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[Delt31]

I decided to boot up my old consoles (NES, SNES, N64, PS1) and after being really surprised by how the older systems were holding up, I checked out my PS1 library and it's really disappointing. Classics when I was a kid like twisted metal, war hawk, ridge racer, resident evil, etc - they're not just bad, they're borderline unplayable. I first thought it was the jump to 3d but then I played my n64 and games like mario 64, mario kart 64, waverace, zelda OOT - they all held up really well.

My question is this - were these games ever good or was my childhood brain blown away by the fmv/cd quality while leaving the gameplay behind? How could the PS1 faulter this much while my other systems were still very much playable by today's standards?

 

[mp1990]

yeah i never could get into the classics Resident Evils because of the tank controls,they're just awful.

 

[manipulate]

PSX games still look very okay on CRTs. The full 3D games have aged quite badly (except for like.. Tekken 3, which looks bizarrely amazing to this day), but the games with pre-rendered backgrounds still look quite stunning.

 

[nrvalleytime]

Each system ages in different ways - the games you mentioned all had rough graphics or mediocre, stilted gameplay. Nostalgia certainly influences us, but a good game is a good game.

Twisted Metal II still holds up well, as do many of the RPGs from the system. Throw in classic platformers like Spyro and Crash, and it's hard to see how the system aged the worst.

 

[TRI Mike]

Well some of them were already pretty lame by the time but a lot others still hold to this day. I particularly like most JRPGs, things like Tekken 3, Need for Speed High Stakes, Tony Hawk 2 and others.

 

[Jigorath]

It depends on the game, same as every platform. I played through Resident Evil 2 a few weeks ago and it still looked pretty nice.

 

[valkillmore]

If I had a CRT and a PSX with Wip3out, I'd play the shit out of it. That game still kicks ass.

 

[RyougaSaotome]

To be specific, I don't think the original RE holds up super well, but I think RE2 and RE3 are still completely playable and super fun.

It's really a case by case sorta thing. For example, Mega Man Legends 1 and 2 still look great IMO because of the really smart, well executed art style. Vagrant Story is also still a looker, and so is Chrono Cross.

Others of course fair far more poorly.

Speaking on a gameplay level only, I think the great stuff is still great, and the shitty stuff is still shitty. No different from any other system in that respect.

 

[Strickland]

I like everything wrong with the PS1. I blame nostalgia.

 

[truly101]

PSX games hold up just as well as N64 games to me in terms of graphics Gameplay wise, they are just as good as any of the classic systems.

how did I miss this obvious nugget

My question is this - were these games ever good or was my childhood brain blown away by the fmv/cd quality while leaving the gameplay behind? How could the PS1 faulter this much while my other systems were still very much playable by today's standards?

LOL, you forgot the whole quantity vs quality line, but that would have been a dead give away.

 

[StuBurns]

I think the DS is the worst, that thing was an offense to the eyes day one, it's an abomination now.

 

[Mobius and pet octopus]

FF6, 7, 8, and 9... should all be very playable. Also, FF tactics

Sidenote:
Can't wait for them to put ff9 on steam...

 

[Protagonist Jake]

Basically.

3D games are prone to aging MUCH worst than 2D games, purely due to camera, and PS1 is literally what proved it. Even some good games just feel like shit because analog controls werent added till later, so some games have then and some dont and... its not great.

Good console still though.

 

[dreamfall]

I just played a ton of Tomb Raider this weekend- save crystal goodness! Still enjoy it- that, CTR, and Smackdown 2 = lovelovelove. Play them pretty regularly!

 

[Sapiens]

Symphony of the Night still looks better than any N64 game.

 

[manipulate]

I think the DS is the worst, that thing was an offense to the eyes day one, it's an abomination now.

and holy crap this. The library is great, which makes it even more painful.

 

[TheDarkKnight774]

Nope. I love the blocky PSX look and feel. I think at some point it'll be like the recent pixel art resurgence by indies.

 

[Protagonist Jake]

Symphony of the Night still looks better than any N64 game.

Its safe to assume he mainly meant the 3D library of games m8.

 

[chinto20]

I owned both PS1 and N64 and I'm a firm believer that n64 handled 3D games WAY better than PS1 (Control-Wise in a 3D enviroment), somehow the C-buttons replace the right analog stick and it worked, PS1 eventually got the actual analog stick but I don't feel like they implemented it as well as they could.



This is all IMHO.

 

[Mister Wilhelm]

Jaguar/3DO were worse.

But for the big brands, it's definitely PS1 followed by the N64.

I'd say Dreamcast probably held up the best considering all things.

 

[kenta]

I feel like most of those games you mentioned are playable but the real problem is that they're shallow. It just feels like something is missing. Sony's first party stuff was really fun to play on the couch with a friend, but going back solo after 20 years is rough

I remember playing Rally Cross for hours and hours with a buddy, but when I popped it in a few months ago it was startling to see how bare it was. I don't remember that feeling at all

 

[nordique]

Some games hold up better than others no doubt the RPGs are still solid


A lot of other games however have not aged well at all.

 

[Bgamer90]

Has to be one of them, if not the worst. Honestly can't go back to any PS1 game... Early 3D is just a mess to me.

Heck, even as a kid I preferred the look to the late SNES games over many of the PS1 games. To this day it's much easier to go back to 16 bit games in comparison to first gen 3D.

 

[Mzo]

Of course the good games were good and are still perfectly playable.

 

[entremet]

It's tough. But I still enjoy them.

 

[WillyFive]

Of the consoles with 3D graphics? Certainly.

The system didn't have the basics of modern 3D visuals like texture filtering, Z-buffering; it feels like a half-step compared to later consoles like the N64 and PS2. A souped up SNES Super FX system, essentially.

However, I think the handhelds with early LCD's are the ones that have aged the worst. They are practically unplayable with their blurry screens.

 

[To Far Away Times]

PS1 felt a generation behind in 3D games. PS1 was great 2D games though.

 

[KalBalboa]

I'd argue N64 aged worse due to the system's 3D ambition.

A great deal of the marquee PSone library was very conservative with its polygons. Fixed camera angles, etc, went a long way.

 

[mp1990]

a little off-topic,but there is any Resident Evil mod to change the controllers to something more "accessible" ? I just can't play it with the tank controls.

 

[Resilient]

No way!! This thread makes me want to play Ape Escape...

a little off-topic,but there is any Resident Evil mod to change the controllers to something more "accessible" ? I just can't play it with the tank controls.

Patience RE games are still completely playable.

 

[Phediuk]

No, that would be the N64 with its shitty cameras and 20fps 3D games where all the characters look like Legos.

PS1 has hundreds of beautiful 2D games that hold up just fine.

 

[Borman]

As with everything, it depends on the game. Tobal No. 2 is still beautiful.

 

[BriGuy]

That whole generation was a visual trainwreck for the most part. I can still play NES and SNES games just fine. PS2/GC/Xbox and their successors? Not a problem. But man, the crap framerates, blurry textures, and chunky polygons of the PSX/N64 era make me nauseated outside of a few exceptions.

 

[SolidSnakex]

Of the consoles with 3D graphics? Certainly.

That would be the Saturn.

The system didn't have the basics of modern 3D visuals like texture filtering, Z-buffering; it feels like a half-step compared to later consoles like the N64 and PS2. A souped up SNES Super FX system.

It just depends on what bothered you less. Pixellated/warping textures or extremely blurry textures. Those were your options with the PSone and N64.

 

[Daingurse]

I think the Atari/ CollecoVision era stuff aged much worse, at least to me. I can appreciate the rough polygonal stuff for whatever reason.

 

[Sapiens]

Its safe to assume he mainly meant the 3D library of games m8.

There's some nice 3D effects in SotN.

 

[StuBurns]

Has to be one of them, if not the worst. Honestly can't go back to any PS1 game... Early 3D is just a mess to me.

Heck, even as a kid I preferred the look to the late SNES games over many of the PS1 games. To this day it's much easier to go back to 16 bit games in comparison to first gen 3D.

SNES era is just ageless. Maybe it's because we haven't really seen anything go beyond that with that level of artistry, LTTP, FF6, etc, still look as good as any 2D games made after.

EDIT: Outside of fighters anyway.

 

[Apathy]

Those games you mentioned op had bad gameplay back then. MGS is still great, RPGs still age well, fft specially is still better than a lot of srpg's today.

 

[Maligna]

I didn't even like the look of most of the games at the time they came out. I desperately wanted to skip the "32 bit" generation.

 

[Wolf Akela]

Depends on the game. I feel that old games that didn't have art direction that could be supported by the platform (or tried to look realistic) aged worse.

Eg I think NES Castlevania games look terrible nowadays because it had so many weird colors and gradients. Mega Man 3 onwards still look fantastic because it's so clean.

There are also PS1 games that aged quite well for me. Vagrant Story still has better direction than even many modern games.

 

[RP912]

I always felt that Sega Saturn did the 3d better for some strange reason.

 

[Iacobellis]

I think the DS is the worst, that thing was an offense to the eyes day one, it's an abomination now.

I'd have to say the DS wasn't bad at launch, but I think it's great Nintendo went from N64/PS1 visuals on that machine to something that rivals the Wii with the 3DS.

 

[ULTROS!]

The 2D and 2.5D PSOne games seem to hold up, heck even I think Star Ocean 2 still holds up.

 

[Omnii-chan]

I don't think its the graphics themselves. Crash Bandicoot and many others still look fine. It's more the warping of textures, especially when it's the walls, which can be utterly jarring.

 

[The Silver]

Nope. I love the blocky PSX look and feel. I think at some point it'll be like the recent pixel art resurgence by indies.

god no this better not ever happen

 

[WillyFive]

That would be the Saturn.

The square polygons sure age it, but honestly the graphics don't stand out as much as they do on the PS1. Not sure why, maybe it's the PS1's visuals really bad color gradients.

It just depends on what bothered you less. Pixellated/warping textures or extremely blurry textures. Those were your options with the PSone and N64.

Anything that ruined the illusion bothered me the most. A low-res texture with filtering applied doesn't really stand out to me among the polygon counts and screen resolution of the era; but having an object that is supposed to be solid dancing around like Jell-O is just silly, in any generation.

 

[foolishoptimist]

Early PSX games weren't setup for dual shock controls, so the control schemes are very different from what we're used to today. Later games play better.

N64 had the analogue stick from the start, so navigation is still intuitive, but lack of camera controls still makes it annoying for me.

 

[StuBurns]

I'd have to say the DS wasn't bad at launch, but I think it's great Nintendo went from N64/PS1 visuals on that machine to something that rivals the Wii with the 3DS.

Yeah, 3DS was a rad leap. An extremely capable system for the screensize.

 

[loaf of bread]

Definitely held up the best compared to N64 and Saturn in my opinion. Many games look fine still. I think RE2 and RE3 hold up very well, RE1 not so much. MGS holds up well. The Crash games aged good and certainly better than say SM64. 2D games have no problems at all.

Also I'm probably in the minority but I love tank controls.

 

[Hawkian]

I will say that I was stunned at how very much metal gear solid did not look the way I remembered it in my head.