As we enter 2014, it dawned on me that it has been nearly 30 years since the introduction of the Nintendo Entertainment System which ushered in the Golden Era of gaming. 30 years later, we can plug in many of those classic games and immediately get overtaken by the sense of awe and giddy enjoyment that befell us as children propped in front of our clunky TV sets.

When the iPhone was first introduced, many developers looked back to those simple, classic games for inspiration, if not outright cloning them altogether – slapping a new skin on them and pushing them out to the App Store. The simplistic controls of these classic games suited the limitations of the first smart mobile devices. But as the processing power of iPhones and Android devices have increased, so has the push toward 3d environments and advanced gameplay in mobile games. In many ways, we are seeing the same push away from the simple, timeless games toward the more “hardcore” games that we saw as the SNES gave way to the PlayStation, and so forth.

But there is something magical about simplicity in games. That element where anyone can just pick up and play and find just the right amount of challenge and enjoyment. It is my hope that the Golden Era of gaming can continue to provide inspiration for the developers of mobile games. In that vein, here are some of my favorite games of yore, and how they might be re-imagined for the mobile generation.

Uniracers

Uniracers is often the forgotten gem of the SNES console. With a perfect mix of razor sharp controls, teeth-grinding challenge and whimsical charm, this game has an addictive quality that had me glued to my coach for weeks on end. It is essentially an endless runner racing type game. Think “Fun Run” that requires actual skill to play effectively. Uniracers had one of the best multiplayer experiences for the days before ubiquitous internet access. This game just seems ripe for a mobile re-make, and it wouldn’t require many changes to the gameplay to make it work.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Swipe Up: Jump

Swipe Back: Stop

Swipe Down: Duck

Swipe in Multiple Directions While in Air: Perform Tricks

Finger Pressed on Screen While in Air: Do a Flip

Marble Madness

Marble Madness may have caused the demise of many a controller back in the mid-80s. It’s called Marble MADNESS for a reason. Heck, just imagining that little marble careening off the ledge JUST as it was about to reach the goal nearly sends me into a fit of rage. FFFFFUUUUUUUUUUU marble!!!! Even with the aggravation, this is the kind of game that is a perfect fit for the got-time-enough-to-play-while-im-waiting-in-line nature of casual mobile games. And with the accelerometer, potentially 20x as maddeningly frustrating…

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

TILT TO MOVE! or… Drag your finger on the screen to move the ball.

3D World Runner

Imagine if Timothy Leary and Shigeru Miyamoto got together to design a video game… 3D World Runner would be the result. Ya, you might say that Super Mario with its walking mushrooms, flying raccoon outfits and plumbing pipes as teleportation devices motif was trippy as hell, but 3D World Runner takes the cake, or should I say… pancake, as some of the environments literally featured gigantic stacks of pancakes with spigots of syrup dripping onto them for no apparent reason. In fact, the game is quite open about its narcotic inspiration… Press pause and you will see your avatar sit down on the ground indian-style and begin puffing on pixelated hashish from his pipe. Wait… what?

As fascinating as this all is, the real appeal of the game is it’s unique take on the platformer that was way ahead of its time. As the name suggest, it was essentially a first-person platformer/endless-runner in the era of 2D. Each level ended with a rather challenging boss battle that saw your avatar floating around the screen and launching fireballs at worm-dragon-alien-hybrid until it was engulfed in flames. Without its acid-soaked motif, it may lose a bit of its charm, but the gameplay should still feel right at home on a mobile device.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Hold Right Screen: Stride to Right

Hold Left Screen: Stride to Left

Tap Screen: Shoot Fireball

Swipe Up: Jump

T&C Surf Design

Perhaps the world’s first “advergame”, T&C Surf Designs: Wood & Water Rage was a game that featured many different entertaining gameplay types in one eye-pleasing package. Town & Country Surf Designs, a popular surfboard manufacturer, apparently commissioned this game as a way to expand their exposure to the pre-teens and teens that spent countless hours in front of their televisions instead of on the beach in hopes of getting them to put down their gamepads to go paddle out on a T&C surfboard. That strategy may have backfired, as the game that featured a truly RAD gorilla riding massive waves was simply too fun to put down.

I have seen a few surfing and skating games on the app store, but none of them do it quite as well as this classic. WIPEOUT!

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

When Skating…

Swipe Up or Down to move skater up or down

Tap Screen to jump

When Surfing…

Swipe Screen in Multiple Directions to surf

Skate or Die!

Another iconic skating game from the decade of neon colors and hair metal… It was more than rad, it was totally GNARLY! You could skate around parks, but the half-pipe was where it was at. The controls were tight and could be easily redesigned for mobile. Unlike most games of the time, there was one aspect of the game that fits right in with the modern era of mobile games – the SKATE SHOP! In Skate or Die, you could skate over to a local skate shop and use the points you had earned throughout the game to purchase whole bunch of gear to improve your performance. Can anyone say Freemium!?

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Tap to Ollie

Swipe to do tricks

Super Spike Volleyball

In the late 80’s, Volleyball appeared to be at its peak of popularity. Super Spike Volleyball took that buzz and amplified it to create a scintillating competitive gameplay experience that lasts in our memories even today, long after the popularity of volleyball has faded away along with slap bracelets and hair perms. In this game, you played as a team of beach volleyball players with the power to spike the ball with a the force of a bazillion slap bracelets slapping at once. This was the kind of game you always brought out when a buddy was coming over to the house just so you could crow for the rest of the week about the fierce ball you spiked in their face to take the match. If done properly, the multiplayer aspect of this game would make it a favorite among mobile gamers.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Hold Down Screen to move

Tap to volley

Swipe Up to jump

Swipe Forward to spike

Super Dodgeball

If you have ever played Super Dodgeball, you will know that there are not many things more satisfying than seeing your friend’s face upon witnessing his last big-headed pixel dude launching into the stratosphere due to a well-placed ball to the face from your skillful hand. Like Super Spike V’Ball, Super Dodgeball thrived on its multiplayer perfection. It was the perfect party game that would solicit a smattering of oohs and ahhs from the audience during a well-player match. Single player mode could be equally as fun, but watch out for that damned Russian team… FFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUU Big-Headed Russian Dodgeball Team!

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Hold Down Screen to move

Tap to throw/catch

Swipe Up to jump

Swipe Forward to spike

Super Mario All-Stars Battle Mode

Super Mario All-Stars came out for the SNES in the early to mid-90s. It was marketed as collection of the classic Super Mario games with some slight graphical improvements and other tweaks. Within this cartridge, was a hidden gem known as “Battle Mode”. It featured our favorited heroes Mario and Luigi duking it out on a stage reminiscent of the Donkey Kong games. Each level was a simple static screen featuring three platforms from which Mario and Luigi could jump around on and assail each other with a variety of weapons until one of them met their untimely demise.

Fortunately for us, this is one of the few classic games on this list that HAS been adapted for the small screen, almost. Vlambeer’s Super Crate Box seems to take the simple game structure of Super Mario All-Stars Battle Mode and rolls with it – adding their unique style and a few fun weapon types to play with. Although, it is lacking the multiplayer option that made Battle Mode so appealing.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

See Super Crate Box

Lemmings

Pretty much everyone remembers the iconic PC game Lemmings, so I won’t spend too much time on this one. Some devs did try to convert this to a mobile platform, with mixed success. The original Lemmings requires a level of patience that might not be ideal for the gamer on the go. For this reason, a true re-imagining of Lemmings might also require a rethinking of the time management aspect of the game.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Swiping to dig and create land bridges

Tap to change Lemming types

Project Nomad

Project Nomad is an obscure space exploration and trading sandbox RPG with a whole host of fully-realized alien species. A product of the early 90s PC gaming scene which was teeming with experimentation at the time, Project Nomad was truly ahead of its time. The universe of Project Nomad was seemingly endless, as you could fly your starship between a multitude planets and systems and engage in communications and trade with the many colorful aliens that resided in them. In fact, the game was so immersive that each alien species spoke their own unique language, and with enough interaction, you began to form personal relationships with individuals. It mixed elements of Wing Commander, with an open-ended space exploration game that wouldn’t really be seen again until KOTOR or Mass Effect.

While this game might be a bit too large in scope for a mobile game, I think it could find a home on a tablet.

Controls Adapted for Mobile Devices:

Standard Controls for mobile flying games mixed with RPG elements



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OK devs, now it is time for you all to share which classic games you think should be adapted for mobile… Please share in the comments!