Some arguments amongst gamers never really get resolved, particularly as retro gaming has become more popular and classics of yesteryear are easier to replay on the best retro game consoles. For anyone who grew up with a Super Nintendo, one of these is unavoidable: What’s the best SNES game of all time? It sounds simple until you actually try to pin it down.
For many, the first contender is Super Metroid. It’s a drive for mood and confidence in its complex level design and upgrades, letting players explore, experiment, and figure things out on their own. There’s no hand-holding, no obvious guideposts. Its influence stretches far beyond the 16-bit era, and even today, through ‘Metroidanias’ like MIO: Memories in Orbit and new games in the series, such as Switch 2’s Metroid Prime 4, it still feels fresh in the way it teaches through play rather than instruction.
RPG fans will argue just as fiercely for Chrono Trigger, Donkey Kong Country, Star Fox, or F-Zero, games that showed the SNES could handle ambition, emotion, and technical innovation without losing sight of the playable nature of Nintendo’s game design, for which it is renowned.
So what matters most to you: atmosphere, precision, storytelling, or pure fun? There’s no right answer, only opinions, and plenty of strong ones. Jump into the comments below and tell us: which SNES game deserves the crown, and why.
