Back in the day, graphics were not nearly as good as they are today. However, gamers could still glimpse beautiful visuals thanks to CG cutscenes. They often felt like gifts given by the developers for a job well done progressing to a certain point in the story. They were also put in the front of the game before even reaching the main menu in order to hype gamers up for the experience ahead. Sony's original PlayStation had some notoriously epic introductory CG cutscenes.
As kids in the 1990s, they were the be-all and end-all of gaming. Older gamers dreamed of titles one day looking this good. Now, they often come off as silly and ridiculous since most modern video games look way better than these cutscenes that used to feel so special. The games listed below still stand out for how absurd their introductory cinematics were. In a way, they still accomplish their job of bringing gamers joy and getting them excited to play the game ahead, only with a nostalgia flair instead of a glimpse at the wild future.
7 Syphon Filter 2
Syphon Filter was one of the few series on the original PlayStation with an involved story with voice acting and detailed cinematics. The first sequel to this action game opens with a long cutscene detailing where the characters are and introducing a new conflict.
Everything starts off calmly before hero Gabe Logan has to spring into action. What follows is a montage of him jumping and shooting using tactics that are most certainly is not a part of any modern military training. There's also a scene where orders a grunt named Ramirez, which will make anybody who played 2009's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 laugh.
6 Tomb Raider
The introduction to the debut Tomb Raider game starts normally enough. In fact, for 1996 it shows a lot of restraint and is more about dialogue and exposition than showing off flashy effects. Then, it cuts to Laura Croft climbing a snowy mountain in Peru. It is extremely cold, yet she is still wearing her iconic shorts.
Only a poncho is keeping her warm. The hero opens up an ancient door and her companion is attacked by wild wolves. Laura then shoots them but it is too late to save her friend. The long sequence of her taking out these K-9s certainly shows the changing standards in media. A modern game probably wouldn't dwell too long on her killing dogs, even if they were vicious toward her.
5 Tekken 2
Fighting games often had the best CG intros. They spent the first couple of minutes after booting up a game quickly introducing the player to all the characters on the roster. Tekken 2 runs so quickly through the montage of wildly different scenes and actions that it is almost too much to keep track of.
One character is driving through the streets on a motorcycle while another jumps through a window and points his gun at the screen. It is all topped off with Heihachi looking scary and menacing. All of these images are accompanied by a melodramatic piece of music.
4 Chrono Cross
Unlike a lot of the other cinematics on this list, Chrono Cross's CG intro is a real work of art. The scene starts off with some quotes written on the screen before showcasing a lot of out-of-context imagery that will soon make more sense as players go through the story.
Better than the actual imagery is the music, which is arguably far and beyond anything else the PlayStation 1 produced, at least in terms of sheer audio quality. It reminds one of the Kingdom Hearts intros, only with a piece of music without singing rather than a kitschy pop song.
3 Soul Edge
For those who don't know, Soul Edge is the first game in the series fans know better as Soulcalibur. Its introductory cinematic is not unlike other fighting game CG cutscenes, but it manages to go a level above the others with its quick cuts and rocking music.
It opens with a small monolog before montaging through the characters while an energetic pop-punk tune plays. It might be extremely incongruous with the game's aesthetic, but it certainly accomplishes getting players excited to jump into this classic fighting game.
2 Parasite Eve
Parasite Eve is a unique game for taking a mixture of survival horror and RPGs and putting it in a modern-day New York City setting. The opening CG montage reflects this and perfectly sets gamers up for the sci-fi adventure to come. Players get glimpses of strange monsters and intense setpieces.
The fun isn't done here, however. After actually starting the story mode and doing a small bit of gameplay, players are treated to a brutal display of incendiary violence as the antagonist reveals itself by setting an opera house ablaze. The visuals are shocking even by today's standards.
1 Ehrgeiz
Ehrgeiz would have just been another fighting game if it weren't for the inclusion of Final Fantasy characters and its unique dungeon-crawler mode. The game also has some unique characters who barely feel like they belong in gaming let alone together in an ensemble.
Their quirkiness is on full display in the introductory cutscene. There is a cop with a Yo-yo, a hungry man in a business suit, a shirtless vigilante, and a serene-looking young dude by a tree with a cybernetic leg. And the game's subtitle is "God bless the ring" for some reason.