Use code JOHNRIGGS50 to get 50% OFF your first Factor box at bit.ly/3l76LDD and while you're enjoying your Factor meals, check out the 1-star NES games ruclips.net/video/bJ94-tJqaTg/видео.html
I LOVE PAC MAN AND MISS PAC MAN AND PACMANIA TOO AND RAD RACER ONE AND TWO AND THE ADVENTURE OF BAYOU BILLY AND HOGAN ALLEY AND DUCK HUNT AND MARIO BROTHERS TOO MY FRIEND
You forget, double dragon 2, ninja gaiden, castlevania, castlevania iii, tetris, metroid, blaster master, super c, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - the arcade game, batman, bionic commando, battletoads, chip n Dale - rescue rangers, and life force
@@harrimanpd agreed! It was a hidden gem when I tried it but turns out every other kid knew it'd be a classic too lol. Also great that it was exclusive to the NES and not an average arcade port like Double Dragon. Soundtrack is killer too!
None of them really cut it for me. The music is killer, but the game play is tough to get used to. I always lose all my lives with the platforming sections. They are really difficult for the silliest reason
I like it its a great game i give it 4 stars because Batman just punches if he had some kicks in his combo attacks or a jump kick it would be 5 stars...lol he did have gadgets though so 4.5 stars
Castlevania 3 is missing. That game pushed the NES hardware to the limit. Fun game, (Grant is so much fun to mess around with) lots of replay value, looks beautiful and has an amazing soundtrack (the Japanese version is even better!)
Bionic Commando. Platforming without a jump button. Few greater thrills on nes than swinging from a cliff on this game and perfectly landing the hook. Its quite an adventure, with abundant continues in the commando inspired bonus stages. Its also remained fairly affordable for new collectors.
Bionic Commando definitely. That game aged very well. I was impressed with the Rearmed Remake in that despite the stuff they changed and added to it, the DNA of that game was like 95% the OG NES game. It’s crazy to think but it’s almost like the original game never got its proper due until the remake was released.
i got an NES from one of my dad's bandmates when he was cleaning out his attic before he moved out of state. it came with a giant stack of carts. Bionic Commando, Ninja Gaiden and Super Mario Bros 3 are the titles that made me fall in love with video games.
Hands dow its Crystalis for me. It had everything I wanted from a game. Amaizing music, great sprites and a compelling story for a kid (and NES). So much fun to play with responsive controles. Had it come out just a couple of years earlier it would be remembered better.
The Guardian Legend is definitely a 5-star for me, combining the top-down Zelda-like Adventure with the awesomeness that is Compile's shoot-em-up gameplay makes it an absolutely unforgettable game for me
You should check out Zanac, if you don't already know about it. I don't know what the connection is, but it is basically just the fighter pilot part of Guardian Legend... only much harder!
Too bad that Panic Restaurant is so f****in expensive. It cost $899 at my local retro video game store! Same thing on Ebay! How am I going to experience such a unique and creative game?
Castlevania. A timeless action platformer, and the first home console game I’d ever played that really created such a strong sense of place abs mood with its art direction and music.
Same story here. One of my absolute all time favorites since the year it launched. I guess if I had to be objective, a big criticism is that half the spells are broken. Also much of the game is plagiarized (IMO) from TSR's AD&D, although that doesn't make it any less fun.
Street Fighter 2010 for me. I remember buying it at a Toys R Us back in the day because the box cover art was cool. Such an unexpected surprise. It's Capcom of course. They rocked it back in the day, and still do.
My top 5 has to be (and purely out of nostalgia) 1. Gun.Smoke 2. Chip&Dale: Rescue Rangers 3. Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles 4. Track and Field 2 5. Nintendo World Cup and a 6th one because my girlfriend insists on adding it 6. Ice Climber
@@fozz1982 Yeah, it might not be a fantastic game, but it sure is an iconic one! I don't think I've met anyone (at least here in Sweden) that had a NES back in the day and who hadn't played it.
I talked to Pat himself about this one - TETRIS! He said there’s no two player so it just misses five stars but I don’t think that’s enough to not give this five stars. A masterpiece to this day.
The Tengen version had both competitive and cooperative multiplayer. The co-op is absolutely awesome and hilarious to play, especially when drunk. Five stars for sure!
Bucky O'Hare one of if not the best action platformer on the console. Sure it's pretty difficult but fun all the same and being able to play as Dead-Eye Duck, Jenny, Blinky, and Willy DuWitt made it that much more enjoyable.
I think there are several games missing in this list. I should add these: - Battletoads - The Lone Ranger - Castlevania III - Shatterhand - Batman: Return of the Joker - Vice Project Doom - Ninja Gaiden II - Tiny Toons - Adventure Island II - Tetris - TMNT III: The Manhattan Project I'll be waiting your next video. Greetings from Mexico, John Riggs. :)
Crystalis. Without a doubt, Crystalis is a 5 star Action RPG that influenced later Action RPGs in a very significant way. If you love the Mana games, Crystalis did it first. Please make sure this game makes into your next video. Mega Man 3 is easily a 5 star game. I've always considered it better than Mega Man 2. The play mechanics were vastly improved, and there's the addition of Rush.
I'd say Rygar is a 5-star game if you play it with save states. The only thing holding it back from being 5-star is that you can't save on original hardware. It felt like a true grand adventure in 8-bit form and only the Legend of Zelda felt the same way for me on the NES.
Playing it on the Switch online for the first time and it definitely a five star game. I couldn’t imagine playing it without the ability to save though.
I loved Rygar for the NES, for me it is up there with Metroid & Castlevania 2 as not just a great game, but an early example of a metroidvania. The lack of saves is an issue, but its not the end of the world since you can beat the game in about 5 hours. The main negative point against the game for me was, you could softlock yourself if you entered a boss room underpowered. When you die & continue, you respawn in the boss room, and you could wind up in a situation where you are too weak to beat the boss but locked in the room. This happened to me several times with area 2's spider boss. The strategy is, early on, to head to the sky area with the robots & grind them over & over until it only takes like 1-2 shots to kill them. Then you'll be strong enough to complete areas 2 & 3 before heading back to 4 with the grapple hook.
Great game. That was definitely one of those games where you had to leave the damn Nintendo on overnight and hope it was still on the next day to keep playing.
I absolutely loved Shatterhand. Great mechanic where the player collects different rune blocks to get different robot allies. It had some of the best music in my opinion.
Crystalis, Destiny of an Emperor, Final Fantasy, Kirby's Adventure, Turtles 3: Manhattan Project, Castlevania 3, Mega Man 3, Super Mario trilogy, Klax. Are some of my all-time favorites.
Out of the entire NES library, Maniac Mansion is the game I have the most nostalgia for. (And Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link) I can remember calling EVERY local game store in our phone book, trying to hunt down a copy of Maniac Mansion. Sadly, no one had it. It wasn't until I randomly called a Pawn shop, when I found it. Then I had to convince my mom to drive me 2 hours away to get it. That was the BEST DAY EVER!!!
I don't think too many people would agree with me, however I consider *Pinball Quest* a 5 star game. The story aspect makes it a truly unique pleasure for that small demographic that was looking for a game to combine an rpg and a pinball game.
It's a fantastic game. Pinball RPG? Nothing else like it. One of the most original NES titles. It's actually gotten a bit of criticism. I can't understand why. It's a really fun game with creative design and gameplay.
Off the top of my head, we’re missing Castlevania 3, Bionic Commando, Double Dragon II, Final Fantasy, Super Dodge ball, the Guardian Legend, Ninja Gaiden, Metroid and Faxanadu. And while they may not be five star all around, some games are five star in my heart and nostalgia: Castlevania 2, the TMNT games, double dragon 1 and 3, bad dudes, crystalis, tecmo world wrestling. And there’s so many other greats. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Felix the Cat is absolutely a 5-star game - especially if Duck Tales is. It's easy to pick up, great controls, catchy music, and most importantly, it's an NES game you actually beat!
It's so crazy it's been over 20 years since I've played River City Ransom but when ur guy enters a shop and sits to eat I can hear the music PERFECTLY in my head. I literally thought the music was actually playing for a sec. Wow
Any of the Technos games have gladly occupied countless hours of my childhood. Super Spike V'Ball, Super Dodgeball, World Cup Soccer... generally dislike sports games, but LOVE these ones! 5 stars in my book!
And I'm still enjoying the Kunio/Double Dragon games to this day. I loved them with Technos and Arc System Works has done a really good job with modern versions.
The NES games i played the most: -RBI Baseball -Tecmo Bowl -TMNT 2 -DuckTales -Super Mario 3 -North vs. South -Blaster Master -Tetris -Maniac Mansion -Punch-Out!! -Double Dribble -Excitebike
I played and beat Megaman 1-6 for the first time last year. Those being my only Megaman games so far I felt that 2, 3 and 5 were the most fun for me. 2 & 3 were on par with each other in my book. Hope to play more Megaman soon.
Dragon Warrior IV is the best of the four NES DW/DQ games because it was truly epic in scope for the time, where a total of FIVE storylines all come together on the same world with all kinds of extra mechanics and details thrown in, not to mention the DQ monster designs are some of the best out there. As for other NES games I would consider 5-star: Bubble Bobble (arcade is better but NES is not brutally hard), The Guardian Legend, Mega Man III (best MM music alongside MM2 plus introduction of Protoman), and Super C.
What sets Baseball Stars apart from all other NES baseball games is that you can hire/fire players, play full seasons, and use money won from games to improve the stats of your players. Very deep experience for an NES title.
Nah. Castlevania, Metroid and Zelda were the games I was obsessing over in the early life of the NES. They helped tremendously, but the NES was always a LOT more than just SMB.
They also have Duck Hunt with the gun that contributed to its success. Many launch titles like Excitebike, Kung Fu, Pinball, the first Super Mario Bros, among others, contributed to its success. Many other games contributed to its success.
Guardian Legend, Tecmo Cup Soccer Game, Ninja Gaiden/Shadow Warrior, Mega Man 3, Solar Jetman, Solstice or Double Dragon 2 are some of the games who I'm missing in that list.
I love love love that both Pirates and Maniac Mansion made their lists. Highly underrated, and as a kid, they were engrossing like few other NES games were. I can think of several that weren't here, but the stand-out omissions in my mind: Castlevania III, Battletoads, Metal Storm, Blaster Master, Crystalis, and Mega Man III (IMO the best Blue Bomber). And while one could argue that the format of games like Pirates or Maniac is a bit archaic, all of these (even Crystalis) have a modern feel and hold up gameplay-wise.
JohnRiggs is the absolute GOAT!!! I've watched every single one of your videos and this one is the best yet! Let's Look at Every 5-Star NES Game was mind-blowing. You truly have an eye for detail and an amazing ability to breakdown the best titles from the 8-bit era. I've been toying with the idea of putting together a RUclips channel and this video made me realize that I need to take the plunge. Thanks for the inspiration, John!
I am continually amazed by how many people love DuckTales. I had the game as a kid (still have it, in fact), and absolutely loved it, but literally no one else I knew at the time had it, or particularly liked it when they played mine. Definitely a five star game IMHO.
My 5 star game is bionic commando. I wish it was a tiny bit more difficult but it's fine I'll play it again and again. It's unique, engaging, and the music is great too.
I love that it was open-ended and gave you a plethora of possible endings, depending on how successful you are. I know later releases go more into the storyline of trying to save and avenge your family, but I kind of prefer this version that doesn't feel at all linear.
@@legionarybooks13 As a stupid kid, my crew would always mutiny at some point. I'm pretty sure now it's because I didn't understand that splitting the plunder between them made them happy! So I never saw endings! :D I still couldn't stop playing, though! :D
Another great title by the developer was silent service. Similar experience but on a wwii submarine.. its best to start out 2 player then go single so you can learn the ship before juggling controllers
There's a lot of 5-Star games left out of that list, like.... Kick Master, Isolated Warrior, TMNT 3, RECCA, Gradius 2, GunNec, Crisis Force, Super Spy Hunter, Metal Storm, Super Dodge Ball, Castlevania 3, Bucky O'Hare, Blaster Master, Blades of steel, Pro Wrestling. And that's just off the top of my head. I'm sure there's more.. Anyway, I really enjoy these videos. Thanks for taking the time to make them.🤩👍👍👍👍👍❤️❤️❤️
Metroid, Megaman 3, Battle of Olympus, Zelda 2, Shadow of the Ninja (aka Blue Shadow) and Solar Jetman would be the only NES games I would rate 5 out of 5 stars.
I love Metroid, don't get me wrong, but it's way too flawed to be 5 star imo. I do think Super Metroid was a 5 star game though. I was admittedly a bit too young to play Metroid when it was first released so I'm unsure about how people felt about it at the time. It was definitely a first of it's kind.
@@xenos_n. I was 7, maybe 8 when I played Metroid the first time. Up until then I had only played games that was light hearted and colorful like the Mario games and Tetris. Or games that was about adventure like Zelda of Castlevania, kind of dark at times sure, but still fairly cheerful. Metroid had this dark, strange, alien atmosphere where you delve into the depths of a hostile planet, all alone and lost in a maze of tunnels filled with strange enemies. Everything you meet wants to kill you and resources were scarce. There were no truly safe areas where you could rest and recover. You felt underpowered, overwhelmed and always had the feeling you were somewhere no human had any reason to ever be. The feeling of horror and dread that Metroid created at the time, for someone who had only played cheerful games before, was incredible and oh so exciting for a young child who had never experienced anything remotely similar before. No other game has managed to recreate that feeling that Metroid managed to create, and that is why it is definite 5 star game for me.
I haven’t played many NES games but out of the dozen or so I have played, my three favorite games by far are Castlevania, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Batman! Tiny Toon Adventures is really good too. I like it ALMOST as much as those three.
Castlevania III, Double Dragon II, Metal Gear, Rockin Cats, Super Dodge Ball, Ninja Gaiden II, Mega Man III, Batman, Ice Hockey, Chip And Dale Rescue Rangers...out of all of these Rockin Cats is like a forgotten classic because it came out so late in the NES's run.
Bucky O Hare is definitely a 5 star game. It's probably overlooked because it's a late gen title and very expensive. Thankfully, I bought it for 5 bucks in the 90s and hung on to it.
I’ve legitimately played Blades of Steel throughout every phase of my life. That is absolutely a five star game. Beyond iconic, and to this day will elicit rivalries between friends that are hard to surpass in any competitive medium.
I have 20 rated 5 stars as well. They are: 1. Contra 2. Mega Man 2 3. The Legend of Zelda 4. Maniac Mansion 5. Jackal 6. Ninja Gaiden 7. Super Mario 2 8. DuckTales 9. Tecmo Super Bowl 10. Little Samson 11. Super Mario Bros. 12. RBI Baseball 13. Castlevania 14. Tetris 15. 1943: The Battle of Midway 16. Bionic Commando 17. Gun.Smoke 18. Shatterhand 19. Gun Nac 20. Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Dragon Warrior IV is still in my all time top 5 games to this day. In fact, I literally just played through it again on an emulator last week. Still holds up for me. For anyone who is wondering, my personal top 5 (in no order) is this: Dragon Warrior IV, Ultima Underworld, Batman Arkham Asylum, Mass Effect Legendary Edition, Star Wars Jedi Outcast
Baseball Stars is ABSOLUTELY a 5 Star game. The key thing you missed is the RPG aspect of it, where you play league games and buy and sell players. That game is a legend.
Seems an oddly short list...there's no: - Adventures of Lolo - Batman - Blaster master - Bionic commando - Castlevania 1 or 3 - Crystalis - Guardian Legend - Gun-Nac - Jackal - Lifeforce - Little Nemo - Little Samson - Metroid - Ninja gaiden 1,2 or 3 - R.C. Pro Am - Shatterhand - StarTropics - Tetris ...all those are worthy of consideration
Dusty Diamond's All-Star Softball is still my favorite arcade sports game of all time. The ridiculous characters, their superpowers, and the quirky rules from the different fields are perfect.
Back to the Future should have been a 5-Star in Pat’s book. The only reason it wasn’t was because no one can break my World Record High Score. Haters gonna hate. Can’t wait to see the review in the Part 2 vid!
Games I would add to the list: Batman, Bucky O' Hare, Chip 'n Dale, Dragon Quest 3, Final Fantasy, Guardian Legend, Little Nemo, Little Samson, Metroid, Shatterhand, Super C, Tetris. I love the Castlevanias and the Ninja Gaidens but I think their difficulty keeps them from being 5 star for all but the most hardcore/masochistic players.
My pick for obscure 5-star game: Magic of Scherazade. It's the only game I know of from any generation where you can take out loans to take night classes, bribe the professor to pass you, have a loan shark come kill you for not paying off your loan, continue, and pay off your loan by going into the past, planting a money tree, and returning to the present. Also, the plot twist at the very end is my favorite plot twist of any 8-bit game ever, and the only puzzle I can think of in a JRPG that makes you pay attention to the story. :)
Crystalis 100% deserves to be on this list. I'd say maybe Faxanadu as well, though that's a bit iffier -- Crystalis is absolutely 5-star-worthy, while Faxanadu is a bit more up in the air. Still, I think it's worth a mention. Also, despite the difficulty... Battletoads. Battletoads is a 5-star game, through and through. It's a game most of us have never beaten, but I really think everybody loved TRYING to beat it back in the day. I know I sure did! And it was crazy fun to play 2-player. And of course, WAY more Sunsoft games deserve to be on this list. Everybody and their mother is going to suggest Batman, so allow me to suggest Gremlins 2: The New Batch instead. There's absolutely nothing about that game that ISN'T 5-star-worthy -- it's an unsung Sunsoft title, but a deserving choice for any list of top-shelf NES games nonetheless.
Duck tales & ghostbusters after school after climbing through the kitchen window with a bowl of cereal or PB & J! Can’t remember if it was channel 23 or 29
If there is one thing that Nintendo absolutely nailed, it was making Kirby a simple to play series, but also super entertaining so you dont care how easy it is.
John Riggs Here... Broseph! How could that Punk author not award a 5☆ to Double Dragon II: The Revenge? I proudly deliver super knee punts to my children and they're almost old enough to play the game and get the reference! I can't wait.
GIJoe 2 The Atlantis factor was a 5 star game easily. The production is phenomenal. The music, the effects, the artwork, the variable path to the end of the game, the revised map system from Bionic Commando.. It was fantastic. Such a great game. That boss music haunts my dreams.
![State of Play | September 24, 2024 [ENGLISH]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/fVs0suPHAX8/mqdefault.jpg)
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and while you're enjoying your Factor meals, check out the 1-star NES games ruclips.net/video/bJ94-tJqaTg/видео.html
That's tough. However, RC ProAm, Street Fighter 2010, River City Ransom, Super Mario Bros 3, and yes, you already know I'll put Astyanax on my list.
I LOVE PAC MAN AND MISS PAC MAN AND PACMANIA TOO AND RAD RACER ONE AND TWO AND THE ADVENTURE OF BAYOU BILLY AND HOGAN ALLEY AND DUCK HUNT AND MARIO BROTHERS TOO MY FRIEND
You forget, double dragon 2, ninja gaiden, castlevania, castlevania iii, tetris, metroid, blaster master, super c, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - the arcade game, batman, bionic commando, battletoads, chip n Dale - rescue rangers, and life force
@@lldjslim YOU ARE RIGHT TOO MY FRIEND AND I AM SORRY ABOUT THAT TOO AND I WILL TRY NOT TO FORGET NEXT TIME TOO MY FRIEND
Kunio-kun no nekketsu soccer league is a 6 star game.
Can't believe Double Dragon II didn't make the list. Probably my favourite NES game of all time. So much fun to play and tough to beat.
Double Dragon 2 is top 10 on the system. In contention for greatest beat ‘em up of all time
@@harrimanpd agreed! It was a hidden gem when I tried it but turns out every other kid knew it'd be a classic too lol. Also great that it was exclusive to the NES and not an average arcade port like Double Dragon.
Soundtrack is killer too!
I came here for this comment
None of them really cut it for me. The music is killer, but the game play is tough to get used to. I always lose all my lives with the platforming sections. They are really difficult for the silliest reason
@@opaljk4835rewind feature on NSO!
The Sunsoft Batman game is the meaning of a 5 star game. And Battle City and Bomberman for me at least. Its very fun when you play with someone.
Agree 100% about Batman, such an underrated game and with a perfect difficulty setting
Pretty much anything sunsoft or Capcom on the nes is 5 star my guy. They were the gold standard
I like it its a great game i give it 4 stars because Batman just punches if he had some kicks in his combo attacks or a jump kick it would be 5 stars...lol he did have gadgets though so 4.5 stars
Sunsoft Batman was so awesome.
Batman and Blaster Master, both Sunsoft treasures, should have made the list for five star games.
Castlevania 3 is missing. That game pushed the NES hardware to the limit. Fun game, (Grant is so much fun to mess around with) lots of replay value, looks beautiful and has an amazing soundtrack (the Japanese version is even better!)
Agreed. Amazing game, and I don’t Castlevania IV came close to topping it.
Yes indeed. Best Castlevania followed by Rondo and Bloodlines.
Aside from the "Metroidvania" titles, Castlevania 3 is my favorite in the franchise (I like it even more than the 16-bit games).
I would much rather play the JP version. The US version has way too many changes that add artificial difficulty.
Not sure it was 5 stars though
Bionic Commando. Platforming without a jump button. Few greater thrills on nes than swinging from a cliff on this game and perfectly landing the hook. Its quite an adventure, with abundant continues in the commando inspired bonus stages. Its also remained fairly affordable for new collectors.
I agree with Bionic Commando. I'd also throw Super DodgeBall into the S tier.
Yeah dodge ball is still really fun i was always a huge fan of maniac mansion even paper boy if you're playing with friends is great
Bionic Commando definitely. That game aged very well. I was impressed with the Rearmed Remake in that despite the stuff they changed and added to it, the DNA of that game was like 95% the OG NES game. It’s crazy to think but it’s almost like the original game never got its proper due until the remake was released.
I love Bionic Commando. In fact, that was one of the NES games I owned as a kid. I played it many times and beaten it several times.
i got an NES from one of my dad's bandmates when he was cleaning out his attic before he moved out of state. it came with a giant stack of carts. Bionic Commando, Ninja Gaiden and Super Mario Bros 3 are the titles that made me fall in love with video games.
Hands dow its Crystalis for me. It had everything I wanted from a game. Amaizing music, great sprites and a compelling story for a kid (and NES). So much fun to play with responsive controles.
Had it come out just a couple of years earlier it would be remembered better.
Arguably better than LoZ. Yeah, I said it.
I have a friend who really loves Zelda II. I keep telling him to play Crystalis & Battle of Olympus, which are 2 more great 2D action RPGs for the NES
My friend uploaded that on his channel Gameplay Unknown.
Ugh. I gotta edit my list again lol. This game is legitimately amazing
Been playing since 1990. One of the best rpgs ever made on any system.
The Guardian Legend is definitely a 5-star for me, combining the top-down Zelda-like Adventure with the awesomeness that is Compile's shoot-em-up gameplay makes it an absolutely unforgettable game for me
One of the best
You should check out Zanac, if you don't already know about it. I don't know what the connection is, but it is basically just the fighter pilot part of Guardian Legend... only much harder!
My favorite video game of all time! I agree with you 100%
Definitely an honorable mention. I did really like this game.
Based. Amazing soundtrack too.
The guardian legend, Little Samson and Star tropics all spring to mind as 5star games.
Star Tropics is top ten on the system
The invisible enemies kinda ruin startropics for me
Chip n' Dale (which I played a lot with my brother) and Panic Restaurant are my 5 star picks since they were the games I played in my childhood.
Those are both legitimately good games
Too bad that Panic Restaurant is so f****in expensive. It cost $899 at my local retro video game store! Same thing on Ebay! How am I going to experience such a unique and creative game?
Castlevania. A timeless action platformer, and the first home console game I’d ever played that really created such a strong sense of place abs mood with its art direction and music.
Final fantasy took up a lot of my time as a kid. I would try out different group combinations. Get the rat tail and upgrade their look, so much fun.
Same story here. One of my absolute all time favorites since the year it launched. I guess if I had to be objective, a big criticism is that half the spells are broken.
Also much of the game is plagiarized (IMO) from TSR's AD&D, although that doesn't make it any less fun.
So many classics listed here... the NES will always hold my heart!
I’ll jump on the sunsoft train Batman and Blaster Master absolutely deserve to be 5 star games!
Batman for sure. To me blaster master is too awkward but still high quality
I gave blaster master 4 stars for one reason. Amazing game but no saves or continues. It can take hours to get through.
blaster Master ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Blaster Master is 5 star, easily. I'm surprised it's not on this list.
True, but so few people know about it.
criminal that it isn't
@@awesomemccoolname7111few people know about it? Really? Blaster Master was pretty popular back in the day. I guess it’s been forgotten to time.
Ducktales and Base Wars were both so much fun for me at like 10 years old. 5 stars for this ole boy
Street Fighter 2010 for me. I remember buying it at a Toys R Us back in the day because the box cover art was cool. Such an unexpected surprise. It's Capcom of course. They rocked it back in the day, and still do.
Metroid, Castlevania, Ninja Gaiden and Gradius all deserve to be up there
blaster Master
My top 5 has to be (and purely out of nostalgia)
1. Gun.Smoke
2. Chip&Dale: Rescue Rangers
3. Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles
4. Track and Field 2
5. Nintendo World Cup
and a 6th one because my girlfriend insists on adding it
6. Ice Climber
Gunsmoke . Thank you . I thought I was the only one
@@fozz1982
Yeah, it might not be a fantastic game, but it sure is an iconic one! I don't think I've met anyone (at least here in Sweden) that had a NES back in the day and who hadn't played it.
I talked to Pat himself about this one - TETRIS! He said there’s no two player so it just misses five stars but I don’t think that’s enough to not give this five stars. A masterpiece to this day.
The Tengen version had both competitive and cooperative multiplayer. The co-op is absolutely awesome and hilarious to play, especially when drunk. Five stars for sure!
@@theartofpiano6405 The Nintendo/BPS version is the go-to for competitive play
I'd nominate Metal Storm, Gargoyle's Quest II, Shatterhand, and Castlevania III.
Bionic commando, zelda 2, batman, castlevania,... Too many great games!
Bionic Commando is fantastic.
Those should have all made the list over Guerilla War, Pirates, Maniac Mansion Ms. Pac-Man, imo.
Bucky O'Hare one of if not the best action platformer on the console. Sure it's pretty difficult but fun all the same and being able to play as Dead-Eye Duck, Jenny, Blinky, and Willy DuWitt made it that much more enjoyable.
Batman feels like it should be 5 star.
I think there are several games missing in this list. I should add these:
- Battletoads
- The Lone Ranger
- Castlevania III
- Shatterhand
- Batman: Return of the Joker
- Vice Project Doom
- Ninja Gaiden II
- Tiny Toons
- Adventure Island II
- Tetris
- TMNT III: The Manhattan Project
I'll be waiting your next video.
Greetings from Mexico, John Riggs. :)
You forgot to mention what makes baseball stars so good- The ability to create your own league and teams.
Baseball Stars was a personal favorite for me as well, since I didn't like video game baseball... UNTIL Baseball Stars.
Life Force. Maybe not the greatest shmup ever, but up there. Also, Double Dragon II.
Life Force needs more love!
Legacy of the Wizard is one of my favorites but no one ever talks about it.
I love Legacy of the Wizard. Probably 4 stars though.
I have that game. Never could finish it. Surprised someone mentioned it!
Crystalis. Without a doubt, Crystalis is a 5 star Action RPG that influenced later Action RPGs in a very significant way. If you love the Mana games, Crystalis did it first. Please make sure this game makes into your next video.
Mega Man 3 is easily a 5 star game. I've always considered it better than Mega Man 2. The play mechanics were vastly improved, and there's the addition of Rush.
I'm a Mega Man 4 guy myself.
Kickle Cubicle is a 5 to me. Didn’t own it back in the day, but was my favorite rental on the NES. Great memories!
I'd say Rygar is a 5-star game if you play it with save states. The only thing holding it back from being 5-star is that you can't save on original hardware. It felt like a true grand adventure in 8-bit form and only the Legend of Zelda felt the same way for me on the NES.
Playing it on the Switch online for the first time and it definitely a five star game. I couldn’t imagine playing it without the ability to save though.
I loved Rygar for the NES, for me it is up there with Metroid & Castlevania 2 as not just a great game, but an early example of a metroidvania. The lack of saves is an issue, but its not the end of the world since you can beat the game in about 5 hours. The main negative point against the game for me was, you could softlock yourself if you entered a boss room underpowered. When you die & continue, you respawn in the boss room, and you could wind up in a situation where you are too weak to beat the boss but locked in the room. This happened to me several times with area 2's spider boss. The strategy is, early on, to head to the sky area with the robots & grind them over & over until it only takes like 1-2 shots to kill them. Then you'll be strong enough to complete areas 2 & 3 before heading back to 4 with the grapple hook.
Rygar for nes was pretty epic. Did u know that the 2005 rygar reboot was a HUGE inspiration for sonys God of War series
GG
Great game. That was definitely one of those games where you had to leave the damn Nintendo on overnight and hope it was still on the next day to keep playing.
I absolutely loved Shatterhand. Great mechanic where the player collects different rune blocks to get different robot allies. It had some of the best music in my opinion.
Crystalis, Destiny of an Emperor, Final Fantasy, Kirby's Adventure, Turtles 3: Manhattan Project, Castlevania 3, Mega Man 3, Super Mario trilogy, Klax. Are some of my all-time favorites.
Out of the entire NES library, Maniac Mansion is the game I have the most nostalgia for. (And Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link) I can remember calling EVERY local game store in our phone book, trying to hunt down a copy of Maniac Mansion. Sadly, no one had it. It wasn't until I randomly called a Pawn shop, when I found it. Then I had to convince my mom to drive me 2 hours away to get it.
That was the BEST DAY EVER!!!
I don't think too many people would agree with me, however I consider *Pinball Quest* a 5 star game. The story aspect makes it a truly unique pleasure for that small demographic that was looking for a game to combine an rpg and a pinball game.
It's a fantastic game. Pinball RPG? Nothing else like it. One of the most original NES titles. It's actually gotten a bit of criticism. I can't understand why. It's a really fun game with creative design and gameplay.
@@AngryCalvin If I still had an NES and the cartridge I would wear the cartridge out. I would love to see a modern VR version.
Off the top of my head, we’re missing Castlevania 3, Bionic Commando, Double Dragon II, Final Fantasy, Super Dodge ball, the Guardian Legend, Ninja Gaiden, Metroid and Faxanadu. And while they may not be five star all around, some games are five star in my heart and nostalgia: Castlevania 2, the TMNT games, double dragon 1 and 3, bad dudes, crystalis, tecmo world wrestling. And there’s so many other greats. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Felix the Cat is absolutely a 5-star game - especially if Duck Tales is. It's easy to pick up, great controls, catchy music, and most importantly, it's an NES game you actually beat!
It’s a great one
It's so crazy it's been over 20 years since I've played River City Ransom but when ur guy enters a shop and sits to eat I can hear the music PERFECTLY in my head. I literally thought the music was actually playing for a sec. Wow
That's just NES music for you. My nephew has played Duck Hunt exactly once but he remembers all the jingles!
Any of the Technos games have gladly occupied countless hours of my childhood. Super Spike V'Ball, Super Dodgeball, World Cup Soccer... generally dislike sports games, but LOVE these ones! 5 stars in my book!
Super Dodge Ball was amazing. So much fun to destroy the enemies with power shots.
And I'm still enjoying the Kunio/Double Dragon games to this day. I loved them with Technos and Arc System Works has done a really good job with modern versions.
The NES games i played the most:
-RBI Baseball
-Tecmo Bowl
-TMNT 2
-DuckTales
-Super Mario 3
-North vs. South
-Blaster Master
-Tetris
-Maniac Mansion
-Punch-Out!!
-Double Dribble
-Excitebike
Bucky O Hare is a game that doesn’t get talked about enough. Amazing game and absolutely a 5 star hidden gem.
I played and beat Megaman 1-6 for the first time last year. Those being my only Megaman games so far I felt that 2, 3 and 5 were the most fun for me. 2 & 3 were on par with each other in my book. Hope to play more Megaman soon.
Your vids are so happy and upbeat. I even enjoy the FACTOR meals portion. Great list of 5 star games too!
He did it again. 8 month old smiled the month you started talking! you got a new fan!
Dragon Warrior IV is the best of the four NES DW/DQ games because it was truly epic in scope for the time, where a total of FIVE storylines all come together on the same world with all kinds of extra mechanics and details thrown in, not to mention the DQ monster designs are some of the best out there. As for other NES games I would consider 5-star: Bubble Bobble (arcade is better but NES is not brutally hard), The Guardian Legend, Mega Man III (best MM music alongside MM2 plus introduction of Protoman), and Super C.
Whomp 'Em is a 5 ⭐ game, for sure.
What sets Baseball Stars apart from all other NES baseball games is that you can hire/fire players, play full seasons, and use money won from games to improve the stats of your players. Very deep experience for an NES title.
Sky Shark would be a definite 5 star for me. It's a SHMUP with amazing control and music!
No Tetris? No Dr. Mario? Double Dragon II? Final Fantasy?
For me Castlevania 3, Goonies 2, and Shadowgate are definitely 5 stars.
Dr. Mario, Double Dragon 2, Megaman 3, Zelda 2, Super C, Tetris, Jackal, Lifeforce, Super Dodge Ball, Danny Sullivan's Indy Heat, Blades of Steel, Bubble Bobble, Batman, Gun.Smoke, Bionic Commando, Castlevania, Castlevania 3, Blaster Master, Ninja Gaiden, Smash TV.
All 5 star games that weren't mentioned.
The Guardian Legend would be on my list!
I'd add Sunsoft Batman, Super Dodgeball, and Castlevania 3. Maybe Shatterhand?
The Super Mario Bros. trilogy is the reason the NES became such a sensation
The nes was a sensation long before Mario bro 2 and 3 came out.
Nah. Castlevania, Metroid and Zelda were the games I was obsessing over in the early life of the NES. They helped tremendously, but the NES was always a LOT more than just SMB.
They also have Duck Hunt with the gun that contributed to its success. Many launch titles like Excitebike, Kung Fu, Pinball, the first Super Mario Bros, among others, contributed to its success. Many other games contributed to its success.
@@leadbones Battle City(the tank game) and Bomberman for me. Aside from the first SMB. And of course THE Batman game.
@@leadbones I didn’t like Zelda, castlevania or Metroid
Guardian Legend, Tecmo Cup Soccer Game, Ninja Gaiden/Shadow Warrior, Mega Man 3, Solar Jetman, Solstice or Double Dragon 2 are some of the games who I'm missing in that list.
cool another Solstice fan!! It's one of my favorites!
Tetris, Battletoads, the Ultra version of TMNT, Snake rattle n roll, Rainbow islands,Metroid, and Doctor Mario would be on my list.
I love love love that both Pirates and Maniac Mansion made their lists. Highly underrated, and as a kid, they were engrossing like few other NES games were.
I can think of several that weren't here, but the stand-out omissions in my mind: Castlevania III, Battletoads, Metal Storm, Blaster Master, Crystalis, and Mega Man III (IMO the best Blue Bomber). And while one could argue that the format of games like Pirates or Maniac is a bit archaic, all of these (even Crystalis) have a modern feel and hold up gameplay-wise.
Come on John, Kirby’s adventure was the second game!! Let’s get that retro knowledge going lol
JohnRiggs is the absolute GOAT!!! I've watched every single one of your videos and this one is the best yet! Let's Look at Every 5-Star NES Game was mind-blowing. You truly have an eye for detail and an amazing ability to breakdown the best titles from the 8-bit era. I've been toying with the idea of putting together a RUclips channel and this video made me realize that I need to take the plunge. Thanks for the inspiration, John!
Timeless classics, John.
I am continually amazed by how many people love DuckTales. I had the game as a kid (still have it, in fact), and absolutely loved it, but literally no one else I knew at the time had it, or particularly liked it when they played mine. Definitely a five star game IMHO.
Felix the Cat is five stars to me. Like Ducktales, it's on the easy side, but it's very enjoyable from start to finish.
IDK about 5 stars, but Felix the Cat is definitely underrated. It's a solid, above average Marioesque platformer.
TMNT II - The Arcade Game, Mega Man 3 and Chip`n`Dale are 3 more Games that I also would personally put on a 5 Star List.
All great games!
The Clash At Demonhead is a 5-Star for me. It’s super challenging, but so much fun! I used to imagine I was playing an Anime
I agree 5 stars
My 5 star game is bionic commando. I wish it was a tiny bit more difficult but it's fine I'll play it again and again. It's unique, engaging, and the music is great too.
Always nice to see Pirates given the credit it deserves. My favourite NES game when I was a kid, I couldn't stop playing.
I love that it was open-ended and gave you a plethora of possible endings, depending on how successful you are. I know later releases go more into the storyline of trying to save and avenge your family, but I kind of prefer this version that doesn't feel at all linear.
@@legionarybooks13 As a stupid kid, my crew would always mutiny at some point. I'm pretty sure now it's because I didn't understand that splitting the plunder between them made them happy! So I never saw endings! :D I
still couldn't stop playing, though! :D
I never played it.. ontil now!
Another great title by the developer was silent service. Similar experience but on a wwii submarine.. its best to start out 2 player then go single so you can learn the ship before juggling controllers
Master Blaster! It's also my favorite book based on an NES game from the Worlds of Power series.
Super mario 2 is not a 5
Its 5/7
The Guardian Legend should be a 5 star NES game. It’s great and definitely underrated.
crystalis!
There's a lot of 5-Star games left out of that list, like.... Kick Master, Isolated Warrior, TMNT 3, RECCA, Gradius 2, GunNec, Crisis Force, Super Spy Hunter, Metal Storm, Super Dodge Ball, Castlevania 3, Bucky O'Hare, Blaster Master, Blades of steel, Pro Wrestling. And that's just off the top of my head. I'm sure there's more.. Anyway, I really enjoy these videos. Thanks for taking the time to make them.🤩👍👍👍👍👍❤️❤️❤️
Metroid, Megaman 3, Battle of Olympus, Zelda 2, Shadow of the Ninja (aka Blue Shadow) and Solar Jetman would be the only NES games I would rate 5 out of 5 stars.
I love Metroid, don't get me wrong, but it's way too flawed to be 5 star imo. I do think Super Metroid was a 5 star game though. I was admittedly a bit too young to play Metroid when it was first released so I'm unsure about how people felt about it at the time. It was definitely a first of it's kind.
There are a lot more than that!
@@xenos_n. I was 7, maybe 8 when I played Metroid the first time. Up until then I had only played games that was light hearted and colorful like the Mario games and Tetris. Or games that was about adventure like Zelda of Castlevania, kind of dark at times sure, but still fairly cheerful.
Metroid had this dark, strange, alien atmosphere where you delve into the depths of a hostile planet, all alone and lost in a maze of tunnels filled with strange enemies. Everything you meet wants to kill you and resources were scarce. There were no truly safe areas where you could rest and recover. You felt underpowered, overwhelmed and always had the feeling you were somewhere no human had any reason to ever be.
The feeling of horror and dread that Metroid created at the time, for someone who had only played cheerful games before, was incredible and oh so exciting for a young child who had never experienced anything remotely similar before.
No other game has managed to recreate that feeling that Metroid managed to create, and that is why it is definite 5 star game for me.
I haven’t played many NES games but out of the dozen or so I have played, my three favorite games by far are Castlevania, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Batman!
Tiny Toon Adventures is really good too. I like it ALMOST as much as those three.
Castlevania III, Double Dragon II, Metal Gear, Rockin Cats, Super Dodge Ball, Ninja Gaiden II, Mega Man III, Batman, Ice Hockey, Chip And Dale Rescue Rangers...out of all of these Rockin Cats is like a forgotten classic because it came out so late in the NES's run.
Danny Sullivan's Indy Heat...it's like Super Off Road with real tracks and pit stops...awesome stuff and I only discovered it in 2016.
Also, it's the best 4 player game on the nes
Bucky O Hare is definitely a 5 star game. It's probably overlooked because it's a late gen title and very expensive. Thankfully, I bought it for 5 bucks in the 90s and hung on to it.
I’ve legitimately played Blades of Steel throughout every phase of my life. That is absolutely a five star game. Beyond iconic, and to this day will elicit rivalries between friends that are hard to surpass in any competitive medium.
I always preferred Ice Hockey but Blades of Steel is excellent!
The problem is that NHL94 was so good that everyone forget everything before it.
Blades of Steel deserves more love.
I have 20 rated 5 stars as well. They are:
1. Contra
2. Mega Man 2
3. The Legend of Zelda
4. Maniac Mansion
5. Jackal
6. Ninja Gaiden
7. Super Mario 2
8. DuckTales
9. Tecmo Super Bowl
10. Little Samson
11. Super Mario Bros.
12. RBI Baseball
13. Castlevania
14. Tetris
15. 1943: The Battle of Midway
16. Bionic Commando
17. Gun.Smoke
18. Shatterhand
19. Gun Nac
20. Little Nemo: The Dream Master
Dragon Warrior IV is still in my all time top 5 games to this day. In fact, I literally just played through it again on an emulator last week. Still holds up for me. For anyone who is wondering, my personal top 5 (in no order) is this: Dragon Warrior IV, Ultima Underworld, Batman Arkham Asylum, Mass Effect Legendary Edition, Star Wars Jedi Outcast
Yes to Kirby, Contra, SMB, SMB3, Zelda, Mega Man II (has the best music), River City, Gimmick!,
But where’s Wario’s Woods, Batman?
Baseball Stars is ABSOLUTELY a 5 Star game. The key thing you missed is the RPG aspect of it, where you play league games and buy and sell players. That game is a legend.
Seems an oddly short list...there's no:
- Adventures of Lolo
- Batman
- Blaster master
- Bionic commando
- Castlevania 1 or 3
- Crystalis
- Guardian Legend
- Gun-Nac
- Jackal
- Lifeforce
- Little Nemo
- Little Samson
- Metroid
- Ninja gaiden 1,2 or 3
- R.C. Pro Am
- Shatterhand
- StarTropics
- Tetris
...all those are worthy of consideration
Dusty Diamond's All-Star Softball is still my favorite arcade sports game of all time. The ridiculous characters, their superpowers, and the quirky rules from the different fields are perfect.
Gotta have Diablo on every team.
5 star game 10 stars if it had a season mode I hope somebody hacks it
Bionic Commando is my pic for the most fun game on the NES. Its 5 star gameplay makes it the Factor Box of NES games.
Your Factor plug was so well done and creative I wasn't tempted to skip ahead. Seriously well done John!
Blaster master
Jackal
Zelda 1 and 2
Double dragon 2
Batman
Battletoads
Metroid
How these aren't on the list is perplexing to say the least
Yeah, Double Dragon II
Back to the Future should have been a 5-Star in Pat’s book. The only reason it wasn’t was because no one can break my World Record High Score. Haters gonna hate. Can’t wait to see the review in the Part 2 vid!
Obviously Chip & Dale: Rescue Rangers should be in a 5 star game list. It's one of the best games ever made.
I rented Baseball Stars so many times. Besides great baseball gameplay (for it’s time) the unique teams kept me coming back. Ghastly Monster team FTW
Games I would add to the list: Batman, Bucky O' Hare, Chip 'n Dale, Dragon Quest 3, Final Fantasy, Guardian Legend, Little Nemo, Little Samson, Metroid, Shatterhand, Super C, Tetris. I love the Castlevanias and the Ninja Gaidens but I think their difficulty keeps them from being 5 star for all but the most hardcore/masochistic players.
My pick for obscure 5-star game: Magic of Scherazade.
It's the only game I know of from any generation where you can take out loans to take night classes, bribe the professor to pass you, have a loan shark come kill you for not paying off your loan, continue, and pay off your loan by going into the past, planting a money tree, and returning to the present.
Also, the plot twist at the very end is my favorite plot twist of any 8-bit game ever, and the only puzzle I can think of in a JRPG that makes you pay attention to the story. :)
Crystalis 100% deserves to be on this list.
I'd say maybe Faxanadu as well, though that's a bit iffier -- Crystalis is absolutely 5-star-worthy, while Faxanadu is a bit more up in the air. Still, I think it's worth a mention.
Also, despite the difficulty... Battletoads. Battletoads is a 5-star game, through and through. It's a game most of us have never beaten, but I really think everybody loved TRYING to beat it back in the day. I know I sure did! And it was crazy fun to play 2-player.
And of course, WAY more Sunsoft games deserve to be on this list. Everybody and their mother is going to suggest Batman, so allow me to suggest Gremlins 2: The New Batch instead. There's absolutely nothing about that game that ISN'T 5-star-worthy -- it's an unsung Sunsoft title, but a deserving choice for any list of top-shelf NES games nonetheless.
My picks are Contra Super C, Megaman 2, Flintstones, Little Samson and 1943.
Duck tales & ghostbusters after school after climbing through the kitchen window with a bowl of cereal or PB & J! Can’t remember if it was channel 23 or 29
Cobra triangle, Total recall, kabuki Quantum Fighter, Snake rattle and roll and Soltice NES 🙏🏽
If there is one thing that Nintendo absolutely nailed, it was making Kirby a simple to play series, but also super entertaining so you dont care how easy it is.
Love these kind of videos Mr Riggs keep ‘em rolling
And I get I like from the master? Life is good 😎
John Riggs Here... Broseph! How could that Punk author not award a 5☆ to Double Dragon II: The Revenge? I proudly deliver super knee punts to my children and they're almost old enough to play the game and get the reference! I can't wait.
A game that not only does not get enough love but is also a 5 star game in my opinion is Whomp Em.
Absolutamente
Zelda 2, Castlevania 3, Guardian Legend, Bucky O'Hare, Mega Man 3, Mega Man 6, Dragon Warrior 3, Tengen Tetris, Rockin Kats, Gun-Nac, Vice Project Doom, TMNT 3, Blaster Master, etc etc
GIJoe 2 The Atlantis factor was a 5 star game easily. The production is phenomenal. The music, the effects, the artwork, the variable path to the end of the game, the revised map system from Bionic Commando.. It was fantastic. Such a great game. That boss music haunts my dreams.