For anyone who has read my past columns, you will know about my fondness of classic gaming and my quest for backwards compatibility. Usually, I groan about how I miss playing titles from my childhood. Sony appeared to have listened to me and has really gone out of their way to improve their classic library. Sony has also made these games free if you have the highest tier membership. So, what really excited me into writing this column?
The Legend of Dragoon.
One of the games I have mentioned numerous times in the past has been given a port on PS4/PS5. Granted, the release had a hitch as The Legend of Dragoon would soft lock after using magic. They quickly patched the issue and installed trophy support as well. This has helped make my gaming life improve so much because I can enjoy titles I have not played on console in decades. I even missed the quirky localization issues that plagued games of that time.
Dark Cloud 2 was another title that I never thought to see ported. Yet, there it was on the classics library for me to download. In my opinion, this is a great way for a company to show their gamers love. Not every game could be ported or remastered, but it feels so many companies just refuse to allow players to indulge in older titles without shelling out lots of money.
Nintendo is bad in this respect in how they have refused to port Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance (Gamecube, $172-$280 per PriceCharting) and Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn (Wii, $70-$160) despite how many new players are joining the series and characters from this game have been making appearances in newer titles. This price does not include having to buy the console associated with those titles if you do not have one.
Sony, on the other hand, has built a library with games from PS1 to present. The JRPG section alone is incredible with all sorts of titles. It hit me while I was sinking tens of hours in The Legend of Dragoon, that I was having more fun with these older games than newer ones. I have spent more time on The Legend of Dragoon, Dark Cloud 2, and The Last Remnant: Remastered than almost every other game I have played in the last two years.
I don’t know why, but classic titles like The Legend of Dragoon and Dark Cloud 2 have reignited my love of gaming, and I am grateful that Sony has facilitated that. I only hope that Sony doesn’t get spooked into thinking this service hurts their bottom line and discontinues it. I feel that for a while, game companies have operated with profits first. I think it is nice to see a gaming first philosophy from a major console provider.