Having grown up in the 90's, I can attest to how revolutionary the Playstation One was for me at the time. Coming out of the 16bit era of the Sega Mega Drive, I was instantly blown away by the 3D graphics, being able to explore the world around you and get to know the characters that you control a little more. It was an amazing time to be alive.
So I thought I could easily put together a list of great PS One games however, I soon found out that it was harder than I thought as there are so many amazing titles that I just couldn't squeeze on here. Honestly, if I listed every recommendation, this blog post probably crash or refuse to load.
So, I've decided to list just a few personal favourites of mine and hope that you've either played them or want to play them in the future.
Best Playstation One Games You Need to Play
Of course, the original would be amazing to play too as it's such an iconic piece of gaming history but the sequel is definiately superior, in my opinion. In this game Lara must track down the Dagger of Xian from a power hungry cult, this leads her across many locations such as Italy, China and even the depth of the ocean. It's an amazing action adventure game with plenty of precise platforming and puzzles riddled throughout. A must add to your playstation collection!
It was hard just recommending one of the original trilogy as they all have a different feel to them, despite the gaming formula being the same, however, let's start strong with the first one. You control Spyro, a cute purple dragon who is tasked with freeing many dragons who have become trapped in crystal thanks to the game's main antagonist, Gnasty Gnorc. It's a cute platformer that will have you exploring various worlds, collecting gems and eggs, defeating enemies and releasing dragons. Not only does this game look good but the music by Stuart Copeland is absolutely amazing!
Another memoriable icon of the playstation era, Crash Bandicoot: Warped is such a fun and colourful platformer, where you need to travel through time and collect crystals scattered throughout many of the levels. It's definiately a challenging game at times, that will really test your platforming skills with many precise moments but the challenge is the fun part.
A sequel to the original Theme Park game, this version takes a bit of a light hearted approach to the business management sim. Despite the graphics being rather outdated compared to the PC and PS2 version, it's fun, cartoony style and amazing soundtrack is enticing enough to keep you hooked for literal hours. The best part of this game however is going into first person mode and riding the attractions as if you were a guest.
Let's face it, the second game may have the superior music but Tekken 3 certainly has the better gameplay and graphics. The third installment was a step up compared to it's predecessors with a three-dimensional movement so that the characters can move in and out of the background and its various other mini modes such as Tekken Force and volleyball, adding needed variety to this fighting game.
Despite the series ever changing throughout the years, the original Resident Evil for the PS One was survival horror gold. The graphics may look outdated and the voice acting is so darn cheesy but it's still worth going back to, just to experience the game's roots as you control either Jill Valentine or Chris Redfield to investigate the disappearance of the BRAVO team in the Arklay mountains, only to discover a mansion full of zombies.
Dark and, quite simply, odd, are the words best to describe Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee. In this two dimensional platformer, you control Abe, a Mudokon slave of Rupture Farms, who has to help his fellow Mudokon's escape this hellish meat-packing plant after discovering that they're going to the latest food product.
What I would have called a hidden gem many years ago, Kula World has seen a resurgence of popularity these days and it's clear to see why. This oddball game was commonly made popular back in the day not only by its very trippy, unusual gameplay but the fact that this was seemingly on every demo disc at the time. In this game, you control a beach ball, having to collect fruit and keys to unlock the door to the next level.
It certainly felt like the 90's, especially the 32bit era just generated nothing but 3D platformers with loveable protagonists. Lesser appreciated is croc, with only a few games under his belt. Croc 2 is definiately the better of the two games that saw its release on the original Playstation, where our protagonist, is now looking for his parents. In this game you collect numerous gems, defeat enemies and part take in many fun mini games. I highly recommend this game, as it's aged so darn, well.
It's so clear to see why Final Fantasy 7 is hailed as being the most infamous RPG of all time. Although looking very dated these days, at time the use of fully rendered videos and 3D graphics of this scale was highly impressive. In this game you control Cloud Strife and along with his friends, who have to take down the sinister Shinra Corporation as it drains the planet of its life force.
They certainly don't make games like this anymore. Parappa The Rapper is a rhythm game in which the main character, Parappa must rap his way through six stages. It's a colourful, quirky game boasting a unique style that I've not seen replicated since. Not only are the tunes challenging, they're also memoriable. Kick, Punch. It's all in the mind...
Typically video games based on television shows or movies tend to be a disaster, a quick cash in on something popular, however Rugrats: Search For Reptar is an amazing game that should be added to any fans PS One collection. In this game, Tommy and pals must collect pieces of a reptar puzzle by completing various levels that are based on actual episodes. One thing that I personally love about this game is how it has captured the feel of the televsion show perfectly.
A game that really needs a remaster. A sequel to Blood Omen, you control Raziel, a vampire who is killed and resurrected as a wraith by an Elder God to become his 'soul reaver' and carry out revenge on Kain, restoring the kingdom of Nosgoth from decay and ruin. It's single player, action- adventure title which has this very creepy undertone to it. I highly recommend adding this to your PS one collection, if you haven't already.
While the N64 may have had Mario Party, the PS One had Crash Bash. In this 2000 game, you can play one of eight Crash Bandicoot characters and play through 28 entertaining mini games. You can choose to play this alone or rip into a friend, making this a very fun, entertaining experience.
