If you have been following our recent GPU reviews in 2016, you are probably familiar with Crysis 3, The Witcher 3, Grand Theft Auto V, Rise of the Tomb Raider and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. Those are the games we frequently use for our benchmarks. They not only have good game play but also impressive visuals. If you have been born in 2000 or later, you probably have missed a lot of great PC games where the current games improved upon.

To better appreciate the modern games we have now, I have prepared a list of relatively old games that I think you should play. All of the games in the list were released prior to 2010 and are likely not to impress you with their image quality. However, their game play might leave you wondering why some so-called “modern” games have game play or features which are kind of a step backwards. Lastly, these games are already very affordable and it wouldn’t hurt to try them out.

Max Payne

Release Date – July 2001
Compatible OS – Windows, Mac
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – 3rd person shooter

Why play it? It’s the first PC game to use the slow motion effect (referred to as Bullet Time) made famous in the film, The Matrix. The game also has plenty of image quality settings to tweak and it’s disappointing that some games like Metro: Last Light (released in May 2013) have a very limited number of image quality settings. The best thing about this game is it is mod-friendly. Would you believe there is mod for this game that transforms it from a 3rd person shooter into a 3rd person brawler? Check out the Kung Fu mod 3.0 and you’ll wonder why some game developers have the guts to charge for a DLC (DownLoadable Content) containing petty stuff like weapons and character skins.

Mech Commander 2

Release Date – July 2001
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Amazon
Genre – Tactics

Why play it? If you’re a fan of mechs and tactics, you should play this game.

Splinter Cell

Release Date – February 2003
Compatible OS – Windows, Mac
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – 3rd person shooter, Stealth

Why play it? It’s a stealth game where you easily die if try to play it Rambo style. There are few stealth games on the PC and it’s one of the best.

Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne

Release Date – October 2003
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – 3rd person shooter

Why play it? It improves everything about Max Payne 1 and also supports mods. Check out Devil May Cry mod and Equilibrium mod if you are interested in game play overhaul mods.

Sacred

Release Date – October 2004
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – Action, Role Playing Game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwHJQYGiG-M

Why play it? A good alternative to Diablo II.

Prince of Persia: Warrior Within

Release Date – November 2004
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – Hack and Slash, Platformer

Why play it? Unlike in most hack-and-slash games, there are multiple ways to finish off enemies. You can also use the environment and wield 2 weapons to vary the combat.

Star Wars: Republic Commando

Release Date – March 2005
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – 1st person shooter (FPS), Tactics

Why play it? A Star Wars shooting game done right.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Release Date – June 2005
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – Open World Action Adventure

Why play it? The 1st Grand Theft Auto game to put more emphasis on story. It’s also the only game in the Grand Theft Auto franchise where your character can go to a gym to lift weights and learn different types of melee attack. It also has a controversial “Hot Coffee” mod which unlocks a normally inaccessible mini-game. For me, this game is worthy of a remastered edition.

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse

Release Date – September 2005
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Amazon
Genre – Action, Role Playing Game

Why play it? There are few X-Men games on the PC and this is one of the best. You get to play many of the Marvel Comics characters like Magneto, Wolverine, Cyclops, Gambit, Ironman, and Deadpool. Each character has a different set of attacks and skills which makes the game worth playing again after you have finished it the 1st time.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted

Release Date – November 2005
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Amazon
Genre – Racing

Why play it? Upgrade your cars. Disable police cars using the environment. Hide in safe spots to escape the police. Enough said.

Devil May Cry 3

Release Date – May 2006
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – Hack and Slash

Why play it? Vergil’s Yamato is awesome. Yeah, this hack-and-slash game was from a time an unlockable character offers new game play and is free.

The Witcher: Enhanced Edition

Release Date – October 2007
Compatible OS – Windows, Mac
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – Action, Role Playing Game

Why play it? A role playing game that uses a real-time combat system with some elements of hack-and-slash. It’s one of the best RPG’s in its time. You should play this first before The Witcher 2 and The Witcher 3.

Crysis

Release Date – November 2007
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam, GOG, Origin
Genre – 1st person shooter (FPS)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVsw-gmnUeo

Why play it? This game is an exception in this list because there is nothing special with the game play. However, this game raised the standards for image quality of PC games and top-end GPU’s of that time cannot deliver a pleasant gaming experience when every image quality setting is set to maximum.

Mass Effect

Release Date – November 2007
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam, Origin
Genre – 3rd person shooter, Role Playing Game

Why play it? The 1st game that successfully combined a 3rd person shooting game and an RPG. You’ll also get hooked on the story and probably want to also play Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3.

Race Driver: GRID

Release Date – June 2008
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – Racing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIeQ04JW3_k

Why play it? A racing game that proves there can be a happy medium between arcade racing and simulation racing. One of the best features of this game is the impressive cockpit view. Too bad, the game developer removed the impressive cockpit view in GRID 2 and in GRID Autosport.

Dead Space

Release Date – October 2008
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam, Origin
Genre – 3rd person shooter, Horror

Why play it? Some may say this is a Resident Evil game set in outer space. In this game, you don’t instantly kill the enemies with a head shot. You must cut off the limbs and be careful with your aim so you don’t waste scarce ammo. It’s one of the best horror games.

Fallout 3

Release Date – October 2008
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – Action, Shooter, Role Playing Game

Why play it? An open-world exploration game that successfully incorporates shooting game elements and RPG elements. Fans of games with post-apocalyptic setting will surely love this game.

Saints Row 2

Release Date – October 2008
Compatible OS – Windows, Linux
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – Open World Action Adventure

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSzI4Sbwc4U

Why play it? A good alternative for Grand Theft Auto IV that adds its own improvements to the game genre.

Mirror’s Edge

Release Date – January 2009
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam, Origin
Genre – 1st person shooter (FPS), platformer

Why play it? The first game to incorporate parkour. If you haven’t played Dying Light yet, we suggest you play this first.

Dark Sector

Release Date – March 2009
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – 3rd person shooter

Why play it? Because killing enemies with a boomerang is cool.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Release Date – May 2009
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Amazon
Genre – Hack and Slash

Why play it? If you are a big fan of Wolverine, you should play this game. Brutally killing the enemies in a variety of ways never gets old.

Prototype

Release Date – June 2009
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – Steam
Genre – Hack-and-Slash, Open World

Why play it? A hack-and-slash game that successfully incorporates parkour, open world exploration, and some elements of RPG.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat

Release Date – February 2010
Compatible OS – Windows
Where to Buy – GOG, Steam
Genre – 1st person shooter (FPS)

Why play it? A 1st person shooter that successfully incorporates survival horror and open world exploration. You really need to be careful with enemy encounters because taking damage will usually cause bleeding. Ammo is also scarce so you cannot just run around shooting as much enemies as you like. It’s also the 1st FPS game that supports DirectX 11.