My Top 10 NES Games
And many more
My family got a Nintendo Entertainment System in 1986 or 1987 when I was five or six years old. It was a gift for my father’s birthday and it was “the best birthday gift my dad ever got.” Like many children my age this console became my obsession. To my great despair at the time I wasn’t allowed to play the console on the weekdays, nor was I allowed to watch TV. Looking back at this rule I am glad it was imposed, as I was forced to do other things like read, draw, and generally be creative (I still somehow managed to avoid homework.)
On Friday evenings when the restriction was lifted, my family would often go to the local video rental place which had a small selection of Nintendo games. I rented everything the store had. My friends also had the system and had different games than me, and had some games that were not available at the rental store. Between 1986 and 1994 I played a good amount of the 704 NES games that were released in the U.S.
By the late 1990s, I had gone back and beaten most of the games that vexed me as a child, and by that time emulation existed and so did internet forums and websites that ranked games. I am listing games here that hold heavy nostalgia and also stand the test of time. All of these games I play from time to time to this day.
For each game, I mention I am also going to go over similar games that deserve recognition. Overall my favorite 64 or so games for the NES are mentioned.
10) Teenage Ninja Mutant Turtles II: The Arcade Game
Released by Konami in 1991, this game was released at the height of the popularity of the Ninja Turtles. I also played the previous game also released by Konami, a game I found fun but far too difficult. The sequel which was based on the excellent arcade hit wasn’t as difficult and it had some of the best graphics on the system. The game also had a two-player co-op mode which added to the fun.
Similar games in the Beat em’ Up Genre
Techno’s Double Dragon series
Techno’s River City Ransom
Rare’s Battletoads series
Sunsoft’s Batman Returns
9) Faxanadu
I wrote about Faxanadu at length in a previous article:
The game is a flawed Action-RPG by Hudson Soft with a terrible translation and a notable programming error. However, the game is filled with character. Its world is well-realized and immersive. The game was one of the first “Metroidvania” games meaning it plays in a non-linear fashion, your character must return to previous areas once new items are unlocked, to access new areas. The game was released at nearly the same time as Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest (the game that lends the “vania” to the Metroidvania genre) in Japan, but had a delayed release in North America. In my opinion, Faxanadu is a better game than Castlevania II, and believe it or not somehow has a better translation. If Faxanadu was released in the US at the same time it was released in Japan the genre would possibly be called Metroidanadu instead of Metroidvania.
Other excellent similar Side Scrolling Action/Metroidvania Games
Sunsoft’s Blaster Master
Konami’s Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest
Nintendo’s The Adventure of Link
Nintendo’s Metroid
Nintendo’s Kid Icarus
8) The Adventures of Lolo(Series)
The Adventures of Lolo is a puzzle series by Hal Laboratory and I am not listing a specific game from the series because all three games are nearly identical in gameplay. You play as Lolo who must go through a series of maze-like rooms with varied monster enemies. The first game contains 50 levels, the second game 110, and the third 100 for a grand total of 260 levels through all three games. The Adventures of Lolo series is almost unique as far as Nintendo games go because it’s not quick reflexes that it rewards, but a sharp mind.
Other excellent puzzle games on the NES
Tecmo’s Solomon’s Key Series
Nintendo’s Dr. Mario
Nintendo’s Tetris
Atari’s Tetris
7) Mega Man 3
Mega Man 3 is an action platform game by Capcom. The game ups the ante with better graphics than its predecessors and continues the Mega Man tradition of having an excellent soundtrack. Like other Mega Man entries, this game is brutally difficult but still beatable. The entire Mega Man series is stellar, but this game and another game in the series stand out above the rest. Mega Man 3 introduces Mega Man’s dog Rush and the slide mechanic differentiates this game from its predecessors.
Other great games with action platforming on the NES
Konami’s Contra series
Capcom’s Bionic Commando
Tamtex’s Metal Storm
Konami’s Castlevania
Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden series
Mega Man, Mega Man 4, Mega Man 5, Mega Man 6
6) Super Mario Brothers 2
This is the odd game out of the Mario Series. Famously it didn’t start off as a Mario game at all. The Japanese version of Super Mario Brothers 2 was deemed too difficult for U.S. audiences. So a game named Doki Doki Panic also released by Nintendo in Japan was modified, improved, and turned into what people outside of Japan know as Super Mario Brothers 2.
The game might be the most beautiful game in the series, but it is certainly the strangest. The game has four playable characters: Mario, Luigi, Princess, and Toad each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Characters can now pick up enemies and objects and toss them. Long considered the “black sheep” of the three main Super Mario Brothers games on the Nintendo, this game stands the test of time and stands out on its own as a classic.
Other underappreciated gems in the NES library
Rare’s Snake Rattle N’ Roll
Takeru’s Little Samson
Capcom’s Little Nemo in Dream World
Atari’s Marble Madness
5) Super Mario Brothers
This game changed video games forever.
Developed by Nintendo in 1985, this game was the “killer app” that allowed the Nintendo Entertainment System to achieve a monopoly on home consoles in the United States for several years. Revolutionary is the best way to describe it. The controls are tight and the music is memorable, but what really made it stand out in 1985 when it was released was that the game emphasized winning the game instead of getting a high score. Jam-packed with secret warp zones, cloud levels, and hidden blocks, the game rewards players that experiment.
To this day the game just has something special about it, everything about the game just feels right.
Other groundbreaking games for the NES:
Chunsoft’s Dragon Quest
Nintendo’s Duck Hunt
Konami’s Lifeforce
Konami’s Castlevania
4) Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out
Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out is the best boxing game ever made in my estimation. It’s a unique experience only the other games in the Punch-Out series really come close to replicating it, and they are not quite as good.
The game has a unique stylized look with large detailed (for the time) sprites, and it’s filled with character. It plays more like a puzzle game where you must memorize the patterns and weaknesses of your opponents through trial and error. That is until you face Mike Tyson who is one of the most notoriously difficult final bosses in video game history, that fight is pure reaction time and reflexes.
Other great sports games on the NES
Jaleco’s Bases Loaded series
Konami’s Blades of Steel
Temco’s Temco’s Super Bowl
Nintendo’s Excitebike
3) Mega Man 2
The best NES Mega Man game is an absolute classic. It is an immensely challenging and simultaneously rewarding game. The music is perfect, and the graphics are incredible. For a console filled with action-platforming games like Blaster Master, Bionic Commando, Ninja Gaiden, Castlevania I and III, Metalstorm and Contra, Mega Man 2 stands out as the best of this genre. The first game in the series that would eventually have six entries was a rough sketch of what was to come. Mega Man 2 took all the elements from the first game and polished them and improved them. This game set the template for all 2D Mega-Man games to come and it still holds up the best.
Other great games worth mentioning for both their gameplay and their excellent soundtrack:
Compile’s Guardian Legend
Sunsoft’s Journey to Silus
Konami’s Castlevania III
2) Super Mario Bros. 3
It’s incredible that only three years had passed between the creation of Super Mario Brothers and Super Mario Brothers 3. It’s almost unbelievable what could fit inside a 222kb NES cartridge. The game is really the first proper sequel and apparently took two years to develop (a very long time for a game in this era.) all the time the developers put into this game shows. It is basically Mario perfection. The same tight controls as the first game but with updated graphics, an updated story, far more secrets and powerups, and an entire overworld to navigate. This game is just as fun as it was when it first was released. Which is to say very fun.
Other games that pushed the system to its limits in scope and graphical capabilities:
Nintendo’s Kirby’s Adventure
Sunsoft’s Mr. Gimmick
Capcom’s DuckTales
1) The Legend of Zelda
Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Super Mario Brothers, also created the Legend of Zelda. Famously, the inspiration for the Legend of Zelda was Miyamoto’s own childhood exploring the countryside of Japan. Miyamoto remembered finding a cave as a child, and the entire purpose of the Legend of Zelda was an attempt to recreate that feeling. The game accomplishes this well.
Part of the reason why this game is ranked no. 1 on my list is that it is the origin of one of my favorite game series of all time. The Legend of Zelda plops you into a vast, mysterious world, you can go wherever you please looking for dungeons and secrets. As a child without a guide to tell me where to go, I would play for hours and hours just trying to figure out what to do next, and I somehow never got bored. The dungeons each hold not only a piece of the triforce but also an item. Each item adds more mystery to the game as you try to find its purpose.
Other games with excellent immersive settings and exploration:
Square’s Final Fantasy
Capcom’s Willow
SNK’s Crystallis
Nintendo’s Startropics series