Ranking by platform

The best games on NES.

80 games compete in this selection. Tetris tops it with 1,943 points: the ranking comes from player votes alone, and moves with every duel settled.

  1. 1 Tetris 1989 · Puzzle 1,943
  2. 2 The Legend of Zelda 1986 · Action-adventure 1,857
  3. 3 Kirby's Adventure 1993 · Platformer 1,842
  4. 4 Super Mario Bros. 1985 · Platformer 1,837
  5. 5 Mega Man 2 1989 · Platformer 1,779
  6. 6 Super Mario Bros. 3 1988 · Platformer 1,775
  7. 7 Mega Man 3 1990 · Platformer 1,745
  8. 8 Metroid 1987 · Metroidvania 1,683
  9. 9 Zelda II: The Adventure of Link 1987 · Metroidvania 1,682
  10. 10 Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! 1987 · Fighting 1,640
  11. 11 Excitebike 1984 · Racing 1,616
  12. 12 Castlevania 1986 · Platformer 1,615
  13. 13 Mega Man 1987 · Platformer 1,608
  14. 14 Final Fantasy 1987 · JRPG 1,603
  15. 15 Mega Man 6 1993 · Platformer 1,597
  16. 16 Disney's DuckTales 1989 · Platformer 1,575
  17. 17 Battletoads 1991 · Beat 'em up 1,571
  18. 18 Castlevania II: Simon's Quest 1987 · Metroidvania 1,567
  19. 19 Bomberman II 1991 · Puzzle 1,566
  20. 20 Battletoads / Double Dragon 1993 · Beat 'em up 1,551
  21. 21 Tiny Toon Adventures 1991 · Platformer 1,549
  22. 22 Disney's Darkwing Duck 1992 · Platformer 1,548
  23. 23 Disney's Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers 1990 · Platformer 1,546
  24. 24 Ice Hockey 1988 · Sports 1,540
  25. 25 Clu Clu Land 1984 · Arcade 1,528
  26. 26 Tennis 1984 · Sports 1,525
  27. 27 Adventures of Lolo 1989 · Puzzle 1,521
  28. 28 Mega Man 4 1991 · Platformer 1,518
  29. 29 Final Fantasy III 1990 · JRPG 1,514
  30. 30 Cabal 1988 · TPS 1,509
  31. 31 Karateka 1984 · Fighting 1,507
  32. 32 Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels 1986 · Platformer 1,506
  33. 33 Adventure Island 3 1992 · Platformer 1,506
  34. 34 Duck Hunt 1984 · Arcade 1,492
  35. 35 Dragon Warrior 1986 · JRPG 1,491
  36. 36 Disney's Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers 2 1993 · Platformer 1,490
  37. 37 Wrecking Crew 1985 · Platformer 1,486
  38. 38 Soccer 1985 · Sports 1,482
  39. 39 Yoshi 1991 · Puzzle 1,482
  40. 40 Mega Man 5 1992 · Platformer 1,480
  41. 41 Kid Icarus 1986 · Platformer 1,479
  42. 42 Disney's DuckTales 2 1993 · Platformer 1,479
  43. 43 Final Fantasy II 1988 · JRPG 1,478
  44. 44 Dr. Mario 1990 · Puzzle 1,477
  45. 45 Hogan's Alley 1984 · Arcade 1,472
  46. 46 Contra Force 1992 · Shoot 'em up 1,471
  47. 47 Circus Charlie 1984 · Platformer 1,463
  48. 48 Bomberman 1985 · Arcade 1,462
  49. 49 Disney's The Little Mermaid 1991 · Platformer 1,453
  50. 50 Battle City 1985 · Shoot 'em up 1,452
  51. 51 R.C. Pro-Am 1988 · Racing 1,452
  52. 52 Micro Machines 1991 · Racing 1,450
  53. 53 EarthBound Beginnings 2015 · JRPG 1,446
  54. 54 Gauntlet II 1986 · Beat 'em up 1,445
  55. 55 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III: The Manhattan Project 1991 · Beat 'em up 1,444
  56. 56 Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos 1990 · Platformer 1,441
  57. 57 Golf 1984 · Sports 1,439
  58. 58 Yie Ar Kung-Fu 1984 · Fighting 1,438
  59. 59 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game 1990 · Platformer 1,434
  60. 60 Antarctic Adventure 1983 · Racing 1,429
  61. 61 Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom 1991 · Platformer 1,422
  62. 62 Road Fighter 1984 · Racing 1,417
  63. 63 Batman: Return of the Joker 1991 · Platformer 1,417
  64. 64 Hudson's Adventure Island 1986 · Platformer 1,416
  65. 65 Wild Gunman 1984 · FPS 1,414
  66. 66 Shadowgate 1987 · Point-and-click 1,414
  67. 67 North & South 1989 · Strategy 1,412
  68. 68 Pinball 1984 · Arcade 1,410
  69. 69 Elite 1984 · Simulation 1,392
  70. 70 The Simpsons: Bart vs. The Space Mutants 1991 · Platformer 1,380
  71. 71 Top Gun 1987 · Simulation 1,377
  72. 72 Blaster Master 1988 · Metroidvania 1,374
  73. 73 StarTropics 1990 · Action RPG 1,370
  74. 74 Felix the Cat 1992 · Platformer 1,363
  75. 75 Faxanadu 1987 · Metroidvania 1,347
  76. 76 Sid Meier's Pirates! 1987 · Action RPG 1,345
  77. 77 Dig Dug II: Trouble in Paradise 1985 · Strategy 1,345
  78. 78 Double Dragon III: The Sacred Stones 1991 · Beat 'em up 1,329
  79. 79 Adventure Island II 1991 · Platformer 1,312
  80. 80 Batman: The Video Game 1989 · Platformer 1,311

Filter, combine and travel back in time in the full ranking

Other rankings

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In detail

The best games on NES, what this ranking says

Tetris leads this selection with 1,943 ELO points, ahead of The Legend of Zelda and Kirby's Adventure. The 80 games competing in it have played 10,883 duels.

This selection in figures
Games competing in this selection 80
Duels played by those games 10,883
Game in the lead Tetris (1989)
Score of the leading game, in ELO points 1,943
Point gap between 1st and 10th 303
Best represented genre Platformer
Last reading November 3, 2026

The best game of every genre on NES

A selection is not read in one block: here is what leads each of its brackets.

The best game of every genre on NES
Genre Games competing In the lead ELO score Duels played
Puzzle 5 Tetris 1,943 352
Platformer 31 Kirby's Adventure 1,842 155
Metroidvania 5 Metroid 1,683 275
Racing 5 Excitebike 1,616 200
JRPG 5 Final Fantasy 1,603 275
Beat 'em up 5 Battletoads 1,571 159
Arcade 5 Clu Clu Land 1,528 86

What moved this week

The ranking changes with every duel settled. Over the past seven days, the score of 77 games in this selection moved.

What moved this week
Game Points gained in 7 days ELO score
Disney's The Little Mermaid +73 1,453
Faxanadu +59 1,347
Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of Chaos +58 1,441

The most contested match-ups

These pairs of games have faced each other more than any others in this selection.

The most contested match-ups
Wins Against Duels played Win rate
Super Mario Bros. 3 Mega Man 4 100%
Super Mario Bros. 3 Disney's DuckTales 3 67%
Super Mario Bros. 3 Disney's Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers 3 67%
Super Mario Bros. Super Mario Bros. 3 3 100%

How this ranking is established

No jury, no press score, no sales figures: two games face off, players vote, and every vote updates an ELO score. This page is a view of the world ranking, never a standing kept apart.

Understand the method in detail →

FAQ

What players ask

What is the best game on NES?

According to community votes, the best game on NES is Tetris, with 1,943 ELO points in the world ranking. It stands ahead of The Legend of Zelda and Kirby's Adventure, and its place is replayed with every duel.

How many games on NES are ranked?

80 games of this selection take part in the duels, and they have played 10,883 of them so far. The full site catalogue is much wider: only games kept for their fame enter the running.

Which game on NES is climbing right now?

Disney's The Little Mermaid is the strongest climb in this selection over the past seven days, with 73 ELO points gained. Over the same period, the score of 77 games in the selection moved.

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