Best First-Party Super Nintendo (SNES) Games

18. Yoshi's Safari (SNES)

Did you know that Yoshi had a light gun shooting game, similar to Duck Hunt? In Yoshi's Safari, you'd play as a first-person Mario riding Yoshi, shooting down Koopas, Goombas, and Cheep Cheeps. There was even a multiplayer mode, with one person controlling Yoshi via the SNES controller, and the other using the Super Scope to control Mario.

If that sounds incredibly cool, that's because it was! It was an interesting use of the Super Scope (although almost no one bought it, because no one owned the Super Scope), and although it was short and way too easy, it still goes down in history as the only FPS in Mario history, as well as the first Mario game to refer to the Princess as "Princess Peach" and not "Princess Toadstool". Sadly, it's never been re-released.

17. Stunt Race FX (SNES)

While you might find the frame rate hard to stomach these days, the solid design beneath the ageing facade makes this ambitious 3D racer a fun vehicle to take for a spin. What Stunt Race FX lacks in looks and performance it makes up for with personality, and there's plenty of fun to be had in nailing those corners and shaving seconds off your lap times.

It's well worth revisiting, or sampling if you've never had the pleasure.

16. Battle Clash (SNES)

A Super Scope shooter, this game was renamed Space Bazooka for its later Japanese release, and we have to say we prefer that to Battle Clash. Taking on the role of one Mike Anderson, you pilot a mecha known as an ST and take part in a post-apocalyptic Mad Max-style 'Battle Games'.

15. Pilotwings (SNES)

Pilotwings is a relaxing salve of a game that requires equal parts concentration and relaxation - a perfect antidote to the distractions of the times we live in. Balancing accessibility and skill-based gameplay in that time-honoured Nintendo way, it's a great title to return to on Switch, especially given the series' lack of new entries of late.

14. Super Scope 6 (SNES)

The pack-in game that came with the Super Scope, the snappily-named Super Scope 6 contained — wait for it — six different games... sorta.

Blastris came in 'A' and 'B' flavours, with three versions of LazerBlazer available alongside Mole Patrol to make up the sextet of light gun offerings on this cart. That it was never re-released on another system is understandable, though still disappointing. It could have made for a fun time on Wii or Wii U for the completionists among us.

13. Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge (SNES)

C'mon, hands up if you've never heard of this one.

Much like the rest of Nintendo's Super Scope output, Metal Combat: Falcon's Revenge was co-developed by Nintendo R&D1 and Intelligent Systems. It's a sequel to Battle Clash and has you piloting a 'Standing Tank' as you're pitted against a series of alien bosses who have come to invade Earth, as is their wont. This one was never released in Japan, cruelly denying us the title 'Space Bazooka 2'.

12. Mario Paint (SNES)

Mario Paint came bundled with the SNES Mouse and gave players the chance to draw, colour, animate, and create musical compositions on their Super Nintendos in 1992 (as well as play 'Gnat Attack', a fly-swatting minigame, of course).

It's a fantastic little DIY oddity that's still beloved by devotees many years later. Its oddball, mischievous spirit can also be found alive and well in the creative suites of Super Mario Maker and its Switch sequel.

Playable with an NSO subscription, remember that you'll need a USB mouse to play it on Switch 1, while anybody rocking a Switch 2 can use the Joy-Con 2s' in-built Mouse Mode.

11. Tetris & Dr. Mario (SNES)

There's not a huge amount to say about this one. Combining 16-bit remasters of NES Tetris and Dr. Mario, SNES owners in the West got a double helping of puzzling that included a Mixed Match mode which jumped from game to game between rounds. Beyond that, this is pretty much regulation Tetris and Dr. Mario.

Interestingly, thanks to Nintendo not owning the console rights in Japan, the Tetris part was stripped out and 16-bit Dr. Mario was broadcast for Satellaview and later made available to download on SFC flash carts at kiosks.

10. Star Fox (SNES)

Star Fox is obviously a classic, and its use of the Super FX chip resulted in an experience that felt awe-inspiring to anybody who witnessed it on their Super NES back in 1993.

It's a little more jarring for players these days, especially if you got into the Star Fox series in the 64-bit era. If anything less than a silky 60fps makes you violently ill, you'll want to sit this one out, but the underlying game design still shines through.

Those who were there at the beginning and are pining for the return of Fox, Peppy, and Falco — and even the ever-rubbish Slippy — will thoroughly enjoy jumping back in the cockpit of an Arwing and saving Corneria again, though. The fact that it's now available on Switch makes accepting that mission all the easier.

9. SimCity (SNES)

An incredibly charming port of a huge experience, SimCity is one of the best value-for-money propositions in the 16-bit console's library, potentially offering months and months of city-building, in a package that's a little more approachable than versions on more powerful PC hardware.

Developed in-house by Nintendo itself, action fans are obviously going to be disappointed by the lack of instant gratification, but this excellent Nintendo-flavoured version of Will Wright's classic is a title to tickle your grey matter. The designer gets namechecked in the game, too, as green-haired advisor Dr. Wright shows you the city-building ropes.

Speaking of Wrights, we're not sure if rights issues prevent it from coming to Nintendo Switch Online, but it came to Wii Virtual Console in the 2000s and we'd love the doctor to see us again. And if Nintendo wanted to patch in SNES mouse support — which, oddly, the original didn't have — that'd be just grand. Fingers crossed.

8. Super Mario Kart (SNES)

The game that birthed an entire genre (albeit a genre it dominates to the point where you wonder how other companies gather energy to bother making a kart racer), Super Mario Kart got so much just right from the off that it remains surprisingly playable and accessible decades later.

There's no worrying about picking karts or wheels here; you select your character and hit the track. The split-screen layout (present even when racing solo) encourages a second player to pick up the pad, and it's certainly a game best enjoyed with a friend, or foe. The Battle mode also stands the test of time superbly, and that iconic power-slide move still feels natural and intuitive.

The mainline games that followed may have refined the formula to the Nth degree, but despite feeling bare-bones by comparison, controls, track design, and item balance remain nigh-on perfect in this first outing. Super Mario Kart is fun distilled, and the original's narrow focus can end up being a benefit – especially if you're looking for pick-up-and-play multiplayer.

7. Super Punch-Out!! (SNES)

It's Punch-Out!! with more colour, more character, 16-bit visuals, and the same timing-based gameplay that makes every entry in this series a pleasure to revisit.

The arcade original is available on Switch as part of Hamster's Arcade Archives line, and Super Punch-Out!! comes as part of the Nintendo Switch Online collection, so it's easy to get your hands on these days.

Which is nice, because it's up there with the finest games on the system.

6. F-Zero (SNES)

F-Zero was an incredible template on which its sublime successors were modelled, and for that we shall forever be thankful.

That's not to say the original isn't a gem in its own right — it's a racing classic that feels fast and tight to this day — but its lack of multiplayer tends to put it behind its sequels, at least in our minds (a criticism that F-Zero 99 addressed).

Still, this remains a thrilling 16-bit ride and we're more than happy to fire it up again (via Nintendo Switch Online if we don't happen to have our SNES hooked up) whenever the notion takes us.

5. Super Mario All-Stars (SNES)

An extremely impressive package featuring the NES Super Mario Bros. games with a 16-bit lick of paint, Super Mario All-Stars was a convenient way to revisit the classics.

With the exception of Super Mario Bros. 2 (we'd say that All-Stars actually contains the 'best' version of that game), the originals ultimately still offer the prime, 'canon' experience, we'd argue. If you're playing this via Nintendo Switch Online, they're all accessible, so you can easily see for yourselves.

However, for anybody who first experienced the NES games in this package, we understand if All-Stars offers the ultimate nostalgia trip and represents peak 2D Mario for you. Everyone's a winner, however you play 'em.

4. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (SNES)

Yoshi's Island is the absolute summit of not just Yoshi games, but platformer games in general, with a wonderful vision of pastel colours, majestic backdrops, and character-oozing sprites.

Honestly, it's difficult to remember any other game that matches or even comes close to the amount of detail that Yoshi's Island did, past or present. The presentation is second to none on the system. The level of charm is astronomical. There will be moments when you refrain from killing an enemy just to watch its animation.

With its deep exploration-based platforming and gorgeous art style, Yoshi's Island is still a joy to play all these years later. Yoshi's Island isn't just a great game: it's a reminder of why this silly hobby of ours is so wonderful.

3. Super Metroid (SNES)

We don't like deploying the word 'masterpiece' too often, but in this case (and in the case of several top-tier SNES releases), it's absolutely accurate.

Super Metroid is the standard by which all Metroid games are judged, and an impossibly high one, at that. If you're a franchise fan, you'll have played this to death. If, however, you've never dipped your toes into Nintendo's pool of sci-fi action exploration, this is the one you need to play.

It's a masterpiece. That's all there is to it.

2. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES)

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of the best games of all time, and if you haven't experienced it yourself... you probably have through one of the other Zelda games, such was its influence on the series and the entire action-adventure genre.

Link could move diagonally and run thanks to the Pegasus Boots, and he could swipe his sword sideways, allowing for a much wider range when attacking. In fact, A Link to the Past introduced many mainstays of the franchise, including various stalwart items and the idea of parallel worlds.

There's no shortage of 2D and 3D Zeldas to choose from these days, but this 16-bit entry codified the core elements of a 'Zelda game.' It's still got that touch of magic about it many years later. Unmissable.

1. Super Mario World (SNES)

There is endless debate about whether Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario World is the better game. For our money, they are two sides of the same coin — two faces of a monumental peak in the video game landscape.

This remains an incredible achievement of invention and sheer entertainment that the 2D platforming genre has struggled to match ever since. Introducing Yoshi and an expanded overworld with multiple paths, Mario World overflows with secrets and secret exits that were perfect for fuelling playground gossip and elevating it to the upper-est echelons of platform video games, 2D or otherwise.

Decades on, it still doesn't get much better than this. All games have flaws, but if there exists an exception to that rule, Super Mario World is it.