This is a compressed quick list of the very best achievements previously created for this game platform. Included is a fast review of the reasons for coveting the software in question. Some titles may be hard to acquire, or out of print. All games on this list should be considered to be well above average, even exceptional. All are worthy acquisitions. Not listed in order of importance.

TITLE: Final Fantasy (All versions, indeed almost all Square Products, period)

PUBLISHER: Squaresoft

REVIEW: RPG's do not get better than this. Best of the Best. Perfection. Superior. Godhood.

TITLE: Secret Of Mana, Chrono Trigger

PUBLISHER: Squaresoft

REVIEW: RPG's do not get better than this. Best of the Best. Perfection. Superior. Godhood.

TITLE: Donkey Kong Country, DKC2 Diddy's Quest

PUBLISHER: Nintendo

REVIEW: More fun than a barrel of.....well you know. A Must Have.

TITLE: The Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past

PUBLISHER: Nintendo

REVIEW: Exquisite, seminal RPG. Beautiful and Classic. A Must Have.

TITLE: Super Metroid

PUBLISHER: Nintendo

REVIEW: Challenging, brilliant, relentless.

TITLE: Pocky and Rocky (1 and 2)

PUBLISHER: Natsume

REVIEW: 1 or 2 player shooting joy. Original and brilliant, wonderful.

TITLE: Super Bomberman (All versions, period. Get a Multitap for 4 player ecstasy)

PUBLISHER: Hudson Soft

REVIEW: The Ultimate Party Game. The best 2D multiplayer game ever created.

TITLE: Super Mario (ANYTHING, any version, any Mario game: 1, 2, 3, World, Kart, you name it!)

PUBLISHER: Nintendo

REVIEW: Mario is Nintendo's image mascot for a reason. He Defined the platform genre! Supreme.

TITLE: Mega Man (Anything, 7, X, X2, X3, you pick it.)

PUBLISHER: Capcom

REVIEW: Mega Man games are all the same, identical. They are brilliant.

TITLE: Super Street Fighter 2

PUBLISHER: Capcom

REVIEW: The fighting game that started the craze. One of the three finest Side View fighters ever made (the others: Samurai Spirits/ Showdown, Mortal Kombat.)

Honorable Mentions: Games not in my top ten, but almost as good, the cream of the remaining crop, very worth acquisition! Good to Excellent, and worth your money:

Earthbound (Nintendo), Spike McFang (Bullet Proof Software), Kirby's Dream Course (Nintendo), Big Sky Trooper (JVC / LucasArts), Mortal Kombat 2 (Acclaim), Samurai Showdown (Takara), Uniracers (Nintendo), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 4: Turtles In Time ( Konami), Goof Troop (Capcom), Illusion Of Gaia (Nintendo), NBA Jam (Acclaim), Legend Of The Mystical Ninja (Konami), Gradius 3 (Konami), Parodius (Japanese import parody of Gradius requiring modification of SNES involving removal of two plastic sprues at bottom of cart well, or use of adaptor, one of the best shooters of all time, Konami), Rampart (Electronic Arts via Atari), Super Ghouls N' Ghosts (Capcom), Zombies Ate My Neighbors (Konami via LucasArts), Bust-A-Move (Taito), Super Buster Bros. (Capcom), Ogre Battle (Enix), F-Zero (Nintendo), Lufia (Taito), Breath Of Fire (Capcom), Soulblazer (Enix), Actraiser (Enix), Pop and Twinbee (Japanese import shooter, Konami), Robotrek (Enix), Demon's Crest (Capcom), Ranma 1/2 (DTMC), The Lost Vikings (Interplay), Sandra's Adventure (Japanese Import, Namcot), Super Smash TV (Acclaim), Wild Guns (Natsume)

Reviewed by Jennifer Diane Reitz, DATE

Jennifer Diane Reitz is a Game Designer and Computer Artist, and one of the founders of Happy Puppy. She is the creator of numerous games and software products, including Boppin' , Shark Chums, Elsewhere, and many others. She has worked for such companies as Activision, Sculptured Software, Epyx, SRI, and Electronic Arts, and founded Accursed Toys. She has been active in the computer gaming industry since it's earliest days. She considers games to be works of artistic merit and achievement, and views computer entertainment as the most important media of our era.