How Does Your Wife/Girlfriend Feel About Your Retro Gaming?

[Gooseberrysoda]

current boyfriend enjoys it as a nostalgia trip, but doesn't really value "collecting" so much. He's the kinda guy who leaves games and consoles at friends' houses for years and never gets 'em back...

anyway, he's played through kingdom hearts 8 times, so it's not like he doesn't understand where I'm coming from. Gaming is a bonding experience for us

I'm single as of now, but my ex-boyfriend was simply flabbergasted as to why anyone would want to play any game beyond a few years old.

that's such a weird mindset.

[Luke]

I'm single as of now, but my ex-boyfriend was simply flabbergasted as to why anyone would want to play any game beyond a few years old.

that's such a weird mindset.

Agreed.

Could you imagine someone saying "A dozen roses? That gift is so played out."

You can't beat the classics.

[Gunstar Green]

It's like the people who tell me they won't watch a movie or TV show in black and white.

It boggles my mind personally.

Although with video games I can understand why some people might not be into older titles, I can't understand why they assume no one can or that no one should be.

[BoneSnapDeez]

I find that many folks who "don't like old games" end up contradicting themselves.

I used to teach a group of 8th grade boys who were flabbergasted by the fact that I owned game consoles older than a PS3/Xbox 360. They claimed that old games just weren't worth playing and that I should just flip them for newer ones.

Then I'd catch these same kids at study hall playing Tetris on their calculators or Flash versions of Lemmings on their laptops.

[BoringSupreez]

It's like the people who tell me they won't watch a movie or TV show in black and white.

It boggles my mind personally.

I don't have anything against B&W by itself, but I can probably count the number of movies I've enjoyed that aren't in color on one hand. For the most part, acting and dialogue was kinda stiff back then. Almost like a stage play, recorded on film... which is what movies evolved from anyway so that's understandable. Too bad I detest plays.

For whatever reason, I'm much more forgiving of old games as long as they're post-Atari. Maybe because I've been alive for the majority of gaming's mainstream commercial existence, unlike film?

[Gunstar Green]

I find that many folks who "don't like old games" end up contradicting themselves.

I used to teach a group of 8th grade boys who were flabbergasted by the fact that I owned game consoles older than a PS3/Xbox 360. They claimed that old games just weren't worth playing and that I should just flip them for newer ones.

Then I'd catch these same kids at study hall playing Tetris on their calculators or Flash versions of Lemmings on their laptops.

Yes... you've got to love that.

"How can you play those old, primitive games?"

*Proceeds to pull out their phone and play games that are often simplified versions of old classics.*

It's like the people who tell me they won't watch a movie or TV show in black and white.

It boggles my mind personally.

I don't have anything against B&W by itself, but I can probably count the number of movies I've enjoyed that aren't in color on one hand. For the most part, acting and dialogue was kinda stiff back then. Almost like a stage play, recorded on film... which is what movies evolved from anyway so that's understandable. Too bad I detest plays.

For whatever reason, I'm much more forgiving of old games as long as they're post-Atari. Maybe because I've been alive for the majority of gaming's mainstream commercial existence, unlike film?

Well that's perfectly OK. What I was getting at is there's a difference between trying something and not liking it and hating something on principle because of its age.

If somebody said, "I don't like The Twilight Zone because reasons," that's fine. If somebody says, "I don't like The Twilight Zone because it's in black and white," that's a little silly.

[BoneSnapDeez]

For whatever reason, I'm much more forgiving of old games as long as they're post-Atari. Maybe because I've been alive for the majority of gaming's mainstream commercial existence, unlike film?

Ah and this is another thing I don't understand. Retro gamers who don't like pre-NES stuff. The whole "2nd gen" (Atari/Intellivision/8-bit computers/etc) is just a treasure trove of awesome.

[BoringSupreez]

Well that's perfectly OK. What I was getting at is there's a difference between trying something and not liking it and hating something on principle because of its age.

If somebody said, "I don't like The Twilight Zone because reasons," that's fine. If somebody says, "I don't like The Twilight Zone because it's in black and white," that's a little silly.

I can't even imagine Twilight Zone in color. I think it would lose a lot of the creepiness factor.

Ah and this is another thing I don't understand. Retro gamers who don't like pre-NES stuff. The whole "2nd gen" (Atari/Intellivision/8-bit computers/etc) is just a treasure trove of awesome.

I gave 2nd gen games plenty of tries... the only one I really enjoyed was the original Pitfall. Most of the games just felt too simple, sort of like those $10 handheld games toy stores used to have 15 years ago. I mean, if you like that sort of thing, that's fine, but I like a little more depth.

I'm the same way about any kind of game, not just video games. I won't play the board games you can get at Walmart. If the rule book isn't at least an actual booklet, odds are I won't be having fun. Yahtzee and Chess are the exceptions.

[Thierry Henry]

My wife tolerates it. Barely.
She's totally not into gaming. She doesn't outright come out and say it but she's not exactly a happy camper about my gaming/collecting habits.
Her hobby is reading, and painting/drawing.

[stickem]

My wife will buy me some games for birthdays or whatever then bitch whenever i sit down and play them for a few hours. Video games were zero part of her life and she could care less.