Is it just about the nostalgia?

[kryss]

It's very much the certainty of games you know rather than risking the cash on something new. And the rose-tinted glasses of course.

[nakamura]

Mixed. Nostalgia is nice but I won't ignore flaws. Jet Set Radio for example was an all time favourite of mine but it plays like garbage on DC now. I managed to go through it on PS3 but that was one best left to the memory banks.

I've played plenty of new to me stuff too and most of it holds up perfectly.

[Team Andromeda]

The thing with Nostalgia is you always remember the good stuff and never the bad. Games have never been better, but I do miss the old days of the instant pick and play and also the death of Arcade gaming , gun games and shooters really hurts me .

[nakamura]

I don't think games are better than ever, I think they are very mixed. Forza Horizon 2 for example is a game I love but they crapped it down with so much content it feels worse as a result. I cracked Horizon 1 in around 25 hours and felt gripped from start to finish. Horizon 2 though feels bloated and it makes completed it something of a chore. The structure of the game is terrible.

Too many games are like this, absolutely bloated with needless content. Quantity over quality imo. Although there are still tons of great games, I just feel they could be better.

[Tetsuo]

The industry, perhaps more than any other, is always obsessed with progress - leaving behind systems and games that no consumer can possibly claim to have kept up with.

Sure, I'll replay games from my past, but only because they are great games that I still enjoy playing. I'm not interested in nostalgia whatsoever, I just don't get that.

So, for me it's simply about playing and finding games which I have never played before, or was always wanted to, but could not afford. There's so many games and even systems that I've not played, I can't ever see a time where I won't have a pile of 'new' retro games to experience for the first time.

[acidbearboy]

Same with music as acidbearboy mentioned, modern stuff is mass produced cranked out using patterns and cut and paste whereas old grooves had a rhythm section that had its own unique flow, no autotune and a soul. New stuff is just all trend hopping with no integrity. This isn't just a gaming thing, it's present in most areas of modern life due to the homogenising effect of big business, the Internet and easily manipulated consumer preferences. Aim at the common denominator, which is usually a dumbass, and the rest have no choice but follow.

I reckon that there is plenty of great music still being made (mainstream and underground), you just have to look for it. Same goes for games I suspect, although I've not really kept up to date with the current generation of consoles or handhelds.

[Team Andromeda]

I don't think games are better than ever, I think they are very mixed. Forza Horizon 2 for example is a game I love but they crapped it down with so much content it feels worse as a result.

And yet people then have a pop at some games for not having more content . If you're a racing or football fan I don't think were had it any better really and I don't think we see so many terrible games like we once did. Some of us may not like the style of games being made, but in many ways they are of better quailty than some of the crap that was around inthe 16 bit and 32 bit days.

That said, I don't like the death of Arcade games in the West, ,the near death of Light gun games, Arcade racers and shooters. But when I look back do I remember the terrible games like Rise of the Robots, Busby, Batman Forver or do I remember Super Metroid, Mickey Mouse, Panzer Dragoon Zwei and the likes of Contra III ... When you look back you always remember the good

[Team Andromeda]

I reckon that there is plenty of great music still being made

There is, its just so hard these days to hear it , what with sounds effects blasting from every channel

[nakamura]

I think you wildly misunderstand this issue. No one denies that there were tons of bad games but to say things are better is tbh, wrong. Yes games like Forza are amazing but Loeb and WRC aren't.

During 98/99 we had Gran Turismo, Crash Team Racing, F-Zero X, Colin McRae, F199, Wipeout 3, Ridge Racer 4, Sega Rally 2, Shutokou Battle, Runabout, V Rally 2, ToCa 2; and so on.

There was a much richer and more diverse racing culture back then.

[Leon Retro]

The thing with Nostalgia is you always remember the good stuff and never the bad. Games have never been better, but I do miss the old days of the instant pick and play and also the death of Arcade gaming , gun games and shooters really hurts me .

I remember the bad games, but I'd be a bit weird if I thought about them much. No, I love to play good classic games for all sorts of systems and also talk about them. It can be fun to take the piss out of crap like Rise of the Robots and talk about how terrible it is, but I think most people enjoy celebrating true classic games.

I think it's negative to focus on bad old games, when there are loads of great old games that are still worth playing. All retro systems have games worth playing, even if there's a lot of rubbish as well.

I wouldn't say games are "better" now. As much as you get top quality FPS and open-world action games, you also get a lot of generic, broken, and downright dull games in those genres. It's not like every modern FPS, survival horror, open-world action game and adventure/rpg is excellent. Just because many use flash effects and run in 1080p, doesn't mean they are beautiful, well-crafted, uplifting creations. I think a simple game like Mr Driller can seem a million times more charming than a generic FPS made by a weak developer, despite the graphics being modern and therefore far more advanced.

But it's down to personal taste. If someone feels Gran Turismo 6 & Forza 5 are more captivating and uplifting than Ridge Racer, Daytona, the F-Zero series, and Out Run 1 & 2, that's fine, but I know which games give me a feel-good vibe, and it's not the modern stuff, despite the graphics being incredibly more advanced.

[replicashooter]

Agreed that the racers are seriously lacking in the modern gen, although I suppose we were spoiled for choice with the sheer amount of top quality driving games in the previous couple of generations.

To me the main thing is the lack of originality, charm and inventiveness as too many devs are just following the money and cashing in on hype trains and trends. This is where I think Nintendo could, if they stop being so tight fisted, really clean up with their next machine as their first party stuff is always unquestionably good but if they somehow manage to get the right teams on board and create a machine for a "gamers gamer" (Which actually does fit with their key demograph/history of avoiding the big franchises) with the right blend of indy titles, quirky games and just some newness added in the mix then I'd be throwing my money at them.

They've got so many franchises they could shake the mothballs off and bring out like F Zero for one and I think the concept of creating a machine for the hardcore gamer would also appeal to the coders and devs that are tired of cranking out derivative crap for the masses plus it would give them the competitive edge and difference in a crowded market where the big boys are already duking it out for the same throne.

They could circumvent all this as the peoples champ <cue Rocky music>.

[Team Andromeda]

I think you wildly misunderstand this issue. No one denies that there were tons of bad games but to say things are better is tbh, wrong. Yes games like Forza are amazing but Loeb and WRC aren't.

You miss understanding the point . In terms of quality , the bar is now far higher than it was in the likes of 8 and 16 bit gens . We might not have the all time classics like in those days , but I think you're far less likley to buy some utter crap than you were inthe old days . Also I could really make a list of some utter crap racers like Spirt of Speed and so on .

With Forza Hor II, Forza 6, Drive Club, Project Cars and the likes of Dirt on the PC a half decent multi platform F1 game its a great time to be a racer fan . Though I miss the days of Geoff F1 games

I remember the bad games, but I'd be a bit weird if I thought about them much. No, I love to play good classic games for all sorts of systems and also talk about them. It can be fun to take the piss out of crap like Rise of the Robots and talk about how terrible it is, but I think most people enjoy celebrating true classic games

One looks back with fondness ... I'm a huge F1 fan and how many people say F1 is boring and moan about One team domination, forgetting that even inthe good old days of 80's McLaren had a totally dominate season . How many of us Footy fans all say Football not as good as it was and how we all miss the good old days , Hell I find my self saying the same about going out drinking and how Pubs and Clubs aren't like they used to be, never mind how I miss the days of 80's Heavy Metal and 80's Gore Horror films

[Neon Ignition]

For me nostalgia is certainly something to be careful with. I recently replayed Super Mario 64 which is a stone cold classic and it was good fun but I'd lying if I didn't say it felt like age was seeping in the cracks and it hadn't been surpassed despite my love of it.

I agree with the line that there are more good games now than there's ever been. Back in the old days having a backlog like I have now would have been an impossibility and it's been done without buying the drivel that comes out like THPS5.

The trouble is that originality and innovation don't equal good. If you have access to a PC there's plenty of new twists of games out there but not that much of it is worthwhile. It only stands to reason that the 5th game ever was more original than the 5 millionth. Most gamers nostalgia ties back to the titles of their youth as well, the time they were most easily impressionable by the new. Young kids today will be nostalgic about today's games down the line as well.

There's certainly a coldness to how the biggest franchises are iterated annually but being objective it would be hard to call them out as bad entries. Especially when it's selectively done, some annualised series escaping criticism whilst others are damned by default.

Adult gamers are more weathered, experienced and cynical so naturally we view things that way. Music and film are no different, in both cases I broadly enjoy both more now than I do what was put out in say the 90's however adult me doesn't get to experience the highs and wows as much anymore.

I found this year that mixing up genres and playing a mix of modern and retro titles kept things on an even keel.

[Asura]

To me the main thing is the lack of originality, charm and inventiveness as too many devs are just following the money and cashing in on hype trains and trends. This is where I think Nintendo could, if they stop being so tight fisted, really clean up with their next machine as their first party stuff is always unquestionably good but if they somehow manage to get the right teams on board and create a machine for a "gamers gamer" (Which actually does fit with their key demograph/history of avoiding the big franchises) with the right blend of indy titles, quirky games and just some newness added in the mix then I'd be throwing my money at them.

Sadly, I don't agree. We spent years thinking the games industry had grown huge (and it has) but I don't think the number of people willing to spend money on those types of games is much bigger than it was in the Saturn days. I just think smartphones/wider availablity and types of gaming mean that many people are playing types of video games that didn't exist before.

[nakamura]

Mario 64 is still utterly wonderful. It's extra magical considering it doesn't tell you what to do and let's you go play. Still controls superbly too.