With the death of physical games seemingly looming on the horizon, now is an excellent time to go back and look at some of the best retro consoles to enjoy physical games on. And so, here’s a list of the best old consoles to buy, and we’ve left the best for last.
Please enjoy.
Sega Saturn
The Sega Saturn suffered greatly for not rendering 3D graphics as well as the original PlayStation, but it reigned supreme in the 2D realm. You’ll find a lot of excellent 2D fighting games here, like Street Fighter Alpha 3’s best version. Also, though it wasn’t famed for its 3D capabilities, it still featured some really great 3D titles, like a version of the original Tomb Raider that somehow had some better graphics effects than the PlayStation version
And though its catalog size seriously pales in comparison with that of the original PlayStation, it still has absolute classics lost to time, like Panzer Dragoon Saga. The Saturn is absolutely worth getting if you’re into the idea of entering a lost world that deserved better.
Nintendo 64
Split-screen party games are nearly non-existent on Sony and Xbox consoles—even in games that once thrived on them, like Halo. And even though Nintendo’s keeping the flame alive, it’s much weaker than back in the N64 days, with the original Super Smash Bros., GoldenEye, and so many others. It also had Super Mario 64, Zelda: Majora’s Mask, and a version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with graphics that nobody has ever complained about.
Sega Dreamcast
Though ultimately unsuccessful against the PlayStation 2, the Dreamcast succeeded both at single-player blockbuster campaigns like Shenmue and Skies of Arcadia, the kinds that you’d often associate with Sony, and at party games that Nintendo is traditionally for. The Dreamcast did everything, and in a unique flavor. Sadly, when the ship went down, Dreamcast took many promising series with it.
The Dreamcast was even a pioneer in performance. You might not know this, but in regions outside of the US and Japan, in a time long before even PC gamers needed everything to run at least at a steady 60 fps, the Dreamcast featured a lot more games that ran at a super sweet 60fps than the PlayStation 2 – yes, even when taking into account the difference in library size.
With Dreamcast consoles averaging upwards of $300 on eBay, this is far from the most affordable option, but it’s one that so many hardcore gamers of the past swear by.
Nintendo GameCube
I could just say ” improved Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess,” and be done with it. As far as Zelda output goes, there’s no beating what was, somehow, one of Nintendo’s worst-performing consoles.
But this was also the generation of Nintendo consoles that strayed the furthest from their “family” targeting, and the result was all-timers such as the Resident Evil remake and Eternal Darkness. Nintendo’s “adult” run culminated with Resident Evil 4, and it remains the best place to play it. If anyone tells you that’s the remake, they’re agents sent by Spanish Umbrella, hell-bent on keeping the truth from you.
The GameCube has so many layers of greatness that you could easily forget many party bangers such as Super Smash Bros. Melee, great FPS like Metroid Prime, or some of the best Star Wars games like Rogue Leader. No great Starfox game, though. I’m afraid.
The Xbox 360
The 360 is easily Microsoft’s best venture into the gaming world, and a lot of it comes from the lessons learned when battling (and losing) against the PS2. Much like Sony’s console, the 360 doesn’t ignore the power of backwards compatibility, allowing you to play most of the games from the original Xbox. Thus, the Xbox 360 allows you to play 7 Halo games (yes, ODST and Halo Wars count too), as well as legendary classics like Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Mass Effect 2, the original Gears of War, BioShock, the best Fable game (it’s the first one, for the original Xbox), and so many other bangers.
One final piece of advice: please consider getting one of the later versions, as they’re less prone to the infamous red ring of death. You’ll thank me later.
PlayStation 2
This is the reason why the original PlayStation isn’t on this list. Sony made the PlayStation 2 with the brilliant intent of not merely giving players something new, but to completely replace its previous iteration. The original PlayStation featured over 3,000 games in its catalog. The PlayStation 2 had a catalog of over 4,500 games, meaning it actually featured over 7,500 games, many of which remain just as fun to play as ever, with many others still counting as incredibly interesting and nostalgic relics of times gone by. It also has a DVD player, which, right now, might not count for much, but hey, still an interesting add-on.
Also, the PlayStation 2 remains the best-selling console of all time, meaning you can get one for rather cheap, and the same applies to its games, unless you count the rarest ones.
The OG PlayStation 3 (20GB and 60GB)
The holy grail of retro games. Remember everything I said about the original PS2? Well, this version was marred by a disastrous launch. Luckily, none of that matters now. This thing basically had a PS2 inside it, meaning it let you play PS1, PS2, and PS3 games. There are around 10,000 titles you could play here, from the original King’s Field to Dark Souls.
It also plays regular DVDs and Blu-Rays, another awesome tech we saw dying right in front of our eyes. The only reason it doesn’t completely replace the PS2 on this list is that these are rarer and more expensive to acquire.
