When it launched in 1985, the Nintendo Entertainment System did so with a platformer. People are still making platformers for the NES, so there’s no denying how effective the console’s hardware is at handling the 8-bit style of gameplay. Throughout its life, hundreds of NES games were released in the United States, and over 1,300 worldwide. We took a look at the best platformers on the system and came up with 10 that stood out, though we limited ourselves to a single entry per franchise. We considered an aggregate of contemporary critics’ reviews, overall popularity, and impact on the genre. They’re not ranked and are presented in no particular order.
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1) Metal Storm
Metal Storm came late in the NES lifecycle, arriving the same year as the Super Nintendo. As a result, not as many people played it, which is unfortunate, as it features some fun mechanics. The action-platformer centers around the player character’s ability to reverse gravity, which is needed to navigate the levels’ various challenges. It was a commercial failure, likely due to its late arrival on the console, but Metal Storm received widespread acclaim. It enjoyed renewed interest via retro enthusiasts and was re-released in 2019, so if you never played it on the NES, you can play it now, thanks to Retro Bit.
2) Batman: The Video Game
A movie tie-in game is rarely worth a single playthrough, but that’s not the case with Batman: The Video Game. It was released alongside the 1989 Batman film, and is easily one of the best DC platformers of the 8-bit era. Batman can wall-jump, use three weapons, including the Batarang, and fight all manner of enemies. The game was released alongside the film, but doesn’t align with its plot, making it primarily a standalone title. Regardless, the movie’s popularity helped boost sales, so plenty of folks had the opportunity to play Batman: The Video Game when it was released.
3) Bionic Commando
While the franchise doesn’t get much attention these days, when Bionic Commando hit the NES in 1988, it was a game-changer. It’s a quasi-sequel of the 1987 arcade game of the same name, but it is unique on the NES. The game’s mechanics include a mechanical arm and grappling gun, allowing the player character, Ladd, to swing or pull himself towards objects and platforms. Gameplay sees Ladd progress through stages, finding new equipment that helps him reach the end. Bionic Commando was an innovative platformer that changed basic movement in fun and exciting ways, and it launched a small franchise.
4) Ninja Gaiden
The Ninja Gaiden franchise launched in arcades and on the NES in 1988, debuting the hack-and-slash platformer set in a retro-futuristic world. The player controls Ryu Hayabusa, who is on a quest to the United States to avenge his father’s murder. Gameplay is similar to some Metroidvania titles, and it includes 20 levels filled with all manner of enemies you can dispatch with a katana. The game was noteworthy for its elaborate cutscenes, detailing its story beyond what many NES titles ever attempted. Ninja Gaiden spawned a multimedia franchise that continues to this day, as Ninja Gaiden 4 launched in 2025.
5) Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins
If you felt like punishing yourself back in the day, you could always fire up Ghosts ‘n Goblins, which is one of the hardest NES games of all time. The NES port is similar to the arcade version, as it features the same levels, mechanics, and characters. In it, the player controls Sir Arthur, a knight on a quest to slaughter all manner of supernatural baddies to save Princess Prin-Prin from the evil Astaroth. The difficulty comes in the form of an unending onslaught of enemies that only allow for two hits before death, requiring a level restart if you haven’t hit a checkpoint. If you manage to beat it, you have to do it all over again, but with greater difficulty. While punishing, to be sure, Ghosts ‘n Goblins is an undeniably well-made platformer, and one of the best “Nintendo Hard” games on the console.
6) Kirby’s Adventure
While Kirby’s Dream Land was an excellent platformer on the Game Boy, its successor, Kirby’s Adventure, became an instant classic on the NES. In the game, the player controls Kirby, who can eat enemies to steal their powers, and he must travel through Dream Land to fix the Star Rod while fighting through all manner of enemies. The game was touted for its excellent controls and mechanics, especially the copy ability, which was absent in Kirby’s first outing. Since its release, Kirby’s Adventure has been re-released and remade, including a Game Boy Advance version with multiplayer.
7) Contra
While Contra made its debut in arcades in 1987, it arrived on the NES the following year, which is where most people got their hands on it. Contra isn’t only a fantastic run-and-gun platformer, but it’s also the game most people associate with the legendary Konami Code, which grants 30 lives when entered on the intro screen. While difficult, this made it easier for players to finish the game, which was an excellent multiplayer platformer, as two players could work together to run through its levels and beat Contra. It’s one of those games often cited as one of the best on the console, and it’s easily one of the best action platformers on the NES.
8) Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse
The NES featured three mainline Castlevania games, and every player has their favorite. The third, Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse, is often listed as the best of the three, though this is certainly a hotly contested assertion. Dracula’s Curse is a prequel that pits Trevor Belmont (Simon’s ancestor) against Dracula and his evil supernatural forces. Unlike its predecessor, Dracula’s Curse is more of an action-platformer, eschewing the RPG elements of Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest for the same mechanics of the first title in the franchise. Because of its popularity, Dracula’s Curse has been re-released and ported to various systems, and it was adapted into the first two seasons of Netflix’s 2017 Castlevania series.
9) Mega Man 2
There aren’t many franchises that are as consistently good as Mega Man, and there were 11 mainline titles, six of which came out on the NES. Of those, Mega Man 2 was the most impactful, taking what worked in the first game, which wasn’t incredibly successful, and improving on it in every way possible. It’s set just after Mega Man, features gameplay tweaks and improvements to graphics and sound, and was a hit. The game sold more than 1.5 million units, making it the second-best-selling game in the franchise. For many fans, Mega Man 2 is considered to be one of the best platformers on the NES.
10) Super Mario Bros. 3
While Super Mario Bros. helped put Nintendo on the map, making it the 8-bit console to beat throughout the 1980s, the threequel is arguably a better game. Super Mario Bros. 3 took everything from the first game and made it bigger and better, adding new mechanics, power-ups, a world map, and more. It established several essential platforming elements that influenced the genre ever since, and was easily one of the best platformers on the NES. The game was included with an NES bundle and became one of the best-selling NES games, selling more than 17 million copies.
What’s your favorite platformer on the NES? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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