Nintendo Entertainment System
- This article is about the video game console. For the application forNintendo Switch andNintendo Switch 2, seeNintendo Entertainment System - Nintendo Classics. For the treasure inWario World, seeList of treasures in Wario World § Greenhorn Ruins.
- "NES" redirects here. It is not to be confused withNess.
| Nintendo Entertainment System | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Logo seen on the console  Original model of the Nintendo Entertainment System | |||||||||
| Generation | Third generation | ||||||||
| Release dates | Nintendo Entertainment System: October 18, 1985[1] 1986[2] June 1986[3] September 1, 1986[4][5] September 1, 1986[4][5] September 1, 1986[4][5] September 1, 1986[4][5] January 1987[3][6] 1987[7] 1987[7] 1987[3] 1987[7] 1987[3] 1987[8][7] 1987[8][7] October 1987[9] Late 1987[10] c. 1988[11] October 1989[12] 1990[3] 1991[3] 1991[13] 1991[14] 1992[3] 1993[15] 1993[3] 1993[3] Late 1993[16] 1994[3][17] 1994[3] November 14, 1994[3]NES Classic Edition: November 10, 2016[18] November 11, 2016[?] November 11, 2016[?] | ||||||||
| Discontinued | August 14, 1995[19] August 14, 1995[19] August 14, 1995[19] | ||||||||
| Ratings | NES Classic Edition:
| ||||||||
| Predecessor | Color TV-Game | ||||||||
| Successor | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | ||||||||
- Everyone 10+
- Seven years and older
- Twelve years and older
- Parental guidance- “Now you're playing with power!”
- —Advertisement slogan for the NES
TheNintendo Entertainment System (abbreviated asNES) is an 8-bit home video game console created byNintendo as theWestern counterpart of theFamily Computer (often named Famicom for short). It was released in the United States on October 18, 1985; British Hong Kong in 1986; Singapore in June 1986; Scandinavia on September 1, 1986; India in January 1987; New Zealand, Australia, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Ireland, and the United Kingdom in 1987; France in October 1987; the Netherlands in late 1987; Spain circa 1988; South Korea in October 1989; Israel in 1990; Hungary and Portugal in 1991; South Africa, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia in 1993; Brazil in late 1993; Croatia in 1994; and Poland on November 14, 1994 (the latter simultaneously with theGame Boy andSuper Nintendo Entertainment System).[3] Because the NES and Famicom were both released in British Hong Kong, the latter was marketed as a revision of the former rather than the other way around.[2] The South Korean and Indian editions were respectively retitled theHyundai Comboy andSamurai Electronic TV Game System to circumvent import restrictions in both countries.
The original Nintendo Entertainment System model is a complete redesign of the Famicom, featuring a gray and white color scheme, a covered slot on the front where cartridges are slid into, and detachable controllers. The system and its launch titles contributed to revitalizing the American video game industry following thevideo game crash of 1983, due to its software quality control through theOfficial Nintendo Seal of Quality and toy-like peripherals.[20] The Nintendo Entertainment System and Family Computer sold 61.91 million units combined, and the NES was discontinued in 1995.[21][22]
Super Mario Bros. is one of the Nintendo Entertainment System launch titles, and it was frequently packaged with the system, including in the Control Deck, Action Set (as a2-in-1 Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt compilation cartridge), and Power Set (as a3-in-1 Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt / World Class Track Meet cartridge) bundles. It is credited as being the game that helped the industry recover from the video game crash of 1983. For decades,Super Mario Bros. was the system's best-selling game, let alone video games in general, having sold 40.23 million copies. Eventually,Super Mario Bros. 3 was released in the United States, and it became an instant hit, making 500 million dollars in less than 24 hours.[citation needed]
The Nintendo Entertainment System's graphical capabilities, extended RAM, and even sound capabilities can be expanded with the use of memory mappers like the MMC2, MMC3, and MMC5. The only twoSuper Mario games that use memory mappers areSuper Mario Bros. 2 andSuper Mario Bros. 3 with the MMC3 mapper being used. The onlyMario cameo appearance that uses memory mappers isMike Tyson's Punch-Out!!, using MMC2 in particular and also being the only NES game that uses that particular mapper.
An expansion port is located underneath the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is assumed that it would have been used for a Western equivalent of theFamily Computer Disk System, but it went unused. However, the redesigned NES-101 Top Loader model lacks the expansion port entirely.
Accessories[edit]
NES Controller[edit]
The NES Controller is the basic controller packaged with every Nintendo Entertainment System. It has four buttons and a directional pad on a brick-shaped case.
and
are stationed on the right, the
and
is in the middle, and the D-pad is on the left of the controller. Nintendo later released a different form of the NES, the NES-101 model, which used a "dog-bone" design instead of the brick design, which looked a lot like Super Nintendo Entertainment System controllers. This design combines elements of theGame Boy and theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System controller.
Unlike theFamicom, the NES does not have any audio controls (volume slider and microphone) on the second controller. Instead, the and buttons are available on both controllers, making those practically identical. Another difference is that the NES' controllers can be extracted, while the Famicom's cannot.
R.O.B.[edit]
- Main article:R.O.B.
Cleaning Kit[edit]
Over time, pins inside the NES and game cartridges would get dirty. Nintendo released an approved cleaning kit to improve the condition of the contacts so games would play without interruption.Mario is on the cover of the NES Cleaning Kit.
NES Classic Edition[edit]
- Main section:Classics § NES Classic Edition
Announced on July 14, 2016, theNES Classic Edition (known as theNintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System in Europe and Australia) is a smaller version of the Nintendo Entertainment System and the first entry to theClassics series. It was released in Australia on November 10, 2016, and in the Americas and Europe on November 11, 2016.[23] Unlike the original NES, the NES Classic Edition does not support cartridges, but rather features 30 games pre-installed, includingSuper Mario games such asSuper Mario Bros.,Donkey Kong, andDr. Mario. A version for the JapaneseFamily Computer, theNintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer, was released in Japan on the same day and includes a slightly different software line-up than the NES Classic Edition.
The NES Classic Edition was discontinued on April 2017,[24] but resumed production in Summer 2018.[25] On June 26, 2017, a successor was announced in the form of theSNES Classic Edition.[26]
Appearances in theSuper Mario franchise[edit]
- At the beginning of theThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! episode "Mama Mia Mario", asMario andLuigi are relaxing in front of the TV, Luigi is seen holding an NES controller.
- The NES appears as one of Wario'streasures inWario World.
- 9-Volt has an NES inWarioWare: Twisted!
- InSuper Paper Mario, one ofFrancis's protected rooms has an NES, along with various other Nintendo consoles.
- InMario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, the design on the carpet in theGenius Girl's room is based on the NES controller.
- Though the console itself does not appear inSuper Mario Odyssey, one of the filters that are available for use inSnapshot Mode is the graphics style of the NES.
- LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System, aLEGO version of the system created as part of theLEGOSuper Mario partnership, was released on August 1, 2020. The set also features aSuper Mario Bros. cartridge as well as a television "playing" the game and is compatible with the Mario figure from the Mario Starter Course set.[27]
- InThe Super Mario Bros. Movie, Mario owns an NES in his apartment and is seen playingKid Icarus on the console. TheToad at the antique store asks about an NES cartridge, to which the clerk tells them to blow into it, referencing a popular urban legend claiming that doing to would remove dust within the cartridge and allow it to work properly (in reality, blowing into the cartridge could risk causing further damage due to airborne saliva droplets corroding the copper connectors).
- The NES D-pad is used for the plus sign in the "Nintendo +Illumination" logo in promotional videos forThe Super Mario Galaxy Movie.[28]
Super Mario games[edit]
1985[edit]
1986[edit]
1988[edit]
1990[edit]
1991[edit]
1992[edit]
1993[edit]
1994[edit]
Galleries[edit]
System gallery[edit]
Logo
Alternate Logo
Logo used on the cover for early NES games
Logo used on the cover for later NES games in 1990 and onwards
Original NES
The NES-101 model
Hand holding NES Classic Edition as scale
The US packaging of the NES Classic Edition
The European packaging of the Nintendo Classic Mini
The Australian packaging of the Nintendo Classic Mini
Game gallery[edit]
This gallery does not includeFamily Computer games.
Miscellaneous[edit]
NES Game Atlas
Image macro from the official NintendoAUNZ social media accounts, showing the NES alongside threeSuper Mario Bros. games for the system
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ニンテンドー・エンターテインメント・システム[29] Nintendō Entāteinmento Shisutemu | Nintendo Entertainment System | |
| Korean | 현대 컴보이[?] Hyeondae Keomboi | Hyundai Comboy | |
| Spanish(Latin American) | Nintendo Entertainment System[?] | - | |
| Spanish(European) | Sistema de Entretenimiento de Nintendo[?] | Nintendo Entertainment System |
References[edit]
 | The Cutting Room Floor has an article onNintendo Entertainment System. |
 | Wikipedia has an article onNintendo Entertainment System. |
- ^Chris Kohler (October 18, 2010).Oct. 18, 1985: Nintendo Entertainment System Launches.WIRED (English). Retrieved November 23, 2024. (Archived November 26, 2020, 13:47:01 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abAkfamilyhome (April 1, 2020).A History of Nintendo's Hong Kong Releases.YouTube (Cantonese & English (English subtitles available)). Retrieved June 5, 2024. (Archived May 25, 2024, 11:22:53 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abcdefghijklmJoshua Rogers (December 26, 2020).World of Nintendo: Exploring Nintendo in (Eastern) Europe.PAX (via YouTube) (English). Retrieved June 5, 2024. (Archived June 5, 2024, 20:16:14 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abcdTobias Bjarneby (September 29, 2006). Historien om Bergsala – 20 år med Nintendo.IDG (Swedish). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived December 13, 2021, 23:23:06 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abcdJoe Skrebels (December 9, 2019).The Lie That Helped Build Nintendo.IGN (English). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived December 21, 2019, 23:17:14 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Desai, Sameer (September 16, 2008). "Nintendo Wii and DS to launch in India on September 30".Rediff News. Retrieved March 23, 2024. (Archived September 29, 2022, 14:05:16 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abcdeSheff, David; Eddy, Andy (April 15, 1999).Game Over, Press Start to Continue: How Nintendo Conquered the World.Cyber Active. ISBN0-9669617-0-6. Page 413. (Archived via Wayback Machine.)
- ^abOli Welsh (February 24, 2017).A complete history of Nintendo console launches.Eurogamer (English). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived November 13, 2019, 19:30:25 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^L'Histoire de Nintendo Volume 3 (in French). Pix'N Love. 2011. p. 133.
- ^November 11, 1988.Computerspel komt terug.BN DeStem (Dutch). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived October 26, 2017, 21:45:42 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^José Antonio Luna (February 3, 2019).Videojuegos a 10.000 pesetas y NASA en lugar de NES: así fue la llegada de las consolas a España.El Diario (Spanish). Retrieved June 1, 2024. (Archived December 13, 2021, 23:23:05 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Derboo, Sam (June 6, 2010). "A History of Korean Gaming".Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved March 23, 2024. (Archived June 16, 2010, 21:53:33 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^"A Chile llegó apenas el año 1991." – July 14, 2023.La NES cumple 40 años: La historia de la icónica consola ochentera de Nintendo que revolucionó al mundo. Spanish. Retrieved from The Clinic.
- ^Damiano Gerli (April 30, 2022).A Discussion on the European Gaming Market in the 80s.The Genesis Temple (English). Retrieved June 4, 2024. (Archived September 20, 2023, 12:48:35 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Rogers, Joshua Alexander (April 16, 2020).LinkedIn. Retrieved March 23, 2024. (Archived September 25, 2022, 15:36:58 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Flavio Barboni (July 27, 2013).Master System x NES: veja a comparação entre os consoles 8 bits.TechTudo (Portuguese). Retrieved June 4, 2024. (Archived July 9, 2018, 01:06:25 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^The Retro Sofa (June 2, 2024).The Complete (ish) History of Nintendo's Arrival in Europe.YouTube (English). Retrieved November 15, 2024. (Archived October 6, 2024, 16:07:51 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Nintendo AU NZ (July 14, 2016)."Nintendo Classic Mini announcement".X. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^abcNintendo Entertainment System (NES) – 1985–1995.GameSpy. Retrieved June 22, 2025 from Classic Gaming. (Archived October 29, 2012 via Wayback Machine.)
- ^Gardner, Matt (October 18, 2020)."It’s Been 35 Years Since Nintendo Changed Western Gaming Forever". Retrieved December 4, 2021.
- ^http://www.webcitation.org/5nXieXX2B
- ^https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/hard_soft/
- ^Nintendo. (July 14, 2016).Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System.Nintendo UK. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^Otero, Jose (April 13, 2017).Nintendo Discontinues the NES Classic Edition.IGN. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^McFerran, Damien (September 12, 2017).Nintendo Is Resurrecting The NES Classic Mini And Increasing SNES Classic Inventory.Nintendo Life. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^Nintendo.Super Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Edition.Nintendo.com. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^Nintendo (July 14, 2020)."LEGO Nintendo Entertainment System: Now you're playing with power...and bricks".YouTube. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
- ^Illumination and Universal Pictures (January 25, 2026).The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | Yoshi Chomps Back.YouTube. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
- ^July 15, 2023.https://web.archive.org/web/20241007142008/https://www.nintendo.com/jp/famicom/history/index.html.Nintendo (Japanese). Archived October 7, 2024, 14:20:08 UTC from theoriginal via Wayback Machine. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
