The heroic plumber Mario has seen many adventures over the years, but certain Mario games stand out as the best among the selection. On top of being Nintendo's flagship gaming mascot, the Mario franchise is one of the first things to come to many players' minds when hearing the term "video games." And in more than 35 years in the medium, the iconic plumber has amassed a rich legacy of great games.

Mario's back catalog of games is a diverse one, with various entries venturing in and out of Mario's usual platforming comfort zone. Some of Mario's greatest exploits see him on the field, behind the wheel, or in the midst of an RPG narrative. While the character's games are certainly versatile, the classic platformers do take the lion's share of the spotlight. Regardless of their individual flavors, all the best Mario games can offer hours and hours of gaming excellence.

20 Super Mario Bros. 2

Super Mario Bros. 2 is sometimes positioned as a black sheep of the franchise, but its awkward position in between two of the best platformers of all time doesn't mean that it's not great in its own right. While the brutally hard Japanese sequel to Super Mario Bros. didn't make its way West until Super Mario All-Stars, the converted Doki Doki Panic that became the American Super Mario Bros. 2 was a creative and unusual platformer in its own right. It may be more of a curiosity than an essential among the Mario games, but Super Mario Bros. 2 remains a fun title that stands among the better games to bear the plumber's name.

19 Mario Strikers Charged

Mario's many sports outings contain a fair number of excellent games, but Mario Strikers Charged manages to stand out from the rest of these titles thanks to its unique style. This Wii game doubles down on the aggressive energy of its GameCube predecessor, supercharging soccer into an over-the-top arcade experience. Its legacy holds strong to this day, as the Switch follow-up Mario Strikers: Battle League lacks content (and iconically poor sportsmanship from Daisy) compared to the series' peak but still maintains solid gameplay.

18 Mario Party 3

The Mario Party series bucks a basic convention of Mario games, daring to ask, "Why not make things unfair?" The ensuing chaos makes for perfect party games that unite players in fun while turning them against each other. Several titles in the series could be reasonably considered the best, but Mario Party 3 made its case by ending the Nintendo 64 era for the series with a bang. It didn't reinvent the wheel from the excellent Mario Party 2, but it did keep up the high bar of quality while adding a story mode and fan-favorite characters Daisy and Waluigi.

17 Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury

Following up the 3DS game Super Mario 3D Land, the Wii U title Super Mario 3D World stuck to the same path in translating the type of level design and platforming that 2D Mario games traditionally exhibited to a similarly streamlined 3D space. For fans of Super Mario 64 and Sunshine, this approach may feel restrictive, but precise design and responsive controls make the game a consistent joy. The Switch release saw the addition of a more open experience in Bowser's Fury, which makes up for its short length with a storm of creativity.

16 Super Mario RPG: Legend Of The Seven Stars

Although Paper Mario and Mario and Luigi have now been the faces of Mario RPGs for decades, the game that started it all was Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Developed by legendary RPG studio Square instead of Nintendo, this SNES game represented a major shake-up for the brand and focused more on story than prior Mario games had. Colorful isometric areas helped the game stand out from other RPGs of the era, and its unique battle system paved the way for Mario's continued hammer swinging in the later Mario RPG franchises.

15 Super Mario Maker 2

Super Mario Maker could have been a fairly minor entry in the Mario series, tasking players with the creation of their own levels rather than assembling a full suite of tightly designed stages, but a robust arsenal of easy-to-use tools let players create some real magic. Super Mario Maker 2 improves on the first title, losing out on the convenience of the Wii U gamepad for stylus usage but gaining even more features and possibilities. Players might have to sift through both brutally difficult levels and cakewalks to find ones with the perfect balance, but there's enough creativity on display to easily make up for it.

14 New Super Mario Bros.

New Super Mario Bros. marked a major return to 2D for Mario, revitalizing the style of the original games for a new generation. Launching a series of its own, the first New Super Mario Bros. remains the tightest and freshest of the bunch. Platformers are certainly Mario's bread and butter, and New Super Mario Bros. made for a perfect modernization of the classic formula. It had plenty of content spanning 80 levels, facelifting platforming traditions while staying true to what made it so successful in console generations prior. It didn't reinvent the wheel, but it did set it rolling again.

13 Mario Kart: Double Dash!!

Arguably the most popular of the Super Mario spin-off games, the Mario Kart series has earned its own legacy as one of Nintendo's strongest franchises. The GameCube entry, Double Dash, makes for one of the best Mario games on the GameCube and one of the best titles in the series.Two of the biggest strengths Double Dash had were in the gameplay and graphical departments. The jump from the Nintendo 64 to GameCube was a great one for 3D graphics, with the mixup in gameplay style when having two players to a kart proving exhilarating. A large roster of playable characters and karts also expanded upon previous Mario Kart outings to thrilling results.

12 Super Paper Mario

Super Paper Mario represented a radical divergence from prior Paper Mario games, a decision that courted controversy thanks to the acclaim that its predecessor, The Thousand-Year Door, received. In its own right, however, Super Paper Mario is a great game that leans more into classic Mario platforming while retaining a focus on narrative and a smattering of RPG elements. The gimmick of switching between 2D and 3D is well-employed, and the game's unique characters like the villain Count Bleck offer exciting flavor that fits seamlessly into the Mario world.

11 Mario Kart DS

The DS presented a huge opportunity for the Mario Kart series, with graphical capabilities that could bring a proper 3D experience to a portable system. Mario Kart DS made full use of these possibilities, offering up a dynamic assortment of excellent tracks and tight driving mechanics that rivaled home console entries. DS Download Play allowed for multiplayer with a single game cart, and challenging singleplayer missions ensured that players could get a robust experience from the game even without taking on other players.

10 Super Mario Bros.

Even with almost 37 years under the franchise's belt, several of the older Mario titles hold up well today as nostalgic throwbacks. Super Mario Bros. for the original Nintendo Entertainment System, which was a successor to the publisher's arcade video game cabinet from two years earlier, remains a simple but well-honed Goomba-stomping extravaganza. The game was revolutionary for the time, popularizing the side-scrolling platformer genre in gaming and impressed critics and general audiences with its precise controls and challenging gameplay.

9 Super Mario Sunshine

It says a lot about a gaming franchise's revered legacy when one of its most divisive entries still achieves critical acclaim with relative ease. Super Mario Sunshine for the Nintendo GameCube was one of the plumber's most creative adventures in the overall franchise. Gameplay involves Mario using the F.L.U.D.D. water jetpack to propel him through the air and allow players to execute some inventive platforming maneuvers, as well as puzzle-solving. The controls can take some getting used to, especially compared to the straightforward precision of other Mario titles, but mastering movement leads to a deeply rewarding experience.

8 Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

The first Paper Mario game introduced players to a goofy, charming take on role-playing games, an approach that Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door expanded on to enormous success. Combat enhancements hook players into an engaging, robust story that takes classic Mario characters on a journey unlike any other Mario game. Later games in the franchise moved away some of the extensive RPG features of this title. Because of this, The Thousand-Year Door remains an unmatched complete package for many players, and fans are still asking for a Switch port of The Thousand-Year Door.

7 Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is essentially the remastered and expanded version of the original Wii U release of the game, and it's become the most refined entry in the hit spin-off series to date. The game was overall well-received for its polished kart-racing gameplay as well as the fantastic and grandiose presentation thanks to the graphics and soundtrack. Deluxe managed to enhance that experience into the critical-acclaim territory, as it received an even better coat of visual paint, boosted performance, and substantive gameplay in the form of DLC. Although many of the titles in the series could be valid favorites, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe represents many of the franchise's highest peaks.

6 Super Mario Galaxy

The original Super Mario Galaxy was a marvel of gravity-bending platforming, cementing itself as one of the most memorable games for the Nintendo Wii. The game made another creative twist to the series' platforming conventions, using its galactic setting to provide players with some refreshing gameplay mechanics involving the world's gravity. The story's premise and setting also allowed for some ingenious level designs that made the game's invigorating experience consistent. Just as well, Super Mario Galaxy featured one of the franchise's most jaw-dropping orchestral scores.

5 Super Mario Odyssey

Super Mario Odyssey was a game with a huge legacy to live up to, promising a return to the more open stages of Super Mario 64 or Sunshine after the focused level design of Galaxy 2 and 3D World. Fortunately for fans, the best Super Mario Switch game managed to stick the landing and then some. Odyssey's secret ingredient comes in the form of Cappy, which allows players to possess environmental objects and enemies to unique results. Using Cappy to augment Mario's jumps also makes for the plumber's best movement update in years.

4 Super Mario World

Super Mario World was the first game in the series to make the jump to 16-bit, released as a launch title for the SNES that immediately made the capabilities of the system obvious. Even in retrospect all these years later, the game is still commonly regarded as one of the best classic 2D Mario platforming games. Super Mario World also earned high marks for its accomplishments, namely for its simultaneously faithful and streamlined gameplay mechanics and beautiful pixel-art presentation. It was so well-received that it's been re-released multiple times across several game collections and Nintendo systems.

3 Super Mario Bros. 3

Although both the Japanese and American options for Super Mario Bros. 2 had their charms, they represented odd attempts at offering a sequel to such a beloved title. Super Mario Bros. 3, on the other hand, refined and expanded on everything that was great about the original game. Detailed sprites, imaginative worlds, and some iconic new power-ups all made Super Mario Bros. 3 an immediately impressive entry in the series. The level design cements its status as an all-time great, with challenging but fair platforming that bursts with creativity on every stage.

2 Super Mario Galaxy 2

Many within the fan base hold firm in their opinion that the Super Mario Galaxy games are the best the franchise has to offer, or at the very least stand among its highest tier. Super Mario Galaxy 2 accomplished a rare feat for a game in measuring up to its emphatically acclaimed predecessor. The Nintendo Wii game was lauded for making meaningful tweaks to an already inventive gameplay formula and improvements to its technical performance over the original. Galaxy 2 is missing from the 3D All-Stars collection on the Switch, but it's worth returning to the Wii for the constant imagination and joy that make every moment of the game sparkle.

1 Super Mario 64

There have been many video games in the history of the medium overall that helped revolutionize it. These games were not only critically acclaimed, but they're also still looked back on as gaming milestones both in and out of their respective genres. Super Mario 64 on the Nintendo 64 was one such title, a triumph and testament to how ambitious games can get. The game leapt seamlessly into the 3D era, with dynamic environments, controls, and serving as the new standard for platformers. Every 3D Mario game since Super Mario 64 owes its DNA to this groundbreaking game, and its mastery holds up to this day as the greatest Mario game.