While most N64 games felt decidedly 'gamey', the PS1 went to places we never thought possible with Metal Gear Solid, Silent Hill, Resident Evil and Final Fantasy VII. These games wrapped themselves around our hearts and wouldn't let go, with incredible dialogue (well, maybe not Resident Evil), movie-like narratives and captivating soundtracks. From the spine-tingling dread of Silent Hill to the poignance of Final Fantasy's tales, each of these games offered experiences that you couldn't find anywhere else. If you just wanted to game for gaming's sake then your options were plentiful too. Spyro and Crash are two of the greatest 3D platformer series of all time, while Crash Team Racing (ignore the naysayers) was every bit as zany as the N64's more lauded kart racers. ISS Pro Evolution and WWF Smackdown, meanwhile, were the first games to truly capture the intensity and drama of their respective sports. Scoring that first precise one-on-one in ISS, or doing the Peoples' Elbow where the Rock actually raised his eyebrow and threw his armband into the crowd in Smackdown seemed unbelievably lifelike at the time. On the more conventional fighting game front, Tekken 3 made us believers that fighting games really belonged in the 3D realm. But the PS1 wouldn't be sitting in this position if it was just down to its most famous titles. Its library was replete with largely-forgotten gems that blew us away. Syphon Filter, Fear Effect, Tenchu and Dino Crisis all captured the edgy energy of the console, while JRPG fans were spoiled with all-time classics like Vagrant Story and Chrono Cross. The PS1 was a golden moment of console exclusives - a moment that, looking at the console scene today, we're not likely to experience again for a very long time... Best exclusive titles: Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII/VIII/IX, Chrono Cross, Fear Effect, Fear Effect 2, Resident Evil, Resident Evil 3, Silent Hill, Vagrant Story, Medal of Honor, Syphon Filter, Crash Bandicoot series, Spyro the Dragon series, ISS Pro Evolution series, WWF Smackdown series, Crash Team Racing, Tenchu 1/2, Dino Crisis, Tekken 1/2/3 Would you reorder this list, or are you wondering why no console with an 'X' in the name is present? If so, what would you swap it out with? Let us know in the comments, or have a go at writing for WhatCulture yourself!
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
