morolf: Wow, the Last Dynasty...didn't think I'd see that game mentioned. I played it in the late 1990s, got quite far in the space combat part, but got stuck in the 3D adventure part. Tbh I thought already back then that the game sucked somewhat (especially the adventure part with its sterile atmosphere and stupid puzzles), but at least it was fun for a few hours.

dtgreene: StarTropics (NES): An interesting game which combines RPG-style exploration (but not combat) with Zelda 1 style dungeons. The game has its sense of humor; for example, in addition to Big Hearts (which raise your max HP), there is a useless item called the Big Apple to find. The game uses a chapter system, and there's a replay mode where you can replay any chapter you've reached. This game is infamous for the puzzle that is solved by dipping a physical letter that came packaged with the game into water.

dtgreene: Some older console games that were interesting:

Magic of Scheherazade (NES): An action/RPG hybrid. You wander around fighting enemies in Zelda 1 style, but every now and then, a turn-based RPG style battle will occur. Interestingly enough, this game features combination attacks, a feature that didn't become mainstream in the JRPG genre until the likes of Phantasy Star 4 and Chrono Trigger. This game gives you 3 lives, just like many action games of the time; if the main character gets killed in an RPG-style battle (this can easily happen if an enemy formation uses an instant death combination attack against you and you get unlucky), the battle ends, you lose a life, and you see the screen showing how many lives you have left. There's also bread and mashroob, which are automatically used to restore HP or MP respectively when it runs out. In addition, Great Magic exists; these spells, which can only be cast during a solar eclipse and are forgotten once cast, are powerful; for example, the first Great Magic you get maximizes your gold and gives you the maximum quantity of many inventory items. The game has a chapter system; in each chapter, your level is capped, and once you beat a chapter, your level is automatically increased to that cap (if it isn't already).

Sword of Hope (Game Boy): An adventure/RPG hybrid. The game plays like an adventure game with an interface similar to Shadowgate (NES), but every now and then, you will notice dots on the part of the screen that shows where you can move. These dots represent monsters, and if you reach one of them (or one of them reaches you), you will be thrown into an RPG style battle. Interestingly enough, during battle, enemies will sometimes attack other enemies instead of you. The game got a sequel, which happens to be unbalanced in an interesting way; in normal encounters, it is necessary to use support and status magic to have a chance of winning.

StarTropics (NES): An interesting game which combines RPG-style exploration (but not combat) with Zelda 1 style dungeons. The game has its sense of humor; for example, in addition to Big Hearts (which raise your max HP), there is a useless item called the Big Apple to find. The game uses a chapter system, and there's a replay mode where you can replay any chapter you've reached. This game is infamous for the puzzle that is solved by dipping a physical letter that came packaged with the game into water.