BEST PS1 GAME FROM EVERY YEAR OF THE CONSOLE'S LIFE

Over the course of its life, the PlayStation 1 produced over 1,200 games, and its impact is still being felt to this day. Everything from iconic RPGs, to stellar fighting games, to high-profile racing games, all the way to some amazing third-person action games, this incredible console was the system that many of the best games in the entire industry called home.

Every year, the console felt like it had something special to offer, whether it was codifying the survival horror genre with Resident Evil or producing cinematic masterpieces like Metal Gear Solid. This revolutionary disc-based system was consistent through every year of its life cycle, a testament to its incredible third-party support and strong first-party titles produced by Sony, all of which contributed to its success during the fifth-generation of gaming consoles.

King's Field - 1995

The Precursor To Soulsborne Games Challenged PS1 Players

• Platforms: PlayStation
• Released: July 21, 1995 (Japan)
• Developer: FromSoftware

The first title in this dark action RPG series was never released outside of Japan, so when FromSoftware brought the sequel to America in 1995, they removed the 2 and titled it simply King's Field. The origin point of FromSoft's game design philosophy, King's Field is a brutally difficult RPG that laid the foundation for Dark Souls and Bloodborne.

Set in the land of Verdite, King's Field is filled with traps, dangerous enemies, and a sense of dread that feels remarkable even today. It would set the precedent for FromSoftware as a developer moving forward, as they would expand on this unique and thrilling concept in order to create an entirely new genre of video games.

Resident Evil - 1996

Survival Horror Was Born On The PlayStation 1

Resident Evil was directed by industry legend Shinji Mikami, who had originally conceived it as a remake of an NES game called Sweet Home. As time went on, the project transitioned into an ambitious horror game that helped to establish the genre of 'survival horror'. Like Alone in the Dark before it, Resident Evil was focused on cinematic camera angles that placed the player in frightening scenes that looked like they came right out of a movie.

Starring a team of special agents known as STARS in their efforts to survive the night inside the Spencer Mansion, Resident Evil was one of 1996's most exciting and innovative titles. The combination of a b-movie atmosphere with the fascinating gameplay systems that relied on conserving ammo was a home run, one that launched an entire franchise that is still going strong to this day.

Final Fantasy 7 - 1997

Incredible JRPG Makes Final Fantasy A Household Name

Through two console generations and six games, Final Fantasy was synonymous with Nintendo platforms. However, after a dispute with Nintendo over cartridge prices and wanting to do something that only CD-based gaming could offer, Square turned to Sony and launched Final Fantasy 7 on the PlayStation in 1997. The massive adventure spanned three discs and was easily the best title on the system that year.

This absolutely amazing JRPG tells the story of Cloud Strife and his struggle against both the Shinra Electric Power Company and Sephiroth, a story so ravenously popular that it has spawned multiple remakes and spin-offs. Its world feels huge for a game released in 1997, as the map is enormous and still looks rather impressive. The Materia sytem is also fantastic, as it allows for some rich customization and the music by longtime series composer Nobuo Uematsu is some of his best.

Metal Gear Solid - 1998

Tactical Stealth Game Is A Cinematic Classic

Prior to 1998, stealth games were not as prevalent as they are now. And while Metal Gear had already produced two titles in the late 80s and early 90s, series creator Hideo Kojima had stepped away from the franchise to focus on other projects like Snatcher and Policenauts. The impressive new Sony hardware was all it took for him to bring Snake out of retirement for a new adventure, resulting in one of the best games ever created in Metal Gear Solid.

It follows Snake's journey to prevent a nuclear disaster inside a military base on an Alaskan archipelago, one that was overrun by terrorists after a revolt. Along the way, the player does battle with some fearsome bosses and takes part in one of gaming's best stories. Metal Gear Solid was a revolution in many ways, but its reliance on dramatic story sequences with a truly astonishing amount of voice acting for the era is something that the entire industry has been trying to replicate for almost three decades.

Syphon Filter - 1999

Super-Spy Game About Deadly Virus

Although it came just one year after the landmark release of 1998's Metal Gear Solid, Syphon Filter took its strongest influence from GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64 and sought to capture a super spy vibe. It worked, as players guided agent Gabriel Logan on a quest to stop a terrorist named Erich Rhoemer from unleashing a deadly virus on the world.

Syphon Filter is a terrific third-person stealth-action game, one with a stellar voice cast and shooting system that still feels good today. Weapons feel punchy, featuring some fun options like the taser that can set enemies on fire. Although it was lost in the mammoth wave of hype that Metal Gear Solid created a year before, Syphon Filter is still one of the PS1's best games, and is also readily available on the PS5 via PlayStation Plus.

Final Fantasy 9 - 2000

Final Fantasy Says Farewell To The PS1

By the time Final Fantasy 9 was released in 2000, the PlayStation 2 was months away and the prospect of a next-generation version of the series was tantalizing. But before that, the franchise was preparing its PS1 swan song and did so in the classiest way possible. Positioned as a throwback to the franchise's roots, Final Fantasy 9 stepped away from the sci-fi vibe that the previous two entries had gone for, tying back into the origin of the series in one of the greatest JRPGs ever made.

Final Fantasy 10 was still a year away, so what became the last hurrah for the series on the PS1 was something special. The outrageously charming and often poignant story mixed perfectly with its delightful cast of characters, all of it punctuated by one of the best battle systems in any of the mainline FF titles. Series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi has often called FF9 his favorite, and with good reason. It's a special game that is absolutely worth re-visiting on any platform.

Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro - 2001

The Web-Slinger Has One Final PS1 Adventure

The PS2 was off and running in the year 2001, but that didn't stop developers from supporting the still massively successful PS1. While a next-gen Spider-Man title based on the Sam Raimi-directed film was set for a 2002 release, the PS1 saw a sequel to the fabulous 2000 game based on the webhead. Spider-Man 2: Enter Electro continued the story from the first title, this time having Spidey face off against a parade of old and new villains.

It also expanded the play space, as the first game had restricted Spidey to rooftops and interior levels. New ground levels and some new abilities added some variety, as well as the introduction of more Marvel Comics characters. It's a fantastic sequel and one of the PS1's best late-stage games, showing that this console was still alive and kicking.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 - 2002

Skateboarding Series Maintains Quality In It's Last PS1 Entry

• Release Date: October 23, 2002
• Developer: Neversoft
• Platforms: PS1, PS2, GameCube, Xbox, Windows

Next-generation versions of the fabulous Tony Hawk's Pro Skater games were abundant in 2002, appearing on the PS2, GameCube, and Xbox. But the install base of the PS1 couldn't be ignored, as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 wound up being the final game in this incredibly popular skateboarding series to appear on the fifth-generation machine. Although it lacked the graphical fidelity of the next-gen versions, THPS4 on the PS1 still maintains the same addictive and brilliant skating that the series had become known for.

Though it was clear that the franchise was going to leave this generation behind, as future titles such as Tony Hawk's Underground and American Wasteland would prove, the series still had a home on Sony's last-gen console. It featuresdsome of the best maps in the series, including San Francisco and Alcatraz.

Evil Dead: Hail To The King - 2003

Play As Ash Williams In A Fabulous Survival Horror Adventure

• Release Date: December 5, 2003
• Developer: Heavy Iron Studios
• Platforms: PS1, Dreamcast, PC

Sam Raimi's cult classic Evil Dead films have influenced countless pieces of media over the years, but its reputation in video games hasn't been quite so strong. But in 2003, Evil Dead: Hail to the King was released for the PS1 and is still one of the best ways to play as Ash Williams in a game. Taking some clear influence from Resident Evil, Hail to the King is a survival horror game with pre-rendered backgrounds and fixed camera angles.

Where the heroes of Resident Evil were focused on conserving ammo and avoiding enemies, Ash takes a more direct approach. It's more like an arcade version of survival horror, with some fun combat and the same signature Ash Williams flair, who is once again brought to life by the iconic voice of Bruce Campbell. It's certainly one of the most overlooked PS1 titles, releasing during a time when the console was well on its way out.

NFL GameDay 2005 - 2004

The Best Football Game On The PS1

• Release Date: August 1, 2004
• Developer: Red Zone Interactive, 989 Studios
• Platforms: PS1, PS2

As most developers were busy creating story-based games for next-generation systems, the PS1 was only getting occasional sports titles by this time. Thankfully, it got one of the best football games it around with NFL GameDay 2005.

As many sports games were starting to expand their available game modes, GameDay 2004 followed suit. It included the standard exhibition and season modes, but also has a rather robust franchise mode for the time. Sports titles were on their way to becoming much more realistic and advanced in later generations, but this farewell to the PS1 features a nice bit of simplicity that's tough to beat.

2024-03-07T03:41:10Z dg43tfdfdgfd