Great retro picks to play this summer –

Microsoft and even Sony, clearly moving in the same direction, offer online services with lots of great games to enjoy. Often these are great games, relatively new titles and great indies. But the fact is that even retro fans have good reason to check out both Game Pass and PlayStation Plus.

Plus… In the heat of summer, you don’t always want to tackle a heavier game that requires hours of invested time to get anywhere. That’s where retro games can fit better, because they are usually made with a more concentrated gameplay loop, being significantly smaller games. The idea is simply that they should entertain from the first moment and hopefully have such good gameplay that you want to play them over and over again.

Then there’s Switch Online, Nintendo’s online service. It’s specifically aimed at retro. And so, for the benefit of the general public, I thought I would recommend five really fun retro games in different genres to enjoy on the consoles’ subscription services.

So, what is retro? Of course, it’s like debating “how long is a string,” and everyone will have their own opinion. However, I chose to have it be games that are at least 20 years old – but they don’t have to be original versions, but remasters and remakes work too. So that said, here we go.

Game Pass

Age of Empires II: final edition
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is, as the name suggests, a new version of the classic real-time strategy game originally released in 1999. In addition to improved graphics and reworked sound, it has been refreshed in other ways and works surprisingly well to play with controllers. Intuitive and a lot of fun.

Spectacled 007
The best Bond game of all time and the title that proved first-person action works just as well on console as PC is still entertaining. This is a pure joy to just play and enjoy and an easier time to remember.

Rare repetition
This collection is full of great games, including R.C. Pro-Am, Banjo-Kazooie and Conker’s Bad Fur Day. If you had Nintendo, Super Nintendo or Nintendo 64, it’s a “blast from the past” that you can spend hours with.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4
It’s just out and is, of course, a collection of perhaps the two best Tony Hawk games of all. It may not recreate the magic of when Jackass was on TV and you could play this all night, but it’s still surprisingly fun today and perfect to play when friends come to visit.

Trials of Mana
Trials of Mana is an action role-playing game and a remake of the classic 1995 Japanese adventure Seiken Densetsu 3 – often referred to as Secret of Mana 2. It was never released at the time, but can be enjoyed in this fine remake.

PlayStation Plus

Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX manages to be both a nostalgic tribute to one of Sega’s first Mario challengers and an accessible experience for new players – without alienating older fans. Charming, colorful and retro with a modern twist.

Grandia
This Japanese role-playing game charmed us completely in the second half of the 1990s, bringing epic fun to both Playstation and Saturn. If you love Japanese role-playing games, this is a nostalgic gem with that charming, slightly straightforward story and characters you quickly learn to love.

Mr. Moskeeto
It’s easy to forget, but especially during the era of the first two PlayStation consoles, Sony produced strange Japanese games. Many never reached the West, but Mr. Moskeeto did and gave us the mosquito simulator we didn’t know we needed. I still hate mosquitoes, but this game changed my view of them forever.

PaRappa The Rapper 2
Sega broke ground and laid the foundation for cool video game making, and Sony then managed this legacy in the best way possible. Nowhere did they do it better than with PaRappa The Rapper, and especially its eminent sequel. Games don’t get cooler than this.

Shadow of the Colossus
Shadow of the Colossus may have been a little more game than PlayStation 2 customers could really handle, but the remake finally allowed it to live up to its full potential. And despite being built on old foundations, it is still just as masterful and illustrates why Team Ico has become as beloved as they actually are to this day – despite not even being around anymore.

Switch online

Punch-Out
Nintendo’s incomparable boxing game is an 8-bit classic of the highest order. Despite primitive graphics, it’s just as fun today as it was in the 1980s, and fighting your way to the top will never get boring – though of course we mourn the absence of Mike Tyson as the final boss.

Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master
This Mega Drive gem is one that I suspect far too many people have missed, and it’s a bit of a cultural twilight. You absolutely must give it a try to experience one of the most solid and beautiful 16-bit games ever released. Made for short, intense gaming sessions.

Soul Calibur II
Finally we can play Soul Calibur at its best again. Pure gameplay without a bunch of supermeters and gimmicks. Soul Calibur II is in many ways the same game as its predecessor, but looks better and is better complete with a playable Link.

Super Mario World
Super Nintendo’s flagship title remains one of the greatest platforming adventures of all time, and each track is a small work of art accompanied by music that will make you smile from ear to ear. Its exemplary brevity and contrast of tracks make it perfect for enjoying on the sandy beach.

The Legend of Zelda III: a link to the past
Often considered one of the best games of all time, and thanks to its pixelated style and layout, it has long since stopped aging. This adventure is still magical, and you should definitely download it and chill in the dark dungeons of Hyrule while the sun shines.

Do you play a lot of retro in the summer and what are your favorites?