Video games have changed so much over the years. Graphics have become more realistic, traditional mechanics have been replaced or refined, and technology has advanced the medium in so many ways.
However, there’s nothing wrong with playing games from the past. In fact, several video games that came out in the ’90s still hold up, with some even better than many modern games.
Crash Bandicoot Doesn’t Get Any Harder Than the Original
Crash Bandicoot PS1 gameplay with Crash looking back at the camera in a jungle level.Image via Sony
Crash Bandicoot dominated the early days of the original PlayStation. Naughty Dog’s first major success was a colorful platformer filled with quirky characters and some of the most difficult gameplay ever put out there.
The 2017 remaster is great, but the original game is still very much playable. The addictive and challenging platforming never gets old, and Crash still has just as much personality in his ’90s incarnation as he does today.
Earthbound Was Always Bound For More
EarthBound Light Buzz BuzzImage via Nintendo
The Earthbound/Mother series doesn’t get as much love from Nintendo as it should, because Earthbound is a fantastic RPG. It’s an eccentric game where a group of children with psychic powers bands together to defeat hostile aliens, and it only gets stranger from there.
CBR Exclusive · Nintendo Quiz WHICH NINTENDO LEGEND ARE YOU? Press Start to Play From the dungeons of Hyrule to the cold reaches of space, Nintendo’s universe is bursting with legends, oddballs, and cosmic eating machines. Are you a brave-hearted adventurer? A relentlessly upbeat pink blob? A hypercharged electric mouse? Or the bounty hunter who needs no one? Twenty questions. One legendary result. Let’s find out who you really are.
Link
Toad
Samus
Kirby
Pikachu
01
It’s a free Saturday. What’s the move, hero? Your ideal morning is basically your origin story.
02
A big bad enemy is blocking the path. You: How you handle danger speaks louder than any character select screen.
03
How do you roll, style-wise? Your fit is your lore.
04
There’s a puzzle blocking your way. Your approach? Every dungeon has a puzzle. Every person has a method.
05
Most important question: what’s your meal of choice? Truly the most revealing question in this quiz.
06
You discover you have a secret power. What is it? The power you imagine says everything about you.
07
Dream HQ — what does yours look like? Where you recharge says a lot about who you are when no one’s watching.
08
What’s your actual biggest weakness? Even legends have a weak point. Courage is admitting it.
09
The group needs a leader. Do you step up? Leadership style reveals the true final boss of your personality.
10
Halfway! What truly gets you out of bed every morning? Core motivation. This is the real 1-UP.
11
You just totally wiped out. In front of everyone. The fall doesn’t matter. The bounce-back is everything.
12
There’s a mystery item chest! You hope it contains… The upgrade you want is the upgrade you already are.
13
It’s game night with the squad! What are you doing? Social energy = final form revealed.
14
How do people honestly describe you? Your reputation is just your vibe with a narrator.
15
Preferred method of getting around the world? Your travel vibe is basically your whole personality in motion.
16
What does being a hero actually mean to you? The real final dungeon is a philosophical one.
17
How do you want history to remember you? Every legend leaves a mark on the world map.
18
Someone has been seriously getting in your way. You: How you handle adversaries is basically your combat report.
19
In a Smash Bros. match you are the one who… The Smash meta never lies about character.
20
The final boss is right there. This is THE moment. GO! Twenty questions led to this. No saving now.
The Legend Has Been Chosen YOUR NINTENDO LEGEND
Your scores are revealed below! The character with the highest number is your Nintendo alter-ego. Read their profile to discover your true gaming legend destiny.
Link
Toad
Samus
Kirby
Pikachu
You’re the chosen one who never asked for the title but took it anyway. Brave, methodical, and quietly carrying the weight of an entire kingdom on your shoulders — you prefer action over words and wisdom over brute force. People rely on you completely, and somehow you always find the right key for the right lock. You don’t show off. You just show up. Every single time.
You are the backbone of every group, and everyone secretly knows it. Enthusiastic, loyal, and somehow always the first one to show up when things go wrong — you make everyone around you feel capable and energized. You don’t get enough credit, and you genuinely don’t mind. You run into danger at full speed with a smile on your face and a war cry echoing behind you. Legendary support energy.
Highly competent, quietly intimidating, and deeply independent. You don’t need a team, you don’t need applause, and you definitely don’t need anyone telling you how to handle the Metroids. You’ve survived situations that would end anyone else, and you did it alone, in silence, with zero complaints. Underneath the armor is someone with more depth than anyone in the room — they just rarely get to see it. Their loss.
You look like pure joy and you are pure joy — but don’t let anyone mistake that for weakness. You absorb everything life throws at you and come back stronger, cuter, and somehow even more powerful. You find delight in everything, you’re beloved by literally everyone, and when push comes to shove you will inhale a god and become that god without breaking a sweat. Chaos wrapped in a smile.
You’re electric — literally and figuratively. Bursting with energy, fiercely loyal to your people, and always ready to give everything you have for the ones who matter. You’re small but your presence fills every room you walk into. You compete hard, play harder, and your enthusiasm is genuinely contagious. People may underestimate you at first glance. They don’t make that mistake twice.
Thanks to a simple-to-pick-up battle system and a lovable cast of characters, Earthbound has become a cult classic. Playing the game today feels just as good as it did back in the ’90s.
Image via Konami
The Metal Gear franchise is filled with excellent games, and each has aged well. Metal Gear Solid was one of the PS1’s greatest games, and it can still compete with newer titles.
A masterclass in stealth mechanics, Metal Gear Solid is filled with some of the most tense gameplay sequences ever put in a game. Add in its highly cinematic cutscenes and writing, and you have a game that fits in perfectly with today’s large-scale third-person adventure games.
Mortal Kombat II Still Spills a Lot of Blood
Mortal Kombat 2 gameplay with Scorpion uppercutting Liu KangImage via Midway
Back in the ’90s, Mortal Kombat II dominated the arcade scene. The combination of accessible gameplay and gory violence made it an instant draw, and it remains one of the franchise’s best games.
Every aspect of the original Mortal Kombat was expanded upon in the sequel. More characters were added, more fatalities were given to each fighter, and new fighting moves were added for more complex battles. Newer Mortal Kombat games are great, but fans can never go wrong with a classic.
Pokémon Gold & Silver Made the Franchise Even Bigger
The player enters a Pokemon battle with Chuck in Pokemon Gold & SilverImage via Game Freak
The ’90s were when the Pokémon franchise first became popular. After the success of Red and Blue, the second generation needed to go bigger and better, and Pokémon Gold and Silver did exactly that.
100 new Pokémon were introduced, new Pokémon types and moves were added, and new gameplay elements like Pokémon breeding allowed players to grow their Pokédex in different ways. Gold & Silver was the perfect way to usher the Pokémon franchise into the new millennium.
Resident Evil 2 is Still Too Scary for Words
Few horror games have established the legacy that Resident Evil 2 has. The sequel was an even more daunting struggle for survival, pitting Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield against new zombies and monsters in the heart of Raccoon City.
Eerie sound design, maze-like levels, and the classic game’s signature tank controls still make Resident Evil 2 a very scary experience. The 2019 remake is more suited to today’s gaming landscape, but the ’90s classic shouldn’t be overlooked.
Sonic the Hedgehog Never Slowed Down
Sonic the Hedgehog for Sega Genesis in the Marble Zone.Image via Sega
The original Sonic the Hedgehog is a beloved piece of gaming history. It introduced the world to the famous blue blur and gave Sega a signature mascot to compete with Nintendo’s universally beloved Mario, as well as a face for its consoles.
The fast-paced platforming is perfect, with simple running and jumping controls that can still provide a real challenge. Whereas many modern Sonic games pile on new gameplay elements that rarely work, the original platformer thrived thanks to how basic it was.
Street Fighter II: The World Warrior Doesn’t Pull Any Punches
Street Fighter 2 SNES gameplay featuring Ryu vs. E HondaImage via Capcom
Alongside Mortal Kombat, the Street Fighter franchise thrived in the ’90s thanks to a landmark sequel. Street Fighter II truly felt like a globe-trotting experience, where fighters from across the world came together for a very special tournament.
The cast of characters was vastly expanded, new fighting styles led to more complex strategies, and the game only grew with subsequent updates. To this day, Street Fighter II is considered one of the best games in the series.
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island is in a World of Its Own
A Yoshi’s Island screenshot featuring Yoshi facing a Pirhana Plant.Image via Nintendo
There were a lot of great Mario games that came out in the ’90s, which include Super Mario World and Super Mario 64. But one that doesn’t get as much recognition is Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island. It starred the universally beloved Nintendo character Yoshi as he protected a baby Mario.
Yoshi’s Island was a new twist on the series’ platforming formula. Controlling Yoshi was simple and fun, and the levels were easy enough for newer players to get into the game while providing just enough of that signature Mario style that veterans had gotten used to. After all, without this game, the Yoshi spin-off series never would’ve happened.
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX is a Dreamlike Experience
Link traveling by a house with two villagers in front of it in The Legend of Zelda Link’s Awakening DXImage via Nintendo
Most Legend of Zelda fans would point to games like Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past as the best ’90s games in the series. But Link’s Awakening deserves just as much love, specifically the DX version released for the Game Boy Color.
Much of the original game remains the same, with dungeons and locations receiving a colorized visual revamp that makes them look much better than the Game Boy version. Minor gameplay tweaks and the addition of a new dungeon also made this version stand out and helped solidify Link’s Awakening as a timeless classic.
