The 16-bit Era

[Austin]

The fourth generation of video game consoles, also called the 16-bit era, was one of the most popular generations of consoles. Spanning from the late 80's through the 90's, popular consoles included the PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16, the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis, The Super Famicom/SNES, and the Neo Geo AES.

Several important games from this era include Super Mario World, Final Fantasy IV/V/VI, Chrono Trigger, Donkey Kong Country, Sonic the Hedgehog, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, and hundreds of others.

What are your thoughts on this generation of consoles? Did you own any of these consoles? What are some of your favorite games in this generation and why? Discuss! :D

 

[Devalue]

Owned a Super Nintendo. Considers it one of the best, if not the best, consoles of all-time. Ranks Earthbound and Chrono Trigger as the top two favorites. Names other excellent games not listed above such as Kirby Super Star, Star Fox, and Yoshi's Island.

Speaks with rose-colored glasses, of course. Was a fledgling gamer then. Owned no other consoles before it. Conferred several benefits:
1. Compared it against a handful of PC games. Felt fresh, regardless of genre.
2. Designed many of these games with new gamers in mind. Grew in skill with the game. Often possesses the bulk of it beforehand now (but not always).
3. Aimed to complete the stage. Focused less on hunting down every collectible and secret on the first attempt. Bothered with most of that after beating the game. Relates somewhat to the previous point.

Generally prefers 2D over 3D, also. Cannot say how much of this era of games influenced that. Presents the game area better.

 

[budube]

Never owned one bc I'm not old, but w/ emulators being a thing I'm constantly playing and replaying SNES games. I have no idea how many times I've played Super Mario World, Earthbound, the DKC games or Chrono Trigger.

Chrono Trigger is probably my favorite game of all time. I play the DS version more, but I was first introduced to it w/ the original, SNES one.

 

[Sammi]

SNES was my first gaming console, so I have a ton of nostalgia for the system, despite only really playing a handful of games on it. Though considering the good games are really good, I don't think it's a stretch to say it's one of Nintendo's best systems.

Super Mario World is still my favorite Mario game. It's aged really well. Love Yoshi's Island, too. Such a cute art style! And add me to the pile of "Chrono Trigger good". (Though if you haven't played CT before, I vastly prefer the DS port and the new translation.)
I wish I could say I played Link to the Past on SNES, as much as I love that game, but my experience with it was the GBA port.
Think my favorite odd game on it was Mario Paint. ngl, I'm bad at art and music but I kinda wish I could replay it.

My family was firmly a Nintendo family in the 90s. The only experience I had with the Sega Genesis was playing it at my grandma's. My uncle owned it and let us play Sonic games on it. Was a fun treat when we were staying over there.

 

[Austin]

I LOVE the 16-bit era so much. The first console I ever played was a SNES in a doctor's office waiting room. It had Donkey Kong Country, and I remember trying so hard to get through the first level, but I had a blast.

Gonna hop on board the Chrono Trigger-is-the-best train. I love that game to pieces. It's one of the few games I'm comfortable calling a masterpiece tbh. I don't think I ever played the DS version, so I'm basing this off of the SNES one. I hear a lot of good things about the DS port, however, so maybe I'll check out the additions/differences.
Aside from that, I love all the SNES classics: Super Metroid, all the Mario games, Zelda, Earthbound, the Final Fantasies, etc. The SNES is easily my favorite console.

I never owned any of the consoles from this generation, although I played most of them at friends' houses. I specifically remember having a fun time playing Mario Kart on SNES, Sonic 3 on Genesis, and Metal Slug on Neo Geo. That was a fun time.

 

[Quto]

Too many to count.

Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo, had'em both, though I leaned towards Nintendo.

To me, these console's we're in a rough sense of the would, the bedrock of modern gaming. In fact, t he entire 16-bit Genre was a solidified bedrock that is still being developed for today if you know where to look for game jams coding for specific console's.

Personal Favorite's, Anything by Treasure on the Sega Genesis; Mostly because the guy's behind the game's published utilized a form of Pseudo 3D to pull off effect's that would look like the next general step in gaming's evolution. The rotating title screen at the start, the layered images in the background along with a handful of bosses; when they pushed the Sega Genesis, they pushed it hard. Nintendo outdid them later on with Starfox on the SUPER FX chip and what not; but to know what the genesis could support and being a programmer, having to deliver something great to the console, the loop around's and trick's they had to perform still boggles the mind. If I had to pick a personal favorite, I'd be split between 5 game's on the console. Vectorman, Comix Zone, Sonic 3, Phantasy Star and Crusader of Centy.

The Super Nintendo, I got earlier in life and didn't care for it much as I was probably 3 or 4, I still remember playing on it fondly for what I could remember. Favorite's we're Super Mario, Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past, Terranigma, Earthbound and Super Mario RPG.