Time waits for no man, or hairline. Or does it? It’s been 30 years since the PlayStation first launched, and while a lot of PS1 games have aged poorly, there are plenty that have aged very well. But we think these PlayStation games will always be ageless, like the brown and sticky joke. This is happening, here is the reason to go on.
Mega Man X4
There’s a reason why so many fans think X4 is the peak of the Mega Man X subseries. It will probably be still as great another 25 years from now too.
The sprite art is razor-sharp, the animations are buttery smooth, and the level design is tuned to near bloody perfection. Whether you pick X or Zero, the game flows beautifully, and it never feels like you’re wrestling with clunky hitboxes, stiff controls, or DLC menus. It just works.
The soundtrack absolutely whips, the bosses are all memorable in that classic Mega Man “what even am I looking at?” kind of way, and the whole thing moves at a pace that still feels fast and modern today. It’s also probably the first time the series really leaned into anime melodrama. Okay, the voice acting is… historically significant.
But it’s charming! It’s charming! Your kids will love that in 10 years, and their kids in 20.
Now, X5 comes pretty close. The sprite work still holds up, and Zero’s story has some great beats, but it’s a bit bogged down by pacing issues and some odd mechanical decisions. X4 is just tighter. But hey, X5 is still well worth a look.
Mega Man X4 is a classic in every sense, and honestly, if Capcom released it today with zero changes, people would probably still lap it up. You’ve really gotta hand it to them for this one. Einhander.
Einhänder
Nailed it.
Einhänder is one of those games that makes you double-take when you remember it came from Square, who were just doing all sorts of insane stuff on the PS1. Midway through their golden JRPG streak, they just… made a sci-fi side-scrolling shooter. And not only did it actually work, it holds up better than most of the 3D games on the system.
Well, it’s technically 2.5D, but the camera shifts and cinematic angles make it feel much flashier than the usual horizontal shooter. The presentation is super clean, with sharp lighting and industrial design that avoids the blurry, washed-out look that a lot of PS1 3D games suffer from when played today. It’s sleek and moody, like a panther smoking a cigarette during a Gary Numan concert.
Does that make sense? Dunno.
The gameplay’s solid too. It’s fast-paced, but with just enough tactical thinking. You can grab weapons off destroyed enemies, and you’re constantly swapping between them, which keeps things moving. It’s tough, but fair, and most importantly, it never feels clunky. It just gets on with it, and you have to too.
There’s a real sense of polish here, Square made a shooter, and it ended up being one of the most replayable games on the system. And this is without mentioning the soundtrack, which will put hairs on your ecstasy tablets in no time at all. Banger music, banger gameplay, it just all bangs even today. You might even say it whips.
And I’m not Tekken the mick either.
Tekken 3
Tekken 3 is probably the easiest 3D fighter from the PS1 era to go back to, and it probably will be forever. Man, I don’t care, give a DualShock to a 10 year old now, try to withhold the screams when they select Law, and watch how much fun they have kicking you past the point of insanity.
It still runs smoothly, the animations are surprisingly sharp, and the core combat is snappy in a way that doesn’t feel a million miles off from modern Tekken.
It helps that the character models were kept fairly simple and stylised. Namco didn’t go for hyper-realism, so it dodges the uncanny valley a bit. Well, outside of cutscenes anyway.
Plus, the roster’s stacked. This is the one that gave us Jin, Hwoarang, and Eddie, and kept fan favourites like King and Yoshimitsu around. It even has a dinosaur and Sydney Sweeney!
Even the extra modes hold up better than they should. Tekken Force Mode is the kind of beat-’em-up side content that feels like it belongs in a Yakuza game, and Tekken Ball… well, they did that. They did do that.
The main thing is: you can still pick this up, play a few rounds, and it feels good. You’re not fighting the controls or the frame rate, as it’s 60fps! For a 1998 3D fighting game, that’s no small thing. It hasn’t just aged well—it never really aged in the first place. It’s still just Tekken, and it will always be a star. Platinum.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure
Oh yeah, it’s been a minute. Long time viewers, sound off down below, will know that I used to hyperfixate on this a lot way back when and vowed to buy it physically one day. Before I die.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure on PS1 is one of those games where the visuals do all the heavy lifting. Capcom’s 2D sprite work was at its peak here, and the result is a fighting game that is just bloody lovely to look at.
It helps that JoJo as a property is completely, well, mental so you’re not expecting realism or sense. Characters are flamboyant, the attacks are over-the-top, and the whole Stand mechanic adds a weird, layered gimmick that still makes it feel fresh. Mechanically, it’s a bit stiff compared to something like Street Fighter Alpha 3, but it’s still pretty fun and nicely screamy.
This version is based on Capcom’s arcade release, and while it’s a bit dialled back compared to the Dreamcast version, it’s still packed with character. The colours pop, the animation is smooth, and even the ridiculous puppet fight feels like something never seen before.
Even if you’re not deep into JoJo lore, which is a good indication of where your mental wellbeing is at, this is worth a look just to see what sprite art looked like at its absolute peak on the PS1. Next, I’m going to say the next entry is next.
Strider 2
Another Capcom whipper ported from arcades, Strider 2 is one of those late PS1 games that doesn’t mess around. No long intros, no clunky menus—you pick your level and immediately start cutting stuff up.
It’s fast, responsive, and built around momentum. You’re constantly dashing, wall-jumping, flipping between platforms and looking very, very cool. Being a ninja is always cool, man.
Visually, it’s aged better than most PS1 games. The clean 2D sprites over 3D backgrounds give it a sharp, readable style. It’s flashy without being messy, and you can always tell what’s happening on screen, even when things get a tad hectic.
Now, you can finish it in under an hour, but it is built for repeat runs. Every stage has multiple paths, bosses go down quick if you’re aggressive, and the whole thing feels like a speedrunner’s dream. It also came bundled with the original arcade Strider, which is a neat extra.
There’s no fluff here. Just a short, stylish action game that’s aged better than most of its 3D contemporaries. As someone whose spare time seems to disappear into a void when I blink, this is a PS1 well worth picking up and playing today. [pause] Um, unofficially.
Tales of Eternia
Tales of Eternia is one of the better-looking and better aged RPGs on the PS1, mostly because it never tried to be anything that pushed the system beyond its limits. It might have kinda hurt it at the time, but funnily enough it helps it now. Instead of going the 3D route, it leans into detailed 2D sprites, clean environments, and colourful spell effects that still look sharp even now.
It feels more like something you’d expect on the Saturn— and that’s a compliment. Everything is just very tight here. Like a tiger.
The story’s nothing groundbreaking. Two planets are destined to collide, but nobody can communicate because of a brewing war between them. Actually that is kinda unique. But anyway, no one’s monologuing for ten minutes about crystals, and the game moves along at a decent clip.
Where it really stands out is in the combat. It’s real-time, side-on, and responsive. You know what, it’s basically a lightweight brawler disguised as an RPG. You’re not just picking commands from a menu, as instead you’re juggling enemies and managing combos mid-fight. It’s pretty fun.
It doesn’t get mentioned as much as Symphonia or Abyss, but honestly, Eternia might be the easiest one to revisit now. This is just a lean, confident action RPG that knew exactly what it could do and stuck to it, and it’s that kind of charm that means it will never really age. Word on the street is that the next entry will never age either.
Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter
Now, look: Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter on PS1 is technically a stripped-down version of the arcade release, but all that punching and kicking and griefing still holds up very well.
Yes, you lose the proper tag team mechanic thanks to hardware limitations, which is a shame, but in practice, you try to tell me this isn’t just a bunch of fun today. You can still pick two characters and switch between rounds, and honestly, most people playing this on a PS1 weren’t thinking about tournament-level mechanics. They just wanted to see Chun-Li kick Cyclops in the face. And they could do that. And they still can today. And it’s still awesome.
Following on from X-Men vs. Street Fighter, this felt like Capcom doubling down on the formula. The roster is bigger, the movesets are flashier, and the Marvel characters are even more ridiculous. And that’s the main draw, really—smashing together a Street Fighter and a Marvel character just doesn’t get old. Watching Ryu trade fireballs with Blackheart, or Ken trying to outstyle Spider-Man—it still works. It always will.
Sure, the PS1 version is missing some of the arcade flair, but if you were there at the time, this was still an event. And if you enjoyed this one, the follow-up, Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, delivered more of the same, just with even bigger crossovers and even wilder matchups. And then you’ve got that Marvel vs Capcom 2 underground hit to check out after. Right, follow me to the next game.
Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
Okay, granted. Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee hasn’t aged quite as gracefully as some of its PS1 peers, but it still deserves a spot here, because there’s really nothing else like it. Alright, there’s also the sequel but let me handle the pedantry please.
The trial-and-error design can be frustrating if you’re not in the right mood. But once you figure out how to not explode into chunks of flesh for the 9th time, it’s a lightbulb moment.
You see, this is a very tense, just unnerving game. Every screen feels like a death trap, and half the time you’re trying to tiptoe past a sleeping Slig with your fingers hovering over the “chant” button like you’re Damian Lewis at the end of Homeland Season 1.
Visually, it still holds up in a very specific way. The pre-rendered backdrops are grimy and industrial, but never boring, and the art direction carries all of it. Someone will have something to say if you show them a screenshot of this one. You could throw more polygons at it and you’d still never recreate that exact tone. The remake did try, but it just didn’t quite succeed in capturing that same feel.
Also—and this can’t be overstated—it has a dedicated fart button. You press it, Abe farts. You can even string it into a conversation. That will never get old.
The controls may creak a little now, but the tone, style, and sheer weirdness of Abe’s Oddysee? Give it to your child and you’ll be able to bond over how much Abe and his escape from Amazon fundamentally changed you both.
Mr. Driller
You know what, Mr. Driller is one of those games that never really needed updating, even if you can play it on PS5 these days. It’s simple enough that the idea just lives forever. You drill through falling blocks, try not to get crushed or run out of air, and that’s pretty much it. No nonsense, just more drilling than the cast of Geordie Shore after 4 Jaegerbombs.
It also looks fantastic. Cor, those are some lovely colours it’s got going on. The chunky pastel visuals are sharp and clear, and there’s just enough animation and bounce to give everything a bit of charm without getting in the way. Mr. Driller went with a bold, readable style that was simple to understand, and it’s made it kinda eternal.
It’s not just mindless digging either. Blocks of the same colour fuse together, and clearing one can collapse entire chains. That means you’re constantly making quick decisions: drill down safely, or take a risk to set up a massive combo and get to the next oxygen capsule before you suffocate.
Mr Driller does amp up the stress the longer you play, but it never feels unfair. The oxygen mechanic keeps you moving, the falling blocks force you to think quickly, and before long, you’re doing risk-reward calculations on the fly like some kinda tiny scientist whose lab is on an insect.
Out of all the PS1 puzzle games, this is probably the easiest one to come back to. There’s no learning curve, no dated UI, it just boots up and plays perfectly. It’s pure arcade design, and helpfully enough for taxpaying monkeys like me, you don’t need to be intelligent at all to have some fun.
I.Q.: Intelligent Qube
Like Mr. Driller, Intelligent Qube is built on a single, clear idea. It’s just you, a grid of cubes, and the creeping sense that you’re one wrong move away from failing an IQ test. Don’t mean to brag, but mine is nearly triple digits.
The concept here is simple: mark the right blocks, avoid the wrong ones, and don’t get flattened. But the way it escalates, with faster patterns, tighter margins, and increasingly unforgiving layouts, creates a kind of slow-burn anxiety that probably would’ve hit extremely hard in particularly, erm, relaxed university accommodation back in the day. You’d never trust your lava lamp again.
Intelligent Qube is cold, echoey, and deliberately sparse. You’re playing on a floating platform in the middle of… nothing. No walls, no background detail, just a void. Even the sound design is odd, the clattering of your little man’s little feet, loud beeps, and occasionally a faceless voice giving you compliments. It’s not horror, but it is deeply unnerving in a way most puzzle games would never be. But Freddy Fazbear in Tetris ya cowards.
Intelligent Qube is a perfect example of how the PS1 could produce timeless experiences needing mind-boggling effects. Just cubes, consequences, and the creeping dread of your whole world suddenly disappearing underneath your feet. Just like real life!
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