Later this month, a lovely little novelty item is being released in the form of the Snes Mini (I’ve got one on pre-order). Well, long story short. This was a no brainer for Nintendo considering the success of the Mini Nes, although it could have been more successful if they made enough of them to meet demands. Anyways, when it comes to nostalgia done right, it’s a license to print money which the Sens Mini oozes with 21 pre-installed games with classics such as “Super Mario World“, “Ghouls and Ghosts”, “Zelda: A link to the past” and the previously unreleased “Star Fox 2”.
So with the Snes Mini being sold out pretty much everywhere, it’s literally guaranteed success and will no doubt make Nintendo some profit. So one has to wonder, why the hell haven’t we seen a PlayStation Mini console from Sony yet? I mean, you would think that Sony would have been jumping in to take a slice of nostalgia pie, after all the PS1 was one of the most successful games consoles of all time thanks to an incredible line-up of games that graced the system.
Furthermore, you would have to wonder how many games there would be on a potential PS1 mini console, 20, 30 or 40? There’s just so many possibilities. However, I contrived a personal list of 27 games matching the Snes Mini, so come with me on a trip down memory lane of what I think would be one hell of a package for the PlayStation Mini, if we were ever to see one.
Resident Evil 1,Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3 (1996, 1998 & 1999)
It’s hard to think of PlayStation without thinking Resident Evil, Survival Horror was at its peak in the 90s, and Resident Evil was at the helm steering the ship. The Resident Evil series is without a doubt one of the greatest trilogies to grace a system. Shinji Mikami’s classics are still played by thousands of players today, and they would without a doubt be deserving three spots on the PS Mini.
Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 8 and Final Fantasy 9 (1997,1999 & 2000)
Another trilogy of unmissable games for PlayStation, it would be impossible to just pick one as everyone has their personal favourites. If you owned a PlayStation, you likely owned one of these games yourself (or borrowed a mate’s copy and then never left the house all summer).
Spyro the Dragon (1998)
We haven’t seen a new Spyro game for a long time, although he’s made the jump to toys to life with Skylanders it still doesn’t fill the void. However, the original game that was released on PS1 would be a wonderful nostalgia trip to when Platformers were all the craze.
Metal Gear Solid (1998)
How could this not be on anyone’s list? Metal Gear Solid is without a doubt one of the greatest games of all time, with great gameplay, fantastic story and brilliant boss battles, MGS was (and still is) a must own game. This is what put Hideo Kojima on the map. Metal Gear was ahead of its time with cunning puzzles (Meryl’s codec code was on the box wut?) to even changing the controller port to beat Psycho Mantis, the game was pure Genius.
Parasite Eve 2 (1999)
Another survival horror game that didn’t quite see the popularity of “Resident Evil”, but it was one hell of a game. Developed by Square It improved on its previous release twofold with exceptional gameplay and scary beasties. You could fight with a variety of guns or psychic powers, and it had some pretty intense boss battles too.
Silent Hill (1999)
There were many arguments at school over what was scarier, Silent Hill or Resident Evil, and if I’m honest Silent Hill usually won. I remember turning the console off after that winged beastie smashed through the Diner window, and it got worse with the fog shrouding everything and the crackle of the radio alerting you to nearby enemies. (Fun fact, To this day, I have never beaten a Silent Hill game)
Gran Turismo 2 (1999)
While the first Gran Turismo game was good, Gran Turismo 2 was on another level with 600 cars and top of the range visuals of its time, this became one of the most iconic racing games on PS1.
Dino Crisis 1 and Dino Crisis 2 (1999 & 2000)
It’s Resident Evil but instead of zombies, we have dinosaurs and what’s not to love about that? The two games are actually quite different, while the first game focuses on Survival Horror, the second game is more action orientated. It’s like what Aliens is to Alien, running around with an Anti-Tank rifle blasting Raptors to death was brilliant.
Crash Bandicoot (1996)
Woah, woah, woahh woh woh woahhhhhh! Crash Bandicoot, it would be a crime to leave this little gem out, but we just have the first game on this list, mainly because the original trilogy just had a lovely remaster on PlayStation 4, and I think we have enough trilogies.
Medievil (1998)
If there was a game franchise that should be brought back from the dead Medievil would be one of them, playing as Daniel Fortesque you fight through the hordes of dead while solving a variety of puzzles and acquiring new weapons from the hall of heroes. This is one of the first PS1 games I remember playing and it was pretty darn good.
Tekken, Tekken 2 & Tekken 3 (1994, 1995 & 1997)
Another three solid games that made the PlayStation a monster among machines was “Tekken”, the penultimate fighting game, while “Soul Blade” and “Battle Arena Toshinden” makes good arguments to place on the list. Furthermore, “Tekken” just perfected its formula which each successive release making it a trilogy not to miss out on.
Theme Park (1994)
Theme park was an absolute childhood treasure, starting out with a bouncy castle then ending with a wacky roller coaster was a joy. This sim game was pretty darn addictive as you had to overcome budgets, mess, bullies, strikes and your rides randomly breaking down.
Tomb Raider, Tomb Raider 2 & Tomb Raider 3 (1996, 1997 & 1998)
Another trilogy with another Iconic character, even though Tomb Raider arrived on Sega Saturn first its home was made on PlayStation due to the success of the PS1. These three games were some of the best adventure games out there, my personal favorite being the second one, mainly due to the addition of Dinosaurs, and locking the Butler in the fridge in Lara’s mansion.
Tony Hawks Pro Skater 2 (2000)
Let’s face it. Skateboarding games have been dead for quite a while now, especially after the disaster that was Tony Hawk 5, which was an absolute travesty and a slap in the face to every Tony Hawk fan out there. Pro Skater 2 was one of those games that pretty much everyone played back in the day. I’m not even much of a skater fan, but I loved that game, performing all the tricks and finding the secret areas and trying to set a high score. It was pretty addictive.
PaRappa the Rapper (1996)
Arguably one of the best rhythm games ever made, it was recently remastered for PS4 but wasn’t very well received. However, the original game was loved by many, and if it’s not broke, then why try and fix it? It would be a joy to relive the original game in all its glory.
Ridge Racer (1994)
Ridge Racer was one of the first racing games to arrive on PlayStation. In terms of popularity, Ridge Racer became an instant classic and the beginning of a long-running series. This arcade racer was extremely addictive with a nice selection of cars and challenging races. The nostalgia is strong with this one.
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver (1999)
Possible the one game on this list I never played, but at the same time a game treasured by those who played it. There’s no denying how good the Soul Reaver was, and it certainly deserves a place on this list, especially for those who missed out on it first-time round.
Well, those were my 26 must have games on a future potential PS1 console =) Of course, we all have our own favourites. So If you feel like I missed something then, please shout off in the comments with your own list. Either way let’s just hope that one day, the PS1 Mini becomes reality because, from a business standpoint, it’s crazy not to do this.
Credit:
Robin Ek – Editor
***Disclaimer***
This is a personal opinion of the writer, and it doesn’t necessarily represent the other writers (nor The Gaming Ground´s) opinions.
Sharn Daniels
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @SharnOfTheDEAD
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Tags: Playstation, Playstation mini, PS1, PS1 mini, Retro games, Retro gaming, Sony