This game was third chronologically in the series until Retro Studios said otherwise.
I thought you already put Super Metroid on your list and said you preferred Fusion, or am I mixing you up with someone else? (Probably am.)
Great choice, though. If it's Super Metroid, of course.
Anyway, hint number 9:
After making your life more difficult at every turn and just generally being a dick to you for almost the entirety of two (technically) separate games, the character that has his name on the title ended up being a complete wimp of a boss fight and a bit of an anticlimax.
12. First game in the franchise to appear on a new console. The first game was published in the west by Squaresoft, but is not a Squaresoft game nor was it developed by Squaresoft. All other titles in the series were published by the developer. Even though not the same character, the main character in every game has the same name.
11. Part one of a two part game. Has the press turn battle system and the main character in the previous main game in the franchise is a secret boss, and the hardest one in the game.
for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) released in 1991.
The best 2D-Mario game and the best game released on the original Nintendo was released quite late in Europe. Back in those days, PAL released lagged behind significantly, sometimes up to several years. 'Super Mario Bros. 3' was released in 1988 in Japan and we had to wait a whopping three years before it came to Europe. After the Super Nintendo was already released even in Japan and North America. Luckily though, back in those days, we didn't know.
Maybe I should have given the Super Nintendo re-release in 'Super Mario All-Stars' or the GameBoy Advance port of that re-release this position in the list instead of the original NES game, because they're the same game in every way with just improved graphics and sound quality. Also, those versions included something very important; a save-system. Since I'm not someone who can play 2D Platformers for a very long time, I didn't come close to beating the original. Yet, The newer versions don't have the same feeling as the original did. In my mind, when thinking about 'Super Mario Bros. 3', the graphics look like this.
Platforming is basically perfect. All the levels are cleverly designed and have game-mechanics that were never-before seen at the time. To this day, it's still unique. Control is perfect, Mario has never been so easy to control, the newer games should take note, as Mario in this game feels like he's attached to your hands. But above all else, the full package is just fun to play, and the catchy music will stay with you for ages.
#08 Hint:
This game features moles, a train, a castle, chocolate boulders, a river-boat and neon-signs in space!
12. First game in the franchise to appear on a new console. The first game was published in the west by Squaresoft, but is not a Squaresoft game nor was it developed by Squaresoft. All other titles in the series were published by the developer. Even though not the same character, the main character in every game has the same name.
11. Part one of a two part game. Has the press turn battle system and the main character in the previous main game in the franchise is a secret boss, and the hardest one in the game.
#11 - Pikmin(Kudos to S.Peelman for guessing this)
I often say things like "this game was a massive surprise for me" about things on my top 50, because they often exceed my expectations which may have been pretty low going in. Pikmin 3 is the ultimate "surprise" game for me. I had no idea what to expect going in as it was a title they'd thrown in for free to try and convince me to buy a £30 pre-owned Gamecube, yet it turned out to be one of my favourite games of all time.
One of the things that made it so great is that it just felt so different to everything I played before it. I really felt like I was exploring an alien world when I first controlled Olimar, even though it was just Miyamoto's back garden :P. Things like controlling the Pikmin, which is a little big rts; little bit action game was just completely new. Even the premise - scavanging parts of your ship while breeding new Pikmin to control just felt like something I'd never really seen before.
It all just worked so perfectly together that Pikmin really earned its #11 spot on this list. Sadly, the sequel couldn't live up to the highs set by the first game, but I remain a fan of the franchise to this day and Pikmin 3 is one of the biggest swaying factors in buying a Wii-U for me. That's how much I love this series; all pretty much based on my love for this first game.
#10 - Spyro: Gateway to Glimmer (Kudos to S.Peelman for guessing this and also a little credit to Brendude)
Spyro 2 was always the dark horse of the series for me. Trapped between the "I fell in love with it" first game and the "this is everything that's right with gaming" sequel, I never quite gave it the credit it deserved until my most recent playthrough when I realised it perfectly laid the foundation for the third game and introduced so many different elements I liked (returning characters; a plot; mini-games; quests) about the series.
Spyro 2 followed Spyro in his adventure through Glimmer and introduced many recurring characters who ultimately made the series so special to me - Elora; the Professor; Hunter being the main culprits, but Moneybags absolutely stealing the show. Seriously, as a child I would always reject whatever he was offering just to see what insult he would fling my way as a result. Always amusing.
The levels themselves evolved immensely over the first game, too. Each level had a different set of characters with tasks for you to do to earn their talisman, and the themes were diverse - Tiki men; Glimmer Dogs; underwater Seals etc. There's even the foundation for Ratchet & Clank found in the "Metropolis" level which I found hugely interesting to replay recently.
The gameplay holds up as well as ever, too. Collecting gems has never been this much fun.
And of course, the soundtrack is absolutely top notch. I don't understand how Stewart Copeland managed to create so many timeless, addictive pieces over the course of 3 games; each maintaining a distinct "Spyro" sound through the instruments used. Really, they're fantastic, and 2 is no expection.
#09 - Final Fantasy VII (Kudos to Brendude for guessing this)
I had such a weird experience with Final Fantasy VII. Back when I had my PS1 I'd read a lot of magazines for reviews and news, and OPM (Official PlayStation Magazine) which I read could_not_stop gushing about this game. I'd read spreads of reviews and how it's the best game to grace the PS, yada yada. I'd look through the pictures and captions and not have a clue what the game was about. I'd never played an RPG before. It was an alien concept to me.
Fast forward a year, and I finally had a copy. My mum hated me playing it "because [she didn't] understand what was going on". So I had to sneak in a few minutes here and there where I could whenever she was out the house.
And my god, those minutes were magical.
FF VII started a lifelong love of JRPG's for me that continues to this day. This game, on its own, introduced me to a whole genre. I had just never experienced anything like it before. A focus on character development and world-saving plotlines. A 60+ hour epic adventure with multiple different themes; areas; good guys and bad guys etc.
I mean, when you first step out onto the world map after having been in Midgar all that time, I just couldn't believe it. There was a whole world outside Midgar; a place which had pretty much been as big as every single game I'd ever played before. There was more? I couldn't believe it.
Throw in an addictive materia system; great turn based battles; beautiful (for the time) cinematics and a fascinating storyline with more twists and turns than you could shake a stick at... I was in love. And that's not even acknowledging all the crazy other stuff you could do like cross dressing to get into Don Corneo's mansion; fighting a strange rts/tower defence hybrid at Fort Condor; hunting down side characters like Yuffie and Vincent; raising and racing Chocobos; snowboarding; motorbiking; collecting information about the Cetra etc. The game was stuffed. It's a shame they don't include half this much diversity in the newer Final Fantasies.
Oh, and the locations were brilliant as well. Wutai; Cosmo Canyon; Nibelheim; Gold Saucer; Midgar etc. Each location was brought to life by some beautiful and truly memorable art.
The soundtrack, too, one of Uematsu's finest. This one still gives me chills thinking about the scene just when you're about to leave Midgar. I mean, a whole scene just to reflect on what all the characters have gone through so far and what a long adventure they've got ahead of them. Beautiful.
