14. The Legend of Zelda (NES)

Probably the only true competition for Mario's legacy, but between the originals, Zelda stands as the far superior original game.  Mario was the pioneer. Zelda was the man.  It took us into this in-depth world of monsters unlike anything we had ever seen before, and we would continue saying that about Zelda games for many many years.  This game was awesome, but challenging.  if you plan on beating it without any codes, prepare yourself for a long haul in advance.