Video Games Then And Now Part 1

June 12, 2010 – This is the first in a two-part series of articles we are doing which take a look at various video games from their earliest roots to what they have evolved into today. From humble beginnings to graphically amazing some of these franchises are older than me!

The Zelda series started off on the NES in 1986 with The Legend of Zelda. The latest game The Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks (not pictured) was released at the end of 2009. I chose to picture Twilight Princess as graphically it looks better than Spirit Tracks

Super Mario Bros. was the very first game in the Mario franchise. Originally released on the Famicom in 1985 Mario has been the icon of Nintendo ever since having multiple games on every console and handheld they have made. The latest in the franchise is Super Mario Galaxy 2 for the Wii released last month.

The original Prince of Persia was developed for the Apple II in 1989, it has been ported to various consoles and systems since then and has even had a movie loosely based on some of the later games. The most recent game in the series, Prince of Persia The Forgotten Sands, was released for all seventh generation consoles and handhelds earlier this year.

The original Metal Gear was one of the first stealth-action games ever. It was originally released for the MSX2 in summer 1987 and later that year for the Famicom. The latest game in the series Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots was released in 2008 for the PlayStation 3. It is often considered one of the greatest looking console games ever released and supposedly makes full use of all the PlayStation 3's power. Though the game is dated there have been very few that have surpassed both graphically and technically.

The first Ninja Gaiden was released for the Famicom in 1988 it had many ports some of which featured upgraded graphics. The latest in the series Ninja Gaiden 2 was released only for the XBOX 360 in 2008 but a graphically improved port was released under the title Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 in 2009 for the PlayStation 3.