Inspired by a similar thread, I am posting the top 100 video games of all time as determined by the editorial staff of Electronic Gaming Monthly in 1997. You can find a copy of this legendary game magazine here:
https://archive.org/details/electronic-gaming-monthly-issue-100-november-1997_202106/page/n1/mode/1up
The magazine contains a brief description of each game along with a justification for its inclusion on the list. Also, and since this issue was released over 26 years ago, every game on the list is now a retro game!
PLEASE NOTE: EGM covered only console games released in North America! Accordingly, you won’t see any PC games on this list, and you won’t see any games released exclusively in other territories!
Here’s the list!
100. Qix (NES)
99. Samurai Shodown (Neo Geo)
98. Virtua Cop 2 (Saturn)
97. MLB ‘98 (PS1)
96. WipeOut XL (PS1)
95. DecAthlete (Saturn)
94. Ice Hockey (NES)
93. Blast Corps (N64)
92. Flashback (Genesis)
91. Axelay (SNES)
90. Panzer Dragoon Zwei (Saturn)
89. Ms. Pac-Man (Genesis/SNES)
88. Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos (NES)
87. Baseball Stars (NES)
86. Galactic Attack (Saturn)
85. Bonk’s Adventure (TG16)
84. Kirby’s Avalanche/Mean Bean Machine (Genesis/SNES)
83. Revenge of Shinobi (Genesis)
82. Jumping Flash! 2 (PS1)
81. Sega Rally Championship (Saturn)
80. Legendary Axe (TG16)
79. Virtua Fighter 2 (Saturn)
78. Mega Man X4 (PS1/Saturn)
77. Blazing Lazers (TG16)
76. Life Force (NES)
75. Actraiser (SNES)
74. Worldwide Soccer ‘97 (Saturn)
73. Mega Man 2 (NES)
72. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (NES)
71. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Genesis)
70. NiGHTS (Saturn)
69. Snatcher (Sega CD)
68. Wave Race 64 (N64)
67. Donkey Kong (Gameboy)
66. Guardian Heroes (Saturn)
65. Tecmo Super Bowl (NES)
64. Twisted Metal 2: World Tour (PS1)
63. Return Fire (3D0)
62. Phantasy Star (SMS)
61. NHL Hockey ‘94 (Genesis)
60. Shining Force II (Genesis)
59. Thunder Force III (Genesis)
58. Dragon Warrior IV (NES)
57. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse (NES)
56. Super Punch-Out!! (SNES)
55. Dragon Force (Saturn)
54. Tomb Raider (PS1)
53. Gate of Thunder (TGCD)
52. R.C. Pro Am (NES)
51. Tekken 2 (PS1)
50. Devil’s Crush (TG16)
49. Mario Kart 64 (N64)
48. Military Madness (TG16)
47. Ghouls ‘n Ghosts (Genesis)
46. Space Mega Force (SNES)
45. Contra (NES)
44. Metroid (NES)
43. Herzog Zwei (Genesis)
42. Strider (Genesis)
41. Arkanoid (NES)
40. Lunar: Eternal Blue (Sega CD)
39. Star Fox 64 (N64)
38. Ys Book I & II (TGCD)
37. Super Mario Bros. (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
36. Street Fighter Alpha 2 (Saturn)
35. Metal Gear (NES)
34. Kid Icarus (NES)
33. NBA Live ‘97 (PS1)
32. Bionic Commando (NES)
31. NFL Gameday ‘98 (PS1)
30. Phantasy Star II (Genesis)
29. Chrono Trigger (SNES)
28. Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (Gameboy)
27. Gunstar Heroes (Genesis)
26. Super Mario RPG (SNES)
25. GoldenEye 007 (N64)
24. International SuperStar Soccer 64 (N64)
23. R-Type III (SNES)
22. Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts (SNES)
21. Final Fantasy VII (PS1)
20. Super Castlevania IV (SNES)
19. Madden NFL 98 (PS1)
18. F-Zero (SNES)
17. Sonic CD (Sega CD)
16. Tetris Attack (SNES)
15. Super Mario Kart (SNES)
14. Super Mario Bros. 2 (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
13. Legend of Zelda (NES)
12. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (PS1)
11. Super Mario World (SNES)
10. Saturn Bomberman (Saturn)
9. Final Fantasy III (SNES)
8. Contra III: The Alien Wars (SNES)
7. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island (SNES)
6. Super Metroid (SNES)
5. Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting (SNES)
4. Super Mario 64 (N64)
3. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
2. Super Mario Bros. 3 (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
1. Tetris (NES)
How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
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prfsnl_gmr
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How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Last edited by prfsnl_gmr on Fri Feb 16, 2024 10:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Total of 44. When going through things weren't looking that good, but then in the upper half the quality gets far denser. It's funny to look back at a list like this and see so many games that only made it because of a general lack of choice.
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prfsnl_gmr
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Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
It’s an interesting list. Some of the picks, such as Tetris, Chrono Trigger, Ys Book I&II, Mega Man X4, Castlevania III, and SMB3 have aged really well, while others, like Bonk’s Adventure and almost all of the sports games, have not. (Notably, a few of the sports picks: Ice Hockey, Baseball Stars, NHL ‘94, and DecAthlete, are still really fun!) A lot of these are, I think, now considered cult classics or hidden gems (e.g., Return Fire, R-Type III, Dragon Force, and Legendary Axe).
Some of the exclusions are also really weird. Resident Evil isn’t on the list, and Donkey Kong Country, Samurai Shodown II, Phantasy Star IV, or Pokémon Red/Blue (all of which, I think, had been released by 1997) are also absent. The list is also completely devoid of second generation games like Space Invaders, Warlords, etc. Some exclusions, like Earthbound, are pretty easy to understand since they didn’t really become popular until after the advent of the internet and emulation (both of which existed in 1997, but neither of which were as ubiquitous as they are now).
I’ve beaten 82 of these, but - full disclosure - I’ve been working my way through this list for a very long time!
Some of the exclusions are also really weird. Resident Evil isn’t on the list, and Donkey Kong Country, Samurai Shodown II, Phantasy Star IV, or Pokémon Red/Blue (all of which, I think, had been released by 1997) are also absent. The list is also completely devoid of second generation games like Space Invaders, Warlords, etc. Some exclusions, like Earthbound, are pretty easy to understand since they didn’t really become popular until after the advent of the internet and emulation (both of which existed in 1997, but neither of which were as ubiquitous as they are now).
I’ve beaten 82 of these, but - full disclosure - I’ve been working my way through this list for a very long time!
Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Number 78. Mega Man X4
Scroll down literally a few pages and there's a Mega Man X4 ad.
EGM: Keepin' it classy.
Scroll down literally a few pages and there's a Mega Man X4 ad.
EGM: Keepin' it classy.
Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
I haven't beaten too many of these. In fact, it'd be more accurate to say these games have beaten me. I'm a mere husk of the person I was before I picked up a game controller. Thanks a lot, video games.
marurun wrote: We’re not going to rubber stamp your horrible decisions.
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RobertAugustdeMeijer
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Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Let's go Justin!!
47 beaten. Amazing how many of these old games I still have to get around to. Anyone got a Saturn with Panzer Dragoon Saga lying around ?
47 beaten. Amazing how many of these old games I still have to get around to. Anyone got a Saturn with Panzer Dragoon Saga lying around ?
Last edited by RobertAugustdeMeijer on Fri Feb 02, 2024 11:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
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PartridgeSenpai
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Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Only 34 for me~
A bit lower than I thought it'd be, but there are some very interestingly out there picks on here! Very interesting to see a list like this so long ago when there was so (relatively) little to pick from :O
A bit lower than I thought it'd be, but there are some very interestingly out there picks on here! Very interesting to see a list like this so long ago when there was so (relatively) little to pick from :O
I identify everyone via avatar, so if you change your avatar, I genuinely might completely forget who you are. -- Me
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prfsnl_gmr
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Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
opa wrote:Number 78. Mega Man X4
Scroll down literally a few pages and there's a Mega Man X4 ad.
EGM: Keepin' it classy.
They actually reviewed three of the games in their top 100 that issue: CV: SOTN, MMX4, and Saturn Bomberman. I can’t argue with any of those choices!
Also, at least back in the ‘90s, EGM very publicly lost advertising revenue for not giving good reviews to games advertised in the magazine. Accordingly, I am inclined to believe MMX4 is a legit choice (especially since MMX4 remains to this day one of the very best action platformers.)
Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
prfsnl_gmr wrote:
75. Actraiser (SNES)
73. Mega Man 2 (NES)
72. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (NES)
71. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Genesis)
62. Phantasy Star (SMS)
57. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse (NES)
45. Contra (NES)
44. Metroid (NES)
37. Super Mario Bros. (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
28. Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (Gameboy)
26. Super Mario RPG (SNES)
20. Super Castlevania IV (SNES)
14. Super Mario Bros. 2 (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
13. Legend of Zelda (NES)
11. Super Mario World (SNES)
6. Super Metroid (SNES)
4. Super Mario 64 (N64)
3. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)
2. Super Mario Bros. 3 (All-Stars Edition) (SNES)
I've only actually beaten 19 on this list.
It's funny to me that they call out the All-Stars editions for the Mario games. I cheated on those, because I've actually never played the All-Stars versions of the Mario games.
Last edited by Limewater on Fri Feb 02, 2024 11:47 am, edited 1 time in total.
Systems: TI-99/4a, Commodore Vic-20, Atari 2600, NES, SMS, GB, Neo Geo MVS (Big Red 4-slot), Genesis, SNES, 3DO, PS1, N64, DC, PS2, GBA, GCN, NDSi, Wii
Re: How Many of the EGM 100 Have You Beaten?
Limewater wrote:I've only actually beaten 19 on this list.
It's funny to me that they call out the All-Stars editions for the Mario games. I cheated on those, because I've actually never played the All-Stars versions of the Mario games.
I only made it to 20 beaten and I also cheated on the All-Stars versions because I don't recall if I beat those versions or not.