Batman

Batman is such an amazing game! The graphics and animation is so awesome. The play control is really good. It's a typical platform game except for the simple fact that Batman has the coolest arsenal of weapons! The difficulty is rather high as well, so it's quite challenging.
*Easy hack: If Batman is too hard for you, then download the Easy Hack. It's a version of the game made to be much easier. Stages have been modified to be easier, bosses are easier, and power-ups give you more power.

Chip N Dale's Rescue Ranger

Chip N Dale's Rescue Rangers was released during the height of the cartoon show's popularity. Enemies are drawn with the drawing style of the cartoon. It's full of cameo appearances of our favorite characters. The game's fun factor is very high! Unlike Duck Tales (the other Disney-cartoon-based game by Capcom), Rescue Rangers has a simultaneous 2 player feature, which makes the game even more fun to play. It was one of the few games that I could beat back in the day.

Contra

Contra is probably the second most popular NES game ever, and it is a most favorite of many. Contra is so hardcore that it defines 'side-scrolling shooter'. You'll hear people describe games as "Well such and such game is like Contra, but..." The game is very entertaining. It's not too easy and not too hard, it's perfect. There's a nice assortment of special weapons you pick up along the way. The stages provide a nice variety of eye candy, fun challenges and awesome bosses. And with the famous Konami code (Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A) you're granted 99 lives, making the game a piece of cake. Contra is highly recommended.

Dragon Spirit

Dragon Spirit... >_< ...this game... asd;lfjase;flskdjse ...IT RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!1!11 IT KICKS SO MUCH ASS!!!!!! (dies) This game made me shit so many bricks back in the day. The weapon system, or 'fire system' rather, rules. The soundtrack rules. The graphics rule. The dragon is my bitch. I mean, this game makes me speechless. It just rules,okay? Play it. Now. And btw, Dragon Spirit is actually part of a series. The TurboGrafx16 was blessed with two titles:a port of the arcade version of Dragon Spirit (which has much better graphics than this NES version) and its unofficial sequel, Dragon Sabre (I've covered both of them in the TG16 section).

Duck Tales

Considering the popularity I've experienced back in the day and fandom I witness today, Duck Tales is probably one of the top 5 best NES games ever made. Its characteristics are similar to Chip N Dale's Rescue Rangers. It was also released during the height of the cartoon show's popularity. Flocks of kids rushed to the stores to get (or rent) their copy. The game itself is very well made. I'd expect no less from Capcom. The atmosphere is full of cartoony eye candy. Enemies are drawn with the drawing style of the cartoon. Several of the stages are based on certain cartoon episodes. And of course, the game wouldn't be complete without cameo appearances of our favorite Duck Tales characters. I remember that I loved this game so much that I rented it about three times. I also had the opportunity to play it several other occasions when my brother's friends brought over their copy. Back then it was challenging for me, and it felt much longer. Now I can beat it within like 20 minutes.

G.I. Joe

My brother loved this game so much back in the day. My love for it wasn't too devoted since the game got hella hard for me towards the middle. Now when I play it again after so many years, it SO easy. :p Anyway, I think G.I. Joe is an excellent game. Each mission has a cool little intro, a side-scrolling stage, a maze-like stage where you have to find all the proper spots to place bombs, two boss fights and a short ending. You have the option to choose two other characters, which you can switch amongst anytime during gameplay. Each character has their strengths and weaknesses. If you're wondering why an 'nsf archive' link isn't here, its because one is not available for this game.

Little Nemo: The Dream Master

Screw Mario Bros. 3! I think Little Nemo is THE best NES game eva made!! =D It's incredibly cool. The goal of each stage is to gather a certain amount of keys so that you can unlock the door at the end. Scattered throughout stages are creatures that you can befriend once you toss them 3 pieces of candy. Each creature grants Nemo more health and special abilities. Like the frog gives Nemo the ability to jump high and knock out enemies with its belly. The lizard gives Nemo the ability to walk up walls. The bee gives Nemo the ability of temporary flight and a needle attack. So like, play this game now!

Mega Man

The game that started it all for the mega-hit Mega man series! Join Mega Man as he battles against Wily's robots and gains their unique weapons upon defeat. This game wasn't necessarily a hit. I'm pretty sure the reason why is because of the high difficulty. I mean, wow, when I captured these screen shots I had to use save state cheating like there was no tomorrow! It was Mega Man 2 that turned everyone into Mega Man fanatics.

Mega Man 2

Mega Man 2 is the mega-hit title that got Mega Man incredibly popular. It's a much better improvement from Mega Man 1. Wow, just everything about this game is awesome. The graphics are great (for Nintendo's standards), the music is catchy, the stages are fun, the enemy weapons are fun to use and the challenge is well balanced. You gain three special 'weapons' that aid you in crossing pits and reaching unjumpable heights. Plus there's an interesting strategy: each enemy robot is weak against a particular enemy weapon. For example, Bubble Man's weapon is lethal when used against Heat Man.

Mega Man 3

Living up to the greatness of Mega Man 2, Mega Man 3 is an equally great hit. It carries everything we loved from Mega Man 2. The special 'weapons' from part 2 have evolved into Rush, a loyal transforming robot hound.

Power Blade

Power Blade is a fun platformer, with a guy who looks like Arnold Schwarzenegger from Total Recall. He has a nifty boomerang weapon that upgrades upon picking up items that enemies drop. Hidden in every stage is a power suit; with it you can shoot sexy waves of energy that swiftly kill enemies. The stage select makes Power Blade feel very Mega Man-ish. The game would be more entertaining if there were more than freakin five enemies. Nevertheless, Power Blade is a worthy classic that I have fond memories with.

Power Blade 2

A nice improvement! Adding variety to gameplay are new power suits! There's the regular power suit from Power Blade 1 that can now cling on ceilings, a flight suit for flying and a water suit for swimming. Adding to the storyline development are short cut scenes with very nice illustrations (for what NES is capable of). Adding to challenge are various stage dynamics; like rising lava, falling spike ceilings, water, elevators, and more. And there's actually more than five enemies! Haha. Overall, it's a worthy sequel. I recommend it.

Silver Surfer

SILVER SURFER KICKS SO MUCH ASS!!!!!!! OMG THIS GAME RULES!!!! >_< Actually, it's mostly childhood memories that are fueling my enthusiasm right now. Attempting to hold that aside (forces a real opinion)... Silver Surfer is a typical shooter with few weapon upgrades. It's made up of 8 fun-filled stages through space, battling against various foes from Marvel's Silver Surfer comics. The soundtrack is AWESOME. Seriously, this game has the best NES music I have ever heard. It would be so awesome is Silver Surfer would make an appearance in one of the X-Men movies.

Super Mario Bros. 3

I'm sure others would agree with me when I say Super Mario Bros 3 is -the- most popular NES game. I swear, everyone I knew who had a NES had a copy of Super Mario Bros. 3. For many, the existence of this game was first known through the motion picture known as The Wizard. Ah, The Wizard, it brings back many nostalgic memories. I wasn't aware until reading articles such as this that the movie was just a 90-minute Nintendo commercial. Fred Savage looks so Jewish in it. Anyway, yeah Super Mario Bros 3 is a great game. All the abilities and items Mario can gain and the many secrets it had made Super Mario Bros. 3 so entertaining and full of replay value. It's probably -the- largest and most impressive NES game, too; not many NES R0Ms go over 200 KB. I don't have to recommend this game, because anyone who's into classic gaming has already played it. :)