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Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review

The SNES is back, and it's bringing with it a handful of classic games from yesteryear.

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All of us - everyone here at Gamereactor and each of you - will have grown up with Nintendo in our lives to some degree. Whether it was the console at your friend's house that you played from time to time, or an occasional treat to borrow one back in the days when it wasn't unusual to rent a console for a week, many people will have encountered Mario and his friends at some point or another. Of course, there are also those of you who fell deeply and madly in love with gaming precisely because of Nintendo, its consoles, the games they offered, and the worlds you were transported to.

When the NES Mini landed we were offered a glimpse into our childhoods (or for you retro gaming enthusiasts out there, last Tuesday-week), via a collection of brilliant but yet ultimately dated classics. It was a great success, demand was overwhelming, and now Nintendo is looking to pull the same trick with the SNES, although this time the software included therein means this latest pint-sized console offers just that little bit more in terms of relevancy.

It's swings and roundabouts, though, because we probably just about prefer the form factor of the NES Mini, with its classic hard edges and bulky casing. The Nintendo Classic Mini: Super Nintendo Entertainment System (or SNES Mini as we'll call it from now on) is thinner, softer, less brutal than its predecessor, but perhaps a little less charming overall as a result. We still like it a lot, though, and once again you'll be happy to pop it back on the display shelf when you've finished playing.

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Cute design aside, the real success of the SNES Mini is its software. Sure, these are games that still feel a little dated at times, but the quality and complexity is there to a degree that it just wasn't for the NES Mini. While it's true that most of the games don't stack up to their modern day equivalents - games like Shovel Knight that mimic the style of the era but update the formula with modern day trimmings - there's still enough variety and quality to make a good number of these games worth revisiting. Better still, there's enough variety to give nearly everyone something that suits their tastes.

Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review
Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review

Racing fans have two all-time classics to contend with, in the form of Super Mario Kart and F-Zero. Both games have the screen swinging from side to side as you take corners at speed, and F-Zero in particular offers pulsating visuals that must have been mind-blowing back in the day. We should probably also mention Star Fox (and Star Fox 2, a game developed in the '90s but only debuting on this console in 2017) as it's the other game that lets you get behind the wheel, although in this case you're piloting a ship and shooting enemies out of the sky.

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We're not afraid to admit that, when playing the SNES Mini for this review, we paused longest on Super Mario World, a platformer that still somehow manages to feel fresh and fun even to this day. It's a glorious nostalgia trip, and fans will have a great time revisiting one of Mario's most important adventures. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island has also aged pretty well. Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, on the other hand, didn't really do much for us; it's not a game we played back in the day, and it's not one we're going to revisit in 2017. Simply put, like us, you're not going to enjoy every title that comes on the console.

Fighting fans can enjoy old-school boxing title Super Punch Out, but undoubtedly the highlight is Street Fighter II Turbo, a game that needs no introduction and that still remains enjoyable, more so when you've got a friend to trade blows with. There's more action to be found in Mega Man X and Contra III: The Alien Wars, and both sci-fi games bring challenging, at times punishing run and gun gameplay to the table. We should probably mention them in the same breath as Super Ghouls 'N' Ghosts, a lovely-looking action-platformer that stands out as one of the most visually charming titles included.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of the meatier games on the SNES Mini, and stands as yet another iconic title from another celebrated series. RPG aficionados also have the small matter of Final Fantasy III to tackle, and Secret of Mana (a game that is in the process of getting a remake, which is maybe why it made the cut here) is also included, as is Earthbound, an RPG where the late, great Satoru Iwata was one of the key programmers.

Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review
Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review
Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review
Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review

There are a couple more key Nintendo franchises represented, notably Donkey Kong Country, which still looks and plays great, even after all these years. Kirby Super Star is a collection of mini-games that adds further gameplay possibilities, but when it comes to the cutesy pink mascot, we have to say that we much prefer Kirby's Dream Course, which delivers golf-like gameplay in one of the more unique titles in the collection.

Have we saved the best for last? Some would certainly say so, as the only games we haven't really mentioned are Super Castlevania IV, which looks fantastic thanks to some age-defying graphics and an equally memorable soundtrack. While the final game to be included, and the other half of the equation that defined the resultant "metroidvania" sub-genre, is Super Metroid, another series once again in the spotlight after the recent 3DS release of Samus Returns and with Metroid Prime 4 set to (hopefully) satisfy long-starved fans when it eventually lands on the Switch.

We had a look at each of the games included on the SNES Mini Classic, and it's safe to say that there are some brilliant titles in there, with countless hours of gameplay for nostalgic fans to enjoy. Many of the titles included therein would go on to define their respective genres for years to come, and their collective importance cannot be underestimated.

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Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review

Importantly, the emulation of the various titles is seemingly done with care across the board, and like the NES Mini there are options in terms of viewing (4:3, Pixel Perfect, and CRT Filter if the image is too crisp for your liking). Throw in the suspend points that let you maintain your progress, and you've got a complete collection that does a great job of highlighting some of the finest games of the era, whilst also making them more accessible than ever before.

The success of the NES Mini was driven by nostalgia first and foremost (and, you might argue, a lack of availability), but we'd wager that the SNES Mini will offer more thanks to the improvement in terms of software. The controllers, which we haven't really touched on, offer ehanced input options, and therefore the games could be made more complex (we'd have liked slightly longer cables this time around too). The extra power of the SNES means that the games look considerably better than their predecessors, which certainly helps in terms of overall appeal.

It's also incredibly easy to get set up. The console is powered by a micro-USB cable (either via a mains adapter or, as we did, you could power it via a USB port on the TV or an existing console) and the signal is transmitted to the screen via the HDMI cable included in the box. Navigating the software is simple enough thanks to a crisp and clear UI, and overall the presentation is pretty high.

For retro gamers and Nintendo fans, the SNES Mini has turned out to be yet another must-have accessory, but we think there'll also be plenty of people beyond the niche band of classics-lovers out there who'll want to pick up this collection of timeless games. Having spent some quality time in the company of this shrunken Super Nintendo Entertainment System, we can think of several reasons (around twenty, in fact) why you might want to check it.

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Nintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - ReviewNintendo Classic Mini: SNES - Review
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