I’m sad that I was never able to get my hands on a NES mini. Even though Nintendo has said the last shipments of the year will be sent throughout April, I am kind of hopeful that the verbiage “of the year” means we will see its triumphant return at some point. I really want to get every version of the mini and will likely buy myself a Famicom Mini imported from Japan as prices for that console are fairly reasonable. HOPEFULLY, the SNES mini doesn’t have the same production issues the NES mini did. I imagine demand will be even higher this time around as the SNES is thought of better than the NES and I can imagine more people wanting to get on board with the games. So really my #1 wish for the SNES Mini is that they actually make enough that I can own one! But outside of that, everyone and their mothers are making wishlists of what games they want to see on the novelty console so I figured I’d make my wish list. Note though, there are a ton of games I want to see on this console. My choice is basically copying the concept of the NES mini of getting a number of games from different genres and companies.
- Super Mario World – I think this is the one gimme that we can expect on the system. The game plays just as good today.
- Earthbound – I kind of expect this one on the system as well. The mini will need a couple token RPGs, especially since SNES had so many really good ones. Nintendo of late has been doing its best to promote the Earthbound series and this would be another easy way to get it out there.
- F-Zero – A racer, and a great one at that. How could we not see this on the system?
- Super Street Fighter II: Random edition – Nintendo gets Final Edition on Switch as an exclusive (for now), is it possible we see one of the SNES editions make it here as well? I have a feeling it was in on the contract.
- Final Fantasy IV – VI is the better game, but could easily be held back for a second SNES mini. NES mini has the original Final Fantasy, proving that Square Enix is willing to deal with these.
- Super Metroid – Often considered the best Metroid that was made. This would be a beneficial addition for the actiony-type games.
- Mega Man X2 – X1 I think is the better game, like FF4 over 6, save it for a future edition, X2 provides a good variety and is still a good game.
- Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest – See above.
- Earthworm Jim – I’m not even entirely sure who owns Earthworm Jim these days. There hasn’t been a new one in ages has there? It was a great game and also a little niche. I think it’d be a great add.
- Super Castlevania IV – Konami played nice and put Castlevania on the NES, here’s another classic.
- Kirby’s Dream Land 3 – I never got into the Kirby games, but how can you not include Kirby?
- Ken Griffey’s Jr’s Winning Run Baseball – Sports game that was actually created by Nintendo. Easy add.
- Super Punch-Out – Probably the least popular of the Punch Out games, but again, adds variety and owned by Nintendo.
- SimCity – This is one of my all time favorite renditions of any SimCity. Super fun version. I’m not sure how EA feels about putting their games out there and generally this one can only be gotten via cart, but still would be awesome to see its return.
- Pilotwings – Man the SNES had a good launch… Pilotwings, SimCity, F-Zero, and Mario World. Pretty sure that was it at launch but I’d take any one of em.
- NBA Jam Tournament Edition – Switch is getting a Jam-like game, why not promote it by putting Jam on the mini?
- Actraiser – Another game I love that doesn’t get a lot of praise but is great. Part Platformer, Part God-Simulation Part awesome.
- Star Fox – Honestly, I was originally going to leave it off the list of games because I feel like the list was already Nintendo heavy and needed to save a few gems for SNES Mini 2 (Which I imagine they have to leave as a possibility), but it is a shooter game and this list is pretty slim on those. It also is the game that showcases the FX chip the best.
- Breath of Fire – I wanted one more RPG on the system after FFIV & Earthbound and I wanted it to not be going through Square which is really difficult since Square and Enix were the two big RPG creators of the day and now they are the same company. Breath of Fire is a good game that doesn’t get a ton of press which makes it a great niche game to add to this list.
- The Legend of the Mystical Ninja – LOVE this game. Another niche action-adventure game.
- The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past – Thought I’d forget? Naw this game has to be there.
- Zombies Ate My Neighbors – I think the Genesis version might actually be the better version, but this is still a cult classic.
- Super Adventure Island – Another Hudson Soft Game, I was thinking either this or Bomberman, but I decided that if they were going to include games that allow for 3+ players it’d be on the next SNES Mini, not this version.
- Super Star Wars – This is kind of a pipe dream. I don’t think it would happen, but the Star Wars trilogy on the SNES were pretty good games.
- Super Mario Kart – Nintendo brings back the version that started it all. I would rank the original as the 4th best SMK, but die hards love this one.
- Lemmings – Another pipe dream. This was made by DMA designs which is now Rockstar North and Rockstar hasn’t traditionally played nice with Nintendo so don’t expect it to happen. But IMHO, Lemmings may have been the best puzzle game on the system.
- The Lost Vikings – Simliarly, another classic that likely won’t make it. I mean this has a better shot than Lemmings.
- Wario’s Woods – I”ll be honest, not played it, and I don’t think the game is generally thought of well. But it is a puzzle game all the same.
- Some random Madden – They are pretty much all the same, but this is the generation that started the franchise so I feel like it should be included.
- Aerobiz Supersonic – Another pipedream, but this game is a personal favorite of mine. It’s an Airliner business simulator back in the SNES days and is honestly one of my fav from the system. Very niche game and doubt it’d show up but this was my personal wish it was there item.