15 Hardest Games for the Super Nintendo

Who doesn’t love a good challenge? If everything was easy, there would be no joy in getting it done. In the realm of video games, the late 1980s and 1990s were the perfect era of “get good” gaming with multiple big-named titles that put a player’s skills to the test.

The Super Nintendo, one of the most popular video game consoles of its time, homed various video games that offered a good challenge to its players. For games with an arcade-ish origin, the nail-biting difficulty was the result of trying to drive players into losing their last life, so they would spend another quarter on a continue.

Some games tried to fight back against the perceived threat of video game rentals by making levels impossible to finish within a weekend. Some games also misjudged the difficulty they laid out with frequent respawning of enemies or poor controls for the playable character.

Whatever the case, there’s no denying that these SNES titles have all earned their place in the hall of fame for brutally-difficulty video games.

1. Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (Super Mario All-Stars)

Ever wondered about the weird gameplay and aesthetic changes made from Super Mario Bros. to Super Mario Bros. 2 and how none of that carried over to Super Mario Bros. 3?

The reason is that the North American version of Super Mario Bros. 2 was based on a Japanese-only game called Doki Doki Panic. The actual Super Mario Bros. 2 looks and feels much closer to the original game, but features far more difficult platforming and “screw you” type traps, such as a wrap pipe sending the player back a level.

Nintendo of America didn’t release this black sheep of the sequel in the United States until the Super Mario All-Stars collection for the SNES.

2. Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest

The critical and commercial success of the first Donkey Kong Country game often gets eclipsed by its reliance on 3D-like graphics to make up for its innocuous gameplay.

Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy’s Kong Quest smashed those complaints with more creative levels, brand-new animal buddies and transformations, secrets galore, and more. The game also has some of the most ear-pleasing music in video game history to mask its insanely challenging levels. Bramble Blast, for example, makes the player traverse a course heavily populated by vine-like spikes by hanging on to a little green bird.

3. Super Ghouls’n Ghosts

Before Dark Souls, there was Super Ghouls’n Ghosts. The previous Ghosts ‘n Goblins weren’t exactly a walk in the park, but that was kinda expected, given they were “run-and-gun” type games.

The third game in the series shakes things a bit by making Arthur, the knight in shining armor, engage in more traditional platforming in addition to fighting off various enemies. However, Arthur has far more limited movements than the enemies he’ll face throughout the game, making the player feel like a single slip-up early on will guarantee a Game Over.

4. Battletoads In Battlemaniacs

Just like the original game, Battletoads in Battlemaniacs is a delightfully over-the-top take brawler that doesn’t hide the fact that it’s a shameless knockoff of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

The SNES sequel charms ever more with its edgier presentation, making it truly feel like a game of the 1990s. And just like the original NES game, the Battletoads sequel plays even harder with insane perils and massive boss fights that can wear down a player’s mashing fingers in seconds.

5. Contra III: The Alien Wars

In its prime, the Contra series by Konami played as the definitive Co-Op experience for young Nintendo gamers everywhere. Just two armed commandos blasting every extraterrestrial threat that comes their way until the last man falls.

Contra III: The Alien Wars takes the shoot ’em-up gameplay and perfects it with its enhanced presentation, making the game feel straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster. Having a best friend for this game is a must, as endless enemy attacks have an uncanny relentlessness. The new overhead perspective segments can also take some getting used to.

6. Super Castlevania IV

Anyone who decides to explore the original Castlevania games out of their love for the animated Netflix series might find themselves in for a rude awakening.

Super Castlevania IV changes the game for the series, as the iconic whip weapon is given far more flexibility in its attack range than in previous games. The game also isn’t shy about showing off its new 16-bit look with spectacles that were awe-inspiring at the time and remain so to this day. However, the game also has a learning curve to properly manipulate the whip for movement and attacks, and these enemy-infested levels aren’t the best place for practice.

7. Prince Of Persia

The original <Prince of Persia doesn’t get enough recognition for successfully capturing the feel of swashbuckling adventure films in a limited 2D presentation. Then again, being one of the most ported games in video game history is a good enough achievement.

The SNES port stays true to the original game by forcing the player to navigate through numerous traps, platforms, and sword-swinging enemies to save a princess in need of help. However, the one-hour time limit and clunky controls make playing as the nameless prince feel far more stressful than enjoyable.

8. The Lion King

Heaven help any poor kid who just wanted to have fun playing The Lion King on the SNES after watching the Disney movie in theaters. The SNES version of The Lion King starts innocently enough with its simple introduction level based on Simba’s life as a cub.

In the second level, the one modeled after the musical sequence “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King,” the game shows its true colors. The needlessly complicated way the player has to progress through the level by putting their faith in “friendly” monkeys that fling Simba in whatever direction they decide was just too much for the youngins. The game only gets worse with its difficulty from there.

9. Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

As the name suggests, Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back adapts the second Star Wars movie from the original trilogy. The SNES game by Lucasfilm Games does an incredible job of recreating the pivotal moments from the classic sci-fi movie while allowing fans to play as their favorite Star Wars character.

However, the Force isn’t enough to defeat the endless swarm of enemies with their unpredictable attack patterns. Even the game’s boss battles aren’t as cruel as the hordes of normal enemies, as there’s usually just one with moves that are easy to read and react to.

10. The 7th Saga

The 7th Saga feels almost like a precursor to Octopath Traveler since the epic turn-based fantasy game features seven playable characters.

Unfortunately, the game does suffer from common pitfalls in the turn-based genre, such as random enemy encounters that are too frequent with little difference in combat strategy. While the original Japanese version is difficult but fair, the North American version is weirdly harder with enemies having more health and experience being earned at a much slower pace.

11. Hagane: The Final Conflict

Hagane: The Final Conflict isn’t exactly a household name, but the ninja cyborg game remains well-known and loved by the die-hard gaming community. The 1994 SNES game by CAProduction and Red Entertainment embodies the spirit of Ninja Gaiden with its side-scrolling action but in a futuristic setting.

Although the levels in Hagane: The Final Conflict are short, the checkpoints within them are sparse. As expected of games from this era, lives are limited, and running out of them will banish the player back to level one.

12. Mega Man 7

The Mega Man franchise, back in the early days of gaming, put the classic idiom of “too much of a good thing” to the test with its numerous sequels.

Mega Man 7, while not a terrible game by no means, is more remembered for its difficulty than anything else it had to offer. That’s because the game doesn’t play that differently from previous titles. The player can still select any Robot Master they want to defeat and gain upgrades to take down other bosses with said weakness.

Mega Man 7 fumbles the ball by adding too many mid-boss battles and repeated boss battles on top of the challenging level layouts that the series is known for.

13. Super R-Type

Live. Die. Repeat. No, that’s not the tagline of that Tom Cruise movie from 2014.

Players will have to live by the motto if they plan on playing Super R-Type. This side-scrolling shoot ’em-up puts the player in control of a spacecraft tasked with the mission of blowing up as many things as humanly possible. However, this “bullet h-ll” game lives up to its reputation by firing endlessly at the player with zero checkpoints. And yes, getting killed in the game means the player has to start over from the beginning of the level.

14. Zombies Ate My Neighbors

Zombies Ate My Neighbors resulted from a fascinating partnership between Lucasfilm Games and Konami. The comical top-down shooter follows two kids who try to save their neighbors from classic sci-fi and horror monsters with everyday items like a water gun or an exploding soda can.

The sprawling game features 48 levels to conquer, but the difficulty increases with each one, leaving very little margin for errors. Limited ammo means Mr. Wilson from next door might not live to read tomorrow’s newspaper.

15. Castlevania: Dracula X

On the surface, Castlevania: Dracula X doesn’t appear to be much different from previous Castlevania games. It follows another descendant of the Belmont family who must once again rid the world of Dracula by conquering the lineal levels of the monster’s castle.

This game feels different from the rest in that its difficulty feels cheaper in its design. Precise timing is absolute for platforming and respawning enemies that hit way harder than they should. Having to deal with a password-saving system doesn’t do the game any favors, either.