Super Mario revealed as the all-time favourite nostalgic game

• Mecca Games has revealed the most popular nostalgic games across the UK
• ‘Retro games online’ have seen a 55% increase in search trends
• Mecca Games spoke to a gaming enthusiast about why nostalgic gaming is so popular

Streaming service Spotify recently launched a feature where users can play a musical version of the nostalgic game ‘Snake’ whilst using the platform. The launch of the new feature has seen searches for ‘play snake’ increase by a significant 400%[1].

It’s no secret that games made in the 80’s and 90’s have had a huge cultural impact across the world, with films such as The Super Mario’s Bro Movie (2023) and Sonic The Hedgehog (2020) seeing a huge combined box office total of £1.6 billion.

However, fans of the nostalgic games can be extremely protective when it comes to their favourite characters. Back in 2020, the film Sonic The Hedgehog received numerous amounts of backlash[2] with viewers labelling the CGI character as “creepy” and “upsetting”.

In response to the popular on-going trend, Mecca Games has conducted a survey[3] to reveal the most popular nostalgic games across the UK.

Brits love Super Mario

The data revealed that the UK’s favourite nostalgic games are:

• Super Mario (29%)
• Sonic The Hedgehog (26%)
• Tetris (26%)
• Pacman (25%)
• Space Invaders (22%)

Whilst characters Mario and Sonic remain a firm favourite amongst Brits, surprisingly, the data revealed that only 14% of Brits voted Snake as their favourite nostalgic game.

The study also showed that games such as Spyro (7%), Legend of Zelda (7%) and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater (6%) weren’t very popular amongst past players.

When looking into why Brits have such a love for playing nostalgic games, gaming enthusiast James, 42, from Manchester comments:

“There’s something special about playing games that you grew up with. It brings a special sense of nostalgia and simplicity that you can’t get from modern day games.

I also like to play the games with my children to show them the difference between what we played when I was younger, in comparison to the games they play with now. However, I’m not sure they enjoy the old-school graphics compared to the technology involved with the games they’re currently playing!”