The idea of the 90s becoming “retro” is a concept that I find both bizarre and surprising. And it’s all gone by. It’s history now. It may not have been as truly awkward as the 80s, or as “difficult to recall” as the 70s, but man, it really was a wild ride.
Anyway, let’s conveniently sidestep the creeping realization that I might actually be aging and talk about video games, okay? Okay.
The 90s were also basically the runway from which rapid accelerations in technology would launch an inconceivable boom in gaming. Advanced graphical hardware, the internet, and home consoles would begin to reach a fevered pace in terms of development, snowballing in such a way that the momentum would become nigh unstoppable into the new millennium.
Of course, this led to tons upon tons of games hitting the market. Even with the sheer volume considered, a lot of these incredible and groundbreaking games are treated with the respect they’re due. Others flew under the radar, never quite attracting recognition despite being entirely worthy of it. Others still, well, are just plainly overrated. What can we say? While the two aren’t mutually exclusive by any means, “old” doesn’t necessarily mean “good.”
We’re here today to put a focus on the latter two. Games that didn’t quite garner the acclaim that they should have, and others that really just get by on being “classics.” Here’s fifteen of each.
30 UNDERRATED: Illusion Of Gaia (1993)
This action adventure title came loaded with novel concepts and neat ideas. It had us following flute-wielding leading lad Will as he embarks on a quest with the dual motives of unraveling the mysterious fate of his father and defeating an ancient evil, alongside a host of friends.
The game’s blending of real-world ruins like Angkor Wat, mythological locales like the Tower of Babel, and a fantasy backdrop really gave it a unique feel. Sadly, it was an easy title to overlook, especially with rising star The Legend of Zelda having already asserted its genre legacy at the time.
29 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Twisted Metal 3 (1998)
Let’s be honest, here. What were we thinking?
Incomprehensible storyline, character designs ranging from goofy to distilled Cheez-Whiz with a side of edge, and a repetitive nu-metal soundtrack that would burn an imprint into your brain if you took too much time with a stage. Were the first two games really good enough for us to muster up enough strength to say we loved this one?
On the other hand, if you were in a Rob Zombie cover band and really, really needed to learn the lyrics to Meet the Creeper, you had an airtight alibi in place.
28 UNDERRATED: Spyro the Dragon (1998)
>Let’s play a little game of word association. Nintendo. Did you think of Mario? Now Sega. Did you think of Sonic? Alright, PlayStation.
You’re drawing a blank, aren’t you?
That isn’t to say that the PlayStation isn’t a great console, because it really is. But there’s a certain ambiguity to the brand identity. Sony knew this. So we got Spyro the Dragon. He’s cute, purple, fun, and his games are pretty awesome. And though he did achieve a bit of a following, he didn’t quite reach the iconic status that Sony wanted out of him.
27 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Army Men: Sarge's Heroes (1999)
You’ve played it. You might have even beaten it. But you probably never owned up to that. It’s okay. You’re among friends. Let the healing begin.
If you were the type of kid to lace firecrackers through your collection of hapless plastic troopers, and face it, most of us were, you were probably… still thoroughly and completely disappointed.
Hosting a set of memorable characters such as hero type Sarge, big dumb guy, the edgy pyromaniac guy, surfer man, and hot plastic girl that for some reason has actual flesh, Sarge’s Heroes was practically written for the bargain bin.
26 UNDERRATED: Super Mario RPG (1996)
Before Kingdom Hearts was even a twinkle in its daddy’s eye, Nintendo went for the Square crossover treatment with its branding.
And it was way better than it had any right to be.
It played like a simplified, streamlined and classic Final Fantasy game. And the unlikely pairing with the Mario universe played out perfectly, especially in terms of plot. Despite making a splash on release, this unique and awesome title faded into relative obscurity with the deluge of monstrously popular Mario games following it.
25 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Medal Of Honor (1999)
Wolfenstein was good, and GoldenEye was good. So drop a GoldenEye style shooter into a War backdrop and you’ll have gold, right?
A lot of people really seemed to think so.
But looking back, PlayStation’s answer to GoldenEye’s success was a real slog, and sorely lacking in the single department that made its competitor an accidental rave release; the multiplayer. You could play head to head, but it felt empty and less than engaging. Even adding some support for the cumbersome multitap would’ve been a stopgap, but somebody must have missed the memo.
24 UNDERRATED: Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine (1993)
You could call this a complete Tetris rip off. And you’d be right. Well, sort of.
“It’s actually based off of the popular classic Japanese title Puyo Puyo,” you might say, adjusting your monocle and stroking your beard. Then you’d be totally right, and probably one of the few that understood what a blast this game was. You’d also be obnoxiously splitting hairs.
Look, it’s Tetris with enough gameplay differences to make it interesting for even the most hardcore Tetris master, with a Sonic backdrop. But the direct comparison is also what likely got it passed over in favor of the classic title stateside.
23 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Star Wars: Shadow Of The Empire (1996)
Slap “Star Wars” onto a title and you’re a marketing genius.
The sins here were many, from corny Han Solo stand-in Dash Rendar to abysmal camera angles blocking out most of the action, what could’ve been a decent game fell flat due to myriad mechanical oversights.
The first level was actually pretty rad. Cruising around in a speeder during the battle of Hoth is always a good time. It’s almost like they should’ve just built the game around that, or maybe spaceship combat? Oh wait. They did. And it really worked out for them.
22 UNDERRATED: DOOM 64 (1997)
While a port of DOOM found its way onto almost every home console over the course of the 90s, DOOM 64 stood out in bringing a brand new chapter to the table. It just didn’t stand out quite enough.
Offering updated and sleek graphics, a shiny new campaign and even a new gun or two, it should’ve been a promising package for both Nintendo 64 players that wanted their own share in the demonic slug fest and hardcore DOOM fans that were aching for more. Unfortunately, these turned out to be niche audiences and the game found itself an odd fit for that console.
21 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Rampage: World Tour (1997)
It’s okay to do one thing, and do it really well. You just need to really pay attention to the whole “doing it well” bit. It’s pretty important.
It’s better than the movie. Which says absolutely nothing.
Rampage worked as an arcade title. The machine eats a quarter, you stomp around the city and demolish things for a bit, and then you move on. It didn’t work so well as a home console title. Because it did one thing. And it did it well enough to hold your attention for about twenty minutes.
20 UNDERRATED: Fallout (1997)
Sure, everyone wants to say they played the original once a sequel becomes a shelf-shattering mega hit.
But let’s be real, how many people either actually played during its heyday, or went to the trouble of diving into a time capsule to try their hand at the hardcore post-apocalypse simulator that started it all?
Yes, it’s very easy to say that Fallout released to critical acclaim and great sales. But that was in 1997. Unpack that for a minute. It sold maybe 300,000 copies over three years. To put that in perspective, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare sold nearly two million copies in one month. On one platform out of three.
19 ACTUALLY SUCKED: South Park (1998)
You could’ve been forgiven for picking this one up. Hey, it’s South Park. If nothing else it’ll be funny, right?
Maybe for a minute. Five minutes, tops. Then it’s annoying.
By then you’ve seen all that this awkwardly adapted first-person shooter has to offer. The few recycled and initially chuckle-worthy voice clips begin to wear on your frazzled nerves, and do very little to excuse this game’s… well, everything. They’d figure out how to make the transition from screen to game incredibly well eventually, though.
18 UNDERRATED: Grand Theft Auto (1997)
It may not have been the prettiest start to what would become a best selling ode to urban mayhem several times over, but it was a start.
Despite an unenthusiastic critical reception, it did manage to strike a chord with some audiences, and a couple of sequels later would provide a solid demonstration of just how much the hardware it was being forced to run on was holding it back.
But for then, the free roaming, open playing thrill ride would largely fail to woo gamers, and plod through one more sequel before striking it big.
17 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Jurassic Park (1993)
As film adaptations go, especially in this era, Jurassic Park wasn’t the worst. But we’re going to have to face facts for this one. It still wasn’t good.
It was a relatively typical, albeit less than inventive top-down adventure game, featuring particularly jarring transitions to a first person perspective when you would enter buildings. While the relatively open style of play could be praised, it also resulted in some frustration as the game lacked any save feature whatsoever.
Couple that with a hard limitation on lives and you’ve got a recipe for a broken controller or three.
16 UNDERRATED: Dino Crisis (1999)
Dino Crisis hit a solid middle ground between Turok and Resident Evil, emerging with a gameplay style that just felt right.
Horror, dinosaurs, and an awesome heroine. What’s not to love?
The game did receive some well-deserved accolades when it hit the market, but didn’t prove to have a great deal of staying power. The franchise would enter sequels attempting to emulate its initial impact for a while, but at this point has been stagnant for a long fifteen years.
15 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Pilotwings (1991)
Releasing as a launch title for the SNES, for many this was their first crack at the console, if not their first gaming experience ever. While that’s grounds for a serious nostalgia trip, let’s get a little objective here.
Pilotwings played more like a demo for mode 7 graphics than anything.
Sure, flying the light plane wasn’t so bad. Maybe a little relaxing, even. But the difficulty curve on every other selection hinged entirely on how badly they controlled, especially the glider and the rocket pack. Chalking shoddy mechanics up to the game’s “challenge” is a real cop out.
14 UNDERRATED: Parasite Eve (1998)
Square took a rather different turn from their time tested Final Fantasy formula here, infusing the game with horror elements and a more grounded, pseudo-realistic setting.
Parasite Eve is also a bit more action oriented than its distant cousins, with the player maintaining full control over the protagonist Aya between turns in order to evade enemy attacks. For those with a taste for it, the new flavors were definitely pretty sweet.
It made a decent critical splash, but the game would sell less than a million copies over roughly six years. It’d kick out a couple of sequels before quietly fading, despite frequent outcries for a remaster of the original.
13 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Quest 64 (1998)
Being an RPG fan and a Nintendo 64 owner at the same time could be a frustrating proposition. Chances are, if you were counted among this unfortunate lot, you inevitably gave Quest 64 a swing. And you probably weren’t too happy with it.
Quest 64 has a couple of things going for it, managing to bend typical RPG combat and progression systems in ways that worked, but fell short of impressive. Lacking in variety for combat options and practically on rails in terms of plot and exploration, most players just didn’t have a great time here.
12 UNDERRATED: Tomba! (1998)
Any 2D platforming venture is going to have a hard time ignoring the inevitable Mario comparison. So how did this one stack up?
Brilliantly, and that’s putting it mildly.
Trying hard to stand out in what was a very saturated genre at the time, Tomba! managed to bring a lot to the table. Our pink headed pig hunter traversed a fresh and vibrantly rendered world in truly unique style. It even managed to pack in a simple, yet cool questing system, adding a fairly rare touch of depth. What it didn’t do, however, was garner a big following.
11 ACTUALLY SUCKED: Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (1999)
Skateboarding’s fun. Er, it looks fun, anyway. So a game about skateboarding should also be fun. A popular and well received game about skateboarding should be super fun.
The latest title, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5, wasn’t very well received. But was the standard really that high to begin with? Let’s look at the original. You pick a skater out of the line up. You do the tricks. Sometimes you have to wreck something or other, or maybe find some tapes.
That’s really it. You could see the entirety of what you can do with this game in a single sitting, and unless you really didn’t have much else to do, it got old fast. It probably still got really old fast, but anything is better than nothing.