The Legend of Zelda (NES)

Best: The exploration was unmatched for the time

Even now, the original Legend of Zelda feels like an adventure into worlds unknown. Yes, it’s not the technical marvel it once was, but Hyrule still feels like a dangerous, magical world Link has to fight through. The legendary line “It’s dangerous to go alone” still rings true as you explore this world full of mystery. Miyamoto’s breakthrough action-RPG set a stellar foundation for everything that was to come, and the series is still riffing on its design philosophies to this day.

Worst: As with many first games, its sequels did it better 

This isn’t something unique to the original Zelda, but a lot of long-running franchises inevitably surpass their originators with new entries and iterations on old systems. While Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was a momentary detour for the series, A Link to the Past took everything the original game did and added new layers of depth and an emotional core, and was just a plain better version of what the original game proposed. It’s a great foundation, but it is just that.

Read more: In 10 Minutes, Nintendo Rekindled Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s Lost Hype