FABIO wrote:

without cheating? Seriously, one of the most hair pulling, overly difficult games ever. I'd maximize every single bonus possible for an insane amount of extra lives and take advantage of a loophole to get my boat maxed out on the very first level and I still only got about 3/4's of the way through (a little past the giant shark head boss fight)

other impossible (or at least hallmarks in frustration) games:

Battle Toads- every single version ever made except for that double dragon one

Legacy of the Wizard- not well known, but in terms of impossibleness it leaves other games in the dust)

the first Ninja Gaiden- just the last level alone

Gitaroo Man- master mode, my friend devoted an hour every day to beating level 3 and it took him two months to get passed it. After giving the same treatment to level 7 for three months with no results, he's called it quits.


Honorable mentions:

Final Fantasy X- For making you think you completed too many mini-games and levelled up too much after breezing through the late game bosses only to run into the final boss who's 20 times more difficult than the previous two. The first FF game where getting the ultimate weapons was practically mandatory for beating the game (at least Yuna's for unlimited double-cast Ultima).

Devil May Cry- Dante Must Die mode