boy back in 1992.
Yeah, I think I had a freudian slip, I've 100% played the Gameboy version too, it's one of my favorite games lol.
Good line up. Faxanadu is a must play.
Hands down!
I agree, I just played it for the first time last week, it took some time to finish. The map is very small but the amount of back and forth and farming keep you busy for hours. Great game
Top 10 more very underrated games from my own library in alphabetical order
Adventures of Rad Gravity
Air Fortress
Battle of Olympus
A Boy and His Blob
BreakThru
Captain Skyhawk
Castlequest
Chubby Cherub
Clu Clu Land
Cybernoid: The Fighting Machine
10) Ah, Lolo...that little blue ball got me through some lonely times in college.
That is one franchise I would love to see revived.
9) I love how all of the SF tropes in Street Fighter 2010 never came true.
HM) I wish Friday the 13th was just a 100% Punch Out clone.
8) Faxanadu - awesome.
7) ShatterHand - yeah, Natsume is great.
HM) Kickle Cubicle - Pengo but more fun!
6) StarTropics - Yusss! Good Sequel too!
5) Little Nemo - hard but fun!
4) Metal Storm - Great game!
Yeah, Top 10 Games from Nintendo Power Cover Issues!
3) Magic of Scheherezade - Only people who know classical music or literature can pronounce this...great game!
2) Crystalis - Amazing Zelda Clo...uhhh...I mean, Action RPG!
HM) Clash at Demonhead - Solid Game.
1) Guardian Legend - Top tier NES game.
Awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Guardian Legend, Shatterhand, Whomp Em, Battle of Olympus, Startropics, Faxanadu, Gun Nac, Jackal are all amazing games that I rarely hear ppl talk about.
Guardian Legend really is a must play though. So incredible.
Absolutely I agree!
Lot of my favorite NES games on this list! Monster Party is probably still my favorite underrated NES game, and was also my first NES game I got as a kid because my aunt got it for me strictly based on the cover. Because she knew I loved monsters.
That's awesome! I've dabbled in Monster Party, I should check it out again.
did he just say he will go through ALL nintendo power magazines??? YES DO THIS AND I WILL SUBSCRIBE
Haha, yeah we're working on it :)
I own 3 of those from the list... Crystalis, Guardian Legend, and Faxanadu (CIB). I never even played the others!
You should check them out!
Would love to see you go through the Nintendo power magazines would love to see you go through the Nintendo power magazines don't be showing them on screen though. Seriously, Nintendo suing anybody that takes any piece of those archives. And they are fucking serious about it!
I don't think I can afford physical copies lmao, I might just talk about the games that they mentioned.
Faxanadu! Easily in my top 10 of all time. I love that game so much.
Absolutely! It deserves to be there.
It's good that you mentioned Natsume, specially because I think there's a game that, I think, is even more underrated, which is Dragon Fighter. They developed it, however Sofel was the distributor in US. For me, one of the best Famicom/NES games ever.
That name comes up quite often for really solid nes games.
Star tropics is definitely one of my favorite games. Having to put the note in the water and playing the notes to get through the level. I freaking loved it. Beat it without the game genie, but damn using it was so much fun.
That's awesome! Got to love actual physical piracy protection!
My list includes:
Kabuki: Quantum Fighter - Slick action platformer by HAL. The control is really tight. Not a terribly long or difficult game but worth a playthrough. I believe it is on Wii virtual console.
Snake Rattle n Roll - Isometric 3D platformer by Rare. It is very difficult at higher levels, but not Battletoads difficult. The graphics and sound are incredibly polished, and the presentation is great. Worth a try!
Captain Skyhawk - Mainly an overhead shooter that plays like a fast and fun Zaxxon. The presentation is very slick.
Solar Jetman - Another game by Rare, and a difficult one at that. It does have their great graphics, music, and polish. I know this is an acquired taste, but for anyone who likes gravity physics in their games this is really fun. I love the feeling of struggling against gravity to tow a heavy piece of equipment back to your ship.
These were all $19.99 budget games back in the day, which is why I know about them.
As far as Crystalis, Faxanadu, and Shatterhand - I am glad they were included but I also think those games have become such well known 'underappreciated' NES games that they now have the appreciation they deserved, and Friday the 13th has the cult following that it deserves.
Solar Jetman impresses me for the physics alone, Rare did a kickass job with it.
Good list but it's missing the most underrated NES game ever. That game is Destiny of an Emperor.
I almost added it to the list lol.
I’d say The Adventures of Lolo and Star Tropics no longer have any level of obscurity since they’re on the Nintendo Switch Online. Underrated might be a bit of a stretch there.
I apply that more to StarTropics as of late, Lolo, eh, I dunno lol.
Yes please go through all the Nintendo power magazines I’d watch that for sure
I might do digital scans, some of the early ones are REALLY expensive.
The Guardian Legend is hands down the best nes game ever
It's definitely one of the top 10 for me.
The Battle of Olympus. Absolutely underrated game.
Absolutely! I hear about it often.
When I clicked this, I was thinking this list screams The Guardian Legend.
You know there's a fan site for The Guardian Legend that is still updated to this very day.
Interesting! I'll have to check it out!
Little Nemo can’t be underrated because Your Favorite Martian mentioned it in 8-Bit World. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it.
I should check it out lmao.
Wraith of the Black Manta,Magic of Sherazade,and The Guardian Legend. I'm starting to repeat myself...but these three games didn't get enough mention for as fun as they were. Also PowerBlade,a fun MegaMan like game.
Powerblade is decent, Krion Conquest is as well!
I can't think of 10, but GI Joe (the first one, not the Atlantis Factor), was not only underrated, but one of the best NES games for the system. A ton of good boss battles, good graphics and good replay value. Copies now are expensive, but it is worth adding to your collection if you are a NES collector.
That's a great game as well!
Hey man, what’s the best way you’ve learned to get a stubborn game to play on an NES, other than blowing the connectors?
Isopropyl alcohol on a tip, or use a 1-up card. I have a video called "everything you need to know about the nes" it covers maintenance and troubleshooting:)
About the AVGN comment, I'd like to add that James did say that he has had the nerd hate some games that he actually liked. Friday the 13th being one of them.
Many folks don't realize that, they take his word for face value.
Star Tropics and Faxanadu are excellent. I didn't know about the connection with Legacy of the Wizard which I also enjoyed
Yep! It's a big franchise.
:)
Adventures of Lolo is unbelievably addictive. Played fit the first time a couple years ago and completely lost track of time. So good
I am a SUCKER for approachable puzzle games.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR PUTTING STAR TROPICS ON THE LIST! This game was so good. And get the bananas out of your ears!
You bet! :)
Nemo is among my favorite games on the NES. On top of that, the soundtrack is the best on the console. I will die on that hill.
It's a solid game!
Crystalis is one of my favorite NES game and I think the first RPG game I ever played. It needs more love
Absolutely!
I love that you mentioned friday the 13th. This is a survival horror OG that doesn't get enough love. I swear, this is gonna sound crazy, but all you have to do is READ THE MANUAL and you will have the basics down. If only we had the patients as kids to do that this game and many others would be remembered far more fondly.
Which is funny because I used to love reading manuals as a N64 kid, I didn't think I was an odd one out, but EVERYONE judged Friday the 13th lmao.
@@FortefyreI totally agree. Friday the 13th was made on the premise that they expected us kids to be mature enough to sit down and read about how it works, instead of turning it on, getting confused, then getting mad. It was a game that was actually ahead of its time.
Let be real, the manual was the MASSIVE ERROR, get the torch and light fireplaces, NOPE, get the Lighter. Most people bitch about the map, but the map works perfectly if you use it like a real world map with the compass always facing North. I love this game.
I do to! I also enjoyed Nightmare on Elm Street, but the hitboxes were JUST a little too janky to put it on here.
As a kid a friend traded me their copy of Metal Storm for my copy of Dragon Warrior. Another friend that I met while in the military gifted me a copy of The Guardian Legend that I have still in it's original plastic wrapping.
Holy cow really? Nice!
@@Fortefyre I have 3 games that are still in their original boxes. The Guardian Legend (still in original plastic wrap unopened, but hasn't been graded), Tecmo World Wrestling (still with original plastic wrap but has been opened and not eligible for grading), and Taboo: The Sixth Sense (opened and missing original plastic wrap so not eligible for grading). All the rest of my games are loose games without the manuals.
Great video! I don't always agree with your opinion, but you are someone I know who has played a lot of games and has real knowledge, I highly respect your opinion regardless. Keep up the good work and F the haters, never stop being you bruv!
"Destiny of an Emperor" is not appreciated enough. It is where I was first introduced to the characters in the Dynasty Warriors games. (Romance of the three kingdoms)
I LOVE the romance games.
River city ransom, dizzy, there was this one game i cant find or remember it was a sidescroller adventure, almost like zelda but theres no overworld. The only hint i can drop about it is theres a point where giant thornbushes block your way and you have to burn them away to pass, and another point you had to find an area with a sunset and play the harp for the pegasus to arrive. Its all i can remember but it was a fun but hard, think outside the box, kind of game if anyone can tell me what it was
The Battle of Olympus?
@@Fortefyre yes I watched a playthrough on that and that's it. It was obscure to us, and we all tried to figure it our and have these meetings with notes, magazines, etc trying to finish it. It's weird, it's 32 years later, never Picked it up and the look of the game was imagined much more realistic than 8 bit. So it took a minute watching the game play for the first time again to catch on to the memory of playing it. ...
I know, that's weird.
Memories are powerful like that!
I loved all these games! I used to own a few but they were all frequent rentals back in the day.
I should do a video about 10 games I rented incessantly lol
@@Fortefyre fits into the “times where things were a little bit easier” motif 😀
Absolutely!
Adventures of Lolo, Faxanadu, Star Tropics, and Little Nemo were not hidden gems or even Underrated. All of those games were heavily featured in video game media during their time and never lost any popularity. The other games are pretty decent depictions of underrated titles however.
One game that absolutely believe should have been on this list was Arkista's Ring. Its a little top down action game that has a similar feel to Zelda but with its grid style movement feels more tactical than reaction based. Its random loot drops also ensure that no two playthroughs are alike.
Maybe underrated 15 years ago, massive coverage from AVGN, HVGN, Pat the NES punk, etc. None of these constitute "hidden gems" anymore. For example, when HVGN did his first video on Metal Storm I went and picked it up for $20, now it's over $100. These games have had so much exposure.
I'm going from a perspective of 20 years ago lol. From overall sales perspectives.
I remember playing a game called Abadox. It's rarely ever mentioned in underrated lists but it was one of the best NES games I ever played and the graphics were ahead of its time. Check it out
It was on one of my ten NES games to play list! I love Abadox lol.
6:55 Who? Is that a baseball... Googled, no it's a country. Two things people outside of America will never know.
LMFAO
I 100 percent agree with Willow. It's one of my go-to games when firing up the NES. I also have font memories of Xexyz although it is one of those attack at the air to make random items and powerups appear type games. It's actually a bit of a combo platformer and spaceship shoot em up game.
I would say that another game I remember being quite fun is Dragon Spirit. It's a game where you start off playing as a guy who takes a sword and transforms into a dragon and you have an into sort of stage and a boss. If fail in your battle, you get to play the rest of the game as the gold dragon and play through many of the easier stages, but if you succeed in the battle, you get to play as the blue dragon through all of the stages. The game has some cool music and weird translations, but I would definitely recommend trying it out. Please note that this is not Dragon Power, the game based on the Dragon Ball series.
Dragon Spirit is....on my naughty boy list, it was a FIEND for me on the TG-16.
The Adventure of Lolo 1-3 were amazing and I have sunk HOURS into them.
I love a good puzzle game and these REALLY scratched that itch for me when I was younger.
Revisiting it as an adult showed it to still be a solid game that has aged well. Still engaging and I still found myself saying "I can fight this out!", shunning the sinful notion to check online.
(To everyone that was born after the internet became a common household thing: Video games were way harder when you couldn't hop online and look up how to get past a part. Or find a cheat code. Or learn a secret. Or...anything. But you know what? My god, was it rewarding when you finally figured it out on your own. You felt like you actually accomplished something vs something holding your hand
my god was it rewarding. Looking stuff up severely hampers that insane dopamine reward.)
StarTropics is one of the best NES games ever made. Top 10 IMO. I play it annually and just beat it about 3 weeks ago.
Will we ever get an updated version?
MetalStorm also belongs in the top 10.
And it's "kris-stah-liss", not "kre-stall-is".
The word Crystal + the iss sound like "miss". :P
I try my best with pronunciation but sometimes I goof up :P
@@Fortefyre It's all good!
Was still a really enjoyable video to watch and you have some fantastic picks in there.
Your opening struck me as weird (“I’ve played a lot of NES games” seemed like a strange boast). Then I realized not everyone in the world is old and had played or read about these games growing up. Back in the day, I think everyone enjoyed Street Fighter 2010. Friday the 13th was played by everyone, cuz that series was still current when it came out, and most of us weren’t old enough to actually see the films. So we lived vicariously through that game. And like the films, we’d all die.
As for the reviewing Nintendo Power issues, DO IT! I’m thinking of Cartoonist Kayfabe’s rise to fame on RUclips (RIP), a large part was likely due to having two active cartoonists reviewing the old 90s issues of WIZARD magazine.
I do try to approach these games in a modern sense, because like you mentioned, I wasn't alive to play many of these lol.
Agreed that Friday the 13th is not as bad as the masses will have you believe. Faxandu I did not discover until later in life, but it was a fun play through, solid game. I had Street Fighter 2010 as a kid and always liked it. Kickle Cubicle is another fun puzzler as well as Fire N Ice. Both Star Tropics games are very good. Little Nemo is such a cool concept and solid game. Crystalis is widely regarded as one of the best on the system, but yes it's not as popular as say Legend of Zelda.
Fire n Ice almost made this list.
i didn't know crystalis was underrated i loved that game as a kid, hell we rented it for like 2-3 weeks because we got stuck even my mom was trying to help beat it
That's an awesome story! Thank you got sharing it with us!
Bro help me out. There was a game that was a Standard platformer until the bosses then it became this board game of dice rolling. What was it called? It was on nes or Famicom but it was in English
That sounds an aweful lot like Perman: Enban o Torikase. But I think you're thinking of Suguro Quest: Dice Knights of Death.
Finally, someone gives credit to Kickle. Great game.
It's such a good game!
Friday the 13th was not a good game. Enjoyed the music though. The Guardian Legend was great also.
I loved Friday the 13th lol.
This list is very weird, Like 8 of the choices are extremely popular and beloved classics that are constantly mentioned In best-of lists
Eh. I'm just a boy. Lol
9:49 🤣 greetings from Panama 🇵🇦 🫡
Hahaha nice.
I adore the music and cuteness of Little Nemo but goddamn I find it hard to play. 😅
Same!!
I used to own a copy of Faxanadu; it cost me 49.99 golds.
Wish I could remember why I got rid of it...
Hindsight is 20/20
I love Nightshade. It’s my all time favorite!
It's a very interesting point and click!
I wish I liked Little Nemo and Startropics better than I currently do, but they just never clicked with me. Honestly, I find Startropics II way more enjoyable. Guardian Legend is really fun, though.
Same here, at least for Little Nemo, it wasn't really for me.
I always thought Silent Service was underrated. Absolutely loved that game. Same goes for Goonies II.
Goonies II kicked my ass lmao
@@Fortefyre for me it was the right kind of hard, and I loved how many different elements of game play they put into that game.
I think I would prefer Silent Service on the PC though, just more capabilities. For what it is though, it isn't bad!
@@Fortefyre the only thing that ever bothered me about silent service on NES was that isochronic tone that was the background noise they used to imitate the engines.
They did that with Roadblasters too!
Have you played Golgo 13?
A loooong time ago. Not recently.
@@Fortefyre I believe it's criminally underrated.
culture brain also made baseball simulator 1,000 which was my favorite baseball game on the nes
Indeed!
Faxanadu AND Friday the 13th? Two of my favorites from the era.
Great games too!
Bro i would love to see a Nintendo power episode. Still have some of the issues, but there definitely not in good condition. 30 plus years have definitely shown the age.
I'll see what I can do :)
Crystalis to this day is still one of my favorites
From what I've witnessed it looks dope!
Baseball Simulator 1.000 is another great Culture Brain title on the NES
Sure is! One of the first 30 Snes games too!
Another great video
Thank you!
Love your videos 😊
Thank you!
Yesss! Friday
The 13th is a really good game imo. It was the first game I beat as a kid. Took me little over a year but i did it with the help of friends and tips from the playground.
Many people overlook it, I don't know why.
I think the problem i have with friday the 13th is the controls during fights in the cabins. Otherwise it's not as bad as everyone says
Oh yeah absolutely, also the controls period in walking in the cabin.
i always thought Motor City Patrol was underrated i remember your a cop car who pulls over speeders or shoot at red vans who were robbers, youll play day shift for one week about 30 mins irl. then switch to nights doing the same, i always got to night but couldnt see nothing so would loose. i had a friend who played Snake Rattle n roll but thats a bit more popular.
I think I played that a long time ago, was that the matchbox game?
Little Nemo: The Dream Master is an work of art 🎨 from Capcom. 😀👍🎮
Couldn't agree more!
Isolated Warrior is a nice isometric shooter
(kinda like Zaxxon or Viewpoint)
I've never heard of that one! I'll have to check it out!
I got one for you its called City Connection simple game easy concept good music decent graphics I always found it very enjoyable when I was a kid
Oh yeah, that jaleco car game, I forgot about it!
Startropics is brilliant. 😀👍🎮
It really is!
Solid list, but I would’ve put A Nightmare On Elm Street as the honorable mention rather than Friday The 13th.
The hitboxes for NOES are a liiiiiiiitle bit too wack for me, otherwise if they would have fixed that, I wouldn't have minded it.
@@FortefyreI’d rather deal with questionable hit boxes rather than an entire game that’s a royal pain in the ass to play. 😂
Big underated 2 player sports game ...you should check out Dusty Diamonds Softball
I liked it, but it didn't make the cut lol.
TGL is Top 5 all-time games for me. One of the few I own CIB and it will never EVER be in the store as an available piece. It'll likely be buried with my corpse.
BURY ME WITH MY MONEY
Yesssss i actually own metal storm cib i remember getring this game for christmas
Oh wow!
I still feel 30 something years later Air Fortress is very underrated.
There's so many that it's tough to squeeze in a list.
@fortefyre oh i wasnt meaning it should have been on your list. Just naming another underrated.
@@TJR219 shit it SHOULD be lmao
I'd really enjoy a series going through Nintendo power, I've found a few videos but they are very short, skip around a lot and don't read most of it. If you do end up doing it please consider being a bit more thorough and actually reading through some of the articles and not just look at the pretty pictures lol Thanks
You bet!