The goal of tissue engineering is the production of functional, biocompatible tissues by seeding cells within biological or synthetic scaffolds. One tissue engineering approach involves the genetic modification of cells that are seeded onto (or into) scaffolds prior to implantation. The genetic modification is achieved through gene delivery, with can utilize viral transduction or non-viral transfection systems. Although novel non-viral systems have continued to emerge as innovative vehicles for controlled gene delivery, viruses remain the most efficient means by which exogenous genes can be introduced into and expressed by mammalian cells. Retrovirus, adenovirus, adeno-associated virus and herpes virus are widely studied viral gene transfer systems and have attracted the most attention in the field of transduction. This review thoroughly discusses the genomic structures of each virus type, along with the advantages and disadvantages of their use in tissue engineering applications.