LogFAQs > #941692418

Here's my bracket.

1) Super Mario Bros. - I considered everything from leaving E.T. out entirely (it's basically a joke entry) and actually giving it a fair shot. In the end I decided to feed it to SMB1.
16) E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial

8) Donkey Kong 3 - I felt this would be an interesting debate for the second match of the tournament. Adventure has some prestige and I don't think many people have played DK3, but DK3 is probably the more fun game nowadays imo and it has brand recognition so I think it edges out here. Felt like a good thing to feed to SMB1 round 2. (By the way, some sources I saw put Adventure as 1979 and some as 1980, so maybe it shouldn't be here)
9) Adventure

5) Phantasy Star - BurgerTime honestly might stand a chance in another match based on the name alone.
12) BurgerTime

4) Ghosts n' Goblins - I think I underseeded Altered Beast pretty badly here and this is a debatable match. I think GnG is the more highly-thought of game nowadays and takes it.
13) Altered Beast

6) Balloon Fight - A battle of two old NES titles that Nintendo cares about more than we do! I think this one wins on recognition and I think it's funny that the rumors of Mach Rider in Smash might propel Mach Rider to a victory alone - it does have a really good theme.
11) Mach Rider

3) Bubble Bobble - BEWARE, I LIVE. Sinistar is pretty iconic in its way but this is an easy match for Bubble Bobble I think.
14) Sinistar

7) SimCity - Maybe did Shadowgate just a bit dirty here? I think this is debatable but I think SimCity is way more recognized.
10) Shadowgate

2) Ninja Gaiden
15) Ikari Warriors

Barrel Division

1) Donkey Kong
16) Elevator Action

8) Missile Command - Some of these matches are SUPPOSED to make you squint and go "I dunno what the fuck to do here," because I think that's funny and it's part of the appeal of an 80's game bracket.
9) Defender

5) Bomberman - I almost snubbed Bomberman by accident.
12) Arkanoid

4) Final Fantasy II - FF2 is a total wildcard in this contest. It probably handles Alex Kidd with ease (gotta get those Master System reps in) but who knows what it does the rest of the way - if people confuse it for the SNES title enough it could win its division, or it could lose to Bomberman because it's the FF nobody likes.
13) Alex Kidd in Miracle World

6) Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar
11) Adventure Island - I really like this match and I think it really sums up the 80's bracket in a nutshell. I'm giving the nod to the game I think more people recognize even though the other is more regarded as a masterpiece by enthusiasts.

3) Prince of Persia - I may have very well indeed way overseeded this one but can you blame me? Look at its competition. It's famous and liked enough that giving it a 3 seed felt right. (Insert clip of Space Harrier death scream here, I couldn't find it sadly)
14) Space Harrier

7) The Guardian Legend
10) Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? - I think the memeiness of Carmen Sandiego being in the bracket propels it to a win here although The Guardian Legend is a great and very playable game today.

2) Duck Hunt - Duck Hunt feels like it got a free ride to round 4 lol
15) Hydlide

Shy Guy Division

1) Super Mario Bros. 2 - Fantasy Zone was my most afterthought inclusion in the bracket lol
16) Fantasy Zone

8) Double Dragon - I just liked the alliteration here. Maniac Mansion feels like a game that might win a match elsewhere but Double Dragon has this. Probably a little underseeded, but there were two DD games in the bracket and I wanted to split up their placements a bit.
9) Maniac Mansion

5) Marble Madness
12) Lode Runner

4) Kid Icarus - I feel like this 4pack is really boring and needs some spice, honestly looking at it I think I should have swapped Double Dragon and Marble Madness's placements, MM vs MM is more debatable and DD vs KI is a good r2 matchup. Hindsight on my part, this bracket was a first draft
13) Paperboy

6) Centipede
11) King's Quest - I ended up doing this like solely based on a suggestion in Discord lol, I think it's a tough one to call. Centipede was a juggernaut of its day but is it still remembered?

3) Galaga
14) Solomon's Key

7) Final Fight - This is another tough one, but Castlevania: The Adventure kind of sucks, I just put it in here because I thought more Game Boy reps was fun. Taking Final Fight here feels like I'm putting a lot of faith in voters.
10) Castlevania: The Adventure

2) Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
15) Yars' Revenge

Met Division

1) Mega Man 2
16) Jackal

8) Golden Axe - This one feels like a tossup.
9) Rygar

5) Gradius
12) Populous

4) Frogger - imo this is the most boring contest match imaginable but I thought Flight Simulator would be funny to put in here. Now I'm questioning that decision
13) Microsoft Flight Simulator

6) Excitebike - Space Quest slaps and might be a viable upset pick here?
11) Space Quest I: The Sarien Encounter

3) Punch-Out!! - I only put Double Dribble in because baseball, football, and hockey all got entrants too
14) Double Dribble

7) Tempest
10) Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord - Extremely tough call here. Do people still remember Tempest? Wizardry isn't exactly the kind of RPG that people on GameFAQs really like but it seems more up our alley. Again, this is the kind of stupid match I would love to see.

2) Castlevania - I couldn't resist including Rogue when I realized it came out in 1980.
15) Rogue

Octorok Division

1) The Legend of Zelda - I loved The Bard's Tale as a kid but I couldn't justify giving it a winnable matchup
16) The Bard's Tale

8) R-Type
9) Street Fighter - R-Type is probably a little too obscure, yeah? It's a way better game and it's crazy advanced looking for 1987, but SF has name value even if the first one sucked. I sort of hate this match and there's a reason why I made sure SF1 got a strong opponent in r2, lol

5) Pitfall
12) Splatterhouse

4) Super Mario Land - This is another boring 4 pack. Something else should probably be in that 5 seed slot looking at it again, but I felt bad giving too many high seeds to late 80's NES games. Super Mario Land is a game whose strength I'd be very interested to see.
13) Blades of Steel

6) Double Dragon II: The Revenge - Tough call here. Mother could be pretty strong or it could... not be.
11) Mother

3) Ms. Pac-Man - I like this 4 pack. No idea who comes out of it. No idea if Ms Pac-Man is as strong as Pac-Man. There isn't any reason why it shouldn't be, I guess, but I dunno.
14) NetHack

7) Bionic Commando - Testing how weak Mario can get here
10) Wrecking Crew

2) Dragon Quest - I thought Battle Chess would be a funny entrant and it might gain traction with a better matchup. Thoughts?
15) Battle Chess