The Top 10 Greatest SNES (Super Nintendo) Hidden Gems

[@zachubert32]

I literally cheered when Ogre Battle was #1. Perfect pick, amazing game!

[@Zenodice]

Couldn't agree more on Ogre Battle, one of my all time favorite games that very few people I knew actually knew about. I built a Pibox and also purchased a Anbernic RG351P to play Ogre Battle among others in this list. Great GREAT game.

[@josephbradshaw6985]

Cool. I got the 351v in wood grain. I really only play 2D games, so it's perfect. Plenty of power. I'll check out Ogre Battle.

[@DisasterLord]

I'm amazed that this channel doesn't have more followers, this is some good stuff

[@Xygor]

Spread the word! :)

[@watisthiseven]

100% agree

[@not_jon_vendi]

Def a hidden gem 😉

[@JohnDWJ]

Shadowrun was so ahead of its time. It pushed the hardware as far as possible to create the early elements of a more open world exploration. Wonderful forever.

[@Xygor]

Shadowrun was so unique and fun!

[@davidaitken8503]

Have you ever tried Metal Warriors? The guys at Lucas Arts that made Zombies Ate My Neighbors made their own take on Cybernator. While I don't think the moment to moment gameplay is quite as good as Cybernator it has a whole lot of unique elements that make it well worth playing to the end. If you play the versus mode after killing the final guy it even has some changed graphics with a ZAMN reference.

[@DiegoMartinez-pz1nf]

Zombies ate my neighbors was my jam when I was a kid. It was tight like a pair of my sisters jeans. It was super cool like an Icee from 7/11. It was da bomb like Da Unabomber. It's rad like radials. I guess what I'm trying to say is the game is pleasurable to play, both in my youth and as an adult *smiley face emoji*

[@oodogla]

Both of those games were really awesome

[@TacothunderYT]

I wasn't even alive for these games' release and this video makes me feel nostalgic. Xygor boy crushing it as always.

[@Xygor]

Thanks man. Ample time to play them now!

[@LabrnMystic]

Ah, Ogre Battle. I did not realize it was so limited and I was very lucky that the local funcoland had a copy that I got for my birthday and I fell in love with the genre.

[@mishking9547]

As much as I loved Star ocean, I always prefered the story and characters of Tales of Phantasia, similar battle system as well

[@DiegoMartinez-pz1nf]

Does anyone remember Super Bonk? It was a platforms but the main character looked like Krillin dressed as a cave man and the level designs were cool as hell, super creative, like one level you get eaten or something like that and you have to make your way out of the human body REAAAAAALLLLLLYYYYYYY COOOOP

[@oodogla]

Haha I remember that game. I had no idea what I was doing but I knew eating meat made him go crazy and it was just really fun.

[@apex403]

Omg this list is my childhood Don't fire a bullet until the boss in the first level, unlock the napalm gun in cybernator

[@Hisho00]

Really?!

[@mr.vidjagamez9896]

For the longest time, the "hidden gem" that it seemed like I was the only one who bought and knew about, was Wild Guns. I was freaking floored when I saw the announcement for the updated versions on Switch and PS4, never expecting such a great, but obscure title to have a resurgence and is the closest satisfaction I will get to a sequel. The Flinstones: Treasure of Sierra Madrock, is another pretty fun platformer that doesnt get much attention. Much better then the other one on the SNES based off the live-action movie. Pugsly's Scavenger Hunt is another acquired taste of a title, but if offers only what I can describe as "Super Meat Boy" style absurdly precised platforming, if you are into that kind of thing.

[@Xygor]

Wild Guns is a great pick. I haven’t played the Flinstones game so I’ll have to check it out.

[@Orion26DML]

Baseball Simulator is my favorite sports game of all time.

[@brayoungful]

That baseball game looks great. Makes me wish the NFL Blitz series was still a thing, and it extended to every sport

[@sleeperyjeemtoybox]

Only 25,000 Ogre Battles. didn't know that, was lucky to get it in the UK through a grey importer back then. Dont think i managed more than 3 endings over 8 playthroughs, sigh, no internet back then.

[@Xygor]

Glad you were able to get it!

[@frankmurray222]

These are some fantastic hidden gems. Better then most other channels picks. I just picked up a plug and play retro emulator with over 40,000 games spanning 15+ retro consoles and I have most of these games. I'm pretty excited to try these out. Great video.

[@Xygor]

Thank you, glad you like em!

[@armand4116]

My favorite console of all times , and My favorite gen.

[@Xygor]

Which SNES hidden gem did I leave out of my list? Please consider supporting me at www.patreon.com/xygorgaming OR through KZbin membership by clicking the JOIN button above!

[@devingiles6597]

Hey, Xygor Gaming. I know a hidden gem for the Super Nintendo you did not mention, Sparkster.

[@fjcarmo0369]

Plok, Uniracers, Looney Tunes Basketball, Super Bowling

[@TimBitten]

You’re DAMN RIGHT Ogre Battle!!!! Only game I can always sit down and play, no matter what. (...admittedly, I’ve become a bit reliant on emulator’s speed up option for it.) 😅

[@Xygor]

It's so good! And yeah, I can see that as an awesome feature for Ogre Battle. Waiting for the troop movements makes it desirable!

[@TimBitten]

@@Xygor I admit, I’m still awful at manipulating the reputation system. Heck, it’s all I can do to even beat a lot of maps, let alone beat them the right way!!! lmao I’ll watch a guide one of these days.

[@davidpellman8157]

Man, I remember playing the heck out of Baseball Simulator back in the day. Target Earth was one of my favorite Sega Genesis games of all time. I never knew the SNES had a sequel. I will have to track down Cybernator and play it. I had a copy of March of the Black Queen. I couldn't get into it. I traded it in for credit towards Popful Mail on the Sega CD.

[@ItalNico]

Great video...I'd only heard of a few of them. I'd add EVO to this list since it was so obscure and hard to find that most game stores hadn't even heard of it when it was released.

[@Xygor]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@SaitoXD]

Great video! Shadowrun has always been a favorite of mine on the SNES, every now and then I came back for another playthrough, I would have added Robotrek, a cool RPG from Enix

[@Xygor]

That’s a great choice, Robotrek is good. I will cover it eventually for sure.

[@AndrewEvenstar]

I've played super baseball sim so much. It's one of my fav games on the snes. I used to create my little league teams.

[@Xygor]

Heck yeah man, that game was so fun. It never seems to get the credit it deserves.

[@Hisho00]

Yeessss Assault Suits Valken!! was prepared to comment it because i didnt expect you to put it! Awesome game and music 👌👌👌

[@eviljoshy3402]

The only one I've heard of was magic sword. One hidden game on SNES I enjoyed was Metal Warriors. Like a gundam knock off. The multiplayer was pretty fun. I installed it on my SNES mini.

[@Xygor]

Thanks for this recommendation. I think I played it for a total of 10 minutes or so way back in the day. I'll give it a try soon.

[@rpgs6218]

I wish we had a modern metal warrior or hd remake with more players and onli e multiplayer

[@oodogla]

Thank you for saying this. Metal warriors was a game I loved playing with my brother, didn't really care for the story mode.

[@CrackedTusks]

This man is going to make dig out my old CRT TV and my old systems. Fantastic channel.

[@Xygor]

Thank you sir!

[@jdelix]

Star Ocean is criminally overlooked. Anyone who enjoys 16-bit JRPGs needs to play it, especially since it has a full translation patch. That game was so far ahead of its time in so many different aspects.

[@Xygor]

I totally agree with you!

[@jima.3478]

I am just glad Ogre Battle was on the Wii virtual shop and I got it. Got me into that little series of games, and so glad I did.

[@FaolchuAonarach]

Was happy to see shadowrun on this list. I was obsessed with that game! The story was SO good, and it served as my introduction to the concept of cyberpunk. I've played a few of these, but hoping to hunt down some of the others. Really obscure titles here. =)

[@Xygor]

It was such a unique game!

[@billcox8870]

Have you played the Sega Genesis shadowrun? It is a little bit different and has a lot more in depth Matrix action.

[@FaolchuAonarach]

@@billcox8870 no, I played it on the SNES, but i will have to look that up. It was a really great game, and playing a different version sounds appealing.

[@billcox8870]

@@FaolchuAonarach you will like it. A different leveling up system and jacking into the Matrix requires different cyber decks and programs. Seek it out and you will enjoy it.

[@ledforeigner1]

I just can't understand why you don't have more views. Awesome video brother! Keep it up!

[@palazzo1113]

Cybernator is amazing with a great OST! I love it.

[@Xygor]

Yeah, I should have mentioned the music in the clip. It is pretty upbeat and original. I liked it, it had a different feel.

[@speznerd5643]

Great list! I can't believe I'd only heard of two of these, Ogre Battle and Star Ocean.

[@lawrencemcstephens308]

I loved magic sword! They had an arcade machine of it at my local Pizza Hut when my dad worked there when I was probably 7 or 8 years old. I loved the arcade crawl of the gameplay, and it was just such a fun game, although it was very challenging!

[@Xygor]

It was such a fun game, probably one of my favorite arcades ever.

[@csward5380]

OMG I found another Aerobiz Supersonic fan. I love that game, despite all of its flaws. Thank you for giving it some love.

[@Grobles872]

Does anyone know the name of the sidescrolling space shooter starting at 0:37? I've been looking for an SNES game in this style I played when I was a child. I specifically remember a gun type that attacked enemy ships in a curved (whip-like) way and attached itself to them. I'm not sure if the one shown is the one I remember.

[@francescosmith7859]

These are nice picks and very unique. I need to look into Star Ocean and had completely forgot about Baseball Simulator 1000. Fun video!

[@billcox8870]

A nice selection of games. I have played both aerobiz games, gemfire on the SNES and Genesis, Shadowru, Genesis Shadow run which is different than SNES but I never played the original Star ocean. Only the later games.

[@ottereformicus782]

Ogre Battle had just 25,000 units?? I was blessed then... I played that game to it's very end, it was a ton of fun and all without a guide.

[@Xygor]

Yeah, it's hard to believe there were so few units distributed for such a great game. But that is why the cost is so high!

[@TheFarmersLife]

That’s nuts! I had a copy myself, and had no idea.

[@patrickjones2843]

Great list of SNES games. Usually its always the same games and I was wanting to try something new. Great work man!

[@Xygor]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!

[@mrojas1988]

Love the genre variety you have here. Bravo Sir.

[@SplinterAce]

The pixel art of the airport simulator is just perfect

[@MusicWizard85]

Shadowrun is better on Genesis just like Aladdin and Taz Mania. Lion King and Batman Returns are better on SNES though IMO.

[@Xygor]

I've heard the same about Shadowrun from others, but actually never played that version - I heard it's very different!

[@insaneasock3156]

Brilliant List: Honorable Mention: Uncharted Waters 2 EVO Metal Marines

[@Xygor]

Good picks!

[@Rustycube88]

What about Demon's crest

[@pnvgordinho]

True Lies, The Fireman, The Chaos Engine, Sensible Soccer, Cannon Fodder.

[@manabun6240]

I’ve only heard of Magic Sword as an arcade back near 1990. I didn’t see it in home systems till the xbox360 had it in their online store. Would have loved to have that game on snes back in the day.

[@MirinkaiserVODs]

I used to rent Gemfire all the time back in the days. I became most familiar with the mechanics and could beat the game with the weakest starting families. A bit too easy once you know mechanics, but still a great game, with amazing music. I like Ogre Battle, but I could never invest a full playthrough. The game's main flaw for me is how unbalanced the units and classes are. I want to use and level up monsters but the vast majority really suck, which saddens me. So I end up forced to use mostly very similar setups in each unit, and that gets old fast. And the alignment system annoyed me. :( But then again, I remember that time my fighters got turned into werewolves under certain circumstances. That's cool stuff right there. I need to give Ogre Battle another shot now. :p

[@ModdingNewbie]

I actually still own a copy of _Aerobiz Supersonic..._ the hardest part is playing the final era and using Russian planes for your local routes, because the model is discontinued as you get nearer the end of the scenario's time period.

[@Xygor]

Didn't realize that, thanks for this!

[@toolman4745]

Ah, no love for Metal Marines? One of the best hidden gems on the SNES in my opinion.

[@tonytom5242]

Thank you...I been trying to find that baseball game for over 20yrs now

[@Xygor]

Glad you found it here! That game was so fun, my friends and I just packed hours into it. One of my friends even made a team where everyone had the Quake hit.

[@meowcula]

I absolutely loved Shadowrun.

[@matthewmartin4394]

Hagane was hard af

[@cliftonsargent1572]

Yes! Perfect video to watch before bed, love this s*** man keep em coming. Your choice of 1 and 2 looked amazing I was a huge star ocean fan so I was pumped to see that unknown version

[@Xygor]

Thanks man, glad you liked it again!

[@Pelladhros]

My personal favorite video game is U.N. Squadron, but I never see it mentioned anywhere. Very rewarding shmup to play at Gamer difficulty, and it doesn't remove your upgrades when you die.

[@Xygor]

That's a good shoot em up! Arcade version is good too.

[@thulsa_doom]

Great list! There's a great SNES game that was successful on its time, but forgotten nowadays: the first Actraiser.

[@davidaitken8503]

Actraiser 2 is the true hidden gem. Most people don't even seem to be aware the game exists and most people dismiss it simply because it doesn't have the sim building sections despite the fact that the combat is much deeper and cooler than the original.

[@billyraycyree3785]

I can just watch this channel for hours lol. Fantastic content Mr Xygor

[@Xygor]

Haha, thanks! And please do!

[@Matt_Uubb]

Really enjoy your videos I know this one is a bit diff but still good stuff man! Keep up those awsome retro RPG stories ^^

[@Sinn0100]

First and foremost, this is a pretty good list with a few games even I haven't heard of and I grew up during the 4th generation. I was/still am a huge gamer that had both the Sega Genesis/Sega CD and Snes when they were current (I got all three at Christmas of their first year). Sorry, I'm impressed with the obscurity of some of these games. However... I don't know if you were around for the fourth generation but Shadowrun is not a game I would consider a hidden gem. What I mean by that is both the series and games (Genesis/Snes) were huge when I was a kid. I remember playground arguments that lasted all day solely on which version of Shadowrun was the best. My generation grew up on Cyberpunk themed everything. From games like The Syndicate, Zero Tolerance, Shadowrun, System Shock (1994 release on PC), and the like.

[@schwindsichtigaderechte5293]

I still have my working copy of Ogre Battle, bought it from a friend in the early 2000s for about 40 bucks. No regrets!

[@mypalrobot]

Solid list. Not sure what my top ten hidden gems would be but Front Mission Gun Hazard would definitely make the list 👌

[@Xygor]

That's a great game!

[@egoborder3203]

man, this brought back so many memories!

[@brayoungful]

Shonen Ninja Sasuke is a pretty good hidden gem. Japanese only, but it's an action game.

[@Xygor]

Thanks for this recommendation. I'll try it soon.

[@thehammer5164]

Subscribed. Good show, good show indeed!

[@SiMgUrL1721]

I actually was surprised to even see "Lagoon" near the beginning of this video (as an Honorable mention) especially considering that some people refer to "Lagoon" as a "bad game'. LOL I don't consider "Lagoon" to be a "Hidden Gem", but I also don't consider it to be a bad game either. LOL

[@alexrush4140]

Ogre Battle was the first game I played where I actually felt I could have a unique replay everytime I restarted

[@Xygor]

That's one of the best aspects of the game!

[@josephbradshaw6985]

Good to see KOEI getting some love, and sports games. Those are 2 staples for me.

[@Xygor]

Glad you liked it!

[@josephbradshaw6985]

@@Xygor For sure! Regarding sports games, I think people forget how big they were in the 8/16bit era. They don't show up on many best ofs, even though if you played with friends you almost certainly played hours and hours of Tecmo Bowl, Madden, NBA Jam, Blades of Steel, NHL, KGJ, etc...

[@Xygor]

@@josephbradshaw6985 true, Genesis seemed to have that market more cornered but they were huge!

[@josephbradshaw6985]

@@Xygor Of for sure, and to be honest those sorts of games played better on the Genesis anyway. Shhh, don't tell anyone! 🙂

[@SPFLDAngler]

R type 3

[@mrhs5220]

Video is well put together, but I wonder how many of these can actually be considered "hidden gems." Ogre Battle and Space Megaforce are generally considered a rare classic among enthusiasts, and their prices have long served as a barometer for the SNES collector's market. Any "hidden gem" status that Hagane had went out the window almost 10 years ago when Mike Matei mentioned it as a hidden gem in a video, and prices shot up for it pretty much over night from ~$60 to well over $200! In fact, it looks like Hagane broke the $1,000 mark last year.

[@Genethagenius]

If we’re counting Japanese releases with English patches, I’d have to put “Fire Emblem 4: Genealogy of the Holy War” in there also!

[@Ismcant]

Huge fan of Gemfire, excellent list.

[@nuclearbeeberman]

excellent video. I didn't know some of the games

[@ChosenPlaysYT]

Ogre Battle #1 **Crowd Cheers*

[@jfrancis2768]

Hagane is INSALEY difficult too, don't forget that either

[@JosephRawsonWorks]

Pto2 may have been more unknown than gemfire. It would be good drop in replacement for that pick.

[@thomassky4385]

front mission gun hazard should be on the list.

[@The_IN_Famous_ElGuapo_714]

Space Megaforce was a total banger!

[@MarkoTulio]

Superb list!

[@Xygor]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@cccycling5835]

lol “supersonic travel 2000-2020” Humanity is so bad at predicting future technology. At least we’re optimistic, at least some of us.

[@TIS181]

Cybernator fav weapon is the napalm launcher ^^

[@Xygor]

There were some fun weapons in that game. I need to review it soon!

[@TIS181]

@@Xygor do it. Napalm was the Secret weapon in the game

[@trystdodge6177]

Lufia 2 I think is under-rated or maybe just not talked about too much.

[@Xygor]

True, that's a great game!

[@danbauer3669]

Cool, man. I already talked to you about your number one on this list so, let's talk about another one you mentioned that I have. Super Baseball 1.000. It is pronounced one thousand, but it is a reference to a baseball players hitting statistic. 1.000 is a perfect batter who hits the ball every time they go up to bat. Nobody in the history of ever has this statistic. Oh, and that's it. I only own #10 and #1 from this list. Oh, wait. I have Shadowrun also, but I've never played it. Maybe I will now as many of these types of videos recommend it.

[@michaelsweet8397]

Thank you!

[@nOT_sURE08]

Maybe they'll put these on the switch instead of the random shovelware they've had.

[@palco2786]

Lets all share this amazing content

[@princesssprinklesthecat4192]

What about the HD Custers Revenge remake

[@anonamatron]

Gemfire looks like Dragon Force. I want some good new "map conquering" games like Dragon Force. Anyone know any?

[@Xygor]

The Ogre Battle games are probably the most similar I can think of!

[@anonamatron]

@@Xygor I was under the impression that Ogre Battle was more of a regular RPG but with the little SRPG tables to fight on, but I've actually never looked into it much. I didn't pay attention to it during this video, so I'll go back and take a look. For some reason Ogre Battle always really turns me off, but at the same time I don't even know what it actually is because of that, so I can't say I actually have a strong opinion. I've popped it open on emulators, but apparently never made it far enough to know what's going on with it. I've been considering picking up the Tactics Ogre remake since I do know what kind of game that is, but maybe it's time to give the Ogre series as a whole a look finally. Thanks for the reply.

[@13Carrey1]

Hagane is the one of the Hardest SNES Games for me!

[@colosine]

You want a hidden gem, go play EVO on the snes, it's like the snes spore

[@billcox8870]

Gemfire was on both the super Nintendo and the Sega genesis. The exact same game but just a little faster on the Genesis

[@anonamatron]

Do you know other games like Gemfire? I'm a big Dragon Force (Saturn) fan, and the map conquering makes me really want to try Gemfire. I can't seem to find many other games like Dragon Force where you take control of a big map piece by piece like that. Dragon Force is awesome but goes by too quickly. The game is decently long but the map stuff is far too easy. I feel like there must be other games that have a similar concept.

[@NinjaRunningWild]

5:15 That's _not_ cyberpunk. Shadowrun is though.

[@mikemccoy1980]

I member playing gemfire star ocean and the number 1 they where all great games my brother had the snes tho

[@calidan3646]

Shadowrun is the best snes game of all time!

[@SeanB1586]

This is good

[@KamBoomBap]

Cant even find a ROM download for Hagane

[@kevinstreetgaming]

Ogre Battle!

[@PatrickAshe41]

One word: Arcana. Not super innovative, but decent story, great atmosphere, and really awesome soundtrack.

[@mordrah1184]

7th saga and Lufia 2

[@danielhager8399]

I like your work for the most part but the mention and praise of Ogre Battle while it uses tarot cards can encourage people to rely on them in real Life which will open them to real demonic attack! Which is not Good, if no one could tell!

[@Mazza666]

No sparkster or the firemen 🤦

[@Lwilibert]

Not a single "hidden gem" in the vid. All pretty well known.

[@NinjaRunningWild]

@OrganicOrganist You just didn't.

[@chrisjensen8634]

live a live

[@Xygor]

This is a really good one! I want to cover it soon. It’s a shame that one never made it to North America.