Many many good ones.
I picked FF4 because I still think this one is far and beyond the best FF game of the original 5, and I still play it every few years to this day. It’s also to this day the most expensive game I ever owned because #1 I’d been reading about this game in magazines and had to have it, #2 this was one of the first import games for SNES. I don’t recall the exact price, but I remember it was about double the price of a usual game.
Sid Meier’s Civilization is one I feel is worth mentioning, and I played it a lot as a kid. But it was Civilization 2 that was most meaningful - Civ 2 was the game where I learned XML, pixel art, modding, and design - later on there would be a feature to add macros. Civ 2, IMO is what catapulted 4X into the forefront of strategy gaming and made Civ a household name and the holy grail of strategy games for years to come; but it all started with Civ 1.
Link to the Past - not much needs to be said, but this game for me was my favourite Zelda prior to Breath of the Wild, and aside from a period of time where I preferred Ocarina of Time, but soon after found myself coming back to LttP more frequently.
Metroid 2 was surprisingly good for a GB game, it had several upgrades over the first Metroid, and more complex villains, but was more a linear experience as you had to hunt down X-number of mutating metroids before continuing the game.
Streets of Rage is one of the best looking games of its time, despite not having the graphical fidelity of some of its contemporaries. Playing it on 3DS with the 3D parallax graphics is my favourite way to do this game.
Super Castlevania, Turtles 3, and Turtles in Time were other great side scrolling action games, both also worth playing today - even for non-fans of the franchise. Although, I preferred Dracula’s Curse because of the much wider array of features and freedom, Super Castlevania was definitely a better action game, and perhaps as good as the action ever got in Castlevania - as they toned it back in every later sequel I ever played. Turtles in Time was an arcade classic - Turtles 3 I didn’t play, although I was aware of its existence via magazines and chatter - I remember assuming Hyperstone Heist was the third game for the longest time.
Sonic the Hedgehog became my favourite platformer of the 16-bit era until Sonic 2. It’s on the easier side, and that’s probably its major downfall as Sonic 2 and 3, as well as other platformers were eventually going to beat it in terms of graphics and features. Sonic 2 is a significantly more challenging game, has more features (including tails co-op), greater graphical fidelity, and is about double the length; but this game has the honour of being the first of the franchise.
Street Fighter 2 was the first major fighting game, and also a significantly more popular fighter than any game that came since - there were multiple versions of Street Fighter 2, and it was (for years) the most popular game at the arcades - there were usually lineups and audiences.
I describe myself as a little dose of toxic masculinity.
