5 Games That Evoke Nostalgia

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the video game industry was actively developing. This period can rightfully be called the golden age of PC entertainment. Many games released 20-30 years ago became classics and left a bright trace in the hearts of a whole generation of players. And this list includes both retro online slots and more versatile games that despite having a mediocre quality evoke nostalgia. Here are real masterpieces that deserve to be remembered.

King’s Bounty

The player takes on the role of a hero (barbarian, knight, paladin, or sorceress) who is tasked by the king to recover a key stolen from the treasury. You need to hire armies, explore the territory, fight monsters and complete intermediate quests.

This is a turn-based strategy where the player controls an army of different units (creatures): from simple infantrymen to powerful mages and dragons. Each type of troop has its own unique characteristics and abilities, which must be taken into account when choosing battle tactics.

One of the distinctive features of the game is the random generation of the world with quests. The hero himself chooses in which direction to explore the game space and which tasks to take. This makes each passage unique.

An important role is played by the morale system of troops, which affects the effectiveness of the army in battles. The value of the characteristic increases or decreases depending on the actions of the player, the composition of the troops, and the outcome of battles.

In its time, King’s Bounty attracted the attention of players and critics with its unusual combination of genres, complex strategic components. After completing one playthrough, you were immediately drawn to start a new one. The project laid the foundation for the creation of a whole layer of similar games.

X-COM: UFO Defense (UFO: Enemy Unknown)

The cult project that started a whole series of video games is considered to be one of the greatest computer strategy games of all time.

Play as the leader of the secret organization X-COM, created by the world community to fight the alien threat. During the game, you have to find and intercept UFOs, study captured alien equipment, develop new weapons and technologies for the defense of the Earth. The player’s tasks include managing finances and building X-COM bases around the world.

To win, it isn’t enough to successfully fight the enemy. It’s important to effectively manage resources and personnel, to distribute everything between different bases and missions.

Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia

One of the most famous and beloved old-school turn-based strategy games. If it has passed you by, you’re missing out on a lot.

The plot tells about the restoration of the kingdom of Eraphia after a devastating war. The player will have to gather armies of creatures from different factions including knights, wizards, necromancers, and others to regain control of the ravaged lands and bring peace back to the kingdom.

Gameplay combines strategic planning, resource management, city development, exploration of new territories, and turn-based battles on a tactical map.

Heroes of Might and Magic III features a multiplayer mode that allows you to play with up to eight people via LAN or the Internet. You can fight against each other or make alliances. This is partly the reason why the game remains relevant to this day.

Sonic the Hedgehog

An old children’s PC game that was originally released for Sega game consoles and later ported to other platforms. The project first introduced the world to a blue hedgehog named Sonic.

The player’s task is to go through various levels (zones), collecting rings and rescuing friends captured by the evil Eggman. Acceleration and spin attack (or spinning attack) are Sonic’s special abilities, which help players overcome obstacles and defeat enemies on their way.

Bright pixel graphics, a catchy soundtrack, dynamics, and entertaining gameplay ensured the project’s long popularity among video game fans. The fast and brave hedgehog became the embodiment of an entire era in the industry.

The Legend of Kyrandia, Book Two: The Hand of Fate

The second part of the famous adventure game series, The Legend of Kyrandia, plunges you headfirst into a fantasy world full of magic, mystery, and riddles.

The magical world of Kyrandia is under threat: due to the malfunction of the world tree of life, all sources of water begin to disappear. The player will have to take on the role of a young sorceress named Zanta and embark on a dangerous journey to find and restore the source of magic to save Kirandia from disaster.

The gameplay is classic point-and-click: you will have to explore various locations, complete tasks, and interact with many characters.

One of the key features of the game is the integration of magic into the puzzle-solving process. Zanta uses his magical abilities to control the surrounding objects, which opens up new possibilities in passing, adds dynamics, and makes the process more interesting.