Prepare To Feel Old: These 10 Video Game Masterpieces Turn 20 This Year

12 July 2025

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prepare-to-feel-old:-these-10-video-game-masterpieces-turn-20-this-year — Prepare To Feel Old: These 10 Video Game Masterpieces Turn 20 This Year

Time seems to move faster now, and it feels like the past twenty years have flown by, with a myriad of games like Resident Evil 4 and Call of Duty 2 turning twenty this year. It can still feel like many of them were released just a few years ago, and it likewise feels like gaming has both come so far and not gone much distance at all since 2005. Twenty years on, 2025 might be delivering something close to 2005’s level of masterpieces, with new hits like Death Stranding 2 and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 providing standout experiences.

2005 was a major year for gaming, boasting iconic sequels and cult classics alike. Many of these titles have remasters or remakes today, and even more are still ongoing series twenty years later. 2005 was a massive year for big names, and it is interesting to see what many of these names later became in 2025, whether they blossomed into some massive, wilted, or kept their statuses as cult classics.

10 The Original Resident Evil 4 Changed The Franchise 20 Years Ago

Leon Has Been Backflipping Unnecessarily Ever Since

It’s hard to believe that the GameCube and PlayStation 2 were being used to play the original Resident Evil 4 twenty years ago, and it is plain to see this specific game’s influence in 2025. Resident Evil 4‘s remake made some changes to the original, but for the most part, it is still the same game at heart, and it’s obvious why the game was so groundbreaking twenty years ago. From its combat to its visuals, the original Resident Evil doesn’t seem like a game that is twenty years old, especially considering the jump from RE3.

It’s even harder to believe that Leon has been unnecessarily backflipping for twenty years, and he could make a return in Resident Evil 9. Resident Evil is arguably the best title in the iconic series, and it’s weird to think about how many peaks and troughs it’s been through since. In 2025, the remake is probably the best way to play Resident Evil 4, but the original version is still available on various digital storefronts.

9 The Original Shadow of the Colossus Is Still Beloved

Even The Remake Is Seven Years Old

Shadow of the Colossus is still considered one of the best games ever made more than twenty years later, and its breathtaking Blue Point remake helped to entrench this by bringing the title to the PS4. It’s hard to believe it turns twenty this year, and even the remake is seven years old, which is longer than the gap between most console generations. The gap seems even wider since the team behind the original, Team Ico (now genDesign) has operated at a much slower pace since, only releasing The Last Guardian.

It’s hard to believe 2025 is already halfway over, but there have been some amazing standout games so far this year, including Clair Obscur & DOOM.

There aren’t as many titles acting as time posts to get an idea of how long it has been since Shadow of the Colossus blew everyone’s minds, and while there is a new game in the works by the studio, the long periods without projects only make Shadow of the Colossus‘ age harder to comprehend. It wasn’t that long ago when games that were twenty years old were mainly pixel graphics. Instead, a gorgeous open world like from Shadow of the Colossus is nearly old enough to drink in the US.

8 Devil May Cry 3 Introduced The Vergil And Dante Rivalry Twenty Years Ago

And It Is Still Yet To End

The Devil May Cry franchise has been through the wringer ever since DMC 3 saved the series back in 2005. To this day, many consider DMC 3 to be the pinnacle of the series (although I still prefer DMC 5) and, given how playable it is today, it’s hard to believe it’s twenty years old. It’s older than Dante and Vergil are in the game, and seeing them now as older men in DMC5 really puts into perspective how much the pair have been through since DMC 3.

While Dante and Vergil are twins, Vergil was born first and refers to Dante as his little brother throughout the series.

Some of the game’s best moments are still being used in memes today, and the iconic Vergil and Dante rivalry is probably acknowledged more in 2025 than it was in 2005. Weirdly, Devil May Cry hasn’t had too many games since, with DMC 5 being six years old this year, which is even harder to believe. There’s some hope for Devil May Cry 6, however, given how popular the game has become on the internet. As good as Devil Trigger and Bury the Light are, nothing will beat the nostalgia of hearing Devils Never Cry in DMC 3.

7 Kingdom Hearts 2 Still Remains The Series’ Best Game

It Only Got More Confusing Since

It is odd to think about now, but there was once a time when the Kingdom Hearts series wasn’t all that confusing. Sure, it was always reasonably complex, but before all the spin-off games took over, things largely made sense. They only started to fall over themselves after Kingdom Hearts 2, and many still consider it to be the pinnacle of the series twenty years later. It’s even stranger that only one direct sequel (Kingdom Hearts 3) has been released since then.

For the most part, the series has become dormant since Kingdom Hearts 3, while it was at its most active after Kingdom Hearts 2. In many ways, it doesn’t feel like the series has evolved much since its second main entry. It also doesn’t feel like Final Fantasy and Disney have been collaborating for even longer than twenty years, a collaboration that I still can’t make sense of. Still, Kingdom Hearts 2 remains the best game in the franchise, despite all the entries that have come after it, although Kingdom Hearts 4 could change that.

6 Psychonauts Remains A Cult Classic In 2025

It’s Only Had One Sequel Since 2005

Psychonauts was one of the true gems to come out of the PS2 and Xbox era, and it really does feel like a time capsule for an era in gaming that doesn’t seem all that long ago. Psychonauts is a classic of the 3D platforming genre, which doesn’t get as much love today. Still, it doesn’t feel like the genre’s prime was twenty years ago, nor does the cartoon style of Psychonauts betray its age.

The game has aged surprisingly well, from its humor to its stylized visuals, giving it greater longevity. Despite its impact as a cult classic, it has only received one sequel. Psychonauts 2 was announced ten years ago and released in 2021, making it feel like the series as a whole is ambling forward rather than marching. Still, Psychonauts is well worth checking out today, even if it’s two decades old.

5 Brain Age First Tested Minds Twenty Years Ago

The DS Was All The Rage

It doesn’t feel like too long ago when everyone had a Nintendo DS, playing Nintendogs, Pokémon, and Age, but Brain Age specifically is twenty years old in 2025. The first-gen Nintendo DS was released in 2004, and many young adults today grew up with games like Brain Age on the handheld console. It was one of the first games that everyone in the family could try and test themselves with and compare.

Brain Training comes from the mind of Dr. Kawashima, a Japanese neuroscientist.

Luckily, Nintendo hasn’t forgotten about Brain Age, although the franchise’s Switch installment was only released in Europe and Japan. It’s the best time for those who might not have been alive for the original to test their brains with Brain Age, and it’s hard to believe that such a simple idea hasn’t been expanded on much in twenty years. There have been imitators, like Big Brain Academy and Luminosity, but nothing beats the original.

4 The First Battlefront 2 Is Twenty Years Old

Even The Second Battlefront 2 Is Turning Eight

While the second Battlefront 2 is all the rage right now, somehow finding its second peak with player numbers skyrocketing, it shouldn’t be forgotten how legendary the original Battlefront 2 was when it was released twenty years ago. That was the reason why everyone found the reboot series so disappointing, setting an impossibly high bar for them to follow. The original Battlefront 2 had it all, and it’s also roughly as old as Revenge of the Sith.

Star Wars: Battlefront 2 is getting quite a few discounts and bundles on Steam, as fans continue to beg for a Star Wars: Battlefront 3.

It is hard to believe how old, in general, the Battlefront games are, with the first reboot title being ten years old in 2025. It’s astounding how little has been done with this specific type of Star Wars game, considering that fans are actively fighting to have a Battlefront 3 made. Still, in all the chaos, the original Battlefront 2 remains legendary. While the gameplay can feel dated now, its feature-rich nature should be the template EA uses if it makes Battlefront 3.

3 Call Of Duty 2 Is Turning Twenty This Year

Despite Call Of Duty Feeling Very Modern

The Call of Duty series feels very modern compared to longer-serving franchises like Tomb Raider, Mario, and so on, but it’s hard to believe that CoD 2 is twenty years old. This might be partly due to Call of Duty not settling into its more modern template until its fourth entry, the first Modern Warfare. Dropping the numbers and sticking to a yearly release schedule has somewhat clouded how long the series has been going for, as well.

Still, the earliest Call of Duty titles are still great, and it’s interesting to see how far the series has come since its humble World War 2 roots. Many could argue that the series has gotten out of hand since then, but Call of Duty being over twenty years old isn’t something I can wrap my head around. It doesn’t feel like that long ago when a bunch of kids too young to legally play the game were jumping on it the second they got home, screaming down their mics.

2 Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories Is Leaving Its Teenage Years Behind

GTA Is Far Older Than Many People Realize

Grand Theft Auto as a series is getting long in the tooth, and with GTA 6 releasing in 2026 (hopefully), it would mean a thirteen-year gap in the series without a new game. What makes this truly astounding is that GTA 3, Vice City, San Andreas, Liberty City Stories, GTA 4, and GTA 5 all came out within thirteen years of each other. Liberty City Stories, in particular, is twenty years old in 2025, and it’s a massively underrated PSP take on the franchise.

Grand Theft Auto 6 Online Characters walking past background of Vice City.

Grand Theft Auto 6 may not be able to reach the standard of 60 FPS that players expect, as shown by how GTA 5 is handling its upgrade.

San Andreas came out only a year prior, which puts how old the GTA series really is into perspective. It also highlights how long it’s been since the PSP era, when handheld consoles were still a popular way to play. The Switch has kept that idea alive in some capacity, but the shift in the GTA franchise since shows that Rockstar is only interested in the best tech available. The bar they keep raising is getting higher and higher, and it’s taking even longer to make each GTA game.

1 God of War 1 Started Kratos’ Journey Two Decades Ago

A Journey That Will Hopefully Have Longer To Go

It’s strange to think that Kratos started his vengeful story twenty years ago, and unlike many video game characters, he has gone through some astounding growth since then. The Greek Saga is twenty years old in 2025, and it doesn’t look like the series is stopping any time soon, with rumors of a God of War sequel in 2026. The original God of War changed the gaming industry with its hack-and-slash combat and produced dozens of copycats, but what has helped the series maintain relevance is the willingness to evolve.

God of War 20th anniversary Kratos skin.

God of War allegedly has another title in the works and after the end of the Norse Saga, there is one mythology perfect to move onto.

The Greek and Norse Sagas showcase an evolution that lesser series could have easily handled poorly, and comparing the angry, vengeful monster Kratos of God of War 1 to the much wiser father of the Norse Saga is fascinating. Both titles are gaming masterpieces, but they highlight how expectations for games have changed in the last twenty years. Still, it is difficult to believe that God of War is turning twenty this year, especially since it’s a PS2-era title.