The best retro video game remakes and reboots aren't afraid to get weird, and these 5 are must-plays

The competition for the best retro video game remakes is hotting up. Remakes are all the rage right now, and so too are their source material. Sure, 2026 has brought a host of new games, but with the news of Sony scrapping disc production in just a few short years, many people are turning to the retro classics over the best PS5 games (especially since many PS2 games still look awesome on the '00s console).

But what if I told you that you didn't have to work out how to play PS2 games on modern hardware or dig out the best N64 games from your mom's attic to get a blast from the past? I've been going back through my library of golden oldies to pick out the best retro video game remakes and reboots that you need to play right now, especially with a Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake inbound. From games that openly rework and modernize the classics to those striving for utmost faithfulness and full-on reboots, my only stipulation is that I'll be considering "retro" as anything that came out 20 years ago or more. If that slaps you in the face with the cruel reality of the merciless passage of time, so be it. Now, here are the 5 best retro remakes and rebooted games of all time!

The top 5 best retro video game remakes and reboots are...

5. Tetris 99

It shouldn't work. It couldn't work. "What if Tetris was a Battle Royale Game" sounds like some silly meme, and yet the end result is undeniably entertaining. With nearly a hundred players all furiously building walls at each other like competitive bricklayers, there's something completely absorbing about the sheer frenzy of it all.

If you've got a Switch online subscription, you can get this one for free, and it's definitely worth a try on that basis alone. That being said, maybe brace yourself for a brutally tough playerbase – after having been out for several years at time of writing, those remaining are likely to be some very stiff competition.

4. Resident Evil 2 Remake

Video games owe a lot to Resident Evil 2 Remake. Not only is it one of the best retro remakes of all time, it established an incredibly high bar as the industry standard we've come to expect from all survival horror reimaginings since. It's what made up my mind when weighing RE2R up against Bloober Team's excellent Silent Hill 2 Remake. Both take some of the old-school best survival horror games and refine them for the modern day, but Leon and Claire's night from hell walked so all others could run.

Bringing the tight corridors of the Raccoon City Police Department into a third-person over-the-shoulder perspective is something I never thought I'd see, not to mention the slew of other remakes that spawned in its wake. Then there's the anatomically-precise bullet wounds, knockback physics, reworked puzzles... And somehow, it all feels just like it used to (only better). Much as I'll always adore the 1998 original, Resident Evil 2 Remake is a feat of both technical innovation and faithful rebuilding. You need to play this one, and fast.

3. Pokemon Heart Gold and Pokemon Soul Silver

Let's get this out of the way: Pokemon Gold, Silver and Crystal, the second generation, are the best Pokemon games in the core franchise… Or at least they were, until Heart Gold and Soul Silver basically just improved over them in every way possible. This is arguably the only regular remake on this list, rather than a full reboot, but to be honest, HG/SS builds so expansively on what came before that they feel like a bona fide elevation.

As games go, these are complete fan-pleasers. You want quality of life improvements that don't compromise the core experience? You want your Pokemon to follow you around like they did in Pokemon Yellow? How about having your Pokemon follow you around in real life, with the attached Pokewalker device? I tell you, if Game Freak wants to win people over, just port these to Nintendo Switch 2 – it'll be the easiest fortune they ever made.

2. Doom (2016)

The 2010s were just a really good time for reimaginings of classic FPS shooters, perhaps none greater than Doom (2016), a game so good it launched a new era for Doom games that's still ongoing today, and arguably helped to inspire the bouncier, faster-paced era of shooters that supplanted the heavier, more realistic military ones before it.

Doom (2016) is a game so cut down to basics that it's both deeply refreshing and completely hilarious. The Doom Slayer is basically the Tasmanian Devil, a vortex of endless violence who wakes up, starts murdering demons, and does nothing else for the next fifteen hours. Fighting first across a Martian space base before venturing into hell itself, there's never a moment where you doubt that you're the most dangerous thing on the battlefield, submitting anything the slightest bit infernal to atrocities that even they would probably consider a bit much. Still, that's part of its charm, and one of the reasons that our Doom review gave it full marks.

1. Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Did you forget that this one wasn't the first? The original Prince of Persia was a supremely retro step-platformer that came out in 1989, for the Apple II computer! The legendary 2003 reboot for the franchise immediately became a contender for one of the greatest games ever made, let along one of the best retro reboots. Sands of Time has managed to hold onto that crown and stay in those discussions ever since.

A fluid and wonderfully charismatic game with a great gimmick, Sands of Time blends parkour, combat, and the ability to play with time seamlessly together, while also featuring a great story and developing romance behind it all. With the Sands of Time remake now canceled by Ubisoft, it's more important than ever for you to grab a copy on PC. It's also one of the best PS2 games ever, so if you're hanging onto your old console, it's well worth a buy right now.

Feeling old-school in your tastes? Go even further back with the best retro games!