Retro gaming is back and stronger than ever

[SUPER-J11BIT]

Guys, have you noticed this comeback Retro gaming is hotter than a fresh pizza slice at midnight
For years everyone kept saying the future was only 3D, ultra realistic graphics, shiny textures and we were there staring at our old 2D games like they were relics from a lost civilization...
And now guess what!
2D is not only alive, it’s running faster than Zool after three espressos!

When the PS1 arrived it felt like the end of 2D

If you were there you remember it well...
The first PlayStation shows up, the first 3D games explode and suddenly anything made of pixels looked ancient
Forums started getting quiet, everyone was obsessed with polygons, dynamic shadows and characters that looked like they were built out of clay.

Fast forward to today and we’re all hunting for the very games we thought were done for..
Life is wild...

And forums They’re not just alive, they’re in turbo mode

Forget social media!
Forums still feel like old school arcades
People jump in, say hi, share stories, show collections, argue about which version of a game is the best and then make peace when someone posts a photo of a modded console.

It’s like the world got too fast and we decided to slow down and go back to the places that feel like home.

 

[Exnor]

The public interest in retrogaming is like a tide, sometimes is high other times is low, but its never really gone.

We now live a very good period of advancements in the scene, so a lot more people talk about it and that brings a lot more attention.

 

[Mayo1990]

I hate to break it out for you but:

Guys, have you noticed this comeback Retro gaming is hotter than a fresh pizza slice at midnight
For years everyone kept saying the future was only 3D, ultra realistic graphics, shiny textures and we were there staring at our old 2D games like they were relics from a lost civilization...
And now guess what!
2D is not only alive, it’s running faster than Zool after three espressos!

There still were 2D games even when 3D was hot. It's just that 3D felt like the hot thing.

When the PS1 arrived it felt like the end of 2D

If you were there you remember it well...
The first PlayStation shows up, the first 3D games explode and suddenly anything made of pixels looked ancient
Forums started getting quiet, everyone was obsessed with polygons, dynamic shadows and characters that looked like they were built out of clay.

I think you mixed up some things. It's Virtua Fighter in arcades that pioneered "modern" 3D.

Fast forward to today and we’re all hunting for the very games we thought were done for..
Life is wild...

And forums They’re not just alive, they’re in turbo mode

Forget social media!
Forums still feel like old school arcades
People jump in, say hi, share stories, show collections, argue about which version of a game is the best and then make peace when someone posts a photo of a modded console.

It’s like the world got too fast and we decided to slow down and go back to the places that feel like home.

There always have been retro collectors. It's just that since 2022+ it turned out to be based off FOMO and price manipulation off random people who will claim they got a hidden gem and then It's fucking Pokémon Crystal.
There also have always been retro forums, even 20 years ago. The issue with them is that there aren't many of them left since Facebook and Discord took off. But even then, there's some Discord servers that are about Retro gaming and they're full of people.

 

[ChickenNugget]

its no surprise if game companies listen to people who never played a game

 

[tech3475]

There still were 2D games even when 3D was hot. It's just that 3D felt like the hot thing.

Apparently it was a policy at SCEA for a time during the PS1 era to block/restrict 2D games.

I haven't found anything definitive though to back that up, but there is discussion of it online.

There are games though like Mickey's Wild Adventure which were released in Europe but no the USA, ironically this was my first PS1 game.

 

[Evilengine]

The limitations and focus of retro games often is what creates their charm.
But 2D games can also be created in new ways, no one ever did, it's really a nice field and will never be outdated.
Too many modern games are super hyper turbo generic all the same, being more simulation than game.
I like, that there are still many people keeping the old platforms alive and working on improving good titles.
Especially with new technologies and ideas, there are fascinating ways to use old tech.

 

[Ericzander]

Personally, as I get older I find that I have less and less time to dedicate to AAA titles. Sometimes for that shot of adrenaline a familiar retro game is just what I need. I'm currently re-working my way through the Legacy of Goku series to relive those memories. We're spoiled for choice today.

 

[Mayo1990]

Apparently it was a policy at SCEA for a time during the PS1 era to block/restrict 2D games.

I haven't found anything definitive though to back that up, but there is discussion of it online.

There are games though like Mickey's Wild Adventure which were released in Europe but no the USA, ironically this was my first PS1 game.

Which is a policy that doesn't really make sense since we still got 2D (or 2.5D games) even in the late 90s. Tomba, Klonoa some fighting games (Jojo, SFZ3, CvS1 on the top of my head), GTA 1, London, the expansions and 2 weren't 3D games at all, or just featured minimal 3D things.

Mickey's Wild Adventure was initially on the Mega Drive, It's just a remaster.

The limitations and focus of retro games often is what creates their charm.
But 2D games can also be created in new ways, no one ever did, it's really a nice field and will never be outdated.

The limitations were nice because they would let devs tinker around what they could have achieved with so little. I still find something such as SFZ3 on GBA, GTA 3 on Dreamcast, Doom Eternal/Witcher 3/Nier Automata on Switch just mind blowing in their own ways.
The "new ways" aren't just limited to 2D. 3D games also reimagined themselves.

Too many modern games are super hyper turbo generic all the same, being more simulation than game.
I like, that there are still many people keeping the old platforms alive and working on improving good titles.
Especially with new technologies and ideas, there are fascinating ways to use old tech.

Modern games feel turbo generic because there's just way too many games nowadays between old and new, but since a good chunk of non-indie games all run on Unreal Engine they feel same-y because of that. Back then it wasn't really that different in a way. When Crash Bandicoot was the hot thing there were various CB clones. When GTA 3 set new standards for open world games we had Jak II and so on.

Personally, as I get older I find that I have less and less time to dedicate to AAA titles. Sometimes for that shot of adrenaline a familiar retro game is just what I need. I'm currently re-working my way through the Legacy of Goku series to relive those memories. We're spoiled for choice today.

I've been playing the Looney Tunes games just to see how well (or bad) they aged. Currently on Bugs Bunny Lost in Time. For being a 1999 game it didn't age THAT badly. Still ironic that the game better to play with dpad than analog...
Will do Space Race (I finished the PS2 title back then, this time around I'll play the Dreamcast version) and Taz Wanted next.

 

[tech3475]

Which is a policy that doesn't really make sense since we still got 2D (or 2.5D games) even in the late 90s. Tomba, Klonoa some fighting games (Jojo, SFZ3, CvS1 on the top of my head), GTA 1, London, the expansions and 2 weren't 3D games at all, or just featured minimal 3D things.

Mickey's Wild Adventure was initially on the Mega Drive, It's just a remaster.

Like I said, apparently it was only a policy for a while, supposedly linked to a specific exec Bernie Stolar who would leave for Sega of America in 96.

Mickey's Wild Adventure launched in 1996 despite originally being published by Sony.

The others are either '3D' in some form, later releases by which point the policy was likely relaxed/removed or going by other RUMOURS managed to be pushed through thanks to the publisher's coercion.

I know there are some others games which were released here but not there such as Puchi Carat (I only know of it because I own a copy), however I can't tell if that's for business or policy reasons.

 

[Hanafuda]

Does that mean I can come out of the closet now?

 

[Skv0ra]

Modern games feel turbo generic because there's just way too many games nowadays between old and new, but since a good chunk of non-indie games all run on Unreal Engine they feel same-y because of that.

100%. Back when most all devs had to build the engines to cater to THEIR games - everything was different and new. Using existing engine frees you up to make the meat of the game better, but same time you're probably far less inclined to given a huge shortcut you got already.