Best Games of the 1980s
The Legend of Zeldaon 1 of 7 rankings2
Mega Man 2on 1 of 7 rankings3
Sky Kidon 1 of 7 rankings4
Maniac Mansionon 1 of 7 rankings5
Final Fantasyon 1 of 7 rankings6
Battle Cityon 1 of 7 rankings7
Contraon 1 of 7 rankings8
Super Mario Bros.on 1 of 7 rankings9
Double Dragon II: The Revengeon 1 of 7 rankingsHow this ranking is made
According to Made the Cut's census of 7 independent rankings, recounted 19 October 2026, the best game of the 1980s is The Legend of Zelda, followed by Mega Man 2 and Sky Kid.
How this is counted
This chart counts 7 ranking sources, one voice each: the published ranking of games from that source with the most titles released in the 1980s, cut down to those titles, in the order that source listed them. A title's place is its average position across all sources counted: a title someone left off their ranking counts as tied with their last place (here, that source ranked titles of this kind and left this one out). A small pull toward the middle keeps one enthusiastic list from crowning a #1. Every title in the computed chart has a numbered position, with its source count shown beside it. It is recounted whenever a ranking is published, changed or removed, last on 19 October 2026. Member rankings and attributed external lists use the same calculation. Multiple lists from one member or external author count once; linked slices add no extra vote. Frozen links, private or unlisted lists and unmatched titles are never counted. The full method.