It’s quite possible we’ll never have a decade like the Nineties in gaming again. Think about it. When was the last time you can recall a span of ten years that saw not only spectacular growth within the industry itself, but an incredible variety of consoles, systems and games to enjoy?
In the early Nineties you had the rise of 16-bit systems and handhelds, which quickly gave way to 32-bit machines like the PlayStation, then powerful systems like the Dreamcast in the decade’s twilight years. That’s an exponentially huge leap in technology in a short space of time and that technology unlocked all manner of interesting games as the decade progressed.
Humble 8-bit computers were still offering gaming experiences like Lemmings, Turrican and Mayhem In Monsterland in the early Nineties, while even the ancient Atari 2600 managed to last until 1992. Nintendo’s Game Boy, which had debuted overseas in the summer of 1989, became ubiquitous with handheld gaming during the Nineties, effortlessly seeing off powerful competitors like the Atari Lynx and Game Gear, while home computers like the Atari ST and Amiga proved they still had plenty to offer over their expensive PC counterparts (at least for a short time).
Technology marches ever onwards though and polygons (which were admittedly around in the previous decade) began to dominate, with arcade developers like Namco and Sega using them to power their gaming experiences to make them feel even more realistic. In a way this aggressive development helped accelerate the demise of the traditional arcade. After all, one of the main reasons gamers visited arcades was to receive an experience they couldn’t emulate in the home – that became less of an issue as 3D-capable systems like the PlayStation were able to replicate arcade games with a previously unmatched level of authenticity.
This strive for realism also brought controversy with the mainstream media commenting on the violence in games like Night Trap, Mortal Kombat and Grand Theft Auto far more than it had in previous decades. Digitised graphics and the enhanced power of consoles and 3D-accelerated PCs offered an unrivalled sense of ‘realism’ that may look laughable today, but had plenty of critics twitching about how much games were changing.
It wasn’t just games that became unrecognisable. There was huge growth within the industry itself. More complicated visuals in the mid-Nineties and onwards saw teams expand in size to accommodate, while many classic developers of the Eighties struggled to adapt to the demands of 3D gaming and closed or were swallowed up by their rivals.
The following pages will not only examine each individual year of the Nineties, but will also celebrate 90 of the games that arguably defined the decade for so many of us. How many did you get to experience?
1990
The 16-bit Amiga and Atari ST were tempting more players to upgrade their hardware, with releases like , , , and all impressing players. Those still, , and Dizzy’s continuing adventures, as well as great arcade conversions like and .
