Hum... Castlevania?

Good guess, could have been it. You're in the right era though .

Mega Man 2 methinks.

#28: Final Fantasy IV (Square, 1991) - GBA (also on SNES, PS1, PSP, DS and PC)

Back in 2011 or 2012, I made a mission to beat every single mainline FF game. And FFIV was the first one in line, and what a great first impression this game has. To this day, I believe it's the best starting point for the series. It's very simple, both gameplay and story-wise, but everything is so polished. There isn't a whole much you can do to your party other than equiping stuff and leveling up, but damn if it isn't a fun game. The difficulty is spot on, it's challenging, but it NEVER becomes frustrating(something that happens with FFIII). The plot is particularly impressive for its time, and, even though it's nothing special today, it's still an entertaining plot, with a good cast of characters (Cecil and Kain are two of my favorites on the series). The soundtrack is great stuff too. This game also marks the introduction of the iconic ATB mechanic.

While I think that FFV's job system is GREAT and FFVI's scope is impressive (even though World of Ruin sucks), FFIV is my favorite 16-bit Final Fantasy. Plus, it's been remade and ported several times. I've played only the GBA version, but I'll eventually get to the PSP (with those delicious sprites) and DS/PC version (which I hear is harder, but I'm not sure).

#27: the beginning of one of gaming's most iconic characters - now with less frustration.

#27
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence (2006, PS2)
guessed by TruckOSaurus

It’s getting harder and harder to reconcile Hideo Kojima’s reluctance to identify his own games as art with the cold, hard fact that his games, especially Metal Gear Solid 3, are some of the most captivating, seamlessly constructed, and emotionally powerful video games ever made. In MGS3, Kojima traveled backward in time to give fans an origin story for the Metal Gear franchise and, in the process, gave the world a terrific game with diverse, deeply layered, perfect gameplay. Players control "Naked Snake" as he infiltrates the Russian jungle at the height of the Cold War to rescue a captured Russian scientist. He must elude patrols, raid supply depots, and survive by any means necessary. MGS3 features a great story, amazing voice acting, production design second-to-none, and the best collection of boss battles in any video game, ever.

Good job!  

1-3 could all work, but 2 seems to be the most popular.

Poor Mega Man.

Sounds an awful lot like Uncharted 2

Street Fighter 2?

Mega Man 2 then?