Nintendo has produced some of the longest-running and most iconic video game franchises of all time, and it’s easy for many fans to work through a long list of their favorites. While some of the company’s iconic characters are unforgettable, that doesn’t mean every game that appeared on a Nintendo system was equally memorable.
the gameboywas home to countless classic and not-so-classic games. Those who were quickly forgotten, however, often had one thing ahead of them: fantastic album covers. Whether the art captured the game’s themes, set a mood, or simply prompted the player to pick up a Game Boy and dive in, these covers will be remembered as some of the most beautiful to appear on the system.
8 Adventure Island
When asked to name a side-scrolling Nintendo adventure in which a hero in a hat has to save a princess from an anthropomorphic villain, most players would instinctively say mario. Surprisingly, that’s not the only correct answer.
Here, the game is Adventure Island, and the hero is Master Higgins, a young man who ventures to the titular island in the South Pacific to rescue Princess Tina from the clutches of the Evil Witch Doctor. There are 32 and a number of bosses, but the best part of the game is the cover art, which instantly captures a classic Nintendo vibe, feels cartoonish and adventurous with a subtle air of danger.
7 Beetle Juice (1992)
Hot on the heels of Rare’s 1991 release for the NES came in 1992 beetle juice for the game boy. The game is based on the animated TV series and lets the player take control of Beetlejuice as he tries to clear the house of Lydia Deetz of ghosts and save her from the evil Astoroth.
The game may be an odd departure from the movie’s canon, but it has its own eerie charm. The player uses bio-exorcist magic to fight the undead, can ride around on a minecart and Pogosnake mount, and perform other typical side-scroller activities. The game’s goth aesthetic was a departure from many of the more colorful and cartoonish games of the day, as evidenced by the image of Beetlejuice on the cover, lurking at the player and looking as unsettling as ever.
6 Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge
The Castlevania franchise is loved by many, so much so that it has inspired an entire genre: the Metroidvania. Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge may not be one of the best games in the franchise, but it helped shape what Castlevania would be for years to come. Takes place 15 years later Castlevania: the adventure, Belmont’s Revenge Characteristics the return of Dracula and the kidnapping of Christopher Belmont’s son.
The game’s cover art – with its imposing castle, muscular hero and lavish fantasy backdrop – may not be exactly what modern fans imagine when they think of the series, but it undeniably set a mood and helped keep players in the right state of life. bring. spirit to storm Dracula’s castle one more time.
5 Child Dracula (1993)
Castlevania wasn’t the only Game Boy franchise to take advantage of the legendary vampire’s name. Kid Dracula is a remake of and sequel to the Famicom game from three years earlier. The evil Garamoth has returned and only Kid Dracula can defeat him. Unfortunately, most of Kid Dracula’s spells have been erased from his memory, and many of his once trusted followers have betrayed him and entered the service of his enemy.
The game’s album cover features bold colors, high contrast, and simple shapes, all of which help to sell it as a parody rather than just a copy of castlevania. The game’s legacy may not have been well preserved over the years, but the original is still remarkable in many ways.
4 Operation C
Although many do not know the title Operation C, they will know the name Against. Operation C was the sequel to Super contra and the first portable entry in the franchise. Looks and plays just like the NES version, Operation C was an addictive, side-scrolling shoot-em-up, pitting the player and their guns against a horde of challenging enemies, even if it wasn’t the best in the series.
The fantastic cover art – featuring a sleeveless, muscular, headband-wearing soldier shelling a giant scorpion with machine gun fire – is about as over-the-top as they come, but completely in keeping with the style of the era. The main character is even posed as an action figure, which makes the whole thing even more ridiculous (and awesome).
3 Skate Or Die: Bad ‘N Rad
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Extreme sports may not have peaked in pop culture until the ’00s, but Skate or Die: Bad ‘N Rad helped lead the attack. The unnamed skateboarding hero is on a mission to rescue Miss Aerial from ElRad the Evil One, which is about all the story the player needs or gets.
The game’s seven timed phases feature both side-scrolling and top-down skateboarding adventures, complete with boss fights at the end of some of them.
The game’s mechanics and story may not have brought many innovations to the genre, but the game’s cover art is a world unto itself. As the game’s skateboarding hero performs tricks along a seaside rock face, a helicopter and a monster both try to take him down. That moment of frozen action does a great job of showing what the game dreams of, and even if it doesn’t quite fulfill that dream, Skate or Die: Bad ‘N Rad is certainly unique.
2 Ultima: Runes Of Virtue II
The Ultimate series has done more to shape RPGs and MMOs than almost any other, but rather Ultima Online shook up the world that was there Ultima: Runes of Virtue II. This game, like its predecessor, was a non-canonical spin-off of the main series rather than a continuation of the story presented in the Age of Enlightenment and Age of Armageddon games of the time.
While it wasn’t canon or as visually stunning as some of the others,Ultima: Runes of Virtue II got at least one thing right: a beautifully illustrated cover. of the battle of a black armored knight and hero draped in obligatory white, the art of play would have been on the cover of any pulp fantasy magazine at home. Other games in the series overshadowed it, but Runes of Virtue II in any case, players with that enduring image left.
1 Swamp thing
Given the overwhelming popularity of superheroes, it’s no surprise that these characters have had a place in gaming from childhood. However, it may surprise some to learn that a smaller profile and a much more complicated character like Swamp thing got its own game in the Game Boy era.
This walking talking plant has been reinvented countless times in comics, and while the Game Boy version may not have the depth that Alan Moore and other writers brought it to the print page, Swamp thing got cover art that more than did the character justice. The faded orange, yellow and cloudy green palette makes this cover one of the most atmospheric and evocative images to ever appear on the system.
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