Ranking Nintendo's Top Gaming Franchises

With the Nintendo Switch 2 on the horizon, it's the perfect time to look back at some legendary games from the iconic publisher.

For decades, Nintendo has created some of the most famous and best-selling franchises ever. I've narrowed down 18 of the most prominent series to evaluate—this list could easily reach the hundreds, but let's be reasonable. From Super Mario to Zelda, everyone has favorites and maybe a few series, like Kirby for some, that didn't quite connect. I've ranked them using an IGN Tier List, based purely on my personal enjoyment of each franchise over the years. Check out my tier list below:

It's no shock to find both Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda in my S-tier. They are two of the most influential and, crucially, endlessly fun video game series of all time. On the opposite end, my placement of Super Smash Bros. in C-tier might raise a few eyebrows. Let me explain before the comments come for me. Smash Bros. was simply never my thing. I'm not a big fighting game fan, and while many friends bonded over it, I was busy with other multiplayer games like TimeSplitters, Guitar Hero, or Call of Duty. I don't share that widespread connection to Smash Bros., and for that, I ask for your forgiveness.

Don't agree? Think Pikmin deserves a higher spot than Pokémon? Feel free to rank Nintendo's biggest series yourself in the interactive tier list below. You can compare your own S, A, B, C, and D tier rankings with the entire IGN community.

What's your favorite Nintendo series that didn't make the list? Share your thoughts in the comments, along with your reasons for ranking the games the way you did.