Video games have come an extremely long way from the titles that many gamers around the age of 30 remember. Nowadays, super-fast HD consoles are the norm, with virtual reality and games that sync with social media accounts are common. However, for some, the golden days of gaming are still the ones that they are looking to reminisce.
Titles from the 80s and 90s remain as popular today as they were in the past, with a number of retro gaming bars opening up around the city. For some, a visit to NQ64 to play the games that they remember playing as a child while having a drink with friends is the perfect evening, but do many of the titles that we remember playing when we were younger still resonate as much in this modern-day?
Age of Empires 2
One of the most popular games in the last 90s was Age of Empires 2, which saw players build towns and create armies to defeat enemies on the desktop computers. It quickly became a classic title among gamers, with over two million copies being sold.
However, it was the lasting impact that it had on future games that made it one of the greatest games that was ever released. Its popularity continues to this day, as an updated release of the game hit the shelves in 2013, before a third game titles Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition was released at the end of 2019.
Crash Bandicoot
There were few better selling games on the PlayStation in the middle-to-late 90s than Crash Bandicoot. Fans were first introduced to Crash with the release of Crash Bandicoot in 1996, before Cortex Strikes Back and Warped were released in 1997 and 1998 respectively. The games were beloved by fans, and that was echoed with the response of the re-mastered version that was released on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch.
It was originally released on PlayStation in 2017, but was later released on the other consoles in early 2018. It immediately became a massive success to highlight that fans were still nostalgic about the game, with nearly three million copies being sold in the first three months. The sale continues to rocket, and there were ten million sales by February 2019, which has led to the releases of It’s About Time and On The Run! In the past two years.
Pac-Man
There are few arcade games that are more synonymous with gamers than Pac-Man. It was a mainstay in every arcade, as players controlled Pac-Man and aimed to eat dots, power pellets and other bonus items while avoiding the ghosts. The original title was released back in 1980, with the release of Championship Edition.
However, nostalgic fans were able to continue playing the game in 2007 when a re-mastered version of the title was released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. It remains one of the most popular arcade games around, and was succeeded by two further sequels; titled Pac-Man Championship Edition DX and Pac-Man Championship Edition 2.
