12 Best Video games of the 80's

The wonderful, nostalgic 80’s!!! An era that we, the gamers, should actually be proud of! After all, this is the decade where the video gaming has finally began to take giant strides as a general form of entertainment. True, video gaming began as early as the invention of computers itself, but it was only after the 80’s that it became a culture; a phenomenon that has enslaved so many poor souls like me. And we are lovin’ it!So what’s so special about the 1980’s? It’s the decade where pioneers of Arcade gaming, SEGA and Nintendo, were in full form and in tough competition with each other to bring out the best titles. Contrary to popular belief, arcade games weren’t introduced in the 80’s but actually in the 70’s. It was in the next decade, however, that they finally made place in our hearts with popular titles like Donkey Kong, Mario Bros., Tetris etc.So, here I present to you, the 12 video games that brought out the revolution in the video-gaming culture and made us the geeks that we are today! Let’s soak in the nostalgia, gamers!

#12 Street Fighter (Capcom)

The game needs no introduction. With countless sequels and movie remakes, this action game had its humble beginning in the 80’s. Though it was the sequel that gave the game its current popularity, the original was no slouch either.

You take on the garb of Ryu, a martial expert, who has to undergo 10 different levels of one-to-one challenges; the last one where you finally meet your greatest adversary, Sagat, the Emperor of Muay Thai. In simple words, it’s Wham! Bam! Thank You, Ma’am!!!

#11 The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo)

The Legend of Zelda is a fantasy action-adventure game from Japan. If you are the one who likes to slash and shoot your way to glory and rescue a princess in between things, this game was a must for you in the 80’s.

You play Link, the lucky guy, who gets to rescue Zelda, a magical princess from the clutches of Ganondorf, an evil thief. You get to fight all sorts of enemies with all sorts of weapons through a series of mazes. Life was never so good!!!

#10 Donkey Kong (Nintendo)

This was the debut of one of the most lovable heroes of the gaming culture, Mario (who was initially called Jumpman, because all he does was jump!). It also began a series of games with Donkey Kong as the lead, though in his first game, he was the antagonist.

As Mario always do, he has to save a princess from the clutches of Donkey Kong! He has to do so, by climbing up ladders, avoiding flame creatures and jumping over barrels to save his lady love. Wonder where Mario keeps the ladies he has been saving over the years! Need to get some tips from him!

#9 Duck Hunt (Nintendo)

Remember that big pistol that came with the video game consoles? Remember how you used to love shooting ducks with it? If you do, join the club, bro! Duck Hunt was the best shooting game available then that lets you enjoy the pleasure of shooting ducks during any season, while saving you from the sins of killing live ones.

And if you missed, an annoying dog sniggers at your pathetic attempts (No…You can’t kill him, unfortunately! Trust me, I have tried many times!). Wonder why the PETA didn’t make any hue and cry over this game!

#8 Simcity (Maxis/Nintendo)

Here is where it all began. The Sims, the best-selling revolutionary series of life-simulation games, had its foundations built on this little game. However, unlike Sims, this game is actually an open-ended city-building game.

As the name suggests, you have to develop a city by making buildings, hospitals, churches and factories, while protecting it from natural disasters like floods and fires, and crimes. If there is a Mayor in you, time to bring him out! A recent version of this game was released in 2013, to generally unfavorable reviews. Guess, we should never meddle with nostalgia…

#7 Defender (William Electronics)

This was a very popular game way back in the 80’s and the 90’s. You play Luke Skywalker, oops…sorry, I always name my pilot as Luke…okay, you play an unnamed space pilot killing off countless alien invaders in an unnamed, supposedly alien planet.

You also have to protect trapped humans from being captured by aliens and get themselves turned into aliens as well. If you don’t do your duty well, you will be entirely responsible for the mutant apocalypse that will destroy the planet. By the way, I don’t remember if this game has any other conclusion. Do you?

#6 Dungeon Master (FTL Games)

If you love Dark Souls, Final Fantasy and The Witcher, please pay your respects to the game that served as one of the early inspirations to all these games. One of the best-selling games in the 80’s, it fell in the First Person RPG genre – a rare genre back then.

You are a spirit and get to possess four characters to get through a quest to retrieve a Power Gem that would bring peace and harmony to the world. If that doesn’t inspire you into action, you get to fight monsters and ogres! Pumped up already! Let’s kill some monsters, 80’s style!

#5 Prince of Persia (Konami/Ubisoft)

Your favorite prince had started fighting for his lady love in this era! Now say that you don’t love the 80’s! Prince of Persia, who has its inspiration drawn from the Arabian legend ‘Aladdin’ without the lovable genie, was one of the advanced games in the era. It was first launched on Apple II before moving to PC’s in the early nineties, thereby gaining cult status.

In the game, you are the titular prince who has to save his lady love from the clutches of the evil wizard (Not again!). You have to work against enemy soldiers, re-animated skeletons, hidden traps, poisons and even your own evil doppelganger (So cool!), before you could finally face the evil wizard and save the day (and the princess, of course!). Oh, I forgot to tell you…you had to complete everything within an hour! They don’t make them like this anymore!

#4 Contra (Konami)

Yes, kids, the most influential bad-ass game was born in the 80’s. In a decade where John Rambo and Snake Plissken ruled the cinema screens, the geeks had their dreams of playing a mercenary come true at least in video-games.

Best enjoyed as a two-player, you have to get rid of an archipelago from an alien organization before they start conquering the rest of the world. How do you do it? By being as bad-ass as possible! Killing enemies has never been so fun!

#3 Tetris (Nintendo/Sega)

If you were born in the 80’s and your parents complained too much about violence in the games that you play, you used to thrust this one up their noses. One of the smartest games ever made, the specialty of Tetris is that it is still relevant and enjoyable even after two decades.

I really believe the game helped my hand-eye co-ordination. After all, video-games are not just about killing stuff. Some, like Tetris, do help in developing a few skills without being boring.

#2 Pac-Man (Namco)

The first video-game I had played…and never won! If you have never heard of this game, you are either a dinosaur or PK….No…No…I think even PK knows Pac-Man...he has a space-ship, for God’s sake! So if you are a dinosaur, let me give you a brief about this game - you play a perpetually hungry yellow sphere who has to eat all the dots in a maze for absolutely no reason.

You have to do this while dodging off four other twerps who are as hungry as you, except that they want to eat YOU! Gross! If you finish eating off all the dots in the maze without getting eaten, you get to the next level, which is the same thing all over again. You also get to turn tables over your tormentors if you manage to eat a blinking pellet, which gives you the temporary ability to eat your killers! That’s still gross, man! I love the cool sound effects, though.

#1 Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo)

Oh yes, Mario is back again on this list! This time, with the game that made him a household name in every house that had a video-game console. This time, his enemy is not Donkey Kong, but the evil dog-like Bowser. This time, you have the chance to explore more worlds and fight more enemies and various life-threatening traps.

This time, he is also joined by his younger brother, Luigi (who only appears when Mario is killed, the opportunist!). Together, they have to thwart Bowser’s forces and save Princess Toadstool (Toadstool…Seriously??). Now that I think about it, 80’s games were really sexist! But, what the heck! Even my little sister loved playing this one. Who wouldn’t, when you get to kill your opponents by jumping on them and squashing them, or spitting on them!