🎮 The 12 best SNES games

This is our pick of the SNES essentials: the games that have aged best and are worth coming back to the console for. For each one we explain what makes it special, with a couple of tips, and every one of them plays right now in your browser — no downloads, with keyboard, gamepad or touch controls.

#1Super Mario World
1990 · Platformer
Mario and Luigi arrive in Dinosaur Land only to find that Bowser and his Koopalings have kidnapped the princess yet again. Super Mario World, made by Nintendo and released alongside the SNES, unfolds across a large overworld map where stages branch through hidden exits, trick-filled ghost houses and castles that end in boss fights. This is where Yoshi first appears, swallowing enemies and gaining powers from the color of the shell in his mouth, and the cape feather lets Mario take off and glide over whole levels. Tracking down secret paths, the switch palaces and the Star Road is what keeps people playing long after the credits.
Tip: Levels marked with a red dot on the map hide a second exit; look for keys and keyholes to open up new routes.
▶ Play Super Mario World
#2Super Metroid
1994 · Action · Adventure
Samus Aran returns to planet Zebes to recover the last Metroid, a larva stolen by Ridley and the Space Pirates. What follows is a long, quiet exploration of caves, ruins and a sunken ship, where most paths stay blocked until you find the right upgrade: missiles, the Morph Ball, a grappling beam, the Speed Booster. Backtracking with new tools to reach old places is the heart of it, and the map slowly fills in as the world gives up its secrets. Developed by Nintendo with Intelligent Systems, Super Metroid is remembered for its atmosphere, wordless storytelling and a world layout that shaped an entire genre.
Tip: Save at every save station you pass; some bosses hit hard and the stretches between safe points can be long.
▶ Play Super Metroid
#3The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
1991 · Adventure
You guide Link across a top-down Hyrule to stop the wizard Agahnim, first gathering three pendants to claim the Master Sword, then crossing into the Dark World, a twisted mirror of the land you just explored. The loop is simple and satisfying: find a dungeon, solve its block-and-switch puzzles, earn a new tool like the hookshot or the Pegasus Boots, and use it to open paths you walked past earlier. Heart pieces and secrets hide everywhere. A Link to the Past is still remembered for how tightly its two worlds fit together and for setting the template later Zelda games followed.
Tip: Bomb cracked walls and lift rocks often; hidden caves and heart pieces reward curiosity.
▶ Play The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
#4EarthBound
1994 · RPG
EarthBound follows Ness, a boy from the small town of Onett, after a meteorite crashes on the hill near his house and a visitor from the future warns him about an alien force called Giygas. You wander through suburbs, deserts and increasingly strange places, fighting angry dogs, hippies and possessed taxis in first-person turn-based battles, joined by Paula, Jeff and Poo. Enemies are visible on the map, and weak ones are beaten instantly when you touch them. A rolling HP meter drains gradually, giving you time to react before damage fully lands. It is remembered for its dry humour, odd townsfolk and an unsettling darkness near the end.
Tip: After a heavy hit, act fast: HP rolls down gradually, so healing or finishing the fight before it stops can keep someone alive.
▶ Play EarthBound
#5Donkey Kong Country
1994 · Platformer
Rare pushed the SNES hard in 1994 with pre-rendered graphics that looked far beyond what the console seemed capable of. King K. Rool and his Kremlings have stolen Donkey Kong's banana hoard, and you chase it back with Diddy, swapping between the two apes through jungles, mines, icy caves and factories. You stomp enemies, roll through them, blast between barrel cannons and ride animal friends like Rambi the rhino and Enguarde the swordfish. Donkey Kong Country is remembered for its brisk pace, hair-raising mine cart rides, hidden bonus rooms and David Wise's moody, atmospheric music.
Tip: Taking a hit costs you the active Kong; break DK barrels to bring your partner back and keep a spare hit in reserve.
▶ Play Donkey Kong Country
#6Kirby Super Star
1996 · Platformer
Kirby Super Star is less one adventure than a bundle of them: a short remake of Kirby's first outing, a race against King Dedede to eat the most food, a treasure hunt through a sprawling cave, a timed raid on Meta Knight's airship and more, with new modes opening up as you clear earlier ones. Swallowing enemies to copy their powers is still the heart of it, and each ability now comes with a full set of moves. You can also turn a power into a helper who fights beside you, run by the computer or a second player. It starts gentle, but the later games and the arena push back hard.
Tip: Experiment with each ability using different directions and buttons; most hide several attacks you won't find by just tapping the attack button.
▶ Play Kirby Super Star
#7Super Castlevania IV
1991 · Action
Simon Belmont heads back into Dracula's castle in Konami's reworking of the original quest, and the big change is the whip: you can lash it in eight directions, let it dangle loosely to knock away small projectiles, and hook it onto rings to swing across gaps. Each stage mixes platforming with careful, deliberate attacks, while collected hearts power subweapons such as the axe, holy water and cross. Super Castlevania IV is remembered for its brooding soundtrack, showy Mode 7 moments like a rotating room and a turning tower, and a difficulty curve that climbs steadily toward a demanding final stretch.
Tip: Picking up a new subweapon replaces your current one, so walk around items if the axe or cross is serving you well.
▶ Play Super Castlevania IV
#8Super Mario Kart
1992 · Racing
Super Mario Kart started the whole series: eight Nintendo characters racing go-karts around flat Mode 7 tracks that rotate and scale beneath you. You pick a driver, enter a cup of five races and need to place well enough in each to keep going, collecting coins for extra speed and item boxes for shells, bananas and mushrooms. Every racer handles differently, the computer drivers throw their own special items at you, and at 150cc the corners demand tight, careful lines. Split-screen two-player races and the balloon-popping Battle Mode are a big part of why people still remember it so fondly.
Tip: Grab every coin you can: they raise your top speed, and with none left any collision will send you spinning out.
▶ Play Super Mario Kart
#9F-Zero
1990 · Racing
F-Zero puts you behind the controls of a hovering racer on futuristic tracks raised above cities, against rivals who punish every mistake. You pick one of four machines with different top speed, acceleration and durability, then race through three leagues of five courses each. Every lap you must stay above a minimum position or be knocked out, and scraping walls or other cars drains your energy bar, which only refills when you cross the pit strip. The console's Mode 7 effect makes the track spin and stream past with a sense of speed that stood out at the time, and its tense pace and music are still fondly remembered.
Tip: From the second lap you earn one boost per lap; save them for long straights rather than firing one just before a sharp turn.
▶ Play F-Zero
#10Mega Man X
1993 · Action
Mega Man X brings Capcom's robot series to the Super Nintendo with a faster hero and tougher stages. You play X, a robot sent to bring down eight rebel Mavericks who have sided with Sigma, then storm his fortress. Every stage ends in a boss fight, and each win hands you a weapon that happens to be another boss's weakness, so picking the order is part of the challenge. Wall-jumping changes how you move through levels, and hidden capsules, heart tanks and sub tanks reward returning to cleared stages. It is remembered above all for how well it teaches you to play without a single tutorial screen.
Tip: Start with Chill Penguin's stage: it is manageable and hides the capsule that gives you the dash.
▶ Play Mega Man X
#11Super Bomberman
1993 · Action
Super Bomberman takes place on a grid-shaped arena where your only tool is the bomb. You drop one, step aside, and the blast spreads in a cross, breaking soft blocks that sometimes hide power-ups: more bombs at once, longer explosions or extra speed. In the normal game you clear every enemy from a stage and find the exit, with a boss waiting at the end of each world, and a second player can join in. It is remembered above all for battle mode, where up to four people with a multitap try to corner each other in short, tense and very funny rounds.
Tip: Before dropping a bomb, check where you will escape to; getting trapped by your own blast is the most common way to lose.
▶ Play Super Bomberman
#12Super Mario World 2 - Yoshi's Island
1995 · Platformer
Yoshi's Island puts you in control of a Yoshi carrying Baby Mario across islands drawn in a crayon-and-pastel style. You swallow enemies, turn them into eggs and throw them using a swinging aiming cursor, which gives each stage a relaxed rhythm of exploring and lining up shots. Take a hit and the baby floats off in a bubble, crying, while a countdown runs until you grab him back. Every level hides red coins, flowers and stars for players chasing a perfect score. Made by Nintendo and using the Super FX 2 chip for its effects, it is remembered for its hand-drawn look and its inventive bosses.
Tip: Keep a few eggs trailing behind you at all times; they reach distant items, open hidden paths and handle most bosses.
▶ Play Super Mario World 2 - Yoshi's Island