10 Most Essential Japanese Video Games

9. Super Metroid

Another franchise that sinks its hooks in deep, 2D Metroid might be on pause as Nintendo explore bringing back Metroid Prime first, but Super Metroid crystallised everything fans loved about the originals.

Arriving on SNES more confident than ever, this Metroid boasted a dark, synthetic score, incredible graphics and snappy, addictive action platforming. Its environment was more complex and rewarding than ever, helping birth the genre of "Metroidvanias" alongside the mighty Castlevania titles, thanks to item and ability-based world progression.

An essential game for anyone wanting to understand why Metroid is such a big deal, or where this approach to progression truly got perfected, as a full package, there's something endlessly recommendable about Super Metroid's entire presentation.