Illustration by Carolyn Burt / The Corsair

As college campuses across the country are sending students home for the remainder of the semester, many have found themselves with a bit more time on their hands than they had originally anticipated. While there are plenty of ways to stay productive - reading a book, organizing your room, going on a social distanced walk around the neighborhood - giving the brain a break has its benefits as well.

There is no shortage of gaming content in this digital era. However, devices like the Nintendo Switch are virtually impossible to find online as families prepare to stay inside for the next few weeks. Part of the recent demand for this device is the much-anticipated Switch version of the beloved game, “Animal Crossing: New Horizons.” Many of those purchasing New Horizons were in elementary school when the game was originally released in 2002 in the United States for the Nintendo GameCube. The game gained much of its popularity for being one of the first adventure storyline games on the platform that didn’t involve combat or violence.

“Animal Crossing: New Horizons” on the Nintendo Switch gaming console. The device has been sold out on retail sites such as Best Buy since “Safer at Home” began. (Photograph by Reza Nosrati)

In addition to its carefree approach, nostalgia plays a large factor in games like Animal Crossing. It reminds fans of the fun they used to have playing it with their friends in their adolescence, and provides them a way to relieve stress, which is beneficial in today’s climate as those on lockdown try to find a distraction from the current world around them.

With the switch being sold out at many retailers, chances are unless you owned one prior to the “Safer at Home” rules that are being implemented across the country, it will be difficult to get a hold of one for quite some time.

However, there are many games that will bring back these memories from “simpler times” that are readily available to play in the weeks ahead.

The Sims, which is now on its fourth version, is a life simulation video game from Electronic Arts. The game, which can be played on a desktop, Playstation 4, or Xbox One, allows players to create a virtual character known as a "sim" and navigate their life. Equally known are the many expansion packs that have followed such as “Get to Work,” “Cats & Dogs,” and “Get Famous,” which allow for more storylines and paths for your sim to follow.

Roller Coaster Tycoon, a Computer Game from the 1990s.

Roller Coaster Tycoon is another simulation video game that lets the player build their own amusement park. Players complete different challenges for parks such as bringing in guests or having their park be worth a certain value by an end-of-year deadline. While the game provides pre-built rides for players to place in their parks, there is also the option to build your own roller coasters, piece-by-piece, allowing for creative control. While there are newer versions of the game available to play, the original version with its 90s graphics can still be downloaded and played on a tablet device.

Neopets, which launched in 1999, is a website where players can create a virtual pet known as a “Neopet." Through playing different arcade-esque mini games, players can earn “Neopoints,” which they can then use to purchase items for their Neopet or decorate their “NeoHome.” There is also a social function to the site which allows players to connect and become “NeoFriends” and send messages and gives to one another through “Neomail."

Freddie Fish a Computer Game now available on tablet devices from Humongous Entertainment.

Humongous Entertainment found most of its success in the early 90s with its Computer Games such as Freddi Fish, Pajama Sam, Spy Fox, and the Backyard Sports Franchise. Although they stopped releasing new games, they transitioned much of their original content to be playable on tablets. The games have been praised by parents for being educational entertainment, or “edutainment." Children are given the opportunity to practice their problem solving skills as they follow the storyline and work toward solving mysteries in each game.

These games each provide a different form of entertainment to put the mind at ease. They’ve each also found success in adapting their original concept so that even in 2020 with devices like the Xbox One and Playstation 4, fans continue to return to their computers or tablets to play these games that still bring a smile to their faces after all these years.

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