50 Greatest Nintendo Moments: 30-21

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Speed kills in F Zero X, meeting Mr Sackhead in Resident Evil 4 and the memory wipe in Eternal Darkness are a few of the classic Nintendo moments to make the top thirty...

F-Zero X

30. Speed Kills - F-Zero X, N64
One of the most interesting things about F-Zero X was its Death Race mode. Here you had to destroy the other 29 cars on the track as quickly as possible. The best part of this however was the spin move. By tapping Z, R, R or R, Z, Z your car would start spinning quickly in circles, and if you slammed into a group of cars while doing this they'd all be completely wrecked. Ace.

Banjo Kazooie

29. Banjo Hoedown - Banjo Kazooie, N64
Yes, it's a shame that Rare is now owned by Microsoft and we'll probably never see Banjo and Kazooie on a Nintendo console again, but let's remember the good times eh? Particularly the fantastic intro to Banjo Kazooie which starts with Banjo playing the banjo and Kazooie playing the, um, kazoo, before Banjo's sister Tooty and the evil Mumbo Jumbo appear and start annoying them by taking over the song. It's hilarious stuff.

Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask

28. Anju Know What Else? - Zelda: Majora's Mask, N64
To be honest we could have filled this entire feature with Zelda moments so forgive us for only including a handful. Here's a cracker though. This is one of the most famous Zelda side quests, and for good reason. Bringing together two tragically separated couple takes up all three days and involves an intricate set of tasks taking in several characters, masks and locations. But it's all worth it when you finally reunite the lovers (only a few moments before the moon crashes into Clock Town) and sit back to take in the genuinely touching scene where they are reunited.

Eternal Darkness

27. Memory Wipe - Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem, GameCube
As your character starts to lose his marbles, the game tries every trick in the book to make you feel like you're going nuts too. Flies will walk across the screen, your character's head will fall off or the game will pretend your controller's been unplugged just as you're about to be set upon by zombies. Scariest of all however is when it pretends to wipe your memory card when you try and save.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

26. Hogging The Limelight - Super Smash Bros Brawl, Wii
The Subspace Emissary mode in Super Smash Bros. Brawl may be the weakest link in an otherwise brilliant game but it's still got a compelling storyline that's told with fantastic cut-scenes. As the story progresses, new characters appear one by one, causing many a smile to appear, but by far the most important scene is the one just before the final boss, as it marks the appearance of Sonic. Seeing Sega's famous mascot appearing in a game full of Nintendo characters is a monumental moment.

Wii Sports Resort

25. A Cut Above - Wii Sports Resort, Wii
The release of Wii Sports Resort and its Wii MotionPlus attachment gave many of us the same "wow" factor we had when playing the Wii for the first time. Our favourite use of the new tech was in the Showdown game in Swordplay, where the Remote acted as your blade. Running through levels and swinging away at comedy Mii ninjas with real swipes was both hilarious and empowering.

Okami

24. Blooming Marvellous - Okami, Wii
The majority of entries in our countdown are moments of magical gameplay rather than visual wonder. However, we couldn't resist including one of the loveliest graphical riffs we've ever seen in a game. Okami fans will know exactly what we're on about here: that gorgeous moment when you clear the bleak, barren first area and then watch agog as the entire landscape blossoms with life and colour.

Resident Evil 4

23. Meet Mr Sackhead -
Resident Evil 4, GameCube
Resident Evil 4 took the series in a bold new direction, and there's no better proof of this than half an hour into the game when Leon approaches the village for the first time. This time you're not just picking off a couple of slow-moving zombies, you're being attacked by a whole horde of fast-moving, angry villagers. And then, after trying to hide in a derelict house, you hear the sound of a chainsaw...

Lylat Wars

22. Ready To Rumble - Lylat Wars, N64
When Lylat Wars was released on the N64 it was packaged with a mysterious device called the Rumble Pak. This battery-powered contraption plugged into the back of the N64 controller. Any time you took a hit in the game or fired your lasers the controller would rumble. It doesn't sound like a big deal these days, but back in the day the Rumble Pak was a true revelation.

Yoshi's Island

21. Warm Fuzzy Feeling - Yoshi's Island, SNES
Each level in this classic offered something unique, including our personal favourite, World 1-7. Titled "Touch Fuzzy Get Dizzy", it introduced fluffy white creatures called Fuzzies that slowly floated towards the ground. If Yoshi touched one the whole screen would twist, the music would distort and Yoshi would start stumbling about. It's the closest you'll get to seeing a Nintendo character drunk.

• 50 Greatest Nintendo Moments: 40-31


• 50 Greatest Nintendo Moments: 50-41

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