Image via Complex Original
The house that Mario built is getting set to bless us with its next hardware installment: the vainglorious Wii U! We all know for a fact that Mario, Link, and Samus will get top billing when it comes to appearing in new games for the system.
But what about all those other forgotten games from the Big N’s past? They surely deserve their time in the limelight with some new material on the Wii U. Hope and pray with us as we count down the top ten Nintendo franchises that need to be revived on the Wii U.
10. Mario Paint
Year: 1992
Nintendo Platform: SNES
This IP seems tailor made for the Wii U’s touchpad, doesn’t it? We envision a new version of Mario Paint that adopts the social gaming aspects of Draw Something and adds on a host of new ways to draw your favorite Nintendo characters. As for those perverted folks out there, we’re sure you can’t wait to draw inappropriate images with this game.
9. Baten Kaitos
Year: 2004
Nintendo Platform: Gamecube
Now that Namco Bandai and Nintendo are real tight with each other, we think its time both devs reintroduced gamers to this underrated RPG series. The card-based battle system could be taken full advantage of with the added touchpad, plus it would be an added bonus if we were able to customize our party and set out battle commands with the pad as well.
8. Excitebike
Year: 1984
Nintendo Platform: NES
Yep, we’re itching to get back on our motorbikes too! Nintendo gave the first entry of this game a nice 3D sheen for the 3DS, but we’re ready to play a fully realized console version. New tracks, plenty of new motorbikes, and a wicked trick system is what we want the most from a new Excitebike. The touchpad could display the track layout pretty nicely, we presume.
7. 1080 Snowboarding
Year: 1998
Nintendo Platform: Nintendo 64
Man, it’s been a minute since this snowboarding great graced a Nintendo console! SSX may reign supreme in the extreme sports genre, but we think another 1080 Snowboarding game could provide a challenge to the throne. We figure all the usual tricks, riders, and stages would make a nice comeback. We’d also love to see random avalanches and plenty of character customization through the touchpad.
6. Pilotwings
Year: 1991
Nintendo Platform: SNES
Yeah so that last Pilotwings game that launched with the 3DS? It was pretty…meh. If this series got another shot on the Wii U, we think it could provide one of the most original experiences for the system. Players would direct their characters as they perform airborne tasks. The touchscreen could serve as the player’s map and status screen, along with providing notifications for the current stage’s changing wind current and altitude.
5. Yoshi's Story
Year: 1997
Nintendo Platform: Nintendo 64
Okay, so we might be in that small group of people who enjoyed Yoshi’s Story on the N64. The game’s cuteness factor would make a UFC fighter’s head explode! We adored the bright and bubbly scenery and the ability to play with multiple Yoshi’s. Nintendo, make Yoshi the star of his own game again. The next installment needs to have that “WOW!” factor to it like the Super Mario Galaxy series. This time, we want to be able to swap in any Yoshi of our choosing in the middle of the stage. Might as well let us do that with the touchpad, right?
4. Mother/Earthbound
Year: 2006
Nintendo Platform: Game Boy Advance
Hardcore RPG heads have gone to extreme measures to play the sequel to Earthbound. Japanese gamers got it real good over there with their GBA version of Mother 3. *sucks teeth* Anyway, we figure Nintendo needs to do right by the fans of this RPG series and develop an HD remake of the past games. As a matter of fact, we’d wager that a whole new sequel would make those fans overjoyed! Ness and Lucas together fighting together against evil sounds legendary.
3. Wave Race
Year: 1992
Nintendo Platform: Game Boy
Sony probably forgot they used to make a game called Jet Moto. Don’t make that same mistake, Nintendo. You guys used to craft some awesome jet ski racing games. Does Wave Race ring a bell? It should cause those games used to be the shit! When Nintendo launched the N64 and Gamecube, this series usually had a game ready for console buyers. We got an idea! Make a new Wave Race launch with the Wii U! Beautiful new water physics and new racers are what we want, plus engine monitoring on the touchpad too.
2. Star Fox
Year: 1993
Nintendo Platform: SNES
Fox McCloud and his crew of galaxy defenders haven’t had a great track record lately. Both of his games on the Gamecube weren’t what we were expecting and things seemed to go south for our boy Fox. When the 3D version of his N64 game dropped, gamers were reminded of how dope this series used to be. With that being said, Nintendo should introduce Wii U owners to another Star Fox. We want that good ol’ fashioned space dog fighting and tank battling. Take it easy on the teammate banter, though. It would be cool to monitor our ship’s status and available weapons on the touchpad.
1. F-Zero
Year: 1991
Nintendo Platform: SNES
Where the hell has F-Zero gone? Before Wipeout, there was this futuristic racer for gamers to enjoy. The characters were memorable, the music was awesome, the stages were inventive, and the vehicles were fast as hell. Captain Falcon might be smashing dudes in the Super Smash Bros. series, but we think it’s time he hopped back in his Blue Falcon. The Gamecube entry was a tad too hard, so take the difficulty down a notch for a new Wii U entry. We can totally see us hitting a button on the touchpad to active our boost and look for shortcuts on a fully viewable map.