The most significant home gaming console in history is the Nintendo Entertainment System. Many people continued to question if video games still had a place in homes everywhere even after the video game industry crash of 1983 and a few years of arcade success. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Nintendo and the NES saved our beloved pastime from certain death and quickly elevated it to the status of cultural mainstay that it holds today.
The NES’s vast library of fantastic games was the primary factor in its immense popularity. While some of the NES’s games have held up better than others, all of them deserve our love and admiration for helping to revive the industry and start the fun that would last for decades to come. The NES is where many of Nintendo’s well-known franchises first got their start.
Here is our pick of the top games ever released for the NES, even if it’s difficult to choose between so many real classics.
10. River City Ransom
Considering how many excellent beat-em-up games were created for the NES, I don’t believe it’s too difficult to argue that River City Ransom is the best beat-em-up ever made. Of all, the beat-em-up genre has little to do with what really made River City Ransom so good.
The RPG-lite elements of River City Ransom gave the game a depth that was uncommon among other beat-em-ups of the day. While beating up a little army of enemies one side-scrolling screen at a time is always exciting, River City Ransom was the first game to give you the impression that each blow was leading to something bigger. – MB
9. Contra
For 1980s action movie and video game aficionados, the original Contra was the perfect combination. The settings, the weapons, and the hot heroes you could manipulate gave you the impression that you were the lead character in your own over-the-top action movie from the 1980s.
Because the action is side-scrolling and revolves upon upgrading firearms and dodging a tonne of enemy fire, it’s constantly arcadey and entertaining. Although there are a few more modes in the game with various camera angles to add some variety, the classic Contra gameplay still feels very much the same after all these years. SL
8. Ninja Gaiden
Even though Ninja Gaiden’s breathtaking cutscenes were undoubtedly groundbreaking, it’s possible that this game’s amazing controls and mechanics will be more remembered for raising the bar for what a NES action game should and should be.
For many of us, the concept of an action game that was genuinely “fluid” was first presented by Ninja Gaiden. You wouldn’t be hindered by heavy controls or restricted motions in this one. Rather, you were free to move and attack as quickly as a ninja. Still, the game was ridiculously challenging. – MB
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7. Punch-Out!!
Punch-Out is the only sports game with more characters and personality than any other! In this iconic NES title, you take on the character of Little Mac, the oppressed little boxer with lofty goals, and battle your way up the ranks against a peculiar cast of opponents. In this game, wrestlers Glass Joe, Bald Bull, and Mr. Sandman made their debuts and contributed to the start of the series’ illustrious history of extravagant, occasionally clichéd opponents.
Punch-Out!! is a fantastic illustration of how the first Nintendo was able to bring life to 8-bit sprites and produce characters who, in spite of their simplicity, would go on to innovate and leave enduring legacies. This series has also been played by Mike Tyson! SL
6. Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse
One of the most popular action-adventure platform series from the NES era is Castlevania, and the third game in the series is the best NES hour ever. Everything in this game is just bigger and more sophisticated than in the previous two, with better controls and more power-ups.
This one also introduced the ideas of various endings and non-linear exploration, two ideas that would gain a lot of traction in the SNES period and beyond. In addition, the game debuted Trevor C. Belmont, a character that would subsequently make appearances in multiple additional Castlevania games as well as in the Netflix’s hit animated series that is based on the franchise (and specifically this game). SL
5. The Legend of Zelda
For myriad of reasons, the game that launched Nintendo’s most popular franchise was innovative. It was an early open-world that was punishing and thrilling, combining elements of storytelling, action, and adventure.
The game hasn’t held up as well as some of the others we’ll be discussing shortly, and Nintendo clearly improved on this basic idea in later releases, but the original is still commendable for what it accomplished. Playing this game now and recognising all the ways it was so obviously ahead of its time is genuinely great. SL
4. Mega Man 2
Mega Man’s second journey remains the greatest to this day, despite the passing of many years and all the sequels. It kept all the essential platforming elements that made the first game iconic while adding new features and weapons to its already amazing action.
This game’s unforgettable boss collection and amazing soundtrack are the two main factors contributing to its lasting popularity. Among the most recognisable enemies in the series are Flash Man, Heat Man, and Wood Man, and Wily Stage 1 is possibly the greatest music ever recorded. SL
3. Metroid
Metroid Samus’s debut journey, which established the core components of the adored and adaptable Metroidvania genre, has withstood the test of time better than nearly every other NES game. At a time when the NES still needed some assistance in that genre category, it also delivered some much-needed science fiction adventures to the console.
One will never forget their first experience with this game, from the opening moments that forced them to consider games in a different light to the well-known conclusion that revealed Samus is a woman. Even the 2004 remake of this game, Metroid: Zero Mission, kept a lot of the unique elements of the original while adding new developments and improvements for the genre. SL
2. Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros., the game that changed gaming forever, is ranked second on our list of NES titles because of its enduring music, legacy of inventive platforming, and accessibility to players of all ages and skill levels. It’s difficult to find someone who hasn’t played Super Mario Bros. or at least heard of the game, from grandparents to kids.
To term the classic game a NES game would be to limit it to the Nintendo systems alone, as it has been re-released on so many of them. Super Mario Maker and its sequel continue to inspire enthusiasts to create their own NES-style courses because of how amazing the game’s platforming gameplay and basic controls are. There has never been a video game more like this one. SL
1. Super Mario Bros. 3
Super Mario Bros. 3 is unquestionably the best game ever created on the NES, despite not being quite as groundbreaking as the original. It retains all the elements that made the first game so great while adding fresh concepts and deft adjustments. The fact that these two games were launched on the same console is actually somewhat surprising, given how much more sophisticated this game is both visually and technologically.
Many of the Super Mario series’ mainstays that are still adored today were also introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3. This sequel improved upon everything, upping the ante and refining everything—from the Tanooki Suit to the Koopalings to the overworld layout. It’s debatable whether this is the greatest game in which Mario has ever appeared, but for the time being, it suffices to declare that this is the greatest NES title ever created. SL