You don’t have to look very far — or wait too long — for a new game to be released. In fact, there was probably a new title released in the time it took you to read that first sentence. Last year saw some 10,000 games hit Steam’s online marketplace, and that’s just a single platform.
Still, while the gaming world tends to look to the future, it’s always worthwhile looking to the past from time to time, too. Thanks to the web, it’s possible to play a wide range of classic games right from your device. We’ve pulled six of the best, all of which still pack a powerful punch despite the technological prowess of modern games.
Chess
Chess is more than 1,500 years old, and it’s still going strong. Talk about an all-time classic! How many of today’s releases will still be popular fifteen centuries down the line? Mass Effect 2 and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim were good, but not that good.
Chess is experiencing a boom period at the moment, and there’s no shortage of apps and websites that allow you to play online. Once you’ve got the hang of the basics, you’ll have a hobby that you enjoy for a lifetime.
Blackjack
No one’s precisely sure when blackjack was invented, but it dates back to at least the late 17th century. Back then, it was known as Vingt-et-un, which is French for 21 – you learn something new everyday! Today, most people play blackjack online, though you’ll still find the game played in real-world casinos, especially in Las Vegas. Part of the appeal of blackjack is that there’s essentially no learning curve; you can know the basic rules of the game in a matter of minutes, though you will need more time to become a blackjack master.
Solitaire
Solitaire was technically invented towards the end of the 18th century, but let’s be honest: for all intents and purposes, it was invented back in 1990, when Windows pre-installed the game on their computers. Fun fact about that, by the way: aside from being a fun game to play, Windows decided to include it as a way to teach people how to use the computer mouse. Windows have actually stopped offering solitaire as a pre-install, but you can easily find it online.
Pong
Let’s bring things up to the modern age (by comparison, anyway). If you love modern gaming, then you owe it to yourself to play Pong online if you haven’t done so already. After all, it’s possible that the modern gaming industry wouldn’t even exist if this brilliantly simple game hadn’t been invented. Though it wasn’t the first video game to be invented, it was the first one to have mass appeal. The powers that be saw that people obviously loved video gaming, and thus an entire industry was born. Thanks, Pong!
Snake
What is it with tech giants pre-installing awesome games on their devices? Way back in the earliest era of mobile phones, Nokia chose to include Snake on their devices, and we’re all the better for it. Mobile gaming has come a long, long way since then, but, for a certain generation, there’ll always be a soft spot for old Snakey-boy. You can play the game directly from within Google by searching ‘play Snake online.’ Enjoy!
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
We’re including this one simply because we’re impressed. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 was a pioneering game when it was released back in 2000, and yet today you can play the game online? If you ever wanted proof that we’re living in the future, then there you have it folks.
We haven’t played it, so we can’t confirm if the game’s awesome soundtrack is featured in the browser version. If it’s not, then load up the soundtrack on whatever streaming platform you use and transport yourself back to the good old days of the early 2000s.
