Mario on Yoshi's back standing on a block.

Born In the 1990s? These Video Games Will Bring Back Memories

Who doesn’t love a bit of nostalgia?

If you were born in the last decade of the previous millennium, video games will take on a whole new meaning compared to those born today. Whether it’s the 8 or 16-bit graphics that would often leave you on the cusp of an epileptic fit or the tinny MIDI soundtracks – many of which were produced by Japanese game developers on Casio keyboards – there is something eternally endearing about video games from the 1990s.

This article is catered for the adult gamers out there, celebrating the finest video games to come out of the decade, which may encourage you to blow the cobwebs off your old-school console and enjoy a night in of retro gaming.

Here are three games that will get you feeling nostalgic:

Super Mario World: Taking the SNES to New Levels

Mario on Yoshi's back standing on a block.

Although it was Super Marios Bros. 3 that heralded a new era of platform video gaming, Super Mario World was the ultimate in the expansive world of Mario and his clan. The tale of Mario’s battle to save Princess Toadstool and Dinosaur Land from the threat of Bowser and his Koopalings remains one of the most cherished in the history of platform video games. In fact, Super Mario World remains the best-selling SNES video game of all time, selling way over 20 million copies globally. The side-scrolling gameplay style was engaging and hugely immersive, keeping you hooked from start to finish.

Super Mario Kart: Wholesome family fun

Can you tell that we’re Super Mario fans yet? Super Mario Kart stole the hearts of families up and down the country with its pick-up-and-play style of gameplay. With heaps of inventive and fun-filled tracks to choose from, it keeps things fresh. The power-ups and shells were also great at preventing the most talented drivers from getting away from their siblings and parents!

Don’t forget the Battle Mode, where the aim of the game was to pop the balloons of your opponents that surrounded each kart. It’s still just as popular today on the Nintendo Wii, which is why many people regard it as one of the best video games of all time.

Street Fighter II Turbo: The king of beat’em ups

Though there had been fighting video games before the arrival of Street Fighter II, none could rival this for the adrenaline rush of player-on-player combat. It came on to the scene in 1994 as the fifth instalment of the Street Fighter franchise and made the biggest impact, both commercially and with gamers. With eight unique characters, each with their own special moves and traits, Capcom had stumbled on a goldmine. 27 years and still going strong – and now with a new eSports fanbase – means that this legacy is one to be celebrated.

GoldenEye 007: Magical Multiplayer Action

The Nintendo 64 was transformed by the release of GoldenEye 007 on its platform. Based around the storyline of the James Bond thriller, GoldenEye not only had an incredible single-player campaign mode, but it also had a split-screen multiplayer mode where up to four players could do battle in various deathmatch modes.

Even today, GoldenEye 007 is widely regarded as an important breakthrough for first-person shooters, helping video game consoles to transition more smoothly from classic shooters such as Doom to more realistic first-person approaches. GoldenEye 007’s successor, Perfect Dark, failed to maintain the hype of its predecessor, which still remains one of the best-selling N64 games of all time.

Metal Gear Solid: Personifying the PlayStation’s Power

Solid Snake in Metal Gear Solid on the PlayStation 1, hiding beside a grey crate while a soldier wearing white patrols.

Speaking of stealth, action-adventure video games, GoldenEye’s success also helped pave the way for the release of Metal Gear Solid on the Sony PlayStation. Written, directed and produced by Hideo Kojima, Metal Gear Solid follows Solid Snake, the renegade soldier tasked with bringing down a terrorist organisation known as FOXHOUND. The incredible cinematic cut scenes brought the storyline to life, while the need to be stealthy and avoid combat rather than confront it head on captured the imagination of gamers worldwide, shifting over six million copies.

In truth, we could have included so many more in this article. Special shout-outs go to EA Sports for the launch of their FIFA franchise. Meanwhile, Sega’s Sonic the Hedgehog was also hugely influential – but not quite as much as Mario!

This article was made possible by MB PECO MEDIJA.