Nintendo Entertainment System Turns 37 Years Old, So Let's Take A Trip Down Memory Lane

On this day back in 1985, the Nintendo Entertainment System first hit the market in the United States and revolutionized living rooms.

Seriously. That thing made Pong look like something cavemen used to play in their caves when they weren't bludgeoning seals or mastering the fine art of bipedal locomotion.

I was still quite a few years from being born when the NES saw the light of day, but I was still lucky enough to get my hands on one in my youth.

Sure, today they seem just as archaic as the aforementioned Pong, but what a brain-breaking experience they must have been in the mid-eighties.

Take Duck Hunt for example. That game required a sweet little laser gun that you pointed at your TV like you were Elvis watching Robert Goulet. Then, you unloaded 8-bit lead into unsuspecting fowl.

Say hello to my li'l Duck Hunt-ing friend. (Photo by Phil Barker/Future Publishing via Getty Images)

Of course, the system was also something of a video game character kingmaker. After debuting in arcades around the world in Donkey Kong, Mario cemented his status as one of the most iconic video game characters in history thanks to the NES.

The system was also home to some iconic sports games like 1987's legendary Punch-Out. hockey game Blades of Steel, and, of course, pre-Madden football classic Tecmo Bowl.

Even as the NES approaches the big 4-0, it's still massively popular. Look no further than what someone shelled out for an unopened copy of The Legend of Zelda:

People are still nuts about the NES and everything associated with it.

That's a lot for a game you can't play.

Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle