No medium dates as quickly as computer games. Because of advances in technology, graphics and interfaces are always improving; so even if there isn't a revolution in gameplay, there's a continuous evolution in everything else. That's why developers are able to create so many successful sequels: they keep the elements that work while jettisoning all of the original game's flaws. But one thing that can't be improved upon is a player's first good experience with a genre. For example, Half-Life is superior to Doom in every way except one: Doom came first. Playing Half-Life for the first time simply didn't compare to the first (and second and third) time I played Doom. Games generally get better, but because the basic gameplay doesn't drastically change, the best games aren't necessarily the best gaming experiences.

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Turn-Based Strategy: Civilization (1991)

Almost superseded by Master Of Orion (1994)

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Real-Time Strategy: Dune 2 (1992)

Almost superseded by Command and Conquer (1995), Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness (1995), Homeworld (1999), Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds (2001)

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First Person Shooters: Doom (1993)

Almost superseded by Star Wars: Dark Forces (1995), Star Wars: Jedi Knight (1997), Realms of the Haunting (1997), Half-Life (1998)

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Squad-Based Action: Syndicate (1993)

Almost superseded by Jagged Alliance (1994), X-Com: UFO Defense (1994)

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Adventure: Sam and Max Hit the Road (1993)

Almost superseded by Grim Fandango (1998)

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Simulation: Magic Carpet (1994)

Almost superseded by Star Wars: TIE Fighter (1994)

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Builder: SimCity 2000 (1993)

Almost superseded by Pharaoh (1999), Zeus (2002)

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RPGs: Might and Magic 4 (1992)

Almost superseded by Ultima Underworld (1992), Might and Magic 6 (1998), Baldur's Gate 2 (2000), Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind (2002)

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Action-Adventure: Alone in the Dark (1992)

Almost superseded by Ultima 8: Pagan (1994), Crusader: No Remorse (1995)

Superseded by Twinsen's Odyssey (1997)

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Nostalgia can be a tricky thing, making a game better in retrospect than it really was. But this isn't really about the games themselves, so much as the feelings I had when I played them. And it doesn't take a replay to tell me that some older games I enjoyed were nothing more than impressively-rendered slide shows (Labyrinth of Time, Myst) or clunky strategy games (Alien Legacy, Reunion).

On the other hand, unlike movies, games are difficult to revisit even if you want to, due to unavailability or hardware issues. That means I have to rely on my fading memory to conjure up my original feelings about them. As the list below proves, this is as far from movies as a medium can get in terms of preserving the past.