Sports have been a big part of video gaming since gaming first broke into the mainstream. Believe it or not, people used to rave about the Nintendo Entertainment System’s classic sports games like Golf, Tecmo Bowl, and Skate or Die. Now, with next-generation gaming, sports games are some of the most intense on the market. Here are the best of the best in sports video games. (Can you tell I am a bit older?)
Skate or Die
This game was revolutionary! So many 90’s kids will remember this classic because it was legitimately the first of its kind. Skate or Die is one of the best sports games ever released on the Nintendo Entertainment System.
TECMO Super Bowl (SNES)
This is another timeless classic in the sports genre of gaming, especially for Detroit Lions fans. Rodney Peete, Barry Sanders, Herman Moore, and the rest of the 1993 Lions are one of the best teams on the game. When I’m in control, they’re downright unstoppable!
EA Sports’ NHL Franchise (Especially NHL 15)
Nobody can create hockey video games like EA Sports. NHL 15 is crazy fast, super realistic, and all kinds of fun. To be quite frank, it blows the Madden franchise away. If you’ve never given EA’s NHL franchise a play, there has never been a better time to start than now. NHL 15 took the franchise to the next level.
Anything FIFA
EA Sports gets another win with its FIFA franchise. It really is one of the best sports games, every year. It is one of the highest-grossing sports games in history, and for good reason. It’s loved worldwide. Even though we love the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB more than any other sports organization in America, there is no sport loved more in the entire world than football. No, not American football, either.
NBA 2k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tF87Gi-caM
2k Sports really struggles to compete with EA Sports, except in one sport. Basketball. NBA 2k is one of the best sports franchises. It is more realistic than Madden, has a high replay factor, and is always giving back. You can even play blacktop games like 21 and 3-on-3 ball. Oh, and it’s got mad dunks, yo.
Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!
Quite simply, the best sports game, ever made. I don’t even know how many hours, upon hours of gameplay my friends and I invested in this game, but it is a lot. I still play this game on my phone. It’s lasted throughout time, and still rocks. Retro gaming at its finest.
Honorable Mentions
There are a few sports games that didn’t make the cut, and they probably could have. Among those are:
- Tiger Woods PGA Tour
- EA Sports’ Madden
- Wii Sports
- Need For Speed
- MLB: The Show
