The Nintendo Entertainment System was released in Japan in 1983, then in the rest of the world over the following few years.
Also known as the ‘Famicom’ in Japan, the NES was Nintendo’s first huge success story. It is widely regarded as one of the most iconic video game consoles.
Undoubtedly the NES was the best-selling 8-bit console in the US and Japan, it was also very big in Europe. The European market was very different though in that Sega had gained some decent market share. Sega also priced their products slightly cheaper than Nintendo. This was a huge selling point for many European users. A lot of the European regions had spent many years buying systems and software for the ZX Spectrum, C64 and Amstrad CPC. Software for these machines typically started from pocket money amounts. When Nintendo arrived charging potentially up to 15-20 times more for a game. This took some time for users to adjust and transition to consoles such as the NES.
The NES popularised (but not necessarily was first) the most iconic Nintendo characters and franchises that still exist today. Such as Mario, Metroid, Zelda and Donkey Kong.
Released after the video game crash in the US, the NES had the task of building up consumers’ interests in video gaming again. Quite intentionally, the name and design of the console positioned it as a ‘home entertainment device. Moving it away from the stigma of the label ‘video game’. As the market recovered, the NES had essentially displaced Atari at the top of the home console food chain.
Still hugely popular to this day, Nintendo released 2017 the NES Mini, a miniaturised version of the NES that included a number of built-in games. Many NES games are still being ported to the online virtual console stores of Nintendo’s latest systems.
How To Emulate This System?
Nintendo Entertainment System | NES emulation is reasonably well catered for, we recommend taking a look at RetroArch if you are seeking an all-in-one solution. RetroArch emulates a large number of systems including the Nintendo Entertainment System | NES. RetroArch is a front end that utilises emulator ‘cores’, it is reasonably easy to use and has lots of good supporting documentation on how to use it. RetroArch is available across a number of platforms including Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Raspberry Pi and many consoles. Take a look at our quick start guide for RetroArch which can get you up and running in 5 minutes.
Also, check out the other Nintendo Entertainment System | NES emulators we enjoy using:
| Emulator | Description | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| FCEUX | FCEUX emulates the NES, Famicom, Famicom Disk System (FDS), and Dendy systems. | Windows |
A lifelong avid gamer and computing enthusiast, Matt has decades of Retro Gaming experience. Now over 40 years old, Matt now even considers himself retro, but fortunately, nobody has developed a Matt emulator (not yet at least!).
