rdrunner

Day 31 - Here are my favorites for each day. I think we definitely raised the bar this time, as these were some TOUGH decisions. Great job everyone! 1 Title: Pictionary (Gaia Gensouki) 2 Desert: Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (AverageOliver98) 3 Nintendo: Shadow of the Ninja (Sumez) 4 2010's: Sonic Mania (Zelda Freak) - This was another one of those "game sellers" for me! 5 Jazz Music: Ultimate Chicken Horse (koifish) 6 Underground: The Immortal (nesmaster14) - Huge fan of this game. Wish it had sequels. 7 Indoor: Contra (Jeevan) 8 8-Bit: Solstice (fox) 9 Remix: Deus Ex (nesmaster14) - Additional shout out to Sivak (a.k.a. Mr. Battle Kid) for an awesome piano solo! 10 Water: Thunder Force III (AverageOliver98) 11 Funny: Disgaea (Gaia Gensouki) 12 Hate: Earthbound (fox) - It's tracks like Dungeon Man that kept this game from being a true classic. 13 Sports: Arms (Zelda Freak) 14 Boss: River City Ransom (Aguy) 15 Stage Clear: Turtles in Time (fox) 16 16-Bit: Plok (Gaia Gensouki) - If I was doing SNES games, Plok would have definitely made the list. Great stuff! 17 Sky: Etrian Odyssey IV (Sumez) 18 Arcade: Sunset Riders (fox) 19 Sampler: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Zelda Freak) 20 Sega: Sonic the Hedgehog (0xDEAFC0DE) 21 Fighting: Marvel vs Capcom 2 (Aguy) 22 Ambient: Metroid Prime (Sumez) 23 Industrial: Shovel Knight (AverageOliver98) - Could listen to this soundtrack forever. 24 32/64-Bit: GoldenEye 007 (Gaia Gensouki) 25 Techno: Bust a Groove (fox) 26 Fire: Gradius 2 (Sumez) - Fellow Gradius family fire pick 27 Scary: Super Castlevania IV (PII) 28 Final Boss: Final Fantasy 6 (Gaia Gensouki) - Now THIS is a true classic! 29 Ending: Demon Sword (nesmaster14) - Love this one. Stage 2 theme as well! 30 Credits: Super Ghouls n Ghosts (Gaia Gensouki) - This one always surprises me how good it is. Maybe because I don't hear it enough I guess.

I like what we have where there are some general, but flexible guidelines. It helps give newer people ideas while also allowing for as much creativity and/or challenge as each person is comfortable with.

Yup, the game actually titled "Jumpman". Randy Glover's awesome platformer with aptly named levels, like "Easy Does It", "Look Out Below", "Figurit", and "Grand Puzzle III". Great mixture of arcade action and puzzle.

I will always think of Mario as Mario and "Jumpman" as the guy from the Commodore 64/Atari game. I never even saw the naming conflict in Donkey Kong until a few years ago. Oh and, the guy in Wrecking Crew IS Mario. When you beat the bonus stage after clearing 4 levels, the screen says "Mario found the coin!".

Looking ahead a bit, I have a question on Day 22. I'm having trouble defining what qualifies as "ambient" music. I'm sitting here watching my kids go to sleep while listening to our ambient noise machine, but all it does is make bird, rain, or fan sounds. I'm perfectly fine just winging it as well, but just wondering everyone's thoughts.

Worked ahead a bit before the weekend. Great stuff so far, everyone. I've been listening to as much as I can and I am just blown away by all the awesomeness. Day 31 is going to be tough. Keep it up!

I still have fond memories of Show Biz Pizza. No, not because I liked pizza (3-to-9-year-old me didn't). And no, not because I liked the music/dancing puppets (rather lame). It was all about the arcade! Certain games will always stick out for me because of this place. Mario Bros. (nothing like having sound waves from the low speaker hitting you in the face as a kid) Mr. Do's Castle (desperately needs a modern console release) Yie Ar Kung-Fu (what exactly IS a "Tonfun" anyway?) TMNT (because, well, TMNT)

I'll see Pictionary and raise it one Anticipation. Last one to list a drawing game tune gets a free easel.

Just got it. After quickly falling in a pit in my first game, I got this on the second. Lots of fun, though it was weird playing forever to get the last KO's after the first 30 or so players dropped out quickly.

I put "no interest", simply because I've never played it and I know how much it costs. That said, I'd probably enjoy it, even though it seems like just a remix of the arcade games.

Here's an easily overlooked one: All sequels to "Final" Fantasy. Not that I have any bright ideas on how to fix it, but seriously...

RdRunner's Picks II Difficulty: Lunatic Custom: ONE game from last time. Generally avoiding major franchises. NES games only (unless otherwise required) Day 1 Title: Tecmo Super Bowl (NES), Prologue 2 - Right off the bat using a repeat game, but I had promised myself I would use this as my title game this time. Perfect mood setter for this! Day 2 Desert: The Lone Ranger (NES), Overworld - It helps when the entire game takes place in a desert. Day 3 Nintendo: Adventures of Lolo 3 (NES), World Map - Sticking up for a series in desperate need of a remake. Was Kirby so popular that HAL had to abandon poor Lolo and Lala entirely? If a name as derivative as King Dedede can survive, surely there must be something they can do. Day 4 2010's: Scott Pilgrim Vs the World, Stage 1 Boss - Excited to see this awesome game coming back on Switch. Was lucky enough to buy it on Xbox before it was delisted, but missed out on expansions. Day 5 Jazz: Anticipation (NES), Title - Not a big Jazz Music fan. Not even sure what exactly fits the genre, so here's a random stab. And yes, I actually like this game, just don't get me started on the "Walkman" answer. Day 6 Underground: Battletoads (NES), Turbo Tunnel - This game/stage is better known for other reasons, but the music is still really good. Day 7 Indoors: Little Nemo the Dream Master (NES), Nemo's House - Haven't done too many Capcom games, but they really do know their stuff when it comes to gaming music. Nice little fun house Nemo dreamed up here too! Day 8 8-Bit: Mission Impossible (NES), Stage 4 Snow Area - This is one of those ultra-tough games by "Ultra Games", but man does it have a great soundtrack. Wish the snow segments lasted longer so you could hear this song more often. Day 9 Remix: The Adventures of Bayou Billy "El Lagarto", by Evil Horde - Easily one of my favorites on OC Remix. Sweetly combines a couple of the main themes, picks up the tempo, and adds a little flair! Day 10 Water: Blaster Master (NES), Area 5 - This (and Donkey Kong Country) is pretty much what I think of when it comes to water stages. It's about as relaxing as that blasted crab boss is frustrating. Interesting contrast, I always thought. Day 11 Funny: Cabal (NES), Stage Clear - So big, strong, tough, commando dude finishes blowing up everything in sight and the very next thing he does is run like this... ...okay so that's my official pick (NES and all, blah blah blah). Here's what I think is the funniest track in gaming: BattleBlock Theater, Secret Area! The whole game is a riot too, thanks mostly to this talented/disturbed individual heard here and throughout. Day 12 Hate: Snake Rattle 'n Roll (NES), Stage 6/9/10 - This song sticks out like a sore thumb in an otherwise awesome game. All the other songs are catchy and fun, but apparently not enough for Rare, who decided to air this other song THREE times instead of reusing the others even once. I get that the tune was put with the harder levels to create tension, but this was a bit much. Day 13 Sports: American Gladiators (NES), Title Screen - Not exactly the TV tune everyone remembers, but it's still a really good listen. I was obsessed with this show growing up. Not so much for the juiced-up gladiators but rather the events pitting them against the much smaller contestants. Everyone loves an underdog! Day 14 Boss: Fester's Quest (NES) - Silly games like this have zero business having music this good, but yet here it is. One of the best boss tracks on the NES! Day 15 Stage Clear: Legendary Wings (NES) - If I had listened to this song without having played the game, I would have guessed this was for beating the whole game, not just one stage. Game is pretty epic too, despite the whole Gradius syndrome thing. Day 16 16-Bit: Chuck Rock (SNES), Title - He's not exactly the world's greatest platformer, but Chuck has quite a band! His whole soundtrack is a mainstay in my playlist, with the title screen being my favorite. Day 17 Sky: Contra Force, Stage 4 - Here we have a game that sold so poorly that modern Contra anthologies don't even mention it as part of the franchise. This aerial battle where you jump from plane to plane is easily the best part. Day 18 Arcade: Quartet, Main Theme - Coolest game I've barely played. Only place I've ever seen this machine was at Funspot. I feel like it should have been more popular than it was. 4-joystick Contra-ish multiplayer. What's not to like?... ...bonus: Mr. Do's Castle, Main Theme - I said it in another recent thread and I'll say it again: This game is in desperate need of a port on a modern console (along with many others made by Universal). Day 19 Sampler: Fantastic Adventures of Dizzy (NES), Zak's Castle - SO many fun options here, but I gotta go with this offshoot of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Classic! Day 20 Sega: Powerball (Genesis), Menu - No, not the lottery drawing, but a futuristic sports game based on football, soccer, and martial arts. Not at all bad for a sports game, plus it has a rockin' soundtrack. I also almost put this song for Day 19, for reminding me of Shakedown by Bob Seger. Day 21 Fighting: Flying Warriors (NES), Stage Theme 2 - This is one of those games that I keep forgetting about in the massive NES library. Pity, as it's a solid game worth remembering. Day 22 Ambient: Legacy of the Wizard (NES), Main Dungeon - Took forever to pick a slow, backgroundy thingumawhatzit for this day, but I think I nailed it. I can have this playing while I work and it helps me focus without distracting me. Ambient, no? Day 23 Industrial: Batman (NES), Stage 2 - I'm actually not a huge fan of Batman's NES adventures. Good thing I am a fan of Sunsoft's NES music! The whole soundtrack does a remarkable job of making this game seem way more fun than it actually is. Day 24 32/64-Bit: Blast Corps (N64), Simian Acres/Beeton Tracks - Interested to see how many people pick a RareWare game today. I went with Blast Corps mostly to avoid a big name franchise, but there are otherwise sooo many awesome choices! Day 25 Techno: Silver Surfer (NES), Title - Someone should seriously just do the whole challenge using music by Tim Follin. Day 26 Fire: Life Force (NES), Stage 3 - Okay final five days deserve a curtain call, so loosening up a bit on the franchises. First up, hard to find more fire from the NES than on this stage! I still remember getting ambushed by the waves of flames for the first time. It used to freak out 10-year-old me! (nice timing with Day 27...) Honorable mentions go to the fire cave from Ninja Gaiden 2 and Volkmire's Inferno (Stage 7) from Battletoads. Day 27 Scary: Zelda II The Adventure of Link (NES), Great Palace - Trying not to go for the obvious horror game. This tune used to always make me nervous. The final palace in this classic is full of nasty surprises, including little jump scares like this, even if they're mostly harmless. Honorable mention to Wizards and Warriors, for dumping you into a tree full of beehives after you bribe the first knight (why would anyone guard such a thing?!). Had to turn the sound off to brave this scene as a kid. Day 28 Final Boss: Vice Project Doom (NES) - This was always one of my favorite final battles. It's like Zelda 2 in reverse, fighting the evil twin first followed by the monster (no Thunder spell required). Epic ending to an underrated game. Honorable mentions: The Lone Ranger's locomotive gunfight, Rush'n Attack's poorly-defended secret weapon, and Castlevania III's triple-formed Dracula. Day 29/30 Endings/Credits - Gauntlet (NES) and Metal Storm (NES). Since the two kinda go hand in hand, I'm going to combine these for the finale. I tried to pick stuff that people may not have heard. Gauntlet's ending is special both for the fact that an ending exists on what's mostly an arcade port and that it's so hard to reach. Metal Storm's "true" ending is similarly hard to get to, requiring that you beat the game twice to actually see the credits. The tune is nothing special, but I bet most gamers have only heard the first half of the song. That second loop is rather brutal! Oh right, honorable mentions... (I love this category! ) Ninja Gaiden II Excitebike StarTropics Mega Man II Uninvited Solomon's Key Immortal (stay with it a minute...) Contra Rygar Othello Castlevania III Kid Icarus Super Dodge Ball Astyanax TMNT II The Arcade Game Vice Project Doom Gradius II Super Mario Bros 2 With that, we've reached the end of the month. I hope everyone enjoyed my list as much I enjoyed making it. Great stuff from everyone else as well!

Never played. Still a bit behind on the series (Wind Waker), though I hope to catch up someday.

So I'm playing "Sequence for Kids" with my non-gamer 4 year old. Out of nowhere he shows me these cards and says "look Daddy, Double Dragon!" (ba dum bump) Anyone else have a funny random gamer moment with their kids?

Really excited for 3D All Stars. As someone who skipped the Wii and Wii U, I will finally have a way to play Galaxy. Wish it included Galaxy 2 as well, but I'll take it, even if it means I have to buy Sunshine again (which I have bought and sold multiple times). I agree that the limited run thing seems so unnecessary. Same for SMB35. That game looks like it could be every bit as popular as Tetris 99, so why cut everyone off just because of the anniversary?

This may be paranoid and also perhaps missing the point of having a Switch, but my solution so far has been to just get a cheap knockoff pro controller and avoid using the joy cons altogether, at least the sticks. They're brand new and the knockoff may drift someday anyway, but at least I'm not out $70-80 when it does. It also helps that I'm not all that interested in handheld mode. I realize I'm in the minority on that though.

Lots of great answers so far, but this one in particular cracked me up! X is the letter that always stumps me. I think there are only like 4 games total? Xexyz is ok, but it's kinda all over the place. Xenophobe and Xevious are simple arcade ports, and then there's X-Men, which is much debated about whether it qualifies as a real game.

Here's a little game I like to play: What is your favorite NES game for each letter of the alphabet? Some basic rules: Titles are flexible (ex: The Legend of Zelda could count as either an "L" or a "Z"). Digits can count as the 27th "#" letter (ex: 1943, 8 Eyes). Have fun! This sometimes comes up as I look over my modest collection. Should I keep at least one game for each letter? Do I like enough games to justify doing so? My answers to these questions tend to shift over time. Anyway, here's my current list, which tends to change constantly: 1943 Adventures of Bayou Billy Bionic Commando Castlevania Double Dragon Excitebike (by default) Final Fantasy Gradius Heavy Barrel (The) Immortal Jackal Kung Fu (The) Legend of Zelda Mega Man 1 Ninja Gaiden Operation Wolf (because it's NOT Orb 3D) Punch-Out Q*Bert Rush'n Attack Super Mario 3 Tecmo Super Bowl Uncle Fester's Quest Vice: Project Doom Wrecking Crew Xexyz (another tough letter) Yoshi Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link

This might be a poll where over half the votes go to non-votes.

As a kid, no. Pretty sure back then I was only influenced by friends and maybe Nintendo Power. In recent years, I'm starting to notice companies more. Like I'm much more likely to buy a game by Way forward after playing DuckTales Remastered and Double Dragon Neon. They really know how to do remakes!

Totally agree! It's every bit as good as all the other first level tunes from other CV games, which is high praise given the competition. Song of Simon (SCV4), Dracula's Castle (SOTN), and whatever opens COTM are all up there.

Forgot to mention, but glad you liked this song enough to try the game. It's a bit rough around the edges (be ready to die a lot), but it's a ton of fun!

Probably Contra, Kung Fu, or Punch-Out for me. Just the right amount of pacing in those games. Slightly longer fun would be Bionic Commando or Ninja Gaiden (gotta watch the cutscenes!). GunSmoke makes for a quick button mashing workout. I also find it fun to run through puzzle games like The Adventures of Lolo, especially the first game, which has the easiest levels.

Never played/never will. I'm sure the gameplay itself is fine if I could just get over the subject matter, but not interested.

Great ideas for new categories so far! I'll throw in a few more, but I'm good with just about anything. Intro/Teaser Screen Stage Clear (ex: Contra) or Victory (ex: Final Fantasy) Jingle Dungeon Final Stage Ending (before the credits) Name Entry (could be for creating a character, signing a high score or entering a password)