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Cindi reviews every game in the SNES Classic

Work in progress.

So I got SNES Classic a few months ago. I love it. I'm going to review the games in it.

Final Fantasy VI - This was always one of my favorite FF's. It was the second FF I played. I pirated it and played it on ZSNES back in 1998 hot off the heels of FFVII which I was playing at the time but couldn't finish it because my computer wasn't strong enough. I always thought FFVI had the best story in the series. It always had my favorite cast besides X. But I replayed the Advance version a few years ago and...I didn't like it. I thought it was too easy or the translation didn't sit well with me but I didn't enjoy it as much as I used to. Maybe it was because of depression at the time or that I had simply outgrown my childhood favorites, but I shockingly didn't enjoy playing it. I don't know what happened but this replay of VI was like playing it for the first time again. I found so many ways to enjoy playing it, and the translation was as great as ever. I found it easier to make my own challenges up for the game in the SNES version and it just felt better balanced for some reason (even though balance and FFVI is like a pair of scissors to a thin piece of string). I ended up loving the game more than ever to the point where I think it might be my favorite all time FF now, beating FF8. It's too early to say because I plan on replaying VIII soon but it has big competition. What pushed it ahead for me was the gameplay this time. Usually FFVI is so easy to break but this time I role played like I would with FFVIII, and limited my characters to specific roles. I found I could play with unlimited freedom like FFVIII. Probably with even more freedom. It was always a favorite but maybe there's something missing in the GBA version? This run was something special.



Donkey Kong Country - Like every kid in the 90's I loved this game but now that I've replayed it for the first time in a decade I realize it's kind of...doo doo. The graphics haven't aged as gracefully and the platforming is...mediocre to below average to say the least. Having to travel from Funky's plane and go to save points is also tedious as hell. Those mine stages are torture, good Lord. DKC2 has always been the better game and its absence in the collection is sad.

Yoshi's Island - There's nothing I can say about this that hasn't been said. It's my favorite platformer of all time. Has been since I first played it and ever shall it remain it seems.



Super Mario World - Besides YI, this was always my favorite classic Mario game. Now that I'm older its flaws show at the seams (cape is too powerful, Yoshi makes the game a cake walk) but it's still fun as hell.

Super Metroid - Whoo boy. I played this for the first time in 2003. I loved it then. This replay has shown me that I was just a clueless teenager. Super Metroid is jam packed with flaws. Maridia. Wall jumping. The backtracking and lack of teleports. The bosses aren't that well designed or even fun to fight. Beyond that it's still a great game but nowhere near the top of its genre. SotN, Aria of Sorrow, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid Prime all outclass it.



Starfox - This game is terrible. The controls are bad. It's like 10 fps. What is the appeal? There are much better rail shooters you could play.

Starfox 2 -
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Currently playing: Earthbound - Wow. I missed out on this because the backgrounds didn't make me feel well when I'd play it but I love this game. I'm still playing it because life has given me some obligations but this is one of the best RPG's I've ever played and I haven't beaten it yet. It takes the Dragon Quest formula and just oozes it with style. The difficulty spikes lend to a lot of fun and it's a game that doesn't hold the players hand in any sense of the word while also being approachable. The segment when you first get Jeff was incredible, and I am in love with this game.

 
Cool reviews so far. I disagree with Star Fox and DKC, but great reviews otherwise. I've always wanted to play Super Metroid, but I have a feeling Zero Mission will always be my favorite. Yoshi's Island is my favorite 2D platformer ever, and my 2nd favorite platformer ever next to SM64, so definitely agree there. Yeah, SMW was easy as hell, but it's my favorite traditional 2D Mario. I'm one of those fans who insist that SMW is better than SMB3 (although SMB2 is my favorite NES Mario, so maybe I just have shitty opinions). Along with Star Fox 2, Earthbound is one of the biggest reasons I want an SNES Classic despite owning an actual SNES. I've never played it, and just can't justify spending the insane prices a cartridge goes for.

Can't wait to see your reviews for A Link To The Past and Super Mario RPG (my favorite SNES games).
 
SotN is worse than Super Metroid with the backtracking. Super Metroid has little to no fat, with lots of shortcuts strewn throughout the game map that take advantage of your newly acquired powers. Also, Metroid Prime isn't as well paced either.
 

Spukc

always chasing the next thrill
SotN is worse than Super Metroid with the backtracking. Super Metroid has little to no fat, with lots of shortcuts strewn throughout the game map that take advantage of your newly acquired powers. Also, Metroid Prime isn't as well paced either.

SotN is an amazing game and so is metroid prime.

I can't pick the best one as they are all extremely good
 

Jedeye Sniv

Banned
I can't divorce my childhood nostalgia for Starfox vs how it's kind of objectively bad technically. I just loved that game so much, it was revolutionary at the time and I think that simple rail shooter genre is massively underserved.
 

DunDunDunpachi

Patient MembeR
Nice reviews. Can't wait until you get to the arcade stuff like Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Contra III, and Super Punch-Out.
 

phil_t98

#SonyToo
While the review of Starfox if probably right what is missing is the fact that this was one of the first full polygon games and it ran on a 16bit console. Back then it had massive wow factor and couldn't be done on any other consoleat the time. it also had textures in places to.

Still a fun game even today but yeah the wow factor has gone from it
 
Nice reviews. Can't wait until you get to the arcade stuff like Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Contra III, and Super Punch-Out.

Tried Super G&G and as an G&G arcade fan (play it at my local arcade and I’m gunning for top score) I absolutely hate Super. It’s so slow and it lacks the punch of the arcade original. Hell, the NES G&G is better.
 

DunDunDunpachi

Patient MembeR
Tried Super G&G and as an G&G arcade fan (play it at my local arcade and I’m gunning for top score) I absolutely hate Super. It’s so slow and it lacks the punch of the arcade original. Hell, the NES G&G is better.
My personal favorite is G&G on the SEGA Genesis. I do agree that SG&G is much slower and methodical. They really push you to use that double-jump for air control which slows everything down. Lots more platforming compared to previous games in the series.
 
Tried Super G&G and as an G&G arcade fan (play it at my local arcade and I’m gunning for top score) I absolutely hate Super. It’s so slow and it lacks the punch of the arcade original. Hell, the NES G&G is better.

No way can a Micronics (near-)atrocity be superior.

So Miyamoto was right after all.

I wouldn't call him right. At the very least, he has said there was more that could have been done with it, and compared to 3's sheer variety I concur. More to the point, World's exploration at the expense of platforming challenge was detrimental. And yes, the cape was too overpowered. (Not so much the flight but rather the fall parachuting.)

SotN is an amazing game and so is metroid prime.

I can't pick the best one as they are all extremely good

They're great still, but lack SM's sublime pacing.

While the review of Starfox if probably right what is missing is the fact that this was one of the first full polygon games and it ran on a 16bit console. Back then it had massive wow factor and couldn't be done on any other consoleat the time. it also had textures in places to.

Still a fun game even today but yeah the wow factor has gone from it

I'd like a 60 fps version. They began mussing it up with 64, which overpowered the charge shot by adding homing to it. Killed a lot of the tension.
 

nkarafo

Member
Again with the backtracking. It's part of the design. Saying you don't like Metroid for it's backtracking is like saying you don't like FPS shooters because you don't like guns. The point of the backtracking is to go to previously explored areas and find new stuff, open doors you couldn't before, open new paths and feel how stronger you are with the new updates. Metroid without backtracking = A crappy Metroid game.
 
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SotN is worse than Super Metroid with the backtracking. Super Metroid has little to no fat, with lots of shortcuts strewn throughout the game map that take advantage of your newly acquired powers. Also, Metroid Prime isn't as well paced either.

SOTN has warps. It’s better paced to me and doesn’t have anything as awful as Maridia.
Again with the backtracking. It's part of the design. Saying you don't like Metroid for it's backtracking is like saying you don't like FPS shooters because you don't like guns. The point of the backtracking is to go to previously explored areas and find new stuff, open doors you couldn't before, open new paths and feel how stronger you are with the new updates. Metroid without backtracking = A crappy Metroid game.

Backtracking isn’t bad but going through the entirety of Super Metroid without teleports gets tedious.
 

tkscz

Member
When it comes to reviewing something like Star Fox 2, I think it's amazing what could've been done on the SNES. It's flawed by today's standards no doubt, but back in 95, when it was to be released, there was nothing like it on a 16 bit console, and putting my head into that space, the game blows me away and I can understand why they attempted Mario 64 on the SNES first. It's not a good game, but a good concept of what could've been done with the FX chip.

As for your Super Metroid review, I can't agree with it. First things first, Metroid Zero Mission and Super Metroid play differently, mainly because Zero Mission leads you through most of it while Super allows you to get lost in it's maze. The back tracking is apart of that, but is nowhere near as bad as say Metroid Prime 2. Most backtracking is aided by many shortcuts that shorten the back tracking. Also, SoTN has more back tracking than Super Metroid.

SOTN has warps. It’s better paced to me and doesn’t have anything as awful as Maridia.


Backtracking isn’t bad but going through the entirety of Super Metroid without teleports gets tedious.

Super Metroid has a lot of short cuts that, for lack of a better term, cut through most of the backtracking if you know where the short cuts are.
 
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SOTN has warps. It’s better paced to me and doesn’t have anything as awful as Maridia.


Backtracking isn’t bad but going through the entirety of Super Metroid without teleports gets tedious.

Maridia may have been eh, but it was still relatively small in comparison to anything SotN had by comparison, where the map could have been trimmed quite a bit, owing to the corridors and shafts that were there to add space. The number of teleports that SotN had could be counted on one hand with a couple fingers left. It wasn't until the Sorrow games that they got it right.

Super Metroid may not have had warps, but by the time Samus acquired the dash boots, followed through space jump and screw attack, she could blaze through the majority of the map in her game far quicker than Alucard ever could without even getting into the size differences.
 

nkarafo

Member
Backtracking isn’t bad but going through the entirety of Super Metroid without teleports gets tedious.
I don't think the game forces you to backtrack "through it's entirety" though. There are plenty of shortcuts as well. But i guess if you don't pay enough attention or you don't explore enough you may get stuck that way.
 
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Muffdraul

Member
Yeah I picked up a SNES Classic a couple weeks ago and was pretty shocked at Star Fox's unbearable frame rate. I loved the shit out of that game in 1993, very difficult to believe it ran that slow.
 
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Cindi Mayweather Cindi Mayweather Thoughts on Kirby's Dream Course? I was shocked when they included it, but it's a personal favorite of mine, and has been since I rented it years ago as a kid. It's part puzzle game, and part competitive 2 player party game. There's really not another game like it.
 
Cindi Mayweather Cindi Mayweather Thoughts on Kirby's Dream Course? I was shocked when they included it, but it's a personal favorite of mine, and has been since I rented it years ago as a kid. It's part puzzle game, and part competitive 2 player party game. There's really not another game like it.

I just don’t get it. Is that the one that’s got the 2.5D 3d Blast look and Kirby has to go in a hole? My thoughts on it are,”how did that make it and not Uniracers?”
 
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I just don’t get it. Is that the one that’s got the 2.5D 3d Blast look and Kirby has to go in a hole? My thoughts on it are,”how did that make it and not Uniracers?”

Have you played it? The single player is like a minigolf puzzle, while the multiplayer is like minigolf mixed with power-ups and the randomness of a party game.

I also loved Uniracers back in the day. That would have been a good pick, too.
 
I just don’t get it. Is that the one that’s got the 2.5D 3d Blast look and Kirby has to go in a hole? My thoughts on it are,”how did that make it and not Uniracers?”
Dream Course is actually one of my favorite Kirby games, along with Adventure, Super Star, Pinball, Crystal Shards, and Air Ride.
 
What are you talking about dude?

Donkey Kong Country - Like every kid in the 90's I loved this game but now that I've replayed it for the first time in a decade I realize it's kind of...doo doo. The graphics haven't aged as gracefully and the platforming is...mediocre to below average to say the least. Having to travel from Funky's plane and go to save points is also tedious as hell. Those mine stages are torture, good Lord. DKC2 has always been the better game and its absence in the collection is sad.

Super Mario World - Besides YI, this was always my favorite classic Mario game. Now that I'm older its flaws show at the seams (cape is too powerful, Yoshi makes the game a cake walk) but it's still fun as hell.

Super Metroid - Whoo boy. I played this for the first time in 2003. I loved it then. This replay has shown me that I was just a clueless teenager. Super Metroid is jam packed with flaws. Maridia. Wall jumping. The backtracking and lack of teleports. The bosses aren't that well designed or even fun to fight. Beyond that it's still a great game but nowhere near the top of its genre. SotN, Aria of Sorrow, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid Prime all outclass it.


Starfox - This game is terrible. The controls are bad. It's like 10 fps. What is the appeal? There are much better rail shooters you could play.


Most of your reviews say how you loved a game before but now replaying it you realize it's not as good as you thought. You're comparing these games from 25 years ago to current games and how they don't stack up in certain contexts. It's just not the point of these classic consoles at all and reviewing them like that is just kind of pointless and really does a disservice to the games themselves.
Just look at your write up for Super Metroid "nowhere near the top of its genre. SotN, Aria of Sorrow, Metroid Zero Mission, Metroid Prime all outclass it." Oh you mean all those games that came out after Super Metroid, that took what it did and then built on it? Yeah, it's really surprising they would be able to make improvements (in your opinion) to an already established game. When super metroid came out it was the genre, that's why that game was so special. Saying it doesn't hold up as well 24 years later against games that reused the formula that it invented makes no sense, and is reviewing them based off the current context of gaming. That's what I was talking about.
 

Doom85

Member
Come on, zack, you're nitpicking. Cindy still says Super Mario World is a lot of fun, she says Super Metroid is still a great game, and she acknowledges that while she may not like DKC 1 she does think DKC 2 is solid (I mean, I really like 1 but yeah 2 is definitely the better game). She also says Yoshi's Island is still her favorite platformer, and obviously a TON of platformers have been released since that game. She says Earthbound is one of the best RPGs she's ever played. And yeah, sorry but I really have no desire to go back to Star Fox 1 when Star Fox 64 exists, heck I'll play the Gamecube one over it as well. You can get mad about it but it's a reasonable point that often our views on entertainment we grew up with can be partially blinded with nostalgia or our less refined views as a child.

If one has already played most/all of these SNES games, then it's not like these reviews are going to immediately make change their opinions. But for those who are less familiar or not familiar at all with the SNES era, then reviewing with a modern view makes absolutely total sense. And guess what, in spite of the improvements the medium has gone through in these past decades, quite a few of these games still hold up which is how her reviews are showing. But we shouldn't just put them all automatically on a pedestal. So yeah, I don't think she's doing the SNES gen a disservice at all.
 
Sorry. What's this thing about Paper Mario? Never heard what Miya did to it.

He's one of the biggest reasons we haven't had a turn based Paper Mario and true follow-up to the godly masterpiece known as The Thousand Year Door.

Shit, I'd be happy with a Super Paper Mario 2. Just no more Sticker Star nonsense.
 
Donkey Kong Country - Like every kid in the 90's I loved this game but now that I've replayed it for the first time in a decade I realize it's kind of...doo doo. The graphics haven't aged as gracefully and the platforming is...mediocre to below average to say the least. Having to travel from Funky's plane and go to save points is also tedious as hell. Those mine stages are torture, good Lord. DKC2 has always been the better game and its absence in the collection is sad.

I guess it shows how very different opinions one can have. I haven't really had any trouble with the graphics of DKC, though of course the relative perception of how good it looked has changed. So while in my mind as a kid it was a stunner, now it's still good, but less impressive due to how we've progressed in regards to graphics and image clarity.
Save points and mine stages haven't been a big problem for me either, if anything I kind of like the mine levels.
I agree that the lack of DKC2 was sad and it's one of the reasons I never bought the SNES Classic.
 

RAIDEN1

Member
Star Cruiser for the Genesis/Megadrive circa 1988-1990 was already pushing out polygonal graphics on a 16 bit system, much before StarFox, so Argonaut's game wasn't really showing off anything that hadn't been done before...and the genesis game didn't need a Super FX chip either..
 
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