Nostalgia, Is it really all that bad?

[Eefness]

AHHHhhhhhhhhh!!!!! NOSTALGIA ATTACK!!!!!!! Soooo I just found GoG. Good god i just clicked on the bestseller page and pretty much geeked the f*** out for a while. Hell I even found a game ive been looking for for a VERY long time, Arcanum. Man I know its kinda a forgotten style of game (or completely deluded hack and slash, not happy 'bout Dungeon Siege 3 but that is a different story) but i miss the Ol' dungeon crawlers like Diablo.

............. Anyway sorry for that, but to my point. I hear a lot of people go on and on about how being nostalgic about older games is stupid and all of the new generations of games are far superior. But I really dont see that. Yes there are some AWESOME games coming out but at the end of the day i keep coming back to older games simply for the fun factor.

Yea sure some games dont look all that great by today's standards but in the actual quality of the GAME portion is some of the most fun you can ever have. Look at Morrowind, it looks like ASS but so much fun.

I may be guilty of riding the Nostalgia train here but i believe game were far better when graphics and multiplayer weren't the the main focus and money-sinks they are today, back when you actually had to use you brains to make something compelling and immersive.

Newer games these days just can't seem to keep my attention. Sure i play them and they are fun for a while but i don't ever seem to find the time to replay them over and over and yet older games just seem to get better and better as time passes.

*sigh* am I actualy sane here or am i just a nostalgia blinded fool?

 

[remnant_phoenix]

I want to contribute to the topic...but first I have to ask, "What is GoG?"

 

[Eefness]

I want to contribute to the topic...but first I have to ask, "What is GoG?"

GoG is basically Steam for older PC (and some console port) Titles. You name it they have it: Neverwinter, Dungeon Keeper, Sanatarium (such a creepy game) stuff like that, the games you really cant buy anymore.

 

[Flailing Escapist]

I do feel like recent gaming companies have decided to bank more money into "looks" and less into inventive gameplay and story.
But on the plus side, most games today look incredible. (and probably make us more retarded)
XD
My eyes burn wuth glee!

 

[OrokuSaki]

No, recently I've decided that most new games are actually disappointing in comparison to some of their older couterparts. For instance FFXIII: Played it once, thought it was good, cut it off. But FFVII I've played at least 5 times because it's much more fun.

Nostalgia can be a good thing, but you simply can't let it get in the way of facts: For instance, Morrowind was more fun, but Oblivion has better multi-classing between magic, stealth, and fighting.

I too like nostalgia, I recently bought the old Teanage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies because I remembered liking them as a kid, they're still FUCKING AWESOME!

 

[FrioJenkins]

As long as nostalgia doesn't blind you or give you too much bias, it's a great thing to have and keep!

Every time I hear any tune from almost any Nintendo franchise I can't help but smile as shivers run up my spine.

 

[Terminate421]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

 

[Eefness]

No, recently I've decided that most new games are actually disappointing in comparison to some of their older couterparts. For instance FFXIII: Played it once, thought it was good, cut it off. But FFVII I've played at least 5 times because it's much more fun.

Nostalgia can be a good thing, but you simply can't let it get in the way of facts: For instance, Morrowind was more fun, but Oblivion has better multi-classing between magic, stealth, and fighting.

I too like nostalgia, I recently bought the old Teanage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies because I remembered liking them as a kid, they're still FUCKING AWESOME!

Oh dont get me wrong, i see the value in the new systems and such and they certainly have their place, it just feels like game makers are banking solely on the new stuff and forgetting the lessons of the past because their old.

Like i have played Oblivion and it was awesome for a quite a while (well once you got the right balancing mods) but on a whole the game felt ....... empty compared to Morrowind. Hell in Morrowind you could come across 20 different things to go explore while going to your quest, in Oblivion you could ..... well ...... if you forced yourself to not use the fast travel you could .... ummm .. well explore a ruin ... or .... well there wasn't much in between the cities.

What id like to see is a game that took the old tried and true and fun gameplay from the previous generations and pour all of the new age technology and innovations into it instead of just hiding behind said innovations.

 

[remnant_phoenix]

GoG is basically Steam for older PC (and some console port) Titles. You name it they have it: Neverwinter, Dungeon Keeper, Sanatarium (such a creepy game) stuff like that, the games you really cant buy anymore.

Ahh...I see.

Well, now that that's established...

Nostalgia is a tricky thing. I hold two very different views on the subject. I think they are both valid and I think that nostalgia is best balanced between these two extremes.



On the good end of nostalgia...

Games, like fiction books, or fiction movies, or even some non-fiction materials that are plotted in a compelling way, exist primarily to entertain. That being said, does it matter if it's a new game or an old game? Does it matter if it's a game you've played a dozen times or a game you've never played? If you're being entertained, then the piece of entertainment is doing its job. Also, since what is and isn't entertaining is in the eye of the beholder, it doesn't really matter if other people accuse you of being a slave to nostaglia or being stuck in the past. The entertainment value of a particular work (such as a game) is completely up to you.



On the bad end of nostalgia...

Games, like fiction books, or fiction movies, or even some non-fiction materials that are plotted in a compelling way, have the potential to influence the way we see the world. By opening ourselves up to new experiences of all kinds, we may feel something we've never felt before. We may look at something in a way we've never seen it before. We may even learn something. It is when media products like games live up to this potential that they are considered by many to be "art." Unless you are replaying a game, or re-viewing a movie, or re-reading a book, with a discerning eye and you are intentionally trying to pick up on things that you may have missed the first go-around, there's little artistic exploration to be had because you've already experienced that work, and the first experience is usually the more profound one. By continually replaying games, you're missing out potentially amazing experiences you haven't yet had at all.

Even if you don't care about the artistic value of gaming, consider that by making purchases and being involved in the modern gaming world, you can influence the direction that the industry takes. Sure the old games are great, but what if no more great games get made because the voices of discerning gamers go unheard?



Back on that issue of "balance"...

There is something to be said for both sides of the argument. On the one hand, entertainment is entertainment, pure and simple, and if replaying old games entertains you, who cares? On the other hand, if you never play the new stuff, you're doing yourself a disservice by not allowing yourself quality new experiences that can grow you. Also, it's doing the industry a disservice if your voice goes unheard in the present.

As for me, I go through cycles. I've been on a "retro gaming" kick recently, but now I find myself ready to tackle some more contemporary stuff. As long as you keep yourself open to new experiences (and that includes not being a slave to nostalgia when judging new experiences) and understand that if you don't do your part to influence the industry you will be ignored, I say there's nothing wrong with indulging nostalgia every now and then.

 

[OrokuSaki]

Oh dont get me wrong, i see the value in the new systems and such and they certainly have their place, it just feels like game makers are banking solely on the new stuff and forgetting the lessons of the past because their old.

Like i have played Oblivion and it was awesome for a quite a while (well once you got the right balancing mods) but on a whole the game felt ....... empty compared to Morrowind. Hell in Morrowind you could come across 20 different things to go explore while going to your quest, in Oblivion you could ..... well ...... if you forced yourself to not use the fast travel you could .... ummm .. well explore a ruin ... or .... well there wasn't much in between the cities.

What id like to see is a game that took the old tried and true and fun gameplay from the previous generations and pour all of the new age technology and innovations into it instead of just hiding behind said innovations.

I didn't mean to say that all new games are bad, just that they're like you said, trying too hard to "Innovate" things that already worked perfectly fine in older incarnations.

 

[Justank]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

Eh? Black/White is my favorite Pokemon game so far, and I've been playing since Red/Blue, not sure how anyone could think the older ones are actually better, experience rubber banding and the plethora of multi-types and battle types made it the best one so far to me.

As to the OP, rose colored glasses certainly occur from time to time, but I still enjoy FFVII more than any of the others I've played (I/II/VIII/IX/X/XIII), playing through IV right now on my DS and thoroughly enjoying it. It's vastly superior to XIII at the very least. Side note, which one has Kefka in it? Still need to play that one too.

 

[nbamaniac]

Nostalgia doesn't hurt. Unless it turns you into some kind of zombie called a 'fanboy'.

As to the OP, rose colored glasses certainly occur from time to time, but I still enjoy FFVII more than any of the others I've played (I/II/VIII/IX/X/XIII), playing through IV right now on my DS and thoroughly enjoying it. It's vastly superior to XIII at the very least. Side note, which one has Kefka in it? Still need to play that one too.

Final Fantasy 6 (or FF 3 in the american version).. here lemme give you a teaser..


The 3D movies came from the PSX version though the SNES and GBA versions are superior imo.

 

[thiosk]

Well, graphics have always been a huge drive. These days though, we've hit diminishing returns. So you make a game with PHENOMMM graphics. Unfortunately, the whole game often plays like a tutorial, because so much time and money were spent on graphics that the rest suffers.

 

[NinjaSpaceCore]

I prefer playing my Super Nintendo over my Wii any day (Although you can just see that as actual games vs shovelware). The older games show how gaming has changed. It's good to go back and see what's influenced current gaming. Video games are still fun whether it's on an Atari or an Xbox. Nintendo offers backwards compatibility for most systems and has the Virtual Console for playing old favorites. There's no reason to shove your old games in a corner and never play them because they're "old."

Also, Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars will always be timeless

 

[Netrigan]

Just he careful. It's too easy to become that guy who listens to Foghat all day long and complains about how the don't make music like that anymore.

Don't know who Foghat is, just substitute The Scorpions.

I'm of the opinion that very little of any given generation is worth remembering. Once it fades from living memory it's essentially gone, the younger generation simply not finding it interesting enough to pay attention to. But it can be fun to explore the wider sandbox of your formative years while the gettings good. Enjoy the past, but watch your complaints of the present... the past is usually just as bad but you don't judge it nearly so harshly. Time is the ultimate crap filter, with the truly forgettable stuff nearly forgotten a decade later.

 

[Terminate421]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

Eh? Black/White is my favorite Pokemon game so far, and I've been playing since Red/Blue, not sure how anyone could think the older ones are actually better, experience rubber banding and the plethora of multi-types and battle types made it the best one so far to me.

As to the OP, rose colored glasses certainly occur from time to time, but I still enjoy FFVII more than any of the others I've played (I/II/VIII/IX/X/XIII), playing through IV right now on my DS and thoroughly enjoying it. It's vastly superior to XIII at the very least. Side note, which one has Kefka in it? Still need to play that one too.

No, a nostalgia fag is when someone goes, "Oh look, all the new ones are OVER DESIGNED! That means the game sucks."

Their main excuse is using Trubbish and the ice cream pokemon to say that they suck. A nostalgia fag is essentially those people who refuse to let Nintendo continue to make more pokemon because "They aren't the same, they are horribly designed!!!"

 

[Arehexes]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

Here here, I never understood how anyone can say the jhoto/kanto regions are awesome and Honen and Shino are clearly the better of the two

 

[Terminate421]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

Here here, I never understood how anyone can say the jhoto/kanto regions are awesome and Honen and Shino are clearly the better of the two

What?

My favorite Generations are Jhoto and Shinnoh (2nd and 4th). The reason being because they have the best pokemon available at the time.

Nostalgia Fags are the ones who let the first or second generation cloud their vision for a pokemon game, they immediatly deduce that any other generations after a certain one didn't happen and that usually their intelligence is superior.

 

[Arehexes]

As long as it doesn't bias your opinion.

Pokemon Nostalgia fans are the worst however.

Here here, I never understood how anyone can say the jhoto/kanto regions are awesome and Honen and Shino are clearly the better of the two

What?

My favorite Generations are Jhoto and Shinnoh (2nd and 4th). The reason being because they have the best pokemon available at the time.

Nostalgia Fags are the ones who let the first or second generation cloud their vision for a pokemon game, they immediatly deduce that any other generations after a certain one didn't happen and that usually their intelligence is superior.

I was referring to the ones who claim kanto/jhoto from the first two gens are best and anything else isn't pokemon but a digimon...maybe I shouldn't post while half asleep >_> sorry.