Nintendo's original motocross racer that introduced creating your own tracks. Still devastatingly precise and enjoyable. One of the great NES launch titles, irreversibly classic.
Your verdict
Category
Sports1 player3+
Description
Motocross racing game in which the player jumps and accelerates on varied dirt circuits. Published by Nintendo, released in Europe in 1985. Motorcyclist in side-scrolling view with jumps and acceleration on dirt circuits and a circuit editor mode to create custom tracks. NES port of Nintendo's Excitebike arcade classic.
Excitebike review
3/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Polished"
3/5
Music
★★★★★
"Memorable"
1/5
Story
★★★★★
"Anecdotal"
Gameplay
"Excellent"
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Managing acceleration to avoid overheating, working the bumps and landing at just the right angle: this motorbike game turns a simple race into a quest for the perfect time. The track editor, brilliant for its day, multiplies replay value by letting you build your own traps. Snappy, clever and timeless, an arcade pillar that has lost none of its bite.
The European PAL NES edition of the Nintendo launch title, noticeably rarer than the US version and the Japanese Famicom cart. PAL CIB in the original cardboard box, with manual and Track Edit reference, is a target for Black Box NES PAL collectors, among the harder ones. Mario Kart 8's Excitebike DLC has sustained recognition without weighing on the 8-bit physical cote.
Is Excitebike still worth playing in 2026?
Excitebike is Nintendo's original motorcycle racer that launched the idea of a track editor in the mainstream. Still ferociously precise and intact in pleasure for the attentive player, the EAD title focuses on engine heat management, jump usage and racing line mastery. The handling stays luminous, the pacing perfect for very short score-attack bursts. A NES launch great, irrevocably classic and still pleasant to revisit.
