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What are your Top 5 third-party games on each Nintendo platform? [roundtable]
 
In light of the ongoing Konamiclysm and all of the minor Capcomstrophes (and the impending doom of the Japanese console gaming industry), I was remembering the good times I had with those companies, back in the day.

With that in mind, what are your Top 5 third-party games on each Nintendo console? You can rank them or just list them. Whatevs. It might even be fun to compile the results in the end.

I'll do one platform now and fill in the rest later.

NES: (in no particular order)
a) Bionic Commando
b) Contra
c) River City Ransom
d) Castlevania
e) Super Spike V'Ball

Honorable mentions: TOO MANY TO LIST, especially for an action game junkie like myself. NES is probably my favorite system of all time. But, off the top of my head... Crystalis, Ghosts'n'Goblins, Stinger, Ninja Gaiden, Ring King, Rygar, Wizards & Warriors, The Goonies II, Ikari Warriors, Double Dragon II, Blaster Master, Tetris, Batman, Gradius, Maniac Mansion, Lode Runner... I could honestly keep going for a really long time, but I'll stop here.


First roundtable of the new year, baby!!

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01/13/16, 19:41    Edited: 01/13/16, 19:41
 
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I like the Tatsunoko vs. Capcom love I'm seeing.
01/15/16, 23:32   
Wii U
5. Stealth Inc 2
~~~ Curve Studios does it again. Not without its issues, but overall a cool puzzle-platformer.
4. Volgarr the Viking
~~~ Old-school arcade action-platformer in the vein of Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts.
3. Noitu Love: Devolution
~~~ Expertly channels the spirit of Treasure games. I actually think it beats most of them.
2. Shovel Knight
~~~ We all know the story on this one. It's a good story.
1. Freedom Planet
~~~ Nails just about everything great about old-school Sonic games, yet not without its own identity.

...So you'll notice that those are all indie games...
...and I played all but one of them on PC...
...and I kinda cheated because two of them aren't even out for Wii U yet...
...and three of them are on (or coming to) 3DS as well...
...and four of them are retro and styled off specific classics...


So yeah, Wii U hasn't had the most robust third party support.
01/16/16, 02:00   
Edited: 01/16/16, 02:00
3DS
5. Volgarr the Viking
~~~ Whether on Wii U or 3DS (or, you know, PC) it's a great old-school game.
4. Azure Striker Gunvolt
~~~ Excellent spiritual successor to the Mega Man Zero/ZX line, with a clever gimmick of its own.
3. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney -- Dual Destinies
~~~ Ha ha! In justice we trust!
2. Yumi's Odd Odyssey
~~~ One of those games that has one mechanic that it absolutely nails.
1. Shovel Knight
~~~ The opening stage music is playing in my head right now.

3DS fares a bit better than Wii U on the third party front, but a huge portion of that is JRPGs, which I haven't touched too much this generation...

Honorable mentions: 3D Sonic the Hedgehog, Dead or Alive Dimensions, Super Street Fighter IV, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars
Noitu Love: Devolution place in Wii U but doesn't appear here because I'm skeptical that its controls will translate to 3DS...
01/16/16, 06:19   
Edited: 01/16/16, 06:19
Wii U

1. Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut
2. ZombiU
3. Rayman Legends
4. Shovel Knight
5. Splinter Cell: Blacklist

Ubisoft did some good stuff early on. A lot of multiplatform stuff for sure, but good games nonetheless. Deus Ex was fucking rad, and did a lot of neat stuff with the Game Pad. In fact, the top 3 here are three of the best at making use of the Game Pad.
01/16/16, 06:27   
Wow this list took me days to compile. I used the rule nate38 mentioned and I'll start from the oldest…

NES
5.) Super Spike V'Ball
4.) Little Nemo: The Dream Master
3.) Mega Man II
2.) DuckTales
1.) Bubble Bobble

Honorable Mention: Monster Party (I have no recollection of obtaining this game but it's funky and fun.)

GameBoy
2.) Final Fantasy Adventure
1.) Tetris Plus

Dishonorable Mention: It's sad too but I can't think of any non-Nintendo games I played besides these two. I'm sure I own them but they must not be very prominent.

SNES
5.) Aladdin
4.) NBA Jam
3.) Mega Man X
2.) Tiny Toons: Buster Busts Loose!
1.) Chrono Trigger

Honorable Mention: The Lion King (another Disney classic)

N64
5.) WCW vs nWo World Tour
4.) Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey
3.) Bomberman 64
2.) Space Station Silicon Valley
1.) Harvest Moon 64

Honorable Mention: Cruis'n USA (one of my first N64 games and probably shitty, but I loved it at the time.)

GameBoy Advance
1.) Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town

Dishonorable Mention: I can't think of a single other game… the GBA did NOT get much play, probably the least of all the systems listed in this post… however I LOVED and played HM:FoMT like mad. So it deserves all five spots.

Nintendo DS
5.) Scribblenauts
4.) CrossworDS
3.) Harvest Moon DS: Island of Happiness
2.) Radiant Historia
1.) Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Honorable Mention: Chrono Trigger DS (since it's a re-release of the SNES title.)

Gamecube
5.) XIII
4.) SSX On Tour
3.) Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
2.) Super Monkey Ball 2
1.) Timesplitters: Future Perfect

Honorable Mention: Star Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader (an awesome game I played but never owned.)

Wii
5.) Boom Blox: Bash Party
4.) The Conduit
3.) Cave Story
2.) Goldeneye 007
1.) Little King Story

Honorable Mention: Xenoblade Chronicles (published by Nintendo but not made by them so I don't know if this doesn't fit.)

Nintendo 3DS
5.) Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
4.) Puzzle & Dragons Z + Super Mario Bros.
3.) Tappingo
2.) SteamWorld Heist
1.) VVVVVV

Honorable Mention: Fantasy Life (Level-5 is 'almost' a 2nd party no? Didn't feel I could count it.)

Wii U
5.) Bit.Trip Runner 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien
4.) Freedom Planet
3.) Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
2.) Shovel Knight
1.) SteamWorld Dig

Honorable Mention: Lego City Undercover (one of the best games on the Wii U but published by the Big N so I kept it off.)
01/16/16, 06:28   
Gamecube: (in no particular order)
a) Burnout 2 (one of the best arcade racers of all time - the sequels were fun, but not as skill-based)
b) Timesplitters 2 (I still think that Nintendo should fund an exclusive Timesplitters 4)
c) Prince of Persia (great storytelling)
d) Viewtiful Joe (even though I still haven't played more than a couple hours into it)
e) Resident Eeeevil 4 (even though I still haven't played more than a couple hours into it)

Honorable mentions: Super Monkey Ball, Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits, P.N.03

Upon reflection, a staggering majority of my Gamecube games are first-party. It actually had pretty decent third-party support, too.

Wii: (in no particular order)
a) Monster Hunter Tri (man, this game consumed me)
b) Boom Blox (a rare game that, with the right crowd, could stand toe to toe with Wii Sports in the 'everybody' party game category)
c) No More Heroes (for being batshit insane)
d) Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom (a cool alternative, rather than a diminished version of a mainline series)
e) Geometry Wars (a simple idea, executed extraordinarily well)

Honorable mentions: Trauma Center, Sonic Colors

There were lots of fascinating third-party experiments on the Wii, as well. I didn't include many, since their experimental nature made them rough around the edges, but they certainly kept the lineup interesting for me.

Wii U: (in no particular order)
a) Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (this game can get a party started, absent doodling feature notwithstanding)
b) Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (huuuuge)
c) Arkham City (although I didn't play it on Wii U)
d) Sonic & Sega Racing Transformed (awful framerate in multi and crappy weapons, but very imaginative)
e) Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party (the single-player is amazing!)

Honorable Mentions: Woah Dave! (I have to put more time into this version), FAST Racing NEO, Trine 2, Rayman Legends, Chasing Aurora (apparently, I'm the only person in the world who likes this game?), Guacamelee, Mighty Switch Force, Shantae (although I have the 3DS version), Runbow (just based off of the demo), Scribblenauts Unlimited (for the farting, polka-dot T-Rexes)

Not quite as dire as I thought, actually!
01/16/16, 17:44   
Edited: 01/16/16, 19:45
Anand said:
e) Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party (the single-player is amazing!)

What.

BTW this is such a weird game to play at a party with a bunch of guys.
01/16/16, 17:48   
@Zero
I've never played it any other way. As far as I'm concerned, it's Bumpie's Sausage Party.

The single-player thing was a joke, of course.
01/16/16, 17:51   
@Anand

Nintendo SHOULD fund a TimeSplitters 4. Not to get into a big rant (and I totally could), but I'm sick of modern FPSes and their awful, awful regenerating health system. Bring back the GE/PD/TS model please!
01/16/16, 19:10   
@TriforceBun
I think the originator of many of those modern console FPS tropes, Halo, actually used them well. But, yeah, I'm also pretty tired of modern FPS design. Especially the single-player campaigns. When they even exist at all, they're atrocious.

Even though Splatoon's campaign was more of a tutorial, it was probably the best FPS campaign since... I dunno.

But a TimeSplitters 4 would go down so smoothly, in light of today's FPS scene. Tons of weapon variety, tons of options, lots of color, actual level design, level creation, local multiplayer, good value, a lighthearted feel...

Also, power pop should make a resurgence. And everything else that I enjoyed in my youth.

DrFinkelstein said:

Nintendo DS
5.) Scribblenauts
4.) CrossworDS
3.) Harvest Moon DS: Island of Happiness
2.) Radiant Historia
1.) Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Stephen, I think your grandma might've hacked your account again...

I'm honestly kind of shocked at people finding it hard to fill out an NES or GBA list. For me, those are probably the richest third-party libraries! My GBA list is going to be super-tough to whittle down.
01/16/16, 20:05   
Whoops! Why did I forget Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate for my Wii U list? So odd...

Nice to see Little King's Story on so many lists, even if I were making a general top ten then it would be on that list too. Rune Factory Frontier would also likely be on it. I remember some people talking about how 2009 was a lean year for the Wii, but I think those people just weren't looking beyond Nintendo's releases (which I thought were good that year too).

@DrFinkelstein It didn't look like Anand wanted to count any Nintendo-published titles, so yeah, stuff like Fantasy Life, Lego City Undercover, Star Wars Rogue Squadron II, Cruis'n USA, and Xenoblade Chronicles isn't included. You also placed two Nintendo-published titles on your list in the form of CrossworDS and Puzzle 'n Dragons + Super Mario Bros. Edition.

Also, I just realised that Bomberman 64 was published by Nintendo in North America. I broke the rule again! Nintendo sure took on a lot of publishing...

@Anand I agree, the concept of regenerating health is an okay idea and can work in some games like Splatoon and Halo. My main problem with it is that it's overused, and also that it can be a crutch for poor level/game design.
01/16/16, 20:50   
A few more!

Game Boy/Game Boy Color: (in no particular order) - Yep, I'm combinin' 'em. I became acquainted with both systems when the GBA came out
a) Bionic Commando - What can I say, I'm a sucker for Bionic Commando. I actually returned my GBA three times right after launch because I couldn't blay BC: Elite Forces on it. Turns out that it was the game.)
b) Kid Dracula - Totes Adorbs!
c) Micro Machines V3 - Two players on one system!
d) Metal Gear Solid
e) ??

Honestly, I haven't played too many GB/GBC third-party games, except for some shitty licensed stuff, back in the day. I also haven't dipped into stuff like Mega Man V or Xtreme 2 or Gargoyle's Quest yet, so I can't include those. I almost put Nekketsu Beach Volley or Snow Bros Jr. or Wizards and Warriors X at Number 5, just by finding out that they existed! Also, apparently, the only original Ultima games on console are the Runes of Virtue action RPG games on the Game Boy, with the first being Richard Garriot's favorite console Ultima.


Virtual Boy: - Can't do it! I only had a handful of first-party games.


GBA: (in no particular order) - This will be tough...
a) Astro Boy: Omega Force - My favorite Treasure game. Fantastic brawling mechanics. The rare licensed game that actually made me more interested in the character.
b) Ninja Five-O - Shinobi + Bionic Commando = Happy Anand
c) Mega Man Zero - Whichever one. Hardcore action perfection. Bonus points for the ability to skate through levels.
d) Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow - Igarashi's greatest Metroid rip-off ever!
e) Mega Man Battle Network - Whichever one. That rarest of beasts - an RPG which is actually fun!

Honorable Mentions: Boktai (Metal Gear + Zelda + Castlevania + the awesome power of our sun = WTF!), Bomberman Tournament (single-cart multi), Castlevania: Circle of the Moon (this game is awesomely unbalanced and breakable), Chu Chu Rocket!, Denki Blocks, Double Dragon Advance, River City Ransom EX, Final Fight One, Super Ghouls'n'Ghosts Advance, Super Puzzle Fighter II, Karnaaj Rally, Racing Gears Advance (apparently, the sequel to this awesome game was cancelled? so sad!), Klonoa & Klonoa 2, Metal Slug Advance, The Pinball of the Dead, Rayman Advance, Sabre Wulf, Sigma Star Saga, Sonic Advance, Street Fighter Alpha 3, TMNT, Duke Nukem Advance...

God damn, what a treasure trove of action game goodness. I freakin' love the GBA library. Bonus points for the introduction of awesome single-cart multiplayer. I know that some people prefer the DS, but it has too many RPGs! RPGs are, after all, for loners who sit in their room all day.

Even so, I still can't bring myself to like them!

@Mop it up
Yeah, when you actually look at the game libraries, Nintendo brought over and published quite a bit of third-party stuff in North America. I thought that was a relatively new thing, but I guess not. I had no idea that they published Bomberman 64.
01/16/16, 22:14   
Edited: 01/16/16, 23:40
I concur, the GBA library was/is absolutely amazing.
01/17/16, 17:02   
@Mop it up

2009 is my favorite "quirky" year for the Wii. A lot of underrated gems came out that year that made gaming feel fresh again: ExciteBots, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, Rune Factory Frontier, Little King's Story, Punch-Out...
01/17/16, 21:19   
Edited: 01/17/16, 21:19
@Mop it up

I get that maybe Nintendo published them but in my eyes it's such a muddy distinction because if Nintendo didn't create the game, that seems like fair play. Considering the nature of the Nintendo's ecosystem, publishing great games is important for them even when they don't make them.

But alas, whatev. I broke some rules. Going back to revise it would only either shorten my lists or force me to pick new 5th place spots (or the random 4th place perhaps).
01/17/16, 21:33   
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