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Best Sega Genesis games of 1989

The 8 best Sega Genesis games released in 1989, ranked from 712 critic and player ratings.

The best Sega Genesis game of 1989 is Prince of Persia (1989), with a critic score of 81/100 — updated October 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: 1989.
8 games are listed on this page, carrying 712 ratings between them.
Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 12 October 2026.

Top 8

Prince of Persia (1989) 1989 · 268 ratings The game is set in ancient Persia. While the sultan is fighting a war in a foreign land, his vizier Jaffar, a wizard, seizes power. Jaffar's only obstacle to the throne is the Sultan's daughter (although the game never specifically mentions how). Jaffar locks her in a tower and orders her, under threat of execution, to become his wife. The game's nameless protagonist, whom the Princess loves, is thrown into the palace dungeons. The player must lead the protagonist out of the dungeons and to the palace tower, defeating Jaffar and freeing the Princess in under 60 minutes. In addition to guards, various traps and dungeons, the protagonist is further hindered by his own doppelgänger, an apparition of his own self that is conjured out of a magic mirror. 81 /100

Final Fight 1989 · 150 ratings Final Fight is a side-scrolling beat-'em-up produced by Capcom. Final Fight can be played by up to two players simultaneously. Before the game begins, the player chooses between the three main characters: Haggar, Cody, and Guy. Each has his own fighting style and attributes. Health gauges are displayed for both player and enemy characters. The controls for Final Fight consist of an eight-way joystick and two buttons for attacking and jumping respectively. Pressing the attack button repeatedly when attacking an enemy or multiple enemies will cause the player character to perform a combo. The final blow of the combo can be changed to a throw if the player moves the joystick in the opposite direction just before landing it. The player can also perform a jump attack. Pressing the attack and jump buttons simultaneously allows the player to perform a special attack that strikes all surrounding enemies, but will drain a small portion of the player's health. Enemies can be grabbed simply by walking into one of them. When an enemy is grabbed, the player can perform a grab attack by pressing the attack button or perform a throw by tilting the joystick left or right. A thrown enemy can be tossed at another for additional damage. Items such as weapons, health recovery items, and items awarding extra points can be picked up by standing over one and pressing the attack button. Weapons have limited uses and will disappear if the player is disarmed by an enemy too much or when the player moves to a new area. Final Fight consists of six stages or "rounds", as well as two bonus rounds. Each round takes place in a different section of Metro City such as the Slums and the Subway, with most rounds featuring more than one level. At the end of each round the player will face a boss character unique to that round. 79 /100

Batman (1990) 1989 · 44 ratings The movie of the decade is now the game of the year! Just when you thought you'd heard the last of his heinous cackling, The Joker is back in an all new action-adventure, based on the blockbuster movie - Batman. As the Dark Knight, only you can determine how the plot will unfold as you try to save Gotham City from certain doom. Even with the Batwing and all your wonderful toys, The Joker may just rewrite your script. So, rev up the Batmobile and get ready for the chase of your life. 80 /100

The Revenge of Shinobi 1989 · 64 ratings The Revenge of Shinobi, known as The Super Shinobi in Japan, is the continuation of Shadow Dancer - the arcade sequel to Shinobi. The game was the first Shinobi title developed exclusively for home consoles. 75 /100

Populous 1989 · 47 ratings Populous is a real-time strategy game where the player takes the role of a deity influencing the development of civilizations. You shape terrain, guide followers, and use natural disasters like floods, volcanoes, and earthquakes to influence or eliminate opposing tribes. The game features an isometric perspective and includes 500 levels (worlds), each with different challenges. Originally developed by Bullfrog and designed by Peter Molyneux, it is considered one of the earliest examples of the god-game genre. 74 /100

Batman: The Video Game 1989 · 53 ratings Batman: The Video Game, is a group of platform games developed by Sunsoft for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy, loosely based on the 1989 film of the same name. Despite having the same title, each is actually a different game. The NES title is arguably the best known and contains five levels culminating in a final showdown with the Joker in the bell tower of Gotham Cathedral. It was received well despite changes from the movie upon which it was based. Sunsoft later released Batman: Return of the Joker as a follow-up which is not related to any movie. 72 /100

Alex Kidd in the Enchanted Castle (1989) 1989 · 34 ratings The whole Kidd family is upset! Alex’s father, King Thor, is missing, and they suspect he has been kidnapped by Ashra, the mean ruler of the planet Paperock. Alex speeds to Paperock to investigate, but the creatures of Paperock decide to hinder his efforts and try to keep him away from Sky Castle, Ashra’s hideaway. Luckily Alex knows how to jump, punch and kick his way through the most stubborn of enemies. 69 /100

Strider (1989) 1989 · 52 ratings The controls of Strider consist of an eight-way joystick and two action buttons for attacking and jumping. The player controls Hiryu himself, whose main weapon is a tonfa-like plasma sword known as "Cypher". He can perform numerous acrobatic feats depending on the joystick/button combination used. Pressing the jump button while Hiryu is standing still will cause him to do a regular vertical jump, while pressing the jump button while pushing the joystick left or right will enable him to do a cartwheel jump. Hiryu can also slide under or through certain obstacles and enemies by first crouching down and then pressing the jump button. As well as his sliding move, both jumps can also be used to destroy weaker opponents. Hiryu is able to latch onto certain platforms, and climb across walls and ceilings using a metallic hook. While running down a sloped surface, Hiryu can gain enough momentum to allow him to do a longer cartwheel jump than usual. Numerous power-ups can be obtained from item boxes carried by certain enemies. These includes an extension to Hiryu's attack range that lasts for one hundred slashes, two types of health aids (represented by the kanji used to write Hiryu's name: 飛 and 飛竜), a max health extension (represented by the kanji 竜, the second character in Hiryu's name), an extra life, and a power-up that not only makes Hiryu invulnerable to attack but also increases his own attack abilities via shadow images of himself for 15 seconds.[3] Hiryu can also summon robotic companions known collectively as "options" that help him fight enemies. These consist of up to two mushroom-like droids, a saber-toothed tiger and a hawk, known individually as Option A, B and C respectively. The game has five stages: the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic (called "St. Petersburg" during the arcade game's attract sequence), the Siberian Wilderness, the Aerial Battleship Balrog (געלראב), the Amazonian Jungle, and the Grandmaster's lair itself, the Third Moon. Each of the stages is divided into a number of smaller sections, each with their own time limit and checkpoint location. The player has a three-point health gauge (which can be increased to five points with the health extensions. Hiryu will lose a life when either his health gauge is fully depleted, by moving him off the screen entirely (like falling into a bottomless pit) or when the game's timer reaches zero. It's Game Over when all of Hiryu's lives are lost, but the player can be given the opportunity to continue. 67 /100

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What is the best Sega Genesis game of 1989?

Prince of Persia (1989) currently tops the ranking with a score of 81/100 across 268 ratings. Ranking updated October 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.

Best Sega Genesis games of 1989

How this ranking is built

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