all time favorite video games 38-35

Welcome to the special Mario and Link edition of our countdown. Today features games that run from antiquity to modern, but share the same heroes. An elvish warrior who barely speaks throughout 20 years in the business and a plump plumber who must constantly battle a oversized dragon/dinosaur. Who know they would become so famous?

38. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)
Everyone's favorite Mario game (at the least, everyone's favorite NES Mario game) comes in at 38. I loved the variety of this game, and also the fact that everyone who played it seemed to have a good time. A challenging final world was weakened by a lame boss battle with Bowser at the end. I loved the themed worlds and the enemies that came with them. Giant World and Island World are still my favorites, though the Desert World ranks up there as well. I don't think must more needs to be said about this game. By now you've probably played it--and enjoyed it.

37. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (WII)
Nintendo tried to pull a sneaky when they held back the release of Twilight Princess for the Gamecube in order to make it a launch title for the Wii (and only later release it for the Gamecube). It worked. Twilight Princess was a smash hit for the new system, and the motion controls enhanced the game. My only real complaint was the ease of the game. The puzzles were hard, and the secret side-quests were borderline insane as usual, but the actual combat, while fun, was a bit dumbed down. There has never been a lackluster Zelda game for a Nintendo System (we won't talk about those CDi entries), and Twilight Princess has kept the streak alive.

36. The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past (SNES)
A Link To The Past. Hailed by some as the greatest Zelda game ever made. The rest of the camp tends to follow Ocarina of Time. A Link To The Past could be renamed Original Zelda: On Crack and Loving It. A zanier world, more mysteries, and this odd notion of light and dark worlds. Ganon is gone (or is he), and in his place is a mysterious wizard. A Link To The Past solidified the SNES's prominence during its heyday. I still love the way the graphics look to this day. Cartoony/simple and 100% enjoyable to look at.

35. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES)
I have always been of the camp that Mario Bros 2 is the superior sequel to the original. Doki, Doki Panic as the game was named in Japan was stripped down and the main character, an Arabian prince--hence the flying carpets and whatnot, was changed to Mario, Luigi, Princess, and Toad. The original Super Mario Bros 2 was released later in the United States as Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. The reason for the switch? They deemed the game too hard for America. While admittedly the replacement was much more fun that's still quite and insult. Still, being able to choose characters based on their strengths and weaknesses was pretty much a novel idea at the time. Gorgeous level design and a final boss who wasn't Bowser (Go Wart! The Unsung Villain of Mario fame!) made this game a winner in my mind. I am still proud of the fact that I have beaten this one. Don't forget the moral at the heart of the game--vegetables are your friend. They can help you overcome bullies. It's true. Go pick out the biggest dude on your block and throw a head of cauliflower at him. See what happens.

UP NEXT: Another Mario, Another Zelda, perhaps the greatest puzzler of all time, and the most in-depth simulation a PC has ever seen?