Hey everyone! Because of Ethan's great idea on some Top Tens, I plan on doing a few Top Tens all through Spring Break! Today's is the Top Ten Exclusive Nintendo Games, on every console (although I know I can't speak for everyone, these are mine). Please make sure to tell your friends and share this on Facebook, Twitter, and all that good stuff, because I worked realllllly hard on this! Thanks! Let's jump right in with number ten.
10. Yoshi's Island (Focus on: GBA Appears on: SNES, GBA, DS): This was actually the last game I picked. It was a tossup of this and Super Princess Peach. I ended up picking this because I remembered Super Princess Peach was an awful game. Nintendo has such a broad library of exclusives mainly because of all the successful spin offs they're able to make. Unlike Super Princess Peach, this was one of the successful spin offs. Yoshi's island was able to achieve its great success because it was able to distinguish itself as its own, new platform game, rather than a clone of its parent series, Super Mario, as the graphics and gameplay differ greatly from the regular Mario titles. This game is also unique as Yoshi isn't just Mario's sidekick anymore, but rather the hero of this adventure. While the levels in this game are very linear (escort baby Mario through the level and to another Yoshi), the gameplay is very different, and varies largely throughout the game. Rather than having hearts or some other form of lives, a game over requires Yoshi to lose the infant Mario he carries on his back. Mario is lost by getting hit by an enemy. If hit, Mario will be carried off in a bubble, crying. If Yoshi is unable to reconnect with Mario before the timer runs out, he must start the level over, or restart at a checkpoint. Yoshi has a wide range of different attacks, and sometimes, is even able to transform into vehicles like helicopters! The art style of this game is another factor that separates it from its parent series. The art style appears to be almost hand drawn, and in other words, is very cartoon like. It's a huge departure from the regular Mario art styles. It's comparable to the Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker's takeoff from the regular Zelda art style. This spin off title was extremely successful for Nintendo, but it doesn't even begin to compare to the success of the next entry.
9. Super Mario (Focus on: SNES Appears on: literally every Nintendo console ever. EVER): Now what Top Ten Nintendo games list wouldn't have a Mario game on it? A hipster's list, obviously. Aside from N64's Super Mario 64 and GC's Super Mario Sunshine, no Super Mario games compare to this this one, which is why the SNES version takes the 9th place spot. The reason is, after you complete all 8 worlds in other Mario games, you're done. All that's left is world 9, which only holds a few levels with ridiculous objectives you have to beat to unlock them. But in this iteration, there are worlds of secrets to unlock! There are secret shops, routes, levels, and more! Much more! And, this is the only game that flying with the capes is a big part of the game, which is disappointing. Also, this is the 1st game that had the protagonist's sidekick be a dinosaur... So 10 points for being awesome. In the newer games, the developers took out gameplay elements that just didn't need to be taken out (such as Yoshi doesn't travel with you to other levels). This entry is short, but I think the reason why Mario is on here explains itself, I just needed to explain why I picked the SNES version. The Mario world has expanded tremendously since this game, as shown by the next entry.
8. Mario Kart (Focus on: Wii Appears on: SNES, N64, GBA, GC, DS, Wii, 3DS, Wii U): Mario Kart Wii is an extremely successful game. It is actually the 3rd highest selling game ever, behind 2 games, one of which is on our Top Ten list. The Mario Kart series is definitely deserving of its success and critical acclaim, and here's why. The Mario Kart series put a huge spin on the racing game genre, with many games in the genre being boring clones of one another. The Mario Kart series is able to give you the best of two worlds, the quirky, fun elements of the Mario series, and well, the racing elements of the racing genre. Part of the reason this series is so successful is because it is immediately identifiable as part of the Mario series, which brings a lot of fans in. From there, it relies on its great gameplay to bring people in. In the Mario elements of this game, the main element is the items. The items are (almost) all things you see very often in the main series, and then changed to be geared towards racing, but not always in the way you expect. For example, in the main series, Bullet Bills are hostile enemies, but in the Kart spin offs, they are assist items that help you catch up to the other racers. In the racing elements of this game, they are as realistic as they can be (as they can be with all the Mario elements listed above). There is drifting, startup variations, and more flagship elements seen in the racing genre. What keeps this series fresh is that, in new entries into the series, they are never just upgraded clones of the previous entries; they always add something new to the series. But not something small like new items, but large elements of the gameplay are always added, such as submarines and gliders being added in Mario Kart 7. Another thing I love about the series is, it really is not over until it’s over. In other racing games such as Gran Turismo, if you fall too far behind, there's a very slim chance of catching back up. But in the Mario Kart series, you can always catch up with the help of certain things like items. You can fall from 1st to last in a matter of seconds, or climb from last to first in a matter of seconds. Now, it's time to switch gears from Mario and its spin offs, to a series that has been around for ages, and that has managed to move gracefully through many generations of video games.
7. Pokemon (Focus on: DS [HeartGold and SoulSilver] Appears on: GBC, GBA, DS, 3DS): Ahhh Pokemon. These games have aged very gracefully, as even the GameBoy Color iteration are still very playable. But why is that? Pokemon found a formula that attracts all different sorts of gamers, core and casual. What is it about these games that keep players coming? It’s that these games truly are an adventure. No 2 trainers are the same. No 2 Pokemon are the same. While this game is a very linear game, there are so many different routes to get to that goal. You can construct your team however you want, shape your battle plans however you want. This series keeps fresh and maximizes sales by releasing 2 versions for every new entry, with slight differences between the two. This can sometimes causes hardcore gamers to get both, increasing sales. And the final way they maximize sales is by a few months after releasing the 2 versions, they release a third, that combines both versions and adds even more. This formula keeps the series fresh by always adding new elements to their tried and true formula, and changing elements just enough to keep gamers wanting more. The series will soon be getting a very necessary overhaul of the boring overhead graphics we've had in every entry, to be replaced with new, updated 3D graphics, obviously for the 3DS. Speaking of the 3DS, time to talk about a game that will soon be getting a remake on the 3DS.
6. Donkey Kong Country (Focus on= SNES Appears on= SNES, GBC, GBA, Wii, 3DS): Donkey Kong first appeared with our mustache donning friend years ago in (actually, in this first game, Donkey Kong isn't actually the antagonist, it's Cranky Kong. And Mario hadn't been named Mario yet, but rather, Jumpman) the game titled simply: Donkey Kong. This franchise, as do many Nintendo franchises, has since evolved drastically, and has sold over 48 million titles worldwide! Donkey Kong Country was the first Donkey Kong title on the SNES. It is similar to many games as you progress through each level in a linear fashion to get to the next. However, multiplayer in this game was a step above some of Nintendo's flagship games like Mario. Rather than having one person play one level and one person playing the next, both players play at the same time, with DK taking the lead, and if DK dies, Diddy takes the lead. The Country series has gone on from the SNES, though. In a surprise move from Nintendo, Donkey Kong Country returned, in Donkey Kong Country Returns (hahaha, get it?)! This expanded the series with brand new, much more dynamic levels, a much better multiplayer experience, and much more bananas. Donkey Kong earned its place on this list by being able to distinguish itself as its own game by building upon elements of platformers like Mario, and rather than Mario, where you do the same thing in every level, it made different ways to get to your goal in every level, and thus makes for a much more dynamic experience for the player. Donkey Kong Country extended beyond just Donkey and Diddy though. In this game we meet some of the Kongs, like Candy and Funky, but there is a world of Kongs left to meet! Here's the (not ->) whole family tree!
A few of these Kongs have gotten a starring role in the DK Country series, but in our next entry, we meet a whole new bunch of Kongs.
5. Donkey Kong 64: The 3D world of Donkey Kong was sadly, only shown on one platform, and one game. But, it definitely made its mark. In Donkey Kong 64, Donkey Kong's world was shown in a whole new way. The world he lived in became 3D, rather than the flat 2D world we were used to seeing. This perspective almost turned it into an open world game, and expanded the world hugely, which doubled the fun. What also made this game fun was, we meet the whole Kong family (well, a lot of the Kong family)! Each Kong had different special abilities, all of which were necessary to progress through the story. This made the game even more fun because you get to play as your favorite Kongs! The game made sure to focus on all the Kongs as an ensemble, rather than making the game revolve around Donkey Kong, which is another plus. Another reason I always loved this game was the replayability. All of the Kongs had a corresponding color. Some items like bananas (oh bananas and monkeys, that's not a cliche) , coins, and other things were a certain color, and only the corresponding Kong could collect them, making you want to go back and collect everything. The gameplay of this game also surpassed DK country. Each Kong had a special ability, (like Tiny Kong could swing her ponytails to fly) which is just one of the things that made this game so unique. It also has a multiplayer mode in this game, which unfortunately I never played (I'm sure it’s just as good as the rest of the game, though!). This game has (for some reason) yet to come to the virtual console, but when it does, it will again amass a huge amount of sales. And while the next entry didn't get quite the amount of sales this did, it still made a lot of paper. (You'll get the awful pun in a second)
4. Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (Focus on= GC Appears on= N64, GC, Wii, 3DS): This is probably the most controversial placement on this list. The placement for pretty much the whole top 5 (except number one) was extremely tricky. Anyways, to me, this Paper Mario is by far better than all the other entries. Unfortunately, I was never able to play the N64 version, but it does beat the Wii and 3DS version, mainly for character reasons. In the Wii version, all we get is 4 characters, which we've seen in all the other Mario games. It also beats the Wii because of the main point of the gameplay, the battles. The way they set up fights, on the stage, in the GC version was amazing, totally new, and fresh, but in the Wii version, for some reason, the incompetent developers threw it all away. And the 3DS version left us with no partners what so ever! Also, the emphasis on the stickers was extremely unnecessary and took away from the game. Not to mention Kersti is pretty much the worst... thing, to ever grace this earth. The GC version surpassed both of these with the stage battles, audience interaction (one time Luigi was in the audience and threw something at me...... thanks bro), and the story. The story of the game overall, and the character's backstories were very compelling. Especially when Mario gets copied, and only Vivian trusts you and believes it's the real you. Another bonus was that you actually have options. While this game is linear, you do have options, such as unlocking Ms. Mouz, and training at the wrestling arena. Even the gameplay outside of battles can be tricky, and keeps you thinking. Plus, you get a baby Yoshi. 80 POINTS FOR BEING AWESOME! So with a great story, great characters, killer gameplay, and a baby Yoshi, how can this game not get third place? However, our next entry has all of this, and much more.
3. Super Smash Bros. (Focus on= Wii Appears on= N64, GC, Wii, Wii U, 3DS): Taking all of your favorite Nintendo characters, and sending them into an arena to duke it out. How can that formula fail? Clearly, it hasn't Super Smash Bros’s formula is unique, and has brought huge success to Nintendo. There are two reasons this game is so successful. Number one is that this game features all of Nintendo’s flagship characters, which immediately attracts fans to this game. Then, the game relies on its stellar gameplay to attract core fans of the fighting game genre. The gameplay of this game is great because it’s so original. Instead of having a health bar, like most fighting games had when the first iteration of this game came out, it had a damage bar. And as this damage bar rises, the easier it is to get knocked off the stage (which is the only way to get kills), which is also extremely original. Another plus for this game is that it keeps you playing, well… because it keeps you playing! It has an endless amount of gameplay. There is even a mode called endless mode! There’s a story mode, a classic mode, an all-star mode, a versus mode, a stock mode, a team mode, a challenge mode, a tourney mode, a stage editor, and seriously, this is only half of what you can do. And while it’s true, many of the characters are clones of each other (Fox and Wolf, Seriously?) But honestly, who cares? If you want to play as your favorite character, who happens to be a clone of another character, why not? It even lets you play as some characters that have never had a starring role, like in the next entry.
2. Luigi’s Mansion (Focus on= GC Appears on= GC, 3DS): Now this, this is what I'd call a classic. For the first time, Mario's lanky, shy brother Luigi is getting a starring role. This game was very different from anything we'd ever seen, gameplay and story wise. Luigi has to team up with professor E. Gadd to save his brother Mario, who has been captured by King Boo. To get to King Boo, he first has to clear a mansion full of all types of ghouls (one being a 7000 pound baby)! One of the reasons this game is so memorable is because of the ghosts, many are actually very passive, and friendly. Definitely not all of them though. The gameplay is great too. In order to defeat the ghosts, you have to suck them into a $10,000 vacuum cleaner, The Poltergeist 3000! You have to reduce their hearts by keeping the vacuum locked on them (which is much harder than it sounds) and then once their hearts reach 0, in to the vacuum they go! It's actually sad, a lot of these ghosts weren't even doing anything wrong, Luigi just attacks them! This game is definitely legendary. When I think Gamecube, I always think of this game. Anyways, the 3DS version recently came out, and is about on par with its Gamecube counterpart. With absolutely no advertising, it managed to pull in 100,000 pre orders. Not too shabby, eh? But now everyone, prepare, for number 1.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (Focus on= N64 Appears on= Every Nintendo console): Early in the Nintendo 64's life, Nintendo unleashed the monster Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This game was total beast sales wise, selling over 7 million copies. This game set the standards for what Zelda games always would, and will be, especially its revolutionary 3D aspect. However, after Ocarina of time, Nintendo didn't just quit there with the Zelda series. Why should they? As Ocarina of Time had just been released, the sequel did not need to be made from scratch, drastically reducing the necessary budget, along with the development time. So with all of the necessities already taken care of, besides a few improvements graphically, all that needed to be created was a new story, and some new creative gameplay elements. With only an 18 month development cycle, you'd figure that any game would be destined for failure, but not The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. With a close second of Twilight Princess, this had the darkest and most compelling storyline out of any Zelda game yet. The game goes in a 3 day cycle, and once you get to the third day, you have to reverse time with your Ocarina to go back to the 1st day. Why? Because on the end of the 3rd day, the moon crashes into Clock Town (the main town in this game). Throughout all 3 days, all of the villagers know the moon is destined to fall on the town, some simply deny it will ever happen, and some just realize there is no point in denying it, the town is forever shrouded in doubt, but they are all powerless to do anything, only Link, The Hero of Time, can save Clock Town. Compelling enough? But it isn't just the story that brings this game to the number one spot, it's the gameplay. Majora's Mask introduced a new element to it's game, mentioned in the title, masks. Throughout the game, Link collects masks, some necessary, some optional. What these masks do vary depending on the mask. Some give you a few new/different abilities/attacks, while some change you into a completely different form, giving you a whole different moveset. This adds a whole other level of uniqueness to this game. But honestly, I can't describe just how great this is, you need to buy it on the Wii's virtual console yourself. Speaking of buying it, there is one place this game didn't excell as much as it's predecessor. Sales. It's not like the sales for this game were disastrous, but they weren't on par with OoT's (Ocarina of Time). It actually only sold an estimated 3.5 million. This is partly because this is one of only 2 games (the other being DK 64) that required the N64 expansion pack. So, was buying a whole extra accessory worth just 2 games? Obviously, to most gamers, the answer was no. However, even with that in mind the sales are above average, and are only an estimate. Not to mention virtual console sales aren't included in this figure. But to me, sales aren't a sign of of a good game, the game needs to show that itself.
I hope you all enjoyed this list! Tell me your top ten in the comments, thanks for reading!
-Colby
