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11.13.2010

My top 5 NES game intros

This is my first attempt at creating a top 5 list of any sort. Normally I wouldn't bother creating one in the first place since everyone else on the internet is riding the top five things your mom likes to do on a Saturday night bandwagon. You know what? I don't care, I'm going to do it anyways.

Watching game intros was my number one priority as a kid gamer. I would never in a million years press start on that NES controller and bypass the experience. More often than not, NES games lacked any intros at all, but when they did it was often a religious experience for me. Come with me my friends and let's relive some childhood memories as I imitate the Wayne's World time warp with my hands. Here are my top 5 NES game intros.

1. Mega Man 2


Mega Man 2 is probably my favorite NES game of all time and arguably has the best NES soundtrack ever composed. I think this intro just might have been cemented into every gamers mind the first time they saw it. The cleverly timed music lead in with the camera panning up a sky scraper just melded perfectly into something that felt exciting and made you want to kick butt as a kid. Still to this day, I watch this intro every time I boot up the game.

There's 4 more to go. So click the link below, I know you want to.


2. Ninja Gaiden
 

The Ninja Gaiden series was a staple in the NES days. I think as intros go, they were the slickest the NES could produce and it's comic book style made the games story come alive. Millions of little kids around the world including myself armed themselves with sticks and proceeded to fly through the air in an attempt to one hit kill their brother or best friend. Then the inevitable argument ensued at to who hit who first and which Ninja shall fall. It was one of the most epic moments in gaming history. 


3. Ninja Gaiden II 
 


I had a hard time deciding if Ninja Gaiden II should be placed in the number 2 spot, but ultimately this one couldn't live up to the same impact the first one had on me as a kid. But the one thing this one had that sold it to me was amazing music. You could tell that there was some major evil in this game and your journey to destroy Ashtar was going to be brutal one.


4. Battletoads
 


I loved Battletoads and I must admit that this one may be a biased choice on my part. After playing the first Ninja Turtles on NES and feeling a little disappointed, along came Battletoads. A funky sounding beat with a Ninja Turtlesque visual style made me fall in love with the Toads. The whole intro just was fun to watch for an 8 year old.


5. Master Blaster



In the 80's and early 90's there was a trend towards radioactive amphibians. So it's no surprise that another game on my list is in the same vein. But I feel like Master Blaster at least put a spin on it that any little kid could connect with. You favorite pet frog escapes and it's up to you find in a deep dark underground cave him with an awesome car tank. You never leave a man behind, all 8 year old kids understood this. 

So I hope some of these brought back some good memories of your favorite NES games.

What are some of your favorite NES game intros?


2 comments:

  1. Battletoads would be up there, but I don't really recall a lot of intros.

    Perhaps Super Mario Bros. 3's, and even Duck Hunt's brief intro with the dog, would be up on mine.

    ReplyDelete
  2. @ Coffee, I did consider Mario 3, but never thought of Duck Hunt... that dog still haunts me.

    ReplyDelete

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