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Nintendo Power!

Nintendo Power is essentially a monthly $5 advertisement for all things Nintendo, but I thought the August 2008 issue was worth mentioning. It's the 20th anniversary of the mag and includes a listing (with commentary) of the best 20 games for every Nintendo system (other than the ill-fated Virtual Boy).

My favorite NES game, Super Mario Bros. 3, came in at #2. The Legend of Zelda, which is easily in my top five, came in at number 1. Predictably, some of the old school NES titles I spend the most time with--Popeye, Mario Bros., Bump N Jump--didn't make the list.

My favorite Game Boy/Game Boy Color game, Tetris DX, was listed #1, so I can't argue there. My second fave, The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening came in at #2 while my third fave, Donkey Kong, was listed at #8.

My favorite Super NES game, Mr. Do!, didn't make the list (no surprise there), but my second favorite, Super Mario World, was #2 (The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, which is in my top five, was #1).

One of my two or three favorite Nintendo 64 games, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, was first on the N64 list. The game I've played most on that system--Wave Race 64--came in at #9. Not surprisingly, Super Mario 64 was #2 (can't argue there).

Metroid: Zero Mission took the top spot on the Game Boy Advance List, which it may deserve (all the 2D Metroid games are great), but I spend more time with Gunstar Super Heroes and the Mario Bros. portion of Super Mario Advance.

My favorite GameCube title, Resident Evil 4, took the top spot for that system, with Soul Caliber II (my second fave) coming in at #5. The great Mario Kart: Double Dash was a relatively disappointing #12.

I don't have a DS, but I suspect I would agree with the high rankings of New Super Mario Bros. (#2), Mario Kart DS (#3), Tetris DS (#5), and Contra 4 (#7). I've barely heard of the #1 game, Elite Beat Agents.

Super Mario Galaxy, which my son Ryan and I both beat, was #1 on the Wii list, with The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess (which I haven't played) coming in at #2. Wii Sports, which I thoroughly enjoy (especially Tennis and Bowling), was listed at #8. Ryan was a little disappointed that Guitar Hero III was only ranked #20.