THIS!

AND THIS!

YES, YES THIS!!

If you have seen Thor: Ragnarok, then think of that scene where Hela says, "You don't know what the old Odin was like".  If you really think 2017 is their best year ever, then you don't know what old Nintendo was like.  They used to bury their enemies and take no prisoners.  That is because their games were so much better than everyone else's.  On top of that, many people often say, "Do I want a console with Nintendo's 1st party games or another console with with all the great 3rd party games."  The NES was both.  All of the best games were on one console.

People discount how successful the NES was, because they haven't looked at the data carefully.  In the US and Japan, the NES total sales were between PS1 and PS2 once you adjust for population growth.  Only the PS1 and PS2 were selling to people who were already enthusiastic about console gaming.  The NES started with a market that was actively hostile to console gaming and converted the people into enthusiasts.  Take the enthusiasm of the Wii + the staying power of the PS2 and you get the NES.

(And don't get me started on the Gameboy and SNES....)

I'm more or less the perfect age for a Nintendo fan growing up in their age of dominance in the 80s-90s.  This is certainly up there and I don't believe it's hyperbole to rate it near the top.  Only one year makes the case truly difficult.  1986 when they gave birth to Zelda, Metroid, and Kid Icarus as well as being the year that the NES began to truly dominate the United States market.  Plus a second Super Mario Bros. game came out.  In Zelda and Metroid they had two games that would serve as the prototypes to what would become popular genres, and additionally Dragon Quest came to the Famicon that year and jump-started a third.

Other years have been truly great.  But I believe that I would rank 2017 as the second best year the company has ever had behind 1986.

*Stand and claps*

Considering that the majority of posters here weren't even born when NES or even SNES came out, I suppose it should be expected that they'd think what they're seeing now is the peak for the company. But a quick history lesson and studying of the data shows just how dominant and powerful they were during their 80's and early 90's reign. I mean, back then? The word "Nintendo" was synonymous with " game console". You didn't get an NES for Christmas in 1988. You got a "Nintendo". They were gaming personified.

Trust me, I'd be much happier if I wasn't pushing 40.

The question wasn't when the company was at its most dominant or had the most children wearing Mario jammies?  That's easy to answer.  It was which was the best for the company, a question that would encompass business, cultural, and artistic success?

Artistically, I would put 2017 up there with any other year, save 1986 and 1996 with Mario 64, Pokemon, Mario RPG, and Wave Race 64, and Donkey Kong Country 3, and I will freely admit, that was the most important to me.

In terms of business, Nintendo made an incredible comeback, launching what is becoming a phenom in its own right.  In terms of culture, they're riding a significant nostalgia wave.

I'd still take the N64's lineup over the Playstation's any day.  But, whatever.  The 32/64 bit era was the worst in gaming anyway.

Your years are off.  Super Mario Bros. 3 came out in 1988 or 1990 in NA.  I'm not sure the Nintendo World Championship is any big deal at all, but that started in 1990.

In terms of software, 1989 was a down year for Nintendo other than the first Mother game being released, Super Mario Land, and their version of Tetris.