Sega-16's Top 100 Mega Drive/Genesis games (please read post #5 before posting)

[cowboyscowboys]

No Golden Axe III in the top 100... major letdown

[Zebbe]

I think it's really cool that most genres are well represented, not just shooters, platformers and sports games the console is known for, but also RPGs and strategy games. One exception is the fighters, but then again, the console doesn't have that many either.

[Mega Drive Bowlsey]

Great to see both Micro Machines 2 and Mercs get in the top 100. They don't get half the praise they deserve.

[RvR]

Genesis got all the big fighting games of its day. SNES had the advantage of Nintendo completely skipping the 32 bit generation so it got ports SF Alpha 2 and Art of Fighting 2, though its slightly offset by Genesis having Virtua Fighter and Eternal Champions.

[Phantar]

Interesting to see how certain opinions have shifted. A decade ago Herzog Zwei would have been a major contender, and a few years ago it was still a Top50 choice, yet this time it barely scratches the Top100. Also, no Dune 2 apparently, which a few years ago would have been a sure bet in many selections. Guess RTS games have fallen out of favor in general over the years...

Still, great to see such a varied selection of games making the overall list. Good to see a few sports games in there as well, considering it's sports library was one of the major selling points of the Genesis, at least in the early days. They don't seem to be able to crack the Top50, but it is still nice to seem them, if only for variety.

/Edit: Doesn't look like any Mortal Kombat game would be making the ranks as well. I can get behind that, but that would definitely not have been the case 25 years ago!

[Seingalt]

I just upload some pics here, that I need for post #2 (there's a limit of 5 attachments per post).

[Team Andromeda]

Mercs get in the top 100. They don't get half the praise they deserve.

Agreed. Mercs is utterly fab on the Mega Drive. It also was my 1st ever Import game from Dream Machines 1/2, Dreamware (now Videogameimports.com) after my old import shop owner did a runner. Dream Machines 2 was best import shop going

[RvR]

Wow Sonic the Hedgehog booted from the top 10. Very interested to see the top 10 now.

[Seingalt]

Wow Sonic the Hedgehog booted from the top 10. Very interested to see the top 10 now.

Well, what's your prediction for the Top 5 (or Top 10)?

[RvR]

Well, what's your prediction for the Top 5 (or Top 10)?

Based on the 2010 list and the general impression I got from these lists I would say:

1. sonic 2
2. sor2
3. s3&k
4. revenge of shinobi
5. Contra
6. Gunstar
7. Shinobi 3
8. PSIV
9. TF4
10. Bloodlines

[Seingalt]

Based on the 2010 list and the general impression I got from these lists I would say:

1. sonic 2
2. sor2
3. s3&k
4. revenge of shinobi
5. Contra
6. Gunstar
7. Shinobi 3
8. PSIV
9. TF4
10. Bloodlines

You got 3 positions right.

[Zebbe]

My guess:

1. Sonic 3 & Knuckles
2. Streets of Rage II
3. Sonic the Hedgehog 2
4. Gunstar Heroes
5. Thunder Force IV
6. Phantasy Star IV
7. Shinobi III
8. Revenge of Shinobi
9. Contra: Hard Corps
10. Castlevania Bloodlines

[Seingalt]

Here is the alternative Top 100 list that doesn’t implement the Reputation multiplier, but instead gives equal weight to every individual list.
However Rep. Power is still used for the tie-breaking procedure.

Rank	Title	Points	Tie-Breaking Notes	Rep-weighted list
1st	Streets of Rage 2	1140		1st (no change)
2nd	Sonic 3 & Knuckles	899		2nd (no change)
3rd	Gunstar Heroes	753		3rd (no change)
4th	Sonic 2	726		4th (no change)
5th	Contra: Hard Corps	645		5th (no change)
6th	Shinobi III	611		6th (no change)
7th	Thunder Force IV / Lightening Force	515		7th (no change)
8th	Castlevania Bloodlines / Vampire Killer	499		10th (up 2)
9th	Phantasy Star IV	468		8th (down 1)
10th	Sonic the Hedgehog	461		11th (up 1)
11th	Revenge of Shinobi	439		9th (down 2)
12th	Shining Force II	398		14th (up 2)
13th	Rocket Knight Adventures	383		12th (down 1)
14th	Alien Soldier	360		15th (up 1)
15th	Landstalker	332		13th (down 2)
16th	Monster World IV	307		17th (up 1)
17th	Streets of Rage 3 / Bare Knuckle 3	297		21st (up 4)
18th	Aladdin	285		16th (down 2)
19th	Beyond Oasis / The Story of Thor	255		19th (no change)
20th	Quackshot	240		20th (no change)
21st	Flashback	233		18th (down 3)
22nd	Shadow Dancer	231		30th (up 8)
23rd	MUSHA / Musha Aleste	223		23rd (no change)
24th	Comix Zone	212	8 votes	28th (up 4)
25th	TMNT: The Hyperstone Heist	212	7 votes	33rd (up 8)
26th	Mega Turrican	211		22nd (down 4)
27th	Ristar	207		27th (no change)
28th	Earthworm Jim	204		26th (down 2)
29th	Road Rash II	200		25th (down 4)
30th	Ghouls 'n Ghosts	199		24th (down 6)
31st	ToeJam & Earl	178		29th (down 2)
32nd	Shining Force	168		31st (down 1)
33rd	Dynamite Headdy	164		32nd (down 1)
34th	Streets of Rage	159		34th (no change)
35th	Battle Mania Daiginjou	157	6 votes	35th (no change)
36th	Crusader of Centy / Soleil	157	5 votes	39th (up 3)
37th	Vectorman	147		38th (up 1)
38th	Xeno Crisis	143		44th (up 6)
39th	Yuuyuu Hakusho Makyou Toitsusen / Yu Yu Hakusho: Sunset Fighters	138		37th (down 2)
40th	Wonderboy in Monster World	132		49th (up 9)
41st	Dragon's Fury / Devil Crash MD	129		52nd (up 11)
42nd	Golden Axe	128		41st (down 1)
43rd	Golden Axe II	123		57th (up 14)
44th	Ecco the Dolphin	117		55th (up 11)
45th	Adventures of Batman & Robin, The	115	4 votes; best rank: 2nd	60th (up 15)
46th	Castle of Illusion	115	4 votes; best rank: 7th	43rd (down 3)
47th	Light Crusader	114		36th (down 11)
48th	Langrisser II	111	4 votes	42nd (down 6)
49th	Gain Ground	111	3 votes	47th (down 2)
50th	Jungle Strike	110		51st (up 1)
51st	Eliminate Down	109		48th (down 3)
52nd	Super Street Figher II	108		45th (down 7)
53rd	Desert Strike	104		59th (up 6)
54th	Street Fighter 2 Champion Edition	100	4 votes; best rank: 6th	65th (up 11)
55th	World of Illusion	100	4 votes; best rank: 10th	46th (down 9)
56th	Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster's Hidden Treasure	100	4 votes; best rank: 11th	69th (up 13)
57th	Shining in the Darkness	96	3 votes; best rank: 4th	40th (down 17)
58th	Kid Chameleon	96	3 votes; best rank: 5th	72nd (up 14)
59th	Thunder Force III	90		56th (down 3)
60th	Panorama Cotton	89	3 votes; best rank: 2nd	62nd (up 2)
61st	Mega Man - The Wily Wars / Rockman Mega World	89	3 votes; best rank: 4th	61th (no change)
62nd	Ranger X	88		74th (up 12)
63rd	Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament	86		54th (down 9)
64th	Marble Madness (Japanese version by Tengen)	85		50th (down 14)
65th	Pulseman	83		67th (up 2)
66th	Sunset Riders	76		66th (no change)
67th	Starflight	75	3 votes; best rank: 7th	53rd (down 14)
68th	Mercs	75	3 votes; best rank: 12th	58th (down 10)
69th	Zombies Ate My Neighbors	72		75th (up 6)
70th	Super Hang-On	71		64th (down 6)
71st	General Chaos	70		63rd (down 8)
72nd	Micro Machines: Turbo Tournament '96	67		83rd (up 11)
73rd	Granada	63		70th (down 3)
74th	NHL 96 / Elitserien 96	62		79th (up 5)
75th	Mega Bomberman	61		86th (up 11)
76th	Fire Shark	60	2 votes; best rank: 4th	71st (down 5)
77th	NHL Hockey / EA Hockey	60	2 votes; best rank: 9th	76th (down 1)
78th	Puyo Puyo Tsuu	59	2 votes; best rank: 3rd	new
79th	Shadowrun	59	2 votes; best rank: 5th	88th (up 9)
80th	Toy Story	57	2 votes; best rank: 9th	new
81st	Sub-Terrania	57	2 votes; best rank: 11th	73rd (down 8)
82nd	PGA Tour Golf III	56	2 votes; best rank: 6th	91st (up 9)
83rd	John Madden Football '92	56	2 votes; best rank: 12th	new
84th	Road Rash	55	2 votes; best rank: 5th	90th (up 6)
85th	NHL 94	55	2 votes; best rank: 6th	87th (up 2)
86th	Alisia Dragoon	55	2 votes; best rank: 8th; Rep. Power: 20	89th (up 3)
87th	Gleylancer	55	2 votes; best rank: 8th; Rep. Power: 9	81st (down 6)
88th	Strider	54		68th (down 20)
89th	Atomic Runner	52	2 votes; best rank: 10th (once); Rep. Power: 20	80th (down 9)
90th	Splatterhouse 3	52	2 votes; best rank: 10th (once); Rep. Power: 9	new
91st	Rock n' Roll Racing	52	2 votes; best rank: 12th	95th (up 4)
92nd	X-Men 2	50	2 votes	85th (down 7)
93rd	Ghostbusters	50	1 vote	new
94th	Gauntlet IV	47	2 votes; best rank: 13th	78th (down 16)
95th	Herzog Zwei	47	2 votes; best rank: 15th	96th (up 1)
96th	Mortal Kombat II	47	2 votes; best rank: 16th	new
97th	Gaiares	45	2 votes; best rank: 17th (once); Rep. Power: 41	84th (down 13)
98th	Twinkle Tale	45	2 votes; best rank: 17th (once); Rep. Power: 13	new
99th	Road Rash 3	44		77th (down 22)
100th	Brian Lara Cricket 96	43	2 votes; Virtua Racing also received 43 points but only 1 vote	new

The following 8 games from the Rep-weighted list dropped out altogether:
Greatest Heavyweights
Super Monaco GP
Warrior of Rome II
Jewel Master
Sensible Soccer: International Edition
NBA Jam
Truxton
Gynoug

[Seingalt]

My guess:

1. Sonic 3 & Knuckles
2. Streets of Rage II
3. Sonic the Hedgehog 2
4. Gunstar Heroes
5. Thunder Force IV
6. Phantasy Star IV
7. Shinobi III
8. Revenge of Shinobi
9. Contra: Hard Corps
10. Castlevania Bloodlines

Sorry, only one hit!

[Baloo]

Interesting to see how certain opinions have shifted. A decade ago Herzog Zwei would have been a major contender, and a few years ago it was still a Top50 choice, yet this time it barely scratches the Top100. Also, no Dune 2 apparently, which a few years ago would have been a sure bet in many selections. Guess RTS games have fallen out of favor in general over the years...

Still, great to see such a varied selection of games making the overall list. Good to see a few sports games in there as well, considering it's sports library was one of the major selling points of the Genesis, at least in the early days. They don't seem to be able to crack the Top50, but it is still nice to seem them, if only for variety.

/Edit: Doesn't look like any Mortal Kombat game would be making the ranks as well. I can get behind that, but that would definitely not have been the case 25 years ago!

Frankly, I think it is because some games have just aged horribly, Mortal Kombat being one of them. From a technical perspective, it is a terrible game and a terrible 2D fighter. Heck, I don't think Super Street Fighter II or Mega Many The Wily Wars should have made the Top 100 of Genesis games either, considering there are far better versions of both games to be played in 2021. I can't play a better version of Streets of Rage II, but I sure can play a better version of Street Fighter II or any of the first six Mega Man games, even if these two games are decent. I think that can safely apply to some other games on this list, but those were the two biggest examples I noticed. Also, I think RTS is better played on PC for a variety of reasons...who wants to play RTS with a controller in 2021?

Then again, this is coming from the guy who singlehandedly put NBA Jam in the Top 100 Genesis games. It is unbelievably fun though. But the only game I think is probably missing from a Top 100 list for the pure meme value is Zero Wing.