# NES games that won't kill me?



## Scott-105 (Aug 29, 2012)

I recently felt like playing some retro games, so I bought a NES usb controller. I downloaded some games, but I keep getting my ass kicked. Super Mario Bros. 1 and 3 and a bit of Legend of Zelda are the only games I could actually get through. I downloaded Contra, Castlevania, Megaman, and Battletoads and got completely dominated. So do any of you know any NES games that are fun, but I can actually through 

Thanks in advance.


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## Crimsonclaw111 (Aug 29, 2012)

The NES is probably not for you then 

Ever heard of "Nintendo Hard"?


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## RPG_Lover (Aug 29, 2012)

Contra is only fun if you use the konami code to get extra lives. Battletoads dominates 99% of the populace. Out of the Megaman series, I thought MM2 was the easiest - you could start with that. That aside - there are game genie codes.


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## MelodieOctavia (Aug 29, 2012)

Many many NES games are considered hard by today's standards. They were hard to create an artificial sense of replay value. Pretty much the only way they could do it within hardware limitations.

Some easier games: Double Dragon, River City Ransom, Phantasy Zone, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Alfred Chicken, Captain Skyhawk (Still moderately difficult), Clash at Demonhead, Crystalis, Excite Bike, Legendary Wings, Little Nemo: Dream Master (A personal favorite), Lode runner, Mike Tyson's Punchout, The NewZealand Story, Rygar, Skate Or Die, Smash TV, Snake Rattle n Roll, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game, Wild Gunman


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## RchUncleSkeleton (Aug 29, 2012)

You've got to play them again and again until you get the quirks and patterns...then you won't get your ass kicked. You can also try Blaster Master, Goonies 2, Zelda 2: Links Adventure, Star tropics, Zodas Revenge, Final Fantasy, Kirbys Adventure or Batman.


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## raulpica (Aug 29, 2012)

Play River City Ransom. It's awesome and epic. Also, Kirby's Adventure ()

Zelda 2 can still hand over your rear to you in certain parts. And it's kinda frustrating if you don't know where to go beforehand.


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## DinohScene (Aug 29, 2012)

Kirby Nightmare in dreamland.
Megaman 2
Hello Kitty no Hanabatake
Hello Kitty world (balloon kid clone)


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## Scott-105 (Aug 29, 2012)

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I'll give some of them a shot, and let you know how I fare


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## yuyuyup (Aug 29, 2012)

NES games were created difficult for numerous reasons; some to sell game guides, some due to poor programming, some were genuinely created with difficulty in mind.  If you compare games of the past to games today, sometimes there can be a false sense that a modern game is easy, when in reality the game might be streamlined to allow you to repeat a difficult part over and over again, rapidly improving your abilities in the game, or giving you a barrage of chances without having you play the entire stage/game over again to reach the difficult part.  However, an overabundance of checkpoints or gamesave abuse can counter your ability to develop skill if the game doesn't allow you to attempt a difficult section over and over again.


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## Clarky (Aug 29, 2012)

if you head over to romhacking.com they have some patches which can make some games nes games easier. Some of the japanese version of some nes games tend to be easier as well for some reason, pretty certain Castlevania 3 was at least


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## gumgod (Aug 29, 2012)

Startropics was an awesome game, but it's definitely challenging at the later areas.  Also Gargoyle's Quest II is awesome if you don't mind dealing with the password system.  Speaking of password systems, Megaman 5 & 6 were much easier than their earlier versions.  I also recommend Smash TV for an arcade style game, but only if you have two controllers.  Metroid was awesome as was Kirby and Tinytoon Adventures.  Final Fantasy I is classic as well if you haven't already played through it at least once, you should.


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## jalaneme (Sep 12, 2012)

Scott-105 said:


> I recently felt like playing some retro games, so I bought a NES usb controller. I downloaded some games, but I keep getting my ass kicked. Super Mario Bros. 1 and 3 and a bit of Legend of Zelda are the only games I could actually get through. I downloaded Contra, Castlevania, Megaman, and Battletoads and got completely dominated. So do any of you know any NES games that are fun, but I can actually through
> 
> Thanks in advance.



LOL i feel sorry for kids today when they play older games, i managed to complete megaman 2 on the nes at 9 years old, would never touch the game again mind you LOL don't waste your time with battletoads, you don't stand a chance, don't play turtles, just a warning.

kirby is a straight forward game i agree, if i discover any easy nes games i will put them here XD

oh and a little tip, most emulators won't let you do this but if you play the pal versions they will be much slower, that might give you a advantage but you would have to turn off the auto detect option in the emu for it to work.


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## MarinoKadame (Sep 28, 2012)

Battle City Tank Wars is a great one, not too difficult to play, I played it a lot on the cart that had 150 games in it. You have tetris that is a classic. Islander is a bit hard to play, I have it on the virtual console on the wii and it's pretty hard to play it, Bomberman is great , Galaga is a classic and Doctor Mario can be fun to play.


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## Lemmy Koopa (Sep 29, 2012)

I think the challenging games are actually pretty fun, well at least the mid challenging. StarTropics is probably my favorite game of all time, very nice challenge and high replay value (for me at least). It's sequel Zoda's Revenge is pretty good too, but the story is bleh.

If you think Mario 1 and 3 are hard, try Super Mario Bros 2 (Japan). Debatable to be the hardest Mario game ever, hard enough to be pulled for non-Japanese Mario 2 releases.


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## shoyrumaster11 (Sep 29, 2012)

I really don't know what to say here! (So why am I here?) But for me, hand me any Mario game and i'll play it and play it. As for the old games, I think i'll try to get through the whole game in one night!


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## Foxi4 (Sep 29, 2012)

Believe it or not, but at the times of the NES, difficulty was actually an important factor when it came to the longevity of a title. Due to limited resources, short development times and a lack of save features in most games with the occasional passwords, developers made their games excessively difficult to "make them last" so-to-speak. If they were easy, they'd be an hour or two long. Instead of a walk in the park, games instead offered a challenge - they required a gamer to master them before he is capable of finishing them. A player always needed to "earn" his victory with countless hours of actual "training", often while making notes. It was all for the ultimate goal - finishing the game, and the gratitude it gave after countless hours of gameplay was... immense.


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## MarinoKadame (Sep 30, 2012)

Problem today games are too easy and the only way to get longevity is create quests that let you travel arround the world and doing achievements. Other stuff include grinding for equipments, it's not really hard it's just longer and boring for the most part if the story is bad to begin with. I liked the old game better than the new stuff that can be done in one day.


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## Weaselpipe (Oct 5, 2012)

yuyuyup said:


> NES games were created difficult for numerous reasons; some to sell game guides, some due to poor programming, some were genuinely created with difficulty in mind.  If you compare games of the past to games today, sometimes there can be a false sense that a modern game is easy, when in reality the game might be streamlined to allow you to repeat a difficult part over and over again, rapidly improving your abilities in the game, or giving you a barrage of chances without having you play the entire stage/game over again to reach the difficult part.  However, an overabundance of checkpoints or gamesave abuse can counter your ability to develop skill if the game doesn't allow you to attempt a difficult section over and over again.





Foxi4 said:


> Believe it or not, but at the times of the NES, difficulty was actually an important factor when it came to the longevity of a title. Due to limited resources, short development times and a lack of save features in most games with the occasional passwords, developers made their games excessively difficult to "make them last" so-to-speak. If they were easy, they'd be an hour or two long. Instead of a walk in the park, games instead offered a challenge - they required a gamer to master them before he is capable of finishing them. A player always needed to "earn" his victory with countless hours of actual "training", often while making notes. It was all for the ultimate goal - finishing the game, and the gratitude it gave after countless hours of gameplay was... immense.


Don't forget that at the time of the NES, 2 games came to just OVER the initial cost of the console- developers knew that for many people a game was a rare luxury and they had to create games that were hard enough to last between purchases without killing interest in the console, a feat that arguably few games managed.
Another contributing factor was that due to the cost and lack of 'generation x' stigma that came soon after, gaming was considered for everyone (later generations would suffer from the media lumping gaming in with kids activities)- therefore even titles based on cartoons had to be difficult enough to hold grown up interest, or good (Chip and Dale rescue rangers with 2 player is still beautifully well made, as is Duck tales)


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## kylster (Oct 5, 2012)

Recommended Games:
_Legend of Zelda 2_ - I remeber beating this game 3 times in 1 day but I don't recall it took more no more then 4 hours (combined) to accomplish this.
_Final Fantasy_ - A really good game this one may take you 1/2 - FULL day to complete if you know where your going.
_Final Fantasy II_ - Now this is an annoying title still worth playing as it's different then other FF game's but is still hard; expect a long day of gameplay maybe even 2 days.
_Final Fantasy II_ - Another good game to play probably will take you a full day to play through if you know what your doing or have experience with changing job class' from other FF series.
_Ghost n' Goblin's_ - Fun, Fun, Fun.... Need I say more?
_Kirby's Adventure_ - Fun, Fun, Fun.... Need I say more?
_Castlevania III_ - Probably the best one on NES; get the pirate he can climb walls or Alucard he can turn into a bat & fly.

Honestly I've played more then these but my minds drawing a blank, still these are some enjoyable titles.


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## DJPlace (Oct 6, 2012)

want a semi-easy game (even through it's a kid's game)

tom and jerry for nes.

well it's not semi-easy i kinda of lied...

also if you really really want an easy game get bugs bunny's birthday blow out!! trolololololololo


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## Cyan (Oct 6, 2012)

The games I enjoyed, which might not be too hard:
Bubble Bobble
Snake Rattle n Roll (easy at first, damn hard at the end, but really good replay value)
Double Dragon (but already suggested)
The NewZealand Story (Suggested too)
Maniac Mansion (Point and Click, so no death ;o)
Boulder dash
Gauntlet (but, two players is more fun and easier, prevent death).
Earthbound Zero (RPG. only on emulator)
Shadow Gate !! must have game 
Dragon Ball
Solstice
Track and Field (Aka : Smash the button faster !!! too slow, you lost!)
California games

Little harder:
Faxanadu (Metroidvania)
Castlevania 2 Simon's Quest (First Metroidvania in the series)
Shadow Warrior (Ninja Gaiden)

Too hard (for current standard of course) :
Battle of Olympus (Metroidvania)
Gradius, Life Force (shoot'em up)



I always wanted to play Little neo, and Rad Gravity but never bought them.
I'm sad that I sold my NES. I wish I could buy one again and buy my games back too.


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## xwatchmanx (Oct 17, 2012)

Gun Nac. Challenging top-down space shooter, but not overwhelmingly so.


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## Another World (Oct 17, 2012)

TwinRetro said:


> Many many NES games are considered hard by today's standards. They were hard to create an artificial sense of replay value. Pretty much the only way they could do it within hardware limitations.



is that the reason or is it that modern gamers just lack the precise timing required to conquer most 2d platforming experiences? i never found nes games difficult in my youth, and i find them even easier now. but when i talk to gamers who grew up with the n64 they complain that nes games are overly difficult.

-another world


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## xwatchmanx (Oct 17, 2012)

Another World said:


> is that the reason or is it that modern gamers just lack the precise timing required to conquer most 2d platforming experiences? i never found nes games difficult in my youth, and i find them even easier now. but when i talk to gamers who grew up with the n64 they complain that nes games are overly difficult.
> 
> -another world


I grew up with the NES, and I found (and still found) most of those games hard. That said, I only owned less than half a dozen games, and none of them were particularly challenging (SMB, Duck Hunt, Bart vs. the World, Final Fantasy, Tetris).


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## ouch123 (Oct 17, 2012)

Ninja Gaiden  .

In all seriousness though, the allure of many NES games really is that they're hard. If you're worried about dying a lot, don't. Just keep playing - there are few games on the NES that weren't designed to be replayed over and over again. As for games that won't just trample over you the instant you press start, I'd probably recommend Gradius. It can get pretty challenging (and there's an SNES version) but it starts off nice and easy and doesn't spike in difficulty all that often, at least to the best of my memory.


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## RodrigoDavy (Oct 17, 2012)

Another World said:


> is that the reason or is it that modern gamers just lack the precise timing required to conquer most 2d platforming experiences? i never found nes games difficult in my youth, and i find them even easier now. but when i talk to gamers who grew up with the n64 they complain that nes games are overly difficult.
> 
> -another world



I grew up playing snes and later ps1 games. Trust me, nes games are too much difficult... I have played almost every 2d mario game and I still didn't manage to beat the original Super Mario Bros (without save states or cheating). Snes games have reasonable difficulty and ps1 is slightly easier. About today games, you got checkpoints and saves everywhere... the only reason one person doesn't beat a game is because he/she doesn't want to, not because of not being able to.

Now just think about it, most nes games lacked save features, so they either used password or didn't have any way to resume game at all. Games that don't have save or passwords must be designed to be beaten in few hours, so the only way to make the game's life longer is to increase difficulty, often forcing gamers to memorize every level or use gamesharks. In the snes era, saves were much more common so games started getting easier.


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## Cyan (Oct 17, 2012)

Ninja gaiden was hard (but mostly on user's precision on jumps and action).
I never could complete that game, I always lost all my lives at the same spot.
But it was a good game.


I think the NES games looks hard now because we are used to run in the action, easy controls, lot of HP, etc.
While NES games looks more strategic, take your time jump at the right moment and not too soon, be patient to avoid enemies, do not hurry in the action.

But I didn't play a NES games for a long time now, I'm curious to see how well or bad I would do.


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## Elrinth (Oct 17, 2012)

Lolo 1, 2, 3 are games for you. They are games which doesn't immediatly kill you


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## BORTZ (Oct 17, 2012)

TwinRetro said:


> Many many NES games are considered hard by today's standards. They were hard to create an artificial sense of replay value. Pretty much the only way they could do it within hardware limitations.
> 
> Some easier games: Double Dragon, River City Ransom, Phantasy Zone, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Alfred Chicken, Captain Skyhawk (Still moderately difficult), Clash at Demonhead, Crystalis, Excite Bike, Legendary Wings, *Little Nemo: Dream Master (A personal favorite),* Lode runner, Mike Tyson's Punchout, The NewZealand Story, Rygar, Skate Or Die, Smash TV, Snake Rattle n Roll, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game, Wild Gunman


Did you see google on monday?!


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## MelodieOctavia (Oct 17, 2012)

BortzANATOR said:


> TwinRetro said:
> 
> 
> > Many many NES games are considered hard by today's standards. They were hard to create an artificial sense of replay value. Pretty much the only way they could do it within hardware limitations.
> ...



Hell yes. I thought it was pretty awesome. When I was a kid, I watched the movie on an almost daily basis (good movie, too, btw), and beat the game so many times. Though I never familiarized myself with the original book/comic until I was well into my 20s.


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## BORTZ (Oct 17, 2012)

We have the HUGE comic book in our media library at college. My professor always speaks very highly of that great man and his art. 

Also one of my friends wanks to Nemo so hard. I installed an NES emulator on my Wii and he would come over to my room and play Little Nemo for hours, then eventually i gave him a flash kart and an NES emulator haha


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## MelodieOctavia (Oct 17, 2012)

BortzANATOR said:


> We have the HUGE comic book in our media library at college. My professor always speaks very highly of that great man and his art.
> 
> Also one of my friends wanks to Nemo so hard. I installed an NES emulator on my Wii and he would come over to my room and play Little Nemo for hours, then eventually i gave him a flash kart and an NES emulator haha



It certainly is one of the top 10 NES games, and my personal favorite. The arcade game isn't that bad either. You should check out the movie if you get a chance. After reading the comic, I think it's a pretty faithful adaptation.


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## BORTZ (Oct 17, 2012)

Ill have to call up my friend and we will watch it together.


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## OutVolt (Oct 17, 2012)

BortzANATOR said:


> We have the HUGE comic book in our media library at college. My professor always speaks very highly of that great man and his art.
> 
> Also one of my friends wanks to Nemo so hard. I installed an NES emulator on my Wii and he would come over to my room and play Little Nemo for hours, then eventually i gave him a flash kart and an NES emulator haha



Don't know why, but Little Nemo is fun.
If you like rpgs, Dragon Warrior games are not that bad.
Startropics is fun, but hard.
Nightmare on Elm Street is a fun sidescroll that can have up to 4 players.
Rush'n Attack and Super Mario Bros. 3 is another fun sidescroll.


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## BORTZ (Oct 17, 2012)

Theres some game like a space shooter but i cant remember what its called. Instead of space, you are driving a car on a free way really really fast and you can shoot other cars. The freeway changes in lanes and stuff making the game very interesting but i cant remember what its called.


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## xwatchmanx (Oct 17, 2012)

BortzANATOR said:


> Theres some game like a space shooter but i cant remember what its called. Instead of space, you are driving a car on a free way really really fast and you can shoot other cars. The freeway changes in lanes and stuff making the game very interesting but i cant remember what its called.


I believe you're talking about Spy Hunter, right?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spy_Hunter


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## BORTZ (Oct 17, 2012)

Thats possible. I remember the first level being on a night highway of some kind.


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## Another World (Oct 17, 2012)

RodrigoDavy said:


> I grew up playing snes and later ps1 games. Trust me, nes games are too much difficult...



i grew up playing games a few generations before the snes. to this day i do not find nes games difficult. i can beat most games between 1 sitting and a few days. i find 3d games on my ps3 much easier. it seems that while some of the modern games require some trial and error, i do not own a single game i have not beat. perhaps i still find nes games easy because i never stopped playing them. at one point they weren't that difficult and now they are rather easy. am i the only one who can beat contra with 1-2 lives? =/

-another world


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## xwatchmanx (Oct 17, 2012)

Another World said:


> i grew up playing games a few generations before the snes. to this day i do not find nes games difficult. i can beat most games between 1 sitting and a few days. i find 3d games on my ps3 much easier. it seems that while some of the modern games require some trial and error, i do not own a single game i have not beat. perhaps i still find nes games easy because i never stopped playing them. at one point they weren't that difficult and now they are rather easy. am i the only one who can beat contra with 1-2 lives? =/
> 
> -another world


In other words, you're a seasoned veteran. 


Spoiler: Someone else who beat Contra as an elementary schooler, without the cheat code



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erx1deZJT8Y&feature=plcp


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## RodrigoDavy (Oct 17, 2012)

Another World said:


> i still find nes games easy because i never stopped playing them. at one point they weren't that difficult and now they are rather easy.



Exactly! For example I never player mega man games and I have a hard time when I try to play them, but my friends can easily go through the levels as it was an easy game. At the same time, games like Super Mario World and DKC2 are too easy for me. (I know most SMW hidden secrets and many warp barrels on DKC2 even though it's been years since I had a snes)


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## suppow (Nov 5, 2012)

Play Super Mario Bros 2 AKA Lost Levels (look for the loopy version)
thank me later.


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## ShinyLatios (Nov 5, 2012)

Another World said:


> i grew up playing games a few generations before the snes. to this day i do not find nes games difficult. i can beat most games between 1 sitting and a few days. i find 3d games on my ps3 much easier. it seems that while some of the modern games require some trial and error, i do not own a single game i have not beat. perhaps i still find nes games easy because i never stopped playing them. at one point they weren't that difficult and now they are rather easy. am i the only one who can beat contra with 1-2 lives? =/
> 
> -another world


I grew up with N64, but NES games are not that difficult for me. It's mostly trial and error. games today are a bit too easy imho...
I've beat contra before without losing a life


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## ZAFDeltaForce (Nov 5, 2012)

A lot of classic Nintendo games are designed to be really hard. You could practice and get better at them, or play puzzle games like Tetris or RPG games


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## Sop (Nov 5, 2012)

Well, I'm a pretty hardcore gamer when it comes to platformers and retro games, I always make sure to finish what I start.

But anyway I can recommend Super Mario Bros 3.


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## jose_exe (Nov 5, 2012)

Some personal favourites:

-Battle City
[You are a tank shooting other tanks trying to defend what a appears to be an eagle from getting hit, with coop and a map editor]

-Paper Boy
[Deliver the newspapers to the correct houses avoiding dogs, cars and even death himself]

-Chip n Dale Rescue Rangers
[A platformer where you defeat enemies by picking boxes and throwing them, made by Capcom so expect some difficulty]

-Gun Nac
[A shooter where you Shoot everything that it moves, with pretty big power up system (I hope you like carrots)]

-Adventure of lolo / Eggerland series
[A puzzler where you have to get all the hearts and reach the chest before getting hit by monsters]

-The Flintstones: Rescue of Dino and Hoppy / Surprise at dinosaur peak
[Both made by Taito, Hit enemies with your club and reach the end of the stage (protip: hold a to hang from cliffs and then up reach upper platforms

That's all that i think of right now and i think they are pretty easy (IMO)


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## Felipe_9595 (Nov 5, 2012)

Ghost and Goblins, try it, is cake.


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## Issac (Nov 5, 2012)

kylster said:


> _Legend of Zelda 2_ - I remeber beating this game 3 times in 1 day but I don't recall it took more no more then 4 hours (combined) to accomplish this.


 
I call bullshit on this. beating adventure of link three times in under four hours? Maybe if you cheat, or skip large parts of the game using glitches.


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## kylster (Nov 5, 2012)

Issac said:


> I call bullshit on this. beating adventure of link three times in under four hours? Maybe if you cheat, or skip large parts of the game using glitches.


U call bs lol it was long ago & the time might be as pin-point-accurate as some may want it to be but it's not too far off plus that was 12+years ago I did this when all I did was go to school and play video games lol

--WHATTIMEISIT!


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## Issac (Nov 6, 2012)

I just based that on that if you do the fastest recorded speed run three times, it comes up to 3 hours, 23 minutes and 9 seconds. (and that's not a 100% beating either).

Didn't mean to offend, but it just sounded like exaggerated boasting ... But sure it's not at all impossible  Sorry that I came off as a jerk!


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## gumgod (Nov 6, 2012)

I played the original Zelda all the way through without dying (single sitting), but never could beat my shadow in Zelda II.


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## jalaneme (Nov 6, 2012)

suppow said:


> Play Super Mario Bros 2 AKA Lost Levels (look for the loopy version)
> thank me later.


 
man aren't you cruel :S


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## InuYasha (Nov 7, 2012)

gumgod said:


> I played the original Zelda all the way through without dying (single sitting), but never could beat my shadow in Zelda II.


 
Actually theres a cheap trick to beat your shadow in Z2...


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## gumgod (Nov 7, 2012)

InuYasha said:


> Actually theres a cheap trick to beat your shadow in Z2...


I don't think I want to know this, since I have the game on my 3DS now...  But I'll keep it in mind if I ever get super frustrated trying again.  Haven't gotten that far yet though.  Almost there, but I rarely get time to play it anymore.


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## Clarky (Nov 7, 2012)

Duck Tales is easy enough I found


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