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[brian0057]

Is that the half with Zombies or whatever they are shooting at you?

What were Capcom thinking.

At that point, the game drops any pretense about being a horror game and you may as well be playing Gears of War.

Why because you can't move and shoot ?

See above.
RE4 is the best thing and the worst thing to ever happen to both the Resident Evil series and the horror genre at large.

 

[eot]

Half-Life, guns don't feel all that good to use, climbing ladders sucks, controls are slippery, and you're always running through same-looking corridors in an underground facility which makes the game feel like its overstaying its welcome.

We got Black Mesa which changes many things for the good like reducing the length of "On a Rail" chapter, but it still has that feeling of monotonous corridors and interiors.

I can't agree with this. Sure, climbing ladders is automatic for me at this point, but I love the combat in that game. I'd much rather play HL than Black Mesa.

It means that the games are still playable but don't hold up today when compared to modern titles.
System Shock 2 and Half-Life 2 have aged like fine wine.
The OG System Shock and OG Doom have not.
All of them are superb titles.

You don't think Doom has aged well? I mean, if you play it with the arrow keys then sure, but if you add mouselook it holds up amazingly well.

 

[Kadve]

I really wanted to get into Soul Reaver, but those graphics are ugly as sin nowadays.

Also, anything with tank controls, and console shooters where you cant use twin sticks.

And while we're at it.

Classic or not, it just feels so stiff compared to it's sequels (triangel jump anyone?). And the writing is just hilariously bad

 

[Birdo]

Goldeneye.

Zelda Ocarina of time

 

[Nemesisuuu]

Original Fallouts, 1 & 2. They're pretty archaic now, BUT - as with everything you can get used to it. Finished first one again few months ago, started second one, got to New Reno and stopped there. I've played them multiple times over the decades (this sounds like I have 3000 years) since their release.

Yes, they didn't age well, but will always be CRPG masterpieces and one of the best games I've ever played. Even in this state - much better games than Bethesdas Fallouts (it doesn't mean Bethesdas games are bad, just completely different). I'd like to see remakes sometimes, not getting my hopes up tho.

If something didn't age well it doesn't automatically mean it's bad, just takes some time to get used to it and it can be enjoyable like it was back in the day, with right mindset and expectations of course.

 

[TacosNSalsa]

I really wanted to get into Soul Reaver, but those graphics are ugly as sin nowadays.

Also, anything with tank controls, and console shooters where you cant use twin sticks.

I tried as well to get back into it but it wasn't the graphics alone ..it was the BOX PUZZLES!! I just can't do it anymore..I'll just keep my fond memories of it.

 

[synchronicity]

Silent Hill 1, Metal Gear Solid

Totally disagree here. Silent Hill was never great because of its gameplay, and its atmosphere/story is as great as its always been. And MGS is still fantastic too.

Stop hating classic Konami.

 

[SpongebobSquaredance]

I've never got this idea of games aging. If anything the modern player is just spoiled and used to every game being so samey in the mechanics. Recently I've finished SH2 and I dont feel like the game aged at all. Back then people already complained about the controls and combat so that is nothing new, but I feel thats kinda the point. You are playing a regular guy and not the Terminator so it makes sense to make the controls difficult. It a design philosophy that I feel got lost as gaming became more and more mainstream. You can get used to the mechanics in SH2 and learn them. Its not like they suffer from terrible or broken design. They just adapt to what the game is trying to do which is survival horror.

 

[Kadve]

Get good.

To be fair, i think everyone would agree that SOT's combat was it's weakest part. It's kinda sad actually that most people gives Warrior Within a pass, despite it being one of the things it greatly improved on. (And the platforming is off course, as great as ever)

 

[hyperbertha]

At that point, the game drops any pretense about being a horror game and you may as well be playing Gears of War.

See above.
RE4 is the best thing and the worst thing to ever happen to both the Resident Evil series and the horror genre at large.

Ramifications outside of the game aside, I think the game still managed to maintain the survival horror all the way to the end. Gun wielding zombies weren't that scary, but there were plenty of other problems to deal with that rivalled the first half of the game.

 

[Azelover]

The problema of actual gamers is the "Realism" Gameplay and controls, are such boring, With ZELDA OOT the control are fast… and this is a Good point, but graphics and Mechanic are too old, actually i play Zelda oot 2 months later after launch date

I find it to be magical. In fact I prefer the N64 game, over the 3DS remake. Water level and all.

 

[Fbh]

Honestly, as much as I like them I think a lot of Ps1 JRPG's didn't age particularly well.
Between the annoying and frequent random encounters and the rather slow battles with often lengthy transitions I no longer have the patience to play a lot of them as they were originally intended (thank god for re-releases and emulation which let you speed them up).

It's just another reason why Chrono Trigger aged so well. Released a gen before on weaker hardware and yet it's so much better in many ways.

 

[hyperbertha]

I find it to be magical. In fact I prefer the N64 game, over the 3DS remake. Water level and all.

I must agree. The water level in n64 version engaged me in ways a game has never engaged me. Glad I emulated the n64 version rather than play 3ds version.

 

[nkarafo]

but it never was great

Sorry, i'm gonna have to disagree there.

Goldeneye did things no other FPS was doing when it came out. Even if you don't like it now, saying it wasn't a good game when it came out is gaming history revisionism.

Also, the level design is hit or miss. Some of the better designed levels are still great. Facility, Silo and Control are great. The Dam is good too. Streets and Statue are shit though.

 

[sublimit]

I don't agree at all with the "games have not aged well" sentiment. This is another of those industry trendy catchphrases that people like to copy without really thinking about it.

Games remain the same it's only our perspectives that change and often get diluted by our modern standards. People need to learn to appreciate entertainment arts based on the times they came out and not by the times we live in. Same goes for cinema,comics,books,paintings,sculpture,architecture etc.

 

[SupremeHoodie]

Halo 1

 

[Hoya Destroyer]

Probably the original Tenchu. I really thought it was great when it first came out. The stealth element was brand new back then.
Years ago I played Tenchu Z on the 360 and loved it. Then I went back and played a previous Tenchu game on my original Xbox. The camera was AWFUL. Im confident that the original would be just as bad - though I havent played it since the 90's TBH.

 

[Muddy]

Halo 1

Blasphemy.

 

[ROMhack]

PS2 Shadow of the Colossus aged like milk and smelt a bit like milk about to go off on release.

There was a lot of backlash to the PS4 remake(boot?) but I thought it was breathtaking. Best version by far.

 

[ZoolNL]

Disagree. The controls are the worst aspect of OCarina. Its gameplay on the other hand still RULEZ like crazy. The cinematic N64 fps tries hard and fails to hold it back.

This, I loved the gameplay, but hated the controls. They are terrible.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

Sadly... kind of true for me. I wasn't able to play too much of it on Switch. The controls, man...

 

[wolywood]

Shenmue comes to mind. Loved the original Dreamcast game, couldn't make it through more than an hour or so of the remaster.

 

[01011001]

Sorry, i'm gonna have to disagree there.

Goldeneye did things no other FPS was doing when it came out. Even if you don't like it now, saying it wasn't a good game when it came out is gaming history revisionism.

Also, the level design is hit or miss. Some of the better designed levels are still great. Facility, Silo and Control are great. The Dam is good too. Streets and Statue are shit though.

my entire point is that if a game is not great when removed from its point in history, it is not a great game.

and Goldeneye is not a bad game. it's just alright at best.

you may disagree with how I see what great games are but your comments are not disagreeing with me. you just disagree with how I define "great game"

 

[BusierDonkey]

Star Fox.



This was my favorite game when it came out. Even when it launched it ran like hot garbage, but the game itself is phenominal.

Trying to play it now is rough. A 3D shooter using a D-Pad running at 2 fps is bonkers now but when it came out it was the shit.

 

[Soodanim]

I don't agree at all with the "games have not aged well" sentiment. This is another of those industry trendy catchphrases that people like to copy without really thinking about it.

Games remain the same it's only our perspectives that change and often get diluted by our modern standards. People need to learn to appreciate entertainment arts based on the times they came out and not by the times we live in. Same goes for cinema,comics,books,paintings,sculpture,architecture etc.

This is just restating the premise. The thread is exactly about games where the experience is diminished by modern standards. Whether that's design that has moved on or controls that are awkward to use, the inevitable result of game design moving forward because game designers trying new things is that not everything is timeless.

Super Mario World is timeless. Its art style, sound design and control scheme haven't become more difficult to enjoy even when viewed through a modern lens. You can't necessarily say the same about some early PS1 3D platformers, for example. Or to look another way, there's a reason WASD movement and trigger based acceleration and braking have become the standard and the older control schemes have died out.

You don't have to agree with a post, and that's fine. I strongly disagree that RE4 has aged poorly in any aspect of its design, but I'm not the target of that point of view. I'm already comfortable with it. Someone coming in now, who maybe played RE2/3 Remake first, could find their experience diminished by a control scheme they could feel limits their fun. In one way, the whole thread is just people reporting on their experiences going back.

 

[Gargus]

there is no such thing as a great game that hasn't aged well.

if it hasn't aged well it was never a great game to begin with. sometimes that is due to developers trying to push beyond technology limits and games running like ass because of it and after a few years it is hard to go back to such a badly performing game.
and sometimes that is because at the time of release there was no better option so the mediocre game was seen as great due to the lack of better alternatives.

GoldenEye would still be a good game if we had a version of it like the HD version of Perfect Dark on 360... and we would have that version if Nintendo didn't block it back in the day. because the core game is not bad, it's just that it runs like ass, it's an early 3D game so it looks a bit shit and the N64 controller is garbage as well.

Goldeneye was a great game, then you say it would be great still if it had an HD version like perfect dark. That defeats your opening argument because you just said it would still be a good game, in other words saying it was good but isn't now. So it hasn't aged well. But you said there is no such thing as a game that hasn't aged well.

So yes, good games can not be able to age well. Unreal was amazing in its day but today the graphics awful and by today's standards the level design is garbage but back then it was fresh and new. Star wars shadows of the empire back in the day was great but today's standard the controls are so fucking terrible i can barely play it.

So sure, hd update and some tweaks could make older games better but that isn't the actual old game because it had to be fixed to be considered good today.

 

[PlayStaytion]

Dragon Ball Budokai Tenkaichi Series , l loved it to death but its clear that pc games age much longer.

 

[and 3 others]

Might not be such a big deal for some, but Resistance: Fall of Man and it using R3 for zoom. Played it not too long ago, and had forgotten all about it.

 

[Hairball]

I gotta agree on GoldenEye, it was fun in 1997, but it was pretty brutal to play considering the N64 didn't have gyro controls or a second control stick. Aiming was a nightmare. Everything was.... so blocky

When I got my SNES Classic, a lot of games were pretty horrible looking as well.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I find basically the entire library of N64 unplayable today outside of Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and Ocarina of Time.

 

[Muddy]

I find basically the entire library of N64 unplayable today outside of Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and Ocarina of Time.

Diddy Kong Racing and Lylat wars hold up.

 

[Bakkus]

I find basically the entire library of N64 unplayable today outside of Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and Ocarina of Time.

That's funny because I think two of those games have aged badly. Mario 64 is still decent, but MK64 is utter trash.

 

[Ikutachi]

I find basically the entire library of N64 unplayable today outside of Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and Ocarina of Time.

Paper Mario?

 

[nkarafo]

my entire point is that if a game is not great when removed from its point in history, it is not a great game.

and Goldeneye is not a bad game. it's just alright at best.

you may disagree with how I see what great games are but your comments are not disagreeing with me. you just disagree with how I define "great game"

I don't see how my comments don't disagree with you.

I think Goldeneye was great. One of the best games in mid 1997. Just think about the most advanced FPS game on PCs back then was still Quake 1 (great game but still just a slightly more advanced DOOM with 3D graphics). And here you had Goldeneye with it's non-linear mission objectives, gadgets, stealth, sniper rifles, somewhat intelligent enemies for the time that didn't have just 1 attack variable, etc. It even was the main reason FPS games stopped trying to be "DOOM clones" because after Goldeneye, every other single player FPS game had to have all those things.

There are also many other details like how it had smooth motion captured 3D polygonal enemies (only Turok had this before this game AFAIK) complete with idle animations (that was a first). Or how about being the first (?) single player FPS game where you could hit enemies at different parts of the body with different damage results and even more different animations. Or how about it's nearly perfect hit detection, with bullets going through the smallest gaps instead of being stuck in front of you because you were aiming very close to the edge of a wall or a corner (this was a very annoying issue the majority of FPS and other games in general suffered and still do). I remember playing Half-life on PC after Goldeneye and feeling a bit like a regression because it didn't have these things.

Or how about the fact it was the first FPS game that had real dual analog controls despite dual analog controllers not existing on the N64 and you had to hold two controllers (kinda like a bulkier version of holding a Wiimote+Nunchuck). It's Goldeneye that made this first step, 3 full years before Alien Resurrection on the PS1, 4 years before Halo, the game that usually gets the credit for this because many people didn't play other console FPS games before it. And even without dual analog controllers, the "1.2 solitare" scheme was basically the same as modern controls with the only difference movement being digital instead of analog. You had to hold the controller by it's left side in order to move with the left thumb and aim/turn with the right. But 90% of people never tried anything other that the default control scheme and holding position so that's why you get so many people complaining about the controls. But that's their fault, not the game's. I played all FPS N64 games this way and when dual analog controlers became the standard, it was already a second nature to me.

It was not just "alright", it was great, GOTY material. It influenced the FPS genre big time.

 

[nkarafo]

I find basically the entire library of N64 unplayable today outside of Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, and Ocarina of Time.

F-Zero X?
Starfox?
Majora's Mask?
DOOM 64?
Wave Race?
Blast Corps?
Yoshi's Story?
Paper Mario?
Banjo-Kazooie?
Silicon Valley?
Rogue Squadron?
Episode 1 Racing?
Shadowman?
Rayman 2?

 

[kiphalfton]

Lol at everybody saying RE4. Like walking and shooting makes any difference.

-RE1 to RE3 aiming was a PITA and you had to stop to shoot. So the latter is no different than RE4.
- RE6 had stellar gameplay, better than RE2 remake, and people hated it.
- RE7 had awful gameplay, when it came to combat, and I don't ever see anybody ever criticize it.

Don't think you guys know wtf you're talking about. Also lol at all those people who say they wanted RE 3.5 over RE4. Again, you don't know what you want or you just want what you can't have.

 

[SupremeHoodie]

Blasphemy.

Halo 2 is the farthest I can go back. lol

 

[nkarafo]

- RE6 had stellar gameplay, better than RE2 remake, and people hated it.
- RE7 had awful gameplay, when it came to combat, and I don't ever see anybody ever criticize it.

Don't think you guys know wtf you're talking about.

RE6 may had "stellar" gameplay for an action game. RE7 may had awful combat for an action game.

Thing is, people don't want an action game out of a Resident Evil game.

 

[molasar]

-RE1 to RE3 aiming was a PITA

The aiming was a PITA in western versions of RE1 only, but not in its other editions (DC) and Biohazard 1 which has an auto aiming option intact.

 

[bender]

I tried as well to get back into it but it wasn't the graphics alone ..it was the BOX PUZZLES!! I just can't do it anymore..I'll just keep my fond memories of it.

As soon as I finished Soul Reaver 2 on the PS2 I was so conflicted. The game was so dated mechanically (hello box puzzles and brain dead combat) but the story and voice cast are amazing.

 

[kiphalfton]

RE6 may had "stellar" gameplay for an action game. RE7 may had awful combat for an action game.

Thing is, people don't want an action game out of a Resident Evil game.

Well what do you want. It's like the people who criticize Mass Effect and praise Mass Effect 2. ME2 is good, but it lost half the RPG mechanics in transition (maybe the RPG aspects weren't great in ME1, but to completely scrap them is a whole other thing). And that game pretty much did to ME1 what RE4 did to the prior games by making it a TPS.

Something is pretty much always lost in transition. If we could get iterative progress that would be great, but thats literally what RE4 was to RE1 to RE3. Maybe not story or lore wise, but graphically, gameplay wise, etc. And I like the tank controls and fixed camera from RE1 to RE3.

Edit:
I will admit I wish there had been more puzzles in RE4, and that they hadn't done away with them for all intents and purposes in RE4-RE6

 

[nkarafo]

Well what do you want. It's like the people who criticize Mass Effect and praise Mass Effect 2. ME2 is good, but it lost half the RPG mechanics in transition (maybe the RPG aspects weren't great in ME1, but to completely scrap them is a whole other thing). And that game pretty much did to ME1 what RE4 did to the prior games by making it a TPS.

Something is pretty much always lost in transition. If we could get iterative progress that would be great, but thats literally what RE4 was to RE1 to RE3. Maybe not story or lore wise, but graphically, gameplay wise, etc. And I like the tank controls and fixed camera from RE1 to RE3.

IMO, when a game becomes successful enough to become a franchise, people have certain expectations from them. Speaking about Resident Evil, the original game didn't become a success because of it's combat but because of it's atmosphere, tension, etc. I personally didn't like RE4 that much because it somewhat reduced a lot of these things by making enemies less threatening and instead you had swarms of them and a lot of ammo. But it still had some of the original trilogy's tension. RE5/6 complelely removed everything that made the original game what it was, a "Resident Evil" game. It wasn't horror anymore, there was no tension, it was just an action game with the only connection to the Resident Evil series being it's lore.

Basically, companies treat the lore/story as the most important thing and the main "connector" in a series instead of gameplay or style. And that may work with movies but, IMO, doesn't work with videogames because the identifying factor of a game should be gameplay/design and not the story.

 

[kungfuian]

This game was magical in 96', but the ugly early gen 3D and stiff controls make it a hard sell today. The remake is pretty good. From a design stand point I do still prefer the early game's focus on exploration and traversal to the more combat focused newer ones. Also the music is still great!

I will always remember it as amazing, flaws be damned. They're my slightly cracked nostalgia colored glasses and you can't have them.

 

[Team Andromeda]

I still love Goldeneye tbh. Some of mine would be ...

Daytona USA - Used to think this was the best racer ever, but these days not so much.

JSR - It's still fun and got that lovely SEGA look and sound. But the Camera system and 30 fps just make me want to play JSRF more.

Yoshi Island - This was like a SNES showcase back in the day, these days I just find the controls and gameplay more annoying than fun.

God Of War 3 - I was trying to play through this again on the Remaster and just find it a chore to play these days

Devil May Cry - This was the game that made me want a PS2, but these days I can barely play it.

But it's not really fair, most of the games above are 20 years old or more.

 

[xrnzaaas]

Hitman Blood Money definitely didn't aged well (I played the PS4 port). The controls are absolutely horrible, even doing simple stuff like throwing an object wasn't obvious and I literally had to google to find out how it's done. Terrible ragdoll physics also ruin a lot of the fun. You never know how a body you're dragging is going to react - it can start jumping around or get stuck in a door screwing your hopes of staying hidden. It's still a great game, but I wish it got at least an advanced remaster with modernized controls.

 

[Hayabusabruh]

Ahhhhhh! That looks like something from Wuhan!

 

[MayauMiao]

Totally disagree here. Silent Hill was never great because of its gameplay, and its atmosphere/story is as great as its always been. And MGS is still fantastic too.

Stop hating classic Konami.

I never said Silent Hill was great for its gameplay, and I too agree that it has great story/atmosphere but the PS1 graphics is getting bad the more we advance to better looking games. Its like trying to play Ridge Racer for PS1, but you can't love it because it runs at 30fps. So yeah, to me Silent Hill have not aged well for that reason.

Not hating classic Konami.

 

[TacosNSalsa]

As soon as I finished Soul Reaver 2 on the PS2 I was so conflicted. The game was so dated mechanically (hello box puzzles and brain dead combat) but the story and voice cast are amazing.

Yup..this is what kept me going through the series , the great story and cast . As a matter of fact it's my favorite game series because of it . The first time I heard Kain's voice in the OG Blood Omen was amazing that it was coming from a video game

 

[rofif]

Half-Life, guns don't feel all that good to use, climbing ladders sucks, controls are slippery, and you're always running through same-looking corridors in an underground facility which makes the game feel like its overstaying its welcome.

We got Black Mesa which changes many things for the good like reducing the length of "On a Rail" chapter, but it still has that feeling of monotonous corridors and interiors.

Absolutely agree and came here to post first Half-Life. The first few parts of the game are still great but then it turns into bullshit quick save/load game of "haha we got you!" and platforming. And I am not even talking about bad xen....

 

[Scotty W]

A lot of posts are built around an ambiguity that I don't think we fully understand.

Great art never ages. Homer, Mozart, Da Vinci.

But games do age, and as the op pointed out, even a game which was once perfect can become unplayable. At the same time, there does seem to be a few that do not age- Yoshi's Island for example.

This circles back to the tiresome debate in whether games are art. Why can something as superficial as framerate ruin a work of art? It makes games seem like mere toys when talked about this way.

Shakespeare might be dated, but even you really dig into his language, his failing becomes a strength. No one in 2020 can go back to say, Street Fighter 2, and find it worthy to stand beside the best of today. Great art is always able to stand beside the best of today.