Nintendo released the Super Game Boy in what they called the “Year of the Cartridgeâ€, which allowed gamers to play their Game Boy games on their TVs through a piece of hardware that was hooked up to the SNES. SEGA countered the Super Game Boy with their own add-on, the 32X.
Several industry mainstays were founded in 1994, as well: In addition to 3D Realms (Duke Nukem, Prey) and Neversoft (Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater), we saw the foundation of both the ESRB and the IDSA, the organizational body that would become the ESA.
Late in 1994 the industry lost a pioneer. William Higinbotham, the creator of Tennis for Two, the world’s first video game, died at the age of 84. While Nolan Bushnell is widely considered to be the father of modern video games, there is no telling what would have become of Bushnell or gaming without Higinbotham.
Also, in Japan, Sony released a little disc-based console that we’ll surely touch on next week with our countdown of the best games of 1995…
If one thing has become quite apparent to me over the time I’ve been doing these lists, it’s that there was no shortage of 2D beat ‘em ups. The Adventures of Batman & Robin holds the distinction of not just being one of the best beat ‘em ups on the Super Nintendo, but also for being the last good Batman game to be released for some thirteen years – if you want to count LEGO Batman as a true Batman game.
It was decided to include the SNES version for many reasons: For starters, the game is based on the wildly popular (and epically bad ass) Batman: The Animated Series. Sure, the name may imply that Robin plays a big role in the game, by the time the show went through its name change Konami was already so far along in the game’s development that they simply decided to not change a good thing to shoehorn that worthless boy wonder into a major role.
The SEGA Genesis and SEGA CD versions of the game aren’t bad, but when you hold them up to Konami’s effort on the SNES, there really is no question that the SNES is head and shoulders above the rest.
Peter Molyneux is a great man. Sure, he may be a little grandiose and unable to not keep his mouth shut, but with games like Black & White, Fable and the classic Populous it is no question that Molyneux is one of the great minds in the industry. But even the great minds have to take a minute or two and just relax, and there is no better way to do that than to go to a theme park. Molyneux took this idea one step further and decided that instead of going to Euro Disney or whatnot, he would just build his own damn theme park.
And thus, we have Theme Park.
The best way to describe Theme Park? Imagine Sim City with roller coasters. After you start the game you are tasked with building rides and concession stands, setting prices and keeping your park one step ahead of the competition. Eventually, as your profit margins grow, you will be able to expand your empire to other countries ala Walt Disney.
After Electrionc Arts purchased Bullfrog Productions, Theme Park received two sequels: Sim Theme Park and SimCoaster.
In this day and age, most consider “simplicity†to be a terrible thing. Back in 1995, that very same simplicity was key to making a successful arcade game. Cruis’n USA had that simplicity.
Cruis’n USA had a very simple concept: pick a vehicle (up to seven different cars, if you knew how to unlock the Jeep, Cop Cruiser and School Bus) and burn rubber across the country. So why is Cruis’n USA on this list? Because of what it did for arcade racing games. While it wasn’t the first arcade racer to be built with a car seat, the popularity of Cruis’n USA led to many arcade manufacturers to include the design in their future racing games.
When you beat Cruis’n USA, you were “treated†to a terrible impression of then-President Bill Clinton. Thankfully, in the console releases that was removed.
We all know why NBA Jam was a huge hit in the 90s. The NBA was in its golden age with legends like Michael Jordan, Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley paving the way for current superstars Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. It’s kind of ironic then that neither Jordan, Shaq or Sir Charles were in T.E., as they had all signed off on their own projects (two of them being Shaq Fu and Barkley’s Shut Up and Jam!).
However, even with those three big names unavailable, you could still have the ultimate NBA dream team of Larry Bird, Will Smith, Heavy D, Prince Charles and, making his second appearance on this list, former-President Bill Clinton.
There were also some characters from Mortal Kombat in T.E., however as the controversy about violence in video games continued, the NBA eventually pressured Midway to remove them from later versions of the game. Which sucks, because there are few things more awesome than the image of Sub-Zero taking DJ Jazzy Jeff to the hole.
Everything that made Star Wars: X-Wing awesome was cranked up to eleven for Star Wars: TIE Fighter. Improved graphics, more ships, faster combat and, oh yeah, you played as the Imperials.
Picking up right after the glorious victory at the Battle of Hoth, you play as TIE fighter rookie pilot Maarek Stele, fighting against both the rebel terrorists and pirates with the occasional detour to quell an uprising inside the Empire.
The original Star Wars: TIE Fighter was released on 1.44†floppy discs, although a CD-ROM print was released a year later. In the years since its release, TIE Fighter has been heralded as one of the greatest games of all time, appearing on different lists from GMR, PC Gamer, Gamespot and Computer Gaming World.
Earthworm Jim is one of those games that, when pressed, I really have a hard time trying to describe it. At its core it plays like a 2D action/platformer, but there are so many little… things that make Earthworm Jim something else entirely. I think the best way to describe what Earthworm Jim is all about is to point out that at the beginning of the game you launch a cow into the air for seemingly no reason whatsoever.
…that didn’t help. Either way, Earthworm Jim has had a lasting appeal in the industry. Two full sequels have been released, and another sequel was announced in April, 2008.
One more thing to note about Earthworm Jim is that longtime friend of Binge Gamer and resident badass, Tommy Tallarico, composed the soundtrack.
So, you may be wondering why both Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and Sonic & Knuckles are on this list. Well, the reason is simple: They’re two parts of one game.
Oh yes, Sonic 3 and Sonic & Knuckles were originally intended to be one game, and the only reason why they were split into two was because of the limitations of the cartridge. That explains many of the similarities in both of the games. In addition, Sonic 3 finally introduced the idea of saving your game – something that the franchise was sorely missing.
Sonic & Knuckles, on the other hand, is well known for allowing the player to plug either Sonic the Hedgehog 2 or 3 into the cartridge and play through either game as Knuckles the Echidna. The original Sonic the Hedgehog was unable to incorporate Knuckles, as it would have affected the entire color palette.
The character of Donkey Kong first appeared way back in 1981 as the nemesis of “Jumpman†aka “Marioâ€, and outside of a few arcade sequels of declining quality through the early and mid-80s, we didn’t hear much from the big ape until 1994. What followed would wind up being the third highest-selling game on the SNES.
When the game was released, it was met with universal praise by all except Donkey Kong creator Shigeru Miyamoto, who once said that Donkey Kong Country “proves that players will put up with mediocre gameplay as long as the art is goodâ€. Miyamoto later apologized, citing that he was venting frustration at Nintendo for their pressuring him to make Super Mario World 2 more like DKC.
In recent years other publications have joined Miyamoto in their distaste for the game: EGO and GameSpy both list the game amongst the most overrated games of all time, although there is no vote for taste.
That’s right – EGM and GameSpy are wrong, and Donkey Kong Country remains one of the best games of not just 1994, but all time.
The original Warcraft perfected the resource-gathering gameplay mechanic that had been part of almost all real-time strategy games to this point. In addition, Blizzard was able to create a game that was perfectly balanced, with both sides essentially having the same units with few key differences that allowed for the player to employ strategy while not having to worry about being overrun.
Let’s put it this way: There would be no Starcraft, nor would there be any World of Warcraft without the original Warcraft: Orcs and Humans.
Really, what else is there to say? Other than it’s not #1…
One of the misconceptions of Super Metroid is that it is a direct sequel to the original Metroid on the NES. Those people are wrong, as it is actually the sequel to Metroid 2 on the Game Boy. But I digress.
Super Metroid picks up shortly after Metroid 2, with Samus Aran telling the player how she destroyed the Metroids from their home world. During that time a Metroid larva has imprinted itself upon Samus, believing her to be the creatures mother. After bringing the larva to Ceres Space Colony, the creature is stolen by a man called Ridley. From there, you have to track down Ridley, recover the Metroid and, as you can imagine, kill Mother Brain.
Again.
Super Metroid is remembered for many things: It’s open-ended world was unparalleled for its time, and the sheer amount of content in the game made Super Metroid the “fattest†SNES game to be released to that point (clocking in at over 24-megabites).
Super Metroid is heralded as one of the greatest games of all time, and with good reason. The gameplay is nearly flawless, and its influence can still be seen in 2D games to this day. A game that will be on a future list, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, borrows heavily from Super Metroid.
However, there is one game that has had a further reach than even Metroid…
Worst Game of 1994:
Shaq Fu is one of those games that, unliess you’ve played it, you can never truly appreciate just how God awful it truly is. But I shall inquire to do my best.
Shaq Fu isn’t really about Shaquille O’Neal the basketball star as it is about Shaquille O’Neal the kung fu master… really, what else do I have to say? If that isn’t enough to make you regurgitate your breakfast, let’s throw in some of the worst dialogue ever written for a game, and an incredibly unforgiving difficulty curve that is made next-to-impossible thanks to broken hit detection, and you have a game so downright awful that there is a website devoted to the destruction of every surviving copy.
While other games have been terrible, at least they had reason to exist (except Where’s Waldo). Shaq Fu, on the other hand… doesn’t.
Doom II was released in ’94. I’m curious as to why it was not on the list?
Mickey Mania was also released in ’94, I would dare say it was as epic as the release of Doom II.
Tekken was also first released, but the first one wasn’t that great (in comparison of course, at the time it was .. “oOoo.. neat”)
Honestly, as long as I see Earthworm Jim made the cut, I approve of this list and await the next one!
Is this article a joke or something? “megabites”? One of the “fattest” SNES games? It’s not even in the top megabit games (which is 32megabits) with games like Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG and DKC. And Star Ocean was 48megabits.
One of the fattest.. “..to be released to that point …”
“You know why the call it Shaq-Fu? Because you need to be a foo to buy it!”
-A 5th grade classmate of mine, circa 1994
NOOOOOOO!!!!! How could you not put Final Fantasy III (VI) on the list. I went over to friends’ houses for hours just to watch them play the game it was so amazing. I’ve even bought the damn thing multiple times because my old copy would get worn out.
so my kid looks up the adventures of batman and robin and gets a picture of a dumbass say’n “wtf you doing man” what a gay looking fag.
Cool story bro.
Don’t hotlink. Tah Dah.