Losers Nintendon't

[Friday]

Well, we've got a top 8 but I said I'd play the top 10.

Thus, we'll be running a loser's. Only the games that survived the first pass are qualified, and after removing the duplicate Alien Soldier and the top 8, that leaves us with 24 contenders.

1. Sonic 2
2. Sonic 3
3. Sonic and Knuckles
4. Cool Spot
5. Decap-Attack
6. Castlevania: Bloodlines
7. Landstalker
8. Shining Force
9. Snatcher
10. Alisia Dragoon
11. Ecco The Dolphin
12. Ecco: The Tides of Time
13. Dynamite Headdy
14. ToeJam & Earl
15. Sonic the Hedgehog CD
16. Shinobi III
17. Gain Ground
18. Golden Axe
19. Phantasy Star II
20. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
21. Altered Beast
22. Strider
23. Quackshot
24. Thunder Force IV

Right. The top 2 winners of this poll will get included in the top 10 games I play. The winners won't be reinserted into the regular poll, they've already lost that.

First up!

23. Quackshot
6. Castlevania: Bloodlines
18. Golden Axe
14. ToeJam & Earl

Vote for 2 to advance.

[Friday]

23. Quackshot 2
6. Castlevania: Bloodlines 8
18. Golden Axe 8
14. ToeJam & Earl 6

Next up:

7. Landstalker
8. Shining Force
3. Sonic and Knuckles
17. Gain Ground

[Eh]

Glad I can represent the underdogs without restraint for once.

[François]

Gain Ground is one of those glorious weirdos that has this clever mechanic that you're surprised no one (notable) has copied or stolen, but it's wrapped around a game that is actually kinda pants otherwise.

You don't have lives, you only have your starting characters and whoever you manage to rescue, they're all at least slightly different, some of them are clearly better than the others, and once someone's dead, they're gone forever. Aaaaand it's also the most generic possible single-screen top-down shooter.

[Eh]

Well that's how things are presented, sure, but A) Once you learn how to play the game and keep people alive, you realize the lack of a classical retry system is a feature and B) It's not a shooter, it's a puzzle game. A lot of the cultier Genesis titles present themselves as action games when they're really secret puzzle games.

[François]

Oh I appreciate the not-lives system so much that I've voted for the game every time it came up. But calling it a puzzle game feels a touch generous. I mean, it's methodical for sure, and I can see where you're coming from, but I wouldn't go there.

Gain Ground checks the "Adventures of Lolo" box on government forms but he knows he's like 70% Ikari Warriors.

[Friday]

7. Landstalker 9
8. Shining Force 3
3. Sonic and Knuckles 4
17. Gain Ground 5

Next up:

13. Dynamite Headdy
16. Shinobi III
11. Ecco The Dolphin
22. Strider

[Friday]

13. Dynamite Headdy 5
16. Shinobi III 8
11. Ecco The Dolphin 10
22. Strider 1

Next up:

20. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3
10. Alisia Dragoon
4. Cool Spot
1. Sonic 2

[beatbandito]

Only person to vote before me is my nemesis.

[François]

>:]

[Friday]

20. Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 3
10. Alisia Dragoon 9
4. Cool Spot 4
1. Sonic 2 7

Next up:

9. Snatcher
19. Phantasy Star II
5. Decap-Attack
12. Ecco: The Tides of Time

[Friday]

9. Snatcher 6
19. Phantasy Star II 6
5. Decap-Attack 4
12. Ecco: The Tides of Time 4

Next up:

2. Sonic 3
15. Sonic the Hedgehog CD
21. Altered Beast
24. Thunder Force IV

[Friday]

2. Sonic 3 2
15. Sonic the Hedgehog CD 5
21. Altered Beast 5
24. Thunder Force IV 5

That concludes the first round of Losers.

1. Sonic 2
2. Castlevania: Bloodlines
3. Landstalker
4. Snatcher
5. Alisia Dragoon
6. Ecco The Dolphin
7. Sonic the Hedgehog CD
8. Shinobi III
9. Gain Ground
10. Golden Axe
11. Phantasy Star II
12. Altered Beast
13. Thunder Force IV

We've got 13, we need to eliminate 5 to make a top 8, from which we can get a top 4 and then final 2.

Alright, let's just get this over with.

Pile everything in, vote for the 8 you want to advance.

[Friday]

1. Sonic 2 9
2. Castlevania: Bloodlines 11
3. Landstalker 6
4. Snatcher 8
5. Alisia Dragoon 5
6. Ecco The Dolphin 10
7. Sonic the Hedgehog CD 6
8. Shinobi III 9
9. Gain Ground 4
10. Golden Axe 4
11. Phantasy Star II 5
12. Altered Beast 5
13. Thunder Force IV 5

Well, we've got a 4-way tie for 8th between Alisia Dragoon, PSII, Altered Beast, and Thunder Force IV.

VOTE OFF TIME!

1. Alisia Dragoon
2. Phantasy Star II
3. Altered Beast
4. Thunder Force IV

Vote for 1 to advance.

[Niku]

ALI-SIA DRA-GOON

CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP CLAP

[Friday]

1. Alisia Dragoon 2
2. Phantasy Star II 3
3. Altered Beast 2
4. Thunder Force IV 0

That seals in the top 8.

1. Sonic 2
2. Castlevania: Bloodlines
3. Landstalker
4. Snatcher
5. Ecco The Dolphin
6. Sonic the Hedgehog CD
7. Shinobi III
8. Phantasy Star II

Two of these games will make it to the top 10 and get played by yours truly.

Vote for 4 to advance.

[Niku]

im so mad im actually gonna vote for a sonic game

[beatbandito]

and yet sonic cd does not see an increase

[Upthorn]

Niku accidentally voted for Sonic 2 instead of Sonic CD, Sonic CD should have one more vote than it currently does.

[Friday]

1. Sonic 2 5
2. Castlevania: Bloodlines 8
3. Landstalker 2
4. Snatcher 9
5. Ecco The Dolphin 9
6. Sonic the Hedgehog CD 6
7. Shinobi III 10
8. Phantasy Star II 3

Well, guys, we did it. We made a top ten with only one Sonic game in it.

Group hug.

1. Castlevania: Bloodlines
2. Snatcher
3. Ecco The Dolphin
4. Shinobi III

THIS IS IT, BOYS. THE FINAL COUNTDOWN. IT'S THE FINAL FINALS OF FINAL FINALDOM.

Vote for 2 for me to play. The others will be lost... for eternity.