Did you used to rush home every day after school to play Nintendo? Did you burn with an envy so deep when your friend got a new Nintendo console for his birthday? Or did you save up all of your allowance to buy that perfect system? It might have been the N64, the GameCube, or even the Switch, but we all had that one Nintendo console that called our name, begged us to adopt it, and pleaded with us to give it a good home. A home where you would love it and play with it every day and never forget to do all your chores (we promise, Mom!).

Is there even such a thing as the “best” Nintendo console though? They were all the best! Can a parent choose their favorite child? Of course, not! Well, except…

Maybe the NES was a little bit better than the rest. Just maybe, okay? There is no denying that the Nintendo Entertainment System – the original NES, the old school grandfather of them all –  will always hold a special place in our hearts. You may have been years too late to experience the original thrill of the NES, or you may just have given your heart to a newer model, but you have to appreciate what the NES did for every kid of the 1980s –  and every kid since.

The NES started it all; without it there would never have been a Wii or a Game Boy or all those afternoons with your friends comparing notes on how to earn more Rupees. It was the NES that gave us the Mario series, the Legend of Zelda series, the Mega Man series, Final Fantasy, Duck Hunt, and so much more!

So, whatever console stole your heart and filled your childhood dreams, the NES was the reason it was all possible. So, cheers, to you NES! You may be old and kind of dinosaur-y now…but we love you and promise not to love the Switch more than you! We may play it more than you…but we still love you the best of them all. Promise.