3 great PSP/PS1 games made even better when played on the PSVita via Adrenaline – A look at some older games to play this holiday season on your trusty portable!
The Christmas season is almost with us and for some, it brings long road trips and somewhat boring visits to relatives. As a result, it’s a good idea to have something cool to play and in this article, we’ll be looking at a couple of great PSP/PS1 games made even better when played on the PSVita!
Introduction
Before you questioning your sanity, the reason behind choosing to speak about PSP/PS1 games is because of two things. One of these is because these platforms have more great games that target Western audiences and the other is simply because I experienced the game library of these consoles more than that of the PSVita.
Undoubtedly, the recommended software to play these games on is Adrenaline by TheFlow.
1. Chrono Trigger (PS1)
From the half a dozen RPGs that I have played, the best one of them is, without a single doubt, Chrono Trigger. Chrono Trigger, by Square, was originally released by Square in 1995 for the SNES but a somewhat enhanced version was released for the PlayStation 1 in 1999 along with other releases further down the line.
In this great RPG, you play as a couple of adventurers trying to save the world from being reduced to rubble by Lavos. In order to stop Lavos, you have to traverse between a couple of different time periods while defeating enemies and becoming more powerful. You also meet a couple of characters which you could add to your party.
Other than simply being a great way to pass time, it also has an enticing story and very nice scenery so it’s recommended you give it a go! By playing it via Adrenaline on the PSVita, you get access to screen filters (which make it look nicer) and save states (which you’ll MOST CERTAINLY NEED) that make the experience more enjoyable.
Recommended for: People who love RPGs and want to spend most of their Christmas season focused on one game. Make sure you download a walkthrough if you won’t have internet access because it’s pretty easy to get stuck at times!
2. God Of War: Ghost Of Sparta (PSP)
The God Of War series doesn’t require much introduction but if you like Ancient Greek scenery, action-packed gameplay and great games, then you should surely check it out.
God Of War: Ghost of Sparta is a game that could never really bore you since action is almost non-stop and the PSP version runs at a really good framerate while offering decent visuals.
On the PSVita, it’s even better because you could assign the right analogue stick to the L/R triggers to make evading enemies easier.
Recommended for: Those who like action-packed gameplay and/or have never played a God Of War game before. If you already played this one, you could always opt for God Of War Collection which is a port of GoW I and II (PS2 games) to the Vita!
3. Burnout Legends (PSP)
Do you like games in which you do a lot of racing, escape cops and ram other cars to oblivion? If so, Burnout Legends is a game that you should CERTAINLY play more than once! Originally released in 2005, Burnout Legends is a game that gives you the ability to wreak havoc just for fun while running at a great frame rate and offering a decent selection of cars.
Other than simply having good gameplay mechanics, it also has a decent amount of replay-ability since it’s unlikely that you get gold medals in every race on the first go. By earning more gold medals and getting better scores, you unlock even more cars which are even better at creating chaos (yes, there are game modes that REQUIRE you to cause chaos to win) so you can have even more fun!
As this game is an early PSP title, it does suffer a bit in the graphics department and as a result, Adrenaline greatly improves your experience thanks to the Advanced AA filter which reduces the amount of protruding jagged edges.
Recommended for: Players who want to play a racing game on the PSVita, as there aren’t many native ones available, that comes with twist. Have fun wrecking cars and performing signature takedowns like “Gone Fishin'” 😉
Conclusion
If you thought your PSVita is useless, think again because there are many more games out there that are a joy to play with physical controls and the OLED screen found on 1k models!
Just remember to take an extra proprietary PSVita cable with you if you own a PSVita 1k because Sony thought it was funny to use a weird cable for the initial version….
Correct me if I’m wrong…
One thing that I found while running Adrenaline is the fact all of the old psp emulators run better and faster than when running on an original pspgo. For example, the gameboy advance emulators run games at full frame rates with no slowdown. Since the old psp gba emulators have been in development for years, they have near perfect emulation as well. Compared to the newer psvita gba emulators, the psp ones running through Adrenaline are a better experience for me. And SNES emulators are the same story.
first!
I am the master of the univars!!!!11!
Chrono Trigger PS1? Is the worst version ever made. loading times between battles are insane.
Better usa an emulator and play the SNES version
Agreed – the loading times to pull up the party menu kill me every time.
RetroArch’s SNES9X_2005 runs Chrono Trigger very well on Enso. I would definitely recommend that over the PS1 port.
well said
The latest Adrenaline has a fast forward function by pressing select+L…it’s not the ideal way to play the game but it does somewhat alleviate those dreaded loading times. It’s worth playing this version over the Snes version imo just for the anime cutscenes however, the DS version will always be the definitive version with it having the cutscenes minus the load times
Agreed, DS version is the best.
There has been a “Fast loading disc” option on psp/vita psx emu for years!
Exactly. Best version is on DS
GOW ghost of sparta seems to support the right analogue stick as well without plugins on adrenaline for moving around
GoW on adrenaline is full of tearing,anyone knows how to get rid of it?
You want to stay away from those snes/nes to ps1 ports.
Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy 1-6, tactics ogre, i think there’s more but can’t remember,.. The load time/lag is horrific..
One VERY important rpg for vita/psp is final fantasy tactics BUT YOU NEED THIS PATCH TO REMOVE SLOWDOWN
https://www.romhacking.net/hacks/2965/
Gracias por el interesante aporte Aurora.
Chrono Trigger really?? I think DS version is the better one, no loading times, cleaner , etc. The PS1 unless someone hacked is obnoxiously bloated with loading, just as bad as FFVI, sadly other great game ruined by the engine used to put it on the PS1.
no Thanks. better play it on my switch. And seriously, the other games…just like , I don’t know, but this article is very pointless…
For those who want to costumize the soundtrack of Burnout Legends, here’s BurnTag2, used back in the days to edit the tags of the soundtrack of the game:
https://www.mediafire.com/file/yq556yptwjhuo1b/BurnTag2.rar/file
If you want to know a little more about BurnTag2, do a little google search for the filename.
BTW: this little program does not break any copyright, it is a tool made by a fan back in the days.