Which Video Games Have Held Up the Best Over the Years?

There’s nothing like returning to an old video game for some nostalgia until you realize it’s not quite what you remember.

Nostalgia is a tricky emotion because it longs for a perceived better day, but can often cloud your perception as it relates to your modern life. That definitely could be the case with video games.

I’ve reminisced about past games I’ve played from decades ago only to find that they weren’t at all like how I remembered them. This largely comes from poorly aged graphics or archaic gameplay features.

And yet there are plenty of games from a bygone era that still hold up well and are a joy to play now just as much as in the past. It’s one of the features that I think marks a true masterpiece in gaming.

So which games, for you, have held up the best over time?

This question likely will be different for everyone. While I think there is a general consensus on some games that have stood the test of time, others may be a lot more subjective.

I tend to put a heavier emphasis on graphics holding up so I think Paper Mario for the Nintendo 64 is a great example of a game that aged well.

The Nintendo 64 era is a hard one to point to for games that held up solely because we were still figuring out 3D graphics at the time. Paper Mario opted for a graphical style that is timeless and looks nothing like its N64 siblings. It’s definitely a style I’d like to see return in other games.

It’s not just how it looks, but also how it feels. Paper Mario is an RPG, but unlike other games of the time, grinding is not a necessity. In fact, you can get pretty overpowered if you grind too much and the game because super easy.

**Image Credit:** Nintendo (via Game Luster)

Another game that I think stood the test of time is The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.

Boy, did we laugh at this one upon its initial release in 2002. It’s definitely not the art style we wanted, but it is the one we needed. Nintendo released an HD remake about 10 years ago and didn’t have to do much to enhance the graphics.

While gameplay has suffered at times, The Wind Waker is still a game that’s really pretty to behold. All things considered, The Wind Waker stood the test of time well.

There are so many great games you could point and say they embrace a timeless quality. What I find great about this topic is we all have different answers on what does a good job at holding up.

So what about you? Which video game has stood the test of time well? What about those games has made them just as easy to pick up today as they were in the past? Let us know in the comments below or head over to our Discord channel to join the conversation.

Featured Image: Nintendo (via Collider)

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