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10) DuckTales
Released: NES, 1989
Licensed games are a magnet for criticism, and often rightly so; a familiar cartoon or movie character on a game’s box usually is a bad omen of mediocre gameplay to come. Capcom, which was making some Disney video games at the time, instead went against the grain and used its licensing arrangement to its benefit, creating a handful of excellent games based on cartoons like Rescue Rangers and Darkwing Duck. The strongest of those titles, however, also happened to be one heck of a platformer, and that game was DuckTales.
Taking some cues from its own Mega Man series, Capcom imbued DuckTales with an incredibly catchy soundtrack, level selection, and a great pixelated take on characters from the cartoon. Most importantly was protagonist Scrooge McDuck’s quirky use of his cane like a pogo stick to bop enemies and avoid hazards. Though a bit on the short side, DuckTales was a thrilling game that remains a highpoint for licensed games and platformers to this day. It also got a very high-quality remake available on Wii U’s eShop called DuckTales: Remastered, which I highly recommend giving a go!
I wouldn’t consider Muramasa a platformer. I think it’s more of a 2D hack and slash. Otherwise, great list. It’s good to see Tropical Freeze get some recognition.