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RookTakesPawn

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Best Games of 1996

It was a year of brights and darks. Super Mario 64, Puzzle Fighter, Pokemon, Super Mario RPG, and Crash Bandicoot brought a cheery, vibrant disposition while games like Duke Nukem went crude and Resident Evil/House of the Dead went for the dark and undead.

I also feel like '96 was the start of a glut of "average" games which do just well enough to not be bad but not good enough to be recognized as a top game. Games like Super Mario RPG, Crash Bandicoot, Metal Slug, San Francisco Rush and Command & Conquer: Red Alert fit into this category.

List items

  • Nintendo, at its peak, consistently re-established expectations for genres. 64 did this and amazed at every Blockbuster/Wal-Mart/Target kiosk. I remember people waiting to just try to the demo at the store. That Mario could work in a 3D space allowed everyone to dream of what could be possible going forward. And even though the camera control still needed work, SM64 showed developers how to tackle the 3D problem.

  • A phenomenon that I'm proud to say I had a supporting role in starting in my small town. One of my friends had a Japanese copy and promised this game would explode in America. When it was released locally, I was one of the first to grab a copy and one of the first in the neighborhood to beat the game. This dovetailed with the immediate popularity of the anime and card game. Everyone I knew at school was playing and talking about this game for months. It was a moment unlike many others in video game history.

    For me, the multiplayer aspect of Pokemon elevated this game to the next level, unlike Suikoden or the Final Fantasy Legend series.

  • Yes, the tank controls were bad. But the wonky controls added to the stress of this B-movie thriller where, like in the movies, the characters never moved as fast as you'd like and did stupid things at all the wrong times. The dialog was laughable and nothing more needs to be said about it. Atmosphere and tension rose this game to a higher level than it otherwise deserves.

  • Exciting, fast, and colorful - Puzzle Fighter took the best of Puyo Puyo 2 (garbage countering) and added flair and an existing franchise. The result was the most addictive puzzle game I had played since Tetris.

  • WCIII was clearly the pinnacle and IV felt like a long epilogue rather than its own saga. But the FMVs continued to work and the characters we grew to love now challenged themselves, became forlorn by the cost of war, and sometimes annoyed us to no end. However, while the game made its message abundantly clear, it still made an impression and did so before Metal Gear Solid and Hideo Kojima would claim ownership over this type of anti-war storytelling.

  • I will consider this tied with Chex Quest - mainly because I think that tie is hilarious, but also because I have no idea how to feel about this game now. Obviously, hindsight shows the many flaws in the game's messages about women. But, at the time, Duke Nukem was just a slightly exaggerated mainstream James Bond (seriously, watch those older movies - they were just as crass). There were some neat improvements here too including dialog that was contextual with what the player noticed and interacted with, the ability to see yourself in the mirror, and flushing toilets. Compared to the "just shoot" nature of shooters, Duke Nukem showed surprising innovation.

  • This cereal pack-in was probably the best thing I ever got for free. It was a shooter I could play when my parents were looking. It was the game I told my parents I was playing when I was actually playing Doom and Duke (they were cool with Wolfenstein because fuck Hitler). This game played as well as the greats and had some awesome unique weapons. A hidden gem here that more people should've experienced.

  • Didn't make as much as an impact due to coming out the same year as Mario 64, but it showed Naughty Dog's polish and camera tricks.

  • Another solid on-rails shooter.

  • It's no Contra but certainly qualifies as adequate bullet porn.

  • Horror light gun shooter gets the job done.

  • The ridiculous cutscenes make playing this game worth it.

  • It is a bit strange that this game is treated with as much reverence as it is unlike something like Final Fantasy Mystic Quest. I suppose there is more charm in this title and a unique jumping mechanic during fights - but still - it's very basic and kinda boring despite the unique settings/characters for a RPG.
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