Steam Deck

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A place to discuss and support all things Steam Deck.

Replacement for r/steamdeck_linux.

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What emulated games hold up in 2025? (sh.itjust.works)

submitted 13 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Hey all, I'm interested in playing some emulated games on my steamdeck, but I'm not sure where to start.

I've been having fun with Super Mario World, but a good chunk of that is because I played it a lot as a kid, so much of my enjoyment is from nostalgia.

Problem is, I didn't play many too many games when I was a kid...

What older games out there would you say hold up in 2025? So that regardless of the nostalgia factor, they can be enjoyed by someone like me

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 12 hours ago)

There's a world of options out there and you need to be more specific with what sorts of games you enjoy. I've been emulating on my Switch for a while, but also recently bought a dedicated retro emulation console so I have quite a few recommendations.

For games that are literally still up to modern standards, you can go back to Wii, 3DS, PS Vita, PS3 and beyond and you've basically got games that will still hold up just fine.

For older games: PSP, PS2, SNES and GBA are gold mines of content.

I've found it difficult to get into PS1, N64 and Dreamcast gaming. This was a time when 3D graphics were just starting to be widely used and are so very dated. It's difficult to look past the terrible graphics without nostalgia goggles. I've had more success in going back to SNES and Mega Drive games.... At least they have great pixel graphics with suitable games (side scrollers, platformers, etc).

For specific games, I find it best to go to metacritic and look at their list of all time best games, and limit by console and then work through the best every reviews. This does miss a lot of games though and if you say what sort of games you like then people can make recommendations. There are tons of hidden gems and niches..... Rhythm games, block drop, quirky puzzle games, etc. E.g.:

Everybody's Golf 6 (PS3) - excellent arcadey golf game

Mercury Meltdown (PSP) - puzzle game about manipulating mercury blobs. Great to play entirely with the Steam Deck gyroscope.

GTA China Town wars (PSP) - top down GTA game, modernised beyond the GTA2 controls

Rhythm Heaven Fever (Wii) - excellent rhythm games

Super Mario 3D land (3DS) - 2.5 D Mario. Really solid platformer.

Wipeout 2048 (PS Vita) - solid combat racer

Micro machines 2 (Mega Drive) - quirky top down racer. Excellent for multiplayer.

Crazy Taxi (PS2) - taxi driving, really crazy though