NES Games almost every 80s kid played

I’ve written a lot about the best NES games, the hardest NES games, the most quintessential NES games… Nintendo’s NES was—and still is—my favorite gaming console. So I write about it often! But since starting my eBay store, I’ve noticed certain games that pop up again and again. 

These are typically cheap games and surprisingly few are the long-lasting legacy games you probably think of right away. Honestly I was kind of surprised by how often these games get bought and sold on eBay. They’re the games that are almost impossible to keep in stock, even though they are bulk commons. Kinda blew my mind, actually.

So in strictly arbitrary order, here are the top NES games that almost every 80s kid played. And if you think I’m wrong, there’s a comment section down there. I’m dying to hear what games you think I’m missing, and what games helped shape your childhood.

1. Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt

Let’s start with the obvious. If you owned an NES, you almost certainly had this combo cart. Early adopters might have ended up with the Super Mario Bros. single, and/or the Duck Hunt single if they purchased the Zapper separately.

Almost every collection I purchase has one of these carts in it. Likewise, every console bundle I sell has one. And yet, it is the most popular single cartridge in my store, typically selling for around $13 after shipping. I was having so much trouble stocking these I had to raise the price by a dollar. But don’t worry. I’ll bring it back down once I run out.

2. Top Gun

I tried this game once as a kid. It was in the demo station at Walmart. And being the enthusiastic gamer boi I was (and maaaaaaaybe still am heh), I expected to have a heap of fun playing it while my parents shopped. I also thought it was weird that nobody was already there playing it. After a few minutes, I figured out why…

That’s not to say Top Gun is a bad game. For its time, it was alright. But it definitely was repetitive and lacked the playability of the most popular games from that era.

3. Tetris

This game was hugely popular. It had broad appeal for all ages. Even adults. Makes sense. There’s no kids’ movie tie-in, no licensed cartoon characters. No characters at all, in fact. The graphics were simple shapes which allowed for some really clean-looking graphics. 

And of course, the reason Tetris had such appeal was that it is—pixel for pixel—one of the greatest games of all time. In my opinion, at least. It has everything you like in a video game. It’s satisfyingly easy to learn and the difficulty ramp is shallow enough to give even n00bs a sense of accomplishment in the beginning. But seasoned players can adjust the difficulty, giving even the most hardcore gamers a run for their money.

This one certainly isn’t as popular as a few others on this list, but it definitely earned its spot.

4. Bayou Billy

Like Top Gun, Bayou Billy has plenty of detractors. Lots of hate. I’ve posted about this game on Twitter (now called “X” by a few) and invariably hear responses akin to “throw that in the garbage” or “kill it with fire.”

Not sure why all the hate, really. It’s a pretty decent game that crab-walks the line between genres better than most multi-genre games. It is harder than rocks, so maybe it’s just all the childhood trauma talking.

Regardless, Bayou Billy seems to be constantly coming into the shop and constantly going right back out, impossible to keep in stock. It seems every bit as ubiquitous as Mario or Zelda among retro collectors. Crazy.

5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

There are few-ever cultural phenomena like TMNT. And while the franchise itself has shown incredible longevity, having been re-imagined time and again, the original NES game still remains a one-of-a-kind entry. The follow-up NES games were brawlers, which were fun and all, but I’m an absolute sucker for a good platformer.

Like Top Gun and Bayou Billy, TMNT has taken a lot of flack over the years. This is mostly due to its painful difficulty in the latter half of the game. Most gamers from this era remember the dam level like something of a nightmare. I’ll admit that when I was 7 years old, that level seemed soooo hard. But if you try it now, I think you’ll breeze through that level.

…but the subsequent levels waiting for you on the other side… Those are still total ball-kickers. Especially the final Technodrome hallway leading to the last fight against the Shredder.

6. WWF Wrestlemania

This one might be a little more niche. I felt like the only 80s kid that didn’t care about wrestling, but even I ended up playing this game at friends’ houses. They thought it was great. I still can’t figure it out.

7. Skate or Die

I thought this game was legit. I was wrong.

That’s my opinion, but I don’t think I’m alone. This one sells out every time I get it in stock. I wonder if the adults buying these have the same fond memories as me. I played this at my cousin’s house (he had everything) and the downhill race segments were pretty fun. But the whole rest of the game felt like more luck than anything else.

The sequel, Skate or Die 2, featured a halfpipe stunt game that plays just like a rudimentary Tony Hawk Pro Skater. Before THPS, this was fun as hell. Better by far than anything in Skate or Die. And yet, the first game is the one that seems to have the biggest footprint in nostalgic gamers.

Let’s finish this list with a big one. Super Mario 3 was probably more popular and more widely played, so let’s just pretend it’s on this list. But Super Mario Bros 2 came along at such a perfect time!

Here in the ‘States, we didn’t know the “real” Japanese Mario 2. We thought this was it. And given the popularity of the original, of course we were excited to try the new one! And it’s great! Maybe still my favorite Mario game and certainly unique in the franchise.

This one came out around the time NES was reaching a critical mass, as gamers were adopting it faster and faster. It was the game of the moment and we loved it.

A Bunch More

There are probably a ton more games that made their way through most NES-owning households. Games like Contra, Baseball, Mega Man 2 and Simon’s Quest were also extremely common. So feel free to let me know what I missed. And if any of these have unlocked a core memory for you, you can check out my eBay shop for yourself and pick up a few.

Thanks for reading!