Balloon Fight

Balloon Fight is a small, timeless gem whose magic, as few people realize, owes much to none other than Nintendo's future president Satoru Iwata, who had a hand in programming it. At first glance it resembles the arcade hit Joust, but thanks to its refined physics and flawless controls it became a classic in its own right, one that ages with remarkable grace.

The concept is simply brilliant: your character floats on two balloons and rises by flapping its wings. The goal is to get above your opponents and pop their balloons before they pop yours. Whoever loses their balloons falls down, and beware of the water and the fish lurking at the surface. The charm of the game lies precisely in the momentum of movement: the character doesn't obey on command, it glides and drifts, so mastering its flight takes feel and practice. The simultaneous two-player mode is especially great, letting you cooperate as well as sabotage one another, and there's also the brisk bonus mode Balloon Trip. Retro gamers love Balloon Fight for that purity of design, a textbook example of how a simple mechanic taken to perfection holds up even after decades.