Diddy and Dixie through Kaptain K. Rool's pirate world; the hardest and best of the Rare trilogy.
Ryo in Hong Kong and Kowloon, still asking strangers about sailors, and an ending left hanging for eighteen years.
Pre-rendered apes on a SNES in 1994, mine carts and a David Wise soundtrack that still gets remixed.
Build your own party, then learn which world you have been walking around; the ending that ties the trilogy up.
One of a linked pair of Game Boy Zeldas, with a rod that changes the season.
Simon Belmont, a whip and stairs that will kill you; the 1986 original.
Six characters, a killer whale and the Dreamcast's launch.
Branching paths and three companions; the best of the NES Castlevanias.
Hoenn, double battles and a plot about the sea and the land.
Link shrinks to the size of a Picori; Capcom's handheld Zelda.
Mode 7 at three hundred kilometres an hour with no weapons and no second chances; the SNES launch racer.
Side-scrolling, experience points and the black sheep of the series.
Cars, hovercraft and planes in an adventure mode with a boss whale; Rare on the N64 in 1997.
108 Stars of Destiny, a castle to fill and a war between brothers; Konami's first.
Three generations, a marriage you choose and monsters you recruit; the fans' favourite.
Climb the tier ladder past the bots to Xaero, then stay for the rocket jumps and rail shots.
The first fully 3D Dragon Quest, with Akira Toriyama's world in cel shading.
Pull vegetables and throw them; the reskinned Doki Doki Panic that became a Mario game.
Cecil turns from dark knight to paladin; the first Final Fantasy with a real story.
The fastest racing game ever made; Amusement Vision on the GameCube.
Four turtles through history, throwing Foot soldiers at the screen.
Rescue humans from abduction while flying both ways at speed; the hardest game of 1981.
A barbarian, a dwarf and an amazon against Death Adder, riding stolen dragons.
Tiny players, a whole football world and as many seasons of management as you want.
Cross the road, cross the river, do not drown; five lanes of 1981 traffic.
Vector rocks, one ship and hyperspace; Atari's 1979 arcade high-score machine.
Two planes, a screen of bullets and the Vulcan/laser choice; the vertical shooter to start with.
Yoshi carries baby Mario through a crayon world; the SNES platformer at its most inventive.
A shooter that plays like a rave; Mizuguchi's synaesthesia on the Dreamcast.
The first big MMORPG, player-run houses and the murder of Lord British.
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