Webhead123

It's hard to say. I don't think I've lost anything of terrible value. Sure, I've had save files corrupted where I lost 30-40 hours of progress in an RPG a time or two. There are probably a couple of cartridges that I gave away or sold stupidly-cheap that I probably would have held on to if I had realized that I'd be coming back to them full circle. I kind of wish I had managed to keep all my Nintendo Power Dragon Warrior memorabilia (the poster map, the adventure journal, the reference cards, etc.). I would have loved to hang the map and the DW2 monster roster on my wall. No idea what happened to all of it. It seems to have just gradually vanished over the years. In general, I wish I had the forethought to keep all of my video game magazines over the years. I managed to reacquire a bunch of old issues of Nintendo Power (and what a joy they are to page through!) but I wish I still had all those issues of GamePro, EGM, Game Informer, Game Fan and PC Gamer. Oh...and InQuest. God, I wish I still had my back issues of InQuest. The biggest piece of lost media for me, though, was a home video from '89-'90, when I was spending time with my grandparents. I don't remember if there was much recorded of me actually playing video games but I do seem to think there was some footage of me opening presents that Christmas morning and a shiny, new copy of Mega Man 2 was a highlight. But it was also the only video footage that I'm personally aware of of my grandmother before she died. Somewhere in the past 15 years or so, that tape has become lost. My parents can't seem to find it and neither can I. As far as I know, there's no other place it could be. I would have loved to show that tape to my kids.

The extent of the branching paths in Demon's Crest really took me by surprise. All these years I had assumed it was a pretty straightforward platformer only to discover that there was so much more to it than first appears. Great game.

I haven't put a whole lot of time into Hard Corps yet and don't have Contra 4, so I can't comment on that one. Hard Corps definitely puts up a tough first level or two but I do think it seems to ease up a bit after that. I've never made it all that far though and am certainly more practiced with Contra 3. On "normal" difficulty, the only part of 3 that really gives me much trouble these days is the final boss (who I think has been universally pegged as a pretty cheap difficulty spike). I don't remember the last time I made an attempt at "hard" difficulty but it certainly seemed to live up to its name. I really need to revisit Contra ReBirth because I remember being quite impressed by it and feeling that it had some sections that were pretty brutal. Curious to know anyone else's thoughts on it. Actually, the whole Konami ReBirth series was excellent and it saddens me that it will almost certainly never see a rerelease.

I think maybe what contributes to Contra 3's perceived difference in difficulty comes from how many more "gimmicky" challenges it introduces. There is much more variety from stage to stage compared to the earlier titles and many of these hazards aren't well-telegraphed. The variety can be a good thing but it also means that the player is almost relearning the game with every new stage. In Contra, once you've made it through the first two stages, you pretty much know everything you need to know about how to handle the game from there. Contra 3 isn't like that. I mean, just look at it: there's the overhead maze-levels, speeder bikes, hanging from the missiles in mid-air, the spinning monkey bars, the ladder climb, etc. etc. Even the bosses demand a level of awareness and navigation that isn't present in C and Super C. That's certainly not the only factor, for sure, but I think it's part of what makes Contra 3 both unique and more challenging to adjust to. The player model and hitbox are also a bit larger and the screen is more zoomed in than the NES titles, meaning you generally have smaller reaction windows and the graphics, while very good, can occasionally distract the eye from other dangers.

I feel like there's a different cadence to this one versus the NES games which makes it feel more difficult until you've played enough to adjust to it. Once you find your footing, it's not that bad outside of a couple of the boss fights.

My game group (mostly board games these days but I'm trying to get them to play more RPGs) also made a trip to see it in theaters but I couldn't make it that day. I saw it has now appeared on streaming, so I'll probably give it a watch there, as I've also heard generally good things. I have a long history with D&D although, interestingly enough, it was never one of my favorite RPGs or settings.

Fantastic game continuing the track record of the early Contra titles. While it's not my personal favorite of the series, it's not far behind. Fantastic graphics and music, some of the best bosses of the franchise and the ability to carry two special weapons really makes it a killer app. 9/10

I'm excited for BG3. I've still never found time for the Divinity games but as a big fan of the old school CRPGs, I'd been hoping for years that BG3 would actually materialize and not just turn out to be another piece of vaporware. Time to start thinking about my gnome spellsword of the Well-Respected Order of the Badger.

I've been curious about Cruelty Squad as every description I'm given of it sounds like it would be appealing...but every time I see the gouge-your-eyes-out color palette, I wonder if maybe it's a little too garish for even my sensibilities. I'm totally open to being convinced, however.

Road Rash is a series I've always enjoyed...but to be fair, the original entry isn't the best to go back to today, when almost every other title offers a superior experience. For someone dipping their toes for the first time, Road Rash 2 is probably the better choice. It's still one I'll boot up from time to time and I can enjoy it for what it is. I think it's deserving of at least a 6/10.

As a huge fan of the "immersive sim" genre, one of the core tenets of that style of game design is creating "emergent game play" through putting tools and systems in front of the player and allowing them to find creative solutions. Things like bypassing threats in MM2 or exploiting level-ups in DD are very primitive forms of that and I think they lead to great discoveries and experiences for the player. So, I welcome that kind of thing and will usually keep my eyes open for it. While I won't exploit them every time I play a certain game, knowing that they're out there is fun.

I have not finished it but even just from what I have played, it deserves a spot in the upper ranks of the GB library. I think it takes a unique twist on the Mario formula but manages to still feel like it belongs in the larger franchise. 8/10 at least, maybe higher whenever I get around to beating it.

It's difficult to pick just one game but I suppose it would have to be something with a grand scope and with tons of options. Maybe Civilization VI, considering how many hundreds of hours I've already dumped into it and how I feel like I've barely even scratched the surface. I mean, there are 77 different leaders at this point and I think I've only given a serious attempt at playing with *maybe* 15 of them. Then there are all the variant options that I haven't even touched, liked zombies, secret societies, randomized tech trees, etc.

In terms of school-age gaming, I think it's likely that the years from being a junior in high school until I graduated college. I was still playing quite a bit on my consoles but I also had the luxury of a home computer by that time, plus access to the school computer labs and the result was a big boom in terms of exposure to new games. But like Wongojack, I'm certain that I've gotten way more time to play games on average once I was out of school, had a steady job and the freedom to do whatever I wanted with my time (for the most part).

Finished my first playthrough of the System Shock remake. I'm not being at all hyperbolic when I say that it was one of the best experiences I've had in several years. Not a game for everyone for sure, as it retains the old-school mentality of requiring the player to do a lot of the legwork and being unapologetically tough but boy is it a treat to immerse yourself and fight for survival aboard a space station that wants nothing more than to murder you. I'm going to step away from it for just a bit to tackle some other games but plan to start up another playthrough, this time experimenting with a few tweaks to the difficulty sliders to see where I think the sweet spot is for me. 9/10

I agree. While I can understand why someone would find the theme annoying (especially with how repetitive it is throughout the whole game) I've always thought the tune was pleasant enough. Then again, I also unironically like the game itself and it was one that I had growing up, so maybe that skews my opinion.

Yes, I'll agree there. If the terrible, cacophonic rhythm didn't almost completely drown it out, I'd say the underlying melody sounds like it has potential. But it's kind of like mixing onions in your breakfast cereal...the sheer discordance of one ingredient ruins the whole thing.

This game came to mind right away. Even attempting to call this "music" in the first place feels like a stretch. It's just a headache-inducing mess of random blips and fart sounds. Just awful. Not quite as ear-piercing as something like 1942 but at least 1942 has a semblance of composition, however basic.

Robotron is one of my favorites. This game looks awesome! Some elements of it seem familiar, although I'm probably mixing it up with a different space game I remember owning on the 2600. It had that similar structure of skimming along the planet surface before blasting into space and passing through "warp" zones to progress to new areas. Still, a shame this never got ported. I would have loved it.

Only just now seeing this thread. What a cool idea! Coming up with a top 3 this broad though, that's tough. Here are some possible contenders for "greatest moments in gaming": -) Setting myself on a "One Day Challenge" at the age of 14 to play A Link to the Past from beginning to end all in one day. With minimal breaks for food and bathroom visits (and, luckily, few interruptions from the parents), I managed it and felt pretty proud of myself. -) Discovering the secret basketball court in the training stage of Thief: The Dark Project. Finding it was itself amusing but then I found the scroll with all of the hilarious behind-the-scenes developer quotes and I felt like I had just uncovered something truly special. That's one of the earliest moments I can remember of actively thinking about the designers of a game and getting to experience a bit of what it was like to be one of them. It was a paradigm shift for sure. -) Getting to attend Power Fest in 1990. I don't remember if it was planned or just pure happenstance but my aunt and uncle wanted to take me with them on a road trip to Disneyland. While we were there, Power Fest was going on and I had the incredible fortune to get to go. Seeing aisles and aisles of booths and demos. Getting a chance to play SMB3 for the first time. Basking in an entire event center crammed with monuments to the greatness of Nintendo. It was like every Nintendo kid's dream. Some Honorable Mentions: -) Getting my SNES on December 26th, 1991. The first console I ever bought with my own money. -) Finally reaching the Dragonlord's castle in Dragon Warrior, surviving the gauntlet and defeating the Dragonlord himself, after 6 months of exploring, looting and leveling up. -) Watching someone play Doom for the first time and being incredibly jealous that I didn't have a home computer.

MM3 is objectively the more robust game for sure, having the benefit of MM2 to learn from. That said, I honestly think they might have gone a bit too far with it in some places. I think MM3 marks the earliest signs of the series spiraling into absurdity...but only just barely. A couple of the robot masters are starting to stretch the premise a bit (Top Man, Gemini Man. Get it? 'Cause gems? Gem-ini! Get it?). The weapons are still *mostly* good but a few are...questionable. I like the introduction of Rush to replace the generic special items from MM2 but they can also be a bit gimmicky. The slide move is also mostly a gimmick, albeit a fun one to goof around with. Also...why does Proto Man exist?

I have a hard time separating out my nostalgia for this one. It's one of the earliest games I owned after getting my NES. Without question my favorite of the NES series and in strong contention with Mega Man X for my favorite of the franchise. Probably in my top 10 favorite games on the system. The music is beyond iconic and I've beaten it many times. It's the video game equivalent of "comfort food" for me at this point. So, in an effort to not be a complete slave to sentiment, I'm giving it 9/10. Not a perfect 10 because...I dunno...maybe it's less innovative than the later games or the Metal Blade kinda overshadows every other MM weapon ever conceived? Maybe one of the Wily Castle bosses is kinda janky if you're not prepared for it? Maybe some think it's too easy? Maybe I've just played the thing to death? Whatever. It's a fantastic game. It probably deserves a 10.

That's basically all of the mainline series that I've played. I've played a stage or two of 9 and 11 but not enough to give any real feedback on them. As for the X games, I've also only played the first (and a couple stages of X2). As far as relative difficulty, it's hard to say but I think X1 is maybe in the middle of the pack. A little more challenging than the later NES games but not by a lot. As Sumez points out, the thing about X1 is that it gives players a lot of tools to make the game easier, so you can set yourself up to breeze through, or you can opt to handicap yourself and make it more difficult.

I'm not an expert or anything but I think it's fair to say that the difficulty of the MM games goes mostly in reverse order. 6->5->4->2->3->1 I have a hard time objectively judging comparable difficulty between 2 and 3. Reason being, I've played 2 dozens of times since my youth, so most of it is routine for me now. 3 I've only played a time or two to the end, so I don't know if the challenge is genuine to the design or if it's just my lack of familiarity. The first one is almost certainly the hardest, though, mostly in the "cheap difficulty" kind of way.

Samus Returns feels more like a sideways step to me than a straight-up improvement or replacement. Sure, nice graphics, more intricate controls, quality of life, etc. etc. and it is clearly based on the original. That said, they end up feeling quite a bit different from each other.