The PS1 Nostalgia Thread

[FLips]

5 minutes ago, Merzbow said:

I think there's a mod which just needs a memory card and some special save on it? Or that may be a PS2 thing..

Aye that’s the PS1, with a Tony Hawk save I believe!

[FLips]

Right, we all know what Crash Bandicoot is so I won’t hang around too much on them.

Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back

What is it?

Crash 2 is the sequel to PS1 staple Crash Bandicoot. Dr Neo Cortex is, as the title suggests, striking back and this time you must stop him building the Cortex Vortex and turning everyone on earth into his brainwashed minions.

How is it?

One of the things about the Crash Bandicoot games is that due to the quality of the original trilogy everyone has their favourite of the three, and while most might swing towards Warped, this one is mine.
Where Crash Bandicoot had stiffer controls and a very pure platforming focus with a high difficulty, Crash 2 is where the game eased up a little and put the effort towards multiple paths, secret levels and stage variety that the series would become known for.
Crash handles a lot better in this one which is a big reason for the lower difficulty, but it also makes the game feel faster paced and more accurate on the jumps and enemy hitboxes.

Other inclusions for Crash 2 are the slow turn into comedic relief for the bad guys, with Dr Cortex really chewing up the scenery, also the belly flop move, warp rooms and secret exits. It really is where the series came together as a whole package.

Across over 25 levels they’re pretty varied, at least more than Crash 1 was, but similarly to Crash Bandicoot 3 they pick a handful of themes and just repeat levels with it. Some of them are platformers, some have you riding a polar bear through an obstacle course and some have you running away from and even bigger polar bear. They’re all variations on Crash 1’s Boulder Dash and Hog Wild and you’ll see more of the same in Warped.
The big draw for Crash 2 is finding the secret exits and hidden gems and going back through previously hidden paths to finish levels. If you like your platformers with a lot to do, this one is for you.

The music is the best of the three games, but admittedly not by much. Every one of them has standout tracks, but this one just has slightly more of them.

Overall it’s a staple of the PS1. With more content and better quality of life improvements than the first game, and much less faffing about than Warped, Crash 2 sits atop the pile for me in the original PS1 trilogy.

Speaking volumes for the quality of the game is when I was younger, a distant relative wanted to borrow my PS1 and Crash 2 in trade for his N64 with Mario 64. I did the swap and I thought this then and I think it now, Crash Bandicoot 2 is better than Mario 64. I traded it all back pretty quickly.

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Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped

What is it?

The final Crash Bandicoot game in the original trilogy, Crash 3 picks up where 2 left off and adds new powers, even more improved handling, and even more secrets to find. Arguably the most popular of the three.

How is it?

I’ll get the controversy out the way first. It’s great, but as Spyro 3 did it absolutely rams the game with daft gimmicks levels. For every fun platforming level there’s two gimmick ones, whether that be underwater diving, driving a motorbike, flying a plane, riding a tiger or driving a jet ski. There’s so much of it that if you’re playing through casually, it’s completely manageable, but if you’re looking to 105% it like I did it’s a nightmare.
Doing time trials and getting golden relics on the motorbike levels is a pain in the arse that sucked the fun out of the game by the time I finished it.

The game handles the best of the three and the levels that are basic platformers are really good. Lots of tough jumps, hidden paths and fun moment to moment gameplay, especially when you’re fully kitted out with all the powers like sprint and double jump. The music has some decent tracks but it isn’t as constantly good as 2 is.

Overall it does a lot right, but this is the WWE to Crash 2’s AEW.
Crash 2 has you going 60 minutes to get a red gem and while there are some gimmicks in there that get over, most of it is straight up back to basics.
Warped is the popular one where everyone has gimmicks that were fun at first but they’ve never changed so you’re sick of them, that being said the production is way better. Both viable but the audiences are different.

Currently Playing:

PS1 Demos - Expect bite-size roundups of demo levels of popular demo titles coming soon!

 

 

 

[Accident Prone]

 

23 hours ago, simonworden said:

Out of interest what's the best way to play all these wonderful games again? Are there any emulation handhelds that run PS1 games well? I did have it all set up on an old laptop but I don't get much time with the littleun to set it up these days. 

One that would do up to PS2 level would be perfect for me and an ideal Christmas pressie to press gang the wife into buying. 

 

My VITA has played every PS1 game I've thrown at it with no problems, but you'll have to do some very sneaky (but very easy) jailbreaking in order to install the guff needed. The only real issue I've come across is the lack of decent upscaling, but it's no big deal in the grand scheme of things.

The VITA also has several PSX games either remastered for VITA or available to buy from their online store, and they've even got a few PS2 remasters.

It's the perfect PSX handheld if you put in the work, but if you want something more plug-and-play then you can't go wrong with the Anbernic range of handhelds.

Edited August 22, 2022 by Accident Prone

[Merzbow]

Do the PS1 games play in PSP mode? I remember that having PS1 compatibility.

A PSTV could probably be hacked too, if you can find one anywhere. Wish I bought one when they were being thrown away for like £30 a pop brand new.

[Accident Prone]

Yeah you can run any of your own PS1 games through Adrenaline, but the PS1 games downloaded from the actual PlayStation store run natively on the VITA. No difference between the two except for accessing the usual emulator options on Adrenaline, which are very helpful when configuring controller layouts and the screen.

[Lorne Malvo]

This thread has inspired me to buy a PS Classic as I hear it's pretty easy to use as an emulator. Has anyone got any experience with this?

I think after 25 long years its time I finally beat Mickey's Wild Adventure.

[BomberPat]

This always feels like a very unpopular opinion, but I think Crash Bandicoot has aged fucking terribly. 

Crash 2 is a little better, but I really struggled to like the first game on replaying it recently. There's a lot of really cheap blind jumps/leaps of faith, and the fact that it still allows you to move fully in three dimensions even on the 2D side-scrolling bits means half the time an accidental nudge of the D-pad/analogue stick (on the remaster, at least) means that what should be a straightforward jump can fuck up because you fall off the front of a platform. The controls and the level of timing you need to perfect just don't marry up properly at all, on top of all the problems that 3D platformers of the time had with bad camera angles (though Crash being more linear than something like Spyro at least meant you weren't stuck behind walls and incapable of seeing your own character too often). Just an infuriating game at times. The level design is really uninspiring too - coming off the back of 16 bit platformers, where the appeal is often the different visual style of each level, it's pretty boring slogging through different shades of red and brown for the whole game. 

A lot of that is tidied up in 2 and 3, but as @FelatioLipssaid, that went hand-in-hand with the temptation to pile on the gimmicks as well, so 2 is the only one I ever feel any temptation to go back and play again. 

[The Gaffer]

I always thought Crash started with Crash 2. It's a bit like Tekken. The skeleton is there in the first game but it just seems...incomplete. Right down to the bland loading screens and huge difficulty spikes to compensate for lack of variety on offer. 

[Loki]

Tekken was just a Virtua Fighter clone; Tekken 2 was the absolute dogs bollocks.

I'm not really into fighting games but Tekken 2 was one of the first titles I bought.  It was my 2nd year at uni and I was in a shared house, 12 of us with a giant shared kitchen/living room.  A couple of people hired a big tv and vhs, and I provided the Playstation.  And everyone played, especially Tekken 2, even people who usually don't play videogames at all.  I especially remember coming in at midnight from the pub to find two of my female housemates on it, one as the giant panda and one as the giant bear.  Everyone had a different character who they specialised in, and regular tournaments were held.

Other favourites included Puzzle Bobble, Tenchu and Wipeout of course.

Anyway, Tekken 2 remains the best fighting game I've played.  Tekken 3, weirdly, wasn't as good for me, or maybe it was just not being in a shared house any more ruined it.

[FLips]

Tekken 2 is my Tekken as well. I can appreciate 3 is the better game but I love 2. I remember sitting on the floor in the living room and unlocking every fighter back to back in one day.
I picked King then and I pick King now. A fighter that does all the cool wrestling moves I watch on the telly? Absolutely love hitting those Frankensteiners and Figure Fours and Lariats. 

I have King merch in my cabinet, and the Tekken 2 OST is an all time PS1 great and Michelle, King, Paul, and Jun’s themes are on repeat on my spotify constantly.

Only game in the Tekken series I ever enjoyed nearly as much is Tekken Tag 2 which similarly to Loki was because we played it in my Uni flat, and lads and lasses all loved it and had their favourite characters. 
 

 

[The Gaffer]

Yep, Tekken 2 for me as well. Weird, isn't it? 3 is bigger and better in every way but it's too slick. 

I loved the soap opera intro and endings in 2. The vaporwave music everywhere. And the fact that all the sub bosses were just weird parallel universe versions of the main characters. 

First time I got on the internet in my aunt's house in San Jose as a kid I wasted 300 sheets of her office paper printing out a ludicrous extended backstory for all the characters from Gamefaqs. 

As we used to say, that cliff the Mishimas always threw each other off really must not have been that high. 

Could never get into other beat em ups the same way. Boring characters. Tekken was booked by Russo. 

[TildeGuy~!]

Loved Tekken 2 when I picked it up originally as mentioned already, as soon as I finished the arcade mode and realised I unlocked a new fighter I played through with every single character to get everyone unlocked, even the Kangaroo and Lizard boxers.

After watching EVO a couple of weeks ago I’ve got the bug to play competitively again(used to play Third Strike and Capcom Vs SNK 2 at a high level) I’m waiting for Tekken 7 Definitive Edition to go back on sale so I can begin learning again, I know it’s a 5+ year game but I want to start learning prior to Tekken 8 releasing.

But yea I go back to Tekken 2’s soundtrack constantly Michelle and Armour Kings were my jams.

 

Edited August 25, 2022 by TildeGuy~!

[Fatty Facesitter]

Tekken 3 was my jam - absolutely obsessed with that when it came out. Boiught three or four guidebooks for it which covered off all the different character backstories and move combos. Last played it about two years ago on an emulator and had forgotten how fiddly/annoying Tekken Force mode is - although if you've got Hwoarang it's a bit easier to nail the taekwondo kick combos to dispatch of multiple foes in quick succession - a thrilling site. 

Used to take quite delight in hitting Paul Phoenix's death punch thingy (whatever it's called), timing it for when an opponent would sprint in your direction. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by Fatty Facesitter

[FUM]

I’ve not read all the thread but nobody will convince me that Prince Naseem Boxing was not the pinnacle of a Career Mode for a game in that era. 

No matter your thoughts on the gameplay or anything else on this game, I would imagine that career would hold up if it was released on a game now. It’s everything FIFA and WWE games should have been replicating for years.

Edited August 27, 2022 by FUM

[lanky316]

I never had Prince Naseem but generally boxing games (as I remember them at least) tended to have really good career modes. Getting your training right before match ups and working your way up through the rankings from undercard bouts. Some of them had added loads of created fighters to make up numbers so there was a real sense of progression and it wasn't just beat nine guys and you're world champ. I think the UFC games took elements of them but I've never got as in to those as I used to some of the boxing ones growing up so not sure.