The iPhone and its ever expanding list of applications has become an excellent medium for playing retro games that you enjoyed in your childhood while playing on a convenient portable device. A number of excellent ports have already been made with more in development, classic games from the Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari ST, PS1, Nintendo and Genesis all making appearances on the App Store.
Commodore 64 Emulator
The Commodore 64 is a classic computer from the 1980's that many will have fond memories of. Manomio LLC has created an excellent emulator of the c64 for the iPhone, even including the BASIC interpretor that came with the computer. A number of games come for free with the application with an even greater selection for purchase such as memorable titles The Last Ninja, Boulderdash 2 and International Karate. The application is available for US$4.99 in the iTunes App Store and is well worth a look.
Secret of Monkey Island
The first Secret of Monkey Island was released way back in 1990 on the Atari ST, PC & Mac. Made by Lucasarts when it was known as Lucasfilm Games, the game features the humorous tale of Guybrush Threepwood and has quest to become a pirate. The game is one of the original classic adventure games that Lucasarts was famed for back in the day and still great fun in its original form.
Last year Secret of Monkey Island was released for the iPhone and a number of other systems in a special edition that included better graphics, a remastered score and voice acting. This year the sequel has also been added to the App Store. Both games are well worth a look for those nostalgic for the originals and newcomers to the series, both offering a funny and enjoyable adventure as you traipse round Melee Island.
Final Fantasy
The original Final Fantasy was released back in 1987 by Square for the Nintendo Entertainment System and since this time has become one of the most successful and popular RPG series on the market. Square has recently released both Final Fantasy and its first sequel Final Fantasy II for the iPhone. Both games have been largely unmodified for the iPhone which has led to some difficulties with the small screen and touch interface, however both games still remain very playable and enjoyable and worthy of a purchase for anyone who is a fan of the originals or RPG's in general.
R-Type
R-Type is a horizontally scrolling shoot-em-up that was first released in 1987 on Arcade machines and was swiftly ported to the popular consoles of the time, the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. Later it was released on the NES, Sega Master System, Atari ST and Amiga. Numerous sequels have also been made, making R-Type one of the most popular and influential shooters of all time.
R-Type has recently been released on the App Store for the iPhone, allowing you to play this classic on the go. Allowances have been made for the small iPhone screen and the touch interface, allowing you to anchor the virtual joystick in different places and including auto-fire. At $1.99 R-Type is fantastic value and an excellent port of the classic Arcade and Console shooter.
Even More Classic Games
This is just a taste of the many varied classic games available on the iPhone, such greats as SimCity, Shining Force, The Settlers and more all available on the App Store. The iPhone is a great way to get back to your roots and play some of the old classics so have a look around the store and try some of them out.
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