Top 10 Most Frustrating Nintendo Games Ever
#10: “Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze” (2014)
Top 10 Donkey Kong Country Levels
Retro Studios’ first outing with DK on the Wii was hard enough, but the studio outdid itself when it released this sequel. Just like the rest of the series, “Tropical Freeze” requires pitch perfect timing to make it through most obstacles. Although, those obstacles might not have been as tough without enemies being placed directly in your way. Also, if you wanted to completely beat the game, you’d have to replay every stage and boss without taking a single hit, earning you 200% completion. At least the Switch port added an easy mode with Funky Kong.
#9: “Jet Force Gemini” (1999)
Top 20 Greatest Nintendo 64 Games Of All Time
This third-person shooter is one of Rare’s more underappreciated gems on the N64. However, part of the reason it may be underappreciated is because of how difficult it can be. Most of the rage this game can cause comes from its design. It consists of 15 nonlinear worlds, impressive for the time. But this is a Rare game, which means there are TONS of things to collect, many of which are required. There’s no tutorial to help figure out its mechanics, you can’t access some areas without completing certain tasks, and its giant, bug-like enemies will make you regret picking up the controller.
#8: “Super Mario Sunshine” (2002)
ALL 3D Super Mario Games Ranked - MojoPlays
At first glance, “Super Mario Sunshine” is a brightly colored, happy-go-lucky entry into the plumber’s repertoire. But we’d swear some of its levels were designed specifically to torture us. The best examples are those in which Mario doesn’t have access to F.L.U.D.D., his water-powered jetpack. Mario can be a bit slippery and these levels were seemingly designed to make him slide right off its platforms. But even with F.L.U.D.D., other levels are just plain mean. They’ll have you climb an obscene height with mountains of enemies and hazards that will knock you right to the bottom. Oh, and screw whoever came up with the idea of the Sand Bird and the Pachinko Game. Those are just rude.
#7: “Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back” (1993)
10 Hidden Secrets In Super Mario Games
Imagine you’re a kid, ready to play through your favorite “Star Wars” movie. You boot up the game, excitement filling your heart as you see a 16-bit Hoth. And then enemies begin dive bombing you from off-screen and never let up for a second. You have to keep up a constant stream of attacks just to move forward, and that’s basically the entire experience. The maps are like those in “Metroid,” but with less structure, causing more confusion than intrigue. Each “Super” adaptation on the SNES is hard, but “Empire'' is on another level.
#6: “Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn” (2007)
Fire Emblem: Three Houses Review - Fire Emblem Fans Only? | MojoPlays
The Switch’s “Three Houses” offered more accessibility for a wider audience. And if you’ve ever been curious about experiencing past installments, particularly this Wii entry, you should know what you’re in for. Caution and patience are extremely important when it comes to “Radiant Dawn.” It’s hard enough trying to make strategic choices against devious opponents, but the threat of permadeath adds more weight to every decision. You also have terrain to consider, as enemies higher up will deal heavier damage with more accuracy. You can prepare as much as you like, but “Radiant Dawn” will always find ways to throw you off and overwhelm you.
#5: “F-Zero GX” (2003)
Top 10 Hardest Nintendo Wii Games
Calling “F-Zero” hard is both an understatement and obvious. But the GameCube entry is just astoundingly brutal. Unlike “Mario Kart,” where track memorization is just a way to best your friends, “F-Zero GX” forces you to memorize its tracks or die… over and over again. It combines the franchise’s signature speed with increasingly insane track design.Your reflexes have to be infallible or else your opponents will easily bumper-car you into the track’s damage-dealing barriers. For anyone who tried “GX” after loving Captain Falcon in “Smash,” it was a rude awakening. Which is a shame considering its Story Mode is actually pretty interesting.
#4: “Etrian Odyssey” (2007)
This dungeon crawling RPG from Atlus is by far the hardest game on the DS. It follows a guild of adventurers as they set out to explore the mysterious labyrinth near their town. Unfortunately, the guild doesn’t have a map. And the game tasks the player with charting their playthrough on the handheld’s second screen. It also uses a combination of random encounters with regular enemies as well as ridiculously powerful foes that periodically wander the dungeon. These will hunt your party if they sense it. And God help you in areas with several of these foes, because they will not take turns stomping your party into the ground. Teamwork makes the incredibly frustrating dream work, as they say.
#3: “Ghosts ‘n Goblins” (1985)
Top 10 Video Game Ghosts
Capcom’s medieval action platformer epitomizes the phrase “Nintendo hard.” As Arthur the knight, players must conquer 6 grueling stages that are overflowing with enemies that can’t wait to tear him to shreds. And they will, time and time again, as it only takes two hits for Arthur to go down. Paired with the facts that he only has three lives and that enemies will often pop out of unexpected places, and you’ll be raging in a matter of minutes. Oh, and you have to beat the game twice if you want to get the actual ending. It’s games like these that make us grateful for the invention of Save States.
#2: “Mega Man Network Transmission” (2003)
10 Times Mega Man Infiltrated Other Games
The “Mega Man” series is made up of difficult games, but those are mostly well-balanced. The GameCube’s “Network Transmission,” on the other hand, is punishing to the point of being unfair. It combines the platforming of the classic series with RPG elements of the “Battle Network” spin-offs. But instead of scaling with you as you collect Battle Chips to enhance your strength and abilities, the game just starts out tough as nails. Enemies do not go gentle into that good night, especially bosses. You can only save after beating a boss, which means slogging through the previous tough enemies all over again if you die. And death can make you lose one of your precious Battle Chips. It’s enough to drive the player crazy.
#1: “Battletoads” (1991)
There are games that are hard and there are games that are unfair. And then there’s “Battletoads.” Rare’s action platformer on the NES is what immediately comes to mind when we picture hard old school games. Great graphics, sound design, and three rad toads don’t change the fact that it’s completely unfun to play if you didn’t grow up with it. Limited lives and continues, no checkpoints, no ability to save progress or even a password system. We could go on… and will. Each level changes up its design and enemies, beating you into submission with no chance to get used to anything. And two-player is a nightmare as there’s no way to turn off friendly fire. Why Rare…why?
