Might be buying a game console...

[Mr. Hair]

... And it's going to be a SNES. Yep, that's right, in the near future I may well wield total control over almost 2.7 MHz of pure gaming power, or in layman's terms, almost 1/1200th of the pure gaming power of a PS3 or Xbox 360.

Wow.

Anyhoot, does anyone here have any experience with the ol' Super Nin's, or at least have any sage words for a fairly poor student choosing to empty his bank account to purchase a near-twenty year old system?

(Oh, and a poll, I hope! Yay!)

 

[Idiolatry]

Classic! Right on. It's been quite some time since I've played SNES but, my advice--If you're cleaning the games, use something mild like Windex. Never use rubbing alcohol or something harsh like that.

 

[rojse]

I must say that the SNES has some good games on it (Final Fantasy and Super Mario come to mind here) but I don't see why you would spend the money to have an actual console rather than play SNES games through an emulator. The SNES emulator and roms are easy enough to find, there are few copyright issues (a few nintendo-owned games like "Legend of the Seven Stars" are the exception), and you can even hack a PSP to play SNES games on it on a handheld console (and this is from someone who has done this without too much difficulty).

 

[rojse]

Classic! Right on. It's been quite some time since I've played SNES but, my advice--If you're cleaning the games, use something mild like Windex. Never use rubbing alcohol or something harsh like that.

I think you would practice something like that on a cheap cartridge rather than a collector's item to get the hang of it first.

 

[Father Heathen]

Legend of Zelda: A Link to The Past is a must.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

The SNES is awesome. From way back when I was a little kid, up to today, the SNES has remained one of my favorites.
One thing to keep in mind, many of the classic titles, and the best, can be difficult to find, and can often cost quite abit more than other titles.
I HIGHLY recommend the following games;
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Megaman X
Chrono Cross
Final Fantasy 2
Secret of Mana
Shadowrun
Lufia

I'll be able to list more later, but I'm too tired to right now.

 

[Father Heathen]

Chrono Cross was a ps1 game, wasn't it? I think you mean Chrono Trigger

 

[Shadow Wolf]

I think you mean Chrono Trigger

I did. For some reason, I always get the two backwards.

 

[Mr. Hair]

Hey, positive responses!

Classic! Right on. It's been quite some time since I've played SNES but, my advice--If you're cleaning the games, use something mild like Windex. Never use rubbing alcohol or something harsh like that.

Aye, it's going to be awesome. Now, admittedly I haven't actually played anything yet, or read any dispassionate accounts of people who have, but frankly I believe that when you want something to be a certain way strongly enough you don't need first-hand experience or reliable information to justify it and that...

Okay, look, the joke is George W. Bush.

An elderly, cracked cymbal struggles to get above a mournful whisper before breaking apart.

I must say that the SNES has some good games on it (Final Fantasy and Super Mario come to mind here) but I don't see why you would spend the money to have an actual console rather than play SNES games through an emulator.

Ahhh, well, I had briefly considered emulation, but three things convinced me not to go down that route:

1. It wouldn't "feel" like I was playing a SNES.
2. I want to luxuriate in my middle class-ness for a bit, and nothing says "middle class" like paying for something you can get for free.
3. I'd already spend some money over the damn thing, so the only economically sensible thing I can do is to spend even more.

Legend of Zelda: A Link to The Past is a must.

Hell yes, some of my earliest and fondest memories of gaming come from playing that on the original GameBoy.

I HIGHLY recommend the following games;
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Megaman X
Chrono Cross
Final Fantasy 2
Secret of Mana
Shadowrun
Lufia

Wow, sometimes being an out-and-proud PAL resident kinda sucks; literally half the games on that list were never released for my region. I guess Nintendo just hates Europe.

Eventually, I figure I'm going to either buy an adapter, or luxuriate a bit more and buy a modded SNES, and begin getting my import on. It'll be delightfully expensive (which is apparently what I'm going for these days), but at least I'll be able to play games like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger. Not Super Mario RPG though, if you're not NTSC through-and-through there's simply no way you can play it.

Man, Nintendo really despises Europe.

(We were given Secret of Mana though, and after reading your suggestions and checking it out I'm getting it for Christmas. So, yay!)

 

[BucephalusBB]

Actually, the only game you couldn't buy in the Netherlands from that list was Chrono Cross..
And maybe you could, I just don't recognize the title.
A friend of mine had Super Mario RPG and I really do think he had a european console..

EDIT: Nope, he had an american system..
You're right!

 

[Shadow Wolf]

1. It wouldn't "feel" like I was playing a SNES.
2. I want to luxuriate in my middle class-ness for a bit, and nothing says "middle class" like paying for something you can get for free.
3. I'd already spend some money over the damn thing, so the only economically sensible thing I can do is to spend even more.
   

Also, many of the ROMs are not 100% true to the original cartridge. And you are right, it just doesn't seem like you are playing the SNES. It's fun for some games that are very difficult to find, but your legally obligated to delete the file within 24 hours of downloading if you do not own an actual copy of the game. At least that is the laws in the states. Not sure if the copyright laws also apply the same way in Europe or not.

Also ment to add in, it's also becoming more and more difficult to find sites that offer ROMs (the actual game) without a bunch of attached strings. Many of the old sites I use to get them from either aren't around anymore, or do not have the files to download (they say they do, but then say you are not authorized to download them because of copyright laws.).

 

[Mr. Hair]

Actually, the only game you couldn't buy in the Netherlands from that list was Chrono Cross..

What can I say? Maybe Nintendo is secretly charmed by the whole Netherland-thing y'all got going? (And who could blame them? )

(I was going by the All-Mighty-Wiki, which says the FF, CT, Lufia and Legends were never, ever, officially released in a PAL format, and never, ever, will be... EVER!)

 

[rojse]

It doesn't feel middle-class to play SNES games on a PSP?

 

[Father Heathen]

Hell yes, some of my earliest and fondest memories of gaming come from playing that on the original GameBoy.

Oh, no, that's Link's Awakening. Another good game, but a different Zelda title.

 

[Father Heathen]

It doesn't feel middle-class to play SNES games on a PSP?

Not sure what you mean by "middle-class", but the old 8 and 16 bit classics are more enjoyable than most of the mediocre, cookie cutter crap that gets pumped out nowadays.

 

[tomspug]

Chrono Trigger is a MUST play, along with Super Metroid (my pick for best game of all time), a Link to the Past, and Yoshi's Island.

 

[rojse]

Not sure what you mean by "middle-class", but the old 8 and 16 bit classics are more enjoyable than most of the mediocre, cookie cutter crap that gets pumped out nowadays.

The phrase "middle-class" was used as a justification for buying a SNES rather than playing through emulation. It's the only reason I used that phrase.

I have played several games from the SNES and SEGA era through emulation, and quite enjoyed them - I must recommend Final Fantasy IV and V for the SNES.

For all the fun I have had playing emulated games, there have been no retro games that have led me to devote as much time as I have to some of my games on PS1 or PS2, and although there are deriviative games on the new consoles not even worth renting, I have no doubt that there are games just as worthy of our condemnation from the SNES period.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Chrono Trigger is a MUST play, along with Super Metroid (my pick for best game of all time), a Link to the Past, and Yoshi's Island

Super Metroid was the game I couldn't remember. Damn me!!!
I even found a way to get infinite jumps using the morph ball bomb, which means you can get just about anywhere without the intended equipment.

 

[Mister_T]

I think I agree with just about every game mentioned here.

I'd also have to add Final Fantasy 3 (or as it's known in Japan, FF6) and Demon's Crest (One of my personal all time favorites).

 

[Father Heathen]

Oh! Populous! How could I have forgotten that one? I would probably by an old SNES console for that title alone, and I think the SNES version is actually superior to the PC version.