Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection

Looking at the whole package, Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection is the epitome of a release that's carried solely by nostalgia. If you happened to love the show or any of the games in this collection in younger years, there's certainly a case to be made for picking this one up just to take a trip down memory lane and remind yourself of the simpler times. Yet when you take that aspect away, you're left with a weird amalgamation of mid-tier games that exemplify many of the game design shortcomings and limitations of this era of the gaming industry.At their worst, these games are janky, difficult to control, and relatively thin when it comes to meaningful content. At their best, they're inoffensive and passable distractions that you'll probably never feel like playing again after you put them down. There are much worse games out there, but Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection makes an unconvincing case for why it's worth both your time and money. It's a cool novelty and I think fans of the original show or games will get a bit more out of it, but this isn't something that I can recommend as something you ought to pick up. If you must, I'd suggest you at least wait for a sale.

Those who want to relive some games from their childhood or play some classic Rugrats titles get a snazzy collection with one standout (Castle Capers) and several decent titles.

Such is the nature of these old licensed games; a lot of them were dull and bad, but some of them might be gems that surprise you, or at the very least satisfy the need of a fan to play something akin to the show that honors the source material quite well.

Rugrats, Rugrats, and more Rugrats in your Rugrats

The Rugrats Retro Rewind Collection is a novelty at best. The games included are nothing special and the extras are disappointing to say the least.

Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection is a decent compilation that primarily serves as a nostalgia trip, bringing together a diverse collection of 32-bit and handheld games with few changes beyond quality-of-life improvements. Its real value lies in the ability to easily revisit titles that are hard to find today. The collection is uneven, with Search for Reptar being the clear standout and the rest of the games remaining simple and somewhat limited experiences.

Despite some filler Game Boy titles bulking up the collection, it's fair to say that this Nickelodeon time capsule is a joy to behold. Search for Reptar is a cult classic for a reason and carries the collection. But there are also little nuggets of excellence to be found within the other baby-fueled titles. Fair warning, the controls are clunky, the camera is cumbersome, and the gameplay is often shallow. But despite it all, these games are a lot of fun, and it's a collection I feel blessed to have access to on modern systems

Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection is a decent package of Rugrats games, that haven't aged that well. Especially the Game Boy games were really basic and mostly annoying, but there's some fun to be had with the PlayStation versions. Even so, without nostalgia this collection is a hard sell for new gamers.

It feels like a collection of old, unpolished games that will specifically appeal to 30-somethings who haven’t thought about Rugrats for 20 years because that’s exactly what it’s supposed to be.

Rugrats: Retro Rewind Collection brings together seven games, with about 2 games worth playing included. Even if you're a long-time fan, you'd be better off tracking down the originals.