July 2^nd, 2007 (12:46pm) - It appears the Virtual Console is week-by-week becoming the go-to place for fans of "shump" titles. Fans of other genres will be pleased to find a true classic, and a 16-bit sequel as well.

Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points): Join Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool and Toad in an incredible fantasy world on a quest to save the day. This time, they have little more than vegetables to defend themselves with. Pick up items and throw them at your adversaries to clear levels in seven massive worlds. Even enemies can be picked up and tossed across the screen. Each character has a unique set of abilities: Luigi can jump higher and farther than any of the other characters, Toad can dig extremely fast and pull items out of the ground quicker than anyone and the princess is the only one who can jump and hover temporarily. This unique installment in the Mario series will keep you coming back for more.

Ecco: The Tides of Time (Sega Genesis, 1 player, rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): In this sequel to Ecco the Dolphin, everyone’s favorite underwater hero must battle the Vortex Queen and her hive of drones. The wicked queen followed Ecco back to Earth from the future and quickly established her hive. It’s up to Ecco to defeat this alien threat by navigating the depths of his side-scrolling world, solving puzzles and receiving help from his marine-mammal friends. When Ecco used the time machine to save his pod, he split the stream of time in two. He must now restore the rift before the world is permanently changed into a mechanical world, sucked dry by the Vortex.

Dragon Spirit (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 600 Wii Points): A fantastic world of adventure unfolds in this vertical-scrolling shooter. Sealed away by the gods long ago, the Evil Demon of Darkness, Zawell, seeks to rise again and unleash a new reign of evil. The brave warrior Amur races to rescue Princess Alicia from the demon’s wretched clutches. Amur takes the form of the legendary Blue Dragon and fights his way through the legions of monsters that await in the sky. Battle your way through eight different areas, using your Dragon Breath to bring down airborne targets and Fireballs to wipe out targets on the ground. Destroy flashing enemies and smash Eggs to uncover different kinds of power-up items. Boost your firepower by increasing the number of heads your dragon has, and defeat all the bosses as you make your way to Zawell’s dark lair.