The 100 Greatest Console Video Games: 1988-1998

by Brett Weiss

Overview

The best of the best in gaming from a single decade: 1988–1998!

As most gamers know, this ten-year period is incredibly crucial. It was during this time that the NES reached its zenith with such titles as Contra and Super Mario Bros. 3, the Sega Genesis blew everyone away with Sonic the Hedgehog, the Super Nintendo released to critical acclaim, the Sony PlayStation took video games to the next level, and the Nintendo 64 broke new ground with 3-D Mario and Zelda.

• The follow-up to The 100 Greatest Console Video Games: 1977–1987
• Includes game-development history as well as insider commentary and key gaming details
• Games for the Atari Jaguar, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, and TurboGrafx-16 made the cut; it’s not all about Sega, Sony, and Nintendo!

This book covers the era in great detail. Each game is profiled in an in-depth essay that includes history, development info, nostalgic stories, and much more. The author wrote more than a dozen of the essays, with other writers and industry notables contributing essays on their favorite games as well.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780764364327
Publisher:	Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Publication date:	11/29/2022
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	1,027,258
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 10.10(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Brett Weiss is the author of a dozen books. He’s been gaming since 1975 and writing professionally about video games since 1997. He is also a video game collector, historian, journalist, national columnist, and YouTuber. He lives in Fort Worth, Texas, and you can find him online at brettweisswords.com.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments 4

Foreword Chris "the Irate Garner" Bores 5

Preface 7

1 Aladdin, Disney's 10

2 Banjo-Kazooie 12

3 Baseball Stars 2 15

4 Batman: The Video Game 17

5 Blazing Lazers 20

6 Bonk's Adventure 22

7 Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse 24

3 Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse 26

9 Castlevania: Symphony of the Night 28

10 Chrono Trigger 31

11 Contra 34

12 Contra III: The Alien Wars 36

13 Crash Bandicoot 39

14 Devil's Crush 41

15 Diddy Kong Racing 43

16 Donkey Kong Country 46

17 Doom 48

18 DuckTales 51

19 EarthBound 53

20 Earthworm Jim 2 56

21 Earthworm Jim: Special Edition 58

22 Ecco The Dolphin 60

23 Final Fantasy III 62

24 Final Fantasy VII 65

25 Final Fight CD 68

26 F-Zero X 70

27 Gaiares 72

28 Galaga '90 74

29 Gate of Thunder 76

30 Golden Axe 78

31 GoldenEye 007 81

32 Gran Turismo 84

33 The Guardian Legend 86

34 Gunstar Heroes 88

35 The King of Fighters '94 91

36 The Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past 94

37 The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 97

38 The Legendary Axe 100

39 Mario Kart 64 102

40 Mega Bomberman 104

41 Mega Man 2 106

42 Mega Man Legends 109

43 Metal Gear Solid 112

44 Metal Slug 115

45 Mortal Kombat II 117

46 Mr. Do! 119

47 NBA Jam 122

48 NHL '94 125

49 Ninja Gaiden 127

50 Panzer Dragoon II Zwei 129

51 Panzer Dragoon Saga 131

52 Phantasy Star IV 134

53 Resident Evil 136

54 Resident Evil 2 138

55 Road Rash 141

56 Rock N' Roll Racing 143

57 R-Type 145

58 Samurai Shodown II 147

59 Secret of Mana 149

60 Sega Rally Championship 152

61 Shinobi III: Return of The Ninja Master 154

62 Shinobi Legions 157

63 SimCity 159

64 Sonic the Hedgehog 161

65 Splatterhouse 164

66 Spyro the Dragon 167

67 Star Control II 171

68 Star Fox 64 174

69 Street Fighter II: The World Warrior 177

70 Streets of Rage 2 180

71 Strider 183

72 Super Castlevania IV 186

73 Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts 189

74 Super Mario 64 192

75 Super Mario Bros. 2 195

76 Super Mario Bros. 3 198

77 Super Mario Kart 202

78 Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars 205

79 Super Mario World 208

80 Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island 211

81 Super Metroid 214

82 Super Smash T.V. 217

83 Tecmo Bowl 220

84 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IV: Turtles in Time 222

85 Tekken 3 225

86 Tempest 2000 228

87 Tetris 230

88 Thunder Force III 233

89 Toejam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron 235

90 Tomb Raider 238

91 Truxton 241

92 Twisted Metal 2 243

93 Virtua Cop 2 246

94 Virtua Fighter 248

95 Virtua Racing Deluxe 250

96 Wave Race 64 252

97 WCW/nWo Revenge 255

98 Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger 258

99 Zelda II: The Adventure of Link 260

100 Zombies Ate My Neighbors 262

Bibliography 265

Index 267

Kickstarter Backers and Early Book Supporters 272