Any gamer who grew up in the 80s, and had at least one sibling, knew how hard it was to simply ‘take turns’ playing video games. It was a form of torture. You had to sit there and watch your friend having all the fun. Why even bother having two controllers anyway? That’s where games with co-operative play came in. These allowed two players to play the game at the same time. It was like wizardry. I always sought these experiences out when I was a kid (I have a brother and sister after all) and playing with someone else was an experience in and of itself. Today I thought it would be fun to highlight some of the best cooperative experiences on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Let’s jump right in and get started; these are the best co-op NES games of all time.
#10. – Tennis
Normally I wouldn’t include a sports game in a list like this. I’ve never been a fan of them, and I never played them growing up. Why play a realistic game versus a fantastical one? I was introduced to this one as a teenager when I played Animal Crossing on the Gamecube. My brother and I actually spent more time playing this one than the main game! You can play against another player, but we always found that working together made for a better experience. The physics system is surprisingly realistic for the platform, and the game runs steady no matter what’s happening on-screen. My brother and I spent many hours playing doubles and practiced endlessly.
#9. – Double Dragon II
The beat em up genre was fledgeling during the 8-bit era. Before Streets of Rage and Final Fight the Double Dragon series was king. We rented this one a few times when we both wanted to play and had an absolute blast. The platforming elements set this one apart from the endless sea of similar titles. It also helps that it’s incredibly challenging and the stages all offer up different obstacles for you to tackle with a friend. Double Dragon II hasn’t aged particularly well but it’s still a lot of fun.
#8 – Chip ‘N Dale Rescue Rangers
This is a game that I knew about in the 8-bit heyday but never had a chance to play. The only co-op experiences i’ve had with this one have been with my step-daughter. I owned the cartridge and brought my NES over (while I was dating her mom) to introduce the kids to ‘real games.’ This was one of the titles we played. It was an amazing experience. I could teach her the mechanics, and before I knew it, we were working together tackling each level. It’s a memory I won’t soon forget.
#7. – Balloon Fight
This is another game introduced to me by the original Animal Crossing on the Gamecube. I was familiar with Joust, and my brother and I instantly fell in love with this one. In Balloon Fight you use your balloons to give you leverage to jump. Enemies are also propped by their balloons, and you have to land on them in order to pop them. They can also do the same to you. It’s incredibly addictive and a great game to pick up and play in short bursts.
#6. – Bubble Bobble
Bubble Bobble was a rental my family picked up just for the fact that it allowed for two player simultaneous play. My brother and I sat down and powered through all one hundred levels. It really taught us how to work together in a game, and made us both fall in love with single screen arcade games. He and I are adults now, but it was a New Years Eve tradition to play through this one together growing up. We still talk about giving it another go, and I’m sure we’ll find the time to do it because Bubble Bobble is simply incredible no matter how old you are.
#5. – Life Force
Late in my college career I became obsessed with Gradius. My roommate would watch me play, and we both wondered if there was a version that we could power through together. Enter Life Force. It was made by the same developer as Gradius, but offered cooperative play. When I picked up the cartridge from an online auction we popped it in and discovered how amazing two player shmups could be. We powered through in one sitting, but it was everything we hoped it could be (even though we had to use the Konami code).
#4. – Snow Bros.
Think Bubble Bobble, but with more complicated gameplay mechanics and level design. It’s the same single screen premise; you and another player simply destroy every enemy and then move on to the next stage. Instead of encasing monsters in bubbles you instead make snowballs of them, and then roll them. Boss fights serve to mix up the action. This was a rental when I was a kid but it always stood out to me. Snow Bros. Is one of my favorite games for the platform.
#3. – Little Ninja Brothers
Role playing games quickly overshadowed everything else in my life when I was introduced to the Final Fantasy series. One thing I always wondered was how would a two player RPG play? Then I stumbled upon Little Ninja Brothers. I rented this one when I had a friend staying over, and it answered the question we both had. This is primarily an action title but has random battles, a world map, towns to explore, equipment to find and purchase, and even turn based boss encounters! This was as close to a two player Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest as you could get on 8-bit hardware, and the wacky Japanese style makes it stand out from the pack even when going alone.
#2. – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II
Come on, who wasn’t a fan of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the late 80s? This was, once again, a rental but one I had to beg my parents to let me bring home. This really solidified my love for the beat em up genre even despite the franchise it’s based on. It was amazing that you could choose which turtle you wanted to play as, and they all used their different weapons. I remember this one mostly because it was one of the few video games my dad played with me. I still recall us both laughing at the animation for the turtles being knocked into environmental objects and sliding down them in the second stage.
#1. – Contra
My extended family was big into video games as well. We went once when I was a little kid to visit our cousins, and Contra was their big game. My cousin and I struggled getting through the first stage, but once we did we were in for a shock. I remember being absolutely amazed by the second level with it’s corridor set up with foes approaching from above. It made me think that video games were a limitless format, and that they could do anything. The diversity is one thing Contra does better than most other cooperative games on the platform. Returning to it as an adult Contra has lost some of its splendor, but it’s still a highly addictive experience.
Runners up:
Cowboy Kid
This one is a more recent discovery. I always wanted a co-op Goemon game for the NES but this is the next best thing! You just have to get past the remarkably bad front cover! Cowboy Kid plays remarkably similar to the aforementioned franchise as it’s an action adventure game with RPG elements and varied gameplay. A game of this scope allowing for simultaneous play is a pretty big task for an 8-bit title but Cowboy Kid pulls it off swimmingly. If you have two controllers, a NES, and a copy of the game then you’re in for one of the best co-op experiences available on the platform.
And that’s it. There are many other incredible co-op games to be played on the platform, but those are my most favorite. Clearly it’s a list built on nostalgia, and that’s why I want to hear about any titles I’ve missed. I’ve played a lot, but clearly not all of them. Let’s hear from you; what are the best co-op multiplayer games on the NES? Please comment and give any suggestions!
