Double Dragon II: The Revenge (1990) is the one Double Dragon NES owners actually kept in the console — because, finally, two players could brawl side by side instead of fighting each other.

Billy and Jimmy Lee punch, throw, and (if you can master it) cyclone-kick through gangs to avenge Marian. The simultaneous co-op, the meaty hit feedback, and the difficulty made it a sleepover staple.

It's the platonic ideal of the NES beat-'em-up: simple, loud, better with a friend. The cyclone kick alone earned this cartridge its shelf space.