About Console Codex
The definitive reference for classic video games — built by people who grew up with a controller in hand and never stopped caring about the games that shaped gaming history.
Our Mission
Console Codex exists because the games that defined childhood deserve more than a Wikipedia stub and a forgotten GameFAQs thread. We cover 326 games across 20 classic consoles — with full reviews, verified cheat codes, development trivia, and curated recommendations for every title.
Our goal is simple: if you're trying to remember how to get the warp zone in Super Mario Bros., understand why Final Fantasy VII matters, or find games like the ones you loved as a kid — we want to be the most complete, most accurate, and most useful answer on the internet.
How We Score Games
Every game review on Console Codex uses a 10-point scale across five categories. The final score is a weighted composite of these five dimensions.
Gameplay
Weight: 35%How fun and mechanically sound the core gameplay loop is. Controls, responsiveness, depth, and replayability of the base mechanics.
Graphics
Weight: 15%Judged relative to the era and hardware. A technically impressive NES game scores higher than a mediocre SNES game, even if the SNES game looks "better" on modern screens.
Audio
Weight: 15%Music composition, sound effects, and audio design. Classic soundtracks are judged by their cultural impact and technical achievement for the hardware.
Replayability
Weight: 20%How much the game rewards return visits. Multiple routes, difficulty modes, secrets, multiplayer, and New Game Plus features all contribute.
Historical Significance
Weight: 15%The game's lasting impact on the medium. Games that invented genres, pushed hardware limits, or changed how games are made score higher here regardless of their other ratings.
Score anchors: 9.0–10.0 = Essential / All-time classic · 7.0–8.9 = Excellent · 5.0–6.9 = Good with caveats · 3.0–4.9 = Below average · 0–2.9 = Poor
How We Verify Cheat Codes
Cheat codes on Console Codex are drawn from original game manuals, developer interviews, longstanding community resources (GameFAQs, NintendoAge, Sega-16), and direct verification on original hardware or verified emulation.
We cross-reference cheat codes across multiple sources before publishing them. Where codes vary by platform or region (NTSC vs. PAL, Japanese vs. US release), we note the specific version the code applies to.
If you find an error — a code that doesn't work, a platform mismatch, or a missing code — email us at [email protected] and we'll verify and correct it.
How We Research Trivia & Development History
Our trivia and development history articles draw on: published developer interviews (Famitsu, GamesTM, Game Developer Magazine), documentary sources (NES/SNES era press materials, Sega's official histories), post-mortems from GDC and similar conferences, and the dedicated research communities who have preserved decades of gaming history.
We prioritize primary sources — statements by the developers themselves — over secondhand accounts. Where facts are contested or sources disagree, we note the discrepancy rather than presenting one version as definitive.
What We Cover
Console Codex covers the classic gaming era: games released from the late 1970s through the early 2000s, across 20 major platforms. Our current database includes 326 games with full reviews. We are actively expanding.
We define "classic" as games old enough to have an established critical and cultural legacy — not games still receiving active patches and updates. The approximate cutoff is 2005, though we make exceptions for games that clearly belong to the retro tradition.
We do not cover mobile gaming, free-to-play games, or games released after 2010.
Contact
For corrections, contributions, partnership inquiries, or anything else:
Email: [email protected]
Twitter/X: @ConsoleCodex
Console Codex was founded in 2024. We are independent — not affiliated with Nintendo, Sega, Sony, or any game publisher. All opinions are our own.