This week’s Rom Hack Roundup covers several great platformers for the SNES that have been fan-translated to English. Platformers are an iconic part of gaming history. Like other genres, there are some excellent late-life-cycle SNES platformers that only came out in Japan. Now, you can just follow our trusty Rom patching utility and play these awesome games in English.

Front Mission: Gun Hazard

Developer: Squaresoft
Released: 1996
Try If You Like: Metal Warriors, Cybernator,   Assault Suits Valken

Squaresoft’s spiritual successor of Assault Suits Valken,  Cybernator and Metal Warriors has a complex plot set in the year  2064 where a secret organization called The Society manipulates global politics. You take the role of the president’s bodyguard. It plays like a classic mech-warrior platformer but with heavier story elements and plot. The graphics are excellent and tight controls make it a load of fun to fly around in a giant robot suit. The soundtrack is created by the same duo who composed the amazing Chrono Trigger soundtrack. It’s definitely an underrated soundtrack you should add to your collection.

Holy Umbrella

Developer: Naxat Soft
Released: 1995
Try If You Like: Totally Rad,  Adventure Island, Super Mario World

Holy Umbrella reminds me a bit of the NES’s Totally Rad. It’s a solid platformer full of whacky enemies. After picking up a random umbrella during a storm on his way home from school, our hero is transported to a strange post-industrial world of Margence under the control of the evil Dondera. The action takes place in the side scrolling expansive areas and the towns are explored in an overhead view similar to Zelda. It may not be the prettiest game on the SNES but it is a good adventure game that definitely is worth a play through.

Doremi Fantasy Milon’s Great Adventure

Developer: Hudsonsoft
Released: 1996
Try If You Like: Adventure Island, Super Mario World

A sequel to the original NES Milons Secret Castle, released almost 12 ears earlier, this gun and colorful platformer hits the spot for everything that is great about 16-bit platformer a. When the evil Amon steals music away from the village Milon’s village, he must head out to recover magical instruments held by Amon’s minions. The game had a variety of level mechanics and settings each with their own challenges.