Final Fantasy 6 is coming to Android, which joins Ultima IV, Riven, Wolfenstein, Knights of the Old Republic and many other retro classics to be reborn on your phone and tablets. Here are a few others I’d like to see make the move (w/o emulators).
1) Super Mario 64
One of the greatest games ever made. It’s like the guitar. Anyone can learn to play in an hour, but it takes a lot of time – no less than 60 even for the very best – to master it and obtain all 120 stars. And each star is unique, some are difficult to find even with a guidebook, and once obtained, it’s like Mount Everest. Some of the moves like the wall-kick might be difficult on a tablet, but the overall gameplay is second to none.
2) Soldiers at War
An excellent turn-based squad tactical game. Each battle requires a challenging combination of proper planning and flawless execution. You use the same soldiers over several battles and get attached to a few, which sucks when they get hit in battle 10. The best part is looting dead Wehrmacht for goodies like the Nazi assault rifle.
3) Phantasie 3 Wrath of Nikademus
Not much of a story but non-linear gameplay that’s quick, easy and challenging. It takes time to develop your characters enough to take on a gang of High Demons, but can’t take too much time because your characters age and start to decline when they get old.
4) M1 Tank Platoon (1989)
This was the best tank simulator back in the day. This game was developed in a completely different world. The Cold War was still hot and there was still a West Germany, which is where part of the game takes place. The Soviets invade and your job as a commander of a platoon of M1 Abrams is to defend the free world from socialist aggression. No higher stakes since Red Dawn (the first one). Obviously, the graphics can’t compare anymore (infantry were little triangles), but it was still better than the sequel, which came out in 1998 with nine years of advanced graphics. I got bored of the second one within an hour, but the first one is still on top of my list of tank simulators.
5) Goldeneye 007
Classic ground-breaker already remade on several platforms. Bring back the original to our mobiles and we’ll get that traitor Sean Bean again!
