Best two-player simultaneous NES games

[+thegoldenband]

Hey, all --

 

As the title says, I'd like your opinions on which NES titles have the best two-player simultaneous play. My girlfriend and I like to play NES in emulation on my Dreamcast, but I spend way too much time fishing around for games.

 

I'm particularly interested in cooperative titles that are more puzzle- or strategy-oriented, and that have a relatively low barrier to entry, like Pipe Dream (which she's damn good at) or Rampart. Obviously I've played Contra, Guerrilla War, Twinbee, et al., but most shooters aren't really to my girlfriend's taste. (Nor are elaborate simulations like Romance of the Three Kingdoms.)

 

Also welcome are obscure Japanese games that I might otherwise overlook. The "Family" series has some nice games in it, though alas, they don't seem to agree with NesterDC on the Dreamcast.

 

Also, if there are titles where the two players alternate rapidly, that would be OK too. I'm just not looking for titles where one player can go on a long run and leave the other player twiddling his/her thumbs.

 

By the way, is there any comprehensive list (somewhere on the Internet) of two-player simultaneous games, for the NES or any other system?

Edited January 24, 2009 by thegoldenband

[KIWASABI]

Dr. Mario may be a good one depending on her tastes. Lots of women really like that game, but my girlfriend isn't one of them.

 

Yoshi's cookie may be another one to check out. That one was always fun and I believe my mom liked it.

 

Bubble Bobble is an extremely classic game if you can get her into it. That game can keep you addicted for hours.

 

I'm sure I'll think of others.

[fiddlepaddle]

Tengen Tetris has a good two player variation, if I remember right.

 

Also, Twin Eagle is a pretty good two player shooter.

[Eltigro]

Contra

 

Gauntlet was pretty fun, too.

 

Was the NES Bomberman multiplayer? The sing player game of Bomberman never really got me, but multiplayer was awesome. I know the SNES version and TG-16 version were multi, but I don't remember on the NES.

Edited January 24, 2009 by Eltigro

[schuwalker]

You forgot to mention Ikari warriors as a greta 2- player game.......

[KIWASABI]

Ninja Turtles 2 also isn't bad, though it gets repetitive quickly.

[Atarifever]

Double Dragon... oh wait. Sorry, that's the 7800, Master System, computers, arcade, and every other platform.

 

In that case my vote goes to Contra.

[cvga]

RC Pro Am is a lot of fun!

[KIWASABI]

Double Dragon... oh wait. Sorry, that's the 7800, Master System, computers, arcade, and every other platform.

 

In that case my vote goes to Contra.

 

Double Dragon 2 is great on the NES and is also two player. I have no idea why they decided not to make the NES port 2-player, but whatever. Probably ran out of time in the development cycle.

 

Jackal is another great two player game. It isn't too hard so it's very playable with a more casual player. I was able to play that one with my girlfriend.

[theking21083]

Rampage is fun on the NES but doesn't have Ralph in it who is my favorite character.

[Lauren Tyler]

I don't know why Double Dragon barely even resembled the original arcade game. Weird.

 

But some great 2-player games are definitely Bubble Bobble, Dr. Mario, and Tengen Tetris (if you can find it.) Another great game is Monopoly.

[KIWASABI]

I don't know why Double Dragon barely even resembled the original arcade game. Weird.

 

But some great 2-player games are definitely Bubble Bobble, Dr. Mario, and Tengen Tetris (if you can find it.) Another great game is Monopoly.

 

You know why that Tengen Tetris is so hard to find? It was released illegally since Tengen thought they had the rights to Tetris but didn't end up having them, so it got pulled from stores. The whole story behind the rights to Tetris is very interesting. I saw it on the show 'Icons'; I would imagine it's on wikipedia as well.

[vdub_bobby]

Mario Bros. is a fun one. And so is Super Mario Bros. 3, which I believe alternates after every death or completed level, so generally it switches pretty quickly. Plus you can play a (sort-of mini) Mario Bros. within SMB3.