Streets Of Rage 2 – retro forever

A reader explains why he’s all but given up on modern games and lists the five favourite retro titles he keeps going back to.

These days I class myself as a retro gamer rather than a gamer. It was a gradual but irrevocable transition: as I fell out of love with current games and consoles I fell back in love with retro gaming.

I’ve always found old school pick-up-and-play games more appealing and these days they fit my lifestyle better too, plus they’re a good deal cheaper. But the simple truth is I enjoy the nostalgia offered by retro gaming.



The enjoyment I get from rediscovering a retro classic easily outweighs that from starting up a totally new one. There’s no guarantee I’ll like a new game, but replaying old ones is full of tantalising half-remembered scenes and secrets.


This doesn’t always hold true, of course. I recently got re-stuck into Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time, only to find it’s platforming ‘brilliance’ was nowhere near as fluid and sinuous as I recalled. I find a lot of older titles I’ve re-purchased haven’t aged too well either. Good-at-the-time Megadrive fighter Ballz is, frankly, testicles. Cyborg Justice is a chore thanks to an unforgivable control scheme. And Sonic R is barely even a game: it feels half-finished.

But fortunately these are the exceptions and I still enjoy frequent extended sessions on games such as Sunset Riders, Gargoyle’s Quest, Kuru Kuru Kururin, Soul Reaver, and Power Stone.

So let me finish with my top five retro games. Those I’m sure I’ll still be playing in another 20 years.

1. Shenmue

The daddy of nostalgic video games. Every year around Christmas, I replay Shenmue. I start to feel it tugging around October. I resist as long as I can, then get drunk on it. Every time I play it, I find something new. Intoxicating and wonderful.

2. Streets Of Rage 2

Streets Of Rage 1 was undercooked and Streets Of Rage 3 overcooked, but Streets Of Rage 2 is the perfect side-scrolling beat ’em-up. Varied characters (Max is the best!), memorable bosses, plenty of moves, and a soundtrack still among the best ever.

3. Snake Rattle ‘N’ Roll

To me this feels like the first 3D platform game. Yes, I know it’s isometric, but just like Super Mario 64 it offers great controls and a fantastic playground within which to run (well, slither), jump, and eat nibbly-pibblys. Very few games are a pleasure to control in their own right, but this one certainly is.

4. Astro Boy: Omega Factor

I bought a Game Boy Advance (for the third or fourth time – I’m gonna keep this one!) last month with the sole purpose of replaying this absolutely corking platform/shooter/run ‘n’ gunner. Tight controls, great special moves, and varied gameplay put this right up alongside Gunstar Heroes as one of Treasure’s best games.



5. Sphinx And The Cursed Mummy

Criminally overlooked at the time, but I’ve always preferred this (and Beyond Good & Evil) to any of the 3D Zelda games. Replaying it last year was a breath of fresh air. A lengthy quest, a huge world, likeable characters, great gameplay mechanics and some clever puzzles.

Well, that’s it. I’m off to wait by the letterbox for the copy of Game Boy Duck Tales I bought off eBay last week.

By reader Tim F

The reader’s feature does not necessary represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.

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