 Hi there, before I get started, I have to attribute the idea for this video to...someone else! I can't remember who mentioned it because I forgot to write it down. So, thanks to that particular person. I'm gonna presume you know who you are. Anyway, the idea was to take a look at some SNES games that took some real chances and pushed the boundaries of whatever particular genre. And a great example of what I'm mean, just to start out with here is a game called Desaemon, a shoot-em-up that never left Japan. The developer Athena wasn't satisfied with just a run-in-the-mill vertical shoot-em-up though. This game has a freaking Mario Paint-style attachment to it, complete with the ability to edit how your ship looks, how enemies look, and even enemy patterns and speeds. It's kind of like the NES Excitebike track editor, but with even more customizable options. You can even compose your own music for God's sake. That's insane. Yeah, this game isn't Japanese, but there isn't really that much text, so it's reasonably English friendly, although it may take a while to really be able to take advantage of this game's capabilities. An extra bonus is that Desaemon uses the SNES mouse as well. So yeah, even if you don't care for shoot-em-ups, Desaemon is definitely worth a look, just for the creator modes, which are way ahead of their time. Of course, when talking about games that defy genres, I have to mention the upcoming Star Fox 2, which will finally be officially released by Nintendo as part of the SNES Classic Edition. This game combines the rail shooter gameplay of the first Star Fox with a strategic element made present in this overhead map that you can roam around freely. You can pick and prioritize where you'd like to go based on the kind of attacks Andross is sending at you from across the map, and even then, some of the areas you visit are more than just eliminating enemies. In other words, it's a bit like Star Fox Command for DS. Star Fox 2 is an interesting blend of fast-paced, good old-fashioned, make-stuff-go-boom kind of gameplay, combined with strategy and puzzle solving. If you're ever jonesing for something unique when it comes to 16-bit games, you can't go wrong with games that are developed by Human Entertainment. They made stuff like The Fireman, a top-down action game where your only enemy is fire, Clock Tower, a horror-themed, story-driven survival game, and especially S.O.S. In this one, you have to escape a sinking cruise liner in a 2D platforming environment where you can either rescue fellow passengers and be the hero, or be a selfish prick and ignore everyone and save yourself. So this is like a survival adventure platformer with a bit of flexibility since there's also four characters to play as, and you can take many different paths that all start in different locations. There's not really another Super Nintendo game out there that's quite like S.O.S. When you think about games that are hard to place a single genre on, of course one of the first games you'll think of is Actraiser, a cleverly designed hybrid between action platforming and a civilization development simulation. What makes Actraiser so good though isn't just the novelty of throwing these two ideas together in the same game, it's how the game is paced. The platforming is challenging without being unfair, featuring some interesting boss fights. But in between each stage you have to grow and develop a civilization from high above on your god cloud. You listen to your people on how to grow their culture and expand their territory and rid the land of demons in this shoot-em-up kind of mode. Again, this is another case of a game where there's just nothing else like it, and it's too bad the sequel didn't follow its lead. Beat-em-up mechanics have been packaged in a number of different contexts in the 16-bit era, and I guess that shouldn't be surprising considering there's only so much you can do with walking to the right and beating up hopeless flunkies. But developers like Capcom took the genre in a little bit of a different direction, like their two arcade ports, King of Dragons, and Night of the Round. The latter features a leveling system that works in a similar way to an adventure-style game like Illusion of Gaia, defeat all the enemies in the area and gear eventually awarded with an armor upgrade. There's also a blocking technique here that plays like something out of a one-on-one fighting game. King of Dragons also has a leveling system predicated on how many points you accumulate, but in this case, experience upgrades your weapon and your health meter. Both of these games are fantastic side-scrolling beat-em-ups that try something a little different for the genre. On the other hand, there's a game like Dragon View that's more of a traditional RPG that fits real-time beat-em-up mechanics into its battle system. There's all the usual RPG stuff like exploration, random battles, equipable weapons and armor, dungeons to explore, and a magic system, but the combat is done in a beat-em-up style that feels a bit like a game like Night of the Round. So yeah, if you want an RPG, but you're tired of simply leaning on the A button for battles, you might want to try Dragon View. If you want a beat-em-up that goes a little further out there, you have to turn to a Japan-only Super Famicom release, Shinra Ketsu Koha, Kunio Tashinobanka. This is actually the second Kunio-kun Super Famicom game, but it's the most ambitious of the two because it's very story-driven with a lot of dialogue in addition to these motorcycle stages that provide a change of pace. The main genre-defying element here, though, is just how heavy on the story this game is, and yes, there is an English translation out there that you can find on romhacking.net. It's considered a prequel to River City Ransom on NES, and it's two-player compatible, but the main thing here is how the story is told, with two friends out to clear their names after being framed. Most beat-em-ups of this era have a kind of generic story, but this one at least tries a different approach in terms of presentation. Let's stick with Super Famicom games that stayed in Japan and finish off with a really weird one, Wonder Project J, that came from the same developers that created Evo Search for Eden, and if you remember how odd that game was, that should give you a hint about this one. The premise is pretty much like the story of Pinocchio. You have to teach this robot kid how to be more human, controlling 16 different stats like aggression, intelligence, and sensitivity. So you're basically raising a child, complete with temper tantrums and mood swings. You go around completing tasks and learning skills, you praise him when he does something right, and admonish him when he gets something wrong. This is such a strange game that I'm not even sure what genre this would fit under. I see it described as a quote-unquote raising sim, but for me that just brings about even more questions. This is an extremely well-made game though. The boy is its own entity entirely, and it's pretty challenging to get him to progress in the right manner and equally frustrating when he refuses, like when he tries to eat the cat. The sprite work here is also incredible, as you can see. So yeah, if you're looking for a game that defies pretty much all genres, check out Wonder Project J. There's an English patch you can use on romhacking.net. All right, I want to thank you for watching, and I hope you have a great rest of your day.