The miracle of tech – 5 great videogame classics, which we can enjoy on our phones today
Many of us remember the good old games of the 90's – the times when computer technologies were just entering households, hardware was rapidly evolving, and super low-res games had us gasping at their amazing animations. Back then, game studios were not trying to pander to the lowest common denominator, neither were they able to lean back on "life-like graphics" in order to impress. Thus, they were much more invested in creating challenging titles with interesting storylines, tough puzzles, or hard-to-beat, skill-requiring confrontations.
It is probably the mixture of tough, memorable levels, deep stories, and the novelty that gaming was back then that left some of these titles imprinted in the minds of early gamers. Many still like to revisit some of their favorites and maybe try to relive the good ol' excitement. While this doesn't always happen, a trip down gamer-memory lane is certainly a fun thing to do from time to time. Thankfully, some businesses have recognized that and PC gamers now have services, such as "Good Old Games", where they can go and shop for DOS titles, which have been patched and optimized to run under the latest Windows operating system.
Developers and publishers have also seen the niche openings and have started porting the unforgettable titles to mobile devices. An amazing little fact of technology, if we stop and think about it – the games that used to require us to upgrade our PCs back in the day can now be played on a device that we carry around on a daily basis – and it's not even a gamer-dedicated one, just a regular phone. We've delved in this topic before - if you are a gamer at heart, you should check out these 10 ports of PC and console games, too.
So, without further ado, here are the 5 titles that make us feel all fluffy, and a bit sad, on the inside.
Originally released in 1994, Little Big Adventure (a.k.a Twinsen's Adventure) is an action-adventure type game, which blew gamers' minds with its 3D isometric view, amazing (even by today's standards) gameplay depth, and an open-world free-roaming environment. The game is quite difficult and offers absolutely no hand-holding. In the meantime, many situations have more than one solution, which was mind-blowing back then, and a good thing for developers to learn from now. You can stealth through enemies, switch outfits
If you've never played Little Big Adventure, be warned that its unforgiving nature and odd gameplay style may frustrate you in the beginning. Still, we suggest staying away from walkthroughs for this one, as discovery is what it makes it so pleasurable to experience.
Originally released in 1991 for the Amiga, SNES, Sega Genesis, Apple II, and PC, Another World (a.k.a. Out of This World ) was a game that entranced players with smooth animations and intricate gameplay. The title plays like a platformer, mixed with some action elements, and its unforgiving nature adds tension to every conflict or obstacle. The story is not a very detailed one, but delivery is on-point and keeps the player interested throughout. All in all, Out of This World is a pretty solid title that has seen numerous remakes for different platforms, iOS and Android included, throughout the years.
Another classic that has seen numerous re-launches and remakes throughout the years – but none of them as charming as the original. Double Dragon was first released as an arcade game, but was soon ported for various home systems, PC included. One of the first successful beat 'em up games and a game that a lot of '90s kids were playing with their siblings thanks to the 2-player coop mode, DD still lives in the hearts of gamers today.
In this modern iteration of the action-packed classic, you will still be able to pair up with a friend or sibling via Bluetooth. Controller recommended!
A bonkers quest from the '90s that will sometimes cause you to go from scratching your head to banging it on the desk. Yeah, Gobliiins is one of those games with puzzles that will sometimes have you saying “How did they expect me to figure THAT out!?”, but then again – that was part of the '90s quest charm. The game is worth a replay due to its retro value and comedy gems. Using a walkthrough for some of its wacky puzzles is something you should not feel guilty about.
Another quest classic, Grim Fandango has the right mix of atmosphere, story, comedy, and hero arc to keep itself imprinted on the back of gamers' minds. It was recently remastered and released for modern systems, mobile ones included. Illustrated with a unique mix, borrowing from both film noir and Mexican folklore, we are sure you haven't seen or experienced anything like Grim Fandango... unless you've played Grim Fandango before, that is.
Heroes 3 is only available for tablets, so it couldn't exactly be listed as first in our selection. Still, it's a classic strategy game that has active fans to this day. A mixture of a well-constructed world, wide variety of creatures and artifacts, deep gameplay and lots of maps (including a random map generator) adds up for a ton of replay value. Additionally, you can still play the good old “hot seat” mode with friends – you'd have to pass the tablet around, though.
Little Big Adventure
Originally released in 1994, Little Big Adventure (a.k.a Twinsen's Adventure) is an action-adventure type game, which blew gamers' minds with its 3D isometric view, amazing (even by today's standards) gameplay depth, and an open-world free-roaming environment. The game is quite difficult and offers absolutely no hand-holding. In the meantime, many situations have more than one solution, which was mind-blowing back then, and a good thing for developers to learn from now. You can stealth through enemies, switch outfits
Another World
Originally released in 1991 for the Amiga, SNES, Sega Genesis, Apple II, and PC, Another World (a.k.a. Out of This World ) was a game that entranced players with smooth animations and intricate gameplay. The title plays like a platformer, mixed with some action elements, and its unforgiving nature adds tension to every conflict or obstacle. The story is not a very detailed one, but delivery is on-point and keeps the player interested throughout. All in all, Out of This World is a pretty solid title that has seen numerous remakes for different platforms, iOS and Android included, throughout the years.
Double Dragon
Another classic that has seen numerous re-launches and remakes throughout the years – but none of them as charming as the original. Double Dragon was first released as an arcade game, but was soon ported for various home systems, PC included. One of the first successful beat 'em up games and a game that a lot of '90s kids were playing with their siblings thanks to the 2-player coop mode, DD still lives in the hearts of gamers today.
Gobliiins
A bonkers quest from the '90s that will sometimes cause you to go from scratching your head to banging it on the desk. Yeah, Gobliiins is one of those games with puzzles that will sometimes have you saying “How did they expect me to figure THAT out!?”, but then again – that was part of the '90s quest charm. The game is worth a replay due to its retro value and comedy gems. Using a walkthrough for some of its wacky puzzles is something you should not feel guilty about.
Grim Fandango
Another quest classic, Grim Fandango has the right mix of atmosphere, story, comedy, and hero arc to keep itself imprinted on the back of gamers' minds. It was recently remastered and released for modern systems, mobile ones included. Illustrated with a unique mix, borrowing from both film noir and Mexican folklore, we are sure you haven't seen or experienced anything like Grim Fandango... unless you've played Grim Fandango before, that is.
Special mention: Heroes of Might and Magic III
Heroes 3 is only available for tablets, so it couldn't exactly be listed as first in our selection. Still, it's a classic strategy game that has active fans to this day. A mixture of a well-constructed world, wide variety of creatures and artifacts, deep gameplay and lots of maps (including a random map generator) adds up for a ton of replay value. Additionally, you can still play the good old “hot seat” mode with friends – you'd have to pass the tablet around, though.
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