This is a fantastic Saturn (console) exclusive that's very '90s, but still a lot of fun to play. It has those Saturn-esque polygons that are oh-so prevalent in other Sega games like Virtua Cop, Virtua Fighter, etc. It's a beat 'em up at heart and you'll do plenty of that in this game. You run around finding all sorts of random weapons and beat down your seemingly endless number of opponents.

It's a shame this game has never seen a re-release (at least not here in North America, not sure about other regions) and likely never will due to its licensing status. It's frustrating since this game originated in Japan as Dynamite Deka and had nothing to do with the Die Hard movie franchise. Of course, the Dreamcast sequel, known as Dynamite Cop (or Dynamite Deka 2 in Japan) didn't have a movie license tie-in and it still hasn't seen a re-release, so I guess it doesn't really matter.

This was one of the three games I received with my Saturn (along with Daytona USA and Virtua Fighter 2, all part of the "3 Free Games" promotion Sega did) and it's still one of my favorites. It's a '90s lightgun shooter that's held up pretty well, if you're a fan of the genre.

You can roll through all three levels in less than 30 minutes, though if you've never played it and you're using a controller, it might take you a couple of tries since you have a limited number of lives / continues. The sequel is essentially the same thing, just with different levels. So if you like this one, I recommend checking that one out as well.

What can I say, I love the Saturn, so it gets another entry here! This isn't a GREAT game and it's definitely a little rough around the edges, but it has that Sonic charm to it and it's the closest the Saturn has to an actual polygonal Sonic game. The "R" in the name is short for "racing" and that's all you do in this game. It has a fairly small roster of playable characters, but that's understandable since this is before Sonic Adventure and when they really started adding recurring characters. Each character has different attributes / skills that can affect how you progress through the level.

This isn't just Mario Kart in the Sonic universe though. There are lots of branching paths, shortcuts, and even gems to discover on the various tracks. And even though you do complete laps in traditional racing fashion, it feels more like you're platforming than racing in a kart (which makes sense, since you're not in a kart!)

Overall, I think this one was unfairly compared to the wildly popular Super Mario Kart franchise and never had a chance to shine. Like I said before, it's not a GREAT game, but it's fun if you like Sonic and even though content is limited, it's a fun 45 minutes or so to blow through the levels and collect some stuff.

Yeah, yeah, this is another Saturn game...sort of. But this is actually for the Xbox Live Arcade / PSN re-release from 2011, which is essentially the same game, but with some improved graphics, achievements, etc. The classic Daytona USA gameplay is still in tact and provides the foundation for a super fun game.

This is a standard '90s arcade racer with a small number of cars and tracks, but it's fast, challenging, and FUN! Although you should be able to place 1st on all of the tracks in under an hour, there are difficulty settings, endurance modes, etc to explore afterwards.

I used to play this game all the time as a kid and after not having played it for 20+ years, I was able to play through it in less than 20 minutes. Like many '80s arcade games, this game just loops through the same 5 levels, so I consider "beating" it by finishing those 5 levels once. I was amazed at how much muscle memory still remained in my body!

The gameplay is really simple. you move from one side of the screen to the other and punch or kick anything in your way (or that sneaks up behind you). Each level has a boss that's a little more powerful than the regular enemies. It's still a fun game, but very simplistic, so if you don't have nostalgic ties to it, you might not enjoy it as much.

Speaking simplistic gameplay, the first Kirby game certainly has that. This is another game I had as a kid and I used to beat all the time. It's a really easy game and only takes about a half an hour to play through. If you've never played a Kirby game, it's worth checking out just to say you did. If you're familiar with the series and you haven't played this one, you might be surprised at just how little the franchise has changed over the years. Sure, the newer ones are really colorful and there are lots of levels and abilities to discover, but this one has the same gameplay, just a lot more simplistic (and that's not a bad thing).

The only Pokemon game I've actually played is Pokemon Stadium and even that one I just rented a few times and never actually finished. I guess you could consider this a Pokemon game, but it's really just the mostly Japan-only series Panel de Pon with Pokemon assets. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that!

Panel de Pon is a really fun puzzle game that we never seem to get here in North America. This version is set up very similar to games like Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo where you work your puzzle while an opponent works theirs. As you perform combos and such, you can attack the opponent and try to fill up their screen. There are a variety of other modes, including a nice multiplayer mode, but it all centers around the addictive Puzzle de Pon gameplay.

I've played through a few of the Metal Slug games over the years, so this could really be for any of them (although I did play through Metal Slug 3 the other day and it took me a little over an hour, so that one doesn't count hehe). These games are an absolute blast to play. You just shoot / blow up anything in your way and hope you have enough quarters (or infinite continues) to make it through. They have that distinct Neo Geo art style and are readily available digitally these days, so they're very easy (and affordable) to check out.

I had a number of beat 'em up games when I was a kid, but I didn't have a SNES. I remember seeing this game in Nintendo Power and thinking how awesome it looked. I've always preferred fantasy over other settings in games and I hadn't really played one that quite looked like this game. I eventually got a SNES from a friend towards the end of high school and I tracked down a used copy of this game.

And boy was it worth the wait! This is such a fun game to play, even though it's just Final Fight with dragons and other standard fantasy creatures. I didn't know about the then Japan-only D&D beat 'em ups, but I would later get a chance to play those on the Saturn and found that they're really just amped up versions of this game.

The last game on this list is probably the most difficult one to find. It's not super rare or anything, but I don't think it's available digitally and wasn't a big hit here in North America. It's from the Runabout series and if you're familiar with those games, all you do is drive around and smash into things! It's a fun formula that can be great in short bursts.