Your Top NES Purchase Blunders

[ReaXan]

We all have them, they are the games that were in our NES collection but that we regretted having in their to begin. We either received them as a gift or we unknowingly picked them out ourselves without knowing the regret in playing them that would follow.


Number 5

WWF Wrestlemania,Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure,Friday the 13th


These are games I bought for 10 bucks a pop used when I should have just used the 30 dollars to buy a used game that was actually good.I all found these in the bargain bin at Sessells and thought I would have fun with them,needless to say now I know why they are in the bargain bin.

Instead of those three games I should have bought either
8 Eyes or Dirty Harry

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Number 4

Zelda 2-The Adventure's of Link
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/zelda.jpg


Before anyone bashes me for putting this game on the list you have to realize I was 6 years old when I picked my 1st nintendo game if you don’t include the pack in Mario.This game as anyone knows is really hard for a little kid to fully understand the mechanics of the game.I honestly liked this game but
I couldn’t fully enjoy it because I got stuck not even ¼ through the entire game and in flustration didn’t pick it up for almost a year. Looking back I would have loved to play this game when I was old enough to understand it and the puzzles.

I eventually traded this game off and managed to get Contra and Base Wars which were both good games I enjoyed.

Looking Back I regret getting this game based on the soul fact I was way too young to enjoy it fully.

If I could go back in a time warp back to 1988 I would have chosen either

Super Mario 2
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/mario2.jpg
Castlevania
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/castlevania.jpg

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Number 3

Krusty's Fun House
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/krusty.jpg

I received this game near the end of the NES’s tenure as a gift my aunt and cousin’s.
They sent it through the Mail and I received it a little while after Christmas in 1994. My cousin’s and I loved the NES and it surprised me that I received such a crappy game from them after sending many good games in the mail for them to play and enjoy over the years.
I believe now that my aunt who knew very little about gaming probably saw it in a bargain pin and bought it while she was alone doing Christmas shopping. She probably
Judged the game by its cover as we were all guilty of before review magazines and the internet came into play.

I got a weird feeling from the beginning from the this game,even before unrapping it I had a strong feeling I wasn’t going to like it. I was happy to have a new game to play but after giving the game a solid chance I began to realize it had no fun appeal to me whatsoever even though it was based off the great Simpson’s. I disliked this game so much I would never even attempt to beat it the regular way or through game genie. I felt
Sad in a way that I had to endure this game and that the memory of it would remind me
Of my sweet aunt and my cousin. Needless to say I have to give her credit for attempting to get me something I really wanted like a Nintendo game instead of board games and clothes like I would get from my other relatives year in a year out that I hated.


I eventually got rid of this stinker and traded it to my cousins on the other side of the family for “Super Dodge Ball”. I didn’t really feel guilty because by that time he was into computer games and I got a solid fun game out of the deal that me and my brother both
Enjoyed.

Since it was a gift and I had no say in it I cant really choose a game I would have rather picked out but since I eventually got a good game through trading I will quit bitching about it any longer.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Number 2

TC Surf Design
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/tcsurf.jpg

This is the game I got my dad to get me after he felt guilty for punishing me too hard on something I did. The result was my hope I could pick out a game that I could enjoy and beat all the way through which I hadn’t done with my 2 previous choices Zelda 2 and Mystery Quest.The cover looked cool enough even though I really didn’t know even what kind of game it was if that makes any sence.It was another cover blunder and I was now pitching 0-3 and costing my dad 150 dollars in games that weren’t fun to me.I had promised him this would be the last game he would ever have to buy for me.Needless to say we all said that as kids.

This game just wasn’t fun to me,even though some people claim they loved the skating part as it was an 8 bit Tony Hawk.I think everyone will agree the surfing part of this game was horrible and not even worth learning how to play right.This whole game was just repeative with a few stunts and tricks thrown in but with very little lasting appeal and substance.This game disappointed me everytime I played it and I never did fully beat it.If I did it wasn’t satisfying in the least.

Since it was rare for my dad to buy me Nintendo games I wish I could have gotten a good game with this pick.I eventually traded it off to a friend down the street for Paperboy,which was another game that sucked,but I eventually bundled it with another game I picked up cheap years later and managed to get Maniac Mansion from my friend
Virginia who could never get into it.Maniac Mansion brought me hours of funs unlike this game.

Looking back I would have either chosen

Journey to Silius
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/SILIAS.jpg
River City Ransom
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/ransom.jpg

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

And Number 1

Mystery Quest
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/mystery.jpg

As of all the games I played for Nintendo I think this was the game I hated having in my collection more than any other,sure there are many worse games out their for Nintendo but this game disappointed me and made me feel cheated more than any other.Judging by the cover I felt like I was going to be playing a hybrid of Mario Bros and Link game that had every element of gameplay a kid my age could want.Boy was I wrong.
After my dad bought this game I tried so hard to try to enjoy this 50 dollar piece of garbage but the damage had been done.Between the boring gameplay and the impossible jumps I could never get through,this game was a bad childhood memory I wish I could have avoided.

Looking back,after this game I should have asked my dad for a Nintendo Power Sub.True they make some games look great that aren’t,but at least you have some sort of refence to go by before you buy a game.

I eventually traded this game off to one of my cousins for RC Pro Am,which was more fun than this game by a longshot even with its repetitive gameplay.

If I could go back I would have chosen either

3-D World Runner
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/runner.jpg
Rush N Attack
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/rush.jpg

[n8littlefield]

I went to the game store fully prepared to buy POW. Instead I left with Hydlide. I have no idea what idiotic process when through my head at that young age, but I think it could have been "it looks kinda like Zelda." Now it's the one game if I ever saw on a street curb for free I wouldn't even bend down to pick it up.

[Gentlegamer]

Dragon Warrior - I think I got this for free through some kind of promotion. I was excited. As a fan of D&D, a video "RPG" sounded great. Then I got this piece of junk in the mail. To this day, I can still hear the craptacular music in my head.

[Xexyz]

I got some stinkers as a kid. Games like Bart vs. the Space Mutants and Bill Elliot's NASCAR Racing weren't exactly good, but they managed to hold my attention. It was Days of Thunder that I grew to loathe.

I think it was my father who had the idea to get this game. I had gotten him hooked on Super Mario Bros., so he had some interest in the NES. Add to the fact that he liked the movie Days of Thunder, and the purchase was there. I didn't object either, because I liked racing games, but boy oh boy did this game disappoint. The racing controls weren't too bad, but the pit stop ruined any chance of this game being fun. Clunky, bad controls are present throughout the pit stop, and stopping at one during a race (pretty much mandatory after the first 2 or 3 races unless you want to get disqualified for running out of gas or getting a flat) automatically meant you'd lose the race. It's almost impossible to catch up to the racing pack when they pass you immediately once you stop at the pits.

[Dire 51]

Back To The Future (LJN)

I bought it simply because of my love for the movie. I used some hard won money (probably from a good report card, I don't recall exactly) to get it, and man, was I disappointed. You'd better believe that when Back To The Future II & III showed up shortly thereafter that I rented it first. Good thing too, as it was WORSE than part 1.

[xtremegamer]

Well it wasen't me who got the bad game, but it was my dad. We had just bought our family NES at Kmart the week before, the one with Rob,Duck Hunt, and Gyromite. Dad took my older brother and myself to the mall for us each to pick out a game. We ended up buying the games at Dillard's of all places, but this was in 1986/1987. Here's what we ended up with:

Older Brother picked Super Mario Bros. (Great Game)
I picked GumShoe (Great Game)
and my Dad picked 10 Yard Fight.

10-yard Fight? Out of a library of 100+ games at the time, he picks out one of the worst looking football games. $50.00 for this pile. Needless to say, Dad never bought another football game.

[Videogamerdaryll]

Xenophobe NES

(as far as I remember)
When I was a younger my Grandmother took me to Toys R Us to choose my own birthday gift.
I chose to get a new Nintendo game there(that's when they had the slip you took up front)

I could not make up my mind,I was stuck between this and another gamer..so I chose Xenophobe..and I HATED the game after playing it.
I didn't have the heart to tell my Grandmother that I hated it,after she asked if I liked the game..(Oh yea Grandma it's great,Thank you again)

The game that I didn't buy instead I got later and I loved it.(forget what it was though)


............
I still have the game today,not the same copy though..

I don't have any regrets on any NES games I bought as no matter what they are,I buy them to try to complete my NES collection..I enjoy taking a NES game out of the stack I have never played and trying it..I wind up finding games that I really like..

[Slate]

I don't have a whole load of regrets when it comes to purchasing games. The regrets I have are not NES related... Well, Except for the times when I DIDN'T buy some NES goodies, Even if the prices were rather high.

[vintagegamecrazy]

I remember back in like '92 or so, shortly after I got my nes, I found a copy of Cybernoid for NES from Blockbuster for only like $10 I just had to have it because I could afford it and it looked decent. I didn't hate it at all but I grew bored of it shortly, probably a month or so and I wanted to get rid of it. I ended up trading it to a friend for some other game that I can't remember too much, but I don't think it kept my attention for too long either.

[Celestial Avenger]

Mystery Quest
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v68/ReaXan/mystery.jpg


I remember renting that game as a kid. It was terrible! I'd always die once I got inside the castle/palace/fort thing. Oddly enough I feel compelled to play it again, but I must resist the urge.

By the way, I only had one NES blunder. I had the choice between purchasing Yo! Noid and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. I had played Yo! Noid and thought it was a very fun, challenging game, but my idiot father said, "Wouldn'tcha be better off buying a game you ain't played?" So of course my retarded 6-year-old brain said "Yeah huh," and I got stuck with a most heinous cartridge.

I did eventually trade it for some NES Tips VHS tapes that were made by Kodak, though. Score.

[Push Upstairs]

I remember being allowed to choose a games for my birthday (or something) I really wanted "Star Tropics" but my mom told me that there was a Simpsons game out (she was calling me from the store and I was at home) and then i made my choice:

I chose "Bart vs. The Space Mutants" *OVER* "Star Tropics"!!

[TurboGenesis]

It was sometime in 1989 or early 1990 and my mother took me to Children's Palace. I could get 1 game and I had really been interested in Dr. Chaos and Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Well for some reason or other I chose Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Oh my what a terrible game! I would suffer through this dreck for months until I was able to trade it for Spy vs. Spy (another lackluster game but much better than DJ&MH). I would later get Dr. Chaos which I personally enjoyed.

[XYXZYZ]

My big regret would be Double Dragon III. I paid... $40.00 for it, at some Nintendo game trade show at the time of it's release. At first it was kind of fun, but after I died once, that was it. Game Over.... The hell?! ONE life?? That pissed me off severely. I did eventually finish it, but I carried the regret with me for a long time; $40.00 could have been spent on so much more. That's a lot of money to a kid!

[TurboGenesis]

double post

[DreamTR]

T & C Surf Designs is AWESOME, wth?

[fishsandwich]

I went to Sears one time and spent upwards of $40 on Micky Mousecapade. What a terrible-ass game. What on earth was I thinking? I guess I got sucked in by the boxart (again.) There were so many choices and many early Nintendo games has really boring boxes so I got suckered by a shitstorm.

[MegaDrive20XX]

Adventures of Dino Riki (I still can't finish this game)
AMAGON (Too freakin' hard! I bought this game for $20 at Funcoland back in 92' and returned it that day)

Mickey Mousecapade I remember I rented once, phew, now that's a challenge!

[mrmark0673]

I don't remember why I was there, maybe a birthday or something, but I remember going to Toys R Us and getting to pick out a game with my mom and twin brother. I remember narrowing it down to 2 games. I passed on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 and instead got Flying Warriors. I get pissed off everytime I look at it, I can still think of the sound effect the guy Rick (I think) makes when he kicks. F- on that choice.

[Mattiekrome]

It was Days of Thunder that I grew to loathe.

Thats the one I surely regret buying!

[Push Upstairs]

I passed on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 and instead got Flying Warriors. I get pissed off everytime I look at it, I can still think of the sound effect the guy Rick (I think) makes when he kicks. F- on that choice.

And that was a *good* Turtles game (not like the 1st one).

Why did/does "Flying Warriors" suck? I never played that game.

Shitty control?

[boatofcar]

One year, I might have been 10 or 11, my birthday fell on a vacation to my uncle's cabin in the woods of Hinton, WV. No friends, no party, no presents. My dad did take me to the store to pick out a NES game. I remember trying to choose between TMNT and some game I'd never seen before. That game was....


http://www.theoldcomputer.com/Libarary%27s/Pictures/NESGameCovers/Caveman%20Games.jpg

For some reason, I thought that looked awesome. Not only that, I didn't have my NES with me, so I had to wait a week to get home to play it, and then it didn't take long to make that the worst birthday ever.

[Push Upstairs]

That cover does scream "quality".

But i really shouldn't say that because "Mega Man 2" had a crappy cover too.

[shoes23]

Awful games that were recieved as gifts when I was a kid:

1) Kings Knight - My mother brought this back for me when she went on a trip. Needless to say, the game is awful. Tough as nails and not much fun to compliment it.

2) Legacy of the Wizard - bought for 15 sealed and I could never figure this game out. Several people on the board have beaten it and have positive things to say, but I still can't understand what is going on.

3) Rescue: The Embassy Mission - Another craptastic game, this one is so easy that it can be completed in just a few minutes.

[mrmark0673]

And that was a *good* Turtles game (not like the 1st one).

Why did/does "Flying Warriors" suck? I never played that game.

Shitty control?

Two different control options, both were terrible. Total suck fest.

[pseudonym]

TMNT 1 : Bad controls, or jumping rather, that make going over pits, or across blocks, or into holes and such, really difficult. Some REALLY difficult if not impossible action parts that make you want to throw the controller against the wall.

Super Pitfall : Just bad, really that's all I can say, but not bottom of the barrel bad. I was disapointed with it when I was a kid but I still finished it.

Abadox : It's like Life Force only 10x harder. Swarms of enemies and tiny corridors of free space that you have to squeeze through. Shitty weapons also. I don't think I ever got past the third or fourth level in this game.

[bangtango]

T & C Surf Designs is AWESOME, wth?

Yeah, it is. It was one of the first NES games I ever played.

Personally, I also liked Krusty's Funhouse (still a damn sight better than any of the actual "Simpsons" home games), even if it is very repetitive. WWF Wrestlemania was fun, albeit a button masher with very bad character balance (try actually finishing the game with The Million Dollar Man and you'll see).

I regret to say I can't offer any input. I've owned around 200 NES games in my lifetime and played a hundred more that I never owned. The bad games I received were usually used games or gift items, so I don't count them since I wasn't the one making the investment.

The games I picked out or paid for as a kid during the NES-era included River City Ransom, Double Dragon II, Faxanadu, Super Mario 2, R.C. Pro Am, Contra, Super C, Life Force, Mega Man II, Mafat Conspiracy (which I liked) and a bunch of other stuff like that. I was very fortunate that I managed to make the "right" choices with most of the NES games I made a major investment in. I subscribed to 4-5 major game magazines at the time, which I did odd jobs (cutting grass and haying) to help pay for, so I was able to see a lot of screenshots, previews, reviews, etc. which really helped a great deal.

My mother worked at a pawn shop which got used NES games in fairly often and she was the one with really bad taste. She brought home over 50 games in her 3-4 years there and the only three good ones were Maniac Mansion, Burger Time and Elevator Action. Most of them, though, were run-of-the-mill turkeys like Demon Sword or Hydlide.

[DDCecil]

Mystery Quest is a Thanksgiving tradition in my household. Definetely one of my favorites. Here's me standing outside the final door to the game on the 4th and final quest with a max score, which I finally accomplished a couple of weeks ago:

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/2659/1001977jh3.jpg

I the only thing I regret was trading my T&C Surf Designs for a neighbor's Ghostbusters. Every other game I bought back then, I enjoyed (even Hydlide!)

[DigitalSpace]

Michael Andretti's World GP. Boring Pole Position wannabe. At least I only paid a buck for it.

[MrJeffy]

It's gotta be Mag Max. The game had no ending and was just a continuation of itself. That was back in the day when you could take opened games back to Wal-Mart, which I did. Totally boring.

And for gift blunders, my mom gave me Tiger-Heli. It's OK, but the never ending repetition of its levels make it tiresome as well.

ò¿ó http://www.videogamefever.com/forum_images/smiling_to_360.gif

[carlcarlson]

when i was a kid we didn't have much money so i didn't get to buy many games. one time we were at a garage sale and they had tmnt for $10. I had played tmnt 2 at a friends house, and loved it. unfortunately, I thought this game at the garage sale was the one my friend had. I was so happy when I got it, and then when I got home the disappoinment was practically unbearable. I tried to enjoy it, but it was just too hard.

[aaron7]

I remember when my parents got me "Tombs and Treasures"... I had NO idea what was going on!!! Same as Faxanadu!!

Glad to still have them both in the collection though!

[s1lence]

Back to the Future, bought it when NES games were still new in stores. God that game is terrible.

[exit]

F13, Mickey Mouscaopade, T&C, Bart Vs Spacemutants, Super Pitfall...all childhood favoriates of mine. Infact F13 had one of the darkest game overs ever, "You and your friends are dead." Seriously what the fuck, that scared the shit out of me when I was a kid, I'm surprised that made it past Big N's radar.

I don't think I regreted any of my NES purchases as a kid, altho I did hate Adventures of Link with a passion, but I sucked it up and kept on playing.

[Bloodreign]

Demon Sword wasn't too bad, I used to regularly beat this game all the time, when I got the internet and found the Japanese version, it had 6 extra levels not seen in the US version, not to mention more magic spells, I was blown away by what was axed from Demon Sword in the US. Most people say Legend of Kage wasn't anything to write home about, and since I liked Kage as well, and played this, they felt so alike, perhaps Demon Sword was a Kage sequel, though I've never officially found out.

Bad games eh:
Adventures of Bayou Billy- traded it to a friend long ago for SMB2 (amazingly still have the original SMB2 copy I traded away for so lon afo), strangely I've grown to like Bayou Billy once again, may have to pick it up again sometime.

John Elway Quarterback- bought this turkey from K-Mart back in the day, 2 days later out of sheer dislike for the game, I brought it back to K-Mart for......... The Adventures of Bayou Billy (a very vicious circle I thus weave).

[Gavica]

Dragon Warrior - I think I got this for free through some kind of promotion. I was excited. As a fan of D&D, a video "RPG" sounded great. Then I got this piece of junk in the mail. To this day, I can still hear the craptacular music in my head.

Im sorry but Dragon Warrior is one of the finest RPGS ever.

[Gavica]

my NES blunder, well probably Platoon, I was trying to decide between Platoon and Batman, and my brother tells me platoon movie was cool so I buy the game.
It turns out to be crap, to this day I havent beat the first level.

And Batman game turned out to be awesome when I player it at my cousins house.

[ReaXan]

just broke out the NES today to play Super Mario 3 with some friends.The console is officially dead im afraid with it not being able to read any of the games even with the blow technique

NES

1988-2007

I would love to see a 360 make it to 20 years

[Blitzwing256]

I would love to see a 360 make it to 20 years


i'd love to see a 360 make it to 1 year ;-)

[Sparkster]

I don't regret any of my purchases since I started really collecting, but before then, there was Dash Galaxy in the Alien Asylum.

I was just getting into emulation, and wasn't very good at finding the different ROMs. I ended up at a video store that also sold used games. I didn't want to leave empty handed, but I'm sure the selection was limited to the stuff you usually see in pawn shops - sports games, Mario, super crappy games. Unfortunately, I'd never heard of Dash Galaxy, and it looked interesting enough. I brought it home, played enough of it where I didn't want to play it anymore, finished it with a game genie, and sent it to my cousins.

[Rob2600]

I remember trying to choose between TMNT and some game I'd never seen before. That game was....

(Caveman Games)

For some reason, I thought that looked awesome.

Regarding Caveman Games... Almost every NES game made by Data East was garbage (Karate Champ, Kid Niki: Radical Ninja, Karnov, Ring King, RoboCop, Tag Team Wrestling, etc.). The Data East logo should've been your first indication to steer clear.


just broke out the NES today to play Super Mario 3 with some friends.The console is officially dead im afraid with it not being able to read any of the games even with the blow technique

If the screen flashes when you turn the NES on, then it isn't dead. Your games probably need to be cleaned. Dip some Q-Tips in rubbing alcohol or glass cleaner and clean the metal contacts sticking out of the cartridge. That should work.

The "blow technique" does nothing.

[Rob2600]

My uncle was a big professional wrestling fan. When I was about ten years old, he asked me which NES wrestling game he should buy: Pro Wrestling or Tag Team Wrestling. I hadn't played either game at the time and suggested Tag Team Wrestling because it featured tag teams!

He bought it and we had fun playing it. Then, a few weeks later, I played Pro Wrestling at my friend's house. That's when I realized Tag Team Wrestling was garbage. It's the only wrestling game I've ever played where the wrestling moves were selected through menus. Yes, menus.

Other garbage games that my friends or I have owned:

Airwolf (Acclaim)
City Connection (Jaleco)
Dash Galaxy in the Alien Asylum (Data East)
Fester's Quest (Sunsoft)
Fist of the North Star (Taxan)
Friday the 13th (LJN)
Ghostbusters (Activision)
Home Alone (THQ)
Ikari Warriors II: Victory Road (SNK)
The Legend of Kage (Taito)
M.U.S.C.L.E. (Bandai)
Mickey Mousecapade (Hudson/Capcom)
Rambo (Acclaim)
Super Pitfall (Activision)
T&C Surf Designs (LJN)
Taboo: The Sixth Sense (Rare/Tradewest)
The Three Stooges (Activision)
Total Recall (Acclaim)
WWF WrestleMania (Acclaim)

The most consistent developers and publishers of horrible NES games were Acclaim, LJN, Data East, and Activision.

[suppafly]

BAck in the summer of 1989, when the NES still was the coolest thing on earth, I impatiently waited for my birdthday to come near.

Here in Mexico NES games used to be more expensive than in the US; so I really could afford only to buy maybe 5 games per year...thats why I always chose very carefully what game to ask for.

Maybe my top mistake was on my birthday of 1989 when I went to the game store with my mother and aunt and they asked me to choose any game I wanted...there were so many options...there was a Ninja Gaiden (which I didnt really know and only had seen 1 or 2 pics before) and several other dozen NES games...there was super mario bros 2 too...but I was already waiting for SMB 3 so I had to pass too...thats when I noticed a game that showed a spy jumping trhrough a window..it looked so cool! The box read "Rescue: the embassy mission"..so I mde the foolish decision to buy a game I didnt know anything of....I went home and beat the game the first time I played it..it took me 10 or maybe 15 minutes...that was a HUGE disappointment...I had to beg my mother to return the game (she had to make up a story that I already had received that game as a gift from another relative) and the store lady finally agreed to issue a change...Im glad I picked up Clash at demonhead...thats a game I really learned to love...maybe it wasnt SO great but it was SO much better than that dreaded embassy game ...

Second pick: The time I bought Gotcha! (a zapper game) as my first nintendo game (after the pack-in SMB/duck hunt)...It took me 5 minutes to beat It and I was really frustrated too....

[mnbren05]

Probably the worst game I ever picked up for the NES first hand was Xenephobe. Followed close by (gifts for birthdays and holidays) Rocket Man, Dick Tracey, and Dudes with Attitudes. I will say I never let my parents buy me another game (without telling them specifically what I wanted) after I received Dudes with Attitudes for my birthday.

[Gentlegamer]

Im sorry but Dragon Warrior is one of the finest RPGS ever.
I'm sorry, but Dragon Warrior sucks. It wasn't until Final Fantasy II on the SNES that I liked a video game "RPG." I played real RPGs like Dungeons & Dragons, so I had "higher standards."

[jerkov]

What's with all of the hate for Rescue: Embassy Mission? I love that game - yeah, you can beat it in 10 minutes rather easily, but they do pack in a good amount of variety for that short period of time. It also helps that I'm sure I only paid two or three bucks for it, but that's a title I still pop in from time to time to play through.

I was always pretty good when convincing my parents to buy me new games, sticking to the Mario titles, RC Pro Am, Zelda 2, Mega Man 2, Pirates!, etc. I would also rent games just about every weekend, so I was exposed to a lot of titles and knew which games were good and which were bad.

I did ask for and get Ghostbusters (I was a HUGE GB fan as a kid and immediately had to have it when I saw the front cover in a giant display of NES games at a store) and Al Unser Jr. Turbo Racing new as gifts, which certainly aren't thought of as classics. To be honest, though, I actually enjoy both of these games and spent a lot of time playing them when I got them, so they certainly weren't wasted gifts to me.

I have picked up plenty of crappy games cheaply, but most of those purchases were on purpose to build my collection.....it's hard to say "no" to cheap-as-dirt NES games, even if they do suck.

[bangtango]

I'm sorry, but Dragon Warrior sucks.

The guy you replied to makes a fair point.

Yes, Dragon Warrior is very antiquated, the random battles are repetitive, the quest is way too easy and there is next to nothing for a story. All you do is move from one place to the next and build gold/experience or hunt for items to artifically increase the amount of time in the quest. Yet to say it sucks is being a little too tough on it. The expression "sucks" really needs to be reserved for stuff like Total Recall, Deadly Towers and Hydlide. Do you really believe DW ought to be lumped in with that stuff? Aside from dragging on at times and basically being an "RPG for Dummies" quest, there is nothing wrong with it.

I could agree Dragon Warrior hasn't aged that well and compared to some other rpg's (including its own sequels or the FF games), it might be mediocre but somebody would have a tough time getting me to agree that it flat out sucks. The game is very user friendly (simple even), with a good variety of enemies that gradually increase in strength and you explore quaint little towns that have plenty of people to talk to. A novice RPG gamer who doesn't like having to keep multiple party members alive, having to worry about the classes of party members, having to pick & choose spells/armors/weapons, having to always keep enough food on hand or having to struggle through battles with several enemies at once can appreciate jumping right into Dragon Warrior and cutting their teeth on it.

[Gentlegamer]

I think Dragon Warrior has aged just fine. It sucked then and it sucks now. :)

Seriously, it is boring and the music is irritating. I traded it back in the day for Ninja Gaiden 2 and never looked back.

[ccovell]

I definitely do not think Krusty's Fun House is a stinker -- it's a fun game with a great Lemmings-y premise. But this is your opinion.

Fortunately in my childhood we were able to rent games so we could try them out for stinkitude before buying them. Some games I didn't try before buying and then regretted:

Goonies II -- it was just too tough, confusing, and disorienting for me.
Castlequest -- the fold-out map was really cool; the gameplay wasn't so.

[PentiumMMX]

I'd have to go with Where in Time in Carman Sandiego. Couldn't figure what the bloody hell I was supposed to do...

[Bluteg]

I didn't purchase Princes Tomato for $1 at a flea a week ago or so. I could have flipped it for $20~ on egay.

[FlufflePuff]

Deadly Towers and Ninja Kid were two of the one's I regretted back in the day. My folks would get me a game if I got A's on my report card, and for whatever reason I chose Deadly Towers over Zelda. *sigh* What was cool, was they put the game in a box of my favorite cereal, so when I went to have breakfast on the first day of summer I got the best cereal prize ever.

[rbudrick]

Legend of Kage was a big disappointment for me. I LOVED the arcade version. It was one of the coolest games I had ever seen at the time. I remember I saved $35 and it took a really long time on my allowance for a 10 year old. Hell, the pics on the back of the box were for the arcade ersion and it doesn't mention this anywhere. I know a lot of games did similar tricks back then, but they usually mentioned what version the were from, and I don't know of any other NES games that used this dirty trick.

Hell, the fire dudes didn't even blow a big flame out...they were just crappy fireballs!

It took me years to beat all 3 quests. Man, that game was tough. So many cheap, cheap deaths.

ANyway, I remember being really upset, especially since it was the only game at the stor that was that inexpensoive...it was exactly $35 so I thought I hit the jackpot! I felt very deceived...even lied to.

-Rob

[Rob2600]

The expression "sucks" really needs to be reserved for stuff like Total Recall, Deadly Towers and Hydlide.


Deadly Towers and Ninja Kid were two of the one's I regretted back in the day.

I had forgotten about Deadly Towers. To quote the instruction manual, "You start the game with this sword. It is so weak, you feel lonely."

[8-bitNesMan]

Kid Niki and Robocop were good games IMO. Back to the Future was a turd, but for some reason I liked it. Guess it was one of those so bad it was good kind of things. I never could figure out what giant bees were doing in Hill Valley...

[blissfulnoise]

For my 10th Birthday, went into Toys R Us for Chubby Cherub, left with Kid Niki (having played the arcade).

Life can be very cruel.

[8-bitNesMan]

Almost every NES game made by Data East was garbage (Karate Champ, Kid Niki: Radical Ninja, Karnov, Ring King, RoboCop, Tag Team Wrestling, etc.).


For my 10th Birthday, went into Toys R Us for Chubby Cherub, left with Kid Niki (having played the arcade).

Life can be very cruel.

Now I have to ask why all the Kid Niki hate? I remember it being a very fun game back in the day. Am I merely looking through my nostalgia glasses too hard?

[Technosis]

My friend received Othello as a gift when he was hoping for an action game LOL!

[Rob2600]

Now I have to ask why all the Kid Niki hate? I remember it being a very fun game back in the day. Am I merely looking through my nostalgia glasses too hard?

I suppose Kid Niki wasn't the worst NES game, but to me, it felt cheap and glitchy overall. It wasn't anywhere near as polished as most Nintendo, Capcom, or Konami games were.

[bangtango]

Hell, the pics on the back of the box were for the arcade version and it doesn't mention this anywhere. I know a lot of games did similar tricks back then, but they usually mentioned what version the were from, and I don't know of any other NES games that used this dirty trick.

-Rob

I could be wrong but I thought the NES version of Karnov used pictures on the box that were from the arcade version.




Goonies II -- it was just too tough, confusing, and disorienting for me.
Castlequest -- the fold-out map was really cool; the gameplay wasn't so.

Castlequest was horrible and if you didn't go through the doors in the right order, you could get stuck in the castle and be forced to reset. BS.

Goonies II was one of the more difficult games to find your way around in. I used to think it was fun. The thing I hated most about the game, though, were the ugly monsters on the bridge that would take away your boomerang.

[Daria]

I loved CastleQuest when I was a kid... sure it was hard and without the map you could never "win" but the puzzles were kind of fun anyway.

[Push Upstairs]

I never could figure out what giant bees were doing in Hill Valley...

The eternal question....

I'm rather curious to know how the designers came up with the idea for giant bees. I guess since mutant bees played such a prominent role in the film....

[bangtango]

The eternal question....

I'm rather curious to know how the designers came up with the idea for giant bees. I guess since mutant bees played such a prominent role in the film....

They were something George McFly cooked up, in between avoiding Biff Tannen, pursuing his density with Lorraine and becoming unusually close to a total stranger who happened to be his future son. Legend has it, you should have seen them swarming the high school gym during the dance but the cameraman thought it was more important to film Marty playing Johnny B. Goode. Heh.

[Rob2600]

I'm rather curious to know how the designers came up with the idea for giant bees.

It seems to me like LJN already had a game in the works when it acquired the Back to the Future license. Instead of creating a new game from scratch, the programmers just altered a few things and released the game. It seems like Acclaim did the same thing with its Rambo NES game...the programmers tacked on a few Rambo-related things to an unrelated game that was already in the works, probably to save time and development costs. That's my hypothesis.

[blissfulnoise]

Now I have to ask why all the Kid Niki hate? I remember it being a very fun game back in the day. Am I merely looking through my nostalgia glasses too hard?

I had originally played the arcade which, despite being pretty generic platformer when you boiled it down, had some great and totally unique style.

The NES port loses a lot in translation. Some of the game's quirky style (bosses) is still there, but the gameplay just isn't. Lots of flicker and a glitchy, unforgiving hit system makes it all the much worse.

Is it the worst game on the system? Not even in the worst 20, but to say the game was a worthwhile purchase in '87 is a big stretch (Zelda, Kid Icarus, Metroid, Castlevania, Mega Man, Punch-Out, Rad Racer... I could go on).

[Ruudos]

Back in the days, we didn't buy a real stinker. Bigeest disappointed probably was Gauntlet II (yhis game was pretty hyped up overhere), but it was still fun to play together. My brother didn't like Prince of Persia (it was hyped up by the store manager). The stuff we bought back in the days was actually good (Super Mario Bros 2, Super Mario Bros 3, Captain Skyhawk, Faxanadu, Battle of Olympus, Rad Gravity, Batman, Low G Man, Solstice, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, Mega Man 4, Section Z, Burai Fighter, StarTropics, Rad Racer, Castlevania 3, Gremlins 2, Shadow Warriors).

Ok, a friend of my brother got Days of Thunder. But I even liked that one.

[Barbarianoutkast85]

I dont really have a big NES blunder becuase I was born in 85 so I dont have any big blunders until 16 bit, then 32 bit era. So I'm going to put my biggest PS1 blunder here anyway, sorry in advance for topic jackin'. I had saved up my allounce for nearly a year and had enough to buy a Playstation, one game, and a memory card. Since my mom was so proud of me for saving my allounce for nearly a year she said she would buy me a game too. So I was geting a PS1, 2 games, and a memory card. The games I ended up with were Bubsy 3D, and Crash Bandicoot. I dont rightly remember all the games I was considering but Bubsy 3D was definitly a blunder. But Crash Bandicoot turned out to be one of my all time favorite series. But Bubsy 3D was so bad that it still doesnt even out.

[Blitzwing256]

Legend of Kage was a big disappointment for me. I LOVED the arcade version. It was one of the coolest games I had ever seen at the time. I remember I saved $35 and it took a really long time on my allowance for a 10 year old. Hell, the pics on the back of the box were for the arcade ersion and it doesn't mention this anywhere. I know a lot of games did similar tricks back then, but they usually mentioned what version the were from, and I don't know of any other NES games that used this dirty trick.

Hell, the fire dudes didn't even blow a big flame out...they were just crappy fireballs!

It took me years to beat all 3 quests. Man, that game was tough. So many cheap, cheap deaths.

ANyway, I remember being really upset, especially since it was the only game at the stor that was that inexpensoive...it was exactly $35 so I thought I hit the jackpot! I felt very deceived...even lied to.

-Rob

All of data east's early games did that, arcade screen shots on the box, totally differnt game inside.

karnov
karate chump
kid niki

karate chump went so far as to have an instruction manua with information that didn't apply to the game at all, I particularly loved the description of the on screen data, completely different, hell it even mentioned the bull round THAT IS NOWHERE IN THE GAME AT ALL #$^$#^, not that i'm bitter, but seriously try to find a copy of the game with the manual for a good laugh.

I think legend of cage was the only non-data east game that did it as well

[Ed Oscuro]

It seems to me like LJN already had a game in the works when it acquired the Back to the Future license. Instead of creating a new game from scratch, the programmers just altered a few things and released the game.
I'm not questioning the validity of this hypothesis, but I have to wonder about the intelligence of the good folks at LJN. "Hey, we're making this sh...er SUPER DOOPER game which involves GIANT BEES and other random crap that isn't quite fun. I'm hopeful that somebody will come drop a big movie license in our lap; these brilliantly designed game elements will fit perfectly!!!"

Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if the bees weren't random art that they had made up inbetween jobs, to be used whenever they had ROM space to pad out.

For me? Hmm, I've picked up a few games more recently (the only time I ever did get NES games, of course; didn't have one back in the day) that I shouldn't have...but I just HAD to have Wall Street Kid! Yeah, I want Low G Man.

[Push Upstairs]

It seems to me like LJN already had a game in the works when it acquired the Back to the Future license. Instead of creating a new game from scratch, the programmers just altered a few things and released the game. It seems like Acclaim did the same thing with its Rambo NES game...the programmers tacked on a few Rambo-related things to an unrelated game that was already in the works, probably to save time and development costs. That's my hypothesis.

The only part that really makes sense (in a convoluted way) is that whole "avoiding Lorraine's kisses" stuff. It is lifted from some element from the movie, it was just done in the most moronic way imaginable.

But every single BTTF game (minus Super BTTF 2) makes me wanna find out who all worked on the games and punch them in the balls repeatedly.

[ReaXan]

even though this is old, this is my most favorite topic I have ever made here

would love to get new opinions

[SpaceHarrier]

The one that stands out most for me was Top Gun 2. It wasn't particularly terrible, but out of all the NES carts I got as a kid this one probably got the least amount of play.

That and I had to beg my parents forever for it.

[kupomogli]

Awful games that were recieved as gifts when I was a kid:
2) Legacy of the Wizard - bought for 15 sealed and I could never figure this game out. Several people on the board have beaten it and have positive things to say, but I still can't understand what is going on.

3) Rescue: The Embassy Mission - Another craptastic game, this one is so easy that it can be completed in just a few minutes.

I like Legacy of the Wizard and I've never beaten it. It's pretty fun, just pisses me off I don't know what the hell to do.

Rescue was also a good game, but way too short so I can see why you must have been upset. You can only play it so many times in a row before you get bored as hell, and that's going to be in less than a day.

Anyways. For me?

Wheel of Fortune. How I ever thought this would be a good game is beyond me. I liked the TV show and the game itself was sortof decent, but yeah. Very stupid choice on my part.

Ironsword: Wizards and Warriors 2. It had Fabio on the cover. Who wouldn't want to purchase it? Anyways, at first I hated the game because of the insane difficulty, though I did end up slightly enjoying it after getting used to it after alot of playtime just because I wanted to beat the game. I even got to the point that I could finish the game in a single continue(it now takes me a few continues just to get past the first stage.) Now that I'm not in the state of mind of beating a game just to beat it, I can tell you the game does suck ass, just not as bad as the original which I bought later and because of this one.

[old_skoolin_jim]

Other garbage games that my friends or I have owned:

Rambo (Acclaim)


Yeah... I was definitely the only person I know of to have actually beaten Rambo. I was only 7 or 8 years old at the time, and damnit, I was proud of myself!
...Still am.

As for me, I don't have any HUGE regrets as most of my NES games were bought on the cheap, but some clunkers in my collection:
DayDreamin' Davey (NP made it look interesting... gameplay was "meh")
Operation Wolf (trigger finger arthritis after 2 minutes of gameplay... I paid $3 for it and still feel a little ripped off)
Battle Chess (everything moves sooooo slowly)
The Bard's Tale (paid $2 for it... too "PC-RPG" for my tastes, plus I didn't have any time to invest in it)
Ultima: Exodus (I actually enjoyed it for a long time... until I got stuck in Ambrosia with no way back and realized it's actually kinda crappy. Also, levels only increase HP, not stats? wtf mate?)

That's my 2 cents!

[CelticJobber]

I bought the Power Pad (at full regular price), Powerglove (on clearance), Back To The Future, Fester's Quest, Jaws, Friday the 13th, Ghostbusters 2, and some would say buying WWF Wrestlemania was a blunder, although I loved that game as a kid.

[Draven]

My mom picked up Super Pitfall for me when we first got out NES. What a stinker. The saddest part is she was batting 1.000 before she got this game. (Zelda, Rad Racer, Metroid, NES Advantage & Max, and a couple other classics). What a disappointment.

Of recent purchases I don't regret many, but Taboo The Sixth Sense is pretty lame. I knew it would be, but bought it anyway. It would have been alot better if the cards' meanings weren't so hard to interpret. I just liked that it was the only game released with a warning. Platoon is another, but luckily I'm only out 1.50 on it. The screenshots looked awesome and I loved the movie (should have known it would have been another terrible movie-based game).