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In 1966, CBS debuted the now-classic television special, It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. In it, all the kids in the Peanuts gang take part in typical Halloween activities, including trick-or-treating and pumpkin-carving — except for Linus. Instead, Linus is preparing for the arrival of a mythical being known as the “Great Pumpkin.” As Linus explains, “Each year, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere,” then he distributes toys to the children waiting for him. Linus spends the special writing letters to the Great Pumpkin and trying to convince others of its existence. Then he spends Halloween night in a pumpkin patch, awaiting the Great Pumpkin’s arrival. Of course, the Great Pumpkin never emerges, but Linus still vows to wait again next year. To the casual Peanuts fan, that may be all they ever know of Linus and the Great Pumpkin, but dedicated readers of the Peanuts comic strip know there’s much, much more to the story. The Great Pumpkin was first mentioned in a Peanuts comic on Oct. 26, 1959.

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Michael McWhertor is a New York-based journalist and editor with more than 20 years of experience covering games, industry events, technology, movies, and TV. Pokémon's gorgeous new animated series officially lands new streaming home

On Oct. 18, 1985, Nintendo released the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America alongside a limited selection of games like Super Mario Bros. and Excitebike. Within a few years, it had a library of hundreds of titles, proving that rumors of the video game industry’s death throughout the early ‘80s were greatly exaggerated. Today, many of those early games feel like antiques. They’re not nearly as memorable as they once were, with so many generations of newer software to choose from. But there are some that still deserve your attention, even now. Here are 10 NES games that are still worth playing from start to finish. Publisher: Tecmo Ninja warriors clashed in a contemporary city, and players immediately knew they wanted to spend more time with agile hero Ryu Hayabusa. The cost was steep. Ninja Gaiden is one of the most challenging games of the era, at least out of the ones a person might still care to play today. Bosses hit hard and fast. Even birds have what it takes to knock an unwitting ninja from the tenuous safety a small ledge provides. The game inspired two sequels, which proved similarly compelling.