You’re the best Riggs. Sunsoft batman had a great soundtrack it was great me and my little brother played the crap out of it. Blaster master, gremlins, Great stuff
but I still regard these two hella hard. I was able to finish the remake BMZero easily at default difficulty but hoping the old one getting a patch or overhaul on its saving and checkpoint system ( i remember checking out the Prototype Rom and it features room debug for level selection so it wouldn't be hard to implement or extract and analyze the code). Except for the epilepsy warning and difficulty stuff, the old one is still a blast to play
Not sure I'll ever understand the hate for Fester's Quest either, man. Played the hell out of that game growing up. Blaster Master is probably the best third-part title on the NES, hands down. Definitely one of the system's crown jewels.
I couldn't agree more with BOTH of your comments! As far as third party titles go, Mega Man 2 & 3 (can't decide which one is better to this day so I simply combine them in discussions like this) and Blaster Master instantly come to mind. Blaster Master is just so amazing in every possible way and I have the best memories playing it for months on end back in late 1988/early 1989. Fun Fact: I literally beat Fester's Quest for the first time the day my sister was born (9-2-91). She groans whenever I say this though (she doesn't like the game as much as me...hee hee!)
I can't deny that blaster master is awesome, but best third party title? I dunno, man. Half of Konami's library is probably gonna get ranked higher by me, along with Rygar, Battle of Olympus, and probably final fantasy and wizards and warriors. It's an amazing game, probably in the top fifteen, but best third party game? Yeah, I dunno.
@@JohnRiggs Yet the title of the video is "Ranking and Reviewing every SUNSOFT NES game", which is in contradictory to what you just said, as the NES is/was also "NES" in Europe i.e. PAL territory, where both Mr. Gimmick and Ufouria were released (the former only in Scandinavia but still). Absolutely fantastic AND essential Sunsoft games on the NES, and not mentioned in your video. John, I know you are very well aware of all sorts of exclusive PAL NES/Famicom titles, so what gives? We are not living in a world of "U.S. only", you have to know that as a somewhat worldwide known TH-camr/influencer. At the very least you could've mentioned about PAL NES Sunsoft titles at the end of the video. Change the title of the video to "My list of every Sunsoft NES released in the U.S." and you're golden.
Sunsoft were so underrated for the output they gave us. They never reached the heights of Konami, Namco or Capcom’s success but man did they have talent in the 8-bit - early 16-bit era. And THAT MUSIC! Thanks for this cool ranking John
@@TheCroutonman It's tough to pick just one stage but I hear you! The Stage 4 track is very good for sure but it's so refreshing when you enter Stage 5 and hear that beautiful, serene underwater melody. :)
Batman: Return of the Joker isn't a sequel, it's based on the comic book, and it's called "Dynamite Batman" in Japan. Batman Returns is the true sequel.
Sunsoft were wizards when it came to getting the best graphics and sound out of the 8 bit NES. Batman: Return of the Joker looks every bit as good as some 16 bit games of that era. For as many great developers the Nintendo had, I think Sunsoft has to be at or toward the very top as far as consistently producing just fun games with amazing quality to them. They really dont get recognized nearly enough imo and get lost in the list of great developers for the nes, but for me they are right there with the Capcoms and Konamis of that era
Keep in mind that Return of The Joker was using a helper chip to be able to process those graphics. Doesn't detract from how awesome their other games were, though.
@@DarthEquus still chip or not, it ran on the nes and looked incredible. It's just like the super Nintendo using extra chips for games like star fox and yoshi's Island. The fact the nes could even have graphics like that in a game that still cost the regular price of a new game was awesome, because they could have tried to charge us all extra for stuff like that. Sunsoft was just an incredible company and I think Return of the joker probably has the best graphics on the original Nintendo imo at least. Definitely top 5 for sure
I consider the NES version of Spy Hunter vastly superior to the arcade because of the incredibly precise controls. No slamming into a car when switching to high gear on Nintendo. It was one of the first NES games I ever bought and its replay value was stellar.
Actually Lemmings started on the Amiga and all the other versions are ports of that original game. Some contain new levels while others have had levels removed. I once attempted to play through the Windows version and discovered that the timing was different enough that I ran into one level that I couldn't beat, despite the same solution working in the Amiga version.
Hello, John. I've seen you on some of Metal jesus' channel and watched a few of your videos here and there. But, you've put together a really great series ranking game developer's games. I've been really enjoying it.
DUDE...I honestly feel like we had a sort of parallel childhood or something because I was watching this video and just smiling throughout the whole thing! I absolutely ADORE Blaster Master man. The graphics, the superb soundtrack (a staple of SO many Sunsoft games for sure), and the open-world feel of the game was light years beyond other games back during this era. The atmosphere was incredible as well and the variety in terms of gameplay was perfect. For what its worth, Blaster Master is one of my all-time favorite games for ANY console. I love the fact that you gave Fester's Quest a fair chance as well. So many gamers hate this game and I just scratch my head because I love it too! There are what appear to be flaws (LOW health bar, weapons not firing through narrow passageways) but there are go-arounds (finding additional health and using the valuable whip!) too. The soundtrack is amazing as are the boss graphics/fights. Without this reading like a book (I know...too late!), let me give Super Spy Hunter some real love too. That game is SO underrated and you don't hear about it anywhere yet it's SO much better than the original game. SSH rocks! Lastly, Journey to Silius, Gremlins 2, and of course Batman are sensational games as well (the music in all of them is UNREAL too). Sunsoft may not have made many games but they sure have more S-tier games than most! Quality over quantity for sure. :)
Amazing! I'm always at a point where I think "ok this is it! I've completed my collection." Then I listen to these guys and find a new game that I really want. Thanks metal J Crew.
@@JohnRiggs No... thank you! You guys helped me a lot with building my game collection; even though it's over flowing in my house. Will have to make a note to self on getting bigger house.
Dude, SUNSOFT had some great games for real. Blaster Master and Batman being my absolute favorite and not far behind Journey to Silius. The sound track is just freaking awesome. Brings back a lot of memories just hearing the music. Great vid
Hey Riggs, love these ranking vids. I know Technos doesn't have a huge list, but I'd like to hear your thoughts on those games. Definitely some good ones. Either way tho, great stuff. Thanks!!
I think if he did technos, he'd have to do it as developer as I think they only released 2 games under their actual publishing arm stateside and I doubt he'd do that. Maybe he will, who knows!
I thought someone would call you out for saying "Lemmings" started on the PC! It's an Amiga game from early '91. The NES version must have been about the 15th port. Remarkable appeal.
Fester's Quest feels like it was supposed to be a proper Blaster Master sequel, then got the Addams Family slapped onto it when the movie was announced - kind of the reverse of what happened with Sunsoft's planned Terminator game being turned into Journey To Silius after the license lapsed.
JohnRiggs I mean the monsters, weapon, music, and overall feel of the game screams Blaster Master. I suspect that it was originally going to be Jason fighting off the mutants from taking over his hometown without the suit and Sophia (the tank).
Yeah they always had the same vibe and even same enemies. Might of been the case, though I never heard such a theory. I used to play and beat both games regularly back in the day. I still go through Blast Master at least yearly. I remember FQ being a real PITA back in the day though, so I have tried it much as an adult lol.
I loved Freedom Force. Still do! It feels more like a complete game vs. more of the “experiences” the other light gun titles were. Super challenging too.
That makes a lot of sense. Wouldn't be hard to get the dates of these games. Capcom showed HUGE improvement from when they started to where they ended up.
Freedom Force....that was mine and my mom's game on the NES. She wasn't great at games, ya know...they were kinda after her time... But one game she consistently played - even with her friends - was Freedom Force, and whenever her and I got the chance, we'd play it together. She's been gone for a while, but I'll never forget the fun we had together.
Thanks for pointing that out; I saw Riggs say that & swore I remembered crouching in Xenophobe! If memory serves, you can kind of duck-walk through the rooms and jump to stand up. Had a fair amount of fun with this one as well.
@@FormalTreehouse Yeah i play Xenophobe pretty often. Usually after a long gaming session with Mega Man, or Ninja Gaiden, then ill pop in ole Xenophobe in for a little bit to kinda chill and relax. It's one of those slow paced, easy going games. You can kinda just relax, turn off your brain, and play it, lol.
Blaster Master was my game. Very hard to actually beat, boss levels get harder and harder, like all games are. But after you learn the bosses moves and you're power up for the job. The game came be won.
Heh, I remember cheating with the NES Advantage on some of the bosses...You would toss a grenade and hit the slow-mode button and it would kill him quickly...Fun times.
Darn Straight that’s S tier I bet nobody ever told you that you would be jammin' until the break of dawn You would be jammin' and jammin' and jammin', jam on Oh, wait, Blaster Master. Never mind.
Fester's Quest was one of the few games we owned as a kid.We put a lot of hours into that game at my house. You sir are a genuine maniac to consider that game an A.
I got Fester's Quest for Christmas and loved it, especially along with the Nintendo Power issue that mapped those confusing 3D hallways. Funny enough my dad's police partner owned it too and I used to show him how to beat the bosses. Good times.
To me this was the best ranking video you’ve done. I felt like I could put this on my fridge, and know at a glance how to choose a SunSoft game to play. Thanks and nice work.
I have to say this series i think is your finest hour. It's so addictive. I hope to see you continue this series even if it had to move off of the companies eventually to keep going.. ranking sports games on genesis etc.. We need more! Haha. Afterwards I go and try select games too you rate high. Great work. Keep it up!!
He put tiny toon cartoon workshop in the same tier as contra. I dunno where he gets his stuff, but I wish he'd pass it this way. At least for once, his rankings aren't objectively wrong, just subjectively. That's a step forward, ironically considering how old this video is.
@@iami3rian394 there’s no such thing as an objectively wrong ranking for video games, as video games are subjective. Stop forcing your opinions on everyone else. Also, he ranks the games among themselves, not against the entire Nintendo game library.
In a world of highly scripted and rehearsed TH-cam videos, we have the savior John Riggs keepin’ it real and being himself. Love this channel. Thanks for all the great videos.
I was very lucky and thankful to have played a chunk of some of the Sunsoft classics on NES in '89-'91. I owned Journey To Silius and Fester's Quest (but never got far on it and gave up on it -- always loved the music and graphics though)...my cousin owned Batman...and my neighbor friend had Blaster Master, which I borrowed. I also briefly played Gremlins 2 at a friend's house back in the day. I always ranked Sunsoft just slightly under Konami and Capcom on quality. They had some great games, and particularly featured some of the greatest music on the NES.
So stoked you gave Fester's Quest an A! I mean, objectively -- in comparison to the very best NES games -- it's probably closer to a B- or C. But my level of pure enjoyment -- Addams Family theme, quirky plus spooky personality (vibe), aliens, cool weapons, huge bosses, open world exploration, etc. -- brought me pure A enjoyment when it came out. I think letter grades should always reflect subjective enjoyment -- vs. cold, emotionless objectivity. Fester's Quest is A all the way! Good call, John. :)
From 0:00 - 0:05 . YES! Absolutely! 😃 One of the best things you get from playing a SunSoft game on the NES! Batman was amazing. Best part was you had unlimited continues so it was just trail and error. Also you get rewarded with cut scenes after each stage is complete. Blaster Master and Journey to Silius were without a doubt truly hidden gems for the system as well. ( The recent Blaster Master Remakes are a must! Get them if you haven't played them. I wish they would do a sequel to Journey to Silius as a metroidvania style game too. Maybe even include a female protagonist related to Jay as his sister. You can switch with Jay and play as both of them throughout the game. The art style has to be Retro 80's anime style like they did for this game as well. ) Fester's Quest is definitely a game that takes some patience with trail and error. But its an awesome game! I like how you also go through the 3D mazes. ( Game tip: Take advantage of the beginning part and walk back and forth destroying the small Blaster Master looking brain creatures to out your weapon meter. ) Thanks again for this video.
love fester's quest. my cousin owned it, played it every time i went there. eventually got my own copy. great music, epic bosses. even an "Untouchables" sounding theme in the sewer. Would love a movie of that game with 80s style effects.
Wow, I actually agreed with every single ranking, Also, the choice of the Blaster Master start theme as the cut song was great. I personally think Blaster Master had the best soundtrack on the system.
On Platoon: the original game was designed and developed by Ocean for home computers, but this NES port is a Sunsoft production through and through- look in the credits, and you'll see all the Sunsoft regulars who worked on many of their other games! A very interesting game, not the best gameplay-wise but the mysterious atmosphere sustained my interest (at least until the very jank third-person maze at the end). One more thing- Jump *is* mapped to A on the VS System version, but omits the grenades that were originally assigned to that button entirely. Messes with my muscle memory every time I switch between versions...
I grew up with Blaster Master, Batman, and Journey to Silius. Loved all three. Between that and Super C, TMNT, TMNT 2, Solstice, Ninja Gaiden II, and the Mario and Zelda games, I had pretty high standards for game soundtracks.
Gimmick! Would be in the S tier for sure. If you've never played it and aren't afraid of difficult games, you need to try it. The graphics, the level design, the music, the diverse and original enemies AIs, the replayability... It's an outstanding game. Probably the very best NES/Famicom game ever in my opinion.
The instructions explained that only blue cars are enemies, plus you got an extra life if you hit a certain score by the time that timer at the beginning ran out (which meant that destroying friendly cars and freezing your score was costly).
It's a shame you didn't include Ufouria, released in Japan and Europe. That game is a solid A. Super Spy Hunter should also be an A in my opinion. However, I agree with you on Fester's Quest. I really don't understand the hate for this game. It's got everything, from music to gameplay
Thanks so much Mr.Riggs for doing this video. Batman and Gremlins 2 are in my personal top 5 favorite nes games. Groovy soundtracks and top notch platforming at it's best. I got Festers Quest for one of my birthdays as a kid. I choose it and no I didn't have Nintendo power. Can't wait for Data East list.Super Spy Hunter is very underrated wirh a great soundtrack.
Even if I don't agree with all the rankings, this series of videos is informative and fun to watch. Perfect pace too. What's next? Data East, Kemco (personal fav except for the Bugs Bunny games), Acclaim, Ultra, or maybe the NES zapper games? Man, I love the NES.
I know Gimmick! never came out in N.A and only in Japan and PAL NES, but it would most certainly be a special “Z” tier game from Sunsoft, some of the best sounding music on NES, great graphics and unique physics based gameplay, and challenging to boot!
All the rankings are spot on, with one exception, and that is Super Spy Hunter. That should be an S, but I get it, it's your list, your perception. In my book, Super Spy Hunter is a top tier game for NES.
Sunsoft put out a couple straight bangers!! Solid list, I didnt have any big arguments with a single ranking. Festers Quest a bit high, but I can live with it. :)
JohnRiggs , FYI you can do the “crouch walk” in Xenophobe on the NES, which in an absolute staple of the gameplay and character safety. It’s an awkward combination of buttons to get it to work on the NES, but it’s in there.
These ranking videos are great. Very well presented and broken down. Batman is probably my favorite of the Sunsoft NES releases. One of the best side scrolling action games on the system I think. I would probably only place a few of the Ninja Gaiden games ahead of it, as far as action games in that style on the system. Super Mario Bros. 3, Mike Tyson's Punchout , Metal Storm and Jackal would probably be some of my top system picks. Off topic but Vice Project Doom is another top action game like batman, but with multiple game styles mixed in.
Please do a Fedter's Quest playthrough. I had nightmares trying to play that game, especially the regenerative enemies that came back when you walked offscreen.
I drooled over all these games in Nintendo Power. I had a subscription but rarely got games but looking through all the walkthroughs was almost as good or better
Let's Rank CAPCOM NES Games - th-cam.com/video/bAKdn0db9Mc/w-d-xo.html
Let's Rank KONAMI NES Games - th-cam.com/video/agmyps5NIdY/w-d-xo.html
John Riggs, Patreon's legal fees are about to implode the company. Make the transition into Subscribestar. JUST DO IT!
You’re the best Riggs. Sunsoft batman had a great soundtrack it was great me and my little brother played the crap out of it. Blaster master, gremlins, Great stuff
Festers quest is an all time favorite I think that and Milons secret castle I put more time into than the Mario trilogy
Do ultra or acclaim next
So what about Gimmick?
Hey what about Ufouria: The Saga & Gimmick on the NES? That's a Sunsoft games too.
This mini series of yours has quickly become one of my favorite! Hope your extend it onto others consoles once your done with the NES!
I plan on it. Sooner than later.
I agree
I’m addicted to this series.
Yes, SNES please
Lookin’ forward to a Gameboy series
Batman ROTJ, Gremlins 2, Journey To Silius. Those are my top Sunsoft games! The Music was Awesome!
Batman and Blaster Master are 2 of those under $10 gems that every collection should have
The reason they're under $10 is because they ARE in every collection. Because they're 2 of the best games on the NES.
I just picked them up for $12 and $10 respectively. Super worth it.
but I still regard these two hella hard. I was able to finish the remake BMZero easily at default difficulty but hoping the old one getting a patch or overhaul on its saving and checkpoint system ( i remember checking out the Prototype Rom and it features room debug for level selection so it wouldn't be hard to implement or extract and analyze the code). Except for the epilepsy warning and difficulty stuff, the old one is still a blast to play
Not sure I'll ever understand the hate for Fester's Quest either, man. Played the hell out of that game growing up.
Blaster Master is probably the best third-part title on the NES, hands down. Definitely one of the system's crown jewels.
I couldn't agree more with BOTH of your comments! As far as third party titles go, Mega Man 2 & 3 (can't decide which one is better to this day so I simply combine them in discussions like this) and Blaster Master instantly come to mind. Blaster Master is just so amazing in every possible way and I have the best memories playing it for months on end back in late 1988/early 1989. Fun Fact: I literally beat Fester's Quest for the first time the day my sister was born (9-2-91). She groans whenever I say this though (she doesn't like the game as much as me...hee hee!)
Fester's Quest is a great game once you understand the mechanics of the weapons power-ups (red vs blue). It doesn't deserve the hate it gets.
I can't deny that blaster master is awesome, but best third party title?
I dunno, man. Half of Konami's library is probably gonna get ranked higher by me, along with Rygar, Battle of Olympus, and probably final fantasy and wizards and warriors.
It's an amazing game, probably in the top fifteen, but best third party game? Yeah, I dunno.
You forgot Mr Gimmick! It's easily one of the most visually and audibly appealing NES games. Hard as nails though.
Never came out in the US. I'm just doing US games.
@@JohnRiggs Yet the title of the video is "Ranking and Reviewing every SUNSOFT NES game", which is in contradictory to what you just said, as the NES is/was also "NES" in Europe i.e. PAL territory, where both Mr. Gimmick and Ufouria were released (the former only in Scandinavia but still). Absolutely fantastic AND essential Sunsoft games on the NES, and not mentioned in your video. John, I know you are very well aware of all sorts of exclusive PAL NES/Famicom titles, so what gives? We are not living in a world of "U.S. only", you have to know that as a somewhat worldwide known TH-camr/influencer. At the very least you could've mentioned about PAL NES Sunsoft titles at the end of the video. Change the title of the video to "My list of every Sunsoft NES released in the U.S." and you're golden.
Sunsoft were so underrated for the output they gave us. They never reached the heights of Konami, Namco or Capcom’s success but man did they have talent in the 8-bit - early 16-bit era. And THAT MUSIC! Thanks for this cool ranking John
Always!
Forget the alleged Nintendo quality seal, seeing Sunsoft on a game box let you know that something good was inside.
Blaster Master has some of the best music on the entire NES. Love it!
That underwater level music was the best.
@@TheCroutonman It's tough to pick just one stage but I hear you! The Stage 4 track is very good for sure but it's so refreshing when you enter Stage 5 and hear that beautiful, serene underwater melody. :)
@@tigmo55 Full gunpower on crab boss = Cake!
I never knew why Naoki Kodaka didnt get hired elsewhere, he was great at being a composer
Try listen to megaman 2 music. Best nes game music for me.
Batman: Return of the Joker isn't a sequel, it's based on the comic book, and it's called "Dynamite Batman" in Japan.
Batman Returns is the true sequel.
S-tier
0:30 1989 Batman (Sunsoft)
1:56 1988 Blaster Master (Sunsoft)
You should do a ranking of the Unlicensed Games, Tengen, Color Dreams, Wisdom Tree, Camerica, etc
Sunsoft were wizards when it came to getting the best graphics and sound out of the 8 bit NES. Batman: Return of the Joker looks every bit as good as some 16 bit games of that era. For as many great developers the Nintendo had, I think Sunsoft has to be at or toward the very top as far as consistently producing just fun games with amazing quality to them. They really dont get recognized nearly enough imo and get lost in the list of great developers for the nes, but for me they are right there with the Capcoms and Konamis of that era
Better than many 16 bit games, even.
Keep in mind that Return of The Joker was using a helper chip to be able to process those graphics. Doesn't detract from how awesome their other games were, though.
@@DarthEquus still chip or not, it ran on the nes and looked incredible. It's just like the super Nintendo using extra chips for games like star fox and yoshi's Island. The fact the nes could even have graphics like that in a game that still cost the regular price of a new game was awesome, because they could have tried to charge us all extra for stuff like that. Sunsoft was just an incredible company and I think Return of the joker probably has the best graphics on the original Nintendo imo at least. Definitely top 5 for sure
@@DarthEquus
Doesn't detract from how awesome Return of The Joker is. Virtually every NES game uses helper chips other than the early blackbox games.
The T-800 is literally the last boss of Journey to Silus. A far superior game to the garbage that was The Terminator on the NES.
I had Blaster Master & Batman...... still have Fester's Quest and Gremlins 2. Sunsoft, as said already, very underrated
I consider the NES version of Spy Hunter vastly superior to the arcade because of the incredibly precise controls. No slamming into a car when switching to high gear on Nintendo. It was one of the first NES games I ever bought and its replay value was stellar.
Agreed. The NES version of Spy Hunter is fantastic.
Is there still cereal in your box of Batman cereal? If so, you should try it and see how it aged... maybe like a fine wine.
These videos are a gift
All of these ranking episodes are fun.
Actually Lemmings started on the Amiga and all the other versions are ports of that original game. Some contain new levels while others have had levels removed.
I once attempted to play through the Windows version and discovered that the timing was different enough that I ran into one level that I couldn't beat, despite the same solution working in the Amiga version.
I LOVE these lists John!
Really enjoying these!
Oh man the Batman game was just on another level. The jumping mechanic where you could bound of walls
Man that BATMAN at that time was great. Yeah Blaster Master also rocked!
Hello, John. I've seen you on some of Metal jesus' channel and watched a few of your videos here and there. But, you've put together a really great series ranking game developer's games. I've been really enjoying it.
Return of the Joker and Gremlins 2 are a couple of favorites for me, but Gimmick! was another Sunsoft game released in Japan that was great fun too!
DUDE...I honestly feel like we had a sort of parallel childhood or something because I was watching this video and just smiling throughout the whole thing! I absolutely ADORE Blaster Master man. The graphics, the superb soundtrack (a staple of SO many Sunsoft games for sure), and the open-world feel of the game was light years beyond other games back during this era. The atmosphere was incredible as well and the variety in terms of gameplay was perfect. For what its worth, Blaster Master is one of my all-time favorite games for ANY console. I love the fact that you gave Fester's Quest a fair chance as well. So many gamers hate this game and I just scratch my head because I love it too! There are what appear to be flaws (LOW health bar, weapons not firing through narrow passageways) but there are go-arounds (finding additional health and using the valuable whip!) too. The soundtrack is amazing as are the boss graphics/fights. Without this reading like a book (I know...too late!), let me give Super Spy Hunter some real love too. That game is SO underrated and you don't hear about it anywhere yet it's SO much better than the original game. SSH rocks! Lastly, Journey to Silius, Gremlins 2, and of course Batman are sensational games as well (the music in all of them is UNREAL too). Sunsoft may not have made many games but they sure have more S-tier games than most! Quality over quantity for sure. :)
Amazing! I'm always at a point where I think "ok this is it! I've completed my collection." Then I listen to these guys and find a new game that I really want. Thanks metal J Crew.
haha, sorry!!
@@JohnRiggs No... thank you! You guys helped me a lot with building my game collection; even though it's over flowing in my house. Will have to make a note to self on getting bigger house.
Dude, SUNSOFT had some great games for real. Blaster Master and Batman being my absolute favorite and not far behind Journey to Silius. The sound track is just freaking awesome. Brings back a lot of memories just hearing the music. Great vid
Gimmick! is a sunsoft game and it is fantastic! Great list ill check out the ones I haven't played
Hey Riggs, love these ranking vids. I know Technos doesn't have a huge list, but I'd like to hear your thoughts on those games. Definitely some good ones. Either way tho, great stuff. Thanks!!
I think if he did technos, he'd have to do it as developer as I think they only released 2 games under their actual publishing arm stateside and I doubt he'd do that. Maybe he will, who knows!
I thought someone would call you out for saying "Lemmings" started on the PC! It's an Amiga game from early '91. The NES version must have been about the 15th port. Remarkable appeal.
I noticed that. Remember it on the Amiga 500.
Festers Quest was one of my favorites also. I spent many hours on that game. This is a great series of videos, keep up the good work.
AVGN will not approve lol. I should try Fester's Quest, despite what James Rolfe thinks of the game.
@@kenterminateddq5311 James Rolfe's opinions are not really the same as the AVGN. The Nerd's exaggerated opinion is meant for entertainment purposes.
@@ostiariusalpha
Yeah, I'm sure Jekyll and Hyde is actually James' favorite NES game.
@@ostiariusalpha So, James really likes Jekyll & Hyde?
@@kekeke8988 It's probably his least favorite, but that doesn't change the fact that he exaggerates his dislike for the AVGN video.
Loving this series of ranking games!!!!
Nice list John. Sunsoft is pretty solid.
Fester's Quest feels like it was supposed to be a proper Blaster Master sequel, then got the Addams Family slapped onto it when the movie was announced - kind of the reverse of what happened with Sunsoft's planned Terminator game being turned into Journey To Silius after the license lapsed.
I wonder if that was a plan.
JohnRiggs I mean the monsters, weapon, music, and overall feel of the game screams Blaster Master. I suspect that it was originally going to be Jason fighting off the mutants from taking over his hometown without the suit and Sophia (the tank).
Yeah they always had the same vibe and even same enemies. Might of been the case, though I never heard such a theory. I used to play and beat both games regularly back in the day. I still go through Blast Master at least yearly. I remember FQ being a real PITA back in the day though, so I have tried it much as an adult lol.
Lemmings was originally released by Psygnosis for the Amiga I believe.
I loved Freedom Force. Still do! It feels more like a complete game vs. more of the “experiences” the other light gun titles were. Super challenging too.
I love these vids, keep me coming! If I may nitpick, I would prefer if they were done by year so we can see the evolution.
That makes a lot of sense. Wouldn't be hard to get the dates of these games. Capcom showed HUGE improvement from when they started to where they ended up.
Freedom Force....that was mine and my mom's game on the NES. She wasn't great at games, ya know...they were kinda after her time... But one game she consistently played - even with her friends - was Freedom Force, and whenever her and I got the chance, we'd play it together. She's been gone for a while, but I'll never forget the fun we had together.
Great series, making me very nostalgic! I’d love to see you do Taito, they had some killer games back in the day, especially the Double Dragon series
No Uforia and no Mr:gimick!
When I get so old I can't remember my own name I'll still be humming the music from Batman. Just unforgettably good.
I haven't played Batman in about 25 years and I can STILL play a lot of the music in my head. It gave the game such great atmosphere.
@@palaceofwisdom9448 I think it's been closer to 30 years for me but I can still hum it flawlessly.
What can I say. I just love listings :) Tier ranking is a great way to do it as well.
I totally remember when Lemmings where everywhere! It did seen like they were on just about every system, at the time, lol.
I actually like Xenophobe on the NES. Also, you can crouch, although it's not very obvious - you hold down and hit jump.
Thanks for pointing that out; I saw Riggs say that & swore I remembered crouching in Xenophobe! If memory serves, you can kind of duck-walk through the rooms and jump to stand up. Had a fair amount of fun with this one as well.
@@FormalTreehouse maybe learning its odd controls is the secret to enjoying this one a little more
@@ultimosis You might have something there. It definitely plays a bit differently, but taken for what it is, not bad at all.
@@FormalTreehouse Yeah i play Xenophobe pretty often. Usually after a long gaming session with Mega Man, or Ninja Gaiden, then ill pop in ole Xenophobe in for a little bit to kinda chill and relax. It's one of those slow paced, easy going games. You can kinda just relax, turn off your brain, and play it, lol.
Just one more example of him being too lazy to RTFM, and it costing a great game a tier or two.
I agree with your ranking of Fester’s Quest. I love that game. Especially with the NES Advantage. Gotta have a turbo controller.
I always look forward to your ranking videos. Thanks John!
Loving this series! It's very refreshing
Blaster Master was my game. Very hard to actually beat, boss levels get harder and harder, like all games are. But after you learn the bosses moves and you're power up for the job. The game came be won.
Heh, I remember cheating with the NES Advantage on some of the bosses...You would toss a grenade and hit the slow-mode button and it would kill him quickly...Fun times.
Never thought there’d be a Platoon NES game. lol What a gritty film to show up on a Nintendo product.
If I didn't like the movie so much, I wouldn't have the game. Granted, I have a nice copy complete in the box so...
Darn Straight that’s S tier
I bet nobody ever told you that you
would be jammin' until the break of dawn
You would be jammin' and jammin' and jammin', jam on
Oh, wait, Blaster Master. Never mind.
Fester's Quest was one of the few games we owned as a kid.We put a lot of hours into that game at my house. You sir are a genuine maniac to consider that game an A.
I got Fester's Quest for Christmas and loved it, especially along with the Nintendo Power issue that mapped those confusing 3D hallways. Funny enough my dad's police partner owned it too and I used to show him how to beat the bosses. Good times.
To me this was the best ranking video you’ve done. I felt like I could put this on my fridge, and know at a glance how to choose a SunSoft game to play. Thanks and nice work.
Loving the lists John keep it up.
I have to say this series i think is your finest hour. It's so addictive. I hope to see you continue this series even if it had to move off of the companies eventually to keep going.. ranking sports games on genesis etc.. We need more! Haha. Afterwards I go and try select games too you rate high. Great work. Keep it up!!
I love how personal Riggs’ rankings are. He did 1 S rank for Konami and 2 for Sunsoft! To me that’s CRAZY, but I like hearing a different opinion.
He put tiny toon cartoon workshop in the same tier as contra.
I dunno where he gets his stuff, but I wish he'd pass it this way.
At least for once, his rankings aren't objectively wrong, just subjectively. That's a step forward, ironically considering how old this video is.
@@iami3rian394 there’s no such thing as an objectively wrong ranking for video games, as video games are subjective. Stop forcing your opinions on everyone else. Also, he ranks the games among themselves, not against the entire Nintendo game library.
after you run out of big pubs, how about a vid with a few one/two hit wonder publishers?
In a world of highly scripted and rehearsed TH-cam videos, we have the savior John Riggs keepin’ it real and being himself. Love this channel. Thanks for all the great videos.
Love these series Riggs. Keep it up. Would love to see the ULTRA series rankings ("Konami Part 2")
Rollergames! S Tier, Skate or Die! A Tier
SkyKid deserves more. It’s super fun and is filled with tons of Easter eggs. I would give it an A.
It's pretty damn fun even though it looks a tad lame at a glance
SkyKid is a Namcot game?
SkyKid gets an S from me, and I still haven’t seen a copy yet offline
Curt Wakeman Yeah. Throughout the game, there’s references to NAMCO and pictures of PAC-MAN.
I was very lucky and thankful to have played a chunk of some of the Sunsoft classics on NES in '89-'91. I owned Journey To Silius and Fester's Quest (but never got far on it and gave up on it -- always loved the music and graphics though)...my cousin owned Batman...and my neighbor friend had Blaster Master, which I borrowed. I also briefly played Gremlins 2 at a friend's house back in the day.
I always ranked Sunsoft just slightly under Konami and Capcom on quality. They had some great games, and particularly featured some of the greatest music on the NES.
So stoked you gave Fester's Quest an A! I mean, objectively -- in comparison to the very best NES games -- it's probably closer to a B- or C. But my level of pure enjoyment -- Addams Family theme, quirky plus spooky personality (vibe), aliens, cool weapons, huge bosses, open world exploration, etc. -- brought me pure A enjoyment when it came out.
I think letter grades should always reflect subjective enjoyment -- vs. cold, emotionless objectivity. Fester's Quest is A all the way! Good call, John. :)
Blaster Master has a very special place in my heart. I'm hoping Inti Creates announces Blaster Master Zero 3 soon.
From 0:00 - 0:05 . YES! Absolutely! 😃 One of the best things you get from playing a SunSoft game on the NES!
Batman was amazing. Best part was you had unlimited continues so it was just trail and error. Also you get rewarded with cut scenes after each stage is complete.
Blaster Master and Journey to Silius were without a doubt truly hidden gems for the system as well.
( The recent Blaster Master Remakes are a must! Get them if you haven't played them.
I wish they would do a sequel to Journey to Silius as a metroidvania style game too. Maybe even include a female protagonist related to Jay as his sister. You can switch with Jay and play as both of them throughout the game. The art style has to be Retro 80's anime style like they did for this game as well. )
Fester's Quest is definitely a game that takes some patience with trail and error. But its an awesome game!
I like how you also go through the 3D mazes.
( Game tip: Take advantage of the beginning part and walk back and forth destroying the small Blaster Master looking brain creatures to out your
weapon meter. )
Thanks again for this video.
love fester's quest. my cousin owned it, played it every time i went there. eventually got my own copy. great music, epic bosses. even an "Untouchables" sounding theme in the sewer. Would love a movie of that game with 80s style effects.
Wow, I actually agreed with every single ranking,
Also, the choice of the Blaster Master start theme as the cut song was great.
I personally think Blaster Master had the best soundtrack on the system.
On Platoon: the original game was designed and developed by Ocean for home computers, but this NES port is a Sunsoft production through and through- look in the credits, and you'll see all the Sunsoft regulars who worked on many of their other games! A very interesting game, not the best gameplay-wise but the mysterious atmosphere sustained my interest (at least until the very jank third-person maze at the end).
One more thing- Jump *is* mapped to A on the VS System version, but omits the grenades that were originally assigned to that button entirely. Messes with my muscle memory every time I switch between versions...
Can you do Hudson Soft NES games ranking? Princess Tomato is my favorite :)
Nice rankings! My favorite NES Sunsoft games are
IF EVERYBODY HAD AN OCEAN
ACROSS THE USA
It's a shame you limited it to games published in USA, that leaves out two of their finest games - Mr. Gimmick! and Ufouria.
I grew up with Blaster Master, Batman, and Journey to Silius. Loved all three. Between that and Super C, TMNT, TMNT 2, Solstice, Ninja Gaiden II, and the Mario and Zelda games, I had pretty high standards for game soundtracks.
Gimmick! Would be in the S tier for sure. If you've never played it and aren't afraid of difficult games, you need to try it. The graphics, the level design, the music, the diverse and original enemies AIs, the replayability... It's an outstanding game. Probably the very best NES/Famicom game ever in my opinion.
Blaster master music always makes me think of AVGN, since I didn't play it as a kid.
Sunsoft is highly underrated in my opinion. But their in house stuff is god-tier to me. Great video.
Riggs, I have a request.... I know you have done Konami, but you need to do Ultra in the future. Thanks brother!
And Bandai!
Haha. I learned something. I thought you destroy all the cars in spy hunter as well. Played a bunch as a kid because I loved the arcade...
The instructions explained that only blue cars are enemies, plus you got an extra life if you hit a certain score by the time that timer at the beginning ran out (which meant that destroying friendly cars and freezing your score was costly).
It's a shame you didn't include Ufouria, released in Japan and Europe. That game is a solid A. Super Spy Hunter should also be an A in my opinion. However, I agree with you on Fester's Quest. I really don't understand the hate for this game. It's got everything, from music to gameplay
I know it. Same with Mr. Gimmick. I just stick with the US games for these. both are A-tier games.
Thanks so much Mr.Riggs for doing this video. Batman and Gremlins 2 are in my personal top 5 favorite nes games. Groovy soundtracks and top notch platforming at it's best. I got Festers Quest for one of my birthdays as a kid. I choose it and no I didn't have Nintendo power. Can't wait for Data East list.Super Spy Hunter is very underrated wirh a great soundtrack.
Even if I don't agree with all the rankings, this series of videos is informative and fun to watch. Perfect pace too. What's next? Data East, Kemco (personal fav except for the Bugs Bunny games), Acclaim, Ultra, or maybe the NES zapper games? Man, I love the NES.
... or what about Taito?
Literally, another NES game I had as a kid you rated the golden S... BATMAN, baby!! 😁
Mr Gimmick is "S rank" sunsoft nes game too. It was released only japan and europe. I still have my "CIB" copy in my collection.
Spy Hunter! I can’t believe you didn’t mention the boats man! Loved that game.
That was a highlight!
I know Gimmick! never came out in N.A and only in Japan and PAL NES, but it would most certainly be a special “Z” tier game from Sunsoft, some of the best sounding music on NES, great graphics and unique physics based gameplay, and challenging to boot!
I loved Fester's quest, I couldn't get very far, but the controls, power ups etc were fun
All the rankings are spot on, with one exception, and that is Super Spy Hunter. That should be an S, but I get it, it's your list, your perception. In my book, Super Spy Hunter is a top tier game for NES.
journey silius have the best OST on NES i cant believe and I played the game have so much Bass on modest OST
Sky Kid is one of my favorite games. I love the huge bomb. Spy Hunter is also a classic. The arcade version is amazing.
Sunsoft put out a couple straight bangers!! Solid list, I didnt have any big arguments with a single ranking. Festers Quest a bit high, but I can live with it. :)
Dude I was going to ask if you could do a video on Sunsoft. You beat me to it. GREAT MINDS.....
I always knew there was no way the people who created batman also created platoon.
glad to see u give festers quest some love, dude its not a bad game. Good list man
Love this series!
Any chance you could a joint episode where you rank Atlas and Hudson Soft games?
JohnRiggs , FYI you can do the “crouch walk” in Xenophobe on the NES, which in an absolute staple of the gameplay and character safety. It’s an awkward combination of buttons to get it to work on the NES, but it’s in there.
These ranking videos are great. Very well presented and broken down.
Batman is probably my favorite of the Sunsoft NES releases. One of the best side scrolling action games on the system I think. I would probably only place a few of the Ninja Gaiden games ahead of it, as far as action games in that style on the system. Super Mario Bros. 3, Mike Tyson's Punchout , Metal Storm and Jackal would probably be some of my top system picks. Off topic but Vice Project Doom is another top action game like batman, but with multiple game styles mixed in.
Please do a Fedter's Quest playthrough. I had nightmares trying to play that game, especially the regenerative enemies that came back when you walked offscreen.
Hey riggs man ,,great video ,,was waiting for a Sunsoft Ranking on the NES👍
I drooled over all these games in Nintendo Power. I had a subscription but rarely got games but looking through all the walkthroughs was almost as good or better
Man, Fester's Quest came out WAY before the movie. That game was my introduction to the Adams Family.
Thanks for these quality videos John.