
Stage Select:
This is a hard one for me. Video games aren't really scary for me beyond the jump-scare effect, and even that is only because I startle easily, as anybody that knows me personally can attest. But I'll take a whack at this anyway.
1. The Arch-Viles from Doom 2. There was nothing I hated more than to hear them roaming around. They have this attack where if you are in their line of sight, they will blow away most of your life, and it's worse when they are in higher levels when you are trying to deal with other enemies. I always found them worthy of expending 40 cells in my BFG-9000 to put them down quickly, but the problem is that they can do a lot of damage before you can even see them to shoot at them.
2. Balio and Sunder, the twin horse gangsters from Breath of Fire III. BoFIII is a brightly colored, cheery, cheesy game, and there is nothing really "scary" about it per se. Balio and Sunder are more of a kid-based fear, since Ryu and Nina are kids when they are being pursued by B & S. You meet them after they've burned down your house in retaliation for stealing their protection money. They have no qualms about beating up and kidnapping kids, and they are relentless pursuers. If you're a kid, this is a great example of video game "stranger danger". Your party can't get away from them. They are apparently so brutal that even when you're in seemingly friendly towns, the townspeople will almost instantly sell you out to them out of fear of retaliation. Every. Single. Time. I guess this could be an adult fear if you were to run afoul of gangs or organized crime syndicates in real life.
3. The ReDeads in Wind Waker. The scream they make when they jump you. It's a stock horror-film sound of a girl screaming, but the acoustic effects Nintendo used make it even more piercing.
Chrono Crossing (1987):
The Legend of Zelda. I credit this game for making me a lifelong gamer. I played games for most of my life, but up until them, they were either simple single-screen arcade games, or at most, side-scrollers like Super Mario Bros. Here was a game that had its own world to explore, with forests, lakes, deserts, mountains, and a graveyard to explore, not to mention 8 huge dungeons. It was a game that was an epic ongoing adventure instead of a 5-minute time killer. It had a huge variety of enemies to battle. Secrets were constantly dangled in front of you, and you were really encouraged to explore. And it all played out to the tune of what is still today my single favorite piece of game music, the Zelda Overworld Theme, which has only been improved with technology. The icing on the cake was the fact that once you beat Ganon the first time, the fun didn't stop. You got a second quest with the difficulty cranked up to 11, with all new dungeons and enemies.
I was in 4th grade the year it came out, and in my spare time in class, I drew a lot of scenes from the game. My teacher noticed me doing this one day. I tried to hide it. At that time, video games had the reputation among adults for being brain-rotting garbage, and I got plenty of that attitude at home from my parents. She insisted in looking at it, however. Much to my surprise, she began a conversation with me about Zelda. She asked how far along I was (I think I was in the midst of the Second Quest). She then told me that her husband was playing the game and was really wrapped up in it, but had gotten snagged on a dungeon that I had already finished. She asked me how to get past the point he was stuck at. I wrote it down for her and even drew a map. The next class, she told me that her husband thanked me for my help and would appreciate any further help I could give. So for the remainder of the 1987-1988 school year, I corresponded with him through my teacher. That was one of my fondest memories from childhood.