Hidden NES Gems

[bangtango]

I'd recommend Commando, which is a pretty good game aside from the annoying flicker. Shadowgate isn't too bad. If you like baseball games, you'd want to try RBI Baseball 2, which is the best in the NES series. Fun little arcade-style baseball game. If you like a challenging game, Tengen's Vindicators is a good one. You pilot a tank through stage after stage of enemies. Jackal is an arcade-style game which can be played alone or with a friend (co-op).

[BIGMIKE]

can never go wrong with Rygar in my mind

[Damaramu]

I third Metal Storm. This is probably my favorite NES game, followed by the very difficult, but oh so cool game The Immortal. Good times!

[diskoboy]

I second Rygar.

I also suggest Wizards & Warriors and Gumshoe (if you have a light gun)

[Steven]

Kickmaster

And is it just me, or am I the only one who liked Yo-Noid and Totally Rad? Granted, it's been 15+ years since I played either one, but I remember liking each one a LOT back in the day. Totally Rad I rented SOLELY off the way cool art cover. It was yellow, had a peeking monster and just seemed to evoke a really cool aura

Yo-Noid was that Domino mascot back in the late 80s/early 90s

[Canadian Psycho]

Little Nemo the Dream Master
Jackie Chan's Action Kung Fu
Batman (the first one by Sunsoft)
Street Fighter 2010 (takes a little getting used to the controls, but it is a very rewarding game IMO)

EDIT: I also second Rygar and Uninvited

[scooterb23]

I know it's a well known title, but I have to give love to the first Batman game.

A tough, but not impossible side scroller. Lots of jumping around and stuff, I really like it.

[Xexyz]

I'm going to mention some games that haven't been mentioned yet that you should definitely keep an eye out for:

1943
Batman: Return of the Joker
Cobra Command
Gemfire
Journey to Silius
Kabukai Quantum Fighter
Legacy of the Wizard
Monster Party
Ninja Crusaders
Super Spy Hunter
Twin Cobra
Vice: Project Doom
Zen: Intergalactic Ninja

[clawx]

Most of what has been mentioned is pretty great, but I gotta mention Faria, Little Samson, Puzznic, and Panic Resturant. great stuff.

[Single Player Gamer]

I second Clash at Demonhead. Thats a fun game that never gets played.

[eric nintendo]

Gyruss!

[Red Hedgehog]

That I haven't seen people mention:

Solar Jetman (Rare made some great games for the NES)
Super Off Road (fun racing game)
Faxanadu (Nice action/adventure game)
Strider (Totally different from the arcade version)
A Boy and His Blob (Very unique gameplay)

[Dr. Morbis]

I'll second Zanac. I'm surprised I don't see it mentioned in more "best shmup" threads. I think I could play through Zanac once a month for the rest of my life without getting bored of it.

[zer0cool]

To add another ...Arkanoid.Arkanoid and vaus = hours of fun for me atleast.Not a new concept but the power ups add to the format and the game is just fun.Sucks trying to play with a regular controller though.

[le geek]

Great suggestions so far. It's funny, Rygar and R.C. Pro-Am seem pretty mainstream to me, but I guess it depends on the person... (both great games though)...

I'll second Super Spy Hunter, it felt like "Contra in a car" to me.

I also recommend High Speed, it's a great pinball game by Rare, especially if you liked Pinbot.

Cheers,
Ben

[Thrillo]

Shatterhand. It's an incredible side-scroller with beautiful graphics; it has tight and innovative controls; the sounds, such as the explosions, are very satisfying and well done; the music is radical especially if you have a stereo-modded NES; it has a cool feature where you can build up a floating robot that helps you kill enemies; and theres some graphical trickery that's technologically impressive and just purdy, such as the boss of the gravity level. It avoids things that the NES isn't good at, and relies heavily on the NES's strengths.
If the SMBs didn't exist, Shatterhand would easily be the pinnicle of 2D platformers.

[mrmark0673]

I was just thinking Shatterhand, great game. If you have a top loader or a region modded NES I highly recommend Hammerin' Harry and Ufrouria. Two totally kick ass games that don't get too much attention because they weren't released state side. They can be pricey (got a complete Ufouria for about $30-$40 and paid $60 for a loose Hammerin' Harry), but its worth it.

[RadiantSvgun]

Milan's Secret Castle's a good game, also Super Pitfall.

Milon's Secret Castle by Hudson? Yeah, it is good, but man is that hard!
I recommend Metal Storm as well!
Lets see.. P.O.W. ; Renegade, Demon Sword, ummm... Kickle cubicle, the Guardian legend, and T&C surf Designs.

All of those are pretty cheap too.

[bangtango]

Great suggestions so far. It's funny, Rygar and R.C. Pro-Am seem pretty mainstream to me, but I guess it depends on the person... (both great games though)...

I'll second Super Spy Hunter, it felt like "Contra in a car" to me.

I also recommend High Speed, it's a great pinball game by Rare, especially if you liked Pinbot.

Cheers,
Ben

Well, any "old" game that has a modern version of it made on a home console (such as Rygar) would have to be considered mainstream.

As for RC Pro-Am, I was of the belief that most everybody who played it thought it was "good." I don't remember hearing anyone say something bad about that game. It was the exact same way with River City Ransom, since that wasn't any sort of best-seller until after the fact. I don't remember people getting fired up for that particular game BEFORE it came out.

That is worth mentioning because this thread has a few games that did get bad reviews or some gamers just didn't like. Stuff like Street Fighter 2010, Little Nemo or Super Pitfall come to mind. So since it just might be common knowledge that RC Pro-Am is "cool" to almost everyone, you could say the game is more mainstream than the typical item mentioned in this thread.

[Tron 2.0]

I recommend Fire and Ice. I sat down to just try this game out and ended up playing it nonstop for 3 days till I beat it. Strangely addicting.

Indeed it is btw it is the follow up to solomon's key another favorite of mine.