The Rhythm Heaven games are awesome and everyone should play them. With that said why do these random frogs make my list? Well, they’re musical frogs, so that is neat. Also one of them is playing a saxophone which is cool. Plus just look at those clothes. Although now that I am looking at the clothes, why are some of them wearing pants and some are not?! That’s a strange design decision.


Gotta love a woman who rocks the suspenders.

Croaker is a pretty swell looking frog from Shovel Knight, who makes a bunch of HILARIOUS puns. Because puns are always hilarious no matter what. Example:

“I traveled with some horse adventurers, but they were all so neigh-gative!"

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA GOD YOU KNOW YOU LOVE IT.

There is also a toad named Toader in Shovel Knight but he isn’t as punny so he didn’t make the list.


Hmm, what a pun-gent odor I’m smelling.

Even if you have played the original Pikmin you may be looking at this picture thinking “I don’t remember this one?” That’s because the Smoky Progg is an obscure hidden boss you will only face under certain precise conditions. Not exactly the type of character I would usually choose for a list, but just look at it! It’s a frog-like creature whose backside dissipates into an irrational mess of smoke. The Pikmin games have some pretty bad-ass design sometimes.


Confession: I’ve never actually met this one in game.

The frog choir (not always under that name) is a recurring theme in the Zelda series, so if you don’t like the Majora’s Mask example that I picked, you can find another one on your own time. Their role changes from game to game, but they’re often involved in one sidequest or another. Really, not much else to say about these frogs. They’re neat.


I don’t care what you think Majora’s Mask > Ocarina of Time.

Prince Froggy is a boss in Yoshi’s Island, and what an unexpected boss he was. He hops onto the screen looking all small and harmless, but the next thing you know he is growing in size (fine that part wasn’t really unexpected since it was a theme of the bosses in that game but whatever) and you are swallowed up, and end up battling inside of him against his… uvula. It’s a real word, look it up! The character itself wasn’t necessarily very special, but it was a memorable boss fight, so for that it makes my list.


Sure he looks non-threatening now…

A regular on many “most wanted” Smash Bros. character lists, Wart was a one and done end boss in the Mario series, appearing in Super Mario Bros. 2 (US) and then never again returning to face Mario and friends. Sure he has made a cameo appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, and uh… maybe had a kid or something that appears in the Animal Crossing series? but for the most part Wart has all but vanished. And don’t give me the whole “well of course he can’t return it was only a dream!” nonsense. Shy Guys have been in several games since Super Mario Bros. 2, why not Wart?!


Honestly I think Wart is cooler than Bowser.

I might rank Slippy higher if I were only considering his original Star Fox appearance where he appeared to be a gruff old space veteran, but Star Fox 64 turned him into young boy with an annoying nasally voice. And now I don’t know what I think about Slippy! Ah well, Slippy is still cool, even if he is usually the first one to need rescuing, and his submarine is pretty helpful the whole one time that you need it in Star Fox 64.


Retcon this series and bring back old man Slippy!

After Snake Man appeared in Mega Man 3, I was really hoping for a Turtle Man. Alas, that was not to be, at least not in the classic Mega Man series. However, Mega Man 4’s Toad Man was a decent alternative. If you can’t get another reptile, an amphibian must suffice. Though I have to say, his rain attack was super cheap. Enemies shouldn’t have unavoidable attacks.


Still wish there was a Turtle Man though.

If you’re a young pup you might be wondering what the heck a Battletoad is. Well, they were designed back in the 8-bit NES era as a competitor to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Unlike most copycats though, their games were actually pretty sweet (though notoriously hard), due in no small part to the fact that their developer was the very talented Rareware. The Battletoads were pretty huge for some time, but faded fast, and we haven’t seen much from them since the 90s outside of a few cameos in some Xbox games. Rareware is supposedly bringing them back for their own game soon, but I dunno how much I trust modern Rareware to do it right.

Anyway the Battletoads are awesome and so much fun.


Mmm, you can just smell the 90s!

Was there really any other choice? Chrono Trigger is considering one of the best RPGs ever for a reason, and even among a cast of excellent characters Frog stands out as the stately swordsman seeking vengeance for the death of a friend. Once a human named Glenn, Frog watched the dark mage Magus kill his friend Cyrus before being cursed by Magus to live out life in frog form. Frankly, I think that is a step up from human form, but whatever. Wielder of the legendary sword Masamune, Frog is not one to scoff at.

Also his theme song is awesome too, so there is that.


I wish I had a sword that shot light into the sky.