Best NES Video Games

Universally considered one the best and most influential games of all time, Super Mario Bros. 3 is the pinaccle of NES gaming, offering an entertaining adventure for newcomers as well for veterans of video gaming. It also features a variety of creative level design and improved gameplay over its platforming predecessors, resulting in what I consider the best NES video game.

One of the first titles for the NES, and possibly the most popular video game of all time, Super Mario Bros. deserves the second place of this list, not only for the big influence it had on the video game industry, but for its unparalleled game mechanics, resulting in a video game that still enjoyed and can be enjoyed by future generations.

The first game in the popular saga, The Legend of Zelda expanded the capabilities of the NES system, offering an ambitious game whose sense of adventure and discovering influenced future titles in the video game industry.

One of the best platforming games on the NES and a big leap over its predecessor, Mega Man 2 combines excellent visuals, music and addictive gameplay, especially being notable the ability of adquiring powers from bosses.

Apart from its excellent gameplay, Contra was notable for its cooperative gameplay, resulting in one of the best multiplayer games of its time and one that still holds up today.

Being the last effort of its company to survive bankruptcy, it is astonishing how they managed to create one of the most influential RPG of all time. Even if for today's standards its level grinding may become somewhat tiring, there is no denying that Final Fantasy continues to be one of the better made NES games.

Even if its arrival on the NES was late (SNES dominated the market on the time), Kirby's Adventure offered a variety of colorful graphics, catchy music and a gameplay based on copying enemies' abilities that resulted in one of the top platforms games on the NES.

After the success of Mega Man 2, Capcom offered a sequel that improved on some gameplay areas (such as the ability to dash and the assistance of your loyal dog), resulting in another excellent title from the Mega Man series.

With improved graphics and a newly incorporated job system, despite Final Fantasy 3 being released only in Japan, it demonstrated the hard work Square put on the saga, resulting in an enjoyable title for RPG fans.

With detailed graphics, great music, and a very creative set of gameplay mechanics, Bionic Commando demonstrated the quality Capcom offered on the NES.

Known for adapting Disney properties on the NES, Capcom definitely had their major success with Duck Tales, renowned for its addictive gameplay and selling million of copies.

With an incredible cast of characters and a deeper story than those commonly found on the NES, Dragon Quest IV improved on its successful predecessors, becoming the best title of the saga on the NES, and influencing future games to come.

The best sports game on the NES and one of the most popular titles on the system, Punch-Out!! stood out thanks to its addictive gameplay and its marketing aided by the image of Mike Tyson.

A mixture of various genres, Blaster Master also features amazing graphics and music, resulting in a game surely enjoyed by fans of platforming.

When Metroid was released it attracted a lot of attention due to its non-linear gameplay (similar to that of The Legend of Zelda), offering a variety of areas to explore and revisit, and setting what would become one of the most succesful sagas for Nintendo.

The best title on the NES from the Castlevania series, Dracula's Curse offered expanded gameplay, a challenging difficulty and incredible music. It even introduced Alucard, the son of Dracula (who would become the protagonist of Symphony of the Night).

One of the best RPG games for the NES, Dragon Quest III introduced the day/night cycle on the series, featured a class system that greatly improved the customization of its characters, accompanied by a great story and incredible music.

The first title on the saga and one of the most popular games on the NES, Castlevania offered an exciting adventure of gothic horror for fans of platform games.

Noted for its extreme difficulty, the second installment of the Ninja Gaiden saga compensated skilled players with a rich and addictive gameplay.

Despite limitations on the port of this popular computer adventure, Maniac Mansion still continued to amaze on the NES with a hilarious set of characters, funny dialogue and intuitive gameplay.

A game greatly enjoyed on cooperative mode, Jackal is a superior action game, with great graphics and music, despite its short length.

A point and click adventure set on a medieval fantasy setting, Shadowgate featured a mysterious story and a variety of commands for exploring the ominous castle of Shadowgate.

Released only in Japan, Mother offered a great RPG adventure, despite its high difficulty.

One of the best shoot'em up on the NES, Gun Nac mixes elements from previous games on the genre and results in a very compelling video game.

Released only for the Famicom, Gradius II deserves mention as one of the best shoot'em up of the 8-bit era and a big improvement on its predecessor.

Despite being released in the last stages of the NES (contributing to its obscurity), Duck Tales 2 offered the same enjoyable gameplay of its predecessor.

Tetris achieved greater succes on its handheld version. Despite of that, Nintendo's version of the popular russian game, for the NES system, enjoyed great popularity and stands as one of the best games on the NES.

Despite being overshadowed by the first Contra, Super C also offered the same addictive multiplayer gameplay from its predecessor.

Another point and click title, from the same company responsible for Shadowgate, Deja Vu offered an interesting and mysterious story, despite lacking polish in some gameplay aspects.

A very fun game, especially for fans of hockey, with great visuals, music and competitive gameplay.