Disney games are some of the most popular with publishers, nearly as valuable to a game publisher as the coveted hit movie license. During the heyday of the 16-Bit generation there was more than just a slight competition going on for your platform to have the best Disney games. Sega, Capcom, Sony, Virgin and others all went at it against each other, many releases were cross platform between the Super Nintendo and the Sega Genesis. Similar to my article on Mickey Mouse games during the 16-Bit era, this article is going to delve into which Disney games you should be on the lookout for when game hunting for your Sega Genesis games fix.

First up is Quakshot starring Donald Duck. While Nintendo Entertainment System owners were rocking the likes of Ducktales, Sega gamers could still get in on the Duck family antics with Quackshot. While not perfect, mainly due to Donald disappearing when hit, Quackshot is still a memorable title. Features include better than Super Mario 3 level immersion where you are tasked with backtracking, collecting and earning new items to progress in another level- not just run through and grab coins and finish. Also the storyline is actually decent and told well with Donald meeting many characters from the Disney duck universe along the way.

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Gargoyles was one of Disney’s directly darker attempts at entertaining the children. Sure, most of the stuff Disney did has a darker side if you look hard enough, it is not in your face like Gargoyles did it. You are not shooting plungers at your enemies or throwing apples in Gargoyles, no you are using your sharp claws to dispatch the enemies that dare stand in your way. The levels of Gargoyles are huge, level one is a massive castle with towers and hidden areas to discover.

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World of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck was a great two player title that was featured in my other article. This title has the graphics dialed up to 11 on Genesis, nearing Neo Geo quality in many areas- which makes me wonder why Sega didn’t do this more often. If you play the single player game each character will offer advantages and disadvantages while the two player mode requires you to use teamwork to get around the game world. Quite innovative for the day and still rocks.

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Mickey Mania was also featured in the “Mickey Mouse” article and the Sega CD version even took the prize of best 16-Bit Mickey game (it has an exclusive extra level and better music). The Genesis version still kicks major butt and is more fluid than the Super Nintendo version. Definitely get the Genesis game if you see it in the wild for a decent price. Where else can you play through the history of Mickey Mouse?

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If Mickey Mania is the pinnacle of Mickey games then Donald Duck in Maui Mallard is the pinnacle of Donald Duck games, just barely edging out Quackshot (maybe we need to compare them in the near future). Huge levels, amazingly detailed animation on EVERYTHING in the game world (not just Donald) and multiple outfits/disguises that change the gameplay are just a few points in the positive column on this one.

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For something on the wilder side of Disney characters that deserve a game check out Goofy’s Hysterical History Tour. This is one of the few, possibly the only, game that used Goofy as the main character. I am not sure what happened with this one as to why it is overlooked by so many. There are huge sprawling levels, very well animated enemies and Goofy has plenty of tricks up his sleeve to keep things interesting. Definitely worth a look and possibly dirt cheap compared to the other games on this list.

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The Jungle Book is another Disney title that features huge sprawling levels that would easily remind most gamers of Metroid. Notice a pattern here yet? The animation is great, the challenge is set sort of high thanks to all of the screen blocking foliage and most enemies take two hits to dispatch. If Lion King frustrated you then give The Jungle Book a try, very similar art style between the two.

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Pinocchio is weirder than Goofy as far as choices for a character from the Disney world to be featured in a game. What could you really do with the character to keep gamers interested? Well, roller coaster levels, a romp through town and how about a pirate ship inside of a giant whale to name a few? Also, the graphics are almost on the same level as World of Illusion when you reach the later levels. It is like the artist in charge was swapped out in the second half of the game. Underdog material for sure.

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Disney’s Bonkers is getting on this list just for being unique against the other games listed. The game is split in to two parts, the first part is similar to the bonus stage of Shinobi where the ninjas are coming at you from the distance and you are throwing ninja stars at them. The first few levels are in a museum where you are guarding the artifacts, later you are repairing the brick fence while fending off the enemy. The second half of the game is an overhead car chase (remember, Bonkers is a cop). Interesting for the unique take on the license. They could have easily made this a 2D side scrolling action platform title and called it a day.

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No list of great Disney games on the Genesis would be complete without mention of Virgin’s Aladdin game. Dave Perry (Earthworm Jim, MDK and others) and company really threw the gauntlet down on this one. Quality action platforming and animation to die for all done in record time. Amazing what can happen when everyone is working towards the same goal.

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There you go folks, 10 great Disney games on the Sega Genesis. A couple were eye openers for me while researching this one such as Goofy and Pinocchio while the Mickey games are old hat in my experience. What does your list of Disney games on the Genesis look like?

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