The first game Miyamoto created was Donkey Kong. This was the first game to be completely based on a storyline. The protagonist, Jump Man, was tasked with saving Lady from Donkey Kong. The game became immensely popular, and the three characters evolved into the now easily recognized Mario, Princess Peach, and Donkey Kong. The game's name is derived from the term "Stupid Monkey," taking Kong, the Japanese term for monkey, and Donkey, which in Miyamoto's understanding of the English language, he took to mean stupid (though he may have mistaken it for "jackass").

With the Videogame Crash of 1983-84, retailers were wary of investing again in home consoles. Nintendo released the Famicom in Japan, and sought to release it in North America as the Nintendo Entertainment System. Packaged with the system was Super Mario Bros., featuring Jump Man from Donkey Kong fame, renamed Mario. Mario had a new nemesis this time around, Bowser, the Koopa King, and Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom was the new damsel in distress.

A launch release for the Famicom Disk System in Japan, the international release of The Legend of Zelda was in Nintendo's cartridge and featured a built-in battery for saved games. Inspired by Miyamoto's wanderings of the woods near his hometown in Kyoto, The Legend of Zelda follows Link, a young boy who must find the eight pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom and save Princess Zelda from the evil lord Ganon. Defying categorization, the game incorporated elements from action, adventure, puzzle and role-playing games. Also unique was character development. The character would start with a basic sword and shield, but as the game progressed the player would collect additional weapons, tools and life energy.

Star Fox, released in 1993 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, was Nintendo's first 3D game, an on-rails third-person shooter, but with radical differences. First was a speed control, allowing players to speed up or slow down, though still being propelled forward. Also revolutionary was the damage system. The player's ship would take gradual damage when hit by enemy fire or running into buildings, as opposed to being instantaneously destroyed. A small amount of locational damage detection. For instance, if the ship's wings clipped too much against the ground or an obstacle, they would break off. To deal with the 3D processing required, the game included the Super FX chip, a coprocessor to accelerate the graphics display.

Pikmin, released in 2001 for the GameCube, follows Captain Olimar, who crashes his ship on a planet inhabited by helpful plant creatures he names Pikmin. With the help of these Pikmin, he must repair his ship and escape within thirty days. A 3D, top-down real-time strategy game, Pikmin featured three different variations of the Pikmin, all with different characteristics. Criticized for its 30-day restriction, the gameplay improved with Pikmin 2, which allowed unlimited play and added two more Pikmin variations. Despite these criticisms, Pikmin received critical acclaim for its superb control scheme and imaginative concept.

Each of these games spawned franchises that have been greatly successful over the years.