'Ms. Pac-Man' and 4 more old-school games you can play on your next-gen video console

Perhaps these last few weeks have inspired you to try your hand at “Fortnite” on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One or Nintendo Switch that your kids are hogging when they're not e-learning. And perhaps you're very tired of getting machine-gunned by some kid with an obnoxious screen name in the first five minutes.

Next-generation games may not be your thing, but the good news is that plenty of old-school delights can be downloaded directly onto the video console that's already in your home.

Here are my suggestions for old favorites you can buy from the online stores on your PS4 and Xbox One, or through Nintendo's Switch Online service (starting at $3.99 monthly). Availability listed at the end of each entry:

'Ms. Pac-Man' (1981)

You could play the original “Pac-Man,” the title that started the video game craze 40 years ago, but devotees know the 1981 sequel is better — more mazes to roam, fruit prizes that bounce around the map, less-predictable ghosts chasing you, and of course that delightful music that plays when Mr. and Ms. chase each other in the intermission between rounds 5 and 6. (Available as “ARCADE GAME SERIES: Ms. Pac-Man” on Xbox One and PS4, $3.99)

'Super Metroid' (1994)

Nintendo's souped-up sequel to 1986's labyrinthine platformer remains a favorite of modern gamers, YouTubers, Twitch streamers and speed-runners for its unparalleled design. Alien bounty hunter Samus Aran faces a menagerie of baddies in a maze of secret rooms and hidden items that subtly teaches you how to solve its puzzles through the way its levels are constructed. New gameplay techniques are still being discovered almost three decades later. (Included with SNES collection on Switch Online)

'Final Fantasy VIII' (1999)

Originally a PlayStation exclusive, “FF8” completely rewrote the rules of the long-running role-playing game series, introducing a new way for players to gain magic powers by drawing them from enemies and channeling them into powerful allies called Guardian Forces. The 50-hour narrative spans two timelines and sets of characters in a world where military students are called upon to defeat a time-traveling sorceress. (Available as “Final Fantasy VIII Remastered” on Xbox One, PS4 and Switch Online, $19.99)

'Doom' (1993)

It wasn't the original first-person shooter, but it defined the early period of a genre that would take over the entire industry. For PC gamers of a certain age, discovering “Doom” was like secretly seeing your first R-rated movie: a gory, intense trip through literal hell with snarling demons and spooky music. The visuals haven't aged well, but the nostalgia is potent. (Available on Xbox One, PS4 and Switch Online, $4.99)

'Resident Evil' (1996)

Nearly every installment of this zombie horror franchise is readily available — and there are a lot of them — but it all starts here with a creepy mansion, an underground lab, a highly contagious virus (hmm) and that really scary part where it's all quiet and then A DOG JUMPS THROUGH A WINDOW OUT OF NOWHERE. Every kid who played this game remembers that moment. (Available on Xbox One, PS4, $19.99; and Switch Online, $29.99)