| Table
of Contents:
Nintendo
Message Board
| By:
Kevin Gifford and Che Chou
Contributors:
Nat Baldwin,
Shane Bettenhausen,
Francisco Gonzalez, Nao Higo, Dan Hsu, Stephen Kleckner, Gabriel Lai,
Christopher
Leonard, Christian Nutt,
Devin Passage,
John Ricciardi,
Bryan Stratton,
Hendrik van
de Pol, Matt Wenzel
Design:
Andrew Burwell |
|
|
The
NES Turns 15
How
old were you when you first laid hands on a Nintendo controller? Still
remember those Legend of Zelda TV ads with that freak in the black jumpsuit?
Ever have nightmares involving Lou Albano as a shambling Mario from the
deep dark ghettos? Do you still have stacks of Nintendo Power stashed away
somewhere? If you're a gamer, chances are that any mention of life in the
1980's evokes fond memories of the Nintendo Entertainment System, the single
most important console behind the modern video game industry. This month,
the NES turns 15, and with that anniversary, Gamers.com takes a special
look back on the system -- and the games -- that started it all.
You
may be wondering why we're singing praises about the NES with the launch
of the PlayStation 2 right around the corner and the dawning of the Gamecube
and Xbox just down the road. Aside from celebrating its 15th anniversary,
the importance of the NES is now more apparent than ever, especially in
light of the overall boom and health of the games industry today. Since
the NES' birth, video gaming has seeped into many facets of mainstream
culture, becoming an integral part of our daily lives.
In
our tribute to the NES, we'll detail how video games nearly died a premature
death back in '85 and how Nintendo single-handedly resurrected something
many retailers thought was just a passing fad. Ultimately, the story of
Nintendo is just as much about the future as it is about the past. Also
be sure to check out our informal awards ceremony as we vote on our favorite
NES games in their respective genres and categories -- the results will
definitely surprise (and maybe even shock) you. And just for nostalgia's
sake, we've even thrown together a huge screenshot gallery of all the best
(and even some of the worst) games for the NES.
So
close your eyes, pretend it's 1985 and take a ride with us down 8-Bit lane…
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Did
You Know?
...that
Nintendo is a 111-year-old company that got its start manufacturing playing
cards? Among
the
other products they dabbled in before video games are instant ramen,
a
rice cooker that used
a
standard light bulb to
save
energy, tabletop
casino games and even love hotels. |
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