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Forums - Sony - I want to experience the PS1. What are the must-play games?

 

How should I play these games?

OG hardware with OG game discs 7 58.33%
 
Emulate on XBSX Dev Mode 2 16.67%
 
Steam Deck 2 16.67%
 
PlayStation Online Sub Se... 1 8.33%
 
Total:12
firebush03 on 28 September 2025

As many of you know, the games I play are almost exclusively Nintendo. (Matter of fact, I have booted up a non-Nintendo system only one time this entire year, to play Stellar Blade in January.) But being human, and thereby curious, I want to broaden my horizons and expand my experiences by immersing myself into the PlayStation ecosystem.

So…what are some must play games? I’ll list all recommendations below:

Spoiler!

[7*] Final Fantasy VII

[5*] Final Fantasy IX

[4*] Vagrant Story

[4] Metal Gear Solid

[3] Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

[3] Crash Bandicoot Trilogy

[3] Spyro Trilogy

[3] Wipeout Trilogy

[2*] Legend of Dragoon

[2*] Omega Boost

[2] Digimon 1+3

[2] Einhander

[2] Final Fantasy VIII

[2] Mega Man Legends 1 & 2

[2] Street Fighter Alpha 3

[2] Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2

[2] Xenogears

[1] Ace Combat 2+3

[1] Alundra

[1] Ape Escape

[1] Brave Fencer Musashi

[1] Colony War Trilogy

[1] Crono Cross

[1] Diablo

[1] Digimon 2+Card Collector

[1] Driver

[1] F-1 (‘96)

[1] G Darius

[1] Gex Trilogy

[1] Grandia

[1] Gran Turismo 1+2

[1] Gunners Heaven

[1] Heart of Darkness

[1] Hercules

[1] Klanoa

[1] Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaper

[1] Mad Stalker: Full Metal Forth

[1] Marvel v Capcom

[1] Medievil

[1] Mega Man X4

[1] Misadventures of Tron Bonne

[1] Pac-Man World

[1] Parasite Eve

[1] Rayman

[1] Raystorm

[1] Resident Evil Trilogy

[1] Rising Zan

[1] Sheep Raider

[1] Silent Hill

[1] Star Ocean

[1] Strider 2

[1] Suikoden 1+2

[1] Syphon Filter Trilogy

[1] Tazan

[1] Tekken 3

[1] Thread of Fate

[1] Thunderforce V

[1] Time Crisis

[1] Tomb Raider

[1] Tomba

[1] Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1+3

[1] Wild Arms

[1] Wolf Fang

[1] Yu-Gi-Yo! Forbidden Memories

[1] (Anything SquEnix)

[N/A] Pepsi Man

Last edited by firebush03 - on 07 October 2025

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Alex_The_Hedgehog on 28 September 2025

Pac-Man World is a really good platformer too.

Gex Trilogy is also quite cool.



My Youtube Channel for Super Mario World Hacks

rapsuperstar31 on 28 September 2025

Everything by Square.



JWeinCom on 28 September 2025
Do you though? Honestly, that gen has not aged too well, and most of anything worth playing has been ported in an improved fashion, or has a sequel that's more worth playing. Without the nostalgia, I'm not sure how enjoyable these would be. I would probably recommend going straight to the PS2 era. 

But, if you insist, here are my favorite games on the system.

Mega Man Legends 1/2- It's a kind of clunky combination of action game/platformer/metroidvania game, but it has a great Saturday morning cartoon vibe if you can get past the awkward controls.

Metal Gear Solid- One of the earliest major stealth titles, and this is one of the ones that I think actually works better on a more limited console.

Final Fantasy 7- Kind of a halfway point between simpler times and the grandoise productions JRPGs would become in the PS2 era. An entirely different experience from the remakes, so worth playing even if you've already checked those out.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night- One of the few 2D games on the platform and still one of the best Metroidvania style games available, which is saying quite a bit considering how many of those there are these days.

Spider-Man- As a caveat, this is only if you are a big fan of Spider-man. If you are, its a fun campy 90's style take on the character. If not, it's probably not worth playing.

Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 or 3- Ah to be alive at that wonderful time when skateboarding was the epitome of coolness. Dunno if the remakes are better, but this version has the authentic 90s soundtrack to really get you into the mood. The gameplay nails the whole "easy to learn hard to master" thing. 

Last edited by JWeinCom - on 28 September 2025

Doctor_MG on 28 September 2025

Metal Gear Solid is a must play
Parasite Eve is a fantastic RPG
Vagrant Story has a really cool battle mechanic
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver is an amazing action adventure game
Castlevania Symphony of the Night is almost peak Castlevania



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G2ThaUNiT on 28 September 2025

Wipeout trilogy, Syphon Filter trilogy, Omega Boost, Einhander, and Colony Wars trilogy are my recommendations from those that have not been suggested yet.



You called down the thunder, now reap the whirlwind

Leynos on 28 September 2025

OMEGA BOOST!

Brave Fencer Musashi
XenogearsFFVII
FFIX
Einhander
Wolf Fang
Gunners Heaven
Threads of Fate
Vagrant Story
Mega Man legends
Mega Man Legends 2
Misadventures of Tron Bonne
G Darius
Raystorm
Thunderforce V
Klonoa
Time Crisis
Ape Escape
Medievil
Tomba

Crono Cross
Wild Arms
Grandia
Rayman
Mad Stalker: Full Metal Forth

Rising Zan

Strider 2

Star ocean

Last edited by Leynos - on 28 September 2025

Bite my shiny metal cockpit!

firebush03 on 28 September 2025

Keep them coming, all! I’ll come back later this evening add any and all new recommendations to the list. (This note is my bookmark, so that I know where to resume.)



sc94597 on 28 September 2025

Xenogears



ArtX on 28 September 2025

Street Fighter Alpha 3. Mega man X4. F-1 (96).