My Top 10 Favorite Nintendo Systems (Ranked)

I never owned a GBA growing up and didn't get one until later so that is why the GBA is #10...still had plenty of great games though!

Notable Games I Own: Zelda Minish Cap, Mario & Luigi Super Star Saga, MOTHER 3, Mario Tennis Power Tour, Kirby & the Amazing Mirror

The Wii U may very well turn out to be Nintendo's own Dreamcast. Widely considered under-powered compared to the PS4 and Xbox One, the gamepad controller turned many gamers off and considered the gamepad to be a gimmick. While I understand those arguments, the Wii U has produced some great games in it's own right and I think in 10-15 years, gamers will look back fondly on the system. Thanks again to my lovely wife who bought me this as a graduation from college present!

Notable Games I Own: Super Mario 3D World, Kirby Canvas Curse, Super Smash Brothers, Mario Kart 8, Pikmin 3, Bayonetta 2, Zelda Windwaker HD, Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, Shovel Knight

Funny enough this is the system I DID grow up playing, yet it is still #8 on my list. The reason for this is because out of all the Nintendo Systems I own, the original NES is the system I go back and play least of all. While it may not be my favorite system, it is the Nintendo System I respect the most, because it paved the way for so many great Nintendo Franchises and almost single handedly saved the gaming market after the gaming crash of the 80's.

Notable Games I Own: Super Mario Bros (1,2,3), The Legend of Zelda (1,2), Metroid, Duck Tales, Contra, Mega Man (4&6), Super Tecmo Bowl, Punch-Out!!, Kirby's Adventure, Battletoads

Who knew such gaming bliss could come on a 2" x 2" screen? I received the Game Boy Color for my 12th Birthday and I can't even express how much the Gameboy Color helped me through some of the longest car rides of my life (Pennsylvania to Colorado in a van with my 3 sisters...enough said). That being said I am going to include the original Gameboy games in the notable games because the GBC can play those games as well.

Notable Games I Own: Zelda (Oracle of Ages, Seasons, Link's Awakening), Super Mario Land 2, Pokémon (Red & Crystal), Kirby's Dreamland, Mario Tennis

I remember this like yesterday. My girlfriend (now wife) got me a brand new, cherry red, Nintendo DS Lite for my 19th birthday...and boy what a great gift it turned out to be. I had pretty much given up on mobile gaming after the Gameboy color, feeling that I was more of a console gamer and mobile games were inferior to consoles. Boy was I wrong and thankfully I got to play some of Nintendo's best mobile games of all-time.

Notable Games I Own: New Super Mario Bros., Metroid Prime Hunters, Zelda (Spirit Tracks & Phantom Hourglass), Okamiden, Chrono Trigger, 999, Mario & Luigi (Partners in Time & Bowser's Inside Story), Radiant Historia, Solatarobo, The World Ends With You

December 25th, 2006. Christmas Morning, snow is gently falling outside the living room window, and their is one gift left for me to open. There is now way that it could possibly be a Wii. This was the first year they were out and they were impossible to get (These were the thoughts running through my head)! But as impossible as it was, somehow my parents (with obviously a little help from Santa)made it possible. I will never forget that moment in time and I will never forget the gaming memories that I have had with the Wii.

Notable Games I Own: Zelda (Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword, Crossbow Training), Mario Galaxy (1 & 2), New Super Mario Brothers, Wii Sports & Resort, Zack & Wiki, Metroid Prime Trilogy, Epic Mickey, Monster Hunter, Okami, Animal Crossing, Xenoblade, the Last Story, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Mario Kart Wii, Super Smash Brother Brawl, Endless Ocean 1 & 2, Sonic Colors, Kirby's Epic Yarn

Deemed a failure after the first 6 months of its life, the Nintendo 3DS has become legendary, and a system that I feel years down the road, will be regarded as Nintendo's best handheld console of all time. I know that is extremely high praise as Nintendo has created arguably the best handheld consoles, but it is something I truly believe.

Notable Games I Own: Super Smash Bros, Super Mario 3D Land, Zelda (Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Link Between Worlds), Virtues Last Reward, Fantasy Life, Bravely Default, Animal Crossing, Mario Kart 7, Fire Emblem, Cave Story 3D, Kingdom Hearts 3D, Kid Icarus Uprising, Mario & Luigi Dream Team

The Super Nintendo is not a system I grew up with. I grew up with the NES and then jumped directly to the N64. I didn't get my Super Nintendo until my junior year of high school when a buddy of mine sold me his yellowing piece of Nintendo history and about 20 games, for 40 bucks...that turned out to be hands down the best $40 I spent in my life. That's because the Super Nintendo houses some of the best video games ever made.

Notable Games I Own: Super Mario World, Zelda A Link to the Past, F-Zero, Star Fox, Super Punch-Out!!, Mega Man X, Kirby's Super Star, Donkey Kong Country (1,2,3), Super Mario All-Stars, Illusion of Gaia, Secret of Mana, Earthbound, Final Fantasy III, Super Metroid, Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Super Mario Kart, Yoshi's Island, TMNT Turtles in Time

How can one of Nintendo's worst selling consoles be my second favorite Nintendo system? Because that's how much I love what it offers and the memories I have playing and the memories I keep gaining from playing (ask me about the drinking game my buddies play sometime). The Gamecube was the very first system I bought with my own money (thanks in large part to the birthday cards I got from my 13th birthday party). It was the system that I can still distinctly remember getting butterflys in my stomach when I would look at gaming magazines and see commercials for upcoming games...that doesn't really happen anymore as an adult and I miss that feeling of excitement that I used to get from gaming. If the Gamecube is considered Nintendo's black sheep then maybe that's why I love it so much being the youngest of 4 and having 3 older sisters.

Notable Games I Own: Zelda (Windwaker, Twilight Princess, 4 Swords, Master Quest), Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Kart Double Dash, 1080, Waverace, Animal Crossing, Star Fox (Adventures & Assult), Super Smash Bros. Melee, Luigi's Mansion, Pikmin (1&2), Super Monkey Ball (1&2), Sonic (Adventure 1, 2, Heroes), Mario Party (6 & 7), Paper Mario Thousand Year Door, Dave Mirra 2, Tony Hawk 3, Resident Evil

Everyone has memory of something that defined their childhood. Maybe it was your first bike and all the adventures you had with it, maybe it was your baseball glove and all the fun you had playing games, or maybe it was even a trampoline and all the hours you passed jumping and pretending you were a gymnast. Whatever that defining memory is, we all have one. The Nintendo 64 is that defining memory for me. Ripping off the wrapping paper that Christmas morning of 1998 (yes it took two grueling years of begging my parents for one) to find the treasure I had been longing for, changed my childhood. Being the youngest of 4 siblings, I didn't have much in common with my 3 sisters. While they were off doing their own things, I was left to travel the Mushroom Kingdom, Hyrule Field and Spiral Mountain in search of adventure. While many claim the Nintendo 64 has aged terribly, which I can't argue with, the muddy textures and choppy polygons hold a special place in my heart. I see them and am instantly swept back to a much simpler time in my life. A time that didn't involve mortgages, taxes, and work, and one where I could go to school, talk with my friends about the adventures I went on and imagine ourselves in the game, and then go home and go on even more adventures and look forward to school the next day to tell everyone about the Goombas I squashed or the Stalfos that I slayed. Yes there have been many more systems that have come out that have improved on...well everything. Yes they are remastering some of my beloved N64 games on newer systems...but nothing will every take the place in my heart for my favorite Nintendo console of all time. The Nintendo 64.

Notable Games I Own: Legend of Zelda (Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask), Super Mario 64, Super Smash Bros., Diddy Kong Racing, Mario Kart 64, Pokémon Snap, Paper Mario, Mario Party (1,2,3), Snowboard Kids (1&2), Goldeneye 007, Perfect Dark, Banjo Kazooie & Tooie, Goemon's Adventure, Pilot Wings, Donkey Kong 64, Beetle Adventure Racing, Tony Hawk, Wave Race, Mario Golf & Tennis, Yoshi's Story, Star Wars, F-Zero, Harvest Moon, Conker's Bad Fur Day (much later in my life haha)