SNES celebrates 20th birthday in UK

Eurogamer blows out the candles, dust.

1992 was the year Bill Clinton became US President, Charles and Di split and, on the 11th April, when Nintendo launched its new console in the UK. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System cost £150.

UK Nintendo fans had been waiting nearly a year-and-a-half for the console's launch (nothing unusual at the time) ever since the Super Famicom first released in Japan in November 1990.

The SNES would go on to sell over 49 million units: less than its predecessor, but enough to make it the clear winner of the generation. The Sega Mega Drive, its main competitor, sold 39 million, the TurboGrafx-16 sold 10 million.

The SNES provided a fine home for some of Nintendo's much-loved classics, with the developer's most high-profile franchise represented from the off in the excellent Super Mario World.

But the SNES would also become a birthing ground for other standout series. Futuristic racer F-Zero quickly flew the flag for new Nintendo franchises, while Pilotwings, Star Fox and Super Mario Kart followed.

Nintendo also stunned with strong continuations to existing series, such as Super Metroid and The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

It was a system that saw plenty of success from non-Nintendo developers too. Capcom's various Street Fighter 2 versions sold over 10 million combined units, Killer Instinct helped put an increasingly-impressive British developer named Rare on the map, while Japanese RPG powerhouse Square was busy pumping out classics such as Chrono Trigger and Secret of Mana.

It was Rare that would provide one of the SNES' best-loved and graphically most stunning titles in the console's autumn years: Donkey Kong Country. It had the looks of 32-bit and CD-ROM based consoles and the second-best sales of any SNES game, behind only Mario himself.

Comments (105) Latest comment 20 hours ago

Create an account

OR

  • kinky_mong #1 2 days ago

    Happy 20th to arguably the best console ever to exist.
  • joelstinton #2 2 days ago

    Got mine in a bundle with Donkey Kong Country for christmas in 1994 with Super Mario world as well. What two awesome games to properly start of my gaming life. Still had it till a couple of years ago as well.
    Edited by 2 at 11/04/12 @ 17:10
  • Architect_z #3 2 days ago

    The best version of Mortal Komat ever released was on the snes. Played that for years.
  • JawzPause #4 2 days ago

    If only Rare were half as good now as they were then.... :cry:
  • cw- #5 2 days ago

    Still got my SuperNES Mario All Stars, in the box. Keep meaning to get it out again and have a weekend of good old gaming!
  • kirinnokoshin #6 2 days ago

  • Goodfella #7 2 days ago

    Happy Birthday.

    I think I can safely rate the SNES as possibly my favourite console (gaming era) of all, with the PS1 a very close second.
  • FuzzyDuck #8 2 days ago

    Bloody hell, i'll get me bus pass on the way out!

    Swapped my PS1 for a SNES in 1999 (played on my cousin's console a lot circa 1992 - 1995), still have it, probably the best console ever!
  • kirinnokoshin #9 2 days ago

    I loved my Megadrive, had it for 6 months and went round my mates and played Super Mario World and Contra 3 on his SNES. Sold the Megadrive and bought a SNES, never regretted it for a second. The SNES had amazing, ground breaking games from the very beginning to the very end of its lifespan. If I could keep one console only for the rest of my life, the SNES would be the one.
  • HerrQwerty #10 2 days ago

    Oh man, what I would give so that Nintendo had another generation like they had with the SNES. I dont think any console will put a smile on my face as much as the SNES did back then.
  • gav_and_the_gavster #11 2 days ago

    The SNES was the defining console of my gamer-life. It's because of this console I went in to making videogames. Happy Birthday mate.
  • EvilAspirin #12 2 days ago

    I've got to say that this is by far the best of the "retro" consoles and it's one I regularly revisit for gaming sessions on Super Mario Kart, Super Mario World, Super Mario All Stars, Donkey Kong Country, Rock 'n' Roll Racers, Smash TV and a number of others. Embarrassingly I play it far more often than I play on my Wii.

    First console that was properly just mine rather than one I shared. Other than a Master System we've got kicking about it's one of the few still working from that era. It has continued to work when Gameboys, PlayStations from all 3 generations, a Xbox and Xbox 360, several PCs and a few other handhelds have all given up the ghost.

    It's true that they just don't make them like they used to.
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 17:21
  • Er-El #13 2 days ago

    20 years old? It's dead! lol. You can't buy it in stores anymore.
  • CrispyXUK #14 2 days ago

    Long live the SNES!
  • famous_roy #15 2 days ago

    The game library of this console, the controller, everything - it's the king basically. I remember seeing screens of Super Mario World in a magazine in the playground, didn't actually believe graphics like that would be possible. When I played it I actually changed sex from the shock.
  • roquey Verified Lead Quality Assurance Tester and Compliance Specialist, Universally Speaking #16 2 days ago

    I Lost my cable for mine, saying that its stained yellow from parents smoking anyway. :/ I miss playing it, Act Raiser, Desert Strike, Zelda: Lttp.
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 17:20
  • Ryze #17 2 days ago

    FANTASTIC stuff.

    I absolutely LOVED playing my cousin's SNES with Super Mario World, Street Fighter II and Mario Kart.

    I remember getting my hands on SFII in Virgin Megastore Manchester for some of my first plays of it back in the day. Also - playing Super Soccer in there against Dominic Diamond, and Killer Instinct against MCFC players.

    Fantastic stuff. Mortal Kombat looked and sounded like the Arcade game, sans blood. Lovely conversion courtesy of Sculptured Software.

    Basically - the list goes on. Fantastic achievement from Nintendo and Krazy Ken Kuturagi.

    Super Star Wars
    F-Zero
    Pilotwings
    Street Racer...
  • arcam #18 2 days ago

    @Ryze You played Super Soccer against Dominic Diamond? Impressive.
  • Ryze #19 2 days ago

    @arcam

    Yeah - he absolutely slaughtered me.

    :)
  • peterfll #20 2 days ago

    It's release coincided with Easter that year as I can specifically remember sitting in the middle of my parents living room, unboxing it, playing Super Mario World, Super Tennis and F-Zero for about two days non stop whilst eating only Easter eggs. And then feeling a bit sick.
  • spacewarrior #21 2 days ago

    alot of rose tinted specs in this thread. great console okay but the best ever ? you do know technology advances and mostly for the better right ?
  • FuzzyDuck #22 2 days ago

    Bugger this, i'm logging off EG to go hook mine up.

    Pure gaming joy! \o/

    Edit - @spacewarrior You do know gaming is about the games? And the fact that so many people cite the SNES as their all time favourite console? Of course the tech moves forward (and i'm sure everyone posting here has moved with it, otherwise they wouldn't be registered users on a current gaming site), but the fact is the SNES meant a lot of things to a lot of people and some of the games are still tops (although the graphics aren't modern, you can't deny the art style and craftmanship of some of the games and the sheer playability - for example, Super Mario Kart is still the best in the series).
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 17:32
  • JumpinJackFlash #23 2 days ago

    Quite possibly the best console ever made.
  • HerrQwerty #24 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior I dont think you understand the points being made. Each console gives people different feelings. Usually people like the games for the console they choose. But some eras give you a level of giddiness that subsequent ones cant match.

    The N64 just didnt have the quantity of games. The PS2/Xbox/GC all had issues. The 360 may be advanced but it has RROD and the PS3 has the underused Cell chip. I know this may sound like nitpicking but (and this is just my opinion) the SNES was the most complete gaming experience I have ever had. The games, the console, the graphics, everything was just how I wanted it at that point in time. Each of us measures the greatness of our consoles in different ways.
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 17:33
  • photoboy #25 2 days ago

    Along with the Dreamcast the SNES is my favourite console ever. In fact I've still got my faithful old Super Famicom hooked up and playing games.

    It seems like just yesterday I was lifting the lid on its multi-coloured box and trying to find a telly in the house with a SCART socket...
  • DrStrangelove #26 2 days ago

    The coolest things ever all came around when I was a kid.

    Wonder why that is...
  • EndlessSolitude #27 2 days ago

    And there are still games coming out for it:

    Developing for SNES in 2012
  • flattie #28 2 days ago

    My brother had the SNES in our house, so I was never a completely paid up member of the Nintendo Club. That being said, Mario Allstars and Donkey Kong Country are games that commanded my attention almost exclusively until I received a Sega Saturn (always eyed my cousin's Megadrive with Kid Chameleon, Castle of Illusion, Sonic and Streets of Rage greedily, which is where my Sega bias stems from).

    Great console, if only for the two games I mentioned above. I know and appreciate that it hosted many classics, but I never played those, I only played Mario and Donkey Kong - and I had no need to play anything else.
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 17:52
  • brigadier #29 2 days ago

    SNES

    My childhood in just four simple letters. <3
  • spacewarrior #30 2 days ago

    @FuzzyDuck "You do know gaming is about the games? And the fact that so many people cite the SNES as their all time favourite console?"

    yeah and people also claim the dreamcast is the best console ever when it clearly isn't. i'm just saying as technology advances so does graphics, sound and yes gameplay.

    HerrQwerty "the SNES was the most complete gaming experience I have ever had. The games, the console, the graphics, everything was just how I wanted it at that point in time. Each of us measures the greatness of our consoles in different ways."

    if thats the case then clearly games aren't interesting you any longer if you still think a console from decades ago is simply the best in fact Sony, MS and Nintendo should stop making consoles as clearly they can't top the SNES right ?

    imho the PS2 was the best. it had the right balance of gameplay, graphics and most importantly the games which most still stand up to the test of time even today.
  • jimlufc #31 2 days ago

    Donkey Kong 3
    Yoshi's Island
    Chrono Trigger

    Best three games of the all time in my opinion.

    I actually miss the days where a new game was something to save up for. Something you would replay again and again because you were busy saving up for the next one.

    Maybe I'm getting old and grumpy early but it doesn't seem the same with the kids these days, who are happy just to play COD ad infinitum.
  • lolercopter #32 2 days ago

    Being a Sega kid myself, this article saddens me. Even back then console wars were better, now it's just a matter of seeing who sells most of Dudebro Shooter or Dudebro Wars. The variety of genres and creativity was at an all time high.

    Happy birthday, SNES! /runs off to play some F-Zero on his cousin's console.
  • richardiox #33 2 days ago

    I remember going round to some of my parents friends aged about 11 and playing their sons freshly imported Super Famicom - we played Mario World and Pilotwings and F Zero. At home I had (and loved) my NES.

    I was blown away but the colours in MarioWorld, those huge Bullet enemies, the translucent water (wow!) and the audio (echos in the underground levels). I also remember being amazed by the Mode 7 trickery of F Zero and Pilotwings.

    The next day I had my own - turns out my Dad and his Dad (who both sold electronics) imported 500 of them. A guy who worked for my Dad got them running in Pal. My Dad even had an advert in the back of Mean Machines selling them.

    That was the start of my relationship with my all time fave console. I kept my Super Famicom for 4 years before getting a SNES and still have them both at my parents.

    Mario Kart, Pilotwings, MarioWorld, Super Tennis, Actraiser, Donkey Kong Country, Street Fighter 2, Secret of Mana, Lemmings, Zelda, Stunt Race FX, Zombies Ate my Neighbours, Smash TV, Yoshis Island, Mario Allstars, Rock N Roll racing, F Zero, NBA Jam, Batman Returns, Final Fight, UN Squadren, Parodius, Super Ghosts n Goblins, Adams Family, Starwing, Goeman mystical ninja.....it was gaming bliss in my early teens.

    I remember needing a 'super adaptor' to play NTSC games I could pick up for £50 (!) at my local Indie (pre high street game stores). .

    So glad the UK got the Japanese design console as the US one looked awful!
  • blacksea #34 2 days ago

    @kiny_mong

    Sure the Snes was great, and feautre some great games. The Sega Saturn was always the better console.
  • Neppy #35 2 days ago

    Loved my SNES (and Mega Drive too mind you, guess I was a little spoiled that gen for having both) but I do hold some resentment that we (as in Europe) missed out on SO many great games that America got, especially RPGs. Of course that just proves how great a console it is. Still... I was happy to discover emulation and getting to experience what we were denied.

    Probably my favourite gen overall since both Nintendo and Sega (and Squaresoft) were at the top of their game, but the NES and Saturn/ps1 are very close behind.
  • jimlufc #36 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior The PS2 was good but lots of the games on that console have aged really very quickly, whereas 2d hand drawn sprites still look beautiful to this day.
  • HerrQwerty #37 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior It seems everything I said just went clean over your head. Did I say that all the game companies should stop? No. Your hyperbole is just stupid. I was just trying to explain to you why some people feel the way they do. It's obvious I didnt sink low enough to get down to your level.
  • richardiox #38 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior
    I'm guessing you were too young for gaming when the SNES came out in 92 and PS2 is your fave console as that's the one that you grew up with?
    Im 32 and I guess many other EGers in their early 30s share the same sense of nostalgia as myself.
  • nad2dare #39 2 days ago

    Happy 20th B'day Snes, My fave game when I owned a snes was Saturday Night Slam Master a fight/ wresting game by capcom.
  • NeonStorm #40 2 days ago

    Special shout out to Donkey Kong Country, which arguably has one of the best soundtracks ever.
  • EvilAspirin #41 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior "yeah and people also claim the dreamcast is the best console ever when it clearly isn't. i'm just saying as technology advances so does graphics, sound and yes gameplay."

    Never had a Dreamcast, but I've played some of the games from it recently. I must admit I wasn't that impressed, but that was around the early days of 3D gaming. The difference with the SNES though is that this was the pinnacle of 2D Gaming. The very greatest games that near 20 years of progress produced. The reason why we go back to Super Mario World and the like is because they are graphically quite competent (sprite art is coming back in - especially in the Indie scene) and gameplay is about as good as it gets on a 2D plane. The control you have over your character is damn near perfect.

    We don't look back at a lot of the early 3D games from the PS1 era to around midway through the PS2 era as fondly because they don't look great, the controls are often a mess and the cameras generally are terrible. You could argue that the late PS2 era into this generation is the equivalent of the SNES era for 3D games. Developers have mastered the art again and are now looking to the next challenge.
  • BellyFullOfHell #42 2 days ago

    Konami shoukd get their fingers out their arses and bring ISS HD to 360. Twenty years, jesus christ. i still play Mario World, F Zero, CV IV and Rock n Roll Racing regularly, no other machine had such a consistently strong release schedule. Remember when all you had to do to unlock the extra Street Fighters was put in a code, not credit card details?
  • Gojiratron #43 2 days ago

    Best console ever. If I were to make a top 100 games I've played, a significant percentage would call that machine home and unlike quite a few other retro consoles, a lot of those games still hold up well today. Nintendo and Square's SNES classics devoured a large portion of my youth but I couldn't count how much time I also lost to Sim City, Super Castlevania and Zombies Ate My Neighbours.

    I also added this Zelda modded SNES to Wishwall the other day: http://www.wishwall.me/c/custom-modded-zelda-snes-4f7f6f9ebc45767e2f027d9c
  • Raiko101 #44 2 days ago

    The Mega Drive and SNES were the era I grew up with and I think they're both brilliant consoles. The fact that two rival consoles could offer such different experiences and yet still have such a varied library of games says so much for the era. The SNES is probably my 2nd favourite console, behind the PS1, but there is one thing that can be said about it. You couldn't knock it for anything. A brilliant console.
  • gorf #45 2 days ago

    Konami were great during the snes era:
    Castlevaia 4, Parodius, Gradius, Axelay, Goeman. Happy Days
  • spacewarrior #46 2 days ago

    "The PS2 was good but lots of the games on that console have aged really very quickly, whereas 2d hand drawn sprites still look beautiful to this day."

    i don't know what your talking about. i still play current gen consoles mixed with some good old PS2 gaming and the good games have aged pretty well.

    Kingdom Hearts, The Warriors, Okami, Tekken 5 etc look better than some current gen games imo.

    PS2 for me did everything right. it wasn't as powerful than Xbox or gamecube but thats only because it released 2 years earlier. God of War, MGS, GTA, Gran Turismo etc you name it the PS2 had the games and in spades.
  • golem09 #47 2 days ago

    I see. The faceless spacemarine was big even then.
  • richardiox #48 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior
    How old are you dude / when did you start gaming? I suspect you missed out in the 16bit Gen hence not being able to comprehend why many hold it in such high regard.
  • -cerberus- #49 2 days ago

    I don't love my SNES very much... However, I do love it more than current-gen consoles so Happy 20th b-day!
  • Toothball #50 2 days ago

    I got mine from long defunct electronic store Clydesdale. I was so distracted playing Mario World on the demo system, I didn't notice that my parents were standing behind me with one in a bag.
  • Gojiratron #51 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior

    For all the technical polish of modern software I find a lot of it to be sterile and lacking in heart, something which SNES titles have in spades.
  • spidermanalf #52 2 days ago

    Jeez, I am old, I was 16 when it came out, and I bought it at launch, ;lived in US for a year when I was 18, and bought far too many games, in the end I had over 50 games, traded them all in for a PS 1 and a few games.

    But since saw the error of my ways, and have a SNES that I play on with my daughter, we are playing through Mario and Link To The Past, she needs to know the history of games!

    Anyone remember this ad - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsON9PJRR4g
  • spacewarrior #53 2 days ago

    "How old are you dude / when did you start gaming? I suspect you missed out in the 16bit Gen hence not being able to comprehend why many hold it in such high regard."

    20 years old so i've played the megadrive, PS1, PS2, gamecube, PS3, 360 etc.

    and don't think i have no clue about consoles created in 16 etc as i have a few retro collections on the PS2 and some of the so called "best of 16 bit" and guess what ? i go back to playing Tekken 5.
  • NeonStorm #54 2 days ago

    spacewarrior: PS2 have aged well so far, but I personally don't expect many of them to hold up at all in a decade's time. I'm willing to bet that, even by then, SNES titles will be as good to play as they are today.
  • spacewarrior #55 2 days ago

    "I see. The faceless spacemarine was big even then."

    what's that supposed to mean ? a good game is a good game and i don't see any "spacemarines" in God of War.
  • spacewarrior #56 2 days ago

    Neonstorm "spacewarrior: PS2 have aged well so far, but I personally don't expect many of them to hold up at all in a decade's time. I'm willing to bet that, even by then, SNES titles will be as good to play as they are today."

    well not for me they won't. like i said i have a few retro collections for example Capcom's classic classic and Activision anthology and i am not impressed and then change the disc to a good old PS2 game.
  • BJ_Crackers #57 2 days ago

    Yep, best console ever, hands down. Got mine as a replacement for a broken Game Gear (last time I let my cousin near any of my stuff), with Super Mario World and Kart. For extra nostalgia points, I got it by mail order from Special Reserve.
  • RawNinjaKid #58 2 days ago

    The SNES and the PS2 were definitely the best consoles ever from a gaming content point of view.

    For me the SNES wins though, because of the controller - a layout that's still used today. High grade Nintendo software and strong 3rd party support and the specs were not bad for the time either.
    Edited by 1 at 11/04/12 @ 19:00
  • NeonStorm #59 2 days ago

    spacewarrior: To be fair, those collections hardly represent the best of what the 16-Bit era had to offer. Even the Megadrive Collection held little appeal to me outside of Sonic and Streets of Rage.
    On the other hand, Nintendo's output on the SNES was phenomenal. I played Super Metroid for the first time through Virtual Console not too long ago, and it's better than most of the games I've played this gen. If you've got a Wii, you could do a lot worse than trying out Mario World etc.
  • FenderMaster #60 2 days ago

    I think i got my SNES for christmas in 1992/93. It was a Super Mario Al Stars bundle, and came with a free VHS of nintendo tips hosted by that guy who played Lister in Red Dwarf.

    I never actually owned very many games for it... Bubsy which I was too stupid and young to realise sucked, S.T.G an excellent, if easy vertical scrolling shoot em up, Street Fighter 2 Turbo, and Super Mario World. I don't think I ever heard or an RPG back then, but I rented Star Wing and Super Mario Kart all the time, and played Super Mario World religiously.
  • richardiox #61 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior
    You kinda proved my point - you weren't even born when the megadrive / SNES came out in Japan!!. Of course you won't share the same view of them as people who grew up playing them. It's exactly what I said, PS2 is YOUR fave console as its the one you grew up with, SNES was the one a lot of us grew up with.
    Also you're stating as fact that it doesn't have as a good a library of games as the PS2 and then acknowledge you've never actually played any of the games?! Seriously, I'd be interested to know what titles in the SNES top ten you've actually played?
    I can't help but feel gamers who have played and owned consoles from the 8/16/32/64 bit eras are better placed to make a critical judgement than someone who wasn't born in the 16bit gen and was only 7 when the PS1 launched.
  • 8bitMofo #62 2 days ago

    Christmas 92' - Streetfighter II Pack.

    God, I miss those days.
  • KujiGhost #63 2 days ago

    20 years... sweet lord.

    Time to blow the dust off my Starwing cap I won at one of Nintendo's UK-wide competitions when the game came out!

    Highlight of my gaming career ;)
  • FuzzyDuck #64 2 days ago

    @spacewarrior

    You've kinda piddled on your own chips there mate. Find me a retro anthology that contains the buzz of playing Super Mario World, ISS, Zelda, Super Mario Kart, Earthworm Jim, Probotector, Cybernator, Chrono Trigger, Yoshi's Island, Starfox/wing, the definitive home versions of Street Fighter 2 (and as much as i don't like it, Mortal Kombat 2), Metroid and Donkey Kong Country. Now magnify that by playing them for the first time as a kid/young teenager 20 odd years ago. It really doesn't compare.

    The SNES was (and still is) 2D gaming's finest hour, and it even helped to birth credible 3D gaming at home.
  • blacksea #65 2 days ago

    @gorf Konami where at the top of their game. To be fair Konami did well during the PS2 days. Since then, they've gone to sh-t..
  • scouserfuller9 #66 2 days ago

    @JawzPause If Rare were still making games for Nintendo I'm sure they would still be good. Sadly unlike whilst with Nintendo, they just can't produce the games asked for with Microsoft.
  • Acrid #67 2 days ago

    I grew up as a Mega Drive kid and used to play SNES at my mates house, I remember (as I suspect many others here do) having countless arguments over which was the better console, despite the heated battles we used to spend hours playing 2-player Super Mario World and Donkey Kong Country.
    These days I concede the SNES was better than the Mega Drive in every department and now my yellowish little chum sits happily alongside it's younger brother Wii and good friend PS3.

    Happy Birthday buddy you truly are the greatest of all time x
  • trevalev #68 2 days ago

    I just bought a SNES the other week as I had a mega drive in the 90s. been enjoying the super star wars stringy and starwing.

    anyone got good recommendations apart from eBay for shopping games?
  • Badassbab #69 2 days ago

    As a kid I was a Sega fanboy but looking back on it overall the SNES was the better gaming machine imo. Technically it was easily more capable in most instances (and so it should being the newer machine) and it was a time when Japanese developers ruled and their preferred console was the SNES (due to the poor performance of Sega consoles in Japan). And it showed.
  • Chazmeister #70 2 days ago

    I spent an absolute fortune on my SNES. Must have got through half a dozen pads and 2 arcade sticks and I would think nothing of spending £45-£50 on a new release cart. £50!!! These days a £30 spend would raise my eyebrows.

    Great games and great memories.
  • StooMonster #71 2 days ago

    Got my SNES the first time I worked in USA in Autumn 1991, took a larger half-empty suitcase with me because I planned the purchase before I went. :)

    Was eight months before European release, was seriously cheaper, was 60Hz not 50Hz, allowed me to play US release date games...

    ...but was a weird purple boxy shape thing instead of the lovely curvy European/Japanese case.
  • FenderMaster #72 2 days ago

    @StooMonster Yeah, we got lucky with our console, it was much better looking than the US one. Our controllers were nicer too.
  • ghuk #73 2 days ago

    The Super Famicom was by far the most amazing console I have ever purchased. After starting out on an Atari 2600 and then owning a Sega Master System & Megadrive I considered myself even back then a dedicated gamer. But when I read Jaz Rignalls reviews in C&VG; & Mean Machines of the latest titles I just knew I had to get one. I got an RGB converted Jap machine from Console Concepts in Newcastle under Lyme with a copy of Super Tennis & Area 88, it absolutely blew me away, so much infact that I ended up being one of their best customers! Titles I remember buying were Super Mario World, Zelda, Final Fight, Super Contra, Streetfighter 2 (£89!!!) Top Racer, Human Grand Prix, Axelay & Super Bomber Man just to name but a few, at one point I had over 32 cartridges!!

    I loved the incredible manuals that came with the Jap games, heck I couldnt understand the text but the artwork was amazing. Then America got their version of the Super Famicom which resembled a brick & looked absolutely hideous, then the SNES arrived in the UK about a year later and the games had huge borders and ran signifcantly slower.

    I can see why some people may not have warmed to the UK machine but if you were one of the lucky few who had a Jap import it was an amazing experience, definitely for me the Super Famicom represented the 'golden age' of video games. It was certainly not like today where everyone seems to be obsessed with the latest call of duty dull recycled rubbish.

    Out of interest who here remembers the Super Wild Card? That certainly was an interesting product :lol:
  • RGeefe #74 2 days ago

    @kinky_mong arguably? pffft. IT IS the best console to ever exist.
  • StooMonster #75 2 days ago

    @FenderMaster Yeah, I never quite resolved myself with how ugly the US SNES was.

    Never understood why the American one was this way, I assumed it was the same aesthetic that make American cars of the 70s and 80s boxy too, like this.
  • septimus #76 2 days ago

    Indeed, best console ever. Glad I still have mine and about 30 or so games.

    Never play it sadly due to time but nice to have.
  • Sharzam #77 2 days ago

    I am 28 so the N64 might be considered to be my favourite but i still remember the SNES, as when my Mum would drag me around to her friends they had one. Defiantly a classic, as others have stated the creativity at that time was so much more than today.

    For me that time period was mostly about the Game Boy with Donkey Kong Country. Now thats a damm fine console and a whole lot older than the SNES.
  • feeg86 #78 2 days ago

    No way, we got the snes out last weekend and it's still going strong in the living room. Both my lady and myself properly love it, played it more than the ps3 over the time it's been out.

    It'll last another 20 years. Greatest console ever made. Crazy to think games cost 50 quid back then!
  • richardiox #79 2 days ago

    @ghuk Yeah I had (and still have) a super wildcard. 3.5" Disks!!
  • BonzoBanana #80 2 days ago

    I loved the snes but I feel the N64 easily beats it. Mario 64 was better than super mario world and the N64 did so much more yet still had brilliant instant loading cartridges. 3D zelda games, pilotwings 64, a huge number of great Rare games including Goldeneye. I loved the snes but for me personally I have better memories and more fun on the N64.
  • Sylpharion #81 2 days ago

    Wow, the SNES. The very first console I ever had. I still remember asking for one for my birthday, coming home from school and being told 'Sorry, they didn't have any in stock'. Then I walk through to the living room and what do I find? A brand-new SNES with Super Mario All-Stars and Super Mario World.

    Absolutely amazing console. Right up there with the Dreamcast and N64 as one of my favourite consoles of all time.

    Happy 20th!
  • kinky_mong #82 2 days ago

    @blacksea The only correct response to that is...

    PAAHAHAHA!
  • smelly #83 2 days ago

    Surely to celebrate a birthday - the thing you're celebrating the birthday off, needs to not be dead?
  • Cean #84 2 days ago

    Oh SNES how I love you. Let me count the ways. Super Mario World, Zelda AlttP, Secret of Mana, Mario Kart and throwing controllers in a rage, Street Fighter II. The fact that Super Play practically made me buy an NTSC adapter so I could play an import copy of SoM speaks volumes.
  • Alestes #85 2 days ago

    Super Nintendo and the PS1 are the best consoles ever :-)

    Many of the Nintendo franchises are the best on the SNES too as far as I'm concerned. Link to the Past is the best Zelda game, Super Mario World is the best Mario game, Super Metroid is the best Metroid game, F-Zero is the best F-Zero, Super Mario Kart is the best Mario Kart and so on. Heck, even FF6 (which sadly wasn't released here in Europe during the SNES days) is the best FF. Not to mention other excellent JRPGs like Chrono Trigger. Super Castlevania IV is "only" second best though, after Symphony of the Night for the PS1.
  • up_the_ante #86 2 days ago

    I sold my MegaDrive to buy a SNES. Many a day was lost playing Super Mario Kart (Battle Mode FTW!)
  • marccarran #87 2 days ago

    A console with many found memories for one reason or another....

    The Mega Drive got one over the NES, and Nintendo just did the job proper with the SNES.

    Those extra buttons, that extra power, that longer wait and those killer games were all worth it
  • up_the_ante #88 2 days ago

    I remember watching one running Mario in Argos. For those that don't know it had a bit of plastic that locked into a slot on the cartridge when you turned it on (to prevent the cartridge being removed). So I was standing there when a sales lady walks up with a new game she wants to put on. Instead of turning it off she starts yanking at the cartridge. I was just about to tell her when SNAP, the cartridge comes out, the little bit of plastic goes flying across the room and the screen freezes. Just one of those things that stick in your head as a kid. Oh yeah and that's why you don't buy "managers specials"
  • werewolf_poo #89 2 days ago

    Ahhh the memories!! Playing Desert Strike with an arcade stick was one of the best gaming experiences I ever had, so much so that my dad started stealing the console from me to play it.

    Don't remember what the year was but I remember getting the snes bundled with Street Fighter II turbo. I remember being overcome with excitement seeing the box with street fighter emblazoned on it.

    There was a footy game out at the time aswell which I got for xmas simply because my friend had it and it was great. All I can remember is that u could play indoors with the ball bouncing off the walls. I want to say Actua Soccer but I'm pretty sure that was PS1

    Anybody know which xmas this would have been???
  • VonHype #90 2 days ago

    Happy 20th birthday snes.
    How i miss the days of playing super mario world with my sister trying to beat each others speedrun's.
  • FuzzyDuck #91 2 days ago

    @werewolf_poo

    I know the footy game you're on about and it's name escapes me, but it's not Actua Soccer (that was a PS1 game indeed).

    If memory serves the Christmas was 1993 - i recall practically wetting myself with excitement seeing the SNES bundles and the Megadrive version of SFII (the one i got) in my local game shop.

    I'm almost teary eyed reading this comments section!
  • djronz. #92 1 day ago

    How can something long dead still have a birthday? I mean you don't still have birthday parties for passed relatives do you?

    Was a megadrive kid myself! ;)

    But now admit the snes was a better machine
    Edited by 2 at 12/04/12 @ 08:03
  • gamzino #93 1 day ago

  • Gumersindo #94 1 day ago

    Final Fantasy II/IV and III/VI was the beginning of my RPG love.
    I've played all FF since then. But I only remember all charas from those two.
  • electrolite #95 1 day ago

  • electrolite #96 1 day ago

    @werewolf_poo

    http://www.mobygames.com/game/snes/striker/screenshots

    Ring any bells?

    I think it was Christmas 1993 BTW, my mate got that pack along with Mario All Stars.
  • ronecvan_is_here #97 1 day ago

    No doubt, was it a great console, i still have fond memories of playing this console, which is why i still love the original mario so much. Good times,truly timeless.
  • Sonic_D #98 1 day ago

    SF2:Turbo, Final Fantasy 6, Zelda:LttP, Super Metroid, Super Mario World & Mario Kart.

    Best console with the best games ever.
  • heavymetalparadroid #99 24 hours ago

    @Er-El You can in Japan. Plus most indies sell them
  • heavymetalparadroid #100 23 hours ago

    @smelly If a console is still being played to this day, then can it really be declared dead? Plus some people are still developing for the old consoles, even as consoles as old as the Atari 2600 are being developed for.
    Edited by 1 at 12/04/12 @ 16:55
  • heavymetalparadroid #101 23 hours ago

    Sure Rare did some great games, but have you seen the amount of appalling shovel ware they chrned out in the NES/SNES era? I guess everythings better in hindsight.
  • Ryze #102 22 hours ago

  • Ryze #103 22 hours ago

    @spacewarrior

    You just don't get it. See ya later.
  • AgentCool #104 21 hours ago

    It does make me feel old, even at 27, to see one or two holding the PS2 in such nostalgic regard. It wasn't even the most memorable console of its generation (step forward Dreamcast), never mind of all time. The SNES/Mega Drive war was one which will never be matched. The brilliance of games released on both machines was so profound that their influence still resonates today.

    It's also a reminder to the deluded souls who want a one-console future that quality only comes when there's competition.

    In fact, the PS2's near-monopoly on its generation in sales terms is the reason why the years when it was at its most dominant were also easily the worst for decent releases in the last 20 years.
  • DAN.E.B #105 20 hours ago

    I remember paying £120 for streetfighter 2 turbo on import
    I did get it before it was released in Japan tho :cool: