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.