37 classic games published by Nintendo.
Widely considered the greatest video game ever made, Ocarina of Time translated the Zelda formula into three dimensions with such perfection that it redefined what action-adventure games could achieve. Its Z-targeting system, time-travel narrative, and extraordinary dungeon design set standards that remain unsurpassed.
The game that invented 3D platforming as a genre. Super Mario 64 launched alongside the Nintendo 64 and demonstrated, definitively, that video games could work in three dimensions. Its influence on every 3D game that followed is incalculable — this is where the template was written.
Widely considered the greatest action-adventure game ever made. A Link to the Past perfected the top-down Zelda formula with its Light World/Dark World duality, 12 intricate dungeons, and a richly realized Hyrule.
The game that defined the platformer genre and saved the North American video game industry. Super Mario Bros. is the archetypal adventure that introduced Mario to the world.
The SNES launch game that defined the 16-bit era. Super Mario World introduced Yoshi, expanded Mario's move set, and delivered 96 exits across a vast, joyful world that remained the gold standard for platformers for years.
Super Metroid is widely considered one of the greatest games ever made — a masterpiece of atmospheric exploration, environmental storytelling, and movement-based design that defined the Metroidvania genre.
The definitive version of Alexey Pajitnov's legendary puzzle game, bundled with the Game Boy at launch and responsible for selling millions of handheld consoles worldwide. Simple to learn and impossible to master, Tetris remains one of the greatest games ever made.
Rare's landmark first-person shooter defined console multiplayer gaming and demonstrated that licensed movie games could be exceptional. GoldenEye 007 introduced aiming, stealth mechanics, and objectives-based mission design to console FPS games, and its four-player split-screen became the standard for living room multiplayer.
Nintendo's most psychologically dark Zelda game dropped Link into the doomed world of Termina, where a moon falls every three days, time loops endlessly, and the inhabitant cast need his help before everything ends. Majora's Mask is a meditation on grief, identity, and impermanence unlike anything else in the franchise.
The game that invented open-world exploration. The Legend of Zelda gave players an enormous world to discover and secrets to uncover without hand-holding, trusting them to figure it out themselves.
Rare's stunning follow-up to GoldenEye 007 surpassed its predecessor in nearly every respect, delivering a sci-fi spy thriller with a phenomenal weapon roster, improved AI, and the most feature-rich multiplayer on the Nintendo 64. The technical achievement of Perfect Dark on N64 hardware remains extraordinary.
Rare's charming 3D platformer masterpiece sent a bear and a bird through nine inventive worlds brimming with collectibles, clever puzzles, and an irresistible sense of fun. Banjo-Kazooie refined the collectathon formula with exceptional world design and remains one of the N64's finest games.
The most original RPG ever made. EarthBound's modern American setting, satirical humor, emotionally devastating depth, and complete refusal to follow genre conventions created a cult classic unlike anything before or since.
The first Fire Emblem game released outside Japan, this GBA entry perfectly introduced Western audiences to Intelligent Systems' demanding tactical RPG with its famous permadeath mechanic, rich cast of characters, and deeply satisfying turn-based combat. A landmark SRPG that launched a global franchise.
The game that started one of the most successful media franchises in history, Pokémon Red challenges players to catch 151 creatures and become the greatest Pokémon Trainer in the land. Deceptively deep, relentlessly charming, and groundbreaking in its social design.
The rare sequel that surpasses the original. Donkey Kong Country 2 improved on its predecessor in every dimension — tighter level design, superior music, more varied environments, and better boss encounters.
The original, definitive version of Punch-Out!! featuring the real Mike Tyson as the unbeatable final opponent. The most famous licensed sports game on NES and one of the greatest boxing games ever made.
A deeply personal and surprisingly melancholic Zelda adventure that sees Link stranded on the mysterious Koholint Island. Link's Awakening transcends its Game Boy limitations with clever design, a memorable cast, and one of the most emotionally resonant endings in Nintendo history.
Intelligent Systems' turn-based strategy masterpiece brought their Wars franchise to the West for the first time with a perfectly calibrated tactical experience. Advance Wars' accessible mechanics mask deep strategic complexity, and its map design creates endlessly replayable competitive battles.
The graphical revolution that shocked the world. Donkey Kong Country's pre-rendered 3D graphics seemed impossible on SNES hardware, and the game underneath matched those visuals with excellent level design and music.
Samus Aran's most personal and story-driven adventure brought Metroid to the Game Boy Advance with a haunting atmosphere, terrifying SA-X antagonist, and a narrative that finally gave the series' silent protagonist a genuine voice. Metroid Fusion is as close to survival horror as the franchise ever ventured.
Intelligent Systems' charming RPG gave Mario the storybook treatment — flat paper characters in a colorful 3D world — and delivered a warm, witty adventure with a battle system accessible enough for beginners yet deep enough for RPG veterans. Paper Mario is pure Nintendo joy in interactive form.
Little Mac's journey through the World Video Boxing Association is one of the greatest sports games ever made — a pattern-recognition puzzle game dressed in boxing clothing.
The definitive Star Fox experience and one of the finest rail shooters ever made. Star Fox 64 delivered exhilarating combat, memorable characters with full voice acting, and a brilliant branching mission structure — and its Rumble Pak integration was the first time console players felt the game through their controllers.
The collaboration that shouldn't have worked but produced one of gaming's greatest surprises. Square's RPG design applied to Mario's universe created a game of warmth, humor, and unexpected depth.
Camelot's technical marvel proved the Game Boy Advance could host a fully-featured JRPG. Golden Sun's Psynergy system — elemental magic used both in battle and for overworld puzzle-solving — was innovative, the presentation was stunning for handheld hardware, and the world of Weyard was richly imagined.
Nintendo's kart racing series made its landmark 3D debut with Mario Kart 64, delivering sixteen imaginative tracks, eight beloved characters, and the four-player multiplayer that made it a mandatory purchase for any N64 owner. The game that made group gaming on consoles a standard part of social life.
Kirby's NES masterpiece introduced the Copy Ability system and delivered the most technically stunning game on the hardware. Released in 1993 as the NES was being retired, it was a spectacular farewell to the platform.
The game that defined atmospheric exploration in video games. Metroid dropped players on a hostile alien planet with no map and no instructions, demanding they discover their own path through environmental storytelling.
The game that invented kart racing. Super Mario Kart's Mode 7 pseudo-3D tracks, item combat, and eight beloved characters launched one of gaming's most enduring and beloved racing franchises.
HAL Laboratory's fighting game experiment brought Nintendo's greatest icons together and reinvented the genre with platform-based fighting. Super Smash Bros. proved that a crossover fighting game built on knock-out mechanics rather than health bars could be simultaneously accessible and deeply competitive.
The 16-bit evolution of Punch-Out!!. Super Punch-Out!! delivered a fresh roster of colorful opponents with the same pattern-recognition excellence, adding a super combo system and beautiful SNES sprite work.
The game that brought polygonal 3D into living rooms. Star Fox used the Super FX chip to render unprecedented 3D graphics on SNES hardware, launching one of gaming's most beloved space shooter franchises.
Rare's ambitious collectathon platformer sent Donkey Kong and four Kong companions through eight enormous worlds in pursuit of 3,821 collectibles. Technically impressive and generously sized, DK64's scope is both its greatest strength and its most criticized aspect — a game of extraordinary content that some consider bloated.
The debut of one of Nintendo's most beloved characters, Kirby's Dream Land introduced the pink puffball's signature inhale mechanic and charming aesthetic in a breezy platformer designed to be accessible to all ages. Short but delightful, it launched an enduring franchise.
Nintendo's motocross racer was a launch title that showcased the NES's capabilities with smooth scrolling, physics-based racing, and a revolutionary track design mode.