Lufia & The Fortress of Doom is one of those SNES RPGs that somehow flew under the radar back in the day—which is a shame, because it’s got this weirdly cozy vibe despite the whole "impending doom" thing. You start off with this blue-haired swordsman and his crew trying to stop ancient evil, but honestly, half the fun is just poking around towns and finding hidden chests in dumb places (why is there always one behind the innkeeper?).

The battles are classic turn-based, but with a twist—your IP attacks charge up over time, so you’ve gotta decide whether to spam weak hits or wait for the big one. And the dungeons? Some of those puzzles will make you feel like an idiot until that one "aha" moment hits. The fast walker hack is a godsend, though—no more trudging through empty hallways at a snail’s pace.

It’s not perfect (the encounter rate can be brutal), but there’s something charming about its janky translation and those crunchy 16-bit spell effects. If you’ve got a soft spot for ’90s RPGs that don’t take themselves too seriously, this one’s worth dusting off.