15 Classic Games We Should Never Forget

I don’t know about you, but I am a sucker for old games. From the old arcade titles like Final Fight to the “youngsters” like Castelvania: Dracula X on the SNES, I still love playing these classics just as I did when I was much younger. There is something about pixilated graphics, poor English translation and carbon copies of other games – there is something I love and, every now and then I just have to grab one of these evergreens and start playing. However, most of these titles will be swallowed by the black hole of forgetfulness – just a few are meant to stay true classics.

Here’s Unigamesity’s list of classic games (released before December 1994) that should never be forgotten:

15. The Lost Vikings

It was 1992, when developers cared less about income and more about creating unique gameplay experiences. The Lost Vikings remains, in my opinion, one of the most underrated titles in the history of gaming. You controlled three “lost” Vikings – Erik the Swift, Baleog the Fierce, and Olaf the Stout – each with its own abilities, and your goal was simple: save them from the evil extraterrestrial emperor who kidnapped them. With a unique blend of puzzle and platformer, you had to think quick and decide how to use each of the Viking’s abilities to finish each stage in three healthy pieces. Highly addictive and highly recommended for those who feel like playing a true classic.

14. The Oregon Trail

“You have died of dysentery” – that’s probably the first thing that crosses anybody’s mind when thinking about The Oregon Trail (because, honestly, I doubt there are many people who did not play it). Apart from that, this educational game was a true piece of art: you had to guide your family across the Oregon Trail and keep it alive while fighting against all sorts of diseases, crossing rivers and getting ready to face the unexpected (including hunting for food – which usually was tougher than curing dysentery itself). Challenging and witty, educational and deeply strategic, The Oregon Trail can be considered a real game of a generation.

13. Lemmings

I still remember the countless (sleepless) nights I spent playing Lemmings – that extraordinary game where you influence the behavior of a flock of lemmings in order to move a specific percentage of them to safety. Lemmings required quick, strategic thinking as everything happened in real time – a huge innovation for the times: you had to order specific lemmings to block some paths while others were building staircases or digging through rocks, you had to always know what happens in the opposite corner of the screen because the number of creatures you had at your disposal was limited and the number of creatures that had to be saved was generally high. So if you ever feel like trying an entertaining puzzle while testing your reflexes and quick thinking, go for a Lemmings game!

12. Halloween Harry (aka Alien Carnage)

After that much puzzle and strategy, it’s time for some mindless fun in the company of Harry, the hero of this classic side-scrolling carnage-game released by Apogee. Like most of the games of that time, Halloween Harry came with hilarious enemies (like the alien Elvis Presley, for example) and with incredibly destructive weapons, especially the public’s favorite: the flame thrower. It doesn’t even matter if you had to save the world or not, if you were fighting against zombies or aliens – Halloween Harry is a great fun game that should never be forgotten. And, even more, you can search for it and download it for FREE since it was recently re-released as freeware.

11. Monkey Island 2 – LeChuck’s Revenge

Monkey Island 2, a game created by LucasArts, is probably the best point and click adventure game ever made, a title that should be used as inspiration for as many developers as possible. Playing Monkey Island basically tells you how an adventure game should be: great, smart story, strong characters, flawless gameplay and a ton and a half of humor. Monkey Island 2 was also the first game to offer players the option to choose the difficulty of the puzzles, thus making it a perfect choice for both experienced and beginners. A true work of art!