10. River City Ransom (NES)
River City Ransom mixes basic brawling with comedy to great effect, and its cute visuals still exude tons of character all these years later. Throw in a second player — plus a delicious frosty beverage or two — and you've got a great Saturday night ahead of you.
9. Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES)
This follow-up famously reskinned another game entirely with Mario and co. for release in the West (where Nintendo of America feared gamers wouldn't be able to cope with the punishment of The Lost Levels). Despite being the odd-one-out in its homeland, Super Mario Bros. 2 ended up having an enormous influence on the iconography of the series as a whole. The game is definitely worth revisiting (Nintendo Switch Online is the easiest place to find it these days), if only to remind yourself just how different it is to what came before and after. With four playable (and very different) characters to choose from, we highly recommend a playthrough.
8. Dr. Mario (NES)
Mario's first outing as a healthcare professional, this block-falling puzzler might not have the following or cache of the mighty Tetris, but its colour-matching gameplay caught on with puzzle fans. Despite not being able to compete on the level of Alexey Pajitnov's puzzling titan, there's a reason Dr. Mario has stuck around in some form for over thirty years: it's simple and addictive.
7. Ninja Gaiden (NES)
Known as Shadow Warriors in Europe (because the word 'ninja' was considered far too violent and controversial at the time), this is the game that inspired modern classics like The Messenger. Ryu Hayabusa, the titular ninja, feels as acrobatic and responsive as he did over three decades ago, and if you're interested in finding out about the inspiration behind dozens of today's indie platformers, you owe it to yourself to give Ninja Gaiden a try.
6. Fire 'n Ice (NES)
Enjoyment in Fire ‘n Ice is largely dependent on how much you enjoy logic puzzles, but while the game lacks a hint function, it does its best to ease you into the basic concepts, before eventually introducing new mechanics, like the jars that can be ignited. The framework around all of this is well done – there’s a cutesy story of an old woman telling her grandkids the story of Dana like a fairy tale, and while the visuals are simple, they’re extremely well animated. There are also an extra fifty stages beyond the initial one hundred, plus an option to make your own levels.
5. Super Mario Bros. (NES)
So much of the foundation of the series — and the medium of video games at large — was put down in Super Mario Bros. that it's tough to evaluate all these years later without considering its historical importance. This game, perhaps more than any other in history, has passed into the popular cultural consciousness and would go on to influence countless other games and developers since 1985. It's the kind of release you use to delineate historical eras; when it comes to video games, there was 'Before SMB' and 'After SMB'.
You've played this many, many times before, no doubt, and you'll play it many, many times again. Good game.
4. Kirby's Adventure (NES)
Kirby's Adventure is a vibrant masterclass of NES platforming whether you've got the 3D slider set to max in the 3D Classics version on 3DS or you're enjoying it old-school-style with just the two dimensions on NES or as part of the Nintendo Switch Online NES library offering. It's a high point in the pink puffball's illustrious career and its 8-bit visuals still look great all these years later. Even if you don't consider yourself a Kirby fan, this adventure will win you over. You might say... it sucks you in.
3. Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream (NES)
A boxing game that's not really a boxing game, Punch-Out!! is all about reading your opponent's tells and timing your dodges and responses. So maybe it's the perfect boxing game, then? Regardless, it's a great game that's brimming with colourful characters and challenging Mr. Dream (or Mike Tyson) to a duel should be on every NES fan’s bucket list. Fight!
2. The Legend of Zelda (NES)
What is there left to say about The Legend of Zelda? The game that started it all holds up very well, although be prepared to explore and really work for the answers to puzzles here. A modern game would never ask you to try setting random bushes alight to reveal a hidden passageway without signalling it with a huge neon 'SECRET HERE!' sign. The Legend of Zelda trusts the player and has faith in its own strengths enough to let you miss things. It's a fine game that still feels fresh, and is definitely worth revisiting.
1. Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES)
As toweringly important as the original Super Mario Bros. was, Super Mario Bros. 3 was a colossal leap forward in practically every way. It refined the basics, switched up the visuals and added more mechanical variety and one-and-done elements than any video game to that point; so many that even today there are certain suits, stages or secrets that fans of the game may never have found.
So many ‘old’ games are best approached with historical context in mind, or come with caveats when playing them years after release, but SMB3 needs none. It's just as boundingly inventive and fresh as the day it was released, and easily one of the very finest games ever made, let alone on its host system. Play it, now.
Surprised by Numero Uno, or was it a foregone conclusion? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section, and remember — if you haven't rated your favourite games from the list, you can still do so and influence the overall ranking yourself.
Further reading:
Comments (105)
Number 1 is not a surprise!
Honestly, I’d say Ninja Gaiden has aged better than Metroid, Mario 2 and the original Zelda. The original SMB and SMB3 are classics though.
I pretty much expected number 1, but if I'm being honest, it should have been SUPAH MARIO BROS 2, BABYYYYYY, GAME OF THE YEAR!!!
This is awesome.... I love these "as voted by you" lists. Keep em' coming NL!
RCR at #10? Blasphemy.
You say StarTropics never had a follow up, but it did actually. Surprised it hasn't made it to the service yet. I'd love a modern take on the game.
Mario 2 will always be tied with 3 for me.
I wish they made a sequel with those game mechanics
KIrby should be number 1, but not bad NL.
Clicked just to make sure SMB 3 was #1
Honestly surprised by a couple of these. Yoshi being #40 makes me think not enough people played it. As drop puzzles go, it was a pretty fun time sink.
Crystalis could have been a liiiiiittle higher though.
Yes, Mario 1 2 and 3 are classics. I have played them so many times over the years (since they were first released) that I have lost count.. it may be in the hundreds.. or even thousands..
Had them on every Nintendo console I have ever owned, I think (of course, starting with the NES).
This is also a big reason why the movie "The Wizard" is a classic to me. You have to love a movie that features Super Mario 3 as the main attraction!
Star Tropics DID have a follow up - Zoda's Revenge: Star Tropics II.
Kirby's Adventure is the best NES game and would be higher if more people had played it
Can't argue with the top 5 at all. Although id put LoZ at #1
Just dropping a comment to observe the oddity that is NL referring to Wario as Mario's "alter-ego"
Well I didn't vote for any of these. Of course that's because I didn't feel like it, but now I can't complain about the order since I didn't participate. So much regret.
Personally I don’t think the NES games have aged well, I mean Mario 3 is probably number one for me even though I’m not a huge fan of it, original Mario in my opinion is rubbish.
Journey to Silius and Tecmo Bowl should be ranked higher, very solid list overall though.
Kirby’s Adventures should be higher. It’s one of the very best NES games and it still holds up to this day.
I think Eliminator Boat Duel deserved to come higher! Seriously, give it a try, I think it’s really cool how it keeps changing racing style from side-on to top-down to into-the-screen.
Other than that, the list is pretty much perfect.
When you get to the top 10 you realise how legendary some of these games are. Some absolute gems. Super Mario 3 is phenomenal. I’ve said it before but for someone who’s never owned a NES it’s great to have so many classics at my fingertips.
@WiltonRoots,
People often forget that for many Switch owners all the NES and SNES games will be brand new to them.
Seems legit, not many surprises here.
City Connection is placed in hell where it belongs
Am I alone thinking that Crystalis is a way better game than Zelda II? Zelda II had some good ideas, but I feel like its execution had a lot of issues that make for a far less fun game comparatively.
Super Dodgeball deserves better than this.
Kirby's Adventure and Mario Bros. 3 are the only games that don't feel held back by the hardware limitations and level design idiocy of the NES era. They're completely playable with well designed levels.
Open Tournament Golf is fun too. SMB1 and Lost Levels are good, but not to the same extent as SMB3. They're held back by the hardware.
Surprised Vice:Project Doom and Journey to Silius ranked so low. Guessing its mainly due to their lack of popularity
I actually quite liked City Connection... thought it deserved to be a lot higher, but I'm not complaining. Just the only weird thing I see about this list....
I mean I would obviously rate the top 10 differently but that one I think is far too low.
@Octoguy it's already #4 behind the original Zelda, Mario and Mario 3, what more do you want?
@Nintendzoey Well said, my friend...
Saw "The Wizard" in theatres, originally. Although, I have re-watched recently as well, within the past year. That Super Mario Bros. 3 scene still gives me goosebumps to this day.
Also, leaking the location of the Flute in the Castle Stage, for the Warp... That was so awesome 💯
Too young to care about "spoilers", just wanted to try it out and Warp to the Giant World like Jimmy 😎
@Maulbert @Baker1000 Ah, of course! I’ve edited that entry to mention it. Cheers 😊
SMB3 deserves to be #1. With that said, I'm gonna be THAT guy and say SMB1 does not deserve to be #2. Top ten for sure, but games like Kirby, punch-out and Ninja Gaiden all deserve to be above SMB1 on the list.
@mauhlin12 Tecmo Bowl is probably my most played game on the service, it’s just so much fun in two player.
I don't think they are the best NES games, but I think Kirby's Adventure, Startropics, SMB3 and Mother really felt ahead of their time on the system
@the4seer I know exactly what you mean. When Super Mario 3 is announced in the movie.. it is like the movie saying "This Is Your childhood".. absolute goosebumps, I agree.
That movie was everything (along with "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", which I also saw when it was first released to theatres) to me as a kid. I actually have a signed poster of "The Wizard" signed by the cast [Todd Holland (the director), Beau Bridges, Luke Edwards, Christian Slater and Fred Savage] except for Jenny Lewis unfortunately. I have it framed and hung in my living room.
Still remember watching the movie and seeing the flute location in the first castle as well.. I remember racing home to find it on my actual NES game. Sad that kids these days will probably not be able to experience anything like that, the internet provides all the secrets now.
Pro ranking: shadow of the ninja moves up
I'd put Kirby higher up on the list, above Zelda, simply because it doesn't make me want to cease existing when I go back to it in the modern age.
@johnvboy I mean I wouldn't have gone out of the way to buy them, but they got thrown in with the online so to me it was like getting a box of mystery toys from the 80s.
@WiltonRoots,
Same here, at the old virtual console prices at best I would of had five or six titles, as I have played a lot of them before, this way you get them all, and they are all stored in the cloud.
Expected. Personally I can’t stand Zelda 1. Not a fan at all. Or Metroid 1.
My top 5 would be:
Mario 1-3, Kirbys Adventure, Wrecking Crew. Never saw this poll go up. Then again I don’t visit much.
@nessisonett nah lmao
I have actually had a lot of fun playing soccer with my son, ok it’s a product of its time but definitely not the worst nes game on switch. I also really enjoy cit6 connection
I doubt hardly anyone is surprised by #1.
Solomon's Key is legitimately amazing, I wonder if it would be much higher if more people played it. (Zelda 2 is also underrated imo)
Super Mario Bros 2 is my favorite NES game. It's such a quirky game with great sprites and fun mechanics. I still play through it regularly. I've been waiting for a follow-up forever.
Can't argue with Mario 3, still a great game today.
StarTropics never had a follow up? What are you talking about? There´s a StarTropics II. It was even on Wii's VC.
Wasn't surprised with number one.
After playing Kirby Nightmare in Dreamland on the GBA I can't go back to the original. It's like playing the original Metroid after Zero Mission.
City Connection wasn't that bad for me and Yoshi is a neat little puzzle game. I enjoyed Startropics but without the rewind feature it would be incredibly frustrating.
Kirby's Adventure and Super Mario Bros. 3 are the only NES games I truly enjoy on NSO.
So it seems me and one other person appreciate City Connection 😂.
No joke, that game is in my top 10—and that’s not even nostalgia talking. I only recently discovered it in the past five years. To me it’s a great zippy arcade game 🕺🏼
Yep. This list has some very differently positioned games from my personal pick, but IN GENERAL it's close.
I remember seeing the box art for dr mario the very first time when I was a kid and had my imagination going crazy of what the game could be, like maybe a platformer as dr mario like super mario brothers, I was very disappointed when I realized it was just a tetris kind of game, I felt the same way about the yoshi nes game, another tetris type of game instead of a platformer
@Giygas_95 AYYOO SUPER MARIO BROS. 2 GAME OF THE YEAR EVERY YEAR BABYYYYYY
I honestly feel lile games such as Journey to Silius and Wario's Wood's should of been higher while games like Metro is and Zelda 2 should of been lower.
@RobotReptile I loved City Connection! My brother and I rented it from our local shop when it was new. Not because we were looking forward to it, but because nothing else was in at the time.
We really enjoyed it!
Personally I wish Rygar was on this list. I have no problem with this list as I love most NES games (some for their brilliance, some for nostalgia, some for both!), but yeah, there are definitely some NES gems out there beyond the classics.
Man, it's looking obvious with Vice: Project Doom, Journey to Silius, and Shadow of the Ninja "ranked" so far down the list, even behind an inferior Donkey Kong port and BOTH Excitebike games, that people will just downvote any game they don't know/care about and give whatever Nintendo published games an automatic pass. I'd hate to imagine what the scores would look like if we were able to see them in a way like the weekly eShop downloads.
I wan't going to post this, since I was mainly keeping track for myself, but here goes my scores (and borrowing heavily from NitendoLife's scoring scale). Unlike some folks here, I've played almost all of these (except for 7 or 8 of them) back in the days of renting out games at a video rental store...and also, when there used to be video rental stores. So I felt I can be objectionable enough to fairly rate the underrated and hard enough to see past the nostalgia goggles of the overrated.
10/10 (nigh perfect, performs great considering the hardware, thoroughly enjoyable, even after you finish you keep thinking about it for a while)
9/10 (excellent, can backlog that other retro game you were playing)
8/10 (solid, great gameplay worth coming back to)
7/10 (good, memorable, start telling friends about it if they ask)
6/10 (better than average)
5/10 (base average, has no major bugs)
No NSO games made it down here, as they shouldn't.
4/10 (not so good; bad level designs, bad RNG, finicky hit detection)
3/10 (bad execution; serious game mechanic problems)
2/10 (poor product; technical problems, game-breaking issues)
1/10 (actually unplayable, took the budget money and ran)
@LavaTwilight I want exactly what I stated in my comment: for it to be higher on the list. Above Zelda or maybe even the original Mario.
Solomon’s Key is excellent. I’ve got the Switch Arcade Archives version and ZX Spectrum game too.
I have played about 10 of them on the service, probably about 14 in total counting from when I was a kid. Need to hit the rest up tbh.
Wait, how is Wario "Mario's dastardly alter ego"? Aren't they two separate beings? 🤔
After looking through this list, I'm surprised, pleasantly, about how many games are available now on the service and how many of them are great titles.
Don't get me wrong, most of the black box games are terrible now, but Mario 1-3, Zelda 1 and 2, Kirby, Punch-Out, Metroid, Kid Icarus, Ninja Gaiden, Tecmo Bowl, Rygar, Blaster Master, Silius, Shadow of the Ninja, Vice, Crystalis, Startropics, Dr. Mario... these are all very solid titles.
Frankly, I don't get the whining about a Virtual Console. On my Switch in between the NSO online for NES and SNES, compilations (Mega Man, Castlevania, Contra, Sega Genesis, Namco Museum, SNK, etc.), Arcade Archives, Neo Geo ACA, Sega Ages, and more, I've got perhaps the largest selection of retro games I've ever had.
Also, the arcade archive versions of Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. and Mario Bros are far, far superior to the NES ones.
All these titles on VC would cost you $265.
I'll spend the $20 a year, thank you.
@kingbk I'm happy spending $5 or less a year with the family plan. Basically feels free. And while I know some VC purists love to complain about the new system, I've played through and enjoyed dozens of hours of games on NSO and paid, to date, less than $10 for all of these titles to enjoy with more coming at an admittedly slow rate, but at no extra cost.
It's really hard to thing throwing $300 at it to "own them" is better. At the current rate, it would take more than 50 years to equal the cost of just the current $265. And that's not counting the fact that VC didn't have online, rewind, etc. And I'll be dead in 50 years almost assuredly. And in 10-15 years the chances I even still own a Switch are relatively low.
The Adventures of Lolo is criminally placed on this list. Should be top ten! The puzzles are timeless. Also, I want the other Lolo games!
@Deltath Exactly. I "own" some of these titles through the NES Classic and SNES Classic, but people complained about backwards compatibility and having to pay over and over for the same games. Now they don't have to do that with the NSO service.
I have a feeling N64 and Gamecube games will likely get the remaster/remake treatment over being put on a service, especially since their graphics are quite dated.
Overall how I expected, but Zelda 2 is always way further down the list than it deserves. Still one of my favorites in the series.
I agree with most people, Kirby’s adventure should be higher. It was my most played game on the system, despite loving SMB3.
Pro wrestling should be WAY higher. So should Super Dodgeball and Ice Hockey.. Warios Woods Wrecking Crew and Yoshi should be at the bottom.
The highest ranked one I haven’t beat is Super Mario Bros. 2. One of only 6 main Mario games I haven’t beat l, and the only one I gave up on because it was too hard. I even beat The Lost Levels.
@kingbk I completely agree. And to be honest, I'd prefer that. I was going through my library on Wii U six months or so ago of VC titles and honestly, a lot of the N64 titles struggle to hold up. GC is on the cusp, but.. seeing something like The Thousand Year Door remade or even modestly remastered would be amazing. I can still play my GC copy if I want, anyway.
@Apportal_SMM2 No, you agree with several commenters. Most people clearly think it's 4th best, which is why it's on the poll as such.
It's hard to play Super Mario Bros. 3 and feel that it is, in any way, limited by its platform.
The first three levels of Kid Icarus are the hardest because you are so weak. Once you hit the first dungeon map and can grind for items from the shop, it is a much more enjoyable game.
There are still quite a few key NES titles missing from the list.. like Guardian Legend, Faxanadu, Crystallis, Baseball Stars. And it seems like a lot of the games available were from the early years of the NES when most of the games were just poor arcade ports or sports titles.
Solomon's Key, Adventures of Lolo, Warios Woods and Nes Open Tournament Golf would all get a lot higher grades in my book. Four really good games that deserves more attention.
I played the original Mario Bros a lot on the service. Really fun high score chaser. I agree that Lolo should be higher, it's a great game and I would love to see 2.
My top 3 NSO NES games would be:
3. River City Ransom (never played this back in the day, only got introduced to this by my friend when it appeared on NSO.. so I've got no nostalgia for it obviously. And most games from this era that I didn't play back then are hard for me to enjoy such as Metroid and TLoZ. It's also a genre I've never gotten into much. That said this game is brilliant, I love the controls and all the little shops)
2. Kirby's Adventure
1. SMB3
If Kirby's Adventure provided more of a challenge that might change things as I love the power ups and controls and the aesthetics and music and every thing. SMB3 is just so good though, I play through both these games pretty regularly and I can pretty much go through them almost from memory without much difficulty.
Tennis deserves better....
Silius in 37th place?! No no no!
@TechJunkie69 I think Battle of Olympus is also better than Zelda 2.. Hopefully we'll see that at some point.
@nessisonett i agree the first metroid is not very good. Just play super m! Ninja gaiden is still a great game and fluid control's. That end boss is a bugger to beat. 😎
These lists always make me want to play even the worst ranked games LOL
About Metroid, I'm planning on finishing it one of these days on my NES Mini, but with the help of a map in order to go to the final boss already. It's a classic and spawned a great series, but yes, the original is tough to play. Not because of the difficulty alone, but especially because of the design. You don't have any kind of map in-game and just wander around facing enemies that take a large amount of your health, usually to arrive to a dead end and having to backtrack. Metroidvania but not in a good way.
Thank God you can save progress, otherwise I would have abandoned already. Now I just want to know WHERE Mother Brain is, face it and move on to Metroid II.
Pretty clear the main factor in people's scores was name recognition.
@Maulbert That's not how averages work.
I'm sad Ice Hockey isn't higher, as far as sports games go, it's definitely one of my favorites. Also I think Metroid is too high, the original Metroid is a really rough game, no map (and many rooms that look identical), no battery save, stiff controls, I suppose some people may like some of these things, but for most people it makes the game frustrating to play. The later releases are excellent, the first release not so much.
@LavaTwilight Well, "Kirby's Adventure" deserves to be #2 behind only SMB3.
@wazlon "Nightmare in Dream Land" is a remake of the original "Kirby's Dream Land" on GameBoy, not "Kirby's Adventure."
@Deltath The point of buying them on a Virtual Console service is that you only buy the ones you actually want to play. The large majority of these games aren't worth owning for most players. Nobody really cares if they had never gotten to try out the shovelware titles the one or two times they actually booted them up on NSO. Furthermore, they'd probably give a huge discount on the games already purchased on the Wii or Wii U VC, only needing to pay for the added features like rewind (that they would still get on the Switch version of the VC).
@BulbasaurusRex Even if I only bought ten games out of the entire lot, that's still more than I'm paying for an entire decade of the service. So I still just can't agree that it's better or even good. Also, while it's true I may only buy the ones I like most, the biggest reason I wouldn't buy more isn't because I wouldn't enjoy playing them, it's because I just don't want to spend too much money. With NSO, I've checked out every single title and I was glad to try them, even when I didn't like them. And that math was just counting the NES stuff. Not even looking at all the SNES titles, which cost a lot more and have a better library.
@Optimist80 yeah I totally agree. People just say the game is bad because other people say it is. It’s not the best game ever, (or anywhere near that point) but it shouldn’t deserve this much hate. 😄
@BulbasaurusRex Oh, right. Thanks for mentioning that
@Moroboshi876 not only the missing map. Those corridors looks so damn identical. It aged really badly. But it spawned a great series. Luckily we have zero mission.
@ALinkttPresent really? Lol. As a kid mario 2 was the only one i could beat. I found it to be way easier than 1 or three. Shows how different people are.
@tech7 Definitely. The Lost Levels was not initially released outside of Japan because it was too hard, but I beat it relatively easily compared to our own Super Mario Bros. 2. I don't know what it is about that game that makes it so hard for me compared to other 2D Marios.
No way I would rank the first LoZ and SMB1 that high.
SMB2 is better than SMB1 IMO.
Super Tecmo Bowl
Bubble Bobble
Kung Fu
NARC
Recca Summer Carnival '92
Mega Man CX
Sonic the Hedgehog NES Demake
Guerrilla War
Power Blade 1&2
GI Joe
Pauline in Donkey Kong with all 4 levels
Yeah call me when you get those
Welcome to the list, Nightshade.
Welcome to last place, Nightshade.
I hear Nightshade is actually pretty awesome, but I have yet to play it for myself.
I love the vote's Its so fun, its kinda like the character polls for manga.
"A modern game would never ask you to try setting random bushes alight to reveal a hidden passageway without signalling it with a huge neon 'SECRET HERE!' sign"
And that's a good thing because it is horrible game design. I'm grateful for TLoZ on the NES because it started my favourite Nintendo franchise but the game isn't good. Having to bomb walls and burn bushes without any indicator whatsoever is not fun. Even BotW gives you visual clues for puzzles and secrets and that is often said to be a loveletter to the first Zelda game
I have played most if not all of these NES games and many not on the list. The rankings are no surprise but there are so many other well desgined games out there that Nintendo likley cannot add due to licensing issues. I am pretty burnt on NES games but I have purchased some of the collections to get the games I feel are better. The one game I found hard to rent was Star Tropics because most VG rentals had only one or two copies and someone always kept them forever.
I am more interested in SNES games since I rented more Genesis games and while there were many versions for both platforms so many games were exclusives which gives me something to look forward to.
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