Category: SNES

Super Punch-Out

Ultimately, one’s appreciation for Super Punch-Out comes down to how they will look at its traits. If someone happens to see its difficulty, simplicity, and brief content as flaws, then that means the game is not for them; and that is fine, arcade gameplay is always divisive when brought to consoles. However, if one evaluates those characteristics as being features, then it is impossible to go wrong with this Super Nintendo classic. Super Punch-Out does not revolutionize the formula because that element clicks so well and works within such a tight scope that it is hard to apply any sort of huge change to it. What the game does, instead, is give it a stunningly polished coat of paint, decorate it with a dozen new boxers with unique personalities, and dare players to climb the stairway that leads to the top of the boxing world. It sure is not easy and many will not make it, but as it always happens in great arcade games, the journey is addictive and thrilling.

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by Matt

Super Mario World

Super Mario World may not be as groundbreaking as its immediate predecessor; after all, Super Mario Bros. 3 marked the moment when the franchise’s gameplay reached its fully matured state, and moments such as those are very hard to come by. Nevertheless, the game succeeds in taking massive steps towards further developing the framework that was already in place. The Super Nintendo’s superior hardware allowed the creation of more intricate levels that pushed the boundaries of what a stage of the franchise could contain; the introduction of Yoshi not only brought forth a new charming character, but also expanded the series’ gameplay considerably; and the complex construction of the title’s overworld, greatly aided by the various secret exits that its courses held, gave the adventure a level of freedom and exploration that had yet to be touched upon by the platforming genre. Through those means, Super Mario World succeeds in giving muscle to a structure that had apparently already reached its peak, proving that unlikely improvements that are made to products that seemingly cannot be further polished are sometimes just as impressive as the discovery of new territory.

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by Matt

Secret Of Mana

Although Secret of Mana is a game that, in many ways, is built on the role-playing staples often explored by the folks at Square, it is also a title that finds features to make it unique. It is a quest that holds an impressive number of well-designed dungeons, appealing locations, and notable bosses; elements that will not surprise anyone who has delved into other works by the company. At the same time, it bets on an action-based battle system that greatly separates it from the Final Fantasy games, and features a tone and traveling mechanics that further expand that gap. Truthfully, with the exception of the technical and artistic prowess it carries in visuals and music, none of the components that constitute it are flawless: its plot lacks development, its combats – even if fun – have a variety of issues, and a few minor design oversights are bound to cause players’ enjoyment of the quest to be slightly disrupted. Yet, despite them, Secret of Mana remains satisfying, and regardless of how Square certainly released better efforts for the Super Nintendo, the title is still worth playing due to how it breaks away from the usual mold followed by the company, sprinkling action and adventure onto the bones of a regular RPG.

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by Matt

Stunt Race FX

Issues related to content and controls keep Stunt Race FX from being a very good effort. There is, for sure, a degree of value and excitement to be found in its races against the clock and in some of its wilder tracks; besides, its visuals – despite being undeniably aged – broadcast a handle on tridimensional design that is superior to the one that is seen in Star Fox. Still, when elements that are so central to a game experience are treated less than ideally, it is hard to throw too much praise at the product. And if even at the time of its release the gap that existed between it and other racing titles for the Super Nintendo was wide, the fact time has made the divide bigger ends up turning Stunt Race FX into a curiosity that is decent, but not worthy of anything more than a brief shot.

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by Matt

Star Fox 2

It is hard to overlook elements that, in the past, were major technological victories but that, in a context where tridimensional gaming has reached full maturity, come off as awfully clunky and outdated. Nonetheless, it would be unfair to let Star Fox 2 be fully defined by them when it does such a great job in building its own identity. The game is very much a sequel to an equally flawed classic; after all, it borrows a universe of spaceships, dogfights, and a whole lot of shooting from it. At the same time, though, it barely feels like the second chapter of a saga, because the changes it operates in structure, leaning to a strategic vein, and in gameplay, betting on free-roaming combats, create gigantic separation between it and its predecessor. Therefore, even if Star Fox 2 cannot be fearlessly recommended due to its blatant wrinkles, it can at least be applauded and given some praise for an audacity that does generate some exciting fruits.

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by Matt

Mega Man X

Mega Man X is the particular kind of game that, at the same time, succeeds because it is too similar to what came before it while also struggling for that same reason. Its levels are finely designed and its bosses are utterly memorable, supporting a gameplay experience that is undeniably enjoyable; however, as the franchise was leaping between generations, it is partially disappointing to see it remained strongly attached to its 8-bit roots. While many major gaming properties took advantage of the arrival of a new era to expand their reach, try out new ideas, or simply mature, Mega Man stood pat. With a decreased level of difficulty when compared to its NES counterparts, the value of the package of eight robot bosses it offered grew shorter; and although it does try some new tricks to give more depth to its content, a couple of them are not fully realized. Regardless of those shortcomings, though, Mega Man X is one of the Super Nintendo’s best combinations of action and platforming. Even if for those who are familiar with what came before it, the game may wind up feeling like it is too safe for its own good.

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by Matt

Super Mario RPG: Legend Of The Seven Stars

Consequently, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars is a game that excels in countless areas. In materializing the rather unlikely marriage between the platforming world of Super Mario and the role-playing greatness of the classics produced by Square during the nineties, it ended up creating a sub-genre of its own: a class of games where thick scripts and turn-based battles meet exploration segments that marry the walking usually done in RPGs with external elements such as action and puzzle-solving. With that combination as its basis, the game assembles a quest that – more than any other Mario game before it – gives life to the Mushroom Kingdom while miraculously succeeding in embracing RPG fans and newcomers to the genre that are naturally attracted to games starring the popular plumber. And even if some of the role-playing quests undertaken by the character ever since have presented more alluring scripts and a wider deck of options, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars retains its position not just as a major pioneer, but as a classic due to how nowhere else in the usually fantastic sagas that were heavily inspired by it can one find such a pure balance between RPG traditions and the quirks of Mario’s universe.

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by Matt

Star Fox

The conclusion is that, like many Super Nintendo classics, there is fun to be had in the original Star Fox. However, differently from other remarkable titles of the era, the first quest of Fox, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy has had a big portion of its glory eroded by the passing of time. Although it inaugurated a gameplay style that has served the franchise relatively well for a big amount of years and translated with grace the excitement of sidescrolling space shooters to the 3-D perspective, the fact it was one of gaming’s first huge endeavors into the world of polygonal graphics has caused its visuals and some of its gameplay components to lose luster. Going through its stages remains a thrill, shooting up as many enemies as humanly possible is still an appealing challenge, and trying hard to beat one’s best score in each of the game’s three routes is certainly alluring. Sadly, the reaching of those awards has to go through being able to look past very aged visuals and a few frustrating gameplay quirks that stem from technological limitations and clumsy implementation.

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by Matt

Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble

That wish to be bigger and to stand out is certainly the hidden theme of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble. It is easy to understand why, back in 1996, the game was seen as a drop following two titles that left big marks in the minds of gamers all around the world. Hindsight, however, reveals an adventure that although not as excellent as that of Donkey Kong Country 2, for it boasts a lesser – yet excellent – soundtrack and fails to reach the same level-design excellence, shines pretty brightly in the hall of the best platformers of its generation. By understanding that its prequel did not leave much room for improvement, it spends a big amount of its running time trying to find ways to excel, and it comes out of it with an impressive overworld, a fantastic challenge, and a stunning collection of inventive stages that use all tools the franchise had established in magnificent and original ways. As a result, even if the timing of its release may have harmed it, the years that have passed ever since have allowed Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble to emerge as a giant of the platforming genre.

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by Matt

Donkey Kong Country

That does not, obviously, mean Donkey Kong Country is a bad game. It is, actually, a major finding; a discovery of a universe of gameplay possibilities that, before it, simply did not exist. It transformed Donkey Kong from a usually mindless villain into a hero of his own vast and rich world, and it constructed an adventure that ranks among the Super Nintendo’s best platformers. The fact it comes out rather bruised from a comparison to all its sequels speaks more about their stunning quality than about Donkey Kong Country itself. Its gameplay has been improved; its visuals have been taken to higher heights; and its soundtrack, of very unique instrumentation and tone, has inspired much better ones. However, its birth paved the way to a historic franchise that is an integral part of the gaming vocabulary, and the resulting adventure is – by all means – still a fantastic and enjoyable gameplay experience, even if other Donkey Kong Country games end up amounting to packages that are more complete, well-balanced, and creative. It is, after all, only natural, because they have all had a pretty spectacular base upon which to build; and it was here that those original pillars were put in place.

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by Matt