• Top 100 Video Games

  

  Written by Zeromage 226 Comments
  Last Updated:: February 1, 2009

  20. Duck Tales (NES)

  As a kid, there was only one thing worse than opening up a sweater on Christmas morning. There you sat, under the tree that held so many promises of riches for so long. You held a package in your hands, you knew the size and weight of the package well…it was a Nintendo game. A wave of anticipation washed over you and you set it aside to open last, but its undertow drew you back before you finished with your stocking. Wait, this was not one of the twenty games that comprised your Christmas list! This was a (GASP) Disney game!!!!! Dread filled you, for a moment the tree of promises seemed like the twisted dead willow that haunted you from Flatliners. “Why don’t you play your new game?” your mom would ask. But once you put in this cartridge, something strange happened. Launchpad dropped you off in a strange place. You quickly learn that Scrooge’s cane is not the symbol of the wretched fate of old age, but a tool to pogo through boulders and bash in the skulls of your enemies, the enemies keeping you from the money you rightfully steal while trying to save your bratty nephews. All faith in Santa and Christmas had been restored. The Christmas tree was once again full of promises. Duck tales was one of the greatest games ever, mostly because no one wanted it but everyone loved it.

  19. Super Star Wars Trilogy

  The Super Star Wars Trilogy, which included A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi on the SNES were some of the most fun games ever released on any system. In the first two games you got to play as Luke, Han, and Chewie, adding a nice level of variety to the game. In Jedi they added Leia and the Ewok Wicket. Each character had his/her own strengths and weakness, and in this game you really had to be aware of who you were choosing to play as, as these were three of the hardest games I’ve ever played. Forget today’s easy Star Wars games (Star Wars Legos!) these were games for real gamers, and I personally broke tons of controllers while playing these games. It didn’t make them any less fun though, besides, you think its going to be easy to defeat a galaxy-wide empire?

  18. Metroid (NES)

  Metroid for NES is arguably the greatest game ever made. Another game that immediately comes to mind as the greatest game of all time is the third installment in the series, “Super Metroid” for the SNES. It’s been hotly debated which is the better game. With games at this quality level though, it’s almost a waste of time debating which one is better because of the sense of compunction inculcated with such a discourse. Immediately when one thinks of this game, they think of the theme music at the start screen, and how it perfectly drifts off into an enchanting space melody in 20 seconds time, then they think of pressing start and being placed in the massive labyrinth of Zebus being in full awareness of how massive the journey is that they’re about to embark on. The sense of adventure that sets in the player when they play this game is for the most part always unmatched by every game after. The levels are deep and the sheer amount of items you receive throughout make for an always welcome relief that you are on the right path. It is in this first installment that we meet with the two space pirate leaders in the names of Ridley and Craid, deep within their indigenous layers. It is also in this first installment that we come face to face with the mother brain, who would pop up later in the astonishing “Super Metroid”. It is also the first time you realize that your space warrior protagonist was a women, and if you conquered the game in a short enough time, you could watch her in a bikini at the end of the game, giving different thoughts to nerds who only thought about ice beams and power bombs. This is another game that just needs to be played to be understood. All and everyone who has ever played it knows exactly why it’s arguably the greatest game ever made…

  17. Contra (NES)

  Up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B, A, Start. This is the most recognized code in all gaming history. Much of the time people get it wrong when trying to restate it to others, but for the most part they have the pattern down. Without this code, it was basically impossible to get anywhere in Contra. While extremely difficult with only three lives, you give yourself 30 per level with this code and were in for an amazing Rambo style gaming experience. This is one of the games you think of when you think of Nintendo; A consummate side-scroller with enough extra detail to never make it boring. The weapons are awesome, the boss’s are menacing, and the two player mode is exactly how a two player mode should be. Having your partner take the lower route while you take the higher one in the first level breeds a kind of comradeship not experienced since Wedge and Skywalker. Fighting the boss in the 3rd stage with his (or her?) 2 massive tentacles proves to be no match for 2 skilled players. The whole game is not just side-scrolling. The 3rd water level is more like mountain/jump climbing. The 2nd level is more 3D with your player moving up the screen rather than left to right. While the ending is generic, it may prove to be rewarding enough for players who like to imagine riding away on helicopters with islands blowing up. Great, timeless game…Case Closed…

  16. Mega Man 2 (NES)

  With the conspicuously poor game cover of Mega Man 1, no one expected the blue bomber to last past a single game, until those who were able to get past the cover actually played Mega Man 1 and were surprised at the playability of the game. Even with this in mind, no one could portend what was in store with Mega Man 2; additional bosses, more techniques to master, an always evolving, intricate story line. You were transferred into a different world with Mega Man 2. How surprised everyone was when they came across the dragon boss in the first level of Wily’s hideout; they asked “Can graphics be this good?”, or when they encountered the monster cat in Woodman stage, they stated “Graphics will never get beyond this”. Of course, all great games have great music. Is it possible that there is any other video game more covered by video game bands than Mega Man 2? The Motown shuffle of Flash man stage, the hook at the last sequence of the Woodman stage loop. This isn’t just good video game music. This is great music for anyone who listens to music in general. One could go on and on about this game, but the fact is, one won’t understand until they experience it for themselves.

  15. Tetris

  Tetris is one of the most popular games of all time. It found its highest popularity in the arcade medium where countless players would face off against each other for Tetris supremacy. Sometimes it was just fun to watch a master of Tetris make his way through the endless levels as the blocks would fall down as increasing speeds. Sometimes it was just fun to listen to all the amazing Russian music signifying both despair and skill. Whatever the case, everyone loved Tetris. When Tetris found its way to the home consoles, everyone was able to enjoy this arcade classic, but it still lacked the excitement involved in playing it at an arcade. The feeling of preparing to go to the arcade to master a game better than someone else built up a suspense not grasped in the home console medium. When going into a video game nerds home, one usually finds an actual arcade game or two sitting in a recreational room or even a kitchen. Tetris along with Pacman are usually the arcade games you will find in a nerds home. There’s just something about fitting blocks into other blocks that works perfect with the coin-op design. You can stand there for hours trying to get to the last of the never-ending levels without ever getting tired.

  14. Super Mario Brothers 1

  Super Mario Brothers 1 was the game that put video games on the map. Granted other video games existed before Super Mario brothers, but none stirred the hearts and control pads of the masses quite like this one. After all, who could resist Mario and Luigi? They were more than just a couple of brothers in the plumbing business, they were bad ass renegades who didn’t think twice about stomping mushroom traitors or kicking turtle soldier shell butt clear across mushroom kingdom if it meant saving Princess Toadstool. Speaking of the princess, she was smokin’ even though they hadn’t pixelated cleavage yet. This is a game that had it all, bizarre villains, midgets, hot princesses, and wanton fireball destruction. All in all, the original Super Mario Brothers was a fun game, but it also taught us some important life lessons: much like you can’t go back on a screen, you can’t go back in life. Once you make a choice you are stuck with it. Eat your vegetables and you’ll grow big and strong, always chase stars, no matter where they lead you, if you eat a flower you just end up spitting fire, and with a little manual labour you’ll find gold coins in the most unlikely places. Yes, this game was a true classic that created a whole generation of super gamers and maybe some renegade plumbers too.

  13. Kid Icarus (NES)

  A little known fact about Kid Icarus is that it’s always the most expensive game at used video game stores. You go through a list of used Nintendo games and there all ranging from 1 cent to 2 dollars until you reach Kid Icarus at a whopping 24 dollars! What is the reason for the value of this game? What is it about this game that no one wants to sell it? Could it be the mythological creatures you have to fight? Could it be that it’s the only game where you play with someone with wings? Or could it be that this game had the same type of great playability as Metroid? Built off the same game engine as Metroid, this game often gets over looked in comparison to the mighty Metroid, but one should not overlook how much fun this game is to play. The side rooms make for novel fun where it’s not part of your direct journey, but can help with the treasures inside, or can hurt you with a plentiful of flies trying to eat away at Icarus’s wings. Medusa is the big boss which is always a challenge to fight in any game (except Castlevania 1, especially with the watch item). The only complaint with this game is the time clock to finish a level in a certain amount of time. Time clocks always make great adventure games like this less fun. Being able to take your time and look all around areas add to the adventure of a game, but thankfully with Kid Icarus, plenty of time is always allotted. All in all, this is a fun companion to the Metroid style game that should not be overlooked comparatively.

  
  

  12. Super Mario Kart

  

  Mario Kart for the SNES made the Nintendo market even more massive then it had already become. Being able to take all your favorite characters from old school Mario and using them on intricate race tracks proved to be one of the more enjoyable moments for the SNES. Most people picked Mario to race with because he wasn’t weak in any category specifically. Using Bowser though was for only the best racers. His weight would make it hard to accelerate, but if you could avoid obstacles his acceleration speed was the best. The music was also a strong point in Mario Kart. This soundtrack would be sought after like the best SNES RPG’s. The Mario Kart legacy would first start with this SNES game.

  11. Legend of Zelda (NES)

  Zelda 1 for Nintendo started the remarkable series that included Zelda: Link to the Past”, and “Twilight Princess”. Zelda was the first game to introduce the idea of a more free-flowing gaming experience where you could move wherever you want in a non-sequential manner. The “flat-screen” style was contrary to the side scroller with a defined “way to go”, with defined levels you had to beat in order. You put this together with an elf with swords and arrows and a world map, and you were overcome with a vastness not heard of until this game. There were so many areas to explore and so many different ways to conquer this game. The outside-world/Dungeon rotations proved perfectly satisfiable just when one of them was becoming too over-played. All the dungeons had their own weapons and items that you needed to procure to advance you further to deeper parts of the world map. Also, Zelda 1 was the first game for any platform system where you could gamble with a vagabond and earn 50 coins or lose 40, where having a “save-state” option in your computer emulator proved valuable. The story line was a classic fantasy story line with a princess who needed to be saved, pieces of a “holy grail” (triforce) that needed to be recovered, and an increasing of sword strength the more you built up your courage (heart system). Zelda 1 introduced the adventure game to the platform system that eventually ran the coin-op industry out of town. Gamers were overcome with the vastness of adventure games over and above the ephemeral satisfaction of 1 on 1 arcade fighting games.

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226 Comments

1. #1 Bladerunner says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 4:09 pm

   Terrible list imo.I realise this list is your opinion, and i respect that. Im just pointing out that my opinion differs from yours vastly

   1) Its a whore-fest of old games, lots of true modern classics were ignored. No half life 1,2, gta, resident evil, call of duty, fallout, civilization? Seriously???!!

   2) Toe jam and earl? give me a break….

   3) Not a single fricking N64 game? Majoras mask?! Mario 64?! Goldeneye?! Perfect dark?! OCARINA OF TIME?!!!!!! sheesh

   3) Just ONE ps2 game in the entire list? no shadow of the colossus? no okami? no gran turismo? no god of war? OMG

   4) Correct me if im wrong, but i dont think i saw a single racing game in there… wtf?

   I do agree with most of the top 20 though. Chrono trigger, Castlevania:SOTN, Zelda LTTP…. epic games
2. #2 Dopeycunt says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 9:36 pm

   Seems like the author does not have a whole lot of experience playing catalogs of games on different systems, and probably stuck to Nintendo systems when he was a kid. Only the big-name (obvious) Sega titles are here, and a distinct lack of PSX, XBox, and PC games.
3. #3 Wolf says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 10:12 am

   …dodgeball beat DigDug?
   already bad things happening and im only on page 1
4. #4 Wolf says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 10:20 am

   Ducktales made the top 20?…
5. #5 dude says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 12:19 am

   while this list may not be well rounded (at all), it makes for a pretty good reference on which old roms I should be investing my time in.
6. #6 pd says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 9:45 pm

   so your saying nhl 94 and a dodgeball game are better then say castlevania iv and contra 3 bullshit and there two games off the top of my head.
7. #7 Justin says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 3:45 am

   I didn’t know N64 was such a crappy system.LOL.What an ass list and an ass website. Terrible what you are putting into these viewer’s heads.
8. #8 Justin says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 3:50 am

   Oh and I also forgot to LOL @ having Madden 2004 on there without NFL 2k5.Props for putting Star Craft on there though,best game ever made.
9. #9 Azelfknight says:
   November 20th, 2009 at 8:44 pm

   Zelda 2 is the worst Zelda ever…just saying.

   This list is okay, but with way to many old ripoffs of each other in the platforming department. A link to the past is one of my favorite games and glad others recognize it too, but so many good game aren’t on this list that it makes me shake my head. Here are games that deserve more credit, in no order, Halo, Ocarina of Time, Fallout 3, WOW, Mario Kart 64, and more…
10. #10 pelham123 says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 11:05 pm

    It’s nice to see a more personal top 100 list for a change, an enjoyable read. Cheers!
11. #11 Fedricco Rabaya says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:31 pm

    Hey people can someone tell me the Mario game when the story is about a dream of Mario? There are 4 characters to choose from: MArio, Luigi, Princess and the Mushroom kid.
12. #12 Salo says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 2:48 pm

    Super Mario 2.
13. #13 nick says:
    November 20th, 2009 at 6:56 pm

    good list, but you guys really need to play golden sun.