Five favorites: Super Famicom box art

After publishing this post about five of my favorite pieces of Japanese GameBoy Advance box art, a commenter named Jin suggested I write a similar post about Super Famicom cover art.

Well, here it is. Or maybe I should say "here's the first one," as a second is likely to follow tomorrow or the next day.

Regardless, here are five of my favorite pieces of Super Famicom box art (in random, rather than alphabetical, order):

Parodius Da!--One of the best pieces of Parodius box art produced so far, if you ask me. Also one of the most colorful illustrations to grace the cover of a Super Famicom game. As such, it clearly deserves a spot on this list--and in my games collection, at some future point in time.

Torneko no Daibōken: Fushigi no Dungeon--More proof that sometimes simple cover art is the best. It helps, of course, that the centerpiece of this example is both humorous and appealing and that its logo has a bit more character than your average Super Famicom game.



Final Fantasy VI--If I were to concoct a number of these posts, I'd include the box art created for Final Fantasy IV and V, too, but since I'm only publishing a pair of them, I'm limiting myself to just one piece of 16-bit Final Fantasy box art. In that case, I have to go with Final Fantasy VI's, which in my opinion is about the closest video game cover imagery has gotten to "fine art."

Sutte Hakkun--Not as fabulous or as intricately designed as the cover art above and below, but this one brings a bit of old-school whimsy to the proceedings, don't you think? Plus, it features a rainbow, which always earns a positive nod from yours truly.

Seiken Densetsu 2--Easily one of my all-time favorite games, and also one of my all-time favorite game covers. Rarely has box art for any system--before the Super Famicom or after--ever looked so majestic, in my estimation.

See also: my five favorite pieces of Japanese GBA box art

My sequel-laden 3DS wish list

We're less than a year into the 3DS' life, and already number of high-profile sequels have been announced (if not released) for Nintendo's latest handheld system. Among them: Animal Crossing 3DS, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Luigi's Mansion 2, Mario Kart 7, Monster Hunter 3G (and 4), Paper Mario 3DS and Resident Evil: Revelations.

Without sounding ungrateful, I want more. Specifically, I want the following sequels to be announced and released for the 3DS before the system expires, as game systems are wont to do, at the ripe old age of five or six.

I wouldn't be surprised if Dragon Quest XI looked a bit like this.

1. Dragon Quest XI--Having not played a Dragon Quest game since the first one, I picked up Dragon Quest IX with equal amounts of caution and curiosity. That won't be the case should the series' next entry be announced for the 3DS, though, since, in the end, the DS iteration completely blew me away. I can only imagine how great a portable part XI could be thanks to the 3DS' enhanced graphics and online capabilities.

Imagine experiencing Endless Ocean's cool waters in 3D.

2. Endless Ocean 3--I've said it before and I'll say it again: The original Endless Ocean is one of my favorite Wii titles thanks to its beautiful graphics, haunting soundtrack and immersive gameplay. (Sadly, I've yet to play the sequel.) As such, if the same team made a third Endless Ocean game for the 3DS, I'd not only order a copy for myself at the earliest opportunity but I'd also order a copy for every 3DS owner I know--or at least I would if I could afford it.

The Great Gaymathon Review #42: Final Fantasy VI (Super Famicom)

Game: Final Fantasy VI

Genre: RPG

Developer: Squaresoft

Publisher: Squaresoft

System: Super Famicom

Release date: 1994

Whenever I'm asked to name my all-time favorite RPG (admittedly, it doesn't happen often), I nearly without exception answer, "Final Fantasy V." Whenever I'm asked to name what I consider to be the best RPG ever made, though, I usually point to that game's sequel. (Sometimes I point to the seminal EarthBound instead.) There are a number of reasons for that, of course. One is that Final Fantasy VI features some of the best graphics seen in a Super Famicom game (something that can't be said about its still-quite-attractive predecessor). Another is that it features one of that system's best soundtracks, courtesy of the incomparable Nobuo Uematsu. Neither of those things would matter much to me, though, if the game's story and gameplay sucked. Thankfully, that's far from the case. In regards to the former, for instance, VI's gritty, steampunk-ish story is among the best of any Final Fantasy game. (Its kick-ass opera sequence is worth the price of admission alone, in my humble opinion.) Its gameplay--which centers on an "Active Time Battle" system that's an evolution of the one first introduced in Final Fantasy IV--is pretty great, too, although less revelatory than its story. Anyway, although I consider Final Fantasy VI to be the best RPG ever made (or at least the best one I've ever played), it isn't perfect. For starters, I find it to be less fun than its forebear--thanks in large part to the fact that the former lacks the crazy character customization that served as the foundation of the latter. Also, VI's second act drags a bit due to its open-endedness. Considering those two quibbles are the only ones I could come up with in regards to Final Fantasy VI, though, it should be clear that this is about as close to a quintessential RPG as you're likely to get.

See also: Previous 'Great Gaymathon' posts

Final Fantasy fetishism

Just a few photos of the Japanese versions of Final Fantasy V and VI (which I found in my old bedroom closet while on vacation last week).

See also: 'I've hit the jackpot'