The discovery of video games created a whole new revolution in the field of indoor games. The golden age of video games was during the 1990s, when a variety of video games characters were introduced to the world. During this period, video game underwent an complete transformation in technology. The 16-bit era ended and a new world of 3D graphics was introduced into the gaming world. The current generation is indulged in hi technology virtual gaming world but people who were born during the 1980s will still remember the evergreen video games of 1990s. Today's gaming community is only familiar with hi tech gaming gadgets such as PlayStation and Xbox 360 but during the 1990s, the only video gaming device was a gadget called "Computer video game" and an ROM Cartridge was the key to the world of video game characters. Even today some of the 1990s video game characters are popular among us. Some of these evergreen characters had faced tough competition from the latest virtual gaming characters but they have survived because of their popularity among millions of people. People those who had played video games in the 1990s, still feel nostalgic when they play with these characters even today. Lets take a look at some of these evergreen video game characters and what makes them special.

1. Super Mario

This was my most favourite childhood video game character. Most of the video game addicts will agree that Super Mario is one of their favourite characters of all time. This character was introduced into the gaming world by the Japanese video game giants, Nintendo. Whoever had played this game will never forget the red capped hero, who jumps over obstacles and stomps turtles and beetles to rescue his princess from the fire breathing villain. How many times we had tried to get the mega mushroom to make Mario grow strong and millions of bricks were broken to get the gold coins. I think collecting coins and stars will never gets old for Mario. Even after more than two decades, this character is still going strong in the gaming world.

2. Duck Hunt

If today's shooting games are violent and full of gore, then the 1990s classic shooting game Duck Hunt was an exception. This game was also developed by Nintendo. The objective of this game was to shoot down ducks with a light gun and if the shot connects then a dog will retrieve the fallen duck but if we missed, then the dog will laugh at us. During my childhood, duck hunt was one of my favourite games but the dog was the most annoying character for me and during that time if I had a chance to choose the dog over the ducks, then I would had gladly shot down the dog. Even today sometimes when I see the smug face of my pet dog, it takes me back to my childhood days with the annoying dog besides me.

3. Contra

Contra was the most favourite action and strategy game for me and my friends during my childhood days. This game was developed by Konami. It is a double player game and each of the player is a commando, equipped with rifle and an unlimited supply of ammunition. They have to fight terrorists who are trying to destroy earth through 10 different exotic locations. During every stage, you can equip yourself with different weapons like laser guns, fire guns, machine guns, and cluster guns. More than once I had accidentally broken the wire of my joystick because of the sudden adrenaline rush I felt while playing this game during my childhood days.

4. Aladdin

During my childhood days I used to watch Disney's Aladdin cartoon and there was also a serial called "Alif Laila." Both of these programmes were based on people living in mythical lands with magical powers. As I was young I used to imagine about these places and people and during that period, Sega launched the Aladdin video game. For the first time, after playing for only 5 minutes, I became addicted to this game. This game contains all the exotic locations and characters of the Disney's Aladdin like princess Jasmine, Genie, Abu, Lago, and you can also have the magic carpet. You have to complete all the stages for the final confrontation with the wicked Grand Vizier Jafar.

5. Street Fighter II

Street fighter II was my favourite fighting game during my childhood because of its one-on-one raw fighting feature. This game was developed by Capcom. There were eight characters in this game and all of them from different parts of the world. What made this game special was the intimidating features of each character. Each game consists of three rounds and if you won two rounds, then you will face the next opponent and finally you will win the game when there are no opponents left. My favourite character was Ryu. There was also a character from India named Dhalsim. I still remember spending countless hours on this game just to beat Blanka. This game was responsible for starting a new fighting genre in the video games world.

6. Road Rash

One of the most important reason that I went to school while I was in the 6th standard was to play road rash during my computer periods. This is the first video game that introduced me to world of motorcycle racing. This game was developed by Sega. This is a smooth motorcycle racing game but the level of difficulty increases with each stage. The main feature of this game was that as you defeat opponent riders, you will receive money and with that you can buy new fast and stylish bikes. In this game, you will be arrested by the police for rash driving and accidents can also occur. If you don't have enough money to repair your wrecked bike or to pay fines to the police, then your game will be over at that point. Even today, when I remember about this game, it takes me back to my school days.

7. Circus Charlie

I had watched many circus shows during my childhood days but what will you do when you get a video game where you can make a clown named charlie to perform different circus moves? Simple, you will get addicted, that's what happened with me. I spent countless hours on this game to make charlie perform six different circus moves. In the first level, you have to ride on a lion and you also have to make the lion jump through flaming rings. In the next level you have to do a tightrope walking and in the subsequent level you have to survive inside a swimming pool with piranhas. Levels four and five involve, jumping from ball to ball and horse riding but the last and most difficult level is six, where you have to perform a trapeze. Circus Charlie was one of the most popular fun loving games of the 1990s which was developed by Konami.

8. Bomberman

This is one of the most tough strategic game I had ever played. The developers of this game are Hudson Soft. As the name signifies, in this game you play the role of a bomberman who has to kill enemies as well as eliminate obstacles. You have to place bombs in strategic positions to kill enemies otherwise you will be killed by your own bomb. There is a fixed time to complete each level and if you failed, the enemies will be multiplied. During the starting stage, you can only plant one bomb at a time but as the levels increase, you will get the ability to plant more three bombs and you can also explode the bomb with a timer. It is a classic video game and that is why it is still popular among many people.

9. Battle City Or Tank

When I first played this game I felt it boring but as the difficulty level increased in this game, I became more addicted to it. This game was developed by Namco. This is an action, double player game where you have to protect your military base from the enemies attack. This game consists of more than fifty stages and each stage has a different terrain and obstacles. During the initial stages you have to destroy brick walls but as they difficulty level increases you have to steer your tank through ice fields, bushes, and water pools. So many times I had become frustrated with this game because sometimes even my most strategic plans were foiled by the enemies and they succeeded in destroying the base.

10. Road Fighter

Apart from Road Rash, Road Fighter was one of the racing games I used to play during my childhood. This car racing game was developed by Konami. In this game, you have to steer your car through different racing tracks such as forests, grassy plains, and seashore. As you complete different stages, you will be rewarded with different cars like Benz, Nissan and Honda. The popularity of this game led the developers to release a sequel in 2010.

Most of these games are even played today and if you have any children in your home, then I would like to recommend these classic, evergreen, educational and non harmful games for them.

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