The SNES is 30 in the EU - SNES Appreciation Thread

Mr E

The SNES came out 30 years ago today in Europe (April 11th 1992).

I have very fond memories of the Super Nintendo. Link to the Past, Super Mario World, Super Metroid, Super Mario Kart, Super Castlevania, Super Bomberman (all the Supers!) ... renting games in Xtravision (sometimes multiple time back to back).

I remember reaching the Special World in Super Mario World and playing through those levels until 4am a couple of days before my leaving cert started (I should have been studying!)

I still play through Link to the Past every few years - it's my favourite game of all time and still holds up today.

I'm playing through a Super Mario World ROMHack at the moment too... That game/engine still has longevity after all this time.

What are your SNES memories?

Inviere

The GOAT console for me, with a beyond stellar games lineup.

Colonel Panic

Its still my favourite console and I play mine a few times a week.

My favourite memories are renting games from a small shop in Superquinn in Bray along with a dodgy adapter and playing Super Aleste, Axelay, Mystical Ninja, Contra and Ghouls N Ghosts with a mate from school doing sleepovers.

Later in 1993, sold my PAL SNES and bought a US model from one of those mail order places you saw in Super Play. I already had some US games as my Mum visited my uncle in the US and came back with them.

I still have that SNES, but it’s a bit sun faded.

I’ve also got an Analogue SuperNT but prefer playing my original on an old TV.

Show off time, because I really love my SNES stuff.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118910946#Comment_118910946

Re the shop at Superquinn in Bray, were you thinking of 'Riders'? A horse riding shop with a game shop in the back of it?

I used to get all my games in there - you could trade a game in for another one with a fiver. Was a godsend in the time before second hand games were really a big thing. He had a colour coding system with different coloured dots on the game spines. You could only trade in a game that corresponded to the colour code - so a game that was only just released would be much higher up the colour code scale.

That same guy actually used to drive around and rent games and movies out of the back of his car too, like an ice cream van driving around, but with electronic goodies instead :D

The guy always got in Japanese imports and sold them for a good bit cheaper than new EU releases. I remember my cousin getting a Snes region adapter in there, along with a US Street Fighter 2 and some Japanese imports (Rushing Beat and Dirty Challenger)

I'd consider the Snes the greatest console ever made too and happily still play mine many years later. The one big down side being that PAL carts don't have a label on the side of them and aren't stackable. So they're a real pain to sort through if you don't have boxes.

bewareofthedog

I got the pack in with all stars along with fzero, the best gift santa ever brought. Got street fighter and Mario kart shortly after, great times. I sold it eventually but regretted it so over a few years built up a nice collection that I still have.

Its a timeless console, the graphics and sound don't age. The library is just fantastic.. Link to the past, super metroid, mario world, yoshi island, chrono trigger, final fantasy 6, trials of mana, donkey kong country 2, space megaforce, megaman X. They're not just great games, they are some of the best of all time and what really seperate the snes from many other consoles.

You could list another 4 dozen games and they would just be pure quality. I think it was a golden age for Nintendo developers they were making magic happen and had 3rd parties firing on all cylinders.

Colonel Panic

@o1s1n - It was in the back of another shop alright but I can’t remember what. Must be the same place. I remember the guy lived around Charnwood as a mate in class knew him.

I didn’t know anything about the trade value dots

Then there was Gamesworld at the town hall later ran by Wayne.I definitely bought and sold a lot there.

mrcheez

I used to have the UN Squadron intro running whenever I wanted to impress guests with the visuals :)

That runway bit

Also used that when I was selling the system (wished I'd kept it, but I guess I needed the cash)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tofOv04NjJ4

mrcheez

I was also fond of the music from the SNES... this bit from Bjork's One Day always reminded me of something from Mario Kart (fuzzy warm feelings flooding back)

https://youtu.be/FpNVSIhPJck?list=PL_PD_RD4vvcimUYPFPt8c5AgMqZMnnvbt&t=186

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118911100#Comment_118911100

Did that Gamesworld have a massive Sonic spray painted around the entrance? Just out the back of the Town Hall?

I can't believe Townhall Electric is still going by the way - used to buy C64 tapes in there! Was tempted to drop him in my aging VHS player to see if he could get it going again.

Colonel Panic

Yeah that’s the place.

I didn’t realise that place was still open either, I never venture that side of the town hall when I’m in Bray!

CiDeRmAn

I would have spent a fortune on the SNES when I got it, back in 92.

Just a crazy great console.

I've still got one, and a shed load of games, it's one of the few consoles I don't have a flashcart for, so all of my games are originals on cartridges.

Lots of money also spent in Games world, their original store in the back of Chapters, on Abbey St.

I ended up working for them, for a couple of years, just for the craic, in the late 90's, on my day off from my real job, which was (and is) being a nurse.

Gaming was such a niche interest back then, before the explosion of popularity with the Playstation, felt like a closer family of fans involved.

mrcheez

I remember getting Street Fighter 2 on launch from Virgin Megastore for my birthday... but it was crazy expensive, something like £90!?!

Cyrus

What a console international superstar soccer was played to death

SuperBowserWorld

Nice comparison here and yes, it's an iconic console. Had a PAL version and loved Super Mario World and All-stars. Always wanted an NTSC one.

The US version is ugly though.

https://www.theguardian.com/games/2020/jul/16/the-25-greatest-video-game-consoles-ranked

Fysh

Shout out to the Super FX chip - Starwing / Starfox, Stunt Race FX, even Vortex (hard AF but I remember liking it enough to stick with it even so), and SMW2 (even though for some reason it was a good while after release before I played that).

Retr0gamer

I was a megadrive fan but always wanted a SNES. Wasn't until I was older with disposable cash that I could get one. I was denied a SNES because of that stupid epilepsy/videogame scare of the early 90's. I'd come back from my friends house after playing the SNES with big red eyes and my parents thought it was epilepsy and not the fact that we were playing Street fighter 2 for 10+ hours straight. There was so much excitement around the console, it was a great time for games.

Lots of fond memories of the console. So many great games. Its just a pity Europe got absolutely shafted. Games running in 50Hz ruined a lot of games and then most of the great RPGs and other games never made it to Europe, although we did get a few good exclusives like the Firemen and Terranigma. Doesn't make up for missing out on the FF games and Chrono Trigger etc.

While I love the SNES I don't find I play it as much now. I was going to say it's not as good as I remember but it's more that I've played the crap out of it and explored it's library so fully that it no longer has as many surprises as say the NES or PS1. It's not my favourite console of all time, PS1, PS2 and the DS are going to take something very special to beat them but the number four spot is a fight between the NES and SNES. The NES library is more interesting and vast with lots of surprises while the SNES library isn't as interesting but so many of it's games are refined versions of NES classics and it has so many all time classics.

It's pretty much an essential system.

Fysh

The GB was the first multi-game system I ever had, but the SNES was the first home console I owned and, for console gaming at least, covers a lot of formative stuff. Metroid 2 on the GB was a great game (I still have the theme tune engraved in my brain), but Super Metroid is on a whole different level. Ditto Super Mario Land and SML2 compared to SMW, or Link's Awakening compared to Link To The Past. (All IMO, obviously). I have never been too pushed about RPG games, although the Super Mario: Legend Of The Seven Stars was tremendous fun - but the SNES library was still broad enough that I never found myself short of things I wanted to play.

I've tried to go back to NES games, particularly ones in those series, but they just haven't grabbed me at all. Despite my childhood best friend having a NES that we played constantly, the only games I'd bother playing these days would be the SMB series (and I prefer the All-Stars versions), Ice Climbers and Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffitti (because I'm a dork who likes anything Splatterhouse, except maybe the 2010 game...).

Mr.Saturn

It has my money for one of the deepest libraries of pound-for-pound hits in the game — which is especially impressive considering it doesn't have backwards compatibility to rely on like the likes of the PS2 or the 3DS.

CiDeRmAn

Super Mario World was and is amazing...

But, is it better than Super Mario Bros 3?

I'm not sure...

I still collect the occasional SNES title, as Retr0 said the PAL games are just pitiful, same with the N64, the 50Hz almost breaks the likes of Starfox into a paper flick animation on the SNES, same with Waverace 64 on the N64, playing them on an NTSC console is transformative.

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118914515#Comment_118914515

SMW2 was veeeeeery late. It's 1996 which to put it in context was the second year of the PS1 and Saturn, I remember it sitting on the top of digitiser's top games of the year along with Resident Evil, Sega Rally, Parappa and Wipeout 2097.

shockframe

I have a vague memory of a co-op by Raheen in Limerick City that had a SNES for the public and F-Zero playable. After being introuduced to Super Mario Kart it as a bit of a disappointment at the time but revisiting it over the years F-Zero was ahead of its time. N64 version probably edges it though.

Super Mario Kart was superb.Loved the Turtles game though its the same one as The Simpsons Arcade. Super Tennis is still one of the best games of that genre.Street Fighter 2 is for me the most iconic game.

Its had about a 3 to 4 year life but suffered considerably when the PS1 and the likes of Wipeout came along. It got through the dodgy beginnings of 3D (Jaguar, 3DO) but the transition to PS1 made SNES look old hat which was a bit unfair. It suffered as bad as any last gen console as a result.

Hard to beat the PS1 with the amount of games but the SNES was a great machine.

Retr0gamer

I love the PS1 for all the crazy and experimental games on it but in terms of how games looked, the SNES might have looked old hat but in retrospect SNES games have aged a hell of a lot better than most 3D PS1 games.

sligeach

The SNES is one of my all-time favourite systems, in the top 3 along with Gamecube and Wii U(bonus it's a Wii as well).

So many classic games, just a few highlights; Super Metroid, A Link to the Past, Mario Kart, Secret of Mana, Street Fighter 2, various Mario games, Terranigma, Secret of Evermore, Turtles in Time, International Superstar Soccer Deluxe...

Its controller was perfect for its time, it still is, it's robust and comfortable.

Inviere

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118916169#Comment_118916169

That's crazy to think it was still on shelves alongside RE and Sega Rally....insane

Fysh

Setting aside my undying affection for Jumping Flash!, I think SNES games have aged better than a lot of PS1 games - often because the developers weren't having to navigate technical questions like "what's a good way of doing platform game conventions in 3D" at the same time as developing the game itself.

At the time, though... On the PS1 you had stuff like Wipeout and Battle Arena Tohshinden (yes, BAT may not actually be much good, but it looked amazing at the time) and new demo discs every month on magazines because of using CDs rather than carts; meanwhile on the SNES you had F-zero, Starwing and a crufty Doom port. Impressive for the hardware but not enough to impress against the new challengers.

Fysh

I liked the SNES joypad at the time (found it way better than the Mega Drive one, even the 6 button one) but for me it's been superseded by the Playstation/Xbox 360 type of design. Still looks iconic in a way newer ones don't (at least not to me), though.

SNES is where it started for me. It’s such a sweet spot in gaming. NES and N64 era games can often look and play terrible today. They just haven’t stood the test of time in many instances. But the SNES and it’s games do. So many hold up both visually and gameplay-wise.

With Super Mario World, Super Metroid and Link to the Past - you have three games that could justifiable be ranked #1 in their respective franchises.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000

Love my SNES stuff. Started collecting exclusively SNES stuff 15 or so years ago (when affordable) Roughly 21 boxed SNES consoles including NTSC/Jap ones and about 400 carts, I stopped lusting after boxed games once they became crazy prices too.

Again, memories of super Mario world in particular, Zelda, Bomberman, street fighter two turbo, sim city, sunset riders.

All time favorite console. Mind you I haven't owned a new console since the Dreamcast.

CiDeRmAn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118917037#Comment_118917037

Jumping Flash, I bought the first two on their release and finished them in jig time, amazing games!

I've the 3rd one as well, and it's brilliant, but it was a Japan only release

CramCycle

Still love it, we have a switch in the house but every now and then my kid will ask me for a game of MArio Kart or SMB3 (via All Stars) or super mario world and they all hold up so well. I never realised I was so spoiled as a child, we got the SNES in Christmas 1992, brilliant. Up until then I was playing an Amiga 500 in my neighbours house.

shockframe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118917037#Comment_118917037

Wipeout looked incredible when it was first released. Looking back now Toshinden was god awful. Tekken left older games in the dust a bit.

Later Wipeout games were more polished especially on the PS3 but lacked the wow factor that it had in 1995.

shockframe

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118917906#Comment_118917906

PS1/N64 games look a bit messy on original hardware now but some of them look sublime on emulation upscaled to HD.

SNES was the pinnacle of 2D. PS1/N64 was the somewhat shoddy early days of 3D. It probably wasn't until the HD era(PS3,xbox 360) that 3D gaming was truly perfected.

The J Stands for Jay

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118914515#Comment_118914515

I just remembered another super FX game I had on the SNES: Doom. Crazy times. My mother saw me playing Doon and then Killer Instinct, told me she thought Nintendo games only had Mario in them...

Inviere

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118919115#Comment_118919115

The pinnacle of 2D hand drawn pixel art definitely went to the Neo Geo AES. A stunningly beautiful system for 2d games, with an equally stunning price.

CiDeRmAn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118919107#Comment_118919107

I was a huge Wipeout fan, and played the first two on the PS to death.

One of my few proud gaming moments involved being at a Gamesworld party night and clearing the original game, all leagues, while gargled... good times.

The second one is a quantum leap from the original though, and the third one changed it up again.

I still have them all in my collection, including three versions of Wip3out, as there were two editions in Europe and a unique version in Japan.

The PS2 game was terrible, but the PSP/PSVita and most recent edition/rerelease for the PS4 are outstanding.

F-Zero GX though... that gives it a run for it's money, I'm not alone to wish Nintendo would hurry up and release a HD remaster of that one on the Switch.

Inviere

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118919781#Comment_118919781

Very very little work needed for F-Zero by Nintendo. Dolphin scales the game up to modern resolutions, and the original assets still look incredible. The game could pass as a PS4 era game almost just with simple resolution increases and a wide screen patch.

Fysh

I know it's a bit off-topic but if you're playing F-Zero GX in Dolphin you can also enter the code that enables the Arcade version of it, since both were included on the same disc.

I too would like a new F-Zero game, but tbh I'm very happy with Fast RMX as a substitute.

CiDeRmAn

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118920367#Comment_118920367

I have Fast RMX on both WiiU, a physical copy, and Switch and I never really got into them.

Certainly, futuristic racing games have always compared poorly to Wipeout and FZero, though I enjoyed Powerdrome on the PS2/Xbox (itself a sequel to an Amiga game which itself inspired Wipeout!) and the two Roll Cage games on the PS, which were outstanding.

The latter games got a spiritual sequel in the form of Grip: Combat Racing which was released on the Switch and is both good and also cheap!

Retr0gamer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118919115#Comment_118919115

I find the PS360 era the ugliest era from 3D games. Unreal engine having a very homogenous look. Poor texture quality. Total disregard for a stable framerate, frame pacing and screen tearing. And the post processing piss filter taking all the colour out of games. Of course there's exceptions to the rule but there was a real homogenous look to most games of the era which is very hard to go back whereas I don't have that issue with PS1 or PS2 and other systems from the time.

johnny_ultimate

There's a bonanza of incredible games for the PS1, many of which were Japan-only or at best niche releases in the West. It's a shame so many of them are impossible to find, especially after the glory days of the PS3/PSP PSN Japanese store.

It feels like the SNES has been a tad better served in terms of re-releases of various rarities, but then again the Wii Virtual Console was a uniquely great time to dive into the vastness of the back catalogue. Now we need to rely on the whims of Nintendo.

CiDeRmAn

At least the Wii is readily opened up with easy-to-install custom firmware, and then you can revisit much of the Virtual Console content via... means...

FlubberJones

What a great machine this was, I also remember wanting an NTSC version as someone mentioned earlier..

Zelda, SFII are etched into my gaming memory.. Just brilliant

My favourite console by far

Akrasia

I suppose it had some good games..

Nah, SNES was awesome. Pilot wings, Starfox, zel-fuckin-da

Donkey Kong country and all the other Rare games were awesome

I spent so many hours playing super tennis..

And then Mario Kart. Trying to get the fastest lap on the ghost tracks where you needed to get the timing perfect to slide into the jump over the short cut...

CiDeRmAn

The SNES was fantastic but as seminal as SMW was, I never got the Mode 7 joy others expressed about Mario Kart, FZero and Pilot Wings.

I suppose I was already an addict to the fare on the Megadrive by then, and the racing titles there.

By comparison, when the N64 came out, I just had to buy it at launch having seen an imported console in Gamestop.

Seeing Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64 playing, getting to finally play them at home? It changed the world.