For those who were lucky enough to grow up in the 1980s, you were treated to some truly iconic video games. It was the decade that some of the most iconic series of all-time started - including a certain Italian plumber fond of saying ‘yahoo’ and rescuing princesses.Â
It was the decade when Tetris and Pac-Man arrived at the arcades, and children woke up on Christmas morning to find a NES under the tree.Â
I’ve been diving back in time to look at the history of tech - and decided to see what video games I missed out on by not being around in the 1980s. Here’s nine of the most iconic games of the decade - how many do you remember?
7. The Legend of Zelda - 1986
Yet another of Nintendo’s iconic franchises got its start in the 1980s. Link and Zelda got their first outing with this title for the NES and it laid the groundwork for huge swathes of modern gaming. Pictured is creator Shigeru Miyamoto. Photo: TORU YAMANAKA/AFP via Getty Images | TORU YAMANAKA/AFP via Getty Images Photo: TORU YAMANAKA/AFP via Getty Images
8. Street Fighter - 1987
Ryu, Ken and the gang came out fists-a-blazing in the back half of the 1980s. Street Fighter, the long running franchise (the acclaimed Street Fighter 6 came out in 2023), started here - albeit it wasn’t until 1991’s Street Fighter II that it became a true cultural juggernaut. Photo: Thibaut Durand / Hans Lucas/ AFP via Getty Images | Thibaut Durand / Hans Lucas/ AFP via Getty Images Photo: Thibaut Durand / Hans Lucas/ AFP via Getty Images
9. SimCity - 1989
The decade ended incredibly strong with the launch of SimCity, the granddaddy of the Sims. Its addictive blend of city building, time-limits and the looming threat of disasters, proved to be a huge hit. Its launch was rather long awaited because it lacked features that could have seen it run in arcades. Photo: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images | EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images Photo: EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images