Recent research has found that nostalgia helps people feel less lonely and more accomplished. And what kind of nostalgia can help a gamer feel less lonely? 



When we look back on the days where we used to spend long hours in front of our screens with a joystick in our hands, we realize that period was one of the best in our life. We were young and carefree teens open to wonders, eager to have fun, and always eager to get a new portion of adrenaline. The best way to get it was to play our console games. Therefore, now, when we hear such names as Super Mario, Zelda, PokĂŠmon, or Kirby, we plunge into the boundless sea of nostalgia, that bittersweet emotion that makes us feel like playing good old classic games. If you’re dreaming of reuniting with your favorite characters, it high time you started realizing your dream. Today, we’re going to tell you how to start playing vintage games again.

Playing Retro Games with Original Hardware

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not that difficult to obtain retro hardware. The second-hand market may come in handy if you’re determined to play classic games exactly on original consoles. A quick search on eBay will reveal thousands of retailers selling original video game systems. There’re systems to cater to every taste: the Nintendo Entertainment System, the Game Boy Advance, the Dreamcast, or the PlayStation. With an original console, you’ll be able to run your old cartridges or disks and enjoy a truly authentic experience of playing on a vintage device. It’s like going back to the past! On the downside, the second-hand piece of tech can cost you a fortune. Moreover, purchasing an original console is quite a risky undertaking. Buying old hardware, you cannot be 100% sure of its functionality.

Playing Retro Games with Emulators

Apart from purchasing an original console, there’s another way to start playing classic games, which involves emulators. Emulators are special programs that enable you to mimic the work of any retro console on your computer or a mobile device. You can search the Internet from an emulator to run your favorite games. Among the most popular emulators are RetroArch, OpenEmu, PCSX2, Dolphin, and others. All you need to do is to download a reliable emulator and a couple of free ROM games. After installing your emulation software and placing new ROM games into a proper folder, you can start running retro games on your PC or smartphone.

Where to Look for Retro Games

The first thing retro gamers look for after installing their emulators is a good game to run on it. You may want to start with the abandonware websites. Abandonware sites are online resources distributing various software pieces ignored by their developers. It’s not a secret that most retro games are no longer supported by their manufacturers. So, no one will blame you for your noble desire to prevent vintage software from sinking into oblivion.

Apart from classic abandonware websites, there’re lots of other resources offering emulators and ROM games to play on them. We recommend that you check such reliable sites as EmuParadise, RomsMode, RomsMania, and LoveRoms for you favorite classic games. Navigate the “ROMs/Games” section until you find the game you’d want to play. Download it onto your computer and unpack it to the “ROMs” folder in your emulator. After that you can start playing your terrific retro titles on your comp. 

Enjoy your game!