Why does nostalgia feel good? Seeing a TV commercial, hearing a song, or playing a game from an earlier time in your life makes you feel more connected to your past, and can bring back happy memories.
Whatever the reason, nostalgia is something we all love, and there are plenty of websites dedicated to it. Here, we've rounded up the best sites that will connect you to the years and decades gone by, whether it's looking back at your old social media posts, listening to old-school soundtracks, or playing classic Windows games.
1. Facebook Memories
It might seem hard to believe, but Facebook has been around since 2004, when the internet was a radically different place. The platform has changed since that time too, but many people have documented their lives on Facebook—relationships, children, vacations, and so on.
That's why Facebook Memories (accessible via the left-hand menu on your Facebook feed) is so nostalgic. It surfaces posts you made, posts you were tagged in, and anniversaries from the same day in years gone by.
You can customize Facebook Memories to hide specific people or dates, which protects you from painful memories and helps keep the feature a warm feed of nostalgia.
2. My Retro TVs
Many would agree that TV was better in the good old days. Except, what constitutes those days is different for each of us. That's the power of nostalgia. If you want to relive the TV of your youth, there's a collection of websites to help you achieve that, each focused on a decade:
Featuring an era-appropriate TV set, you can push the power button and scroll through the channels and watch cartoons, commercials, game shows, soaps, sports, and more. The effect is heightened thanks to picture noise, a TV glow effect, and a static transition between channels. It's like stepping back in time.
3. RetroTracks
If you have more nostalgia for game controllers than TV remotes, check out RetroTracks. It's a site that lets you play soundtracks from classic games; it covers a wide range of retro systems like the NES, Amiga, Genesis, and PS1.
You can browse the tunes via track name, system, game, and composer—or just perform a search for what you want. The music streams speedily in your browser or you can download it for offline listening. So relax, put your feet up, and soak up that gaming nostalgia.
If you're inspired to play these games again, take a look at websites where you can download old games.
4. The Nostalgia Machine
Music is incredibly powerful because it can bring us back to a specific moment and trigger all sorts of senses. To help achieve that hit of nostalgia, visit the suitably named The Nostalgia Machine. It displays the Billboard Hot 100 songs from the year you choose—you can go right back to 1951.
Once you've made your choice, the music video streams in your browser. You can build a temporary playlist so that you can leave the videos running without interruption, giving you the opportunity to get up and dance.
5. SkiFree.js
If you owned a PC in the early 90s, you likely remember SkiFree, a game that came as part of the Microsoft Entertainment Pack 3 for Windows. You control a skier, racing down a mountain slope and dodging obstacles. After you reach a certain distance, the Abominable Snowman chases you.
SkiFree obtained cult status, with many holding their theories on how to outrun the Yeti. Now, this website lets you relive the gaming highlight of your youth. It's a recreation of SkiFree, playable directly in the browser, with no downloads required. See if the Yeti is as scary as you remember it.
While classic games like SkiFree don't come with Windows anymore, you can still play Minesweeper on Windows with a little know-how.
6. Wayback Machine
The internet changes at a rapid pace. Wouldn't it be great if you could turn the clock back on your favorite websites and see how they used to look? Thanks to the Wayback Machine, you can. It's a tool to view old versions of any website and it hosts over 687 billion web pages.
Input the URL of the website you want to view (or search via keyboard if you can't remember the address), choose a year and a day, select a snapshot, and you'll be whisked through the digital pipes. The nostalgia of the internet's simpler era is a delight.
7. r/Nostalgia
If you're seeking an endless burst of nostalgia from all eras, browse the nostalgia subreddit. It's a community of over one million people from around the world who share stories, pictures, videos, and music that makes them feel nostalgic. Chances are, some of it will give you the same reaction.
While most of the websites we've covered have allowed for passive consumption of nostalgia, Reddit is all about sharing and discussing with others. So if you see something on the subreddit that sparks joy, dive into the comments and chat with others—it might send you on a snowball of nostalgia as you discuss the good times.
There are other, more specific subreddits, that can also provide nostalgia: r/90sCartoons, r/RetroGaming, and r/NostalgiaMusic are just a few examples. Perform a Reddit search to find a community that appeals to you.
Some Gadgets Are Lost to the Depths of Time
No matter what you're nostalgic for, the websites we've explored here are bound to bring a sense of satisfaction. Remember, though, that while it's good to reflect on the past, our rose-tinted glasses can make it seem better than it was.
For example, there are some old gadgets that we've lost to the depths of time, but that's not necessarily a bad thing; you're unlikely to see anyone walking around with an iPod, or find a phone installed in a car, simply because technology has moved on. Still, it's fun to reflect on how far we've come.