What Are The Expansion Ports Under A NES And N64 Used For?

These days, game systems come with all kinds of auxiliary ports—USB, HDMI, Ethernet, Optical Audio, and more. These ports are used for logging in online, connecting digital cameras, and everything in between. But back in console gaming’s retro heyday of the ‘80s and ‘90s, you’d be lucky to get one port on your console—the stock “expansion port.” Typically, these were used to connect special hardware and expand gameplay. Or were they? Interestingly, not all these ports were that functional. Case in point: look under your old Nintendo NES and Nintendo 64 systems. There, you’ll find the 48-pin expansion ports, each hidden behind a snap-in case. Kids who discovered these in the ‘80s were understandably mind-blown. What could they possibly be for? Maybe they’re for some cool peripheral, like a new light gun or a different controller. But no one we knew during childhood ever found out. So, let’s put the rumors...

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How To Tell If Your NES Game Is a First Print: The Ultimate Guide

Wondering how to determine whether your NES game is a first print? Not to be discouraging but, uh, good luck with that. There’s no “rule of thumb” when determining the first print status of NES games. The process and details are different for each game. Furthermore, this valuable info may be hard to come by, guarded as trade secrets by shrewd investors. It may also be unknown and/or highly disputed. More importantly, does it even matter if your NES game is a first print? And what is a first print anyway? Ha! We’ve now gone full circle, back to “how to determine if your NES game is a first print.” These points are just a light sampling of the chaos and confusion—the maddening rabbit hole of buying and selling first-print NES games. The good news is, we’ve done our research and compiled all the answers you need to shed some light...

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10 of The best NES RPGs Ranked - Nintendo Role Playing Games

For those of us who were young when the Nintendo Entertainment System first hit markets, it represents a childhood filled with countless gaming memories. Finally beating the last level on Super Mario Bros, giggling maniacally as we shot down ducks in Duck Hunt and nearly tossing the controller after a single bullet grazed my leg and killed me in contra. All the nes rpg games considered for the list are only NTSC "North America" NES version of the games.  For the Record: I have the original game The Legend of Zelda on the list.  Yes I'm full aware its more of an Action/Adventure game, but it's my site, my blog and Zelda ROCKs so it's listed! NES games & Role-Playing games have always been a staple of console gaming, and today we are going to take a look at the 10 of the best nes rpgs the Nintendo Console had to...

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The 10 Best Retro Castlevania Games You Need to Play Today

Any time a video game series inspires an entire genre of games, you know it’s doing something right. And from the very beginning, Castlevania has done many, many things right. True enough, Castlevania’s gaming catalog includes a few misses. But the overwhelming majority of Castlevania titles are all-time classics. Today, the series includes so many hit games that most gamers have lost count. For that reason, we want to highlight the 10 best retro Castlevania games that you should play before you die. Together, let’s remember our favorite vampire-hunting, ghoul-slaying, whip-brandishing moments in gaming history. 1. Castlevania (NES, 1986) Castlevania for NES is the most simplistic version of Castlevania you’ll ever play. And that’s why it’s so great. It perfectly embodies the heart and soul of the series without superfluous bells and whistles. There are no experience points, armor, or magic spells. There’s only a guy and his whip, some sub-weapons,...

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The 10 Best NES Shmups - Great Nintendo Shoot Em Up Games

Do you remember any of your favorite childhood dreams? We do. At least, if you’re anything like us, you dreamed about being a badass fighter pilot. How cool would it be to rocket past enemy lines, blasting baddies left and right with machine turrets to liberate entire planets? Well, the NES gave this experience to a whole generation of gamers through some of the most nostalgic shmups ever made. Today, we’re going to look at 10 NES shoot em up games that every retro gamer needs to try. Some of these are fantastic arcade ports, like Xevious, but many of them are NES originals. Now, load up, take aim, and reminisce about theses excellent NES shooters. 1. Gun Nac Gun Nac is one of the wackiest and most over-the-top shooters you will ever play. The enemies in this game are, to say the least, unusual. You’ll battle killer rabbits, trees, sentient...

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The 10 Best Nintendo NES Zapper Games - Our Favorites Titles

“CHA-DING! CHA-DING! CHA-DING!” Every kid who grew up in the 80s knows that sound. Even today, hearing that melodious twang awakens a mighty surge of our fondest childhood memories. For those who don’t know, we’re referring to the nostalgic trigger sound of the NES light gun peripheral, the Zapper. This iconic accessory helped define 80s gaming and still stands as the coolest video game peripheral ever made. Why’s that, you ask? It instantly transforms your game room into a safe, kid-friendly shooting gallery.It looks like an awesome future gun for destroying evil robots.It makes a cool click/twang noise every time you squeeze the trigger.The noise also causes a slight recoil so it feels like you’re actually firing.Unlike the Power Glove, the Zapper actually functions the way it’s supposed to. Still, the most impressive thing about the Zapper is what we don’t remember—namely, any NES Zapper games. Despite all the Zapper’s renown...

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Got Stuck? The 10 Best NES Games to use Game Genie codes On

Let’s face it. You’re here because you never get sick of playing the same retro NES titles over and over again. And it’s even more fun when you discover new things about these familiar favorites, even after all these years. That being the case, brace yourself. What follows is the ultimate, explorative, mind-blowing excursion into the hidden realms of your favorite NES titles (and one of your least favorites). How many times have you played Super Mario Bros. 3? Answer: Many. And how many times have you done so as a purple-suited Racoon Mario who swims through the air? Answer: Probably 0. But for those of you who own an NES Game Genie, that’s about to change. Without further ado, we give you the best nintendo games for using game genie codes. Experience these 10 familiar classics in wild new ways with these original nes game genie cheats. (Note: we at...

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Three Retro Nintendo NES Games to revisit Today!

In a previous post, I discuss some classic games that you know and probably played, but that you should give a second look in the 2020s. Here I’ll discuss a trio of all-but-forgotten retro video games.  You may well have missed these games the first time around, but fear not! They’re all worth a play even today – read on to find out why. 3. Ikari Warriors Have you seen a Rambo movie? Okay, then you get the idea. Like the probably more famous NES game Commando, Ikari Warriors is a top-down, vertically scrolling shoot-em-up about foot soldiers. Unlike that game, your character in Ikari Warriors has a bandana and a friend. Co-op! On the NES! Co-op games were a rarity, and that makes Ikari Warriors a lot of fun if you’re looking for an 8-bit shmup fix. Ammo was limited, which is an interesting twist for the genre, plus you can...

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Games That Are Joyfully Different From Movies They're Based On

When modern gamers think of video game based movies, they might recall awesome titles like Jurassic World Evolution. Old-school gamers have a different association—namely, a horrible one.

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Light Guns, Zappers, Phasers, Not HD Compatible - Here's Why

The reasons why this is the case have been covered extensively in other online posts. However, for the purposes of this column, it makes sense to eschew the tech jargon and explain the issue in ways that any non-gear head can understand. So here’s a breakdown. Light guns, zappers and phasers reflected light It’s true—the NES Zapper you used to shoot ducks out of the sky, as well as the Super Scope from which you launched missiles, were  nothing but simple light reflectors. They didn’t “shoot” anything at all. Instead, they merely captured light and motion. So when you would aim for those ducks, what you were really doing was using the reflector to sense for motion on the screen. And for this to work as effectively as it did on those retro shooters, the timing had to be perfect. More on this below. The guns were calibrated for timing To pull off a...

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The Best Life Lessons Learned from Playing Video Games

A couple of years back, while visiting with family over Thanksgiving, my cousins and siblings and I started playing the card game we call King Peasant (though it’s also called a lot of other things around the world).              The premise is that the game models a political structure (it’s sometimes called President) where the people on top stay on top and the people on bottom stay on bottom because at the beginning of each round, the lowest people have to give their top 1-3 cards (depending on how low in the hierarchy they are) to the top people, ensuring that the top people have better hands. At this Thanksgiving I’d been on the bottom for nearly the whole game, so I decided to see if I could model another aspect of politics and start a revolution. I successfully got all the bottom people plus the middle, neutral, person to join my revolution...

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What it is, & How to Find the Elusive NES Famicom Adapter

Scour the furthest reaches of cyberspace, and you’ll find blog posts covering just about every video game accessory and piece of hardware there ever was. But one piece of console lore that remains woefully underreported is the Famicom to NES cartridge converter. Sure, there are certain posts out there on the subject, but few of them offer a comprehensive analysis of what it actually is. So in the interests of remedying the issue, here are answers to five questions that cover everything the habitual gamer needs to know about this throwback bit of tech. What is a Famicom to NES Adapter? By the time the Nintendo Entertainment System hit American shores in October 1985, gamers in Japan were already familiar with the first version of the system: the Famicom (Family Computer). Released in 1983, it was the precursor to the American NES, and its wild success signalled a rebound from the...

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Best 4-Player NES Games for the Nintendo NES Four Score

When most people think back on the Nintendo Entertainment System, they think of hit games like Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda. Ironically, these popular titles barely scratch the surface of the system’s potential. The hardworking folks at Nintendo wanted their first home console to offer an advanced, immersive, varied gameplay experience. So they strove constantly to create exciting new accessories that would break through the console’s initial limitations. One of their most successful accessories is the NES Four Score Which is a multitap that allows 4-player, simultaneous multiplayer gameplay. In this article, we review the 6 best 4-player NES games that are compatible with the Four Score. Read on to learn more. 1. Bomberman II Today, every Nintendo console library includes an excellent Bomberman game for at least 4  players. This grand tradition started with Bomberman II for the NES. This was the first Bomberman to allow multiple...

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Super Mario Bros 3 Nintendo NES Review

In the pantheon of game franchises, there are very few single entries that can lay claim to bringing sweeping, long-lasting changes to the franchise. In a storied franchise such as Mario, this feat is even more impressive. Which is why Super Mario Bros 3 is a classic retro game that has stood the test of time and brought to the series mechanics and changes that we are still feeling the echoes of over two decades later. Super Mario Bros 3 on the Nintendo NES, truly changed the complete formula for the Mario series, and influenced every 2D platform entry in the series after it. Released in 1990 for the NES, Super Mario Bros 3 was an absolute smash-hit. Gamers loved the new overworld map, the wide variety of suits Mario could now use, item storage and even the Koopa Kids first made their appearance in this game. With more than 18...

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The Complete Original Nintendo NES Label / Seal Guide

The late 1970s saw the release of the Atari 2600 and the rise of the home gaming console. But by the early 1980s, it crashed and burned. This was due mostly to gamers’ frustration at sub-par games (“E.T. The Extra Terrestrial,” anyone?). The sentiment effectively killed the home-console market. This fact wasn’t lost on Nintendo of America in the lead-up to the 1985 release of their NES home console. They knew that to win over the public, they would have to ensure that the games they released for it were of a certain high quality. Therefore, Nintendo added a “Seal of Quality” sticker to each game’s packaging. These stickers changed over the years, as did cartridge case designs for certain games. For example, the initial release of the classic NES title, “Metroid,” had a silver label. However, a 1992 re-release of the game had a yellow one. The difference may seem...

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Here's Why Retro Gaming is Harder, Than playing Modern Games

I remember a time in about 1991 playing one of my favorite childhood video game, Super Mario Bros 3. That I borrowed from a friend for a weekend. I wanted to beat it before I gave it back, but this being the relatively early days of console gaming. Super Mario Bros 3 had no save feature of any kind So in order to reach the end, I just left my Nintendo on overnight a couple nights in a row to maintain my progress until I could come back to the game. When I finally beat it on day three or so, there was an added sense of triumph – not only had I beaten the game, I had beaten the system by managing to finish it before I had to turn off my system and lose all my progress. As far as ten-year-old me was concerned, Raccoon Mario and I had...

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Best Horror Video Games - Retro Titles from the 80s and 90s

Most retro gaming fans have a closet full of widely-known platformers, RPGs, and party games. And why wouldn’t they? The most popular games are the all-ages are the all-ages, general-audience titles that everyone can enjoy. These are also the games that get the most press coverage and prestige. As such, there’s one genre that retro gamers always seem to overlook: old-school horror games. And that’s a real shame. Like all retro games, horror games had their golden age in the 80s and 90s, too. So today, we’re dragging the best horror video games back into the limelight. These are the scariest games that sent shivers up our spine and made us afraid to walk into a dark room. They also gave us some of the scariest moments in gaming history. Now, read on, if you dare. Splatterhouse on the TurboGrafx-16 - Released 1990 What do you get when you (unofficially) turn...

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The Variations & Reasoning of Nintendo NES Cartridge Screws

In 1986, Nintendo released the Nintendo Entertainment System in North America, changing the entertainment industry forever. It was immediately so popular that people trampled strangers in department stores just to get one before it sold out. This trend continued as Nintendo and third-party programmers released one hit NES game after another. Given all this hoopla, would anyone notice or care that the number of NES cartridge screws changed from 5 to 3? Nintendo didn’t think so. They just stopped producing 5-screw NES games and adopted the new 3-screw format without any explanation. Obviously, they forgot that 100% of their core demographic are obsessive geeks (like us). And geeks notice details, especially when the items in question become rare, retro collectibles. So, why the big (or rather, hardly noticeable) change? And why all the secrecy? Furthermore, does it even matter? Actually, it matters more than you’d think. Read on to learn why.  ...

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The Best NES Games for your kids to Experience & Play

Long before Will Smith was slapping grown men on live television, he and Jazzy Jeff taught us that “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” And it’s true. There's always an unavoidable gap between one generation and the next. Those who grew up in the 80s played Nintendo and wondered why their dads were so fascinated by baseball. Kids today watch TikTok videos and wonder why parents do anything that requires more than 34 seconds of their attention. But, once in a while, we find those rare activities that both generations can enjoy together. Case in point, the following guide lists the best NES games to share with your kids. These games nourish your child’s mental development (seriously) while bridging the generation gap. Plus, they’re addictively fun for all ages. Enjoy these games together for some glorious, 8-bit family bonding. 1. Super Mario Bros 1-3 You can’t go wrong with a classic. And few...

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Explore the History of the Legend of Zelda NES Video Games

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link The Legend of Zelda games are seriously one of the best video series ever made. Still, the larger this series gets, the more questions it raises. Are the Zelda games connected and if so, how? And why does Link always start the game empty-handed? Where are the items he won in the previous games? Perhaps the most common question is, “What’s the correct order in which to play the Zelda games?” That’s easy: play them oldest to newest. Honestly, we may never understand the overly complex in-game chronology. But we’ll gladly give you a guided tour through the History of the Zelda Games.  Besides, it’s more fun to see the series progress as you play through in the originally-intended order. Together, let’s explore how it all started with the first 2 classic games in the series. 1. The Legend of Zelda - Nintendo NES The Legend of Zelda original game release...

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