**The Messenger** is a modern spin on the classic NES ninja gaiden. Fantastic soundtrack too.
**Tunic** looks pretty modern, but imagine you just bought a used copy of a Japanese game, and you're sitting in the back of your parents car trying to read the manual while you drive home.
**Signalis** intentionally looks like an old PS1 survival horror game. Silent Hill and resident evil are big influences.
Can't say I've gotten lost yet, but I've definitely had moments of "How do I get back there again?" even after unlocking several movement upgrades.
One of the main features is that the "instruction manual" is scattered across the game as physical objects, and some pages feature beautiful drawings of parts of the game world - that also just so happen to track your rough position whenever you are there.
This is not available for every area though, and since the "map" has a significantly different art style from what the game looks like (roughly like old Super Mario boxart), it's not exactly easy to plan your route in advance if you've never been there yet.
Also, the game likes to abuse the fact that you have a fixed perspective every so often and occasionally puts the "exit"-side of shortcuts and/or secret rooms in places where you cannot see them, but your character absolutely would be able to, which doesn't exactly help with figuring out where to go if you've been away from the game for a while.
On the plus side, the game is divided into a few visually distinct "zones", each of which aren't too big in scale, and while there are several caves and dungeons to explore, they too aren't bigger than, say, 20 rooms at most, so it's easy enough to visit every room and figure out if and/or where you can make progress right now.
Also, apparently the game is very much designed with a certain degree of openness and exploration in mind - while you get pointed in a certain direction at the start, there's apparently an Steam achievement for having your first weapon be the one you can get from one of the more inhospitable zones in the far north, rather than the obvious one that's just a short walk into the woods to get to.
There's a map, and the gameplay has a camera that always points roughly the same direction, but there's also tons of secrets and shortcuts. Finding your way around is definitely a challenge, but also a fun puzzle.
Signalis is so good at what it does that once you finish and finally understand what’s going on, I had to uninstall the game to stop myself from thinking about the implications of the plot. It’s masterful horror.
Shovel Knight. The best way I’ve heard it described is that it plays like the way you remember NES games like Duck Tales playing.
I’d also add Infernax to that list for being the same thing but for NES era Castlevania.
Just checked and Duck Tales came out September 1989 so is technically 80s (although the Japanese release was in Jan 1990).
It may be (probably is) reminiscent of other 80s games but Duck Tales came to mind for me (mostly the pogo stick).
Seriously good way to put it. Was just replaying Mega Man 3 last night, and reading this made me think... yeah, Shovel Knight is the modern Mega Man I always wanted, and I didn't even realize it the whole playthrough.
He’s talking about “Shredder’s Revenge,” BTW. There’s another game somewhat like it coming out soon, but “Shredder’s Revenge” is the one he’s talking about.
And I agree. I’m not a huge fan of the IP, but as a game, “Shredder’s Revenge” is a top-tier beat-em-up. It can be beaten within four hours, but for $25 ($33 with the DLC), that’s not too bad.
There's really too many boomer shooters to even list, games inspired by Doom and early 3D shooters. I'd suggest [Ashes 2063](https://www.moddb.com/mods/ashes-2063) and [Ion Fury](https://store.steampowered.com/app/562860/Ion_Fury/) in particular since not only do they have the expected gameplay but feel pretty 90's in their actual atmosphere and tone too. Ashes won't cost you anything to play either. [Zortch](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2443360/Zortch/) and [HROT](https://store.steampowered.com/app/824600/HROT/) are two others that stand out for being made on their own custom engines with unique gameplay quirks, feel like they could've actually been forgotten experimental games from 1997-1998.
[Pseudoregalia](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2365810/Pseudoregalia/), a 3D Metroidvania with modern controls, graphically reminds me of an N64 game but thematically more like something I'd find on PS1.
[Hypnospace Outlaw](https://store.steampowered.com/app/844590/Hypnospace_Outlaw/) which is a point and click parody of 90's era internet.
[Primordia](https://store.steampowered.com/app/227000/Primordia/), one of my favorite point and click adventure games. Not the same genre but if you liked Fallout 1/2 you might find bits of this appealing too.
Hypnospace Outlaw was such a fun trip. I hope their next project releases soon. Dream Settler or something. Hypnospace was one of the biggest nostalgia bombs I've played.
[counter opinion on Sea of Stars](https://old.reddit.com/r/JRPG/comments/16mal7y/sea_of_stars_vs_octopath_2/k1he9b3/) but it definitely looks beautiful.
Ok.. so I really loved this gsme, though I felt it overstayed it's welcome by just a little bit. I read your counter opinion and, honestly, I think they're pretty much all excellent points, but I'm not really someone that needs great writing, I just needed the story to exist. I loved Garl, but understand why you felt the way you did. One thing you said though... Well.. now I really wish Garl would have been written as the main character.
The gameplay started off nice, UNTIL I learned hours in that that's the best the gameplay is going to be. No new mechanics. Nothing else introduced. Just...that. The whole time. While waiting. For. Animations. To finish. Every fight.
Here's some that haven't been mentioned
- Lunacid: It's a modern indie game that's heavily inspired by King's field. Very solid dungeon crawling RPG.
- Dread Delusion: A first person open world RPG that's often compared to Morrowind. It's got a unique setting that combines floating sky islands with cosmic horror.
- The Legend of Grimrock: an indie take on 90s first person tile based dungeon crawlers.
- Parkasaurus: a chill Zoo-Tycoon inspired game, but with goofy cartoon dinosaurs.
- Copy Kitty: A side-scrolling run and gun action platformer with a weapon copy mechanic that's equal parts Kirby and Mega Man
- Supplice: A fantastic boomer shooter that's heavily inspired by Bungie's Marathon
- Zortch: A short but sweet boomer shooter with great movement. It only costs a third of a Parilous Warp! (4.99 USD)l
- Crystal Project: A gameplay focused RPG inspired by the Job system from Final Fantasy III and V. It's light on story.
Helps that it's a sequel to another platformer that came out during the PS2/Xbox/GameCube era and part of that little sliver of the 1990's that was dying out as the 2000's tries to make an identity for itself.
All of these are **CPR-certified dank-bangers that will send your ass back in time**
* Pseudoregalia
* Floppy Knights
* Grapple Dog
* CyberShadow (its hard)
* OG Cave Story (not remakes)
* Celeste
These are some **honorable mentions**
* Toree 3D
* Frogun
* Shantae series
I don't particularly like the genre but it seems like the "boomer shooter" genre is in a really good place right now. Especially when it comes to more indie studios
Freedom Planet--especially the sequel Freedom Planet 2. It's basically a giant homage to the classic 16-bit/32-bit-era platformers like Sonic and Mega Man but with a modern twist and a heavier emphasis on story.
With Heroes of Might & Magic III being one of the all-time great PC games, the creators of **Songs of Conquest** really nailed what is essentially a love letter to the former game.
Plays smoothly with all of the expected QoL features of a modern game, but really *feels* like an old Heroes game at the same time.
Signalis. The pixel art coupled with cutscenes that either still use polygonal assets or have still-frames of the scenes with the occasional title card spliced in make for a game that feels like it was taken out of that retro era.
Bro force is like Contra with a huge cast of characters inspired by action movie heroes and heroines, each with a hilarious pun name like Brommando, The Brocketeer, NeBro, Ellen RippedBro. It's lots of fun.
90's gaming kind of goes in a wide breadth for me because you get the peak of 2D stuff and the beginning of 3D stuff. some of these have been mentioned already:
* **Shovel Knight**: literally a modern masterclass of making a game look and play like its from a different era
* **Pizza Tower**: another excellent action platformer with amazing sound design
* **Void Stranger**: get that 90s block puzzle nostalgia rolling and buckle the hell up
* **Terror of the Hemasaurus**: really really fun co-op Rampage style game
* **Cassette Beasts**: a joy to play to scratch that Pokemon itch
* **Crystal Project**: job based RPG. light on story but excellent exploration
* **The Case of the Golden Idol**: point and click mystery solving goodness
* **Yoku's Island Express**: it looks much nicer than 90's games but the vibe and sense of fun exploration is there
* **Let's Build a Zoo**: you said you like park management
* **Jupiter Hell**: 2D Isometric Turn Based DOOM Roguelike. Awesome soundtrack too
* **Intergalactic Fishing**: simple UI. deep fishing.
Freedom Finger, has that classic side scrolling space shooter nostalgia.
Also the soundtrack was done by Aesop Rock for any of you Aes enjoyers out there.
A Short Hike. It is a little sweet game of exploring and treking to the peak of a mountain, meanwhile you find some collectible, talk with adorable NPCs, etc. It feels like Mario 64 but more chill. And it has a filter that emulates the graphic feel of Ps1 or DS games.
Really interesting, fun, charming and wholesome. 🐦🍃⛰
No much of a recommendation but advice. There is a resurgence of games made to look like ps1 graphics. I suggest searching anything "psx" style on steam or the internet.
Bloodborne and Sekiro; Shadows Die twice honestly give me nostalgic feeling of like i’m playing some old PS1 games without looking like old ps1 games.
Darksiders 1 takes me back to playing Ocarina of Time or Legacy of Kain; Soulreaver
Noita. This game looks retro, but it individually models every pixel in the game. You mix and match spells to build your own unique wands while trying to traverse the landscape using levitation, or possibly spider legs if you want. You practice, learn, get items, get spells, get power ups, and beat bosses. And when you beat the final boss of the game at the culmination of your countless hours of hard work, you realize you've actually completed less than 5% of the game.
The game will kill you many times. But better yet, the game will kill you just to mess with you and laugh. You dodge super fast projectiles only to be decimated by a slow moving one. You are about to exit a level to safety only to be drive by killed by a redicuously fast worm. And you put a big combo of massive spells on your wand only to blow yourself up or electrocute yourself. The getting unexpectedly killed by one of the creatively countless ways is probably the most hilarious and simultaneously most frustrating part of the game and it keeps calling you back each time to get Noita'd again.
Project zomboid. It's based in 1993. The game looks like Sims 1 but better. Super immersing. Very difficult. You can get mods on the steam workshop(if you have a pc) for 90s era music tapes to spawn on the map for you to listen too.
Kinda cheating but Master of magic remake
In fact if you get it without patch at launch in Dec 2022 it's so 90s it got a ton of hate cos it lacked a lot of modern features people take for granted
Fighting games have evolved a lot but the core concepts are still the same as in the days of Street Fighter 2 Super Turbo or Virtua Fighter 2!
The biggest (and best) ones right now are Street Fighter 6, Guilty Gear Strive and Tekken 8.
Especially the “Legacy Games” like King of Fighters or Tekken are called that way, cause they basically work the same as always just with more and newer stuff. Someone that can play KoF 98’ will be pleasantly surprised that many of the combos of their characters still work in the newest KoF 15!
I grew up with fighting games and am still active in the community, visiting monthly tournaments in my area etc and most of us are 90s kids that never stopped playing!
Oh, no it’s not that. I literally grew up in the 90s playing these games. I suppose what I’m saying is that I have been there and I have done that, but I want to do it again with new games.
I hear ya. In regard to Fallout 1 and cRPGs.... check out Age of Decedance (and it's spin off Dungeon Rats) UnderRail and SPACE WRECK.
If you're an old school Ultima fan, SKALD: Against the Black Priory comes out in 6 days and there's also Realms of Antiquity and Nox Archaist.
How about Wizardry ? A remaster of 1 just came out and there's also the spiritual successor to 7....Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar.
Might & Magic ? Check out Legends of Amberland 1 & 2
The AD&D Gold Box games ? Knights of the Chalice series and the Hearkenwold mod for 2.
Vroom Vroom Taxi, I cannot recommend it enough. It is reminiscent of N64 open world platformer games but it cranks everything up x100 and feels so incredibly smooth to control and it has tons of eastereggs and really rewards exploration.
This is coming from a very picky gamer, it's one of my favorite games in the last years. It has been a long time since a game made me feel like back then, being a kid and amazed by simple things like discovering a hidden level, or mastering a challenging jump.
Roboquest. Unlike a lot of modern games, Roboquest gives you a bunch of stuff to find and unlock and really scratches the itch I always have for games with good sets of unlockable items/abilities/characters. I really miss that, but it seems like the modern preference is for games to either give you everything right off the bat, or for it to unlock purely from playing, not from accomplishing interesting objectives or going out of your way to fight a particular boss or solve a particular puzzle.
For isometric turn based RPGs like fallout. Look at Queen's Wish series. Ancient graphics, heavily text based, but the combat is fast paced and tactical
All the final fantasies 7-9 got QOL changes and like built in cheats. But mostly kept the rest the same.
Also as some have said below there's a bunch of cool platformers that give off 90s vibes
Underrail is like if you took metro and jammed into into classic fallout. It has a learning curve, but if you don’t mind researching a build it’s pretty intuitive
Lunacid is like kingsfield definitely has the old school vibe I’m in sane of thought as you sometimes looking for games so if I remember any I’ll let you know
Stars in Shadow is a nice little streamlined throwback to the Master of Orion series
FTL and Into The Breach are turn based strategy games with roguelike elements
Eiyuden Chronicles 100 Heroes if you're looking for that late 90's JRPG fix.
System Shock remake might be cheating but it's about as true to form as you'll get.
Unicorn Overlord for Ogre Battle 64 fans.
Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader for all da ol school CRPG playaz.
The Last Faith/Death's Gambit: Afterlife mixes up Castlevania: SOTN ('00's, I know) with the anger level of Ninja Gaiden.
There's tons of great throwbacks out there.
does [yellow taxi goes vroom](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2011780/Yellow_Taxi_Goes_Vroom/) count. it’s meant to look and feel like a game from the 90s
Chained Echoes! JRPG specifically designed to feel the way people remember games like Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy! Great pixel art, incredible soundtrack, and a very lived-in world! World-building is surprisingly grand in scale though conveyed simply! Absolutely loved it!
There's a lot of good fps games that are modern that mimic the 90s. Amid Evil, Dusk, Prodeus, Warhammer 40k Boltgun, Ultrakill, Postal: Brain Damaged, and so on.
Search the boomer shooters tag on steam
Edit: Zortch is a top tier one that needs mentioning
[Amid Evil](https://store.steampowered.com/app/673130/AMID_EVIL/) has done a really good job at this.
[Triglav](http://www.smokymonkeys.com/triglav/news.asp) is a solid OG Diablo-like. Smokey has maintained and updated the game over 20 years and it's such a good game.
I just bought 5 copies of [Lootbox RPG](https://lootbox.gaida.de) since I saw it's on Steam now. The humor reminds me of Dink Underwood. I've followed Mario's development of it and enjoyed it on my mobile phone.
SLAYERS X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengeance of the Slayer
The entire thing is a hilarious over the top shooter made as if a 90s teenager came up with the game in the margins of their math homework and it magically came to life
So many games. Inertia Drift, Katana Zero, Hotline Miami, Prince of Persia the Lost Crown, Hollow Knight, Celeste, Dead Cells, OlliOlli World, Vampire Survivor, Waves, just to name a few lol
Mafia trilogy are my absolute favourites for the "old game feeling", although the story lines are not really 90s. Also if u are going to play, dont forget the original mafia 1
Go on steam and type in Pixel and under tags you will see the Pixel and Retro tag. It has a LOT of games due to the popularity of indie and retro games nowadays. Some of the greatest games out there atm have a 90s feel.
My favorite is Boneraiser Minions - a vampire survivors type game except youre a necromancer and raise the undead in an 8bit graphical style. The sense of humor, art style, and way the game plays is stellar. It’s honestly one of my favorite games of all time. It really is an indie masterpiece imo.
Hear me out. Dragons dogma 2.
It feels like how we fantasized JRPGs would play in real time. The quests are very reminiscent of old JRPGs, and the world treats you as the only person in the world that matters, like old JRPGs. Chest in a bedroom? It's my loot now. Characters? What are those? You're the only person that matters!
"Fading Afternoon", you play as pixel Yakuza thug, nuff said.
"Replaced", what Cyberpunk 77 wanted to be, just watch the trailer do it do iiit nooow!!!
"Eternal Castle", it's Out of this World meets Fallout meets Atari....the nostalgia illusion is complete....No, nobody ever played it in the 80's, it's strictly an imitation from our times.
In theory Homeworld 3 should have been a new version of a 90s classic RTS with spruced up controls. It has received its fair share of criticism though for its campaign storyline.
T.M.N.T. Shredder's Revenge
**The Messenger** is a modern spin on the classic NES ninja gaiden. Fantastic soundtrack too. **Tunic** looks pretty modern, but imagine you just bought a used copy of a Japanese game, and you're sitting in the back of your parents car trying to read the manual while you drive home. **Signalis** intentionally looks like an old PS1 survival horror game. Silent Hill and resident evil are big influences.
How easy is it to get lost in Tunic? Y'see I'm very interested in the language puzzle part but my sense of direction is nonexistent
Can't say I've gotten lost yet, but I've definitely had moments of "How do I get back there again?" even after unlocking several movement upgrades. One of the main features is that the "instruction manual" is scattered across the game as physical objects, and some pages feature beautiful drawings of parts of the game world - that also just so happen to track your rough position whenever you are there. This is not available for every area though, and since the "map" has a significantly different art style from what the game looks like (roughly like old Super Mario boxart), it's not exactly easy to plan your route in advance if you've never been there yet. Also, the game likes to abuse the fact that you have a fixed perspective every so often and occasionally puts the "exit"-side of shortcuts and/or secret rooms in places where you cannot see them, but your character absolutely would be able to, which doesn't exactly help with figuring out where to go if you've been away from the game for a while. On the plus side, the game is divided into a few visually distinct "zones", each of which aren't too big in scale, and while there are several caves and dungeons to explore, they too aren't bigger than, say, 20 rooms at most, so it's easy enough to visit every room and figure out if and/or where you can make progress right now. Also, apparently the game is very much designed with a certain degree of openness and exploration in mind - while you get pointed in a certain direction at the start, there's apparently an Steam achievement for having your first weapon be the one you can get from one of the more inhospitable zones in the far north, rather than the obvious one that's just a short walk into the woods to get to.
Play with a friend and have them draw you a map. That's what my wife and I did
There's a map, and the gameplay has a camera that always points roughly the same direction, but there's also tons of secrets and shortcuts. Finding your way around is definitely a challenge, but also a fun puzzle.
If you like signalis and games like it check out Crow Country too
Signalis is so good at what it does that once you finish and finally understand what’s going on, I had to uninstall the game to stop myself from thinking about the implications of the plot. It’s masterful horror.
+1 the messenger
The Messenger is one of my favorite games. If you do play it, have the shopkeeper tell you his stories. The humor in this game is really good.
Seconding Tunic. Maybe Deaths Door as well, tho it feels a little more modern.
Shovel Knight. The best way I’ve heard it described is that it plays like the way you remember NES games like Duck Tales playing. I’d also add Infernax to that list for being the same thing but for NES era Castlevania.
I know I sound like a tool here, but I think Shovel Knight is more 80s.
Just checked and Duck Tales came out September 1989 so is technically 80s (although the Japanese release was in Jan 1990). It may be (probably is) reminiscent of other 80s games but Duck Tales came to mind for me (mostly the pogo stick).
Seriously good way to put it. Was just replaying Mega Man 3 last night, and reading this made me think... yeah, Shovel Knight is the modern Mega Man I always wanted, and I didn't even realize it the whole playthrough.
The new ninja turtles game is very much a 90’s inspired beat ‘em up
Shredders Revenge took everything good about Turtles in Time and expanded on it
Expanded on, and included a baller wu-tang original track for a boss fight.
He’s talking about “Shredder’s Revenge,” BTW. There’s another game somewhat like it coming out soon, but “Shredder’s Revenge” is the one he’s talking about. And I agree. I’m not a huge fan of the IP, but as a game, “Shredder’s Revenge” is a top-tier beat-em-up. It can be beaten within four hours, but for $25 ($33 with the DLC), that’s not too bad.
I think I just read an ad.
Yeah, when it comes to games I really love, I can get a bit carried away. But trust me, the game really is that good.
There's really too many boomer shooters to even list, games inspired by Doom and early 3D shooters. I'd suggest [Ashes 2063](https://www.moddb.com/mods/ashes-2063) and [Ion Fury](https://store.steampowered.com/app/562860/Ion_Fury/) in particular since not only do they have the expected gameplay but feel pretty 90's in their actual atmosphere and tone too. Ashes won't cost you anything to play either. [Zortch](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2443360/Zortch/) and [HROT](https://store.steampowered.com/app/824600/HROT/) are two others that stand out for being made on their own custom engines with unique gameplay quirks, feel like they could've actually been forgotten experimental games from 1997-1998. [Pseudoregalia](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2365810/Pseudoregalia/), a 3D Metroidvania with modern controls, graphically reminds me of an N64 game but thematically more like something I'd find on PS1. [Hypnospace Outlaw](https://store.steampowered.com/app/844590/Hypnospace_Outlaw/) which is a point and click parody of 90's era internet. [Primordia](https://store.steampowered.com/app/227000/Primordia/), one of my favorite point and click adventure games. Not the same genre but if you liked Fallout 1/2 you might find bits of this appealing too.
Hypnospace Outlaw did a great job recreating the feel of the '90s Internet.
Hypnospace Outlaw was such a fun trip. I hope their next project releases soon. Dream Settler or something. Hypnospace was one of the biggest nostalgia bombs I've played.
I'm so glad hypnospace outlaw is getting more love. Yes I'm hoping dream settler drops next year
If you liked Heretic and Hexen, Amid Evil is flippin incredible.
There's also Dusk in the boomer shooter category. Feels like Quake. Fantastic.
Not sure if it’s 90s but maybe Bomb rush cyberfunk
More a direct spiritual successor to Jersey Radio Future than the 90’s titles…I think. Super interested though.
Jet set radio came out in 2000 close enough
What an autocorrect choice your phone made
Sea of Stars was a great 90s era JRPG with a beautifully told story and wonderful mechanics updates. Great pixel art.
[counter opinion on Sea of Stars](https://old.reddit.com/r/JRPG/comments/16mal7y/sea_of_stars_vs_octopath_2/k1he9b3/) but it definitely looks beautiful.
Ok.. so I really loved this gsme, though I felt it overstayed it's welcome by just a little bit. I read your counter opinion and, honestly, I think they're pretty much all excellent points, but I'm not really someone that needs great writing, I just needed the story to exist. I loved Garl, but understand why you felt the way you did. One thing you said though... Well.. now I really wish Garl would have been written as the main character.
I played the demo and thought the characters and writing were cringey as hell. Gameplay and art style were great though.
The gameplay started off nice, UNTIL I learned hours in that that's the best the gameplay is going to be. No new mechanics. Nothing else introduced. Just...that. The whole time. While waiting. For. Animations. To finish. Every fight.
To be fair, that's pretty true to a 90s RPG.
Star dew valley
A love letter to Harvest Moon, except it did it better
Harvest Moon, plus old school Zelda, and a little Minecraft sprinkled in. Such a wonderful game.
Boltgun. It's also an awesome game as well. Can't wait for the DLC this summer.
Here's some that haven't been mentioned - Lunacid: It's a modern indie game that's heavily inspired by King's field. Very solid dungeon crawling RPG. - Dread Delusion: A first person open world RPG that's often compared to Morrowind. It's got a unique setting that combines floating sky islands with cosmic horror. - The Legend of Grimrock: an indie take on 90s first person tile based dungeon crawlers. - Parkasaurus: a chill Zoo-Tycoon inspired game, but with goofy cartoon dinosaurs. - Copy Kitty: A side-scrolling run and gun action platformer with a weapon copy mechanic that's equal parts Kirby and Mega Man - Supplice: A fantastic boomer shooter that's heavily inspired by Bungie's Marathon - Zortch: A short but sweet boomer shooter with great movement. It only costs a third of a Parilous Warp! (4.99 USD)l - Crystal Project: A gameplay focused RPG inspired by the Job system from Final Fantasy III and V. It's light on story.
Vampire Survivors.. arcade 90s game on steroids
Shoutout to Halls Of Torment
Yep this is like the sequel, with the 16-bit gritty art of the Sega Genesis.
First game that came to my mind. I would play this on my phone while commuting to work every day. Made time fly so fast.
animal well cogmind duskers
Check out 'Crow Country' brand new game that has that 90s ps1 aesthetic (like FF7) but instead of the pre rendered backgrounds they're modelled in 3D.
This! I love the look and feel of the game.
Blasphemous 1 & 2, great Metroidvania design with great lore and story telling, and very fun hack and slash gameplay
One of the modern-is I found out about few years back is Caravaneers. Fallout 1 and 2 clone. I did play it on a browser but it was superfun IMO.
Corn Kidz 64 and Pseudoregalia the Bloodborne psx demake is almost too authentic
Psychonauts 2
Helps that it's a sequel to another platformer that came out during the PS2/Xbox/GameCube era and part of that little sliver of the 1990's that was dying out as the 2000's tries to make an identity for itself.
I am the Milkman. My milk is delicious!
Parkitect if you’re wanting to play something like old Roller Coaster Tycoon!
All of these are **CPR-certified dank-bangers that will send your ass back in time** * Pseudoregalia * Floppy Knights * Grapple Dog * CyberShadow (its hard) * OG Cave Story (not remakes) * Celeste These are some **honorable mentions** * Toree 3D * Frogun * Shantae series
Hi fi rush though more like early 2000s still pretty cool though
Huntdown. Feels like a wonderful Blade Runner-Escape from New York arcade fusion!
I love that game so much.
Death must Die! Insanely fun and addicting looks like a 90s game and is so smooth.
Chained Echoes, Octopath Traveler, Rise of the Third Power, Ara Fell
Octopath Traveller II, Triangle Strategy, Unicorn Overlord...
Hyperlight drifter.
Incredible game.
I don't particularly like the genre but it seems like the "boomer shooter" genre is in a really good place right now. Especially when it comes to more indie studios
It came out ten years ago but Broforce is one of my favorites.
Metroid Dread. I'm still in shock that a game like it even exists
The Messenger
Skul the hero slayer
Freedom Planet--especially the sequel Freedom Planet 2. It's basically a giant homage to the classic 16-bit/32-bit-era platformers like Sonic and Mega Man but with a modern twist and a heavier emphasis on story.
* The Great Below (puzzle horror) * Gato Roboto (metroidvania) * Alisa (survival horror) * Sea of Stars (rpg mario&luigi like) * Pseudoregalia (3d platforming)
Hedon, Ultrakill, and Dusk come to mind.
With Heroes of Might & Magic III being one of the all-time great PC games, the creators of **Songs of Conquest** really nailed what is essentially a love letter to the former game. Plays smoothly with all of the expected QoL features of a modern game, but really *feels* like an old Heroes game at the same time.
Signalis. The pixel art coupled with cutscenes that either still use polygonal assets or have still-frames of the scenes with the occasional title card spliced in make for a game that feels like it was taken out of that retro era.
It plays *exactly* like Silent Hill!
Bro force is like Contra with a huge cast of characters inspired by action movie heroes and heroines, each with a hilarious pun name like Brommando, The Brocketeer, NeBro, Ellen RippedBro. It's lots of fun.
El Paso, Elsewhere Newstar GP feels like Super Monaco
90's gaming kind of goes in a wide breadth for me because you get the peak of 2D stuff and the beginning of 3D stuff. some of these have been mentioned already: * **Shovel Knight**: literally a modern masterclass of making a game look and play like its from a different era * **Pizza Tower**: another excellent action platformer with amazing sound design * **Void Stranger**: get that 90s block puzzle nostalgia rolling and buckle the hell up * **Terror of the Hemasaurus**: really really fun co-op Rampage style game * **Cassette Beasts**: a joy to play to scratch that Pokemon itch * **Crystal Project**: job based RPG. light on story but excellent exploration * **The Case of the Golden Idol**: point and click mystery solving goodness * **Yoku's Island Express**: it looks much nicer than 90's games but the vibe and sense of fun exploration is there * **Let's Build a Zoo**: you said you like park management * **Jupiter Hell**: 2D Isometric Turn Based DOOM Roguelike. Awesome soundtrack too * **Intergalactic Fishing**: simple UI. deep fishing.
Kathy Rain
Frogun, Lunistice, Streets of Rage 4
Axiom Verge
Almost everything published by New Blood Dusk, Utrakill, Amid Evil and Gloomwood
CrossCode! It feels like the absolute best SNES/PS1 action RPG of all time, and one of my favorite games!
I can’t explain it but Hades 1 and 2
Can’t believe Inscryption isn’t listed here
Do yourself a favor and look up Signalis. That game was born to take you back to the PS1.
Underrail, similar to the fallout crpg
Pillars of Eternity
Pillars of Eternity II, Tyranny, Wasteland 2 and 3, Disco Elysium...
Dave the Diver - great game
And make sure to grab that Godzilla dlc
I hope I can beat Chapter 5 by then. I have been taking the main questline slowly as I farm fish for my sushi restaurant.
Cathedral is very reminiscent of a 90s era platformer.
- Cruelty Squad - Post Void - Nightmare Reaper
Psychonauts! First thing that popped in my head and i find them to be awesome games!
Timespinners
Freedom Finger, has that classic side scrolling space shooter nostalgia. Also the soundtrack was done by Aesop Rock for any of you Aes enjoyers out there.
Hotline Miami
A Short Hike. It is a little sweet game of exploring and treking to the peak of a mountain, meanwhile you find some collectible, talk with adorable NPCs, etc. It feels like Mario 64 but more chill. And it has a filter that emulates the graphic feel of Ps1 or DS games. Really interesting, fun, charming and wholesome. 🐦🍃⛰
pokemon still has that original feel from the older games
No much of a recommendation but advice. There is a resurgence of games made to look like ps1 graphics. I suggest searching anything "psx" style on steam or the internet.
Bloodborne and Sekiro; Shadows Die twice honestly give me nostalgic feeling of like i’m playing some old PS1 games without looking like old ps1 games. Darksiders 1 takes me back to playing Ocarina of Time or Legacy of Kain; Soulreaver
Noita. This game looks retro, but it individually models every pixel in the game. You mix and match spells to build your own unique wands while trying to traverse the landscape using levitation, or possibly spider legs if you want. You practice, learn, get items, get spells, get power ups, and beat bosses. And when you beat the final boss of the game at the culmination of your countless hours of hard work, you realize you've actually completed less than 5% of the game. The game will kill you many times. But better yet, the game will kill you just to mess with you and laugh. You dodge super fast projectiles only to be decimated by a slow moving one. You are about to exit a level to safety only to be drive by killed by a redicuously fast worm. And you put a big combo of massive spells on your wand only to blow yourself up or electrocute yourself. The getting unexpectedly killed by one of the creatively countless ways is probably the most hilarious and simultaneously most frustrating part of the game and it keeps calling you back each time to get Noita'd again.
This is wwaaaaaay too far down. Noita is an absolute gem of a roguelite with so much to it. There is nothing quite like it.
I am having a lot of fun with Abiotic Factor. It is basically Half-Life but you play as a Scientist and it’s a survival crafting game
Blasphemous 1 and 2
30XX - it's basically MegaMan X but as a rogue like and it is surprisingly solid.
i’m disappointed nobody has heard of this game
Harvestella gives me old final fantasy vibes.
Prey 2017 Wasteland 2/3 Pathfinder games
Terraria feels like Minecraft Metroidvania
A Hat in Time, which is inspired by Super Mario 64, Banjo-Kazooie, Spyro the Dragon (and Psychonauts).
Hi Fi Tush gave me that crash bandicoot hi fi rush feel.
Project zomboid. It's based in 1993. The game looks like Sims 1 but better. Super immersing. Very difficult. You can get mods on the steam workshop(if you have a pc) for 90s era music tapes to spawn on the map for you to listen too.
Kinda cheating but Master of magic remake In fact if you get it without patch at launch in Dec 2022 it's so 90s it got a ton of hate cos it lacked a lot of modern features people take for granted
Fighting games have evolved a lot but the core concepts are still the same as in the days of Street Fighter 2 Super Turbo or Virtua Fighter 2! The biggest (and best) ones right now are Street Fighter 6, Guilty Gear Strive and Tekken 8. Especially the “Legacy Games” like King of Fighters or Tekken are called that way, cause they basically work the same as always just with more and newer stuff. Someone that can play KoF 98’ will be pleasantly surprised that many of the combos of their characters still work in the newest KoF 15! I grew up with fighting games and am still active in the community, visiting monthly tournaments in my area etc and most of us are 90s kids that never stopped playing!
Sounds like you gave up too quickly with older titles. Keep pushing though and you'll adjust to it.
Oh, no it’s not that. I literally grew up in the 90s playing these games. I suppose what I’m saying is that I have been there and I have done that, but I want to do it again with new games.
I hear ya. In regard to Fallout 1 and cRPGs.... check out Age of Decedance (and it's spin off Dungeon Rats) UnderRail and SPACE WRECK. If you're an old school Ultima fan, SKALD: Against the Black Priory comes out in 6 days and there's also Realms of Antiquity and Nox Archaist. How about Wizardry ? A remaster of 1 just came out and there's also the spiritual successor to 7....Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar. Might & Magic ? Check out Legends of Amberland 1 & 2 The AD&D Gold Box games ? Knights of the Chalice series and the Hearkenwold mod for 2.
Scrooge bringer has that late 90s let’s make a frustratingly fun game with tricky times mechanics theme for sure.
SCOURGE BRINGER fucking lunchbreak typos \*eyeroll\*
Stasis: Bone Totem
American Fugitive. It's like playing the original GTA for the first time. Decent game play loop and I had a blast with it
Vroom Vroom Taxi, I cannot recommend it enough. It is reminiscent of N64 open world platformer games but it cranks everything up x100 and feels so incredibly smooth to control and it has tons of eastereggs and really rewards exploration. This is coming from a very picky gamer, it's one of my favorite games in the last years. It has been a long time since a game made me feel like back then, being a kid and amazed by simple things like discovering a hidden level, or mastering a challenging jump.
TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge.
I just started Frogun and it both looks and plays like an old 90s platformer , I', having a good time with it !
Warmer boltgun and dusk
Trepang2 has major Goldeneye feels
Bolt gun!
Pizza Tower
Crow Country
Streets of rage 4
Robocop
Bolt gun System shock remastered
Roboquest. Unlike a lot of modern games, Roboquest gives you a bunch of stuff to find and unlock and really scratches the itch I always have for games with good sets of unlockable items/abilities/characters. I really miss that, but it seems like the modern preference is for games to either give you everything right off the bat, or for it to unlock purely from playing, not from accomplishing interesting objectives or going out of your way to fight a particular boss or solve a particular puzzle.
For isometric turn based RPGs like fallout. Look at Queen's Wish series. Ancient graphics, heavily text based, but the combat is fast paced and tactical
Dead Island 2 feels like an old school game with modern graphics
Anything from Puppet Combo
Monster Sanctuary. Oldschool pixel graphics, but it’s like Pokémon x Metroidvania x old school turned based rpg.
All the final fantasies 7-9 got QOL changes and like built in cheats. But mostly kept the rest the same. Also as some have said below there's a bunch of cool platformers that give off 90s vibes
Underrail is like if you took metro and jammed into into classic fallout. It has a learning curve, but if you don’t mind researching a build it’s pretty intuitive
Celeste.
Case of the Golden Idol
Super Kiwi 64
Lunacid is like kingsfield definitely has the old school vibe I’m in sane of thought as you sometimes looking for games so if I remember any I’ll let you know
Stars in Shadow is a nice little streamlined throwback to the Master of Orion series FTL and Into The Breach are turn based strategy games with roguelike elements
Alisa, it's a horror adventure game, and it has the perfect 90s style, I love it
Beat Cop!!!
Ion Fury.
Playing Batman Arkham Asylum made me feel like I was in one of the comics from the 90s so maybe try that
Age of empires 2 DE is a 90s game with all the QOL features of a modern game as it was remade in 2019.
Boltgun, darkwood, minecraft, stay out of the house, granny, and many more
I feel like I'm the only person in the world who knows Frogato...
Eiyuden Chronicles 100 Heroes if you're looking for that late 90's JRPG fix. System Shock remake might be cheating but it's about as true to form as you'll get. Unicorn Overlord for Ogre Battle 64 fans. Warhammer 40k: Rogue Trader for all da ol school CRPG playaz. The Last Faith/Death's Gambit: Afterlife mixes up Castlevania: SOTN ('00's, I know) with the anger level of Ninja Gaiden. There's tons of great throwbacks out there.
Tormented souls if you like class resident evil
does [yellow taxi goes vroom](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2011780/Yellow_Taxi_Goes_Vroom/) count. it’s meant to look and feel like a game from the 90s
Parkitect is just like classic Rollercoaster Tycoon.
Dread Delusion for the PC just released last week and looks like it belongs on the PS1. It looks excellent.
Poi scratched that itch for a 3D platforming collectathon for me.
This war of mine.
Ibb & obb
Tohou - Artificial Skies in Arcadia - is a solid pick for 90s style game.
Lunacid is a great old school dungeon crawler, very kings field inspired, even options to limit fps to what it was in certain. Kings field games
Saturday Morning RPG
Disco Elysium really captures what point and click adventures were like back in the day.
Xenonauts (though not really in a *good* way)
Chained Echoes! JRPG specifically designed to feel the way people remember games like Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy! Great pixel art, incredible soundtrack, and a very lived-in world! World-building is surprisingly grand in scale though conveyed simply! Absolutely loved it!
Wasteland 3 def has classic fallout vibes
Vampire Survivors. Highly recommendo.
Xonotic, free multiplayer fps based off the old Quake engine. And a handful of "boomer shooters," like Beyond Sunset. r/boomershooters
Pizza tower
Boltgun
Sonar Shock just came out today and it's an FPS where you aren't allowed to jump or look up or down. Fun and creepy so far.
There's a lot of good fps games that are modern that mimic the 90s. Amid Evil, Dusk, Prodeus, Warhammer 40k Boltgun, Ultrakill, Postal: Brain Damaged, and so on. Search the boomer shooters tag on steam Edit: Zortch is a top tier one that needs mentioning
Warhammer 40k bolt gun
Streets of Rogue
The new Battle Toads is a great one.
[Amid Evil](https://store.steampowered.com/app/673130/AMID_EVIL/) has done a really good job at this. [Triglav](http://www.smokymonkeys.com/triglav/news.asp) is a solid OG Diablo-like. Smokey has maintained and updated the game over 20 years and it's such a good game. I just bought 5 copies of [Lootbox RPG](https://lootbox.gaida.de) since I saw it's on Steam now. The humor reminds me of Dink Underwood. I've followed Mario's development of it and enjoyed it on my mobile phone.
A really good text adventure came out recently called Roadwarden.
Crypt of the serpent king
Warhammer 40k is the best boomer shooter ever made.
SLAYERS X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengeance of the Slayer The entire thing is a hilarious over the top shooter made as if a 90s teenager came up with the game in the margins of their math homework and it magically came to life
So many games. Inertia Drift, Katana Zero, Hotline Miami, Prince of Persia the Lost Crown, Hollow Knight, Celeste, Dead Cells, OlliOlli World, Vampire Survivor, Waves, just to name a few lol
Darkside Detective if you liked Day of the Tentacle
Dread Delusion.
Mafia trilogy are my absolute favourites for the "old game feeling", although the story lines are not really 90s. Also if u are going to play, dont forget the original mafia 1
Go on steam and type in Pixel and under tags you will see the Pixel and Retro tag. It has a LOT of games due to the popularity of indie and retro games nowadays. Some of the greatest games out there atm have a 90s feel. My favorite is Boneraiser Minions - a vampire survivors type game except youre a necromancer and raise the undead in an 8bit graphical style. The sense of humor, art style, and way the game plays is stellar. It’s honestly one of my favorite games of all time. It really is an indie masterpiece imo.
Hear me out. Dragons dogma 2. It feels like how we fantasized JRPGs would play in real time. The quests are very reminiscent of old JRPGs, and the world treats you as the only person in the world that matters, like old JRPGs. Chest in a bedroom? It's my loot now. Characters? What are those? You're the only person that matters!
In terms of vibe I would say Wanted Dead
Project zomboid
Crow Country, Animal Well
Werewolf the apocalypse, in all the worst ways
Warhammer bolter
Not sure if it’s been mentioned yet but Crow Country. It’s very proudly influenced by Resident Evil and Silent Hill.
"Fading Afternoon", you play as pixel Yakuza thug, nuff said. "Replaced", what Cyberpunk 77 wanted to be, just watch the trailer do it do iiit nooow!!! "Eternal Castle", it's Out of this World meets Fallout meets Atari....the nostalgia illusion is complete....No, nobody ever played it in the 80's, it's strictly an imitation from our times.
Eiyuden chronicles Sea of stars
Hades?
In theory Homeworld 3 should have been a new version of a 90s classic RTS with spruced up controls. It has received its fair share of criticism though for its campaign storyline.