The Sound of the Underground

The toboggans from Donkey Kong Country 3 can be likened to the minecarts from the original Donkey Kong Country game or the rollercoasters from the sequel. The sleds will automatically move forward without requiring any input from the player, and you’ll have no way to stop the fast-moving vehicles without crashing. The toboggan is initially used in a snow-covered environment, but “Demolition Drain-Pipe” requires you to race through a massive pipeline that’s infested with flying creatures and other obstacles. It’s easy to crash into vents or fall into gaps as you ride along the curvy pathway. Fortunately, it’s possible to cling onto metal railings that are suspended from the ceiling. “Demolition Drain-Pipe” isn’t especially challenging and it’s pretty easy to jump on top of your enemies, but I appreciate the frenetic pacing nonetheless. The whole thing feels like an elaborate bobsled run, and the action never slows down. It definitely doesn’t feel like a typical sewer level, but there’s nothing wrong with a little variety.

Sewer levels have a tendency to be tedious or frustrating, but the sewer access from Chrono Trigger provides a moment of levity in a post-apocalyptic future. The abandoned sewers are more welcoming that most of the futuristic buildings you visit, and they’re not nearly as run down. By the time you’re required to visit the location, you’ll likely be over-leveled. The rodents and lizards that live there don’t pose much of a threat, and even the boss is a pushover. You’ll have to activate some bridges and deal with a few traps as you navigate through the sewers, but the switches are easy to find and the puzzles are anything but complicated. That being said, you’ll want to avoid making too much noise unless you want to be ambushed. The innocent sound of a stray cat can alert enemies to your location, and the distinct chime that plays when you find a save point is enough to draw you into an unavoidable battle. The sewer creatures are entertaining and they carry absurd amounts of money, so it might be beneficial to make as much noise as possible.

The sewers of Silent Hill are dark, repetitive, and downright disorientating. Put another way, they represent everything that’s wrong about sewer levels. The game wants players to feel uncomfortable, however, so the claustrophobic environments are thematically appropriate. There are no lights inside the tunnels, so players have to rely on a flashlight as they explore the underground passageways. Myriads of supernatural creatures congregate in the sewers, and the poor visibility makes it difficult to spot them ahead of time. Silent apparitions will jump out of the shadows, reptilian demons drop down from the ceiling, faceless children attack with razor-sharp claws, and giant insects relentlessly nip at your ankles. You can detect enemies above the surface by listening for static on a portable radio, but the makeshift monster detector is virtually useless when you’re underground and surrounded by concrete and metal. There’s plenty of things to creep you out even when you’re not fighting monsters. Blood appears on many surfaces, shrouded corpses can be seen hanging about, and the ground will occasionally crumble beneath your feet. The entire trip through the sewers is unsettling, but that’s exactly what Konami was aiming for.

The Ninja Turtles reside within the New York City sewer system, so it was pretty much a given that a TMNT game would show up on this list. There’s a lot of levels to choose from, but “Sewer Surfin'” from Turtles in Time stands out for a number of reasons. Sewer levels tend to be drab and dreary due to their inherent underground nature, but “Sewer Surfin'” is a brightly-lit stage with vibrant colors. The level is also decidedly faster than typical sewer levels. You won’t have to sledge through waist-high water or wrestle with frustrating platforming mechanics. Instead, you’ll race through the level on a rocket-propelled surfboard that keeps pace with you even when you’re jumping in the air. The level is basically a bonus stage, and most of your surfing enemies can be defeated in a single hit. You’ll have to contend with the occasional mine, but you can regain your health by eating floating sewer pizzas. The Rat King presides over the stage as its boss, and he lobs missiles at the Turtles from the safety of a personal watercraft. He’s a lot tougher than the Foot Soldiers and Pizza Monsters that you encounter throughout the stage, but he still doesn’t pose much of a challenge. It’s not the most complex or innovative stage in the TMNT series, but it’s one of the most memorable. The music is awesome, too!

Dark Forces is a first-person shooter from 1995 that’s known for its complex level designs. The game centers around a mercenary working on behalf of the Rebel Alliance, and his adventure takes him to various planets across the galaxy. The third mission takes place in the sewers underneath the city of Anoat. It’s difficult to navigate through the confusing maze of corridors, and you can almost smell the sewage as you’re sneaking around in the endless waste. The level is plagued by underwater creatures that are difficult to spot, but your ammunition is limited. This means that you’ll have to exercise caution rather than mindlessly blasting away at all of the guard droids and Death Star trash compactor monsters. You’ll have to be mindful of the water, too. You’ll face strong currents as you progress through the stage, and you’ll also have to use various levers to raise and lower the water levels. These puzzles aren’t especially difficult, but they make an already convoluted level seem even more daunting. The entire reason for entering the sewers is to rendezvous with an Imperial weapons specialist, but it would have been a lot more convenient if you could have just met up with him at a hotel or something.

Located in the bellows of Gruntilda’s Lair, Clanker’s Cavern is a large chamber that houses an oversized mechanical fish. Clanker once lived a peaceful life surrounded by clean water, but Grunty forced him into captivity and started using him as a garbage disposal. Needless to say, he’s not especially pleased with the situation. After venturing through a drainage pipe, Banjo and Kazooie find the mechanical monstrosity floating in a pool of grimy water and surrounded by rusty plumbing infrastructure. It’s easily the gloomiest location in the game, but Clanker leaves a lasting impression. If nothing else, a massive iron fish is more intriguing than the usual assortment of creatures that you’d expect to find in a sewer. You’ll spend some time swimming around in the toxic sludge, but the most interesting parts of the level take place inside Clanker. I realize that sewer levels are seldom upbeat or cheerful, but Clanker’s situation is especially bleak. Clanker can be seen swimming around in the background in Banjo-Pilot, however, so we can assume that he made it out of the cavern eventually.

Sewer Speedway is the fourth course from Crash Team Racing. It’s thematically similar to the sewer levels from Crash Bandicoot 2, and the narrow corridors are a great fit for a racing game. Incidentally, the sense of speed always seems higher when you’re racing through closed-in environments. The course is comprised of a network of tunnels with alternate routes, clever shortcuts, and several speed boosters. It’s possible to drive up the side of the tunnels if you’re going fast enough, and this allows players to exercise a certain amount of creativity during the race. You’re able to keep your momentum after hitting the walls, and this makes the underground speedway stand out from typical race tracks. It’s a fast-paced track, and the action never really slows down. This makes it ideal for time trials, but it’s also fun to play with friends since there are always interesting ways to overtake your opponents. It’s even fun to play against CPU opponents! It’s easy to understand why Sewer Speedway is one of the most beloved tracks in the game.

The world of Dark Souls is filled with disgusting swamps and plague-ridden shantytowns, but the Depths feels like a claustrophobic nightmare. The forsaken area is comprised of waste-filled tunnels that function as a sewer system for the city of Lordran. The labyrinthine layout makes it difficult to navigate through them, and the lack of sunlight certainly doesn’t help in this regard. The catacombs are teeming with filth and adorned with corpses, and there’s something waiting to ambush you around every corner. The tunnels are home to giant rodents, hostile slimes, and all sorts of poisonous creatures. You’ll likely be tempted to slay everything indiscriminately, but the rats can actually help you navigate through the maze. If left to their own devices, they will show you the least painful route out of the sewers. It’s a small detail that’s easy to overlook, but it goes to show how important it is to pay careful attention to your surroundings. Unfortunately, the rats won’t provide any assistance against the giant dragon that presides over the Depths.

Video game sewers are usually comprised of large pipes, elaborate brick archways, and underground rivers, but we aren’t always given a lot of insight into how the sewer systems work or why they even exist in the first place. Resident Evil 2 features a proper sewage treatment plant complete with septic tanks, filtration systems, and a water purification room. The facility actually looks like it has a purpose. Catwalks and ventilation ducts connect the various parts of the plant, and you get a sense that people actually work there on a daily basis. You’ll see various construction tools laying around, and there’s even office space for the workers. Everything you see in the sewers looks like it belongs there…. except for the mutant alligator, of course. Urban legends about alligators in the sewers date back to the 1920s, and Capcom’s take on the myth was a 30-foot monstrosity. The deadly reptile owes its size to a mutant virus strain, and it barely has room to move around. The alligator seems almost invincible at first, but he becomes surprisingly vulnerable after it starts chowing down on a gas canister.

There was really no other choice for the number one position on this list. Mario Bros. marked the first instance of a sewer in a video game, and it’s easily the most well-known example on this list. Seemingly everyone knows that Mario is a plumber by trade, but the original Mario Bros. was one of the only times he was ever depicted as such. The premise of the game involves Mario (and his newly-introduced brother) venturing into the sewers and fighting various critters who are wreaking havoc on the city’s plumbing infrastructure. (Like real plumbers, their pay is directly proportional to the number of turtles they kill.) The game itself mostly consists of overturning enemies and collecting coins, and there’s a strong multiplayer component that’s cooperative and competitive at the same time. All of the levels share a common setting, but the opening phase with the blue platforms is the most iconic by far. This stage was the basis for a minigame from Super Mario Bros. 3, and it has also been immortalized as a stage in the Smash Bros. universe.