Best free "demake" games

A demake is when a modern video game is reimagined as if it had been released decades earlier, on older hardware with strict limitations. Instead of polishing the visuals or expanding the mechanics, like a remake would, a demake strips them down—textures become chunky, polygons blocky, music more chiptune than orchestral. It’s an artistic exercise in asking “what if this cutting-edge title had come out on the NES, the PlayStation, or even in the arcades of the ’80s?” Fans often create them as tributes, and the charm lies in seeing how something vast and technically complex translates into the language of older gaming eras. It’s not just nostalgia; it’s a playful exploration of how design adapts when technology is dialed back.