Are video games today just not as good as the retro games?

[holaback]

or would most of us being younger at the time of and being more into it at the time be why games seemed so much better back then?

[glynnahab]

I think nostalgia plays a huge part in my own taste in gaming.

Furthermore, I don't have nearly the time I once did to acquire the skills necessary to master a particular game these days. It's a lot easier for me to jump into an old game I already know than it is to learn a new control scheme or watch a 20 minute CG intro in order to enjoy a more modern game.

Can't really say much for the difference in quality between the old and the new. The handful of modern games I've actually played to finish doesn't make my opinion relevant enough to make a good and accurate comparison.

[MrPopo]

Really, the biggest difference between now and the golden era of Nintendo is that the western developers are the ones pumping out most of the bestsellers. I don't know if there's a correlation here, but the last time we had a ton of western developers pumping out games we had a crash of 83.

[arion]

I still play old games because i like the fact i wont master them right away. If a game is too easy or too forgiving i just get bored.

[the7k]

The reason games of today are not as good as games of yesterday is because companies are much less willing to take chances that they once were.

Look at Square Enix on it's own. During their time on the PSX, we saw Tobal, Bushido Blade, Einhander, Ergheiz, Threads of Fate, Vagrant Story, Brave Fencer Musashi and many more chance-taking titles. Now, they just make the same old trite they've been making for years. As soon as they realized that anything that looks like or feels like Final Fantasy VII would print money, they stopped taking chances. In fact, the only time they take a chance is on the much smaller scale, with games for the DS like Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings and The World Ends With You.

In my opinion, the best gaming had to offer died when the Dreamcast died. It was a console that proved that if you made quality titles that were new, interesting and took chances, you were doomed to financial ruin. People only want the same old schlock they've been spoon fed time and time again.

Not to say this generation doesn't have titles that can match games of those halcyon days. It's just that you find them on a much smaller scale, like XBLA, WiiWare, and PSN. When those chance taking, great games are released on a larger scale, they fail. (Look to the financial situation surrounding games like LBP and Valkyria Chronicles. Time and time again, people prove they don't want games; they want a series.)

[andythebadass]

In my opinion, the best gaming had to offer died when the Dreamcast died. It was a console that proved that if you made quality titles that were new, interesting and took chances, you were doomed to financial ruin. People only want the same old schlock they've been spoon fed time and time again.

Not to say this generation doesn't have titles that can match games of those halcyon days. It's just that you find them on a much smaller scale, like XBLA, WiiWare, and PSN. When those chance taking, great games are released on a larger scale, they fail. (Look to the financial situation surrounding games like LBP and Valkyria Chronicles. Time and time again, people prove they don't want games; they want a series.)

nicely said, this is the sad state of gaming. most companies are just trying to cash in however and as quickly as they can with the exception of just a few. recent big release titles that take chances like little big planet are far and few between...

[Krooze L-Roy]

Bah, I seriously doubt it. I think us old codgers are no different from any of the old codgers throughout history; full of nothing but shit and fond memories. And when the present doesn't mesh well with those memories, we think things are going to hell.

But I'd probably disagree with myself if I was soberer. Just like any old fool.


EDIT: To the above two posters: you've got to consider that most of the "big ideas" of the past have also failed miserably. 'Tis the price to pay for being ahead of your time.

[Haruspex]

Really my main problem with modern games is that they are complicating things with apparently no reason whatsoever. And i am not talking about the controls only, i mean everything.

What i really like about modern games though is the online part, something due to technical reasons oldschool games didn't have. I mean when i played the online part of COD4 it was like playing SMB 3 for the first time. Ok not exactly the same but you know what i am trying to tell.

[nickfil]

Really my main problem with modern games is that they are complicating things with apparently no reason whatsoever. And i am not talking about the controls only, i mean everything. .

complexity isn't a bad thing when it is done in a creative way that encourages and rewards the player. Same with simplicity. What is that expression? I think something like "the poor craftsman blames his tools" or something like that. Maybe it is a carpenter. Anyway- what i'm saying is i've played complex games that are fantastic and simple games that bored the shit out of me.

Bah, I seriously doubt it. I think us old codgers are no different from any of the old codgers throughout history; full of nothing but shit and fond memories. And when the present doesn't mesh well with those memories, we think things are going to hell.

True. Although you see square games taking less chances, I feel like capcom, valve and atlus are doing different interesting things these days. Hell, even a few sega games. I just played killer 7 for the first time (by no means retro) and I felt like i was playing a very weird piece of art that is definitely taking chances.

I think that us old guys want EVERY game to take a chance which simply won't happen. We've played a lot of stuff. We want an FPS that doesn't play like the hundreds of other FPSs that we've already played. If i was totally new to video games, every game would be like the first time i played katamari.

[Funk, E]

I'd wager that this is just Good Old Days syndrome. Games today are much the same (in terms of good/crap ratio) as they were in every generation past. Do a little looking through old game catalogs, and you'll see that that's pretty much true.