Best SNES Games I've never heard of?

[NEScollector1982]

I'm looking for some SNES games to play that aren't "mainstream".....I've played a few of the 'cult classics'...but I need some recommendations, and no, don't recommend Demon Crest, because i've played it.

[chicnstu]

Is Brain Lord considered mainstream? If not, it's really good.

[Steven]

What genres do you like the most?

We can give you more recommendations if you specify what type of game you enjoy best. If you don't mind wrestling games, Natsume Championship Wrestling is very very good and very overlooked IMO. It won't blow your mind, but it's playable as heck.

SNES has a ton of non-mainstream games that can provide a weekend or two of fun.

[Mark III]

Wild Snake is a decent puzzle game worth checking out. Also if you like beat em ups the Sonic Blast Man games are pretty good. Nothing to write home about but they have their moments. For shooters check out Axelay and Earth Defense Force if you haven't already. Also S.T.G. and Firepower 2000 (Silkworm 2)were ok. If you don't already have them make sure to grab Wild Guns and Hagane. Wild Guns is similar to Cabal or Blood Brothers while Hagane was basically a faster paced shinobi clone for the SNES. Both are excellent games but probably fall under your "cult" category more than "obscure"

[Atari 5200]

Rocky Rodent. I don't know. There is just something about that game I like. It's a platformer with upgradable hairdoos. Oh yeah!

Although it seems to be getting a lot more attention nowawdays you should definately check out the mystical ninja series.

[goemon]

Sonic Blast Man 2 is a good beat 'em up that most people don't seem to know about. Robotrek is a good robot-building RPG. I don't know if it really counts as obscure but I always liked Darius on SNES too.

[Steven]

Rocky Rodent. I don't know. There is just something about that game I like. It's a platformer with upgradable hairdoos.


I like RR too. Gave it a 7.5 on my site. It's pretty difficult too! I also liked B.O.B. which is another overlooked SNES title... lost in the wave of the mascot games of '93

[DigitalSpace]

I originally made this post for an underrated SNES games thread on CheapAssGamer a couple years back. Figured it was worth a repost here. So, here we go:

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/2231/spankysquest1a1yr.jpg
Spanky's Quest - First off, the game is about a monkey named Spanky. I wouldn't have been surprised to a character with that name in Conker's Bad Fur Day, but not here. Whoever came up with that couldn't have been so naive, right? LOL
Anyways, the game is somewhat similar to Bubble Bobble. One day, Spanky was walking out in the woods when all of a sudden, bricks started falling all around him. He discovers that he is trapped in a giant tower. The tower has five floors, and each floor has 11 rooms (not counting the hidden bonus rooms). In each room, you have to get the number of keys required to open the door for the next room, and you'll usually have to fight off various fruit enemies. You do this by launching a bubble and balancing it on your head. When you're ready, you pop the bubble to launch the attack. The more you balance the bubble, the bigger it gets, allowing you to do a more devastating attack. You can also use the bubble to reach out of the way items and power-ups. There are also various hats you can wear that vary from allowing you to float to giving you more footspeed.

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/1418/ontheball010dp.jpg
On The Ball - In this game, you guide a marble to the end of a maze - but instead of controlling the marble, you control the maze, tilting it to manipulate the ball.

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/9532/spacemegaforce01a7ba.jpg
Space Megaforce - An awesome vertical shmup that was developed by Compile. The game features 8 different weapons, awesome powerups, and great graphics.

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/5426/claymates01a1zk.jpg
Claymates - A platformer developed by the makers of the Clayfighter series. You play as Clayton, a young boy that has been turned into a ball of clay and must rescue his father. Along the way, you can morph into five different animals, each with their own unique abilities, such as a mouse with blazing speed and a duck that can fly. At the end of each level, you'll have to figure out a puzzle so you can proceed- you'll have to guide two robots to the obstacles only they can clear.

http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/6761/dinocity01a8yf.gif
Dino City - Another platformer where you control your choice of two dinosaurs helping two kids get back to their time. Both dinosaurs have different methods of attack. The kids ride on the dinosaur's back, and you'll occasionally encounter an obstable where the kid will have to jump off the dinosaur's back and you'll have to use the kid to help clear it. The rollercoaster levels were pretty fun too.

_______________________________

I also recommend SimAnt, Firepower 2000, Biker Mice From Mars, Uniracers, The Twisted Tales of Spike McFang, and Spectre.

[portnoyd]

Skyblazer is a fantastic side scrolling adventure game. Horrid password system, but otherwise great game.

[ccovell]

Jerry Boy!

[j_factor]

Run Saber. It's a total rip-off of Strider, but it's even better than the game it rips off.

[Lemmy Kilmister]

Jerry Boy!

Ugh. Isn't that the Japanese version of Smartball? If so, I'd say pass on that one.

[DefaultGen]

.....

[mregashu]

It's borders on mainstream, but If you like strategy I can't recommend Aerobiz highly enough. It's a little more pick up and play than most Koei titles and the music and graphics really fit well.

More obcure - check out S.O.S. It's essentially Titanic the game. You have an hour to get off a capsized ship. Everytime you plunge to your death, it costs you time. Ever since I rented it back in 94 or 95 I've loved it.

[MegaDrive20XX]

I'm looking for some SNES games to play that aren't "mainstream".....I've played a few of the 'cult classics'...but I need some recommendations, and no, don't recommend Demon Crest, because i've played it.

May i ask what was wrong with Demon's Crest?

[DefaultGen]

.....

[goemon]

Ugh. Isn't that the Japanese version of Smartball? If so, I'd say pass on that one.

The Japanese version is better, though. It has, for instance, a story.

[RadiantSvgun]

Knights of the Round and Magic Sword by capcom. I don't know if those are considered mainstream, as most people I know never knew that they existed outside of the arcade.

E.D.F. is a solid shmup.

The magical quest starring mickey mouse by capcom is really good, but the controls are a bit weird.

I'm not sure how mainstream Lagoon is, but it kinda reminds me of YS. I really enjoyed it, and its pretty cheap.

I'm not sure whats really mainstream or not. Most of the gamers I associate with are pretty hardcore. Hope this helps out.

[exit]

Claymates is one of those games that really needed a save/password feature. I remember renting the game as a kid and as soon as I thought I made it to the end, I got blasted into space. At that point I just put the controller down and turned the game off.

The Adams Family game is pretty good and rather enjoyable, especially for a licensed game. It's not to be confused with Pugsley's Scavenger Hunt, that game was just awful.

[Donkey Kong Kid]

The Ignition Factor
Ghoul Patrol
Joe and Mac 2

[swlovinist]

Well I had to go to my Snes collection and digg up some odd ones that did not suck. I came up with a few.

Doomtroopers
Blazeon

[Snapple]

Gemfire is one of my favorite games of all time. It's not perfect, particularly because the AI could stand to be a little more aggressive, but it's a really accessable turn-based strategy game, and it's different every time you play it.

Pop'n Twinbee is a really nice shmup.

Live-a-Live is a really fantastic RPG by Square. If you like other SNES RPGs by Square, you'll like Live-a-Live. However, unless you know Japanese, you'll need to play the fan translation on an emulator. I played it on emulator, and it's really an amazing game.

I'm not sure what else to suggest.

[NE146]

One game I definitely have to recommend is Demon's Crest. :)
















:p

[sirhansirhan]

The Adventures of Kid Kleetz (weird soccer-themed platformer)

Aero Fighters (starting to get expensive; it's one of the rarest games on the system, but also maybe the best shmup)

Knights of the Round (seconded from someone else's post above--it's built on the Final Fight engine, but you play as the knights of the round table)

Looney Tunes B-Ball (as good as NBA Jam)

On the Ball (seconded)

Pieces (a puzzle game)

Plok (a platformer with nice graphics and a funny gimmick involving throwing your limbs at enemies)

Wacky Sports Challenge (a Tiny Toons game that is a bunch of weird mini games)

Despite what it looks like here I don't really like sports or sports games, usually.

[DigitalSpace]

Claymates is one of those games that really needed a save/password feature.

Agreed. It does have hidden warps in a few of the levels, but that doesn't always help.

I want to check out Plok, Looney Tunes B-Ball, B.O.B. (went straight to my want list after reading Steven's review) and Joe & Mac 2 eventually, and I hope I'll be able to add Aero Fighters to the collection someday too.

I also recommend the aforementioned Blazeon and Earth Defense Force, but only if you're really into shmups.

I also forgot to mention Axelay earlier - if you haven't heard of that, man, you are missing out!

[ryborg]

Capcom's Soccer Shootout is the best sports game on any system, ever.

[djsquarewave]

Operation Logic Bomb. Top down roaming shooter from Jaleco, surprisingly polished and fun as hell. The fact that you can strafe makes it incredibly playable.

Also Pac-in-Time, if only for the ninja rope.

[starfox316]

Fire Striker (might be one word) It's legend of zelda meets break-out! a pretty interesting concept.

Soldiers of Fortune- a top-view shooting/action game. this one is awesome but challenging and with a crappy password save system.

I also will mention that, yes, Knights of the Round is an overlooked and underappreciated beat-em-up.

Tuff-E-Nuff a generic fighting clone that actually gives you some fun.

[Icarus Moonsight]

A second by me for Operation Logic Bomb. This is how Contra: Legacy of War should have been done. Also would recommend Wild Guns by Natsume and if your into imports try out the Square/HAL colaboration Alcahest. It's real fun even if you can't read japanese.

EDIT: Would like to throw Hagane in the ring too. It's a ninja action game by Hudson/Red of Bonk fame.

[Steven]

This is what I love about the SNES. Sure you have your classic epics, but then under the surface there are literally 100s of playable titles that you could just as easily waste a weekend or two playing happily through.

DigitalSpace, I hope you enjoy B.O.B. when you eventually get your hands on it. Seems like it's a love or hate game. LMK your thoughts whenever that day comes. BTW, that Spanky's Quest piece... now I remember, you were the guy who posted that in my "Obscure SFC Games" topic last Fall. That's one of countless games I've been meaning to get to one of these days. I hope I'll like it as much as you do.

[le geek]

No love for Sunset Riders? Great arcade-style "Wild West" game
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunset_Riders

Cheers,
Ben

[chrissylas]

I second (third?) Claymates. It's always been one of my favorites.

I also love Pieces. I was lucky enough to find that at a Rhino right before Gamestop took it over. Picked that thing up for ~$4 and it is well worth it.

[xxxDEVILMANxxx]

METAL WARRIORS, both the single player campaign and multiplayer are superb.

[snes_collector]

I'll second AeroFighters and Aerobiz, but well worth the money.

And I'll add:

Super Buster Bros.- This little gem has become one of my favorite games on the system, and is one of the(if not the) finest puzzlers out there.

Street Racer- Best Mario Kart clone ever. If you liked SMK you'll definatly dig this

[[-Sentinel-]]

I really like Dragon Ball Z Super Butouden 2 and 3. They were only released on Japan but are very nice fighting games.

[BHvrd]

I always liked True Lies, one of the better movie tie-in games.

http://www.consoleclassix.com/info_img/True_Lies_SNES_ScreenShot2.jpg

[djsquarewave]

;1181535']I really like Dragon Ball Z Super Butouden 2 and 3. They were only released on Japan but are very nice fighting games.
Hyper Dimension is very nice as well. They're all better than the 32-bit fighting game abortions spawned from that franchise, at the very lest!

[j_factor]

I don't get why people are recommending Earth Defense Force. I own EDF, and I think it really sucks. It's a very sparse shooter, with few enemies but lots of slowdown anyway. The boss designs are lame and the levels are uninteresting. I've played worse, but Earth Defense Force is mediocre at best.

I'll throw in another recommendation so as not to be so negative: Out to Lunch. Very weird, food-oriented game kinda similar to Bubble Bobble. Fun stuff.

[Drag0nsfyre]

I've been enjoying Ninja Warriors :) pretty cool Beat-Em-Up
I had never heard of the title when I picked it up loose on Ebay for a decent price. I'm having a hell of a time at the end boss level though.

[starsoldier1]

I alway thought Mr. Nutz was pretty good and you don't see that one everyday.

[j_factor]

Heh, Mr. Nutz. Aside from the suggestive title, I remember there was some sort of innuendo on the back of the box. Something along the lines of "he's got a whole lotta nutz!" That game, along with Ballz, really had no shame about using testicle puns to market to little kids.

[MachineGex]

Gotta couple of favorites that some people may not own yet....diffently should be in everyone's SNES collection(some are fairly mainstream)
-Lost Vikings(1&2)
-Out of this World
-Super Buster Bros.
-ROCK'N'ROLL RACING <---amazing game, music is the best
Looking at my list, I am sure most have heard of these, but everyone should OWN them.

[Anthony1]

Plok. Incredible music, tons of color, a good platformer.

[psychic1]

Here are the top 10 best SNES games that most people never played before.

Aerobiz Supersonic - Simulation by KOEI

Blackthorne - Platformer by Blizzard

Bust-A-Move - Puzzle by Taito

EVO: Search for Eden - Adventure RPG by Almanic

Knights of the Round - BUMP by Capcom

Metal Warriors - Action by LucasArts

Robotrek - RPG by Quintet

Space Megaforce - SHMUP by Compile

Top Gear II - Racing by Gremlin

Uncharted Waters 2: New Horizons - Strategy RPG by KOEI

[evil_genius]

Bebe's Kids

[Steven]

Bebe's Kids


LOL

Don't forget Dracula, Battle Blaze and Captain America and the Avengers.

[djsquarewave]

Bebe's Kids
I think that would be a better fit for "SNES games it's best I've never heard of".

[Shrooin]

I don't really know what is considered mainstream besides obvious ones. and most of my favourites have already been mentioned but heres my picks anyway.

2 Player Battletoads in Battle Maniacs, Combatribes, Rock N Roll Racing, Super Smash TV, TMNT IV - Turtles in Time. (these were hard to choose there is so many good 2 player games)

Action Adventure The Addams Family, Jurassic Park, Mickey's Magical Quest, Out of This World, Super Ghouls N Ghosts.

RPGs E.V.O The Search for Eden, Harvest moon, New Horizons, Ogre Battle, Shadowrun.

Shooting Alien 3, B.O.B, Cannon Fodder, Desert Strike, Strike Gunner STG.

Simulation Civilization, SimAnt, SimCity, Theme Park, Utopia - Creation of a Nation.

Sports Irem Skins Game, Hit the Ice, Top Gear, Top Gear 2000, WWF Royal Rumble.

Other Act Raiser, Krusty's Fun House, Spellcraft, Spindizzy Worlds, Syndicate.

Jap Only SD The Great Battle 3, Sonic Wings.

Mainstream Chrono Trigger, Contra 3 - The Alien Wars, Legend of Zelda - A Link to the Past, Secret of Mana, Super Mario Kart.

[Shrooin]

I think that would be a better fit for "SNES games it's best I've never heard of".

also troddlers

[Cauterize]

Youre all missing out one gem here!!!

Ardy Lightfoot!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v366/cauterize4/Ardy-1.gif http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v366/cauterize4/Ardy-2.gif http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v366/cauterize4/Ardy-3.gif

[greedostick]

I second the votes for

Skyblazer
pieces
demons crest

and add

metal warriors
hagane

[DigitalSpace]

So far, Steven and I are the only people to mention Spanky's Quest. That's just sad. Steven, I hope you enjoy it once you're able to play it, and I'll be sure to let you know what I think of B.O.B.

Someone mentioned Rock N' Roll Racing earlier. I thought of putting that in my post, but I think a lot of DP'ers have heard of it. I will say that the SNES version is better than the Genesis version. And the GBA port is pretty good if you can track it down (it seems to be uncommon - at least around here, anyways).

I also have a minor interest in Pac-In-Time and Ardy Lightfoot, but as scarce as they are, I haven't seen either in the wild in a long time, if ever.

[greedostick]

Whoever emntioned evo is a genius. I forgot about that game. Maybe the best game for the system. At least in the top 4

[Chris]

I'd say Umihara Kawase (japan only) and The Firemen (english version released in europe) which are both one of my favourite SNES games. Too bad that noone seems to know these gems.

Umihara Kawase perfected and centered its gameplay around the favourite toy of the platform genre, the grappling hook, while The Firemen is practically a nonstop and actionpacked overhead shmup, with a little twist, namely that you're a firefighter, battling against the element of fire in its various and weird forms ("homing flames" for example).

Awesome stuff, but can be difficult to track down.

Btw both games got sequels on the PS1, but they are either too expensive (Umihara Kawase Shun) or just suck (The Firemen 2).

[tkusina]

Blackthorne

Like Prince of Persia and Out of this World but much darker. The first time me and my friends played it we must have spent 2 hours just killing the captives in chains just for laughs.

[NEScollector1982]

I loved "On The Ball" -- Thanks for the suggestions so far! I'm still checking games out, but If you can think of any others, keep going!

btw:

I've always been a fan of Spanky's Quest since it was released.

[DigitalSpace]

I've always been a fan of Spanky's Quest since it was released.

Awesome. :) Glad you enjoyed On The Ball too!

[bangtango]

Harley's Humongous Adventure immediately comes to mind. It was an earlier SNES game made by Hi Tech, who had a reputation in magazines for being one of the worst third parties in the 8-bit/16-bit era. Their name was about as bad as THQ's was back then, so most people would avoid their games even though this one got good reviews in a couple of magazines.

That game was a pretty good platform-style action game, though. It was also pretty hard so it'd be a good game if you're looking for something that is a little challenging. Your character is a guy who gets shrunk and all of the levels are inside of a house. Lots of the weapons include household tools like nails, etc.

Aside from that, I'd recommend Final Fight 3. Sure, it plays just like every other Final Fight game but two things are worth mentioning. It was a "straight to Super NES" game, meaning it was never in the arcade. That and by the time it was released, more advanced (32-bit) consoles were already on the market and a new generation was under way so it didn't get nearly as much attention. At worst, I think FF3 is a lot better than Part 2 was.

[michaelthemovieman]

I second Tiny Toons: Wacky Sports Challenge; kind of like Track and Field meets Mario Party.

I also love Harvest Moon, released in 1997. A tough one to track down, but well worth the effort for a unique strategy/RPG about farming.

And, although it was based on a semi-popular license, it didn't make much of a splash: Rocko's Modern Life: Spunky's Dangerous Day. Expected merely a tradtional platformer, I was surprised how the developers took the platforming gameplay I was familiar with and gave it a unique twist of having to activate switches and solve puzzles to help Spunky get through the levels safely. Come to think of it, it's almost a bit like Lemmings, but it's still fun, uses its license well, and shouldn't be that hard to track down nowadays.

[XianXi]

I second Tiny Toons: Wacky Sports Challenge; kind of like Track and Field meets Mario Party.


Hell yes. Bust out the multi-tap and play with 4 players. This game is a little hard to come by most times. It's also such a great and fun game I dont know why its value is so low. Everyone I have played it with always wants a copy of it and can never find one.

[Vibri]

Q*bert 3 (puzzle-action/arcade) is rarely mentioned, but it's one of my favorite games, for any system.

[fcw3]

In case no one else mentioned it, the japanese action/RPG Alcahest was great as far as I'm concerned. Not many others have heard of it.
http://www.fantasyanime.com/legacy2/alcahest.htm

FRED

[goemon]

In case no one else mentioned it, the japanese action/RPG Alcahest was great as far as I'm concerned. Not many others have heard of it.
http://www.fantasyanime.com/legacy2/alcahest.htm

FRED

I've never played it, but it looks good.

If you're counting Japanese games, some of my favorites are First Queen and Gourmet Sentai Barayarou.

[CaryMG]

How about "Super MarioFX" ?


:)

[MachineGex]

This thread needs a bump. Thanks to everyone's suggestions, I have added about a dozen or so games to my library. Any other suggestions? I am putting a list together so I can carry it around in my wallet.

[shellac]

i had never played Tetris Attack until recently, and head to head with a worthy competitor is great.

[badinsults]

Here are a few that I would recommend:

- Aero the Acro-Bat 2 (much better than 1, it is one of the best platform games on the snes, but very hard to find)

- Zero The Kamikaze Squirrel - (a sort of sequel to Aero the Acro-bat, possibly harder to find than Aero the Acro-Bat 2.)

- Cool Spot - Another platformer, but is not often brought up. Shameless marketing ploy by 7-up

- Super Widget - a very strange platform game, where you play this ever-changing alien


If you really want to get obscure, one I would recommend is a game called Eurit. This game was never released, but it is the spiritual predicessor to the 32 bit game "Grid Runner". Up until a few weeks ago, this gem was not available, but if you don't mind using an emulator, there is a rom of it on my website:

http://snescentral.edgeemu.com/article.php?id=0787

[Icarus Moonsight]

Thank you Evan how very thoughtful. :)

[MarickLOA]

I have joined this site for the soul purpose of listing this game

Hagane. It is so awesome. A little difficult at times but in a good way

all i need to prove how epic this game is is two words

Robot Ninja

:devilish:

[obesolete]

Nosferatu was a fun game, very similar to PoP but it seems to be very hard to find also. =(

[thom_m]

Is Prehistorik Man obscure enough? 'Cause I was surprised about how fun this game was when I played it.

[ScourDX]

I would recommend

- Legend of Mystic Ninja
- Rocky & Pocky 1 & 2
- Twisted Tales of Spike Mcfang
- Peace Keeper (I would recommend the Japanese version because the US release butchered a lot of storyplot)

[mobiusclimber]

Everyone's already mentioned my suggestions, but I'll reiterate them: Twisted Tales of Spike McFang, Run Saber, Operation Logic Bomb, Pocky & Rocky 1 & 2, EVO: The Search For Eden, Legend of Mystical Ninja. Super Ninja Boy is pretty good too.

[PresidentLeever]

Seconding a few and adding some new ones:

Metal Warriors
Claymates
Sutte Hakkun - Excellent puzzler
Violin no Hamelin - Wonder Boy-style platform adventure with some great dungeons
Spanky's Quest
Super Aleste/Space Megaforce (ugh) - THE vertical shooter for the SNES.
Der Langrisser - Great SRPG in the same vein as Ogre Battle.
Do Re Mi Fantasy - Bubble Bobble + SMW = this game.
Pocky & Rocky - One of the best run 'n guns of the era. The sequel is also pretty good, but not as well balanced.
Dragon View - Action adventure done in a semi-western style.

[Chainsaw_Charlie]

Paladins Quest
Young Merlin
Twisted Tales of Spike Mcfang
Tecmo Secret of the stars