Best ’90s Video Games

People who grew up during the ’90s era of gaming saw the release of 3D games like never before. 3D gaming was present during the ’70s and ’80s, but the refinement witnessed in the ’90s was humbling. While the ’80s pushed the gaming industry to the brink of bankruptcy, the ’90s was home to some of the most commercially successful games. The ’90s saw the release of many hit games, but not all of them have aged as well as others.

The fact that modern 3D platformers like Yooka-Laylee can’t hold a candle to impactful titles like Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie is a great example of why ’90s games continue to be looked back on fondly by gamers who have a ton of love for the golden era of gaming. There are quintessential examples of great ’90s video games spread across various genres that are all pretty legendary in their own right and are still infinitely playable to this day.

Updated November 10, 2024, by Hamza Haq: The 1990-2000 period was the golden era of gaming, not because games were necessarily better then, but because developers were more willing to experiment with new ideas for every single game they put out. It was a time when the formula for what the end gamer wants was not actually figured out to any extent, and ironically, that was what made gaming as a hobby exciting and new. A prevalence of new ideas meant that almost every new game that came out brought something new to the table, something gamers hadn’t experienced before, which is in stark contrast to what modern gaming has become: a risk-averse landscape of rehashed ideas with very little innovation outside the indie sphere.

32 Doom 2: Hell On Earth

Hell Unleashed

Doom 2: Hell on Earth is a sequel to one of the greatest first-person shooters ever made. id Software clearly stumbled upon a gold mine that they’d capitalize on with the release of the second game by making things bigger, better, and more engaging than ever before.

Fans familiar with Doom will find the second game to be more of the same, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Both titles went on to define gaming in the ’90s, introducing players to the realm of first-person shooters and the violent goodness that came with it.

31 Donkey Kong Country

Jungle Jumps and Family Feuds

Donkey Kong Country counts itself among the most successful game in the Donkey Kong franchise, with similar standing as Tropical Freeze. It is a 3D side-scroller following the misadventures of Donkey Kong and his nephew, Diddy Kong, as they traverse through a jungle infested by all manners of reptilians out to get the Kong family gorillas.

The art style is iconic, the gameplay loop is addictive, and the level design is brilliant and filled with secrets to discover. Despite its age, Donkey Kong Country still holds up today, with its many levels still promising enough complexity and depth to encourage fans to dive into the classic one more time.

30 Mortal Kombat

Blood-Spattered Glory

Mortal Kombat 1992 is a fighting video game similar to Street Fighter and Tekken that spawned an era-spanning franchise that is still going strong today. The core gameplay is very typical of a fighting game, with two players picking characters to go head to head in a 2D battle format where reaction time and combos rule supreme.

Where Mortal Kombat sets itself apart is its brutally visceral approach to combat that nearly all other games shy away from, fighting or otherwise. The ability to pull the literal guts out of a defeated fighter is a uniquely Mortal Kombat thing. Few developers have the stomach to add anything resembling the sheer barbarity of a fatality in Mortal Kombat, allowing the series to remain the only one of its kind.

29 Crash Bandicoot

Sony’s First Superstar

Crash Bandicoot is the first game developed by Naughty Dog for a Sony-owned platform, setting up an amazing partnership that would reap dividends for the years to come. It follows the titular character Crash, a bandicoot who runs, jumps, and spins his way through levels to defeat his nemesis, Doctor Neo Cortex.

Known for its vibrant graphics, fun gameplay, and challenging difficulty, Crash Bandicoot was a hit with gamers of all ages. It spawned multiple sequels and helped to establish the platformer genre on the PlayStation, with the N. Sane Trilogy being a great way to experience this amazing game and the other titles in the series once again.

28 Pokemon Red And Blue

Gotta Catch ‘Em All

The massively popular Pokemon franchise wouldn’t be where it is today without Pokemon Red and Blue. The Pokemon craze spread like wildfire, widely due to the addictive gameplay of these titles.

In Pokemon Red and Blue, each version features differences like exclusive Pokemon. Whether players are delving into the Pokemon Mansion to uncover past secrets or exploring the Safari Zone for wild Pokemon, Pokemon Red and Blue are too fun not to mention.

27 Street Fighter 2

An Icon of 90s Gaming

Street Fighter 2 is one of the greatest fighting games ever made, featuring a wealth of improvements to the series’ formula coupled with excellent gameplay and improved presentation. It was a game that blew everyone’s minds at the time and continues to be one of the most talked-about video games to this day.

Even now, there are many people booting up this game to channel the good old days. Sure, future games in the series pushed things in a new and impressive direction, but nothing can take away from the legacy this game left behind, transforming an entire generation of gamers into fighting game aficionados who still can’t get enough of the genre.

26 DOOM

A Hellish Ride

DOOM (1993), much like GoldenEye 007, was a pioneer of multiplayer gaming. This was thanks to the game’s groundbreaking “Deathmatch mode,” the first game to use the Deathmatch title that is still commonly used today. Multiplayer gaming wasn’t the only thing that DOOM influenced. It also set a benchmark for the FPS genre in general and paved the way for numerous “DOOM clones.”

Wolfenstein 3D may have invented the FPS formula that DOOM used, but this 1993 game refined and popularized it. To this day, classic DOOM is revered by the masses and features an active modding community that helped this game stay relevant for the many decades that have passed since its original release.

25 Sonic The Hedgehog 2

Sonic’s Ultimate Adventure

This entry doesn’t refer to the Sonic the Hedgehog movie sequel, but the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 game sequel for Sega Genesis. This game has been ported numerous times because of its replay value. The level designs offer a near-perfect mix of challenge and enjoyability. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 stood out as one of the best ’90s video games.

Since the release of Sonic The Hedgehog 2, many fans of the franchise had hoped that Sega would release a game that returned to the classic side-scrolling formula, as the 3D games have struggled to impress. Fans got their wish in 2017 with Sonic Mania, a game published by Sega but developed by a team known for their work on fan games.

24 Super Mario 64

3D Mario Magic

Super Mario 64 is recognized for its strides in 3D gaming. It succeeded in the era where 2D gaming was the standard. Integrating free-flow movements that opened up a world of possibilities, many fans consider Super Mario 64 the best ’90s video game.

Levels are intricately detailed with hidden secrets and unlockables, giving the game tremendous replay value. Chances are gamers missed something on their first playthrough, which encouraged them to return for another adventure.

23 StarCraft

Galactic Warfare Perfected

RTS (real-time strategy) games never looked the same after the release of StarCraft. While many other RTS classics’ popularity has faded over time, StarCraft maintains a sizable player base that has hardly diminished. Rather than have numerous races to choose from, StarCraft‘s devs put polish into three: the Zerg, Protoss, and Terran.

There is a wide skill gap between professional players and casuals. StarCraft puts competitiveness in an RTS game like never before. This is a game that requires both micro and macro management, and going into a StarCraft match without a strategy is a fatal move.

22 Final Fantasy 8

A Unique RPG Experience

Most people consider Final Fantasy 8 to be the series’ black sheep, which is a pretty unfortunate reputation to have. Sandwiched between two of the greatest Final Fantasy games ever made, the unnecessarily convoluted plot coupled with a Junction system that clearly needed some balancing does make some of the criticisms valid.

However, players who enjoyed Final Fantasy 8 back in the day loved its amazing visuals and engaging gameplay, with the mere act of summoning Guardian Forces being a treat to witness in every way. As long as players don’t get too frustrated by drawing 99 of every magic and avoiding the use of GFs in major boss fights, Final Fantasy 8 is an audio-visual treat with some of the franchise’s best moments.

21 Donkey Kong 64

The Ultimate Kong Quest

Although Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie were incredible 3D adventures, Donkey Kong 64 took things to the next level by turning their 3D offering into a collect-a-thon, giving players access to various characters with different abilities and having them backtracking throughout the expansive release to collect otherwise inaccessible items.

It’s a true badge of honor to “100 percent” Donkey Kong 64, thanks to its overwhelming amount of collectibles. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it likely helped to inspire some of the expansive content and collectibles found in the open-world games of today. Even if players spend their time collecting everything in Donkey Kong 64, it’s still a blast to play through the main game and is a must-experience for fans of the series.

20 Tomb Raider

Adventure and Archaeology

Lara Croft is one of the most iconic video game characters of all time, with this archaeologist’s debut being nothing short of a massive success. Tomb Raider was one of the first games to feature a female protagonist and ended up paving the way for other women to take up leading roles in gaming, even if the portrayal of the majority of these characters was a bit suspect.

With its mix of exploration, puzzle-solving, and third-person shooting action, Tomb Raider set the standard for future action-adventure games. It has since spawned multiple sequels, reboots, and adaptations, although the franchise’s future is now up in the air following the disappointing sales of Shadow of the Tomb Raider and the sale of this IP to Embracer Group.

19 Planescape: Torment

Dialogue-Driven CRPG

Planescape: Torment is certainly not a game for everyone’s tastes. This CRPG exclusively focuses on wonderful dialogue that transports players into a magical world that is rife with detail while posing some intense psychological questions of its own. The result is a highly introspective experience that isn’t necessarily fun, but that’s not a bad thing.

The intellectually stimulating conversations of Planescape: Torment were ahead of their time and make it clear why so many people are fond of this amazing game. It may have its fair share of problems, but players who don’t mind the dated gameplay (or lack thereof) will understand why many people find this CRPG to be one of the best ’90s video games of all time.

18 Resident Evil

The Consummate Survival Horror

The Resident Evil franchise has been thriving for many years, and the remake of one of its most popular titles, Resident Evil 4, was even a contender for 2023’s Game of the Year. Although the series has evolved a great deal since the original game’s release, it is hard to ignore the debut’s significance in gaming history.

The original Resident Evil hasn’t aged as well as some of the other titles on this list, particularly due to its fixed-perspective camera. Yet, it deserves its spot on this list for its incredible influence on the survival horror genre that gamers can still feel today. To this day, there’s something incredibly hilarious about the game’s notoriously bad voice acting that has played a major role in its popularity, too. It may not be the best Resident Evil game in the series, but it was certainly one of the best titles to come from the ’90s.

17 Age Of Empires 2: The Age Of Kings

The Gold Standard for Strategy Gaming

• Platform(s): PC, PS2, macOS
• Released: September 27, 1999
• Developer(s): Ensemble Studios
• Genre(s): RTS

Age of Empires 2 has stood the test of time to remain at the peak of the RTS genre, an incredibly impressive feat. Microsoft’s continuous support for this title should be lauded, with the game receiving updates to this very day so that both new and old fans can enjoy a suite of content that makes the most of this title’s tight RTS gameplay.

It’s one of the best ’90s video games around that will keep fans coming back for more. The improvements over the first game are numerous and so ahead of its time that the fourth game in this series ended up just building upon a lot of what made the second game special with a few minor improvements here and there to spruce things up.

16 Thief: The Dark Project

The Birth of the Stealth Genre

Thief: The Dark Project is a first-person stealth game developed by Looking Glass Studios. It was a pioneer in the stealth genre, where players were encouraged to avoid confrontation and utilize shadows to avoid detection.

With a complex storyline, innovative gameplay mechanics, and immersive level design, Thief was highly acclaimed for its atmosphere and its ability to create tension. It was a landmark title that helped to establish the stealth genre with immersive sim elements, and its legacy can be seen in modern games like Dishonored and Hitman.

15 Final Fantasy 7

The RPG Legend Lives On

Heralded for its turn-based combat system, Final Fantasy 7 is now more popular than ever because of its remakes. Fans may have already played the remake, but what about the original?

Though the modernized versions of Final Fantasy 7 are impressive in their own right, gamers won’t regret traveling back to the ’90s to experience what the original game had to offer. It’s a complete package with an intriguing story, arduous turn-based battles, and significant exploration opportunities. Final Fantasy 7 came out in the late ’90s and harnessed the full power of the Sony PlayStation.

14 Super Mario World

A Platforming Classic

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System saw many groundbreaking hits. Many consider Super Mario World one of the platform’s best games. The ability to complete any given level in a myriad of ways made the title stand out from the crowd with ease.

It has a significant learning curve, but overcoming obstacles in Super Mario World is the focus of its enjoyment. As usual, Princess Peach plays the damsel in distress as Mario tries to save her. The introduction of Yoshi, the iconic green dinosaur, was also a revolutionary change for the series.

13 Chrono Trigger

A Timeless Tale of Heroes and Sacrifice

Chrono Trigger is a game considered by many to be one of the greatest RPGs ever made. It follows the story of Crono and his friends who travel through time to prevent a catastrophic future at the hands of a massive planetary parasite called Lavos.

It was highly praised for its story, characters, and gameplay, including multiple endings and the ability to combine party members’ abilities in combat. Its innovative design, timeless story, and memorable music have cemented its place as a classic of the genre.