Has the Rise of Retro Gaming affected Current-Gen Gaming?

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

I think too many people, I hear, always talk about how the current-gen gaming world is too watered down, theres nothing but GTA and CoD clones, there's nothing interesting, too many cut-scenes, too many dull hack-n-slash games, too many online shooters that get too repetative, etc.

But I think people are just fulla shit cuz there are so many games out these days, the gaming market has become maybe even more diverse then ever, thanks mostly to the online gaming markets available now on all the newer systems. So u can still go to Gamestop and pick up the newest CoD and GTA and Halo and Assassin's Creed, or go online and find tons and tons of indie games being put out that are SOO diverse.

You see a revival of 2D sidescrollers, beat-em-ups, top-down RPG's, strange puzzle games, not to mention all the retro stuff like the old Nintendo games on the Wii and stuff. My roommate plays nothing but newly-released 2D sidescrollers, and I think people are just being plain ignorant when they say that there's nothing good out there today.

I also think a lotta these games never woulda been made if it weren't for retro games becoming more and more popular. Do u think Super Meatboy would have ever been released in 2001?

Idk, I'm just full of opinions, there they are.

[Tanooki]

They're kind of full of it and not, depends how informed one is looking into things. If you go by the face value of online pop up ads, tv and print spots, and other mass media outlets then yes you would get the impression gaming is for first person shooters, sports, racing, and mmorpg fans with little else worthy of being brought up. Walk by the front of a gamestop and what are the usual posters in the windows, that stuff.

Digging will find stuff, annoyingly digging also tends to show the larger variety sadly is trending towards download only stuff because indies with low budgets or spineless developers who have backed the gaming industry into the corner of the impression I said above so they fear losing cash. The WiiU thanks to Nintendo is just not advertised or supported well so despite there being choice on the system most aren't aware of it or don't care as it's all about the PS4 and then the one. There is a good bit of stuff out there, but you have to learn it exists and then where to find it if you can access it or not.

[Tupin]

All I know is that I see the phrase "retro-inspired" as a major red flag. A lot of the time it's just an attempt to play off of nostalgia. The absolute worst is when it's used as an excuse to have bad graphics, which DO matter to a degree.

[ggallegos1]

Much of the retro gaming craze has influenced current gen marketing and design. Look at 3D Dot Game Heroes and Fez for example.

Then again, every generation has their mass of games that are both uninspired and horribly generic. In the late 80s, it was platformers and fighting games. For every Mario there was a bunch of other poorly conceived mascots that didnt catch any traction for themselves. In the 90s, RPGs were nearly everywhere with a boom in creative storytelling and longer games.

It does affect games, however, it can be argued that we are going through another fad. Last generation was owned by first-person shooters, that's undeniable. However, The indie revolution that had exploded in the past few years on the PC and console market can also be classified as a fad. How many games are funded through kickstarter, promising innovative new ideas while rekindling the nostalgic echoes of our past? It is this nostalgia that is being used as an inspiration for the new, innovative and creative ideas that we are reading about in every indie game. However, with the addition of Steam Greenlight, the Humble Bundle, and many other platforms to market the games themselves, how many can be considered "great" versus "just another indie game"?

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

The download-only thing doesn't help the indie game market. I think it would help them tremendously if they made collection discs of some of the real popular indie games. That documentary on indie games on Netflix helped, so people heard about Super Meatboy and Fez and Braid, but people don't know where to find them, I think, cuz people are used to just going to Gamestop to buy games. Collection discs like theyve done with Namco and Capcom and Sega. The games are small enough u could fit a lot onto one Xbox or Playstation disc. It's sad. Cuz these are prolly the most creative things that have come out in a long time.

It's also sad that Nintendo couldn't market the Wii U better also cuz they're the only ones putting the creative and unique games in the forefront. U can argue that Nintendo may be stuck in old franchises, and making their bread and butter off people's everlasting nostalgia with Mario and all the classic systems, but their games are fucking GOOD. I mean, I love games like Jak & Daxter and Little Big Planet, but they really have nothing on the Super Mario games. It's just a fanchise that has stayed amazing.

Sonic games took a dive for a little while, until they were able to figure out how to translate him to 3D without it being awkward, but Mario has always been awesome. And it's sad that the Wii U is ignored, and that they're kinda stuck in the past, cuz they could really bring some diversity into the forefront.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

Again tho, I will say that 15 years ago u didn't have indie games. I don't think it's a trend at all. I think this will remain for good. Gaming is much more diverse today, imo. Yea there's the big-budget titles that are just everywhere, but even back in the early 90s, u'll find sidescroller after sidescroller, so there was trends then, too. But people were at least trying new things a lot. The benefit now, though, is that unlike the NES era where the quality of games was a gamble, some were good some weren't, u can kinda have faith nowadays that if a game is released, even the little indie games, it's gonna be good. And the little sidescrollers out on Xbox Live Arcade and all those are really done right.

So u have the benefit nowadays of diversity and experimentation, combined with real quality control that was finally fully-established more or less by the 6th generation. Even a lot of the shovelware games out can be half-way decent and enjoyable by the right crowd.

Except for Ninja Breadman on the Wii. That game is garbage, it's the worst game I've ever played that's come out in the last 15 years. Horrendous. I'm amazed this was actually released. It's like one of the early 3D platformers from the mid-90s that just swung and missed like Bubsy 3D.

[stardust4ever]

Again tho, I will say that 15 years ago u didn't have indie games. I don't think it's a trend at all. I think this will remain for good. Gaming is much more diverse today, imo. Yea there's the big-budget titles that are just everywhere, but even back in the early 90s, u'll find sidescroller after sidescroller, so there was trends then, too. But people were at least trying new things a lot. The benefit now, though, is that unlike the NES era where the quality of games was a gamble, some were good some weren't, u can kinda have faith nowadays that if a game is released, even the little indie games, it's gonna be good. And the little sidescrollers out on Xbox Live Arcade and all those are really done right.

So u have the benefit nowadays of diversity and experimentation, combined with real quality control that was finally fully-established more or less by the 6th generation. Even a lot of the shovelware games out can be half-way decent and enjoyable by the right crowd.

Except for Ninja Breadman on the Wii. That game is garbage, it's the worst game I've ever played that's come out in the last 15 years. Horrendous. I'm amazed this was actually released. It's like one of the early 3D platformers from the mid-90s that just swung and missed like Bubsy 3D.
I actually own Ninjabread man. Pretty hard in 200X to make a game that's more unplayable than ET 2600, but by golley they pulled it off!

I shoulda bought two of 'em: one to to keep in the shrinkwrap, since the cover art is literally the best frakking part of the whole game...:popcorn:

[PreZZ]

A lot of people remember the super nes as the best system. Sure the first party games were awesome and a couple of square, konami and capcom games too, but most of the games I rented were complete shit, and I wouldnt play.them most of the time. All games now are at least playable even if you dont really like them.

[Tanooki]

Kind of curious what third party games you accidented into as the library on the SNES is overall pretty solid. Sounds like you by dumb luck found the worst turds of the lot. Id say theres more functionally playable and fun titles there than on the NES.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

I think too many people, I hear, always talk about how the current-gen gaming world is too watered down, theres nothing but GTA and CoD clones, there's nothing interesting, too many cut-scenes, too many dull hack-n-slash games, too many online shooters that get too repetitive, etc.

But I think people are just fulla shit cuz there are so many games out these days, the gaming market has become maybe even more diverse then ever, thanks mostly to the online gaming markets available now on all the newer systems. So u can still go to Gamestop and pick up the newest CoD and GTA and Halo and Assassin's Creed, or go online and find tons and tons of indie games being put out that are SOO diverse.

You see a revival of 2D sidescrollers, beat-em-ups, top-down RPG's, strange puzzle games, not to mention all the retro stuff like the old Nintendo games on the Wii and stuff. My roommate plays nothing but newly-released 2D sidescrollers, and I think people are just being plain ignorant when they say that there's nothing good out there today.

I also think a lotta these games never woulda been made if it weren't for retro games becoming more and more popular. Do u think Super Meatboy would have ever been released in 2001?

Absolutely correct. Modern gaming is better because of retro gaming, not in spite of it. On the surface, you see the yearly barrage of FPS, Sports and big franchise action games, but there are also tons of games that are fantastic that get far less attention.

I always prefer to have a physical copy of a game when possible, but a lot of the time that's just not possible given the overhead costs involved in physical production, promotion and distribution.

The perfect example of retro and modern merging together is the Ouya. Nearly everything on it is retro-inspired because nearly everything is produced by indie developers. and you now what? The Ouya isnt even a year old, yet it already has dozens of games that I would consider some of my favorites in the last decade.

I think all of the negativity surrounding the Ouya are from those modern gamers who expect CoD and Madden. If you actually look at what the Ouya has to offer, I think a lot of retro gamers would be drawn to it, regardless of the fact that it can run emulators for classic games. I'm talking about its own library.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

I actually own Ninjabread man. Pretty hard in 200X to make a game that's more unplayable than ET 2600, but by golley they pulled it off!

I shoulda bought two of 'em: one to to keep in the shrinkwrap, since the cover art is literally the best frakking part of the whole game...:popcorn:

I picked it up for maybe $1.50 at a Gamestop, figured for that cheap, I'll take a risk of it sucking. It just amazed me how bad it was. This game would suck if it came out on N64. We tried selling it to a retro game store, they didn't want it bc they knew how bad it was. I found a place that eventually took it, but it took work to get rid of it. I kinda wish I'd kept it tho, just to show people how awful this game is.

By the way, ET on 2600 is unplayable, mainly cuz the developer tried to make a game way too complicated for what the Atari could handle. If he'd just kept it simple, it woulda been a hit. It's actually meant to be a story-based game that u beat, its just that the time it came out, it was way too early for a game like that. His idea prolly coulda worked well 10 or 15 years later, tho. Yea, that's right, I'm defending ET. The developer has said he had a creative vision and didn't wanna make just another pac-man clone. I respect that. I think it was just the technology wasn't there yet with that game.

But with Ninja Breadman, the developers failed so miserably to create a game that was in a style that the Wii was just built for. Shit, it coulda been made for the N64 and woulda fit right in with every other failed 3D platformer of that generation. This game is AVGN quality.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

Kind of curious what third party games you accidented into as the library on the SNES is overall pretty solid. Sounds like you by dumb luck found the worst turds of the lot. Id say theres more functionally playable and fun titles there than on the NES.

Valid, but there's plenty of broken-down messes on the SNES and Genesis, too. I think his point was the percentage of terrible games is far less nowadays then it was 20 years ago, and I think that's true. When u go buy a modern game, for the most part, it's either really good, or just meh. The amount of video game abominations is a bit lower.

But really, I think it's cuz u went from bad Pac-man and DK ports on Atari, suddenly to games like Super Mario Bros, practically overnight, and so the standards for how to make a real good game weren't quite developed yet, probably, and it took some time to find what really works.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

Absolutely correct. Modern gaming is better because of retro gaming, not in spite of it. On the surface, you see the yearly barrage of FPS, Sports and big franchise action games, but there are also tons of games that are fantastic that get far less attention.

I always prefer to have a physical copy of a game when possible, but a lot of the time that's just not possible given the overhead costs involved in physical production, promotion and distribution.

The perfect example of retro and modern merging together is the Ouya. Nearly everything on it is retro-inspired because nearly everything is produced by indie developers. and you now what? The Ouya isnt even a year old, yet it already has dozens of games that I would consider some of my favorites in the last decade.

I think all of the negativity surrounding the Ouya are from those modern gamers who expect CoD and Madden. If you actually look at what the Ouya has to offer, I think a lot of retro gamers would be drawn to it, regardless of the fact that it can run emulators for classic games. I'm talking about its own library.

I know very little about the Ouya, but I'm interested now. The name sounds so gimmicky though.

[wiggyx]

It's the old "back in my day" mentality. There were plenty of terribly shitty platformers for the SNES, but they are easily forgotten, leaving us to recall the good titles. The same goes for every generation of gaming. There are lots of great new games, but for every great game, there are at least 5 mediocre titles, if not more. Same goes for music, movies, etc.

There isn't a single generation of games/music/movies/literature which doesn't have memorable works. The same will follow for the current gen.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

It's the old "back in my day" mentality. There were plenty of terribly shitty platformers for the SNES, but they are easily forgotten, leaving us to recall the good titles. The same goes for every generation of gaming. There are lots of great new games, but for every great game, there are at least 5 mediocre titles, if not more. Same goes for music, movies, etc.

There isn't a single generation of games/music/movies/literature which doesn't have memorable works. The same will follow for the current gen.

Absolutely true, and what's modern today will be retro in 10 years. Ahem, PS2...

[Satoshi_Matrix]

I already consider the PS2/Xbox/GC generation to be retro. it's two hardware cycles ago. I think the only reason we don't recognize that era as retro is because the last generation cycle lasted so friggin long.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

I already consider the PS2/Xbox/GC generation to be retro. it's two hardware cycles ago. I think the only reason we don't recognize that era as retro is because the last generation cycle lasted so friggin long.

Well, it took me a while to recognize the PS1 and N64 as retro also. Not till recently. 6 or 7 years ago anything post-SNES, to me, couldn't be classic gaming. But I think the 6th gen systems are classic systems today. What's deceptive to people is that there's not as big a jump, I don't think, between generations. I mean, the difference between the NES and PS1, I think, is way bigger than that between PS2 and PS4, in terms of the game styles, and even graphically. Sure there's a big difference, but not like back then.

I get lotsa nostalgia from my PS2 games, GTA3 and Vice City in particular. If they give me that fuzzy feeling of nostalgia, they're classic systems to me. And I have a field day collecting for all 4 of those systems. Yes, I said 4 cuz the Dreamcast counts. I hope people keep ignoring them actually so the prices for games don't skyrocket like they always do. I like things how they are now, where u can buy the whole Jak & Daxter trilogy for less than 10 bucks.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

I know very little about the Ouya, but I'm interested now. The name sounds so gimmicky though.

Yeah, the Ouya has an image problem for sure. the name aside, a lot of people assume it's little more than "lol mobile touchscreen games like Angry Birds on your tv". OR their real assholes who compare it to other consoles like the PS3/Xbox 360.

The Ouya really only fits in it's own category. It's open source and indie, has it's own controller but you can use almost anything, plays games but can also act as a powerful open source media center much like a hacked original xbox, and it's an emulation powerhouse.

Check out my video series on the Ouya.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUcC90tkN0o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ykNkfOUH1c

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

Yeah, the Ouya has an image problem for sure. the name aside, a lot of people assume it's little more than "lol mobile touchscreen games like Angry Birds on your tv". OR their real assholes who compare it to other consoles like the PS3/Xbox 360.

The Ouya really only fits in it's own category. It's open source and indie, has it's own controller but you can use almost anything, plays games but can also act as a powerful open source media center much like a hacked original xbox, and it's an emulation powerhouse.

Check out my video series on the Ouya.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUcC90tkN0o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ykNkfOUH1c

Cool, I thought it was kinda like a plug-n-play thing full of mediocre low-budget games

[kikenovic]

I hope people keep ignoring them actually so the prices for games don't skyrocket like they always do. I like things how they are now, where u can buy the whole Jak & Daxter trilogy for less than 10 bucks.

Good point. If there is a time to collect for the PS2/Xbox that is now. Next decade all those 6th gen kids (even those who weren't part of it) will jack up the prices.

[kikenovic]

If games like Titanfall succeed, then the 8th gen will be forgotten. Game discs will be worthless since the required online infraestructure will no longer be available.

[Words iManifest]

Good point. If there is a time to collect for the PS2/Xbox that is now. Next decade all those 6th gen kids (even those who weren't part of it) will jack up the prices.

No need to wait that long, just look on YouTube. All the videos saying "collect Xbox/PS2 now." Our generation is already jacking those prices up. I never did like the "look at my OMG RAREZ! videos, this is the generation trying to prove who has the bigger e-peen. I literally just saw someone post a picture on a Facebook group I'm on of Little Samson, F2, Duck Tales 2, Cheetamen, Panzer Dragoon Saga (US) and a few more like that with the caption, "Found these at a garage sale, are they any good ?" Ugh.

I would say retro gaming has affected modern gaming in a negative way as now you can find games that just came out on Ebay being slabbed and listed for $5,000, making the casual gamer think he has something worth a damn. Retro gaming has also been very positive to modern gaming because of the added sensibilities, taking the best elements of the past and fusing them with the current, having modern developers realize that a large majority of us still do want a 2D Castlevania or Metroid.

[bigbacon]

By the way, ET on 2600 is unplayable, mainly cuz the developer tried to make a game way too complicated for what the Atari could handle. If he'd just kept it simple, it woulda been a hit. It's actually meant to be a story-based game that u beat, its just that the time it came out, it was way too early for a game like that. His idea prolly coulda worked well 10 or 15 years later, tho. Yea, that's right, I'm defending ET. The developer has said he had a creative vision and didn't wanna make just another pac-man clone. I respect that. I think it was just the technology wasn't there yet with that game.

But with Ninja Breadman, the developers failed so miserably to create a game that was in a style that the Wii was just built for. Shit, it coulda been made for the N64 and woulda fit right in with every other failed 3D platformer of that generation. This game is AVGN quality.

ET is far from unplayable though...it is just hated on because the internet told people to hate on it.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

ET is far from unplayable though...it is just hated on because the internet told people to hate on it.

It isn't completely unplayable, perhaps, but it lacks the great gameplay of games like Maze Craze or Vanguard. I don't think it's the worst game ever, I think ur rite about it just being hated on cuz of the internet, but it's definately not that great a game at all. The graphics are actually pretty decent, I think, it's just that u put it in, and ur not sure wats going on or what to do, and it's confusing without a manual. Which I, myself, lack. I just think it woulda worked way better if this was on the NES, a system which could really handle more in-depth games with storylines much better.

Maybe it's just that I haven't played too many story-based Atari 2600 games, so Idk how good the Atari is with games like this.

[wiggyx]

ET is far from unplayable though...it is just hated on because the internet told people to hate on it.

It hasn't yet become cool to like E.T.







It's terrible and unplayable and completely worthy of hatred.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

It hasn't yet become cool to like E.T.







It's terrible and unplayable and completely worthy of hatred.

Pac-Man on Atari also played a significant role in the game crash of '83, but it's E.T that gets all the hatred. E.T. I think was just a great idea that was ahead of its time and executed as best it coulda been, prolly, but again, my opinion is the idea was too advanced for the hardware.

It really should be the decisions made by Atari surrounding E.T. that desserves the hatred, not the games. There's a million bad games out there, and the Atari has plenty of others. Ever try Golf? E.T. was just a huge disappointment cuz of the hype surrounding it, and its overproduction. This was Atari's doing. Other shitty Atari 2600 games were made but none of them are talked about cuz Atari didn't make decisions around those games like it did with E.T.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

By the way, Pac-Man on 2600 isn't that bad, imo, it was just over-hyped for its release and everyone expected arcade quality Pac-Man which is impossible on the 2600. It's mainly just the graphics which is the let-down on that one. Ms. Pac Man was better, tho.

[Arkanoid_Katamari]

Here's the thing though, I bought E.T. and Pac-Man when I first got into the 2600 which was only a few years ago. I didn't know about Pac-Man's reputation or its place in video game history, and I didn't think the game was that bad. I did know about the E.T. story, and perhaps it skewed my views on the game. I think the E.T graphics are pretty good.

[wiggyx]

Just as an FYI, you can edit your posts so that you don't have to post 3 replies in a row ;)

[stardust4ever]

By the way, Pac-Man on 2600 isn't that bad, imo, it was just over-hyped for its release and everyone expected arcade quality Pac-Man which is impossible on the 2600. It's mainly just the graphics which is the let-down on that one. Ms. Pac Man was better, tho.Never say never. This homebrew remake uses a simple 4k ROM just like the original but plays nearly as good as the arcade classic (and is certainly more intense than the defacto NES port):
http://atariage.com/store/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1010