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[bitbydeath]

 

[Collin]

Yeah, I can live with the fact that nothing will ever feel quite like playing Ocarina of Time for the first time. The entire PS3/WII/360 era I felt the most uninterested in where gaming was at. So many games that era leaned into trying to be “cool” and bland action-heavy bullshit. Most of those felt so dull to me. But strangely it seems like the gaming world has gotten a lot more up my alley this generation with Breath of the Wild, Bloodborne, FF7 Remake, Uncharted 4 etc. It’s like gaming rediscovered that whimsical charm that it used to have. It could just be me but I’m feeling a lot better about the future of gaming then I did during last gen.

 

[Palabragrís]

...why am I crying?

 

[devDemonik]

This is an interesting thought cause I always believed that it's not just the games themselves, but the experience of growing up, being young, having friends that are also gamers.

Everyone has a 'golden age' when you're a kid and you'll remember not just the games, but the experiences and emotions that went along with them.

Here's an example:

If you ask me and my best friends, the best games ever created are FF7, RE2, GoldenEye, and all that PS/N64 era

Kids 3-5 years younger? Usually Pokemon

My 6 year old nephew? Loves Fortnite more than anything in the world. All of him and his little buddies play it together all the time.

To me, Pokemon and Fortnite are ok at best. But those other games? Legendary.

So are games getting worse or better? Neither. They're probably just as good/bad as they always were, they're just not affecting us the same way anymore.

 

[Stiflers Mom]

I definitely miss the magic of sitting in my room, playing Elite, Last Ninja and Bard's Tale on my C64 in 1987 and reading about new and upcoming games in a monthly magazine.

 

[kungfuian]

One thing for sure you can't really duplicate all of the surrounding experiences that contribute to your memories of those games. Playing games as a child, where everything is new, with no little to no responsibilities, and when life is pretty simple, is a vastly different experience to playing them as an adult with bills, and jobs, and general knowledge of the shit show that is the state of world affairs.

That said, I totally play games in search of those magical child like feelings. It might not be as frequent but every few years I stumble onto a game that brings me a similar sense of child like wonder. Where I forget everything around me and get fully immersed. Like my first time through Shadow of the Colossus, or Metroid Prime, or Bloodborne and later the entire Souls series (I only played them the last few years). Those games really brought back that child like sense of exploration and adventure.

My first VR experiences were that way too (Wind Waker in Dolphin VR on Vive, RE 7, astrobot). Blew my fucking mind!

And in general, Nintendo are incredibly skilled at making games that bring out your inner child. I'm 43 years old and the Links Awakening remake and Breath of the wild made me feel like a kid again. So much fun!

Also E3 press conferences, especially new consoles reveals (each gen I get excited like a child). Sad we won't be able to participate this year. Like someone cancelled the video game equivalent of Christmas morning.

 

[obin_gam]

I miss police quest
And Under a Killing Moon

 

[Vlaphor]

I think one of the main reasons games seem more precious as a kid than as an adult is the reduced access to them. Every game you got was a treasure, even if it was just a weekend rental. Now I can get any game I want instantly, plus I have complete retro console libraries just sitting on my PC, so they don't seem that magical anymore.

 

[Miles708]

Yeah, I can live with the fact that nothing will ever feel quite like playing Ocarina of Time for the first time. The entire PS3/WII/360 era I felt the most uninterested in where gaming was at. So many games that era leaned into trying to be “cool” and bland action-heavy bullshit. Most of those felt so dull to me. But strangely it seems like the gaming world has gotten a lot more up my alley this generation with Breath of the Wild, Bloodborne, FF7 Remake, Uncharted 4 etc. It’s like gaming rediscovered that whimsical charm that it used to have. It could just be me but I’m feeling a lot better about the future of gaming then I did during last gen.

My feelings exactly. Last generation was a land of brown and bloom (with the occasional Ninja Gaiden 2 or Lost Planet), this gen rekindled my love for videogames.

 

[Aion002]

I miss games like Breath of Fire, Tenchu, Kuon, Way of The Samurai and Xenogears.

Otherwise... Nope. Video games right now are better than ever. Anytime that is possible I can play with friends, thanks to online.

From Software is my favorite studio ever, Monster Hunter has never been better, Resident Evil never went away, Kojima is unleashed, Age of Empires is back, Flight Simulator is back, thanks to the Souls series we have Nioh and now I love God of War (is kinda like Souls).

The only downside is that, apart from some games, S-E is garbage.... I miss Squaresoft.

 

[MaestroMike]

Not really tech is way better now than I was a kid

 

[Virex]

Hell no. That shit is expensive mate

 

[Scotty W]

A lot of us grew up gaming as kids, and have carried on the hobby as a significant element of our daily lives into adulthood.

I've said it a few times here, but I spend most of my gaming time playing older titles more than anything current. Whether that be revisiting past favorites with a more developed set of eyes, or getting the opportunity to play a gem I had missed initially, titles from PS1, PS2, Xbox, 360, and older PC games just interest me more.

What I've come to realize is that I'm chasing the dragon. I miss growing up with my cousin and playing JRPGs alongside him more than anything. I yearn for that sense of captivation within my adult life. It's what continues my interest in the video games overall.

While my favorite game this generation was easily Witcher 3, I've realized that I loved it so much because it reminded me of playing Chrono Trigger or Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic for the first time. These games have the exact gameplay loop which I can't get enough of.

The industry may be more varied than ever with all types of games now, all more polished and user friendly than years prior, but ultimately - I'm looking for something that captures that childhood sense of wonder in me more than anything else.

Are you also chasing the dragon?

So what you’re saying is... The Witcher 3 will give me Chrono Trigger feelings?