Over 30 NES Games You Were Playing in 1987

Though Nintendo had been out for about a year, it was still establishing itself as THEE system to have at home with great arcade titles and started to slowly introduce more original games to the console. Here are over 30 games you were playing if you had an NES back in 1987.
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[@JohnRiggs]

SUBSCRIBE as when I get my next goal I'll do a video covering 1989

[@janX9]

Zelda took me two years too.

[@JoHnAnDjAnEdOe81]

I really like your hat. You should sell it on your store.

[@mikerossgup]

I have that Mighty Bomb Jack manual if you want it John.

[@leonjohnsonjr3331]

1989 shadowgate

[@JoHnAnDjAnEdOe81]

@@ramrodbldm9876 you sound like someone who hates children. Maybe don't have any.

[@Rinavani]

Love these videos. I’m 41 and this brings back so many good memories!

[@mark6302]

Same!

[@robertanderson2898]

(Ahem) add 3 years to that for me

[@ThePrufessa]

Just turned 40 in August. I'm shocked at how many games I missed out on.

[@mitchmason8386]

I’ll be 47 next month and still have a NES in the entertainment center

[@ThePrufessa]

@@mitchmason8386 my brother and I used to pass our NES back and forth. He's had it for the last few years though.

[@jeanpaulmichell7243]

The way we would share tips and tricks on the playground, bus or during sleepovers as kids was really something, looking back on it now; no internet, just hearing about how to beat a certain boss or what to do in general (Castlevania 2 and Zelda come to mind)... What a great time to be a kid. Great vid man!

[@flyjarrett]

I was 10 in 1987 and this hits the spot for me. I remember not only renting games, but also trading games with my buddies and having sleepovers where we would play games all night. Did anyone else call them Nintendo “tapes?” I remember doing that in the beginning, but it didn’t last long.

[@mark6302]

my aunt used to call them nintendo tapes haha

[@13lake]

I was 10 in 86'. I called them "game" or " cartridge". Yeah, lotta memories.

[@positivecynik]

Same (born ''77). Weekend, rent a game, movie, get a pizza, 2 liter & a buddy to sleepover. Watch Headbanger's Ball until late.

[@kevind4606]

For Christmas in 87 my siblings and I got the NES with SMB, Pro Wrestling, Legend of Zelda and one other game (pretty sure it was either Gumshoe or Nintendo's Baseball ). Zelda blew my tiny mind. The concept of exploration in a video game was such an amazing new concept for us.

[@panzerowl3973]

Gumshoe was an amazing game! I loved how they incorporated the zapper with it. My neighbor had it and I used to borrow it all the time!

[@kevind4606]

@@panzerowl3973 Glad you liked it.. It seems like a lot of the you tube reviewers don't care for it but I enjoyed it. It was the second game I ever beat after SMB.

[@rayrosini8907]

I got the NES in Christmas 87 too with R.O.B. The Robot, Duck Hunt,Gyromite,and Pro Wrestling. I played Pro Wrestling right up to the new year and after Christmas was my birthday and my dad got me Rad Racer which I still love today.

[@PinkyJujubean]

My mom got us Zelda but she ended up playing it so much she could more or less speed run both quests. That was one of those games that just captivated people in a way you don't see now

[@JoeCamarillo]

Great year! Mega Man, Punch Out, Zelda, and remember playing Castlevania and Metroid so much!

[@aldoushuxleysghost]

Hell yeah! '87 was when the NES really started hitting its stride. Still one of the best years in gaming history

[@neilbottles2597]

Wonderful list of games. Goonies 2 and Punchout are def. in my top 10 favorite video games of all time.

[@ajhproductions2347]

The way I remember 1987 is the year of Megaman. Hell, it was the year of NES with how many gems came out! My brother got megaman for his 7th birthday and I remember seeing the cover. The original NES Megaman series were always my favorite. Great gameplay, colorful graphics, and top notch catchy tunes!

[@TheReNesance]

Oh man, so many games that I love: Metroid, Kid Icarus, Wizards &Warriors, Solomon's Key.. I was expecting to see Milon's Secret Castle but I guess that came out the following year..? Anyway, great video, man.. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

[@Ragesauce]

Kid icarus is for sure nostalgia when I think of it, but I also love the difficulty. I think they did it right, it's not a popular opinion, but when I think of NES hard and I want something to scratch that itch, this game is the way to go. It's short, it's interesting, definitely different...and it's so brutal that it feels so damn good when you can breeze through it with skill. I also love the multiple endings, ahead of its time imo.

[@hectormontalvo5565]

I love most of these NES games. I remember when I faced the Great Puma in Pro-Wrestling I quickly threw him out of the ring went out beat him up and got into the ring before the count out and disqualified him fast lol! But in Pouch Out I got to Mike Tyson and have only beaten him once or twice that's it! Great memories from most games. Good showing and cool video John!👉😃👈

[@selbyjohnson5986]

What a great year for the NES! So many classics! I played Pro Wrestling all the time. And of course played through Kid Icarus, Metroid, and Zelda.

[@hiphopexorcist]

Thanks for doing this video, 1987 was definitely the best year for NES! I played 90% of these games. Goonies 2 and Kid Icarus were my favorites. Also played a lot of Pro Wrestling and Punch Out. Lots of nostalgic moments flooded my mind as I watched this video. Thanks for reviving memories of my childhood with this video. Thanks again.

[@mmablaster]

1987 I was playing River Raid, Pitfall and Outlaw on the 2600.

[@scottg7660]

Fantastic as always.

[@czmisfitsfan]

I got my NES on Xmas of '87 along with Excitebike, Metroid, and WrestleMania and a big tub of popcorn with three flavors. That was a great Christmas. I also remember playing Section Z in the arcade. It was awesome.

[@soyburglar77]

I also used to have my parents drop me off at one of our local gas stations in my tiny hometown to play arcade games…and I was always the only 10-12 year old spending my Saturday nights alone with $20 in quarters playing Qbert and Galaga at one store and Shinobi at the other.

[@jamesz28]

Awesome video, John. So many good memories here.

[@bok3rnes425]

Great 1987 Nes List John. Great Review ❤❤❤❤

[@JGKingCrusher]

I was 16, and I got my NES in 86' for babysitting 7 kids for a weekend (yes, I had assistance). Stayed up for 24hrs straight playing Super Mario Bros! Loved my NES!!!!

[@undergroundironentertainment]

The resort that was used in dirty dancing, burnt down last week

[@Raddland]

Music for the NES games in 1987 was interesting as well. It was about a year before composers really started to utilize echo techniques in single channels. Great video and concept. That's a sub.

[@christinestachurski9435]

Excellent video! I didn't get my NES until Christmas of 1990. Up until then, we had the rarity of having 2 arcade cabinets in my step fathers garage - Centipede and Super Pacman. He bought them off someone he knew who rented them out to arcades, and at this time, the arcade scene was starting to die in my part of the world. I got my 1st taste of the NES playing on my uncle's console at his house after school. His house was walking distance from school, so he and my Aunt gave me a key so I could hang out there until my mom could pick me up after work and go home. 1st title's I played were of course, Mario bros, Duck Hunt, along with Maniac Mansion, Contra, 3 Stooges, and Ghouls and Ghosts. The Legend of Zelda was the 1st RPG type game I ever owned and played..think it took me close to a year to beat it, exchanging tips with my Aunt who was playing her copy at the same time. Thank you again for the video. What a trip down memory lane!

[@adammullett]

Just found your channel, love these break downs by year! So good!😊

[@Wheels8504]

Thank you for these videos. I hope you and your family enjoyed Thanksgiving.

[@BlackMoore82]

The five year old me in 1987 was obsessed with The Legend of Kage, probably because it was one of the first three NES' games I played, alongside Balloon Fight and Super Mario Bros.

[@chadfugate564]

in 1988 i was at a friend's house after school and we walked over to his neighbor's house and lo and behold they were playing legend of Zelda on NES. first time i seen an nes. i was hooked. went home and begged my parents to get me one.

[@MTFMuffins]

this series is amazing, thank you!!

[@EvilMyers]

Again thanks for sharing this video, it brought back some memories, now some of these game's I have never heard of, but one game i had long forgotten was The Legend of Kage, but I can't remember if I only played the original arcade or both arcade and NES version. It's a game I don't have, but I will definitely be on the lookout for it

[@tonycoffee7335]

Great videos. Thank you

[@JosiahIsWrite]

It's hazy, but I think 1987 was the year we got our Nintendo (or maybe Christmas 86). Regardless, I certainly played a ton of the games on this video. We had cousins that had a video store so we got free VHS and NES rentals. It was awesome since we got to buy maybe two games a year in a good year.

[@Fluoride_Jones]

I assumed I had more titles from 1987 for my NES, but growing up, I only had "3-D WorldRunner" and "Mike Tyson's Punch-Out." Both really fun games, so I'm not complaining. lol

[@bryanjensen2614]

Thanks for the nostalgia trip John I had so many of these games you listed in 87 Punch Out and Zelda were the ones I couldn't put down.

[@EricAndre615]

Watching this video I realize now that 1987 was the year. 87 is the year I remember the most about the NES era. I'm pretty sure this was the first year I remember the NES (maybe late 86).

[@technologyanimals]

Lighting much better on this video. Good job

[@JohnRiggs]

Same light that's always been in my kitchen, but I'll take it. Thanks!

[@jackschleich9475]

I like how you are a little older than me and have a little more memories to bring things back

[@FreihEitner]

The closest arcade game to Section Z would have been Side Arms.

[@Mike__P]

Woo! Never thought this video would end with the number of ads 🤣 but I loved Athena and Deadly Towers too.

[@GenerationPixel]

I didn't even see an NES in the flesh until 1990, but your vids are alway a great resource for where ro start 😎👍

[@EricAndre615]

I love Section Z and have since back in 1987. It doesn't seem to get talked about a lot. I've almost beaten it, but still haven't completed it. Great game, not enough love.

[@dennisaylen813]

I loved this game as a kid. Lots of memorizing which way to go, but I was hooked.

[@Ruudos]

Hated it as a kid (too hard), love it now and can beat it quite easily. It was the first game we got at home after the Mario/Duck Hunt cart.

[@Musicradio77Network]

@@RuudosI remember “Section Z” and when I was about 10 at the time, I beat the whole game and defeated L-Brain as the final boss. It was a fun experience, and it was a fun game.

[@specificgravity-thedancing9700]

I used to rent it every weekend for $2 and have a ton of memories playing it :)

[@OldSchoolCurt]

Section Z is fun I have such good memories of playing this game with my babysitter.

[@Geekdom101]

WAY too many classics here.

[@JohnC19902]

John, these are my favorite, man. I know there’s only so many years so the content has to dry up. I will like, watch, and comment until then.

[@JohnRiggs]

Only 678 licensed US games but plenty of ways to make new content with the same games.

[@olesideburns]

I have fond memories of Trojan as well, a friend had it and we played through it a lot. Has some great music and fun bosses.

[@jmitchellbeard]

I very much prefer NES Trojan to the arcade version, same with NES Rygar which is an entirely better game than the arcade!

[@jamesstaggs4160]

3D Worldrunner was a beast of a game. Never could beat it.

[@Musicradio77Network]

I beat the entire game in 8 worlds and it has the ending where it gives you instructions to play the game harder, but unfortunately, it didn’t work out. “3D Worldrunner” was one of the earlier Square-Enix titles from the company that brought you the “Final Fantasy” and “Kingdom Hearts” franchises.

[@mjdf122]

I’ve seen all of the 80s to now in gaming what a life great times still to this day

[@mark6302]

title checks out, I recall playing all of these. I think Kid Icarus was the first game I bought with my own (birthday) money. I was 7 or 8.

[@ScubaDiverPicker]

You missed the most important thing that happened in 1987. Appetite for Destruction- Guns N’ Roses came out. Greatest hard rock album of alltime!

[@sidneyvandykeii3169]

I graduated highschool in 1987. I played quite a few of these games both in the Arcade and on my NES.

[@Musicradio77Network]

I was about 9 years old when NES was king. Sega Master System was there and they started to have some competition whether you play either the NES or the Sega Master System. The big winner is the NES.

[@one7decimal2eight]

Pro Wrestling was #1 simply based on the fact that the spin kick that all wrestlers have as a default attack is called a "rolling butt".

[@specificgravity-thedancing9700]

Some of my childhood there, nice list homie.

[@JaggedDagger]

Section Z and Castlevanie II: Simon's Quest were the two games I got with my NES. I have fond memories of Section Z

[@ChairmanMeow1]

I was four years old in 87 so a lot of the real early NES games I dont remember at all. I got my NES in 1990 for christmas, I remember it well lol. So thats kind of where my memory begins. :D

[@kendallcooper8761]

Trojan is a fun game to play once in a while

[@Razgar_Voxel]

The 3 games that come to mind that I played around that time were Wizards and Warriors, Joust and of course Super Mario Bros. I think I played some Duck Hunt as well but I have had several copies of that and I may or may not have had one of those dual carts it was on with SMB.

[@darktetsuya]

wow I had no idea how stacked 1987 was on the NES! Metroid (and to a lesser extent Rygar) introduced me to the concept of 'sequence breaking' if you knew what you were doing you could skip ahead to areas you weren't normally supposed to access yet! The Rygar one I found totally by accident I think it was when I was younger? but fighting that three-headed turtle boss if you're standing on the right hand side and he hits you *just* right you'll scroll the screen and wind up respawning at a different boss! Zelda though? easily the happiest NES memories I have was trying to finish the first quest alongside my uncle... HE of course got to the end and the day he beat it I was celebrating so hard you'd thought the house was on fire, lol. Also Goonies II might have fueled my love for the metroid-zelda-vania genre (love Goonies-vania, haha!) Imported the Famicom version a few years ago and beat that (hope you know katakana for those passwords!) and recently bought the US version I need to go back and finish! man too many memories I'm sure I have a story for each one in this list but I'll cut it off there, what a great video!

[@-handsomesau-5734]

Oh how I've missed these types of videos..

[@homerthompson416]

Track & Field had the greatest attract mode ever. Every arcade you went to you'd hear that long jump constantly.

[@OldSchoolCurt]

1987 was also a great time for movies! Monster squad,robocop, masters of the universe! Goodtimes

[@harleyn3089]

I got an NES in June of 1987 for my birthday. My first two games were the Super Mario pack-in and Castlevania. I think my third game was Ice Climber. I loved that game despite it being brutally hard, possibly because I didn't have a lot to compare it to. I got Legend of Zelda, the original gold one, in December. Trojans were important to me in 1987, but not the video game kind. LOL.

[@JP-sj6dk]

brought back some memories... Thanks

[@malecus7664]

Trojan, Rygar, Zelda, Mega Man, Metroid, Punch Out, Contra, Ice Hockey, Exite Bike, Castlevania, Section Z, and Kid Icarus got me hooked for life! Currently playing ESO, Elden Ring, and GOW Ragnorak in 2022.

[@SPac316]

I was in the second grade in 1987. Eight-Nine years old by then. I didn't have a Nintendo by then, sadly. We were still rocking with the Atari and a Commodore 64 and the occasional arcade games for my video gaming fixes. We didn't get an NES till like a couple years late when I was 11. So we had a lot of games at our disposal to catch up on by that time.

[@nynick716]

Zelda is one if the goats. Played that like 8 hours a day when I got it. Kid Icarus was interesting but no one ever seemed to have it. Ikari warriors was fun but arcade version better. Metroid and Castlevania are classics. Elevator action was a fun one. I think that and burger time were both on coleco or one of those earlier systems if I recall. Man 1987 was a great year (garbage pail kids and WWF wrestling also) and good old deadly towers...I remember renting that at blockbuster man that was a bad weekend (could only afford to rent one game on the weekend lol) love rad racer, Mt Punch out and spy hunter

[@JTCin2025]

Ok

[@nickd3895]

Cool video dude!

[@jwigley3835]

I love this style of video. Thank you Sir! Are you planning on expanding the SNES videos?

[@JohnRiggs]

of course!

[@TurboSax]

"Go around and not die" This is how I've been living my life and so far so good.

[@robertoperezjr.1119]

Man I forgot how amazing 87 was for the NES

[@RussLyman]

ahh good old 1987. A great list of games for sure. Can't say I ever seen Trojan in the arcade.

[@Christophersanchez1326]

I beat Metroid on Gameboy before ever seeing it on NES. 😲

[@RichRetr0]

John I could totally see you doing a "Games of 198x" segment on Remember the 80s style show 😁

[@Droog75]

I loved going to Circus Circus in Las Vegas to play Elevator Action in their arcade. Now, I only have the GameBoy version of it. It’s great!

[@snoredizzle3242]

AWESOME VIDEO

[@heavysystemsinc.]

They actually did release a track and field controller for the famicom. :) It's literally just two buttons situated on a little box, just what you need! As far as mighty bomb jack, a very difficult game to clear, it's a 'super players' type game. But in terms of the game, it's based on an arcade game, the final room is just the original arcade game as an end of level challenge. Basically, the order of the bombs you get going through the stage matters, which means high risk, but high reward. It's very difficult and you probably need a map/strategy guide to clear it and even then, you still have to be super precise with playing it. It's fun, but it's not for everyone. There is a Section Z arcade game, but it's linear. YOu just go from stage to stage. It got the Rygar treatment for NES. :) IT got a spiritual sequel in the arcade and TG-16 called Side Arms. Solomon's Key was an arcade game. And as far as I know is arcade level structure perfect, but the arcade had nicer graphics and sound. Athena was also an arcade game and for the most part follows the original game. It's just a shame SNK handed it off to a 'guns for hire' firm to do the NES version. A lot of these companies did that early on, but, and I'm speculating here, after they saw the poor results from these firms decided to create a conversion division. Capcom and SNK both were in this camp, which is why early Capcom and SNK games kind of suck and then later were really good (i.e. Ikari Warriors was a 'guns for hire' outsourced NES game, but Ikari Warrios III is just really good and better than the original arcade game, if you ask me...same with Capcom...1942? Outsourced. 1943? Capcom did it...) LEgend of Kage was also an arcade game and also outsourced...didn't turn out too bad I guess? Deadly Towers is actually fun if you do the EF/FE code trick...basically start a game, immediately and intentionally kill yourself, get the password and replace the first two letters of the password with EF or FE to become max power, but with none of the game's bosses or required items. It makes the game SO much more fun. I cleared it using this password and it's not a bad game in this way. It still has some rather ugly game design elements in it, but if you can play it in '1987 brain' mindset with the full weapon upgrade, it's not terrible. Merely average. Luckily Double Dribble didn't bring it's arcade style play home...you literally had a dribble button and if you moved without mashing it you, got a....double dribble penalty. It's still pretty weak for a game, me and my friend would play this all the time and it was WAY too easy to steal the ball... Sky Kid was an arcade game by Namco and pretty well reproduced on NES. Why Sunsoft picked it up for stateside release? No idea... Yes, Spelunker was a computer game, but there's interesting history behind it. I recommend NES Works video covering it, pretty interesting, though it still leaves some history plot holes, if you will...but...it's a fun game if you play it on it's terms. Spy Hunter for NES was missing one of the nice 'glitches' of the arcade game for getting further...namely when you die and a truck drops you off, you can drive through the undrivable terrain! You mention squaresoft for Rad Racer but not 3D World Runner? :P Okay, that's all my 'well actually' beard stroking comments. lol

[@georged7627]

I've been waiting for you to make a video like this woooohooooo 🤘🏾🙏🏽

[@JohnRiggs]

Been a while! I have the other years coming soon enough, too.

[@georged7627]

@@JohnRiggs can't wait bro 🙏🏽👍🏾

[@BlueShotgunShells]

Track and field for the Famicon had the Konami Hypershot controller. Connects to the expansion port and each controller has 2 buttons for run and jump.

[@JohnRiggs]

Ooh, WANT!

[@nightsquats]

"Just don't die." My Contra mantra.

[@dacechasinghawk3910]

Memories I totally forgot just came back. Today's game don't got the same soul. I like that old time of Rock n' roll on the original NES.

[@Mr.Peanut1986]

Enjoyable video, JR.

[@joeydemitro8976]

JOHN HOW ARE YOU DOING TODAY MY FRIEND AND DID YOU ENJOY YOUR THANKSGIVING TOO MY FRIEND

[@BaldoFlores_godmetal]

That cap is amazing!!

[@willielogan4811]

I was a baby still so a lot of these games were my mom's lol. Good times.

[@fleapitflicks5212]

Has to be the best year ever for home video game consoles.

[@krisfrederick5001]

As legendary as Castlevania is, somehow we never played it as kids. We had "8 Eyes," which is essentially a knock off we realized much later but loved it.

[@mark6302]

8 eyes was an awesome game the bird was a cool mechanic

[@danyz250f]

I just finished castlevania 2 this morning for the first time. So fun.

[@AllTerrainNewfieJRY]

I very vaguely remember 8 eyes when I was a child. I think I may have to revisit that game sometime.

[@AllTerrainNewfieJRY]

@@danyz250f Castlevania 2 Simon's Quest is better than some people think it is, it had it's problems. But, the nostalgia alone makes me love that game a lot.

[@dauntae24]

My neighbors had a good portion of these games back in 87 before I was able to save up my paper route money and buy my own NES when I was 10.

[@kooldjnez1]

😄😄😄

[@rnmcollectiblesllc2139]

Love your dolphin hat Phil!

[@jake7499]

Hey! I still like Deadly Towers. Reminds me of happy childhood days.

[@gamingbolo]

Love the Riggs Cap 🙂

[@Bigbacon]

Jaws is definitely under rated. For an ljn game its actually good

[@Linuxpunk81]

Top Gun was my father's second favorite nes game after silent service. He could easily beat top gun and land it every time 😭

[@panzerowl3973]

Dude, my father was the same way! He loved that game! I’m building an NES collection right now and managed to snag Top Gun. Trying to get my 5 year old into this stuff.

[@scottg7660]

I believe there’s a collection series on switch that has the arcade version of section Z. I can’t remember which.

[@biostemm]

It always boggled my mind that more games didn't use the select button as a 3rd action button, instead of having up be jump...

[@Mikey669]

You seem like someone I would’ve been best friends with in school, lol Really dig your vids!

[@poleythepolarbear9706]

Elevator Action reminds me of Spy vs Spy

[@nationofvillians1620]

Dude. NES had the Power Pad, that's how I played Track and Field.

[@Decimus78]

Hmm. Kid Icarus is my favorite NES game, and while I agree that some of it is nostalgia, I love it and as for the difficulty, it’s one of the rare games that gets easier as you go. It was definitely ahead of its time. I’m glad you didn’t trash it.

[@darthdome2]

In 1987 I play rockman (Megaman) and contra on my famicom

[@toptenguy1]

Now the Tecmo Super Bowl Halftime of "The Mighty Bombjack show" makes more sense. lol

[@Johnny2Feathers]

Was 12 years old in 1987 and had my nes and my gt pro performer. Great times.