Top 10 best PSone games to get for your PlayStation Vita

They've been a long (long, long) time coming, but PSone Classics are finally available to play on your Vita.

That's right: you can now download a chunky slice of the original PlayStation's impressive back catalogue to your memory card to play to your heart's content.

Sony is promising to add more titles to the already 100-odd-strong Classics range, so picking out the true 'classics' is quite a daunting task.

Don't worry, though, your pals here at Pocket Gamer have got you covered with another world-renowned Top 10 list. Here we go...

Metal Gear Solid
By Konami

There's a specially reserved circle of Hell for people who haven't completed Metal Gear Solid - or to give it its full title: Metal Gear Solid: The Most Important Video Game Ever Made™.

How could you not have played one of the greatest triumphs of game design, which perfectly blends unique storytelling with high-stakes action and (to this day) some of the best stealth mechanics?

Anyway, if you haven't played Hideo Kojima's masterpiece, stop being a chump and get it immediately.

Bishi Bashi Special
By Konami

A collection of bizarre mini-games straight out of the Japanese arcades, Bishi Bashi can be summed up by just one of its activities: Uncle Launcher.

In Uncle Launcher, you fire half-naked, super-buff, super-tanned guys at a platform on a moving statue.

Sure, it loses something on Vita by not giving you the chance to sample the chaotic multiplayer mode, but the single-player experience is worth the price of entry alone.

Final Fantasy IX
By Square Enix

Final Fantasy VII looks rubbish now - all angular character models and low-rent effects.

Final Fantasy VIII, meanwhile, is more attractive, but it's a divisive JRPG, and the load times are unbearably long.

Final Fantasy IX it is, then. Its back-to-basics story setup, straightforward gameplay, and bold, bright aesthetic should do just fine.

Street Fighter Alpha 2
By Capcom

Hailed by many as the very best instalment in the Street Fighter series, Alpha 2 augments the slightly paltry roster of the original Alpha with some great new characters (including the first appearance of Sakura).

The fighting is intense; the strategies you can employ seem limitless; and the artwork and animation are strikingly detailed.

Ridge Racer Type 4
By Namco Bandai

Don't let the cool colour palette and clean, restrained design fool you: Ridge Racer Type 4 still serves up the traditional Ridge Racer experience, i.e. ridiculous oversteering around hairpin bends.

But, it's a deeper, more rewarding title than previous iterations in the franchise, with a hefty single-player component to keep that Vita glued to your hands.

Silent Hill
By Konami

During the 32-bit era, the lads over at Konami were probably the biggest pioneers in the video game space. With that in mind, Konami's third entry on this list is the massively influential survival-horror gem Silent Hill.

Konami commingles a disturbing, mature story with grimace-inducing visuals that (bizarrely) actually get better with age - the murky textures of the PSone add another layer of grime to the ash-caked eponymous town.

Resident Evil: Director's Cut
By Capcom

And while we're on the subject of thrills and (blood)spills, here's the first Resident Evil.

Capcom's 1996 B movie zombie adventure represented a landmark in video games, and unsurprisingly spawned a multitude of sequels and spin-offs.

The iconic mansion setting, the cheesy dialogue, the perfectly timed jump scares, and Barry Burton - it's worth downloading Resident Evil for any one of those elements.

CTR: Crash Team Racing
By Naughty Dog

In the days when everyone was trying to make a Mario Kart beater, Naughty Dog took a really admirable stab at it. Oh, and splashed the Crash Bandicoot licence all over it for good measure.

CTR: Crash Team Racing is definitely not the Mario Kart killer PlayStation fans wanted, but it gets awfully close in spots. It's fast, cheery, and the course design is top drawer.

Front Mission 3
By Square Enix

A complex and engrossing JRPG, this game has a huge plot and very believable characters. For some reason, though, this little number was underappreciated back in the day.

Never mind the '3' at the end of the title, you can enjoy this without having played its predecessors. And enjoy it you shall, especially if you're after a more involving take on Advance Wars.

Crash Bandicoot 3 Warped
By Naughty Dog

The first Crash Bandicoot game may be the most fondly remembered, but the third is where the series really hit its stride.

Humorous characters, inventive boss characters, well-constructed level design, and a few extra gameplay types to spice up play should ensure that the platforming action never begins to wear a little thin.