Best games
Best NES games of 1990
The 8 best NES games released in 1990, ranked from 771 critic and player ratings.
The best NES game of 1990 is Super C, with a critic score of 82/100 — updated September 2026.
How this ranking is built
- Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
- A game only enters the ranking with at least 30 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
- Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
- Release window covered: 1990.
- 8 games are listed on this page, carrying 771 ratings between them.
- Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 28 September 2026.
Top 8
01
Super C
The alien Red Falcon is back, and planning on taking over the planet Earth.
82
/100
02
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game
This version includes two new levels (the first part of Scene 3 and all of Scene 6), which feature new enemy characters, including two new bosses: Tora (a dog-like "blizzard beast") and Shogun (a robotic samurai), both characters created for the game. Most of the original stages from the arcade version were extended as well and the second half of Scene 3, the parking garage stage, replaces the arcade version's end battle with Bebop and Rocksteady with a battle against the mutated fly form of Baxter Stockman.
80
/100
03
Punch-Out!!
You are Little Mac, a 17 year-old rookie fighter straight out of the Bronx. What you lack in size you more than make up for in determination. Spurred on by your trainer, Doc Louis, it's time to take on the world's boxing best! Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! was re-branded simply as Punch-Out!!, and re-released in the US and Europe in 1990. When Nintendo's license had expired with Mike Tyson, his likeness was replaced by a fictional character named Mr. Dream, whose visual likeness and undefeated record are based on Rocky Marciano. This version of the game is used in all Virtual Console releases, Animal Crossing, the NES Classic Edition, and on Nintendo Switch Online (which Mike Tyson contested).
80
/100
Super C
The alien Red Falcon is back, and planning on taking over the planet Earth.
82
/100
02
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game
This version includes two new levels (the first part of Scene 3 and all of Scene 6), which feature new enemy characters, including two new bosses: Tora (a dog-like "blizzard beast") and Shogun (a robotic samurai), both characters created for the game. Most of the original stages from the arcade version were extended as well and the second half of Scene 3, the parking garage stage, replaces the arcade version's end battle with Bebop and Rocksteady with a battle against the mutated fly form of Baxter Stockman.
80
/100
03
Punch-Out!!
You are Little Mac, a 17 year-old rookie fighter straight out of the Bronx. What you lack in size you more than make up for in determination. Spurred on by your trainer, Doc Louis, it's time to take on the world's boxing best! Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! was re-branded simply as Punch-Out!!, and re-released in the US and Europe in 1990. When Nintendo's license had expired with Mike Tyson, his likeness was replaced by a fictional character named Mr. Dream, whose visual likeness and undefeated record are based on Rocky Marciano. This version of the game is used in all Virtual Console releases, Animal Crossing, the NES Classic Edition, and on Nintendo Switch Online (which Mike Tyson contested).
80
/100
04
Mega Man 3 (1990)
It's robot rebellion, and nobody's safe! Least of all, Mega Man! This time the superpowerful cyborg takes on a horde of metal maniacs who've had it with being obedient! And they use every android-annihilator ever invented to make you believe it! Mega Man goes berserk, blasting through a galaxy of mining stations in search of energy crystals. But it takes more than guts to battle the phenomenal robot masters who control these worlds. It's a wrenching job, the worst - and the best - that Mega Man's faced so far!
79
/100
05
Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers is a platformer video game developed and published by Capcom based on the Disney animated series of the same name. Originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in Japan and North America in 1990, it came to Europe the next year, and was ported to the Nintendo PlayChoice-10 arcade system. It sold approximately 1.2 million copies worldwide.
79
/100
06
Dr. Mario
Dr. Mario is a falling block tile-matching video game, in which Mario assumes the role of a doctor, dropping two-colored medical capsules into a medicine bottle representing the playing field. This area is populated by viruses of three colors: red, yellow, and blue. In a manner and style considered similar to Tetris, the player manipulates each capsule as it falls, moving it left or right and rotating it such that it is positioned alongside the viruses and any existing capsules. When four or more capsule halves or viruses of matching color are aligned in vertical or horizontal configurations, they are removed from play. The main objective is to complete levels, which is accomplished by eliminating all viruses from the playing field. A game over occurs if capsules fill up the playing field in a way that obstructs the bottle's narrow neck.
72
/100
07
Nintendo World Cup
The eyes of the world are upon you. National pride is at stake. Only seconds left and the crowd rises in anticipation of the greatest upset in soccer history. The horn sounds and you've won it all! The coveted world cup trophy is yours! Pick your team and plan your game strategy. Use advanced super moves like the Bicycle Kick or the Super Header. Choose from 13 teams, representing countries from around the world. Defeat your opponents and you're on your way to the prestigious world cup final. Bring the excitement of international soccer home with Nintendo World Cup!
71
/100
08
Final Fantasy III (1990)
Final Fantasy III is the third FF game for the Famicom. The turn-based battle engine has been improved: if the enemy is defeated, the next character will automatically switch to another enemy, and not hit the air, like in the previous two games. The game itself is, like the previous games, a top-down RPG where your characters travel in the overworld, sometimes entering cities and dungeons to buy equipment, rest and fight random encounters and bosses with turn-based combat. Final Fantasy III also introduces various series staples, such as the Job system and the Moogle species.
70
/100
Mega Man 3 (1990)
It's robot rebellion, and nobody's safe! Least of all, Mega Man! This time the superpowerful cyborg takes on a horde of metal maniacs who've had it with being obedient! And they use every android-annihilator ever invented to make you believe it! Mega Man goes berserk, blasting through a galaxy of mining stations in search of energy crystals. But it takes more than guts to battle the phenomenal robot masters who control these worlds. It's a wrenching job, the worst - and the best - that Mega Man's faced so far!
79
/100
05
Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers
Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers is a platformer video game developed and published by Capcom based on the Disney animated series of the same name. Originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in Japan and North America in 1990, it came to Europe the next year, and was ported to the Nintendo PlayChoice-10 arcade system. It sold approximately 1.2 million copies worldwide.
79
/100
06
Dr. Mario
Dr. Mario is a falling block tile-matching video game, in which Mario assumes the role of a doctor, dropping two-colored medical capsules into a medicine bottle representing the playing field. This area is populated by viruses of three colors: red, yellow, and blue. In a manner and style considered similar to Tetris, the player manipulates each capsule as it falls, moving it left or right and rotating it such that it is positioned alongside the viruses and any existing capsules. When four or more capsule halves or viruses of matching color are aligned in vertical or horizontal configurations, they are removed from play. The main objective is to complete levels, which is accomplished by eliminating all viruses from the playing field. A game over occurs if capsules fill up the playing field in a way that obstructs the bottle's narrow neck.
72
/100
07
Nintendo World Cup
The eyes of the world are upon you. National pride is at stake. Only seconds left and the crowd rises in anticipation of the greatest upset in soccer history. The horn sounds and you've won it all! The coveted world cup trophy is yours! Pick your team and plan your game strategy. Use advanced super moves like the Bicycle Kick or the Super Header. Choose from 13 teams, representing countries from around the world. Defeat your opponents and you're on your way to the prestigious world cup final. Bring the excitement of international soccer home with Nintendo World Cup!
71
/100
08
Final Fantasy III (1990)
Final Fantasy III is the third FF game for the Famicom. The turn-based battle engine has been improved: if the enemy is defeated, the next character will automatically switch to another enemy, and not hit the air, like in the previous two games. The game itself is, like the previous games, a top-down RPG where your characters travel in the overworld, sometimes entering cities and dungeons to buy equipment, rest and fight random encounters and bosses with turn-based combat. Final Fantasy III also introduces various series staples, such as the Job system and the Moogle species.
70
/100
Frequently asked questions
What is the best NES game of 1990?
Super C currently tops the ranking with a score of 82/100 across 45 ratings. Ranking updated September 2026.
How is this ranking built?
Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.