Embracing the Past: My Reasons for Favoring Vintage Video Games over Contemporary Titles

Key Takeaways

• Nostalgia, unique designs, and rewarding exploration can make retro games a worthwhile gaming experience.
• Old games prioritize player-centric gameplay, making you feel smart and powerful while offering unique challenges.
• Indie studios keep the nostalgic flame alive with new titles, while big publisher offer modern updates to classic games in a bid to preserve the charm.

Modern gaming has left me reaching for the comfort of my Game Boy more often than loading up the latest open-world action RPG. You could blame nostalgia, but there are several reasons why I play more retro games than new ones.

I Remember When…

I’m not ready for my rocking chair and walking stick yet, but there’s something about retro games that appeals to me and I don’t think I’m alone in that. With so many users now able to easily access older hardware through emulators like RetroArch (which is surprisingly easy to set up ), the future is bright for retro games.

One of the main reasons I love older games is the nostalgia I feel for them. There’s something pure and simple about playing a game like Pokémon Red or Green (not the remade versions, the original ones for the Game Boy) and reliving the first time you set foot on the road to Viridian City.

But there’s more to it than that. Nostalgia brings so many people together. Older games like Diablo II still have private servers set up by players with hundreds of community members. These games, while dated, are still fun to play and are a common ground for people who share the same interests to make new friends.

Older Games Had Unique and Interesting Designs

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These days, one first-person shooter feels a lot like another. Sure, there are unique loot drops or traversal mechanics, but all in all, there’s a lot of overlap in the gameplay loops and it feels like barely enough “uniqueness” is included to make them stand out from the crowd.

While some older game mechanics have become part of the mainstream, many retain their uniqueness to this day. Take Shadow of Mordor’s nemesis system, which I would argue is among the best I’ve ever seen in any game and remains unique even today. Or what about Chrono Trigger’s combination abilities, which are among the best in the JRPG genre? Modern games have absorbed some of the ideas from the past and made them their own, but the originals like these remain unique and difficult to copy.

Some of these games are products of their time. Take the original Legend of Zelda, for example. Anyone who’s slogged through the game will tell you that it’s hard, unforgiving, and might make you want to throw your controller through a screen. But for every one of those, there are a dozen others that are easy to pick up and play, and respect the time you have to spend on it.

Aside from the ease of playing these games, some older titles feel more rewarding when it comes to exploration and experimentation. One of the best examples of those older games is The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind. This game ditches quest markers, and makes you rely solely on what you know about the world to finish the game. It’s not for the faint of heart, but finding a new settlement was oh-so-rewarding!

That’s not to say these games have much going for them in terms of graphics. Some of the most timeless titles that you can still pick up and play today are visually basic. Pong, Tetris, and Mario (the original NES version) didn’t have fancy graphics, but their premise was so easy to explain that anyone could play them. And they survive today because, at the core, they’re just good games.

Don’t Discount Modern Retro Revival Games

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While triple-A gaming has almost completely cut ties with the old days, indie game studios have picked up the mantle. Titles like Stardew Valley, Axiom Verge, and Cuphead all bring back the nostalgic factor of old games, while fixing some of the more annoying issues the original iterations had. Their pixel art and cartoon-like graphics are an homage to the retro titles that they took inspiration from.

That’s not to say that the original owners of these IPs aren’t trying to get in on the nostalgia. Companies like Nintendo have put a lot of effort into “updating” their titles for the modern age with current-era graphics and a few minor gameplay updates.

These fall into a middle ground where the games can feel too dated for a modern audience but lose a lot of their nostalgic charm because of the updates. Even the frustrating moments that make you remember those old games are “fixed,” making for a less memorable playthrough.

Older games also have a lot of fan support. Games like Half-Life (and old-school boomer shooters ) and Dwarf Fortress have active modding and development communities that consist solely of gamers who love the titles. Even Doom still makes its way onto some pretty weird modern hardware , thanks to dedicated gamers. Community modding and ROM hacks have breathed new life into games that were already good.

Here’s Why You Should Try Retro Games

Most people who grew up with modern games won’t have the same nostalgia as I did growing up with these titles. But there are a few great selling points for playing these games.

They Have a Different Feel to Modern Games

Modern games drag you into the action and take a lot of things for granted, having developed huge audiences. Retro games tend to take it slower and walk you through the gameplay loop. It’s a different experience when you’re getting fed your abilities one by one.

They’re Player-First, Not Environment-First or Graphics-First

Older games don’t have much graphical oomph in the modern age. Some of them look like cardboard boxes glued together, and others are limited by an 8-bit or 16-bit palette. But it’s because of this that they had to rely on gameplay that was player-centric, and that’s something you feel even today.

They Can Be Real Head-Scratchers

Every single conversation you have with an NPC could be important in some older games. Hearing someone say something could be a clue to a boss battle or a hint to a hidden treasure. But you have to pay attention and “live” in the world. Fortunately, we live in the modern world, and searching for a solution when you get stuck is just a few taps away.

They Make You Feel Smart, Powerful, and Unique

Games like Shadow of the Colossus give you a feeling of power and intelligence that their spiritual successors make you work and grind for. It was less about “gameplay hours” back in the day and more about making the player feel like a demigod.

Give It A Try, What Could It Hurt?

It’s because of all of these factors that I spend more time playing retro games than modern ones. That’s not to say modern games are bad., far from it. Some modern games capture the essence of these retro titles, but only in part. The only way to truly experience them is to play them yourself.

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