Ghouls n' Ghosts SNES
  A classic series that began as the arcade game, "Ghosts n' Goblins", each game pits the "heroic" (zombie-murdering dweeb) Sir Arthur against a whole army of monsters who's king (the demon Sardius) has kidnapped princess Guinevere. This series is notorious for its difficulty, and in this and most other Ghouls/Ghosts/Goblins games, the game sends you all the way back to the beginning upon completing the next-to-last level, forcing you to play through the game twice if you wish to finish it.

Sir Arthur begins his adventure in a suit of armor, but one hit will strip him down to his underpants. Another hit, and he's reduced to a pile of bones. If he can find a treasure chest not inhabited by an evil clown, he can wind up with upgraded armor and all sorts of different weapons to throw at things.
  ...The evil clowns I mentioned (officially known as magicians) are a pretty major aspect of the game. You want better weapons and armor, but quite a lot of treasure chests house these guys, who throw magic stuff at Arthur and vanish. If the magic stuff hits him, he gets transformed for a while into either a baby, a little peasant girl, or a honeybee, all completely defenseless.
Enemy info on mouseover
Giant cat-like monsters that breathe fire. A blue version breathes frost.
These bigger fish ride the waves and spit at you.
Zombies emerge from the ground at random in their coffins.
Zombies emerge from the ground at random in their coffins.
Exploding spore pods encountered among the brambles in the first level. A blue variety is found in the intestines of the ghouls stomach.
These skulls rise up on columns of flame and spit fireballs.
Zombies are the first monsters you face.
Clams that spit eyeballs. Only two exist in the game.
Zombies are the first monsters you face.
Clams that spit eyeballs. Only two exist in the game.
These ghosts form randomly from small whisps that fly around everywhere in the ship graveyard and final castle.
These anemones hang onto pillars of coral and throw starfish.
Wolves leap up into the air when you approach.
Fake chests that throw little cute ghosts at you! Fake chests that throw little cute ghosts at you!
Spiny evil fish that fly.
Clams that spit eyeballs. Only two exist in the game.
Ice flowers, encountered in the frozen forest, are basically the same as the flaming skulls.
These cool floating guys sprout from the walls of the ghoul's stomach.
Red knights that fly. Found in the ice mountains.
Little imps that protect the towers.
These don't move, but their eyes glow and they hurt if you touch them.
Little imps that protect the towers. Bats are, well, bats.
Tiny imps that come out of magma. Purple ones infest the ghoul's stomach intestinal tract.
Red Gargoyles
  Red Gargoyles are encountered throughout the game, usually one at a time, but in later levels you could find yourself battling two or more at once. Just one of these guys is actually a bigger pain than every boss in the game combined. It's not so much that they're strong, they actually don't take all that many hits to kill, but as far as video game enemies go, their intelligence is unbelievable. These guys are so good at dodging your shots and attacking unexpectedly that you'de swear they were being controlled by a sentient human being, possibly miniaturized to live inside the game cartridge. I bet he has a whole microscopic house in there, with an android dog and girlfriend and all kinds of board games to keep him from going insane.
Bosses (and willie)
  The first boss is the giant vulture. Its neck can extend and it spits up eggs that hatch into cute little evil vultures. In the final castle, giant vulture heads are mounted directly on the walls and breathe fire.
  The giant barnacle is the boss of the sea of despair. It rides on a whirlwind and fires rocket-like crustaceans at you.
  This giant worm at the end of Sardius' towers circles around Arthur and spits gooey grown globs everywhere.
  The Hydra is the gaurdian of the huge heart at the end of the Ghoul's stomach. It breathes fire and can split into three dragon-headed humanoids (pink, white and green. Only the pink one is shown)
  The ice giant's legs crumble the moment it comes to life. Its torso floats around attacking with ice breath.
  Two variations of Lucifer. The first breathes fire from its belly and lazers from its head, the second breathes slightly more fire from its belly and giant blasts of light from its head.
  Sardius, the final boss. Not quite as impressive as his predeccessor, Loki, he just fires stuff from his fingers. Flying platforms come out of the mouth in his stomach and you must ride them to attack his head.
  This is the demon sent to kidnap the princess. You only see it briefly, in the opening sequence, and you never fight it. I have named him Willie. Whatever his official name is, it is meaningless now. There is only Willie. Willie is very wooly.
 

 

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