This is a list of the Super Nintendo (SNES) games released in PAL countries: the UK and Ireland, mainland Europe and Australia. It has 538 titles, each with its PAL release year, the publisher and, where a database records them, the product codes printed on the box and cartridge. Use the search box to find a game, and tick the ones you own to keep track of your collection.

Your ticks are saved in your browser, so the list remembers them next time you visit on the same device. They never leave your device.

Key: “UK code” means a database records a product code ending in UKV or GBR for the game; most other games came out in the UK too, but this list cannot prove that for each one. A year such as 1994–95 means the sources disagree by a year. “Local versions” are games that databases record in a separate French, German, Spanish or similar release. Titles use their PAL names, with subtitles after a colon.

What “PAL” means for the SNES

PAL is the television standard used in the UK and most of Europe. A PAL console draws 50 pictures a second, where a Japanese or North American console draws 60. Nintendo built regional differences into the console, including the cartridge shape and a lockout chip. A PAL cartridge is narrower than a North American one and has no grooves in its base. The lockout chip stops a PAL game starting on a Japanese or North American console, and the reverse.

Unlike the NES, the SNES does not have separate PAL-A and PAL-B groups in the sources I found, so this list has no PAL-A or PAL-B column. Wikipedia describes one PAL region lockout against Japan and North America. If you know of a Europe-only game that refuses to start on a UK console, please tell me.

Games made for a 60 Hz console and played on a PAL console run about 16.7% slower, and the picture is letterboxed. Some PAL games were not fully adapted and run about 20% too fast on a 60 Hz console. The usual fix is to run the game on a PAL console, or to use a 50/60 Hz switch.

When the SNES came out in the UK

The SNES went on sale in the UK and Ireland in April 1992 at £150. Most PAL consoles use the Japanese Super Famicom case design, with different labels. The earliest PAL games in this list are from 1992, such as Super Mario World, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Street Fighter II. Donkey Kong Country came out in 1994, and the last PAL releases in the list are from 1997 and 1998.

Product codes: what the ending means

Every PAL cartridge label carries a code that starts with SNSP, such as SNSP‑MW‑NOE for Super Mario World. The last part names the market the cartridge was made for. Community lists agree on some endings and disagree on others, so treat a code as a clue, not proof of where a copy was sold.

Only 17 games in this list have a UK code in the database I used. That is a gap in the database, not a count of UK releases: codes are recorded for only some of the games.

PAL exclusives

These 35 games came out in PAL countries but, according to Wikipedia’s list, never in North America or Japan.

• Archer Maclean’s Super Dropzone (1995)
• Asterix (1993)
• Asterix & Obelix (1995)
• Cannon Fodder (1994)
• Daze Before Christmas (1994)
• Dino Dini’s Soccer! (1994)
• Dirt Racer (1995)
• F1 World Championship Edition (1995)
• FIFA: Road to World Cup 98 (1997)
• The Humans (1993)
• Jelly Boy (1995)
• Kevin Keegan’s Player Manager (1993)
• Kick Off 3: European Challenge (1994)
• Lucky Luke (1997)
• Manchester United Championship Soccer (1995)
• Marko’s Magic Football (1995)
• Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament (1996)
• Might and Magic II (1993)
• Operation Starfi5h (1993)
• Power Drive (1994)
• Putty Squad (1994)
• Sensible Soccer: European Champions (1994)
• The Smurfs (1994)
• The Smurfs Travel the World (1996)
• Spirou (1995)
• Super Dany (1994)
• Super International Cricket (1995)
• Super Morph (1993)
• Tintin: Prisoners of the Sun (1997)
• Tintin in Tibet (1995)
• Turbo Toons (1994)
• Waterworld (1995)
• Winter Gold (1996)
• World Masters Golf (1995)
• Worms (1996)

How this list was made

I started from the No-Intro database of SNES cartridges and kept every retail game recorded with a European, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Australian, Swedish, Dutch or UK release. I left out prototypes, samples, demos, re-releases (Virtual Console, Switch Online, Piko, Retro-Bit and similar), unlicensed releases and hardware. I then compared the result with MAME’s SNES software list and Wikipedia’s list of SNES games. Every game here is in at least two of those three sources. Games with several language versions appear once.

The release year is the PAL date on Wikipedia’s list where it has one, and MAME’s year otherwise. Where MAME gives a later year than Wikipedia, the list shows both. Wikipedia’s articles count 521 and 532 European releases, so the totals differ a little from mine. I have not reconciled the difference, and a few titles may be missing or may be listed here as one game when collectors count two. The product codes come from MAME. If you spot a mistake or a missing game, please get in touch.

Questions people ask

How many SNES games were released in PAL countries?

This list has 538 titles. Wikipedia counts 521 in its article on the console and 532 in its games list, so the true figure depends on what is counted as one game.

Which SNES games were only released in PAL countries?

35 games on this list, according to Wikipedia’s regional columns, among them Cannon Fodder, Worms, Putty Squad and Tintin in Tibet. The full list is above.

Will American or Japanese SNES games work on a UK console?

Not on an unmodified console. Each region has its own lockout chip, and the cartridges are also a different shape, so a North American cartridge does not fit the slot. Adapters and console modifications exist. Games made for 60 Hz also run about 16.7% slower on a PAL console.

If you collect NES games as well, see the PAL NES games list, and for more retro gaming see the Retro section. If you play on a computer with a USB or Bluetooth controller, the controller tester checks every button and stick in your browser.

Sources

No-Intro SNES list (libretro database); MAME SNES software list; Wikipedia: list of SNES games; Wikipedia: Super Nintendo Entertainment System.