Nights into Dreams
Saturn (1996)
Even now, the pastel colours of Saturn's not-quite-Mario 64-beater make you stop and stare (as we found when one of our staffers brought it in last week). In the childish wonder of free-falling through dream worlds, in the score rush of constantly replaying to hit that perfect combo chain, Nights was a short but sweet slice of vintage Sega.
Unlike most Sega titles, though, the developer has resisted calls for a sequel - but with Wii introducing the once-unthinkable combination of Sega working with Nintendo, there are rumours that Nights will finally fly again.
Above: Everything about Nights says 'fun', not 'attitude', so we're hoping our dream sequel doesn't end up Revenge of Nights Vendetta: Takedown
Thrasher: Skate and Destroy
PSone (1999)
Skate and Destroy was a far tougher ride than the first Tony Hawk's game, and its popularity suffered for it. But for those who cared, this typically Rockstar Games production - gritty, witty, faithful to the culture and packing an unbeatable late-'90s hip-hop soundtrack - was the definitive skateboarding game, with a depth of control that mirrored the actual motions of skating.
Different enough to THPS's combo pinball that they could have coexisted, it sadly wasn't to be, but we'd love to see Rockstar bring it back in next-gen style, maybe even keeping it real in the '90s scene.
