We’ve finally reached the year 2022. Most of us have been playing video games since the 80s, and if you told me back then that the video game industry would be as big as it is today, I would not have believed it. And as we take a look back at the most important video game anniversaries that will be celebrated this year, we can’t help to see the following games and franchises without feeling a bit of nostalgia in our hearts and souls.

Most of these anniversaries are from the North American release dates, but there are also some Japanese releases included. These are not all of the anniversaries coming this year, but we consider that they are the most important ones.

Games that turn 40 years

• Ms. Pac-Man (January)
• Haunted House (February)
• Dig Dug (April)
• Pitfall (April)
• Yar’s Revenge (May)
• CollecoVision console (August)
• Donkey Kong Jr. (Japan) (Aug 17)
• Burger Time (Aug 25)
• Pole Position (September)

• Q*Bert (October)
• Super Pac-Man (October)
• Microsoft Flight Simulator 1.0 (November)
• Atari 5200 console (November)
• Burger Time (November)
• Tron: Arcade Game
• Joust

Games that turn 35 years

• Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (Japan) (January 14)
• Contra (Japan) (February 20)
• R-Type (Japan) (May 15)
• Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards (July 5)
• Metal Gear (Japan) (July 7)
• Rad Racer (Japan) (August 7)
• Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest (Japan) (August 28)
• Street Fighter (Japan) (August 30)
• Maniac Mansion (October 5)

• Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!! (October 18)
• Mega Man (Japan) (December 17)
• Final Fantasy (Japan) (December 18)
• Phantasy Star (Japan) (December 20)
• Head Over Heels
• Sid Meier’s Pirates
• Double Dragon
• Top Gun

Games that turn 30 years

• Romancing SaGa (January 28)
• Bucky O’Hare (January 31)
• Contra III: The Alien Wars (February 28)
• Shining Force (March 20)
• Kid Chameleon (March)
• Last Resort (April 24)
• Kirby’s Dream Land (Japan) (April 27)
• Wolfenstein 3D (May 5)
• Ninja Commando (May 29)

• Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (July 15)
• Splatterhouse II (August 3)
• Super Mario Kart (Japan) (August 27)
• Axelay (September 11)
• Art of Fighting (September 24)
• Dragon Quest V (September 27)
• Bionic Commando (September)
• Contra Force (September)
• Mortal Kombat (October 8)
• Night Trap (October 15)
• Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (October 21)
• Alone in the Dark (November 14)
• The Magical Quest Starring Mickey Mouse (November 20)
• Yoshi’s Cookie (Japan) (November 21)
• Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (Japan) (November 21)
• Mega Man 5 (Japan) (December 4)
• Fatal Fury (December 10)
• Dune II (December)

Games that turn 25 years

• Diablo (January 3)
• Final Fantasy VII (Japan) (January 31)
• Mario Kart 64 (US) (February 10)
• Independence Day (February 28)
• Mega Man 8 (US) (February 28)
• Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (March 4)
• Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (Japan) (March 20)
• Need for Speed II (March 31)
• Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter (April 29)
• Star Fox 64 (Japan) (April 27)
• Carmageddon (June 13)
• Final Fantasy Tactics (Japan) (June 20)
• The King of Fighter ‘97 (July 28)
• Tetrisphere (August 11)

• GoldenEye 007 (August 25)
• Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee (September 18)
• Postal (September 24)
• Ultima Online (September 24)
• Fallout (October 10)
• Age of Empires (October 15)
• Mortal Kombat 4 (October 15)
• Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back (October 31)
• The Curse of Monkey Island (November 11)
• Blade Runner (November 14)
• Tomb Raider II (November 21)
• Diddy Kong Racing (Japan) (November 21)
• Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (November 27)
• Grand Theft Auto (EU) (November 28)
• Quake II (December 9)
• Mega Man Legends (Japan) (December 18)
• Yoshi’s Story (Japan) (December 21)
• Gran Turismo (Japan) (December 23)

Games that turn 20 years

• Rez (January 7)
• Parappa the Rapper (January 23)
• Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World (February 9)
• Star Wars: Racer Revenge (February 11)
• Jet Set Radio Future (February 22)
• Pac-Man World (February 24)
• Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter (March 10)
• Virtua Fighter 4 (March 17)
• Resident Evil Remake (Japan) (March 20)
• Freedom Force (March 26)
• Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast (March 26)
• Kingdom Hearts (Japan) (March 28)
• Spider-Man: The Movie (April 15)
• The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (May 1)
• Final Fantasy XI: Online (Japan) (May 16)
• Medal of Honor: Frontline (May 29)
• Mega Man Battle Network 2 (June 12)
• Neverwinter Nights (June 16)
• Shantae (June 22)
• Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (July 3)
• Super Monkey Ball 2 (August 25)
• Super Mario Sunshine (August 20)
• SOCOM: US Navi SEALs (August 27)

• Battlefield 1942 (September 10)
• Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance (September 16)
• Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex (September 17)
• Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus (September 23)
• Tekken 4 (September 23)
• Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi’s Island (September 24)
• TimeSplitters 2 (October 8)
• Rollercoaster Tycoon 2 (October 15)
• Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (October 27)
• Ratchet & Clank (November 4)
• Resident Evil 0 (November 12)
• Metroid Prime (November 15)
• Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell (November 18)
• Pokemon Ruby / Sapphire (Japan) (November 21)
• Dark Chronicle/Dark Cloud 2 (Japan) (November 28)
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon (December 1)
• Dragon Ball Z: Budokai (December 3)
• Star Wars: Bounty Hunter (December 7)
• The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (December 13)

Games that turn 15 years

• World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade (January 16)
• Hotel Dusk: Room 215 (January 22)
• God of War II (March 13)
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (March 20)
• Guitar Hero II (April 3)
• Super Paper Mario (April 9)
• Forza Motorsport 2 (May 29)
• Ninja Gaiden Sigma (June 14)
• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (June 23)
• The World Ends With You (July 27)
• BioShock (August 21)

• Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (August 27)
• Halo 3 (September 25)
• Portal (October 10)
• Half-Life: Episode Two (October 10)
• Puzzle Quest (October 10)
• Super Mario Galaxy (November 1)
• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (November 5)
• Crysis (November 13)
• Rock Band (November 20)
• Mass Effect (November 20)
• Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (November 20)

Games that turn 10 years

• Resident Evil: Revelations (February 7)
• Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games (February 14)
• Twisted Metal (February 14)
• PlayStation Vita (February 15)
• Dear Esther (February 15)
• Asura’s Wrath (February 21)
• WipeOut 2048 (February 22)
• SSX (February 28)
• Mass Effect 3 (March 6)
• Street Fighter X Tekken (March 6)
• Journey (March 13)
• Resident Evil: Welcome to Racoon City (March 20)
• Sine Mora (March 21)
• Kid Icarus: Uprising (March 23)
• Xenoblade Chronicles (April 6)
• Skullgirls (April 10)
• Fez (April 10)
• The Walking Dead: A Telltale Series (April 25)
• Diablo III (May 15)
• Max Payne 3 (May 15)
• Gravity Rush (June 12)

• Lollipop Chainsaw (June 12)
• Spelunky (July 4)
• Darksiders II (August 14)
• The Last Story (August 14)
• Sleeping Dogs (August 14)
• New Super Mario Bros. 2 (August 19)
• Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (August 21)
• Borderlands 2 (Septeber 18)
• Pokémon Black and White 2 (October 7)
• Dishonored (October 9)
• XCOM: Enemy Unknown (October 9)
• Forza Horizon (October 23)
• Assassin’s Creed III (October 30)
• Halo 4 (November 6)
• Wii U console (November 18)
• New Super Mario Bros. U (November 18)
• ZombiU (November 18)
• PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (November 20)
• Hitman: Absolution (November 20)
• Far Cry 3 (December 4)

How many of these games have you played?

Remember that we have a Store section where you can find thousands of retro games, consoles, and accessories for sale.