Castlevania

Top 10 NES Characters

The Nintendo Entertainment System holds a special place in a lot of gamer’s hearts, as it was the first console a lot of gamers owned, as well as introducing us to some of Nintendo’s most popular characters. To celebrate the launch of the NES mini, here is a list of some of the top Nintendo characters that featured in NES games:

  1. Simon Belmont:

Simon Belmont was the first protagonist to appear in the popular Castlevania series. First released in 1986 in Japan and 1988 worldwide by Konami, Simon was sent on the quest of defeating the Vampire Dracula. Whilst the franchise is more known nowadays for appearing on Microsoft and Sony consoles, it was the original Castlevania game on the NES that started it all.cv

  1. The Ninja Turtles:

There have been many Ninja Turtle games over the years, but few have the legendary memories of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game that was released on the NES in 1989. Notoriously hard, it was a rare feat to find someone that had completed the game. You could play as any of the four turtles, and it sold over 4 million copies, becoming one of the NES’s most popular games.tur

  1. The Dog from Duck Hunt:

Never has there been a dog that we loved to hate more than the dog in Duck Hunt. Constantly mocking us whenever we missed a duck, you’d often be left wishing you could shoot the dog too. As one of the release games on the NES, and one that came with the NES Zapper, this game has fond memories for many. The unnamed dog comes as one of the characters available in Super Smash Bros for the 3DS and Wii U as part of the Duck Hunt group.dog

  1. Donkey Kong:

Donkey Kong is one of Nintendo’s first ever characters created by Shigeru Miyamoto. The character was introduced as a character in an arcade game, but has since featured in many console games. The original Donkey Kong game was one of the three launch titles available on the NES, and in 1994, the character was relaunched in an entire new series of games known as the Donkey Kong Country series.dk

  1. Kirby

This pink, round and adorable character is a fan favourite that has been around since 1992, and was one of characters created by the late Satoru Iwata. Kirby debuted on the Game Boy, but the character also featured in one of the NES’s last games produced known as Kirby’s Adventures. Inhaling his characters and absorbing their abilities, Kirby has featured in over 20 different games.kirby

  1. Princess Zelda:

Princess Zelda is one of the main characters in The Legend of Zelda series of games and another Shigeru Miyamoto creation. Often the damsel in distress that is rescued by the series protagonist Link, she has been in most of the Zelda games since the first one on the NES in 1986.zelda

  1. Bowser:

Bowser, or King Koopa as he was originally known, is Mario’s main enemy in the Mario Bros series of games. Leader of the Koopa race, his main aim in life is to kidnap Princess Peach and rule the Mushroom Kingdom. He first appeared on the NES in Super Mario Bros in 1995, and has featured in many Mario games as the main antagonist since. bowser

  1. Samus:

Samus is the main character in the Metroid series of games. An ex-soldier of the Galactic Federation, this well-liked character is one of the earliest female protagonists in the history of video games. Created for the NES game Metroid in 1986, Samus has since been the main character in a further 11 games in the Metroid series.samus

  1. Link:

Link is another Shigeru Miyamoto creation, and the main protagonist in one of the most successful video games series of all time. The Legend of Zelda series has 18 games in total and has sold over 62 million copies. Link appears in various incarnations over the series, and first appeared in the NES game The Legend of Zelda in 1986. Link is also a popular character in the Smash Bros series of games, and has proved to be a common character for people to cosplay at conventions.link

  1. Mario:

When people think Nintendo, the number one character that comes to mind is the Italian plumber Mario. First introduced in the arcade game Donkey Kong as ‘Jump Man’ by Shigeru Miyamoto, he was later renamed Mario. Mario is Nintendo’s mascot and has appeared in over 200 different video games. On the NES alone he appeared in the popular Mario Bro and Super Mario Bros series alongside his brother Luigi, and has since featured in solo games. Mario is part of the best-selling video game franchise of all time, and a character that Nintendo fans have loved since he was created many years ago.

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30 years since the NES was released world-wide

The Nintendo Entertainment System, or the NES as it is more commonly known, paved the way for the modern era of gaming. It was my first console, and for me, launched my love of gaming and Nintendo. This year the NES celebrates its 30th birthday, and if it wasn’t for the NES, consoles as we know them today might never have existed. It was hailed the saviour of gaming back when it first launched, as it helped revive the gaming industry after the video games crash of 1983.

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The video games crash is famously documented in Atari:Game Over, and it signaled an end to the second generation of video games. Many companies went bankrupt, but it wasn’t until the rise of the NES in America two years later that the industry started to take a turn for the better.

Whilst in Japan the NES was released in 1983 and better known as the Family Computer (Famicom), worldwide it wasn’t released until October 1985. Some polls state it is the best console of all time, with others placing it in the top five. Over its time, the NES has sold over 60 million units.

The NES controller design has become iconic, featuring on many t-shirt designs and accessories; some companies have even made NES soap designs. Apart from the controller, the NES has many other accessories. Possibly the most famous was the gun used for the game Duck Hunt known as the ‘NES Zapper’; other NES accessories included the R.O.B and the Power Pad.

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The NES saw the launch of many games franchises that are still liked today, including The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. There were over 800 games released on the NES, including more than 100 unlicensed games. Super Mario Bros. was one of the 17 launch titles on the console, with games such as Megaman, Castlevania and The Legend of Zelda coming out later in 1987. Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2 and Super Mario Bros. 3 were all released on the NES, with the first in the series having sold the most copies.

The popularity of NES games is further reflected by the release of the game NES Remix, and the downloads of original NES games from Nintendo’s virtual console; the virtual console is available on the Wii, Wii U and 3DS. The NES Remix was well received enough to warrant two more games, NES Remix 2 and Ultimate NEX Remix.  The NES Remix series included games such as Super Mario Bros., Zelda, Kirby and many others, as well as extra mini games and challenges.

Whilst the NES had been discontinued in 1995 in America and Europe, and in 2003 in Japan, the consoles can still be found in many retro games shops and conventions; you could still get your NES repaired in Japan until 2007. Many people still enjoy the NES games either through the virtual console, or on an original NES that still works.  Whilst the console may no longer be available, the admiration of the franchises created during its lifetime live on to tell the tale.