Nintendo Games

A SNES technical masterpiece — Yoshi carries Baby Mario across 48 stages in a hand-drawn art style that pushed the SNES hardware with real-time sprite scaling and rotation that defined the series' visual identity.

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.

AlphaDream's 2003 GBA RPG where Mario and Luigi explore the Beanbean Kingdom to recover Princess Peach's stolen voice — featuring timed-action combat where button presses power up attacks and dodge incoming damage, and a co-op puzzle system where both brothers use their abilities simultaneously. Superstar Saga launched one of Nintendo's finest handheld RPG franchises.

Camelot's tennis follow-up to Mario Golf delivered a near-perfect sports game: accessible enough for newcomers to enjoy immediately, deep enough for competitive players to master. With sixteen Mario franchise characters each with distinct play styles, four court types, and exceptional four-player multiplayer, Mario Tennis 64 remains the gold standard of video game tennis.

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.

The counterpart to Pokemon Red that launched a global phenomenon. Pokemon Blue Version features the original 151 Pokemon across Kanto's eight gyms, with version-exclusive creatures including Magmar, Pinsir, and Scyther making trading between Red and Blue essential for completing the Pokedex.

The definitive second-generation Pokémon experience — Crystal added animated Pokémon sprites, a playable female protagonist for the first time, the Battle Tower, and a Suicune-focused narrative to the Gold and Silver base.

The second generation Pokémon masterpiece — Silver introduces 100 new Pokémon, the Johto region, day/night cycles, breeding, and the game-doubling post-game return to Kanto that made it the most content-rich entry in the original series.

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.

Nintendo's 2003 GBA game that invented the microgame genre — WarioWare, Inc. presents 9-second challenges at increasing speed, requiring instant comprehension and immediate action. Over 200 microgames across themed stages from Wario and his Diamond City friends, with no time to think and no margin for hesitation. The most original Nintendo game concept since Tetris.

The direct sequel and second half of the Golden Sun story — The Lost Age follows Felix's party across a newly traversable world with expanded Psynergy, more summons, and a narrative conclusion that unifies both game's casts.

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.

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.

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.

The definitive remake of Metroid 1 — Zero Mission retells Samus's original mission with modern Metroidvania level design, then extends the story beyond the original ending in a surprising Space Pirate stealth sequence.

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.

Rare's answer to Mario Kart 64 — an adventure racing game with three vehicle types (kart, hovercraft, plane), a full single-player story mode, and boss races that outpaced the competition in depth.

Nintendo R&D1's 1994 Game Boy platformer that begins as an arcade port before expanding into 101 puzzle-platformer levels — Donkey Kong GB is one of the finest Game Boy games and the origin of Mario's acrobatic platforming vocabulary later used in Super Mario Odyssey.