When Sony arrived on the console-making scene, it did so with a bang, putting out the excellent PlayStation in 1994. Sure, the PS2 would come along at the end of the millennium and eat its lunch, but the original PlayStation put Sony on the map. It proved the company was going to be a real player in the market. One of the reasons the PlayStation was a success was Sony’s publishing efforts. It didn’t put out all the hits on its own system, but it had its fair share of success. Thankfully, that quality has stood the test of time, and most of Sony’s best games are still great today.
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Here are the five PlayStation games from the ’90s that still hold up. Remember, only Sony-published games are eligible, so you won’t see the likes of Metal Gear Solid or Resident Evil.
5) Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back
Naughty Dog’s Crash Bandicoot has always been a fan-favorite on the PlayStation. It wasn’t quite Sony’s answer for Mario and Sonic, but it’s about as close as the company got. The second Crash game is arguably its best, and is certainly a big step up from the original game. Players have access to all-new abilities, like sliding and climbing, which allow for more creative platforming.
Plus, the variety Naughty Dog added with the jetpack and rocket surfboard levels kept things fresh throughout. Fans also loved the more balanced difficulty curve, giving them a nice ramp-up to Crash‘s toughest tests. It’s still a blast to play, even with nearly 30 years of game design improvements. You could pick up the remastered version, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, but you’ll have a great time either way.
4) Twisted Metal 2: World Tour
The Twisted Metal series was one of the best versions of car combat we ever got. It mixed arcade-like driving with a colorful cast of characters and some wacky weapons. Twisted Metal 2 is the peak of the series in the ’90s (some might argue Black is better, but that came out in 2001). The levels are much larger and more intricate, making this a huge upgrade on the original.
Sure, it can look a little muddy by modern standards (and Twisted Metal was never a looker), but if you can get past that, there’s a great car combat game here. It’s a shame that the genre has fallen out of fashion because Twisted Metal proves we could easily have plenty of destructive car combat games these days.
3) PaRappa The Rapper
PaRappa the Rapper is a short, sweet rhythm game featuring a rapping dog. Setups don’t get much better than that. It’s got a certain style that is very of the era, but if you’re looking for the ’90s vibe, it’s hard to think of a PlayStation game that fits better than PaRappa.
Thankfully, the actual gameplay is just as good as the visuals. Rhythm games generally hold up well, and PaRappa is no different. It also doesn’t hurt that the rhymes are fresh. Yes, they’re a little silly, but PaRappa and his crew have legitimate bars.
2) Gran Turismo 2
Visually, Gran Turismo has come a long way in the last few decades. Still, this was one of the best-looking games in the world at one point, making it a fun exercise to go back and see how far we’ve come.
What’s wild about that is that GT2‘s development cycle was very rushed. Somehow, the developers were able to overcome that and make what was widely viewed as the best racer on the planet in 1999. It’s worth checking out not just as a historical artifact. GT2 is a phenomenal racing game, setting the stage for Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec, which many view as the high point of the series.
1) Final Fantasy VII
The partnership between Sony and Square was a huge surprise at the time. Previously, Square had been working with Nintendo for its Final Fantasy series for years. Still, when Nintendo decided to stick with carts, pushing Sony to make the disc-based PlayStation, Square followed the memory.
See, Nintendo’s cartridge lacked the space of PlayStation’s discs, opening up brand-new avenues for Square. The developer didn’t look back and delivered what many regard as the greatest RPG of all time. Not a bad move from Sony.
Look, there’s not much to be said about Final Fantasy VII that you haven’t already heard before. Cloud and co’s journey through Midgar is one of the most captivating stories ever put on disc, thanks in part to one of the franchise’s best villains, Sephiroth. The remake is also great, but Square Enix took it in a completely new direction, making the original FF7 nearly required viewing before hopping into the Remake series.
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Image Courtesy of Toei Animation
