If you’re the type who’s “one and done” with your games, you might be missing out. Replaying an old game can bring all those warm fuzzy feelings back that you experienced the first time you played. Here are some reasons why you should start replaying your old favorites.
1 Relive the Nostalgia
Gamers are a nostalgic bunch, and rightfully so. Nothing beats the feeling of returning to your favorite games from the past. Whether it’s an old classic from your childhood that you might play through an emulator on your phone, or your favorite game from five years ago; the memories will come flooding back the moment you hear the title screen music. By the way, classic games are a great experience to enjoy with younger siblings or children.
I’d even argue that games evoke a more powerful sense of nostalgia than any other type of media. You’re right there, inside the game world, reliving the same experience you had many years ago. Focus hard enough, and you might even recall exactly when and where you first played the game. It’s currently the closest thing we have to time travel.
2 Replay a Forgotten Story
Some older games are incredibly complex and filled with nuances that you might have missed during your first playthrough. After all, you were just getting started and likely weren’t invested in the characters’ fates, meaning you’ve likely missed a lot of foreshadowing and other smaller details that can deepen your appreciation for the game’s story.
For instance, I finished the main story in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim six or seven times, and most of the side content three or four, yet I can’t recall many of the main plot points and character names. As it turns out, you don’t have to erase your memory to experience your favorite games again for the first time. Time does that for you!
3 Explore Missed Content
Realistically speaking, few gamers aim for 100% game completion in every single game they play. Plus, we’re often driven by the sense of urgency that the main storyline creates, leaving little time to explore the less important stuff. As a result, it’s easy to miss cool areas, collectibles, and certain side quests that turn out to be hidden gems.
Sometimes, these side quests offer awesome rewards. I missed Chippin’ In on my first playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077, a side quest that unlocks a secret ending and the only licensed car in the game. Additionally, if you skipped the DLC of your favorite game, now is the perfect time to dive into it alongside the main story.
4 Change the Story’s Outcome
Many games feature complex decision-making paths that completely change the outcome of a quest or even the entire story. If it’s just a different cinematic, you can get away with watching the other endings on YouTube. However, some games give you completely different quests, depending on your choices. I bet most of us who played The Witcher 3‘s Blood and Wine DLC missed the quest Burlap Is The New Stripe.
Also, some games punish or reward the player based on their behavior, such as Red Dead Redemption‘s honor system. You can be a hardened outlaw, a Western hero, and anything in between. These types of systems completely change how you interact with the game world.
5 Install Mods for a Whole New Experience
Modding your game can bring a completely new experience to your old favorite, sometimes to the point where it’s almost unrecognizable. For instance, Assetto Corsa allows you to add entirely new maps, cars, weather systems, and shaders that significantly improve the game’s existing graphics.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim even has several expansion-sized mods, such as Beyond Skyrim: Bruma. These add whole new areas, enemies, NPCs, questlines, items, and more. The best part is that modding games is actually pretty easy, all thanks to mod managers that take care of adding and modifying files for you.
6 Try a New Play Style
So many games have game loops that revolve around various play styles or character builds. RPGs (Role-Playing Games), in particular, offer several different classes or character customizations that completely change your playthrough.
For example, Dragon’s Dogma II has four basic vocations (Archer, Fighter, Mage, and Thief), along with several advanced ones. Each vocation comes with its own unique spells and play styles, allowing players to choose how they wish to approach an enemy. You’re potentially missing out on heaps of fun if you never try out the other classes.
You could even go beyond what the game has to offer by setting up your own challenges. It could be something simple, such as beating the game at a higher difficulty, or something near-impossible, such as speedrunning the whole Dark Souls trilogy without dying.
7 Take Advantage of New Game+ Features
New Game+ started popping up in triple-A games over the past few years. It’s a feature that lets you start the game over while keeping some of your progress and items. Not all games have great New Game+ modes, but those that do are certainly worth replaying.
Examples include Starfield, God of War, Ghost of Tsushima, and Elden Ring. However, no game does it better than NieR: Automata. To truly finish the main story, you have to beat it three times!
8 Some Games Have a High Replay Value
Continuing from my previous point about NieR: Automata, some games are simply designed to be replayed many times. The Devil May Cry franchise is built for replayability, with its individual levels and scoring system. It’s especially true for the roguelike genre, which revolves around you dying or beating the game only to start all over again.
9 Enjoy the Remastered Experience
Remasters can be the best thing for old games, at least when they’re done right. In addition to giving you a chance to replay an old game “just the way you remember it,” good remakes and remasters often feature better performance on modern hardware, upgraded graphics, new features, and more, all while keeping the unique quirks that made the original special.
High-quality remakes include Mafia: Definitive Edition, Resident Evil 2, Final Fantasy VII Remake, and the Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy.
10 More Value for Your Money
With new video games now costing $70 a piece, it’s more important than ever to squeeze every drop of fun out of each game you own. A good game is always enjoyable, even after you’ve sunk over 100 hours into it. If you’ve got nothing to play and are waiting for a new Steam sale, consider loading up an old favorite and playing through it instead. Trust me, you’ll enjoy the experience more than you think.
The next time you’re looking for something to play, don’t overlook your old favorite games. Brush the dust off the virtual or physical copy and load it up. Who knows, maybe you’ll enjoy the experience even more this time around!
