The best fan games of all time

When it comes to fan involvement in games, it takes three forms. The most common way for fans to directly interact with the game is by adding mods and some of the most popular games of all time, e.g. Grand Theft Auto 5they have hundreds of mods. Then there are ROM hacks for games from the 8-bit and 16-bit era, such as Super Mario Bros. or Street Rage.

Finally, there are standalone original games based on other properties, also known as fan games. No mods or ROM hacks are needed to play these games. Of the many that exist, games like Black Mesa, Pokémon Uraniumand others stand out asthe best fan games ever. They will be ranked and compared to their original games, taking into account their unique values ​​and fun factors.

10

Final Fantasy 7: Re-Imagined

A fan game with great potential

• Developer: PD Design Studio
• Released: 2015
• Based on: Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy 7: Re-Imagined it's more of a demo than a full game, which is why it's placed below, but it still has value in the fan community. It was released in 2015, developed by PD Design Studio and released earlier Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

Players traverse the Midgar reactor section playing as either Cloud or Tifa, and there's co-op as well. It's a decent 2D brawler, and even though the game was never finished, it's still cool, what if PD Design Studio could come back one day.

9

Super Smash Flash 2

GBA platform fighter

• Developer: Greg McLeod (SSF2 Team)
• Released: 2017
• Based on: Super Smash Bros.

Super Smash Flash 2 is a Super Smash Bros. a clone that was released in 2017, developed by Greg McLeod, and featured some pretty solid updates over a consistent period of years. It added characters remarkably Super Smash Bros. before Super Smash Bros. Ultimatelike Sora from The heart of the kingdomalong with exclusive characters like Goku z Dragon Ball.

It can be downgraded to the GBA version Smash Bros.as many sprites are taken from GBA games or made to look like GBA or even DS models. It plays well, has a great roster of characters and scenes, and its support over the years has been great.

8

Mari0

A great update to a classic

• Developer: Maurice Guégan
• Released: 2012
• Based on: Super Mario Bros. and Portal

There are a lot of them Mario the game hacks there, and Mari0 is both a ROM hack and an original fan game released in 2012 and developed by Maurice Guégan. She reused assets from Super Mario Bros. on the NES, but the twist was that Mario had to use the portal gun from the game Portal bypass enemies or send them away.

Being able to use a legendary weapon like the portal gun in a 2D space is breaking boundaries that fans will be excited to test. Maybe it was built on a gimmick rather than an original idea, but Mari0 is still a fun game for fans to experiment with whenever you have a spare moment.

7

Barkley, Shut Up And Jam: Gaiden

Everyone stand up, it's time to bang

• Developer: Tales of Game's Studios
• Released: 2008
• Based on: Barkley Shut Up and Jam!

Even if Barkley, Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden was released in 2008, it is the ultimate video game of the 90s. It is based on the basketball game that was available on the SNES and Sega Genesis, Barkley Shut Up and Jam!along with serving as a somewhat canonical sequel Space Jamaccompanied by a remix of “Space Jam”, the film's title theme.

This turn-based RPG was heavily influenced by the basketball hype of the 90s, as the game takes place in a post-apocalypse where the sport is illegal and most mutants have some sort of basketball-related design. It's weird, to be clear, but awesome at the same time, and it's just one of those RPGs that has to be seen to be believed, kind of like EarthBound.

6

Pokémon Uranium

A new type of monster catcher

• Developer: ~SE~
• Released: 2016
• Based on: Pokemon

Pokémon Uranium looks a lot like the fifth generation Pokemon games, Pokemon black and Pokemon whitemeaning it looks a lot like a DS game, but in a good way. The game features a standard quest that involves traveling, catching Pokemon, and battling other trainers for glory.

One thing that helps it stand out is the more mature tone, although it doesn't sound immature, similar to something like Conker's Bad Fur Day. The spotlight is also on more than a hundred new Pokémon and a new type called Nuclear. Unfortunately, Nintendo kind of nuclear development as Pokémon Uranium was forced out of business but still exists in some form online.

5

Undertale yellow

Gunslinging RPG

• Developer: Team Undertale Yellow
• Released: 2023
• Based on: Undertale

Undertale yellow works as a fan game because the original Undertale he had a kind of fanboy approach to his design. It was a tribute to many games, the most important EarthBound. While the art was great, there were some unevenness in the design and mixed media approach to some key areas and enemies that helped it stand out.

Undertale yellow was released in 2023 and designed by the Undertale Yellow team. It's a fan game based on a game that was heavily produced by a fan of another game, so it's very meta. This is a prequel to Undertale set in the same world and featuring cameos of familiar characters. The game follows the same turn/talking mechanics, but it's more original than not, giving fans the sequel/prequel they've been dying to see since 2015.

4

Street Fighter X Mega Man

From a fan game to an official adventure

• Developer: Seow Zong Hui
• Released: 2012
• Based on: Street Fighter and Mega man

Street Fighter X Mega Man is one of those rare examples of a fan game that started out as a small project before finally getting the official blessing from Capcom. Although the game events are not canonical Mega man franchises or Street Fighter games, it's at least somewhat official.

In a typical NES Mega man In the mode, players can choose the stage they want, play 2D levels, fight a boss, and then get power-ups. The levels are well designed, the music remixes are excellent, and the select bosses are fun to see in 8-bit form, from Ryu to Dhalsim.

3

Abobo's Great Adventure

A nostalgic trip to the wild NES

• Developer: Team Bobo
• Released: 2012
• Based on: More NES games (Double Dragon, Mega Man, Punch-Outetc.)

Abobo's Great Adventure is one of the first fan games that became legendary when it was released in 2012. It was developed by the Bobo team and can be completed in less than an hour, but not a second of game time is wasted.

For kids of the 80s and 90s, it was like a who's who of the NES era, where Abobo z Double dragon series went on a rampage across video game worlds to find her son. Become Mega Man, challenge Little Mac, explore Hyrule and much more. It's a nostalgic trip that's cool in concept and hilarious in practice. The only bad thing about it is its short run time.

2

AM2R

One year before Samus' official return

• Developer: Milton Guasti
• Released: 2016
• Based on: Metroid 2: Return of Samus

AM2Rshort for Another Metroid 2 remakeis a remake of the 1991 Game Boy game, Metroid 2: Return of Samus. Nintendo quickly took this one down in 2016, and in retrospect it's understandable why, as it released its own remake for the 3DS later in 2017, titled Metroid: Samus Returns.

Regardless, the game features many Metroids as bounty hunter Samus Aran must track down these aliens on the planet in order to move forward. It looks great, plays even better and has a sense of foreboding. Some may argue whether AM2R as a fan game, it's better than any of the official versions, but it's at least good enough to compete with them.

1

Black Mesa

Single top valve

• Developer: Crowbar Collective
• Released: 2020
• Based on: Half-life

Half-life was released in 1998 and became an instant darling of critics and is still considered one of the best shooters ever made due to its environmental narrative and atmospheric horror. While the mod community has been strong with the original and sequels for decades, Black Mesa is something else.

This is a complete remake of the original game, made by fans, but they like it Street Fighter X Mega Manreceived Valve's blessing. They didn't publish it, but Valve didn't take it down and even allowed it to exist as a paid game on Steam. While the original Half-life it still has its charm, anyone who wants to play the game today should really just buy it Black Mesa instead.