The best retro video games to play with kids prove great game design is timeless: these classics still delight decades later, and they’re perfect for family gaming.
Sharing the games of your childhood with your kids is one of parenting’s great joys, and the best retro games hold up remarkably well. These are the ones that bridge the generations.
Best Retro Video Games To Play With Kids Without the Stress
Here’s my shortlist. Each one earns its place for a different reason, so read the notes and pick your favourite.
Mario Kart (any version)
The eternal family game: simple enough for a five-year-old with smart steering, deep enough for adults to compete properly. Every Nintendo console has a great version; the Switch’s Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the current peak. Four-player split-screen chaos remains unmatched: the blue shell is still the great equaliser.
I learned this through trial and error so you don’t have to.
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga
Funny, forgiving and cooperative: the LEGO games are perfect for kids because you can’t really lose, and perfect for parents because the humour works on two levels. Drop-in co-op means a second player can join anytime. A masterclass in family game design.
It sounds fussy, but it takes seconds and the payoff is real.
Related reading: our take on video games for casual players.
Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario World
The 2D Mario classics (on Nintendo Switch Online) teach game fundamentals beautifully: run, jump, explore. They’re challenging but fair, and kids take to them instantly. Watching a child discover a secret exit for the first time is pure magic.
Once this becomes habit, you’ll do it without thinking and wonder why you ever did it differently.
Tetris
The perfect game is 40 years old: simple, endless, and weirdly calming. Tetris Effect (the modern version) is gorgeous, but any Tetris works. Kids grasp it immediately, and it’s genuinely good for spatial thinking. A timeless ten-minute game.
Don’t overthink it: the method is forgiving as long as you respect this part.
Pokémon (classic generations)
The Game Boy classics (via Nintendo Switch Online or remakes) are ideal first RPGs: collecting, gentle battling, reading practice disguised as fun. Kids adore the creature collecting; parents appreciate the turn-based calm. Start with Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee for the most accessible entry.
This is where patience pays off. Rush it and you’ll notice the shortcut.
Overcooked (modern retro spirit)
Not strictly retro, but it has the retro party-game soul: cooperative cooking chaos that’s hilarious with kids. Simple controls, escalating madness, and the kind of shouting-laughing that defines family game night. Play the first one: it’s often on sale for under £10.
People underestimate this step because it looks simple. It looks simple because it works.
Doing This in Britain
Before you start, here’s what’s worth knowing about doing this on this side of the Atlantic.
CEX is brilliant for retro games and consoles: affordable, tested, and with a warranty. Charity shops occasionally yield incredible finds too.
If you want the official word, MoneySavingExpert covers it well.
UK age ratings (PEGI) apply to retro re-releases: most picks above are PEGI 3 or 7, making them safe choices.
A Few Things That Genuinely Help
Think of these as the finishing touches. Small effort, noticeable difference.
- Nintendo Switch Online (£17.99/year) includes dozens of NES, SNES and Game Boy classics: the cheapest retro library in gaming. No reason not to do this every time.
- Take turns and let kids win sometimes: the goal is fun together, not demonstrating your 1994 skills. It takes seconds and saves headaches.
- Set time limits kindly: retro games are ‘one more go’ machines. Agree the limit before you start. Obvious once you know it, easy to miss until then.
- Explain the old graphics with pride: ‘this was cutting edge when I was your age’ is a rite of passage. Small habit, big payoff.
Related reading: our take on plan a games night for mixed ages.
Questions I Hear All the Time
Short answers to the questions I’m asked most often about this.
Are old games too hard for modern kids?
Some are (old games were brutal), but the picks above are chosen for accessibility. Modern re-releases often add save states and rewind features that remove the frustration.
What’s the cheapest way to play retro games?
Nintendo Switch Online’s classic libraries, or free emulation of games you own physically. A Raspberry Pi-based retro setup is a fun project for technically inclined parents.
In a Nutshell
Here’s everything above boiled down to the bits that matter most.
- Mario Kart (any version) — The eternal family game: simple enough for a five-year-old with smart steering, deep enough…
- LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga — Funny, forgiving and cooperative: the LEGO games are perfect for kids because you can’t…
- Super Mario Bros. 3 / Super Mario World — The 2D Mario classics (on Nintendo Switch Online) teach game fundamentals beautifully: run, jump,…
- Tetris — The perfect game is 40 years old: simple, endless, and weirdly calming. Tetris Effect…
- Pokémon (classic generations) — The Game Boy classics (via Nintendo Switch Online or remakes) are ideal first RPGs:…
- Overcooked (modern retro spirit) — Not strictly retro, but it has the retro party-game soul: cooperative cooking chaos that’s…
The Bottom Line
Right, the short version of everything above:
Retro gaming with kids is a joy: Mario Kart’s chaos, LEGO’s humour, Tetris’s purity. The classics earned their status, and sharing them creates the kind of memories both generations keep. Dust off the old favourites: they’re better than you remember, and your kids are about to find out why.
So that’s best retro video games to play with kids, demystified. It’s one of those things that seems complicated until you’ve done it once, and then you wonder what all the fuss was about.
Related reading: our take on free mobile games with no ads.
If you want the official word, BBC iPlayer covers it well.
