Defender of the Crown is this weird little NES gem that mixes strategy and action in a medieval England setting. At first glance, it feels like a stripped-down Risk—you move armies around a map, trying to take over territories—but then suddenly, you're in a jousting match or swinging a sword in a raid. The catapult sieges are clunky but kinda satisfying once you get the timing right.

It’s not the deepest strategy game, and the controls take some getting used to (good luck landing a perfect lance hit in jousting on your first try). But there’s something charming about how it throws these random action bits into what’s otherwise a pretty straightforward conquest game. Just don’t expect anything too polished—it’s very much an NES-era experiment.