5 Sites To Play Old Computer Games Once Again

I don’t know about you but I’m not much into fancy-pants 3D first person shooters. I can’t be bothered to build a massive gaming rig, blow $500 on a video card, and figure out what custom weights give me the best mouse response.

I’ve got a WII, and I love it, and one of the big reasons I do is for the emulation. Sadly however, I can’t bring my WII to work or to the coffee shop down the street - but I can bring my laptop, jump on their WiFi and fire up these four awesome sites for a quick old school gaming fix!

VirtualApple (Apple II and Apple IIGS)

I don’t know about you but every now and then I get a craving to hunt square rabbits, hire unfit workers, make them walk too far and then lose three days because I’ve got scurvy. Virtual Apple always satisfies my Oregon Trail fix; but don’t other classics like John Elway’s Quarterback, Crystal Castles, and Max Headroom (don’t lie, you remember Max Headroom).

c64s.com (Commodore 64)

My family’s first computer was the UPS-brown Commodore 64, so this one really takes me back. I even remember “modding” the case to the newer, more angular style when it came out. Yikes. Thrill to such Commodore favorites as Zork, Wizard’s Lair and Pakacuda. The site has all the titles categorized by genre and features screenshots - further underscoring the real graphical prowess of the C64!

Virtualnes.com (Nintendo Entertainment System)

vNes has a huge catalog of NES cartridge titles available for play on their site via a Java-based emulator - 765 of them to be exact. I’ve noticed a few problems with slowness on a few titles, but all in all it’s an excellent place to play old games online and satisfy your urge to jam on Super Mario Brothers, Zelda, or one of my favorites: Ivan Stewart’s Super Off Road.

Playnes.net (Nintendo Entertainment System)

Another big catalog of NES titles, but you’re able to register which gives you the ability to save states in the games you’re playing. You can even open other people’s states - meaning that when your buddy gets stuck trying to battle through the ninjas, you can swoop in, rescue the President, and prove just how bad a dude you really are.

GetBack.Com Arcade

Unlike the rest of the sites I listed, GetBack isn’t strictly a gaming site. It’s kind of a “throwback culture” site. The upside is that they do have several games in their arcade that you can play, like Intellivision Backgammon and River Raid.

What about you? Where do you go to satisfy your vintage gaming urges? Let us know!

(By) Lee Mathews is a blogger who writes to share downloads, links, and tech advice with other slightly frustrated users at Unsightful.com.