Old School Gaming

[Tears of Blood]

I just don't get it. What motivates some people to forsake the games of today and exclusively play older titles such as the ones for the original NES and the SNES? I simply don't see how they can be considered superior by anyone. Of course, I know this isn't the majority of us, but I still run into a lot of people who would much rather play Mario Bros. and other 2D games, and even people who make 2D versions of popular games!

So, if you're one of these people, explain to me why you enjoy the old stuff more than the new. Alternatively, if you aren't one of these people, tell me what you think.

 

[Faps]

Because I enjoy the nostalgic rush of playing old games, remembering when I was just a apple cheeked little simpleton jumping on mushrooms and slashing my way through hordes monsters. A simpler time before I knew what a graphics were and AI didn't exist, a time when all was good with the world.

That and I enjoy playing them because they are fun.

 

[Castratikron]

ROM's are a good way to kill time

 

[The_Prophet]

www.nintendo8.com
There, a site with all NES games that you need.

 

[More Fun To Compute]

Some old games are really well made so if they were enjoyable to play 20 years ago then they can still be enjoyable to play. If you were gaming at the time you have also learnt how to enjoy these games so you don't have to get past so much of a "this is old and stupid" barrier.

2D games are a different type of experience to 3D games. For one, the graphics can be very easy to read compared to 3D games. Especially modern 3D games where you can't just have an empty room with an enemy in it. It's like, imagine if you were fluent at reading English and then some bright spark decided that all new books had to be written in Mandarin using Chinese characters.

 

[The Giggling Pin]

I wouldn't go as far as to say that i prefer old school games to more modern titles but i do feel that there is a certain charm present in older games that is lacking from todays games. I still find myself having the odd half hour stint on Mario or trying to bust Sonic as quick as possible and i truly love StarFox. Some game are also timeless and age so well that you almost can't tell the difference. I think thats why i love Snatcher so much as technology couldn't really improve it as its little more than an electronic comic with a bolted on shooting section.

I also think that nostalgia comes into play quite a bit and i wouldn't want people to stop playing old games and reliving some of their great gaming moments of yesteryear. I also think that its important for old games to be played as it would be a crying shame to forget these legends. Would you stop reading a classic book because a more modern one came out with a shiner cover and a better font?

 

[Arkhangelsk]

Old doesn't mean boring, it's still fun, and the fun is resurrected, when you haven't played for a long time.

 

[RollForInitiative]

Nostalgia is a pretty nice flavor for a lot of people. Personally, I find that old school games sport old school design philosophies that are generally long dead with good reason. There are still some older games that I play for precisely the reason I first stated: nostalgia has a pretty nice flavor. By no means do I hold the illusion that they're necessarily better games, however. I'm simply re-living an enjoyment I had when I first played them.

 

[Radeonx]

The old games not only have nostalgia, but they were more about old fashioned fun, compared to shiny graphics, and monumental plot lines. Games like Super Mario, Contra, Starfox, Sonic, and many more were full of great fun, even though the graphics weren't incredible.

 

[Bigeyez]

They're still fun pretty much sums it up. To me Super Mario World for the snes is leagues better then galaxys, sunshine, or whatever crap they have mario doing these days.

 

[GamerPhate]

I don't exclusively play only the old skool stuff. However, I do play the old stuff as well. It really all comes down to me asking myself.. what game sounds fun? If I have worn out the newness of what ever modern game I have, perhaps I will think back to a game I use to enjoy. And bam, there I am playing an old DOS game.. NES/SNES rom or what not. But mostly this happens during the gaming industries "slow season"... which is that time when only crap games came out and it will be a month or two before a good new release is about to come out. I hate the gaming industry for its release dates in the sense that a good game could be totally ready.. but they wait 3 months to release it cause its closer to X-Mas time. And all that time they could be fixing the game.. but no..they wait till the game comes out before they start patching it and such. But yeah.. I like all games.. if they are fun. Give me a deep old Sierra Adventure game or a modern FPS and I can be happy, as long as the titles aren't crap. And oh god.. have there been crap titles released..

 

[Andy_Panthro]

A game can be great no matter its age.

I play a lot of older games, and sometimes its nostalgia and sometimes they're just amazing games that haven't had better versions since.

Often sequels get lots of added gameplay mechanics which can get in the way of that "pick up and play" feeling that was big in early consoles.

I used to have a Megadrive(Genesis) and I'd still play the likes of Road Rash, Sonic 2, Streets of Rage 2, Street Fighter 2, Golden Axe and Phantasy Star 4.

Some of those thankfully I can play on my PSP Megadrive collection.

As for old PC games, just take a look at Good Old Games [http://www.gog.com/] and Steam and you can see the gems in there which are still great fun to play.

I'd like to reverse the question I guess, and ask you why you think newer games are better? Are better graphics that much of a big deal? Do you really need voice acting?

 

[BoxCutter]

Remembering the simple times, where I knew nothing of developers or franchise wars. The games are so simplistic and fun that you can't help but enjoy yourself.

<3 = My SNES

 

[DrunkWithPower]

Does Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, or PC have Duck Hunt with the NES Zapper Light Gun? Didn't think so.

 

[Mordwyl]

I play games today for the same reasons I played them nearly two decades ago: Entertain myself. While nostalgia does play a major role in my decision older games DO tend to focus on making a game fun rather than making an interactive movie.

 

[matnatz]

For me, it's becuase my PC sucks. But also, becuase I just find myself attracted to a certain era of games. PC games from the late 90's will always be the best for me. It was before games became so mainstream and sort of... diluted?

 

[jamesworkshop]

Really retro gaming only revolves around a limited number of games i.e the good ones with the 99% of the rubbish ignored some games are classic

 

[DragonChi]

its a number of things. back in "the day", games were more geared and focused towards gameplay. which allowed eternal amounts of re-playability. which a lot of games nowadays have none of. they were immensely fun. which just goes to show that all the money they are spending this time around on gfx and not fun/gameplay development is not working. honestly, how many times do you want to replay games like Zelda: Link to the past, Chrono Trigger, Super mario brothers, secret of mana..list goes on. those games are immortal because of how simplistic and fun they are. im sorry to say but, right now, games are terrible. with the some exceptions. so i personally see myself playing older games because of it.

All that, and..i play them anyway because i grew up with them and its fun to just relax and play some golden oldies and go back to your roots.

 

[FinalHeart95]

Nostalgia, plus they're much simpler. Sometimes I get kind of sick of platformers where you need to know how to do flips and cartwheels, the jump button does fine.

 

[essieteric]

Nostalgia, plus they're much simpler. Sometimes I get kind of sick of platformers where you need to know how to do flips and cartwheels, the jump button does fine.

I wouldn't say they are simpler. I think that they engage different problem-solving elements and logic compared to contemporary gaming. I play the older games because they DO still present challenges for me. Similarly, new consoles such as Wii and DS present whole new challenges based on the type of hardware (swinging controllers, drawing with styluses, etc.)

I don't think one is better than another - I think that, because the technology has advanced, so have other gaming elements.