5 Video Games From 1985 That Changed Gaming Forever

With all the hubbub about rising hardware prices, studio closures, cancelled games, and the implosion of the live-service “games as service” bubble, it’s easy to get pessimistic about the state of gaming in 2026 and beyond. When those dark thoughts enter my mind, I like to think of gaming days gone by, either from my youth or even before my time.

Take, for instance, 1985. It was a seminal year for gaming. Following the great video game crash of 1983, it was uncertain if home console gaming would ever recover, but thanks to the release of the Nintendo Entertainment System, it did, and games have been going strong ever since. Then, of course, there was the arcade scene, which was a whole other beast. Kids these days don’t remember what it was like to try to dethrone the local fighting game champion. “King of the Hill” fighting game matches online are fine, but it’s nothing compared to the palpable energy of looking your opponent in the eye before a destiny-altering match, all for 25 cents.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Back in 1985, the arcade was still a wellspring for experimentation with different game types. Innovators in the space were creating art that was unlike anything that had come before it. It was truly a time for invention and developing concepts that would become integral to gaming in the modern era. Let’s take a look at five game-changing titles from 1985.

Ghosts ‘n Goblins

Just as The Beatles were inventing brand new sub-genres of rock music with every track on The White Album, the designers at Capcom were creating new gaming genres with every game they released. Sometimes it was even more than one. Take a look at “Ghosts n’ Goblins,” released for arcades in 1985, with versions for NES and various PC platforms arriving in 1986. A sequel, “Ghouls ‘n Ghosts,” would follow in 1988.

Players took on the role of Sir Arthur, a medieval knight on a quest to rescue the princess (princesses used to get kidnapped all the time in the 1980s, before they invented self-defense classes). To accomplish this task, Arthur would run from left to right and take on every monster standing between him and his best gal. (However, you may have missed a step and had to beat the whole game over again to see the true ending.)

In addition to its distinct side-scrolling action adventure gameplay, before the likes of “Castlevania” or “Contra,” “Ghosts ‘n Goblins” is still remembered for its blistering difficulty. This was not a game for the faint of heart. You can’t just pick it up and figure it out. You need to learn its systems. You need to understand Arthur’s bizarre jump trajectory. You need to learn how to survive with just two hit points. If you squint your eyes, you can see the throughline history connecting “Ghosts ‘n Goblins” to “Dark Souls.”

Space Harrier

Sega properly entered the console space in 1985 with the release of the Sega Master System, but their best work was still found in arcades. Visionary developer Yu Suzuki would eventually become legendary for his work on games like “Virtua Fighter” and “Shenmue,” but he got his start directing and programming arcade games like “Out Run,” “After Burner,” and the game we’re discussing here, “Space Harrier.”

While “Space Harrier” didn’t utilize 3D vector graphics, it used “Super Scaling” technology to simulate the depth of sprites coming towards the screen. The player would run at a fixed rate into the background, with the camera following them closely, offering a palpable sense of speed as distant trees and monsters quickly became imminent threats to be destroyed.

A bright and colorful game, “Space Harrier” still holds up due to its non-stop kinetic energy and reflex-based shooting and dodging. The game was eventually ported to Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear, but those versions, with their muted color palettes and lesser frame rates, can’t hold a candle to the arcade original. These days, the best way to play the original classic on modern hardware is within Sega’s “Like a Dragon” series, where in-game “Space Harrier” arcade cabinets are fully playable.

Hang-On

For this next game, let’s stick with Yu Suzuki and take a look at his other 1985 title, “Hang-On.” This one used the same camera perspective and sprite-scaling technology as “Space Harrier,” but instead of shooting wacky monsters, “Hang-On” focused on the fast-paced world of motorcycle racing.

Despite not using any 3D graphics, “Hang-On” still felt like a 3D game, with the player speeding past rivals while racing to the finish line. While a home console port for Sega Master System was made available, it couldn’t compare to the arcade original, not just because of the diminished graphics, but because the arcade version had a unique play system. Instead of a joystick and buttons, the game was controlled via a full-size motorcycle peripheral that simulated the act of actually riding a motorcycle. A smaller version of the arcade cabinet, with just handlebars to save space, was also released.

“Hang-On” would be succeeded by another Yu Suzuki title, 1992’s “Virtua Racing,” which used the power of Sega’s Model 1 arcade tech to create an F1-style racing experience using 3D polygons. But it’s a testament to Sega’s ingenuity that they were able to pull off a game like “Hang-On” years before 3D technology became ubiquitous.

Gauntlet

One of the earliest four-player co-op arcade hits, “Gauntlet” was the prototypical action-packed dungeon crawler. To this day, there’s nothing like four friends huddled around a TV, using teamwork to overcome massive challenges. Whether it’s “Diablo,” “Borderlands,” or “Streets of Rage,” you can trace their lineage back to 1985’s “Gauntlet,”

“Gauntlet” let players choose one of four classes: Elf, Warrior, Wizard, and Valkyrie, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. The group would descend deeper and deeper into a nigh-endless dungeon, solving key/door puzzles and destroying hordes of enemies. You know that loop of ‘get strong, fight stronger enemies, rinse and repeat’ that so many games utilize these days? It all started with “Gauntlet.” Sure, there were games with much deeper RPG elements, and action games with twitchier gameplay, but none put the two together like “Gauntlet,” and the game single-handedly changed the way things were done in the co-op action space. The greatest co-op games of all time all owe a debt of gratitude to “Gauntlet.”

The game was ported to many consoles and PC platforms over the years and was followed by many sequels, including hits like “Gauntlet: Legends” and “Gauntlet: Dark Legacy.” The franchise stumbled with the ill-advised “Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows” in 2005, but rebounded with a back-to-basics reboot with 2014’s “Gauntlet” for PC and PlayStation 4. That was over a decade ago, but I imagine it’s only a matter of time before “Gauntlet” returns.

Super Mario Bros.

Nintendo released the Famicom in Japan in 1983. The system wouldn’t release in the United States until 1985, possibly to avoid coming out right on the heels of the big video game crash of 1983. That extra time meant the console, called the Nintendo Entertainment System in America, had a stacked lineup when it hit store shelves in October of 1985.

Even so, the flagship game for the system was “Super Mario Bros.,” which released in Japan in September, just in time to be part of the the system’s North American launch. While not the first-ever 2D side-scrolling platformer, “Super Mario Bros.” completely destroyed expectations and became the NES system’s all-time killer title. The controls were perfect, the visuals were colorful (by NES standards), the music was catchy, and the difficulty was a perfect ramp from cozy to challenging to brutal.

Without the runaway critical and commercial success of “Super Mario Bros.,” maybe the gaming comeback ushered in by the NES wouldn’t have taken hold. Maybe video games would have faded back into obscurity like so many other fleeting fads. But that didn’t happen. To this day, Nintendo is still making “Super Mario” games, including some of the greatest 2D platformers ever made, and the character of Mario himself is one of the most universally recognizable figures in pop culture history.