Game Over Part 3

Those old-school game overs were really something. They take up the bulk of Game Over Part 3 but we do make the transition from sprites, to polygons to HD in this one.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (NES)

Ganon is not a real threat in Zelda II. His minions, however, are quite the salty bunch since Link took down their lord and master. All the baddies you encounter in the game serve Ganon and he can be brought back to life if they sprinkle Link's blood on his ashes. No joke, that stuff comes straight from the game's manual. So every time you get a game over in Zelda II, the mooks were successful in reviving Ganon and in true villain form, he taunts the player with a cackle for their failure.

Duck Hunt (NES)

Every time one of those mallards flies off the screen that infernal mutt will pop out of the grass to laugh at your shortcomings. Nintendo must have known how irksome it was so they decided to paste his mug on the game over screen. After years of being powerless to do anything against that dog, we can now kick the crap out of him in Super Smash Bros. 3DS/Wii U.

Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (NES)

There's something about seeing a dejected Little Mac sitting down, filled with the disappointment of shattered dreams that just crushes the soul. The road to become a boxing champ is a painful one as players were quick to find out. Bald Bull, Mr. Sand Man, Super Macho Man and especially Dynamite Kid himself do not pull their punches.

Banjo Kazzooie (N64)

Bear and bird are on a quest to save bear's sister from an evil witch out to use said bear's sister's cute looks to get a makeover. The game over shows the witch Gruntilda's scheme being successful and when she steals Tooty's looks she transforms from a hideous witch to a smoking hot babe. You can pretty much guess what happens to Tooty. What's interesting about Banjo-Kazooie's game over is that you don't even have to lose all of your lives to see it. Simply saving your game and quitting results in this scene playing out in full.

Bayonetta (PS3, 360, Wii U)

If you opt to call it quits after the witch falls, she's dragged down to hell by a host of hands. It isn't overly long and drawn out. She's snatched down so fast you barely have time to take it in.