Thoughts on good "quick pick up" games?

[tjsnh]

So looking for some thoughts and opinions.

I'm trying to make a small list of games to look out for that are good for 15-20 minute pick up gaming. As an adult gamer, I only occasionally get the time to sit down and enjoy a longer game like Ys or Dragon's Curse and more frequently get gaming time in smaller chunks. So I'm looking for games (platformers, shooters, whatever - the only genre I'm not really interested in is sports/racing) that I can pick up for 20 minutes and not feel like I've missed out by not being able to put more time into an individual gaming session.

Does that make sense?

Examples of games fitting this kind of niche would be stuff like Tetris, SMB1, Blazing Lazers, Dynasty Warriors, Pinball, etc)

Any thoughts on good turbo games that might fit that bill?

[PukeSter]

Hope I don't get flamed for this...but...

A large proportion of the best PC Engine games are short games. Of course, even some platformers like Bonk are at least an hour each.

Blazing Lazers doesn't really make sense...it's a 50 minute game if you don't die. So your criteria is kinda confusing.

But let's see what we got. I'll try to name literally 15-20 minute games.

Ninja Spirit
Legend of Hero Tonma
Salamander
Super Dodgeball
Vigilante
1943 Kai (if you only play Original Mode 7, 7, 7, 7, 9, 3, 10)
Soldier Blade (Caravan)
Gradius
Parodius (Caravan)
Galaga 88
Shinobi
Devil's Crush (pinball)
Spin Pair (Tetris type game)
Puyo Puyo 1 and 2

PCE Super CD has a game like Dynasty Warriors called "Dynasty Wars" or "Tenchi Wo Kurau" by Capcom. Highly recommended!

The most SMB1 like platformer on the Turbo is New Adventure Island. I personally believe it is one of the best 16-bit games out there, has a certain type of vigor you don't see in most platformers. It's also got unlimited continues but it's very possible to beat in one credit if you are cautious.

[tjsnh]

To clarify, I didn't mean "expect to finish the game quickly" just that the game isn't generally multi-session etc etc.

Good start - I'll look into those. :-)

[majors]

Any shooter with caravan.

I like any golf game, just shoot a few holes...no need to do a full 18.

Klax...not like ANYONE can last long in that one. Outrun since it's very arcade-y.

[NecroPhile]

Hatris!

[Psycho Punch]

Monster Lair!

[esteban]

Le Splatterhouse
Le Gomola Speed
Le Tricky Le Kick (especially fun on TirboExpress)

[Gypsy]

Hope I don't get flamed for this...but...

A large proportion of the best PC Engine games are short games. Of course, even some platformers like Bonk are at least an hour each.

Why would someone flame you for this? I know we have some JRPG aficionados here but those aren't going to be for everyone and most of them are not translated and thus require knowing Japanese or having a translation guide which is a pretty big chore.

PCE Super CD has a game like Dynasty Warriors called "Dynasty Wars" or "Tenchi Wo Kurau" by Capcom. Highly recommended!

This looks pretty damn good.

[NecroPhile]

It's not something to flame over, it just doesn't make much sense.  For most genres (RPGs, shewties, pinball, sports, puzzlers, etc.), there's not much difference in game lengths, especially when it's a cross platform title.  The only serious deficiency is the lack of lengthy platformers with save options (like Super Mario World).

[wildfruit]

I think the Ys games are good for short or long sessions. You can easily pick up where you left off or just have a 20 minute grind. Hnnnfgh

[Gypsy]

True. Not much time variation when most games are under an hour to clear anyway. The only really long games are the JRPGs and those are obvious.

[martinine]

I agree on the Ys sentiment. I often put in Ys 1, and I have a save on the first field just to grind and listen to the music. This and Blazing Lazers are my 20 quick hits. I can't leave Keith Courage out of this discussion. It doesn't get enough love!

[tjsnh]

I can't leave Keith Courage out of this discussion. It doesn't get enough love!

It is true that blind jumping into spikes does, in fact, not get much love. ;-)

[LostFlunky]

I can't leave Keith Courage out of this discussion. It doesn't get enough love!

It is true that blind jumping into spikes does, in fact, not get much love. ;-)

If you don't like blind jumping on to spikes,try Impossamole!

Cheap hit after cheap hit will eventually guide you onto spikes that you could see the entire time and had no intention of going near...

[SavagePencil]

Aero Blasters is good to fill you with a short bout of rage.

[Flare65]

For me, I would say Gomola Speed and Devil's Crush.  Great games to play when you only have 20-30 minutes.

[geise]

Outrun!

[esteban]

Outrun!

Space Harrier, too!

[nopepper]

I think Outrun is the best quick hit game on the system, as you can actually finish it within that time frame.

Also, New Adventure Island is great for quick hits as well, but you have to be self disciplined, as you can beat a level and then come back to it using the level select cheat. I personally feel the game is too long for a single sitting anyway, so using the level select is the way to go.

[NecroPhile]

Games like Fray and Steam Heart's are good in short bits, as you can save your progress and each stage is relatively short, easily practiced/beaten in under 20 minutes each.

[780racer]

Deadmoon seems like a great quick pick up game. Same with any of the puzzle games really. Just get as far as you can with the time you have.

[goldenband]

Not everyone likes Atomic Robo-kid Special, but I'm rather fond of it, and it's certainly a good game for a sub-60-minute session.

That said, I really find that longer games with save function are often ideal for short sessions, whereas it's the "short" action games that make me feel like I'm trapped into longer gameplay sessions. So the premise of this thread is a bit paradoxical (to me).

Beating Hit the Ice, for example, would take well over an hour of continuous, intense play. OTOH I can play World Court Tennis for 10 minutes or 3 hours, as I see fit, since it uses passwords.

[nopepper]

The most SMB1 like platformer on the Turbo is New Adventure Island. I personally believe it is one of the best 16-bit games out there, has a certain type of vigor you don't see in most platformers. It's also got unlimited continues but it's very possible to beat in one credit if you are cautious.

Agreed on New Adventure Island being a top game, but I just really like that you described it as having a "certain type of vigor", as that statement perfectly encapsulates what is so great about it.

Cheers.

[airzonkrulz]

Any of the Bomberman games - very fun "short" blasts of entertainment - best wishes -

[geise]

Buster Bros

[esadajr]

Yo Bro, Deep Blue, Imposamole. You will quick play them, I guarantee

[esteban]

Ballistix and Falcon are good to pick up and play for about 1-2 minutes every 4-5 years.

[Keith Courage]

Ballistix and Falcon are good to pick up and play for about 1-2 minutes every 4-5 years.

Ballistix is great to force a friend to play after a few drinks.

[Arkhan Asylum]

All of the games are good pickup games.

CHINA WARRIOR.

go.
dummy.

[airzonkrulz]

Although a "sports" game in theme - Hit The Ice is far from traditional hockey video gaming - I find the game a blast to play and you can get a game played (three 5 minute periods) within 15 minutes -- the additional benefit is that you have 4 goalies and 8 players with differing attributes (you choose 2 for each game) to choose from - so lots of replay value in this HuCard game - best wishes - ron

[exodus]

Monster Lair!

Yeah, I was gonna say Monster Lair too.

I took this thread to mean games you could get the full enjoyment out of in small play sessions. If I'm gonna play Bonk's Revenge, I want to finish it, and that takes a little while. So I get the sentiment. Something not too time consuming that'll go straight to its maximum fun pretty quickly.

So, some from me:
Ryukyu (because it's a puzzle game)
Moto Roader (because you can get one quick race in)
Devil's Crush/Time Cruise II/Alien Crush (pinball!)
Parasol Stars (can just play a few levels)
Bomberman (same)
Ninja Spirit (everything fun about that game is right in the first few minutes - not that it stops, I just mean it's all there right away)
Viegues (you'll die fast anyway, so it's not a big commitment)
Batman (it gets repetitive after a while, so all the enjoyment comes from the first 10 or so levels to me)
All the superscalers (Outrun, Power Drive, Night Rider, Chase HQ)
Splatterhouse (you can beat it in about 20, 25 minutes)
Shockman, Shubibinman 3 (same reason as Ninja Gaiden - all the fun is right there up front - plus 3 is real short, maybe 30 mins)