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What are your top PS1 games?

Dacvak

No one shall be brought before our LORD David Bowie without the true and secret knowledge of the Photoshop. For in that time, so shall He appear.
I’ve been catching up on a lot of the PS1 library I missed out on as a kid, and what I’m discovering is that there are a lot more relatively unknown, but fantastic games on the console than I knew about.

So what are you top PS1 games? Bonus points for deep cuts.
 

Alexios

Cores, shaders and BIOS oh my!
Really, you didn't have an extensive innate knowledge of all its thousands of games so you somehow find many when looking into it? How weird.

Anyway, I liked Treasures of the Deep, Echo Night 1/2 & Silent Bomber for relatively niche stuff. The actual best are probably more or less known.
 
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Northeastmonk

Gold Member
1. Parasite Eve - Best one out of the 3 games in the franchise. Perfect setting and interesting plot. Gameplay is also fun. Buy the book it’s based on.
2. Suikoden II - One of the better JRPGs with a good cast, fun combat, and an enjoyable plot.
3. Front Mission 3 - fun and interesting gameplay. The plot and setting makes me feel like I’m in a Japanese mech military drama.
4. Xenogears - awesome world with a very interesting universe. Fun combat and great music.
5. Lunar Silver Star Story Complete - one of the most heartwarming games I’ve ever played and the production quality is S tier.
6. Vagrant Story - combat is fun, but also confusing. I really liked the art.
7. Final Fantasy Anthology, Chronicles, 7-9. - this could be interpreted on someone’s YouTube page. I played FF8 at launch, before everyone went to gamefaqs to complain about it.
10. Silent Hill - the game still has a moody atmosphere even if it’s dated.

There’s a lot of others that were good. Strider 2, Rival Schools, Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3, Street Fighter EX3, Metal Gear Solid and a bunch of others. I didn’t put RE on this list because the remakes did a great job imo.

There’s a few like Tenchu 2, Vandal Hearts 1 & 2, Saga Frontier 2, and TearRing Saga (it’s a very good Fire Emblem clone that has its own English patch) that I would also mention. Policenauts also has excellent production value to it.
 
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Shakka43

Member
Crash Bandicoot 2&3
Resident Evil 3
Silent Hill
Tekken 3
Dino Crisis
Apocalypse
Triple Play '99
 
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ShaiKhulud1989

Gold Member
Living in Eastern Europe I've totally missed PS1 during it's days, but retroactively I could say that Metal Gear Solid, Metal Slug ports, Silent Hill and FF7/8/9 trilogy via the emulator were so good that I've bought PS2 with my first real salary in 2004.
 
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ReBurn

Gold Member
The Ridge Racer games, Tekken 1 through 3, Crash Bandicoot, Abe's Oddysee, Final Fantasy VII, Jet Moto, Driver, Wipeout, Twisted Metal, Tomb Raider, Parappa the Rapper...

I miss those days.
 

MujkicHaris

Banned
My favorites:
1. Front Mission 3
2. Xenogears
3. Persona 2: Innocent Sin/Eternal Punishment
4. Chrono Cross
5. Syphon Filter

Other games I've enjoyed a lot:
The Legend of Dragoon, Suikoden II, Star Ocean: The Second Story, Breath of Fire 3 and 4, Crash Bandicoot, Tekken 3, Future Cop: LAPD, Fighting Force, Alundra, Driver, Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories --- and many more.

PS1 has one of the greatest and most diverse library of games ever.
 
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ShaiKhulud1989

Gold Member
PS1 has one of the greatest and most diverse library of games ever.
The main reason why my 5yo son ditched our PS5 for Sony PlayStation Classic with AutoBleem that I've kinda forgot about. It is filled with old roms that I've never touched. It was so suprising for me to find so many good and truly family titles and games specifically for small kids. They are sorely missed for 2 generations straight, bar the Nintendo stuff :(
 

IFireflyl

Gold Member
Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy VII
Chrono Cross
Spyro the Dragon
Metal Gear Solid
Crash Bandicoot: Warped

Roughly in that order. Final Fantasy IX and Final Fantasy Tactics are interchangeable.
 

Holammer

Member
Symphony of the Night, well duh.
If you never played a PS1 game, it's the only game you ever need to try.


Tail Concerto - Played the Japanese version without understanding anything.
Grandia - My favorite JRPG on the system.
Tekken 2 - played it a lot with friends.
R4/Ridge Racer Type 4
Tokimeki Memorial: Taisen Tokkaedama (yes really), me a friend ordered HK silver by the dozens every month and it was a random game we got, the puzzle aspect was really well made so we played it a lot VS. We liked Tsuyoshi Shikkari Shinasai Taisen Puzzle dama on the SNES and this was basically the same, but with fancier graphics.

I could probably list a few more if I gave it some thought.
 

Krathoon

Member
Crash Team Racing was really good, but has now been surpassed by the remake.

I am always down for some Silhouette Mirage.

I actually like the revised PlayStation version.
 
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Azelover

Titanic was called the Ship of Dreams, and it was. It really was.
Metal Gear Solid was at the top of my list. But the PS1 was like JRPG heaven for me. Chrono Cross, all the Final Fantasies, Xenogears. It was awesome.
 

Unknown?

Member
Gran Turismo 2, although not unknown, was the 2nd best selling PS1 game behind the first.

I always liked Jersey Devil but not sure how it holds up. Driver and Driver 2 were great as well.
 
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nial

Member
Gran Turismo 2, somewhat of a big swan song for the console too.
They are sorely missed for 2 generations straight, bar the Nintendo stuff :(
PS4 had a lot of first-party family-oriented games that are kinda forgotten these days, but I agree that PS1 was the peak of family Sony.
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PS5 has been meh in this aspect, but Sony DEFINITELY realizes that, and it's why they're pushing Astro Bot and LEGO Horizon this fall season instead of big AAA blockbusters, much to the bitterness of the average internet gamer.
 

WoJ

Member
Man PS1 was so epic. As a teenager during its heyday I adored that console. I was so into JRPGs at the time.

Xenogears
Final Fantasy Anthology
Final Fantasy Chronicles
FF7-9
Suikoden
Suikoden II
Star Ocean the 2nd Story
Grandia
The Arc the Lad Collection - I remember loving Arc 2 but I can't remember anything about these game today
Front Mission 3- I need to replay this. I remember loving this game when I played it, but I remember nothing about it

Even though the Chronicles and Anthology versions of those FF games and CT weren't the best, being able to play them on PS1 at the time was great.

I also loved Metal Gear Solid and the RE1-3.

But there is so much in the PS1 library I've never touched. I have a PS Classic I picked up just to mod. I really need to set that up so I can revisit the PS1 library.
 
102 Dalmations: Puppies To The Rescue - A platformer about pups venturing out into the world to fight an evil mastermind.


Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - A goofy videogame adaptation of an installment of the popular book series.


Need For Speed: Porsche Unleashed - A licensed racing game with unparalleled quality.


Resident Evil - The zombie adventure that put survival horror on the map.


Soul Blade - A stylish 3D weapon fighting game.


Spider-Man - A videogame adaptation for everyone's favorite superhero.


Street Fighter Alpha 3 - Anime 2D fighting game with cool conquest mode.


Tony Hawk's Pro Skateboarding - Arcady 3D skating game.


Tekken 3 - The definitive 3D fighting game of the era.


Yu-Gi-Oh! Forbidden Memories - A trip across time with a card obsessed prince from ancient Egypt.
 
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In no particular order.

1 - Parasite Eve 1

Excellent in every possible way.
The only thing that sucks about it is the real ending being gate-kept behind a arguably shitty bonus dungeon.

Please play PE 1, you will not regret it.

2 - Final Fantasy 9

A PS2 game on a PS1.
Arguably the best art direction of any Final Fantasy game. Excellent execution of that art direction.

Has the coolest black mage and dragoon of the whole series.

And it just so happens to be a very fun game.

3 - Resident Evil 3

Has a very well thought out concept to it, and executes it flawlessly.

If you can get a hold of the controls, you will have a blast.

4 - Metal Gear Solid 1

A game designer's wet dream. And one of the most forward thinking games ever made.

Also, it's cold atmosphere is still unmatched..

5 - Rival Schools

Very exciting, arcade fun!
Not much to say beyond that. Play it!

6 - Chrono Cross

I despise it (Way too obtuse)
But objectively, is incredibly ambitious to this day, certainly one of the giants of the PS1 era, not to mention its unbelievably beautiful soundtrack.

7 - Persona 2: Innocent Sin

While it's roots to Shin Megami Tensei are still very much there, meaning it can be a bit challenging or maybe too gameplay focused for people that gotten used to the more High School and Dating sim aspects that Persona 3 introduced, the game is a excellent experience from beginning to the end, if you like what is going for.

With a very stricking atmosphere, fantastic soundtrack, tight cast of characters (That Eternal Punishment only added more quality to), and engaging gameplay and dungeons.

Please consider playing it. The PSP version preferably.


That's all I can think of from the top of my head.
 
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Doczu

Member
There are literally hundreds of PS1 games i could go back to, play and have fun. But if i had to choose a personal top 5 it would be

Silent Hill
Parasite Eve
Silent Bomber
Soul Blade
Harvest Moon.


They defined my childhood.
 

Hudo

Member
In no order:

Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy VIII
Vagrant Story
Valkyrie Profile
Mega Man Legends
Mega Man Legends 2
Metal Gear Solid
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Soul Reaver
Wipeout 3
Breath of Fire IV
Final Fantasy Tactics
Return Fire
King's Field II (JP)
King's Field III (JP)
Xenogears
Jumping Flash!
Omega Boost
Einhänder
Tomb Raider IV
Croc 2
 

simpatico

Member
S: Metal Gear and Symphony
A: RE2, RE3, Parasite Eve, FFVII, FFIX, Gran Turismo
B: Twisted Metal, Tony Hawk Pro Skater, Cool Boarders 2
 
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Hypereides

Gold Member
Too many to pick. Here's a few unordered random ones:

Ape escape
Soul of the samurai
Silent hill
Dino crisis
Bust a groove

Corpo Sony/PS should thoroughly re-examine that generation and understand why its so fondly remembered.
 
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NahaNago

Member
For me it would be ff7-9, mega man legends, tony hawk, rhapsody, and tekken3. There was a lot more that I loved but those are my top ps1 games
 

killatopak

Gold Member
Resident Evil
Silent Hill
Tomba
Medievil
Quake
Dino Crisis
Smackdown
Crash Bandicoot
Dance Dance Revolution
Tekken
Valkyrie Profile
Final Fantasy
Breath of Fire
Bloody Roar
Megaman X

I'd like to list more but those games are what took a significant time from me.
 
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