SweetNES!

2. The one where you throw lightning at whiny slaves

The game: ActRaiser (SNES)
Published by: Enix (Now Square Enix)
You played it in: 1991

What's Cool: Playing god is old hat now, but years ago holding your people's fate in the palm of your hand was a power trip like no other. First you'd transport down to Earth from your hovering eye-in-the-sky castle and clear the land of scrappy demons. Then, after slashing your way through poisoned lakes and bone-ridden deserts, you'd switch roles and start building up your town Sim City-style.

Of course, if the underlings keep begging you for stuff like the faith-based freeloaders they are, you could always rain some destruction down with your omnipotent powers to shut them up. The transition from demon slaying to race building blends much better than you'd imagine. This turned the game instantly into a cult classic that was, sadly, never properly followed up on.

Second coming?Maybe if you pray really hard.