Japan Only

Nintendo of America called it too hard and shipped a different game under its name. Japan-only SMB2 (FDS, 1986) — Lost Levels

Uncommon ▶

Family Computer Disk System

Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels

スーパーマリオブラザーズ2

Action platformer · 1986

Super Mario Bros. 2 (1986), released on the Famicom Disk System, is the direct Japanese sequel to Super Mario Bros. — a …

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Nintendo's team released this two weeks after Zelda. Nazo no Murasame Castle (FDS, 1986) — Japan-only samurai action for 28 y

Uncommon ▶

Family Computer Disk System

The Mysterious Murasame Castle

謎の村雨城

Action · 1986

The Mysterious Murasame Castle is the second original title released for the Famicom Disk System, launching just two wee…

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Distributed by radio postcard lottery, never sold in stores. All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. (FDS, 1986) — only 3,040 copi

Ultra Rare

Family Computer Disk System

All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros.

オールナイトニッポンスーパーマリオブラザーズ

Platform / Action · 1986

All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros. (1986) is one of the rarest officially licensed Nintendo games ever produced. Create…

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The 1985 film was a global hit, but its Famicom game never left Japan. Konami's The Goonies (1986) — North America only got a

Uncommon ▶

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

The Goonies

グーニーズ

Action Platformer · 1986

A side-scrolling action game based on the 1985 Columbia Pictures film, released exclusively in Japan on February 21, 198…

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Never re-released on any platform. Layla (1986, Famicom) — dB-SOFT's Japan-only shooter with one of the Famicom's earliest fe

Rare

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Layla

レイラ

Shooting / Maze Action · 1986

Released by dB-SOFT in December 1986, Layla is a Japan-only Famicom action game inspired by the Dirty Pair anime. Player…

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Miyamoto supervised. Koji Kondo scored. Nintendo retold the Momotaro folk tale for Famicom Disk System in 1987. Never officia

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Famicom Mukashibanashi: Shin Onigashima

ふぁみこんむかし話新・鬼ヶ島

Adventure (text-based) · 1987

Famicom Mukashibanashi: Shin Onigashima (1987) is a text-based adventure game that re-tells the Japanese folk tale of Mo…

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Fuji TV made this as a theme park promo. Nintendo reskinned it and sold it as Super Mario Bros. 2. Doki Doki Panic, FDS, 1987

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic

夢工場ドキドキパニック

Action platformer · 1987

Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic (1987) is a Famicom Disk System action platformer developed by Nintendo, created in partnersh…

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Lolo and Lala were born here first. Eggerland (FDS, 1987) by HAL Laboratory — the Japan-only puzzle game that became Adventur

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Eggerland

エッガーランド

Puzzle / Action · 1987

Eggerland (1987) is the Famicom Disk System title that introduced the world to Lolo and Lala — a pair of round character…

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Kinuyo Yamashita scored Castlevania, then wrote Esper Dream (FDS, 1987) not knowing its genre — Konami's forgotten fairy-tale

Uncommon ▶

Family Computer Disk System

Esper Dream

エスパードリーム

Action RPG · 1987

Esper Dream (1987) is an action RPG by Konami for the Famicom Disk System, set in a fairy-tale world where a young boy w…

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Every shot fires a musical note. Otocky (FDS, 1987) — Toshio Iwai's Japan-only musical shooter, a decade before rhythm games.

Rare

Family Computer Disk System

Otocky

オトッキー

Musical Shoot 'em Up · 1987

Conceived by media artist Toshio Iwai and released for the Famicom Disk System in 1987, Otocky is one of gaming history'…

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Konami's Japan-only FDS adventure (1987) — never ported, never localized. Title means 'Love Warrior.' Only playable on origin

Rare

Family Computer Disk System

Ai Senshi Nicol

愛戦士ニコル

Action Adventure · 1987

Released exclusively for the Famicom Disk System in April 1987, Ai Senshi Nicol is a Japan-only Konami action-adventure …

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Kinuyo Yamashita — Castlevania's composer — scored Arumana no Kiseki (FDS, 1987). Konami's grapple-hook platformer predated B

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Arumana no Kiseki

アルマナの奇蹟

Action-Platform · 1987

Released in 1987 for the Famicom Disk System, Arumana no Kiseki is a Japan-exclusive Konami action-platformer with a str…

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Every RPG of 1987 sent heroes to slay demons. Atlus's first game let you negotiate with them instead. The game that started P

Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei

デジタル・デビル物語女神転生

RPG · 1987

Released in September 1987, Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei was Atlus's first video game and the origin of a franchis…

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Japan's first noir detective game. Jinguji Saburo (1987, FDS) — one wrong answer closes the case permanently. No hints. No se

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Detective Jinguji Saburo: Shinjuku Chuo Koen Murder Case

探偵神宮寺三郎新宿中央公園殺人事件

Adventure / Detective · 1987

Detective Jinguji Saburo: Shinjuku Chuo Koen Murder Case is a 1987 detective adventure game developed and published by D…

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Sold 1.1 million copies and never left Japan. Konami Famicom 1987 — Getsu Fuuma Den blends side-scrolling action with RPG ove

Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Getsu Fuuma Den

月風魔伝

Action RPG · 1987

Getsu Fuuma Den (1987) is one of Konami's most distinctive Famicom titles: a hybrid action game that blends side-scrolli…

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Bloody Tears became the most reused track in the franchise. Castlevania II (1987, Famicom) — open world, day-night cycle, the

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Castlevania II: Simon's Quest

悪魔城ドラキュラII 呪いの封印

Action RPG / Platformer · 1987

Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, released on the Famicom Disk System in August 1987, broke sharply from the original Castl…

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Uncommon ▶

Family Computer Disk System

Falsion

ファルシオン

Shoot-em-up · 1987

Falsion is a behind-the-ship perspective 3D shoot-em-up for the Famicom Disk System, released in October 1987 — predatin…

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Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Gradius II

グラディウスII 〜GOFERの野望〜

Horizontal scrolling shooter · 1988

Gradius II (1988) is the sequel that made the Famicom do more than it was supposed to. Konami brought the arcade game ho…

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Game Boy inventor Gunpei Yokoi produced it. Famicom Detective Club (FDS, 1988) — Japan-only Nintendo murder mystery, scenario

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir

ファミコン探偵倶楽部消えた後継者

Mystery adventure (visual novel) · 1988

Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir (1988) is a murder mystery visual novel in which the player investigates the de…

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Very Rare

Family Computer Disk System

Kaettekita Mario Bros.

帰ってきたマリオブラザーズ

Action / Platform · 1988

Kaettekita Mario Bros. is a 1988 FDS title released exclusively through Nintendo's Disk Writer rewrite service — never s…

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Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Hanjuku Hero

半熟英雄

Simulation / Strategy RPG · 1988

Hanjuku Hero is a 1988 real-time simulation RPG developed and published by Square for the Famicom — an uncharacteristica…

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Advance Wars (2001) borrowed maps from here. Famicom Wars — Japan-only Famicom strategy, 1988 — was called original by the We

Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Famicom Wars

ファミコンウォーズ

Turn-based strategy · 1988

Released on August 12, 1988 exclusively in Japan, Famicom Wars is the turn-based strategy game that quietly launched one…

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Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Final Fantasy II

ファイナルファンタジーII

Role-Playing Game · 1988

Final Fantasy II, released exclusively in Japan in December 1988, rewrote the rules of its own franchise after just one …

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First console Tetris ever sold — and first home version anywhere to include the Korobeiniki melody. BPS Famicom Tetris (1988)

Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Tetris

テトリス

Puzzle · 1988

The Famicom Tetris published by BPS in December 1988 was the first console version of Tetris ever commercially released …

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PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Super Momotaro Dentetsu

スーパー桃太郎電鉄

Board game / Party · 1989

Super Momotaro Dentetsu (1989) is the PC Engine entry in Hudson Soft's beloved board game series — a game about travelli…

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Inspired by Dario Argento: the soundtrack runs at half volume throughout, then hits max at the final scene. Japan-only FDS my

Rare

Family Computer Disk System

Famicom Detective Club Part II: The Girl Who Stands Behind

ファミコン探偵倶楽部 PartII うしろに立つ少女

Mystery / Adventure · 1989

Famicom Detective Club Part II: The Girl Who Stands Behind is a mystery adventure game released in 1989 on the Famicom D…

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Ryuichi Sakamoto walked into Hudson uninvited to offer his music. Tengai Makyou Ziria (1989, PC Engine) — world first CD-ROM

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Tengai Makyō: Ziria

天外魔境 ZIRIA

RPG · 1989

Released on June 30, 1989, Tengai Makyō: Ziria is widely recognised as the world's first RPG on CD-ROM media. Exploiting…

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Nasir Gebelli's airship code was so intricate, nobody could port it for 16 years. Final Fantasy III (1990, Famicom) — Japan-o

Uncommon

Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Final Fantasy III

ファイナルファンタジーIII

Role-Playing Game · 1990

Final Fantasy III, released in Japan in April 1990, introduced the Job System — the ability for players to freely change…

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500 million yen development budget in 1992 — possibly history first AAA game. Tengai Makyou II (PC Engine, Japan-only), score

Uncommon

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Tengai Makyou II: Manjimaru

天外魔境II 卍MARU

Role-playing game · 1992

Tengai Makyou II: Manjimaru (1992) is the most ambitious RPG ever produced for the PC Engine, and by some measures one o…

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Super Famicom / SNES

Parodius Da!

パロディウスだ！〜神話からお笑いへ〜

Horizontal scrolling shooter · 1992

Parodius Da! (1992) is Konami parodying itself. The ship is a flying octopus, or a penguin, or Vic Viper from Gradius — …

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Publishers held it from the West for 7 years — too complex. Final Fantasy V (1992, Super Famicom) — Japan-only; 22 jobs that

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Final Fantasy V

ファイナルファンタジーV

Role-playing · 1992

Final Fantasy V is the 1992 Super Famicom RPG that never reached Western players in its era — Japan-exclusive until the …

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Rare

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Snatcher

スナッチャー

Cyberpunk adventure / Visual novel · 1992

Snatcher for PC Engine CD-ROM² — known as the 'CD-ROMantic' edition — is the 1992 cyberpunk adventure game created by Hi…

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One of the playable ships is an actual PC Engine console that fires HuCards. Star Parodier (PC Engine CD, 1992) — Hudson's se

Uncommon

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Star Parodier

スターパロジャー

Vertical Shooter · 1992

Star Parodier (1992) is Hudson's self-aware parody of its own Star Soldier vertical shooter series, replacing the hard s…

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Family Computer (Famicom) / NES

Fire Emblem Gaiden

ファイアーエムブレム外伝

Tactical-RPG · 1992

Released in March 1992, Fire Emblem Gaiden is the second Fire Emblem game and a direct departure from the first — a Japa…

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Nintendo's last game for the Famicom Disk System ended without ceremony — April 1992, while most players had already moved to

Uncommon

Family Computer Disk System

Clu Clu Land D

クルクルランド

Action Puzzle · 1992

Clu Clu Land D, released on April 28, 1992, is the Famicom Disk System-exclusive enhanced version of Nintendo's 1984 Clu…

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Falcom licensed Ys IV to two studios at once — two different games, both official. Dawn of Ys (1993, PC Engine, Hudson) has f

Uncommon

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys

イースIV ザ・ドーン・オブ・イース

Action RPG · 1993

Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys is the PC Engine Super CD-ROM² exclusive entry in Falcom's celebrated action RPG series — a title …

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Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Romancing SaGa 2

ロマンシングサ・ガ2

Role-Playing Game · 1993

Romancing SaGa 2, released in December 1993, is defined by its generational succession system: the player does not contr…

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Only Wonder Boy game with a female protagonist — Japan-only for 18 years. Monster World IV (Mega Drive, 1994) by Westone. Ash

Rare

Sega Mega Drive / Genesis

Monster World IV

モンスターワールドIV

Action Platformer RPG · 1994

The final chapter of the Wonder Boy / Monster World saga and the only entry to feature a female protagonist, Monster Wor…

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Tajiri directed, Sugimori designed, Masuda scored — the exact Pokémon team, one year before Pokémon. Pulseman for Mega Drive

Uncommon

Sega Mega Drive / Genesis

Pulseman

パルスマン

Action Platformer · 1994

Pulseman, published by Sega for the Mega Drive in July 1994, was developed by Game Freak — the studio best known for Pok…

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Seiken Densetsu 3 (1995) for Super Famicom — Square's Japan-only Mana sequel with 6 heroes, branching story paths, and Hiroki

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Seiken Densetsu 3

聖剣伝説3

Action RPG · 1995

Seiken Densetsu 3 (1995) is one of the finest action RPGs on the Super Famicom and among the most accomplished Japan-onl…

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Vocal singing on a 16-bit cartridge — no Super Famicom game had done it before. Tales of Phantasia (1995) launched the Tales

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Tales of Phantasia

テイルズオブファンタジア

Action RPG · 1995

Tales of Phantasia (1995) is the origin of one of JRPG's most enduring franchises — the Tales series — and arrived as th…

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Square's director was told not to make a mech game. He built a prototype in secret. Front Mission (1995, SFC) — tactics RPG s

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Front Mission

フロントミッション

Tactical RPG · 1995

The first entry in Square's long-running tactical mecha franchise, Front Mission is set in 2090 on the contested island …

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Only ~12 games ever used the Arcade Card expansion. Sapphire (PC Engine CD, 1995) is one — and among the rarest, selling for

Ultra Rare

PC Engine / TurboGrafx-16

Sapphire: Ginga Fukei Densetsu

銀河婦警伝説サファイア

Vertical Shooter · 1995

Released in November 1995 as the PC Engine's lifespan neared its end, Sapphire is simultaneously one of the most technic…

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No combat — only hiding and running. Clock Tower (1995, Super Famicom) predated Resident Evil and invented pursue-and-hide ho

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Clock Tower

クロックタワー

Point-and-Click Survival Horror Adventure · 1995

Clock Tower, released in September 1995, is a point-and-click survival horror adventure designed by Hifumi Kono as a dir…

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Mew was added without the director's knowledge, hidden for a future event players discovered first. Pokémon Red & Green (1996

Uncommon

Game Boy

Pokémon Red and Green

ポケットモンスター赤・緑

Role-playing / Monster collection · 1996

Pokémon Red and Green launched in Japan on February 27, 1996, after six years of development by Game Freak and creator S…

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Choosing silence in Sakura Wars weakened your team in battle. Sega's 1996 Saturn tactical RPG made timed dialogue a combat me

Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Sakura Wars

サクラ大戦

Tactical RPG / Visual novel · 1996

Sakura Wars is a 1996 Sega Saturn exclusive that blended tactical RPG combat with visual novel-style relationship mechan…

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Square's Kazushige Nojima directed this before Final Fantasy VII. Bahamut Lagoon (1996, Super Famicom) stayed Japan-only for

Uncommon

Super Famicom / SNES

Bahamut Lagoon

バハムートラグーン

Tactical RPG · 1996

Bahamut Lagoon (1996) is one of Square's most overlooked gems — a tactical RPG set in a world of floating islands where …

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Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Grandia

グランディア

Role-playing game · 1997

Grandia is a 1997 role-playing game developed by Game Arts for the Sega Saturn — the studio's follow-up to the Lunar ser…

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Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Shining Force III

シャイニングフォースIII

Tactical RPG · 1997

Released in 1997, Shining Force III was Camelot Software Planning's final Shining game — and their most ambitious. Conce…

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Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Thunder Force V

サンダーフォースV

Shoot 'em up / Side-scrolling shooter · 1997

Thunder Force V is the 1997 Sega Saturn shoot 'em up developed and published by Technosoft, the fifth and final mainline…

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Kamitani's studio collapsed in 1996. Atlus rescued the team and finished Princess Crown — Saturn 1997, Japan-only action RPG,

Rare ▶

Sega Saturn

Princess Crown

プリンセスクラウン

Action RPG · 1997

Princess Crown (1997) is the Sega Saturn action RPG that served as the creative origin of Vanillaware — the studio that …

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Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Silhouette Mirage

シルエットミラージュ

2D Action · 1997

Treasure's 1997 Sega Saturn action game introduced a polarity mechanic that would later become the foundation for Ikarug…

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Uncommon

Sega Saturn

DoDonPachi

怒首領蜂

Bullet Hell Shooter · 1997

DoDonPachi — literally 'Angry Boss Bee' — is Cave's 1997 masterpiece and the game that crystallised the bullet hell sub-…

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Saturn needed a separate 4MB RAM cartridge just to hold the full roster. X-Men vs. Street Fighter (1997) — Japan-only on Satu

Uncommon

Sega Saturn

X-Men vs. Street Fighter

エックスメン VS. ストリートファイター

Fighting · 1997

X-Men vs. Street Fighter is Capcom's 1996 landmark crossover fighting game that brought Marvel's X-Men characters — Wolv…

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Saturn port arrived weeks after the arcade — same hardware underneath. Cotton 2 (Success, 1997) — Japan-only witch horizontal

Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Cotton 2: Magical Night Dreams

コットン2 マジカルナイトドリームス

Horizontal Scrolling Shooter · 1997

Cotton 2: Magical Night Dreams, released on Sega Saturn in December 1997, is the sequel to Success's Cotton: Fantastic N…

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Uncommon

Game Boy

Kirby's Star Stacker

カービィのきらきらきっず

Puzzle · 1997

Released in January 1997, Kirby's Star Stacker arrived as HAL Laboratory's first puzzle game built on an entirely origin…

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Game Boy Color

Pokémon Trading Card Game

ポケモンカードGB

Card game / Strategy · 1998

Pokémon Trading Card Game (1998) for Game Boy Color is a digital adaptation of the Pokémon TCG developed by Hudson Soft …

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Designed with no background music — Sting planned binaural footsteps instead. Baroque (1998, Saturn) is a roguelike where eac

Rare

Sega Saturn

Baroque

バロック

Roguelike Dungeon Crawler · 1998

Baroque is one of the Saturn library's most singular achievements: a roguelike first-person dungeon crawler set in a pos…

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Kohei Tanaka — One Piece, Dragon Ball Z — composed the score. Dragon Force II (Saturn, 1998) is Japan-only and considered dee

Uncommon

Sega Saturn

Dragon Force II: Kamisarishi Daichi ni

ドラゴンフォースⅡ 神去りし大地に

Strategy RPG · 1998

Released in April 1998, Dragon Force II: Kamisarishi Daichi ni is the sequel to one of the Saturn's defining strategy RP…

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Rare

Dreamcast

Tokyo Bus Guide

東京バス案内

Simulation · 1999

Tokyo Bus Guide (1999) is one of the most quietly subversive games ever released in Japan: a bus driving simulator devel…

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Japan-only N64 game, yet fully English-dubbed from day one. Sin and Punishment (2000) — Treasure's rail shooter Western fans

Rare

Nintendo 64

Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth

罪と罰〜地球の継承者〜

Rail shooter / Third-person shooter · 2000

Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth is the 2000 Nintendo 64 rail shooter developed by Treasure and published by N…

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Uncommon ▶

Dreamcast

Rez

レズ

Rail shooter / Synesthetic experience · 2001

Rez is the 2001 rail shooter directed by Tetsuya Mizuguchi and developed by United Game Artists, built around a single c…

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Very Rare

Dreamcast

Cosmic Smash

コズミックスマッシュ

Sports / Action · 2001

Cosmic Smash (2001) is one of the rarest and most visually distinctive Dreamcast exclusives — a futuristic sports game c…

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GBA was already on sale when tri-Ace built this sequel. Blue Sphere (GBC, 2001) — Japan-only Star Ocean continuation, all ten

Rare

Game Boy Color

Star Ocean: Blue Sphere

スターオーシャンブルースフィア

Action RPG · 2001

Star Ocean: Blue Sphere is a 2001 action RPG developed by tri-Ace and published by Enix exclusively for the Game Boy Col…

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Rare

Dreamcast

Ikaruga

斑鳩

Shoot 'em up · 2002

Ikaruga (2002) is a vertical scrolling shoot 'em up developed and self-published by Treasure, released for Dreamcast in …

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GameCube Animal Crossing's most complete edition never left Japan. Doubutsu no Mori e+ (2003) added e-Reader cards, new villa

Uncommon ▶

Nintendo GameCube

Animal Crossing: Doubutsu no Mori e+

どうぶつの森e+

Life simulation · 2003

Doubutsu no Mori e+ is the final and most complete GameCube entry in the Animal Crossing series, released exclusively in…

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Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels

The Mysterious Murasame Castle

All Night Nippon: Super Mario Bros.

The Goonies

Layla

Famicom Mukashibanashi: Shin Onigashima

Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic

Eggerland

Esper Dream

Otocky

Ai Senshi Nicol

Arumana no Kiseki

Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei

Detective Jinguji Saburo: Shinjuku Chuo Koen Murder Case

Getsu Fuuma Den

Castlevania II: Simon's Quest

Falsion

Gradius II

Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir

Kaettekita Mario Bros.

Hanjuku Hero

Famicom Wars

Final Fantasy II

Tetris

Super Momotaro Dentetsu

Famicom Detective Club Part II: The Girl Who Stands Behind

Tengai Makyō: Ziria

Final Fantasy III

Tengai Makyou II: Manjimaru

Parodius Da!

Final Fantasy V

Snatcher

Star Parodier

Fire Emblem Gaiden

Clu Clu Land D

Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys

Romancing SaGa 2

Monster World IV

Pulseman

Seiken Densetsu 3

Tales of Phantasia

Front Mission

Sapphire: Ginga Fukei Densetsu

Clock Tower

Pokémon Red and Green

Sakura Wars

Bahamut Lagoon

Grandia

Shining Force III

Thunder Force V

Princess Crown

Silhouette Mirage

DoDonPachi

X-Men vs. Street Fighter

Cotton 2: Magical Night Dreams

Kirby's Star Stacker

Pokémon Trading Card Game

Baroque

Dragon Force II: Kamisarishi Daichi ni

Tokyo Bus Guide

Sin and Punishment: Successor of the Earth

Rez

Cosmic Smash

Star Ocean: Blue Sphere

Ikaruga

Animal Crossing: Doubutsu no Mori e+

Keep exploring