What is the cut off from retro to modern?

[dirtyballs69]

i feel like the Playstation, N64, and dreamcast were like the gray area where retro ends and modern begins. thoughts???

[Croooow!]

If most mainstream gamers say that the graphics and/or gameplay are outdated, it's retro IMO. If 6th gen graphics and gameplay are still current enough for a lot of people I don't think it has become retro yet.

[dedalusdedalus]

It becomes retro when major developers cease publishing new games for the platform and Gamestop ceases selling used games for it. To me, a system becomes "retro" when it's abandoned by mainstream commerce, and its only presence is in the secondary market and/or homebrew.

[AppleQueso]

I honestly don't care where this imaginary retro line is drawn. I'll play any game worth playing no matter how new or old.

[Inazuma]

There is no definite answer for this. The only thing I am certain of is that new games are not retro, despite what others may tell you.

For me, games needs to meet two requirements to be considered retro.

One, the platform they are on has to be officially retired. In other words, the system is no longer manufactured and official games are no longer being released.

The other is that the individual game itself should be pretty old. At least 5 to 10 years old.

There may be a lot of uncertainty for what is retro right now but in the future when games are 100% download DRM bullshit, retro will mean anything physical.

[MrEco]

There may be a lot of uncertainty for what is retro right now but in the future when games are 100% download DRM bullshit, retro will mean anything physical.

Hopefully this doesn't actually happen.

[8bit]

I honestly don't care where this imaginary retro line is drawn. I'll play any game worth playing no matter how new or old.

Well said. I dont think you can draw just one line in the sand and say this is retro and this is modern. I think it takes time for a console to transition from Modern to Retro. There is an in-between period while a platform moves between the two.

Right now I think the consoles that should be considered retro ends at the Dreamcast. I had a really hard time deciding if the dreamcast was ready to be considered full retro considering its almost ps2 quality graphics, sound capabilities, and gameplay experiences. However, its dated CD format and dial up modem have long since passed its prime, therefore, I think it has recently passed into the Retro category.

In a few short years after the next console releases, the xbox, gamecube, gba, and ps2 should begin to gain more of their "retro feel".

[TEKTORO]

I would say anything 10 yrs or more could be considered "retro",and the same would go for anything thats old becoming new again.

[Hazerd]

i consider N64/Playstation/Dreamcast/Saturn at the top of the retro ladder as in thats the limit this far in time, GCN/PS2/Xbox are still modern to me.

[NintendoLegend]

I honestly don't care where this imaginary retro line is drawn. I'll play any game worth playing no matter how new or old.

... how does that answer the title question of the thread? Jeepers.

I see this question get asked a lot and it seems to boil down to a subjective viewpoint, being a term that has no real standard. For me, personally, I agree that the PS1/N64 represents the end of the "retro" line. Will my opinion change in a few years? Maybe. Why do I feel like those consoles qualify? The N64 was the last to use cartridges, and they're the last consoles I remember being released while I still considered myself a "kid," in some respects. They bring me feelings of nostalgia.

But when I talk to other people, they shake their heads at me and insist that the NES was the first modern console. Funny stuff.