Seeing how a good portion of my freelance writing career is dedicated to previewing and reviewing the latest technological gizmos, you would think that I have a similar approach when it comes to the world of video games. By and large, you’d probably be right. I snatched up the Nintendo Wii shortly after it was released and I’m always itching to get the hottest titles as close to launch day as possible. Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart Wii are a couple of games that come to mind.

While I may lose interest in certain games very quickly, there are others that are able to retain my attention for a very long time. There’s just something about these titles that have a long-lasting value about them. They may not be particularly innovative in any way, but they just have some sort of timeless quality.

Here are three of my favourite older games that I still play today. They’re not “classics” in the traditional sense of the word, because they’re not that old (yet).

Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo (Game Boy Advance)

For whatever reason, I’ve always been attracted to puzzle games. This mild addiction started with Tetris on the original Game Boy, but it quickly expanded into other puzzle games like Bust-A-Move, Magnetica, and Dr. Mario. Although it may not be quite as legendary as the Tetris franchise, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo has to be one of the better puzzle games of all time. I never really got into it originally, because I’d just get killed in the arcade.

After getting my Game Boy Advance, however, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo became one of my first acquisitions. It has also transitioned perfectly well to the confines of my Nintendo DS Lite. There’s no online play, but it’s still fun to get through the arcade mode using my favorite Capcom fighters in a puzzle environment.

Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO (GameCube)

It’s no secret that my greatest gaming passion lies in the world of fighting games and no fighting game franchise is quite as legendary as Street Fighter. While I anxiously await the arrival of Street Fighter IV, I can stll get my hadouken and sonic boom fix through Capcom vs. SNK EO for the GameCube.

In addition to the usual smattering of Street Fighter characters, you also gain access to a good number of SNK brawlers as well. There are representatives from such titles as Fatal Fury, Samurai Shodown, and King of Fighters. Terry Bogard is particularly awesome, as well as the incredibly powerful (but slow) Haohmaru.

Guitar Hero III (Wii)

I remember playing some of the Bemani rhythm games during my university days, but I was never all that great at Guitar Freaks and Drum Mania. When Guitar Hero III arrived on the Nintendo Wii, I thought that it was going to be more of the same and I’d just get schooled time and time again. With persistent practice, however, I’ve managed to get pretty good on the little axe.

While I prefer the multiplayer aspects of Rock Band, Guitar Hero III is still a lot of fun. I imagine that I’ll be playing it a lot less after I indulge in Guitar Hero: World Tour or Rock Band 2 later this year though.

Do You Still Play Older Games?

The games that I have described in this post are at least within the last decade or so (GH3 was only released last year), but I am not opposed to some even more retro action in the form of Final Fight, Contra, X-Men (remember the six-player arcade cabinet?), and more. With our increased focus on the latest and greatest, do you still take the time to enjoy some classics?