Time travel has always been a popular theme in video games. Last year’s winner of The Game Awards was the time-loop game death loop. One of the most anticipated games is a remake of the groundbreaking time travel classic The Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. That game has unfortunately been indefinitely delayed, but time travel remains popular in gaming.
From time loops to time travel, there have been plenty of games to use temporary themes. This can be in simple level themes or form the basis for the story of the game and some games even allow time to take into account the game mechanics. All the best games that contain time in important ways have been ranked by the review aggregator Metacritic.
10 Fire Emblem Awakening (2013) – 92
Fire Emblem Awakening was the breakthrough success of fire emblem. The game was a huge hit with critics and fans alike and blew up the series in popularity. Part of this was the unique way it used time travel. The game’s story originally seemed simple until Lucina, the male protagonist of Chrom’s child from the future, arrived in the present.
The game’s permadeath-based strategy system was as fun as ever, but time travel was actually used to get new units instead of saving old ones. Depending on which characters in your army spent time together, players would get different stats for that couple’s child in the future. This allowed players to create relationships between their party members with few canon restrictions.
9 Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2003) – 92
An HD remake was recently announced for The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time but sadly, that project has now been indefinitely delayed, which makes sense with the game’s time theme. The game allowed new manipulation of time through its mechanics. The titular prince uses an artifact called the Dagger of Time to rewind time and fix mistakes.
The prince can also use the dagger to fight and freeze enemies in time. The enemies themselves are also temporary and are summoned by the titular Sands of Time. Aside from the time-based mechanics, the game promoted parkour-based platforming in a major city, and the mechanics in this game would later provide the similar inspiration. Assassin Creed game series.
8 Sonic CD (2011) – 93
In the 90s there were two attempts to make the sequel to Sonic the hedgehog. Eventually one became Sonic the Hedgehog 2 and the other became Sonic CD. Sonic CD has always been the odd one out among the classic Sonics, with oddly enough the iOS port being the best version. Part of that strangeness is due to the game’s focus on the mechanics of time travel.
All levels have four different time periods to explore. There is the past, the present, a bad future and a good future; by running past the time travel boards as fast as possible, Sonic can reach these areas and even turn the future from bad to good. Sonic will feature more time travel in the future, but this game reached its peak for many fans.
7 God of War II (2007) – 93
Eventually, Kratos would defeat Zeus, but players who faced Zeus in the beginning, God of War II were perhaps skeptical of the Spartan’s chances. Zeus completely knocks Kratos down where he stands, and the rest of the game is a journey through time to avert his death. Kratos would eventually come into conflict with the Fates and the god of time himself to save himself in this sequel.
Using the Loom of Fate is less of a gameplay feature and more of a story feature. This allows Kratos to travel to many exciting locations during the game. This includes Zeus’ famous war with the titans millennia before Kratos was born. There are a few timed themed puzzles, but this time travel adventure is more just a journey through Greek mythology.
6 Day of the Tentacle (1993) – 93
Day of the tentacle is a classic 90s LucasArts adventure game. It is the sequel to Maniac mansion but has a very different setup than that game. Instead of a large group of selectable teens, the player controls three specific teens. Each of these characters is trapped in a different period of history.
Of the three protagonists, only the returning Bernard remains in the present; Hoagie and Lavern are sent 200 years into the past and present respectively. However, the main character can switch between them at any time, leading to many interesting puzzles about causality. The game received high praise for its puzzles and sense of humor.
5 Braid (2008) – 93
braid was one of the first indie darling video games. There is a lot of discussion about the themes of braid and what it really means. One thing that’s much less up for debate is Braid’s central mechanic. The main character, Tim, can rewind time to undo his mistakes, but the temporary shenanigans don’t just end there.
Future levels will introduce more temporal mechanics, such as objects unaffected by time travel. Another level introduced a clone that spawns when time travel is activated and the ending famously reverses the whole game to change the plot. This simple application of time travel was enough for critics to mention: braid one of the best games of all time.
4 Chrono series (1995 and 2000) – 94
The chrono series are very closely associated with time travel. The two RPGs are very different from each other, but given their shared focus on time, they are best discussed together. chrono cross ranked higher on Metacritic, but doesn’t actually contain time travel. While it’s an incredibly ambitious Playstation 1 game, it’s mostly about alternate universes instead.
The original Chrono trigger characterizes the theme of time travel more freely. Characters can travel freely between eras and discover new facts about world history; however, both games are united in the end goal of stopping an apocalyptic force. Both classics are available on modern platforms, so their legacy lives on.
3 Bioshock Infinite (2013) – 94
Bioshock Infinite is one of the Tens’ most ambitious games. It was juggling a lot of heavy philosophical and philosophical themes in addition to tackling time travel. In it, the main female lead, Elizabeth, can manipulate the space-time continuum at her will.
This manipulation can take the form of simple teleportation to more complex time travel. Alternate universes are also explored through different versions of the main character and Elizabeth. In fact, the plot twist of the game revolves heavily around an alternate form of the main city created by time travel. Some may find it complicated, but Bioshock Infinite takes time in different ways.
2 The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (2000) – 95
For many fans, Majora’s mask is the best Zelda game. This is due to its intimate relationship with time. The entire game world is on a timer and events take place based on what time it is. This can be stressful if not for the fact that The Legend of Zelda hero Link can manipulate time to make it easier.
The above time activities take place within a three day time loop. Link can manipulate this loop by playing the Ocarina of Time. It allows him to speed up, slow down, freeze and restart the time loop. Using this extraordinary ability feels great, as it allows the player to gain control over a mostly unavoidable system in time.
1 The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998) – 99
Naturally, Majora’s mask was not the first Zelda game with time manipulation. Ocarina of Time often called the best game of its time, it also made it possible to manipulate time. However, this does not happen through the titular instrument, but through the Temple of Time area in Hyrule Castle Town. By sheathing the Master Sword, Link can travel between past and future.
The centerpiece of the game throws a big twist in the form of the seven-year time jump; Link is no longer a child, but now an adult adventurer. This is shocking, but Link can travel back in time easily enough and the end of the game gives him back his lost youth. However, there are still many things to do when traveling through time, such as unlocking the Spirit and Shadow temples. OcarinaIts clever use of time earned it the accolades it has been receiving for decades.
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