plus Fire Emblem although that series is going in a worrisome direction.
I was saying that before I played Three Houses. I'm quite fine with the direction Fire Emblem is heading now, though. Strong candidate for my GotY.
My Nintendo preferences are definitely going to be different than most.
Tier 1
Fire Emblem - I wanted these games to come over so badly before they ever did, but by the time they did I was basically out of Nintendo's ecosystem so I didn't dive in until I finally got a 3DS in part to play Awakening. In the early GBA days you could put the (System) Wars series here. Turn-based strategy is my jam.
Pokemon - This hasn't always been the case, but I was all about the first generation and when I revisited the series deep into my college days I fell back in love with it. I don't always love like half of the shit that they do in each generation, but the core concept and gameplay just work so well that I can put up with it. I imagine whatever disappointment I have with the direction of Sword & Shield will melt away once I start playing it.
2D Donkey Kong - I loved the DKC games back in the day and I loved what Retro did when they brought the series back. Even if the playable Kongs weren't always good, I've always had a blast with these games and DKC2 is one of the few games from my childhood that I still revisit regularly.
Hmmm...the last one of these series developed by Nintendo proper was Donkey Kong '94. That legitimately surprises me considering most everything I loved up through 1994 was made by Nintendo.
Tier 2
Super Smash Bros - Along with Rock Band these games will go down to define gaming in my college years. The only reason its not higher is because I'm not 22 anymore and opportunities to play the game the way I best enjoy it are few and far between. Ultimate is the best version of the series, but I've played it maybe 5% as much as either Melee or Brawl even with it having a good single-player mode.
2D Mario - These were my absolute favorite things in existence as a child. This is also why I don't buy systems for one game anymore...I bought a DS specifically because of 'New' Super Mario Bros and never came close to finishing it and have had little to no interest to play any of its numerous sequels. The 'New' games can die in a ditch...but the second they finally move to the next generation of 2D Mario I will be first in line again. So long as its for a piece of hardware that I already own.
Mario Kart - I usually love these games, but that fact rarely is reflected in play time. MK8 is nearly perfect for what it is, yet I have not gotten my money's worth out of buying it twice. I don't know how I logged so many hours on the SNES original now. Still great games and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't expecting to buy whatever the next game is on its release date.
Tier 3
Kirby - Loved the games as a kid, which is ultimately who they're mostly designed for. The original Game Boy Adventure was the first game I ever owned myself. I rarely pick up Kirby games, but when I do I generally enjoy them...but never enough to get the next game at full price or on day one.
Yoshi - See: Kirby except Yoshi didn't properly spin-off until I was too old to get anything out of Yoshi's Story.
Star Fox - I loved the SNES original and 64 is one of the very few N64 games I legitimately enjoyed...but as far as I'm concerned the series was murdered by Mr. Miyamoto after that.
Metroid - I really don't know how to rank Metroid as it has played a ridiculously small role in my life, but that's only because my mom refused to allow me to get Super Metroid because it looked too scary to her (this when Jurassic Park was my favorite movie). I didn't have the agency to buy games on my own until my SNES had been gathering dust for a while and never went back to play it. I wanted a Metroid game on the N64 so bad, but it never came. Then I skipped the GameCube, so...yeah. As an adult I've gone back and played some Super Metroid and it turns out I'm not crazy about these kinds of games as an adult...but as a kid who loved making maps I probably would have loved it.
3D Mario - I just don't care about 3D platformers...or at least until Odyssey managed to strike the balance necessary to get me to stick around for more than 30 minutes.
Pikmin - Thanks to skipping the GameCube I only came to the series at 3, which I only played for a couple hours but thoroughly enjoyed. I'd play 3 more to get a better feel, but someone offered to buy it for more than I paid for it so...meh.
Tier 4
Animal Crossing - There is a timeline in which I'm the biggest Animal Crossing fan on the planet. I was deep into Harvest Moon around the time the original came out...but I skipped the GameCube & Wii, so I've only played the 3DS game, which I struggled to care about after Stardew Valley came out. Part of me is intrigued about jumping into the next game New Horizon, but the other part of me is fine with me continuing to avoid such a massive time sink.
F-Zero - I want there to be another F-Zero game because I know so many people who loved these games, but the original gave me motion sickness and I never played the N64 or GC games. These games don't sell in Japan and didn't sell well enough elsewhere for there to be frequent F-Zero games...but c'mon, it's been 15 damn years. My nephews love playing as Captain Falcon in Smash Bros. and have no clue who he is. The sales argument is legitimate, but there's also been an entire generation that's never had a chance to buy a new F-Zero game.
NA Tier
Splatoon - I don't play online games, so Splatoon has nothing to offer me. Nothing against it, it just doesn't appeal to me.
Mario Party - I did not enjoy the N64 originals and have not paid a single care since I became too old for sleepovers.
Zelda (2D & 3D) - I've been trying to like Zelda games since I was a little kid and none of them have stuck and many of them annoyed me. I keep giving them a chance and I just don't get it, so I'm done. I'm the guy who doesn't like Zelda games, I guess.
3D Donkey Kong - DK64 was everything I hated about the direction video games were heading at the time and turned me into a jaded prick at the old age of 13.