THE BEST GAMES THAT ARE 20 YEARS OLD BUT STILL WORTH PLAYING

It seems to be a fact of life for gamers these days, that just because an AAA title spent a decade or more in development, doesn’t mean it is going to be good. Nothing is more disappointing than following the development of a game, only to play it on release and find it lacking. How many modern games will still have a following in 10, or even 20 years? Is that even possible? Are there actually 20-year-old games that people still play? Yes, there are many. These games span multiple genres, and some are seen as milestones in game development.

What do all 20-year-old games that are still popular, have in common? Excellent gameplay for one. But there is often a hidden depth to these older games that modern games can lack. A hidden depth that doesn’t become apparent until the game has matured, and players find themselves returning to it again and again, for one more playthrough.

Half-Life 2

Defining A Genre

The original Half-Life was released by Valve in 1998. Although well-received, it relied on older game engine technology. It wasn’t until Half-Life 2 was released in 2004 that Valve switched to the now well-known GoldSrc engine.

​​​​Usually now just termed the source engine, this represented a major step forward in 3D graphics for the PC. When combined with the exceptionally well-scripted plot, and some fun callbacks to the original Half-Life game and its spinoffs, Valve had a hit on its hands. The game still holds up well today.

Far Cry

The Start Of A Major Franchise

Far Cry is one of the larger game franchises, and it all began with the original Far Cry game which was released in 2004. Developed using CryEngine1, Ubisoft Montreal stunned the world with what was the first open-world shooter, that allowed the player to explore a single large map.

The storyline was well put together, but this wasn’t what made the original Far Cry such a success. It was fun to explore the strange island in the Archipelago of Micronesia that the player found themselves stranded on at the start of the game. Today, Far Cry is well worth a playthrough.

Need For Speed Underground 2

Arguably The Best Need For Speed Game

Developed by EA Black Box and released in 2004, many players still see Underground 2 as the definitive game of the entire Need For Speed franchise. There is a good reason for this. Underground 2 was the last of the Need for Speed games that used a more arcade-like driving model. Later games in the franchise shifted over to a physics-based driving simulation.

The storyline was fun from the very moment the player picks up the Nissan 350Z in the airport parking lot, right up until the very final encounters with The Wraiths, a rival street racing gang. Anyone looking for a fun open-world driving game, with some challenging racing, could do worse than checking out Underground 2.

World Of Warcraft

The First Themepark Style MMORPG

What can be said here? Blizzard released World of Warcraft to an eagerly awaiting world in 2004. The rest, as they say, is history. In a market previously occupied by MMORPG such as Ultima Online and Dark Ages of Camelot, WoW completely redefined the genre.

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To this day it still ranks as one of, if not the most successful MMORPG of all time. Following nine separate expansions, and a resurgence of “classic” servers as well. Is World of Warcraft worth playing 20 years after release? Many people say yes.

Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines

One Of The Most Compelling RPG Stories

One of the very first action role-playing games, Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines was developed by Troika Games and published by Activision in 2004. Featuring both first-person and third-person gameplay modes, this is a game that demonstrates how role-playing games could break out of the slow, turn-based systems used by prior games.

It wasn’t just the gameplay that made Bloodlines fun to play through. There was an excellent plot and storyline, that immersed the player into the role of a young vampire in modern-day Los Angeles, based on the World of Darkness. Bloodlines is still worth playing today for the storyline aspect alone.

Driv3r

Action Adventure Meets Driving

Driver 3, or Driv3r as it was cleverly named, was the third installment in the Driver series, published by Atari in 2004. The most notable aspect of Driv3r was the deep, immersive storyline. Playing an FBI agent investigating a smuggling cartel, the story takes the player across multiple countries.

And of course, the driving aspect of the game has to be mentioned as well. Few games have managed to pull off anything other than foot-based action in the shooter genre. Driv3r is one of them. Some of the car chase scenes are truly epic. Driv3r is arguably one of the best driving games ever published.

Grand Theft Auto San Andreas

Simply Quality Gameplay

The Grand Theft Auto franchise is one of the most beloved by gamers. With GTA 5 being among the most successful games of all time. However, Rockstar Games perfected the GTA franchise across multiple game releases, including GTA San Andreas in 2004.

Although the story mode was great, GTA San Andreas is better known for its free-roam mode. The same game mode that most GTA 5 players invest hundreds of hours into. Indeed, this is what the GTA franchise is all about. GTA San Andreas might lack the graphical quality of later releases in the franchise, but it has the same solid gameplay.

Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords

Continuing The Story

Developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by LucasArts, The Sith Lords was the follow-up to the very successful Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR). And whilst, in general, it simply extended the story and added a few more features, it is considered a must-play by fans of the Star Wars franchise.

KOTOR was a fantastic game. KOTOR The Sith Lords was more of the same. Graphically it looks a little dated these days. But if new players can look past that, they will find a deep role-playing experience. And of course, it has lightsabers!

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War

An RTS Game With A Twist

Going back two or three decades, there were a number of great Real Time Strategy (RTS) franchises still going strong. Command and Conquer and Red Alert for example. However, Relic Entertainment came up with a slightly different take on RTS. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War was developed based on the Warhammer 40,000 tabletop war game.

Rather than relying on the player producing dozens of units to accomplish story goals, Dawn of War focuses more on several core hero units. Making the gameplay familiar to RTS fans, but with a subtle twist to keep them interested.

Halo 2

More Of The Same But Great

Based on the same technology used to develop the original Halo: Combat Evolved, the developers, Bungie, decided that what the world needed was more of the same. And this is exactly what Halo 2 delivered when it was released by Microsoft Game Studios in 2004.

New weapons, vehicles, and non-player enemies were included, and the Halo storyline progressed. But in general, Halo 2 is worth playing simply because it does the First Person Shooter (FPS) gameplay so well. Few games have a solid following 20 years after they were launched, but Halo 2 is one of them. Indeed, the Halo franchise is one of the most beloved in the shooter genre.

2024-03-12T22:41:48Z dg43tfdfdgfd