Video Games: EGM's 100 Best Games of All Time

In November of 1997 Electronic Gaming Monthly celebrated its 100th issue by compiling a list of the "Top 100 Games Ever". Although the list is now a bit dated, and they ignore every from before the NES (except by putting "90 percent of the Atari 2600 games released in '83 and '84 (So bad, they crashed the industry!)" at the top of their "Top 10 Worst Games of all Time" sublist) I still find it a fascinating read. The article itself is great, with a capsule summary, "It made the list because..." "Coolest part", and an extra factoid for each game.

I ran some simple numerical analysis on the list, to see which systems and years made out the best. (Count is how many times an item appears on the list, Quality Points is (101 - the games rank).) Notice some games appear twice, released for different systems.

The Statistics

By System By Year
SystemCount
Super NES 24
NES 21
Saturn 14
Genesis 13
PlayStation 12
TurboGrafx-16 7
Nintendo 64 7
Sega CD 3
Game Boy 2
Multiplatform 1
Sega Master System 1
3DO 1
Neo*Geo 1
SystemQuality
Super NES 1712
NES 1002
PlayStation 574
Genesis 525
Saturn 477
Nintendo 64 405
TurboGrafx-16 276
Sega CD 177
Game Boy 107
Multiplatform 100
Sega Master System 39
3DO 38
Neo*Geo 2
Chronological Sorted
YearCount
1985 1
1986 2
1987 3
1988 8
1989 10
1990 8
1991 8
1992 8
1993 10
1994 9
1995 7
1996 17
1997 16
YearQuality
1985 64
1986 117
1987 204
1988 449
1989 370
1990 346
1991 449
1992 463
1993 572
1994 507
1995 318
1996 661
1997 914
YearCount
1996 17
1997 16
1989 10
1993 10
1994 9
1988 8
1990 8
1991 8
1992 8
1995 7
1987 3
1986 2
1985 1
YearQuality
1997 914
1996 661
1993 572
1994 507
1992 463
1991 449
1988 449
1989 370
1990 346
1995 318
1987 204
1986 117
1985 64

The Games

RankNameSystemManufacturerYear
100QixNESNintendo1990
99Samurai ShodownNeo*GeoSNK1993
98Virtua Cop 2SaturnSega1996
97MLB 98PlayStationSony1997
96WipeOut XLPlayStationPsygnosis1996
95DecAthleteSaturnSega Sports1996
94Ice HockeyNESNintendo1988
93Blast CorpsNintendo 64Nintendo1997
92FlashbackGenesisU.S. Gold1993
91AxelaySuper NESKonami1992
90Panzer Dragoon ZweiSaturnSega1995
89Ms. Pac-ManGenesisTengen1991
89Ms. Pac-ManSuper NESWilliams1996
88Ninja Gaiden II: The Dark Sword of ChaosNESTecmo1990
87Baseball StarsNESSNK1989
86Galactic AttackSaturnAcclaim1996
85Bonk's AdventureTurboGrafx-16HudsonSoft1990
84Kirby's AvelancheSuper NESNintendo1994
84Mean Bean MachineGenesisSega1993
83Revenge of ShinobiGenesisSega1989
82Jumping Flash! 2PlayStationSCEA1996
81Sega Rally ChampionshipSaturnSega1995
80Legendary AxeTurboGrafx-16NEC1989
79Virtua Fighter 2SaturnSega1995
78Mega Man X4PlayStationCapcom1997
78Mega Man X4SaturnCapcom1997
77Blazing LazersTurboGrafx-16NEC1989
76Life ForceNESKonami1988
75ActRaiserSuper NESEnix1991
74Worldwide Soccer '97SaturnSega1997
73Mega Man 2NESCapcom1989
72Zelda II: The Adventures of LinkNESNintendo1989
71Sonic the Hedgehog 2GenesisSega1992
70NiGHTSSaturnSega1996
69SnatcherSega CDKonami1994
68WaveRace 64Nintendo 64Nintendo1996
67Game Boy Donkey KongGame BoyNintendo1994
66Guardian HeroesSaturnSega1996
65Tecmo Super BowlNESTecmo1991
64Twisted Metal 2: World TourPlayStationSony1996
63Return Fire3DOProlific Publishing1995
62Phantasy StarSega Master SystemSega1988
61NHL Hockey '94GenesisEA Sports1993
60Shining Force IIGenesisSega1994
59Thunder Force IIIGenesisTechnoSoft1991
58Dragon Warrior IVNESEnix1992
57Castlevania III: Dracula's CurseNESKonami1990
56Super Punch-Out!!Super NESNintendo1994
55Dragon ForceSaturnWorking Designs1996
54Tomb RaiderPlayStationEidos Interactive1996
53Gates of ThunderTurboGrafx-16NEC1992
52R.C. Pro AmNESNintendo1987
51Tekken 2PlayStationNamco1996
50Devil's CrushTurboGrafx-16NEC1990
49Mario Kart 64Nintendo 64Nintendo1997
48Military MadnessTurboGrafx-16NEC1989
47Ghouls 'n GhostsGenesisSega1989
46Space MegaForceSuper NESToho1992
45ContraNESKonami1988
44MetroidNESNintendo1986
43Herzog ZweiGenesisSega1989
42StriderGenesisCapcom1990
41ArkanoidNESTaito1986
40Lunar: Eternal BlueSega CDWorking Designs1995
39Star Fox 64Nintendo 64Nintendo1997
38Ys Books I and IITurboGrafx-16NEC1990
37Super Mario Bros.NESNintendo1985
37Super Mario Bros.Super NESNintendo1993
36Street Fighter Alpha 2SaturnCapcom1996
35Metal GearNESUltra1988
34Kid IcarusNESNintendo1987
33NBA Live 97PlayStationElectronic Arts1997
32Bionic CommandoNESCapcom1988
31NFL GameDay 98PlayStationSony1997
30Phantasy Star IIGenesisSega1989
29Chrono TriggerSuper NESSquare1995
28The Legend of Zelda: Link's AwakeningGame BoyNintendo1994
27Gunstar HeroesGenesisSega1993
26Super Mario RPGSuper NESNintendo1996
25Golden Eye 007Nintendo 64Nintendo1997
24International SuperStar Soccer 64Nintendo 64Konami1997
23R-Type IIISuper NESJaleco1994
22Super Ghouls 'N' GhostsSuper NESCapcom1991
21Final Fantasy VIIPlayStationSquare1997
20Super CastlevaniaSuper NESKonami1991
19Madden NFL 98SaturnElectronic Arts1997
19Madden NFL 98PlayStationElectronic Arts1997
18F-ZEROSuper NESNintendo1991
17Sonic CDSega CDSega of America1993
16Tetris AttackSuper NESNintendo1996
15Super Mario KartSuper NESNintendo1992
14Super Mario Bros. 2NESNintendo1988
14Super Mario Bros. 2Super NESNintendo1993
13The Legend of ZeldaNESNintendo1987
12Castlevania: Symphony of the NightPlayStationKonami1997
11Super Mario WorldSuper NESNintendo1991
10Saturn BombermanSaturnSega1997
9Final Fantasy IIISuper NESNintendo1994
8Contra III: The Alien WarsSuper NESKonami1992
7Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's IslandSuper NESNintendo1995
6Super MetroidSuper NESNintendo1994
5Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper FightingSuper NESCapcom1993
4Super Mario 64Nintendo 64Nintendo1996
3The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the PastSuper NESNintendo1992
2Super Mario Bros. 3NESNintendo1990
2Super Mario Bros. 3Super NESNintendo1993
1TetrisMultiplatformAlexy Pajitnov1988