Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (1995)

This one surprised me. When I heard that the next Mario game would star Yoshi, I was a bit skeptical. Sure, I like that rascal, but hey, you can't upstage Mario (unless you're Luigi. How many other people out there prefer to be player 2?)! Well, once I played it, all my doubts went out the window. Original gameplay (flawless as always for the big N), beautiful and lively graphics, and shyguys a-plenty (my personal fave). Now, for anyone that says this game is too easy, I can assure you that they did not collect all the items in the game. Each stage has a letter rating, based on the amount of red coins, flowers, etc. you collect. The process of collection is never tedious, but always challenging, especially near the end. Sure, tearing through the game from start to finish might be a medium challenge, but doing it right is a challenge worthy of most gamers, one which will be a joy to complete.