Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ The Games, Movies, TV & Comics You Love
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
flag of UK
UK
flag of US
US
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of Australia
Australia
  • Games
  • TV
  • Movies
  • Hardware
  • Video
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Guides
  • Deals
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • SFX
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Total Film
Gaming Magazines
Gaming Magazines
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe from just £3
  • Takes you closer to the games, movies and TV you love
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$12
Subscribe now
Trending
  • Grounded 2
  • The Fantastic Four: First Steps
  • Donkey Kong Bananza
  • Switch 2 Starter Pack
Recommended reading
A screenshot of PUCK eating an enemy during the upcoming Xbox Series X game, Shadow Labyrinth.
Games The best retro remakes and reboots out there aren't afraid to get weird with it – as Shadow Labyrinth being a dark and gritty Pac-Man game shows us
Family sitting in living room using G'aim'e Time Crisis Plug and Play console on TV.
Hardware Time Crisis is my favorite arcade shooter, so I'm naturally losing it over this upcoming light gun plug and play console
Mixtape protagonists lounge in a sunlit bedroom with purple walls and fairy lights
Adventure Games Nostalgic indie game from publisher Annapurna is a "respite from the current cursed reality" inspired by real-life, dev says: "Ended about as well as you can expect, including a nice scar, and cow s***"
Evercade Alpha closeup with Ryu from Street Fighter on screen
Platforms Best retro game consoles 2025: my favorite ways to play classic capers
Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2017) screenshot showing Darth Vader walking through a hangar flanked by two stormtroopers
Third Person Shooters I've spent 11 hours fighting AI in EA's Star Wars Battlefront 2, and it's taking me back to the glory days of PS2 skirmish modes
Atari 400 Mini on woodgrain desk connected to Dough Spectrum Black OLED monitor and Pac-Man on screen.
Hardware This tiny Atari console is naturally great for Pac-Man, but I use it to play one of the most cursed retro games from the '80s
Close up of Quarter Arcades Bubble Bobble machine with finger on left joystick.
Hardware This mini arcade machine is my favorite retro game room gadget, and it makes for a phenomenal conversation starter
  1. Games
  2. Action

If more games had nostalgic historical vintage modes

Features
By David Houghton published 24 July 2013

If current-gen meant the 1920s

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Racing into the past

Racing into the past

Vintage modes are an increasingly prevalent fixture in modern sports games. F1 2013 is getting classic races and cars of the '80s and '90s, complete with retro TV filters. FIFA has long-since had classic teams. NHL '14 is even getting a NHL '04 anniversary mode, harking back to the style and gameplay of the 20-year-old 16-bit game.

So we got wondering why it should be only sports games. Why can't other genres get antiquated historical modes too? Our answer? There is no reason. So we started working out how to reverse-engineer the tropes and gameplay of a few of our favourite shooters, fighters and action games using aged tech and game rules. Here's what we came up with.

Page 1 of 10
Page 1 of 10
Halo

Halo

How it works: It's pretty much the same as Halo is now, except that all sci-fi weaponry is outlawed and all jet packs and jump pads are replaced with conveniently placed trampolines. Oh, and shields don't recharge, mainly because you don't have any. Armour is thicker to compensate, meaning that those (specially reinforced) trampolines are a must if you want to get anywhere fast.

Page 2 of 10
Page 2 of 10
Metal Gear Solid

Metal Gear Solid

How it works: With the inner-ear codec a technological impossibility, Snake is forced to carry around a 1940s field radio back pack at all times. That won't at all help his stealthing abilities, but let's face it, what use was the codec anyway? Its ability to mask the sound of incoming transmissions was surely completely undermined the instant Snake opened his mouth to reply. Not only would every guard in earshot hear him, they'd probably deem him a standard-issue bus station schizophrenic, wittering on to himself about AIs and the philosophy of war all day. It's better this way, all things considered.

Page 3 of 10
Page 3 of 10
Doom

Doom

How it works: With no high-powered military technology with which to force back the tides of Hell, Doom Guy has to repel evil the old fashioned way. With a bible, some rosary beads, and the awesome power of prayer.

Page 4 of 10
Page 4 of 10
Portal

Portal

How it works: With matter-warping, geometry-troubling portal technology a distant dream, Chell just gets a great big drill.

Page 5 of 10
Page 5 of 10
Street Fighter

Street Fighter

How it works: Queensberry rules all the way, and you can only pick Dudley. With the world's various martial arts all thus far undiscovered, you have to fight the only way the Empire knew how: Fists, moustaches, bare knuckles and a whole lot of that awkwardly camp, raised-forearm posing.

Page 6 of 10
Page 6 of 10
Mario Kart

Mario Kart

How it works: The karts are replaced with Penny Farthings. In true Nintendo fashion, you now have to accelerate by holding a Wii remote in each hand and pumping as if cycling. Given the unwieldy nature of the bicycle, the controllers' gyroscopes also enforce strictly balanced poise at all times. You get a turbo start if you actually manage to get on the thing without falling over. And you betcha there's a hilarious minigame for that. A really, really long, hilarious minigame.

Page 7 of 10
Page 7 of 10
Half-Life 2

Half-Life 2

How it works: With no sci-fi technology available, the Gravity Gun is switched out for a slingshot. You can still fire pretty much any object you can find, but if you want to use anything bigger than a basketball as ammunition, you need to enlist Gordon's skills as a physicist and build an impromptu trebuchet, operating around authentically calculated Havok Physics principles.

Page 8 of 10
Page 8 of 10
Battlefield

Battlefield

How it works: Instead of modern military firepower, helicopters and laser scopes, vintage-mode Battlefield takes a refreshing step into the past, demanding that the player use only the authentic weapon and vehicle-set provided by World War II. It will probably be set some time around 1942 or 1943.

Oh hang on a minute...

Page 9 of 10
Page 9 of 10
Any more retro remakes?

Any more retro remakes?

So those are our suggestions. How about yours? Any ideas of how to retrofit existing games with retro gameplay? Let us know.

And while you're here, why not check out some of our similar stuff? Try The Top 7 Retro modes and cheats we want to see return and If old-school game heroes invaded current-gen games.

Page 10 of 10
Page 10 of 10
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming Wii-u Nintendo PlayStation PS4 Xbox Xbox One Platforms
PRODUCTS
Ultra Street Fighter IV Battlefield 3 Half-Life 2 Half-Life 2: Episode One Half-Life 2: Episode Two Portal Street Fighter IV Half-Life 2: Episode Three Super Street Fighter IV Halo 4 Battlefield 4 Mario Kart 8 Doom
David Houghton
David Houghton
Long-time GR+ writer Dave has been gaming with immense dedication ever since he failed dismally at some '80s arcade racer on a childhood day at the seaside (due to being too small to reach the controls without help). These days he's an enigmatic blend of beard-stroking narrative discussion and hard-hitting Psycho Crushers.
See more PC Gaming Features
Read more
A screenshot of PUCK eating an enemy during the upcoming Xbox Series X game, Shadow Labyrinth.
The best retro remakes and reboots out there aren't afraid to get weird with it – as Shadow Labyrinth being a dark and gritty Pac-Man game shows us
Family sitting in living room using G'aim'e Time Crisis Plug and Play console on TV.
Time Crisis is my favorite arcade shooter, so I'm naturally losing it over this upcoming light gun plug and play console
Mixtape protagonists lounge in a sunlit bedroom with purple walls and fairy lights
Nostalgic indie game from publisher Annapurna is a "respite from the current cursed reality" inspired by real-life, dev says: "Ended about as well as you can expect, including a nice scar, and cow s***"
Evercade Alpha closeup with Ryu from Street Fighter on screen
Best retro game consoles 2025: my favorite ways to play classic capers
Star Wars Battlefront 2 (2017) screenshot showing Darth Vader walking through a hangar flanked by two stormtroopers
I've spent 11 hours fighting AI in EA's Star Wars Battlefront 2, and it's taking me back to the glory days of PS2 skirmish modes
Atari 400 Mini on woodgrain desk connected to Dough Spectrum Black OLED monitor and Pac-Man on screen.
This tiny Atari console is naturally great for Pac-Man, but I use it to play one of the most cursed retro games from the '80s
Latest in Action
Death Stranding 2
Not even Dollman's constant "guilt-tripping" and the pressure of social media was enough to stop this Death Stranding 2 player from spending an hour hauling a worryingly large pile of dead bodies "for science"
Marvel's Blade
Marvel's Blade reportedly might have a budget of at least $109 million, but that's still a fraction of the $300 million it allegedly took to make Marvel's Spider-Man 2
Infamous
Ghost of Yotei director says "I would love to work on more Infamous" and "see a trilogy re-release," but for now "Sucker Punch is a one game at a time shop"
Naoe looks over at a dense, lush, green forest in Assassin's Creed Shadows from a viewpoint
I took 140 hours to finish Assassin's Creed Shadows, but post-launch updates are making it harder than ever to feel satisfied by RPGs
Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad in Assassin's Creed
Assassin's Creed live-action series greenlit at Netflix from Westworld and Halo showrunners: "We're committed to creating something undeniable for fans all over the planet"
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Final Fantasy 7 Remake's Aerith actor takes Legend of Zelda movie casting in good spirits after saying she'd love to audition: "Thank you all for your support during this very difficult time"
Latest in Features
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild screenshot showing Link, a male character with elf-like ears, blond hair, and bright blue eyes
The Legend of Zelda movie is exciting, but I'm still begging for 5 specific video game movies to get adapted next
A screenshot of the upcoming RPG, The Outer Worlds 2
I'm convinced that 2025 will bring us the next Baldur's Gate 3, and these are all the upcoming RPGs that may prove me right
The Fantastic Four: First Steps
The Fantastic Four are in Avengers: Doomsday, and I think I know what that means for First Steps
Naoe looks over at a dense, lush, green forest in Assassin's Creed Shadows from a viewpoint
I took 140 hours to finish Assassin's Creed Shadows, but post-launch updates are making it harder than ever to feel satisfied by RPGs
GTA 6
I'm going to play GTA 6 for the side activities above all, and it's got me thinking about the top 5 ways I've always loved spending my time in GTA
Ghost of Yotei gameplay showing Atsu sitting on her horse between bright pink cherry blossoms, looking at a distant fortification built against a mountain
I asked Ghost of Yotei's creative directors all of my burning questions, and I don't want to get your hopes up but Sucker Punch's sequel sounds like feudal Red Dead Redemption 2
  1. DK and Pauline look surprised in Donkey Kong Bananza
    1
    Donkey Kong Bananza Review: "Destruction isn't just a flashy gimmick for the Minecraft generation, it's one of the best inventions Nintendo has had in years"
  2. 2
    Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 review: "A nostalgic, must-play hit for fans"
  3. 3
    College Football 26 review: “Thanks to rivalries and dynasty, this is the greatest show on turf”
  4. 4
    Mecha Break review: "This mech battler makes up for lacking customization with a varied roster that lets me live out my Evangelion fantasy"
  5. 5
    Death Stranding 2: On the Beach review: "This tarpunk delivery epic is more Metal Gear Solid than ever, for better and worse"
  1. David Corenswet as Superman inside the Fortress of Solitude in James Gunn's Superman.
    1
    Superman review: "A triumphant reinvention and a promising start for the DCU"
  2. 2
    Jurassic World Rebirth Review: "An unscary sequel that needed a little more time in amber"
  3. 3
    M3GAN 2.0 review: "A bold sequel with a slightly underwhelming conclusion"
  4. 4
    28 Years Later Review: "Enough terror, splatter and suspense to satisfy”
  5. 5
    Predator: Killer of Killers review: "Great characters, thrilling action, and gorgeous Arcane-esque animation"
  1. Lee Jung-jae as Gi-hun in Squid Game season 3
    1
    Squid Game season 3 review: "A staggeringly excellent final season wraps up one of the greatest Netflix shows ever"
  2. 2
    Ironheart review: "A relic of Marvel's content-at-all-costs era"
  3. 3
    Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 review: "The show's most assured run of episodes to date"
  4. 4
    Doctor Who season 2, episode 8 spoiler review: 'The Reality War' is "a mix of the good, the bad, and the truly baffling"
  5. 5
    Doctor Who season 2, episode 7 spoiler review: 'Wish World' is "an exciting and ambitious" start to the season finale, with hints of WandaVision

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...