I could have taken this opportunity to rail on a gamer demographic that I have little first-hand knowledge of, like MMORPGs, or perhaps tried to delve into an oft-discussed genre like Casual Games, and just tired to push some buttons and get a nice flamewar going on this my inagural cBlog post.
That, however, would be the weak-sauce.
Instead, I'll wear my gamer heart on my sleeve, and write about something I actually might know something about. Specifically, that which was the inspiration for my cBlog name: Arcade games from the late 70's to the mid 80's.
I'm no curmudgeon by any means, and I'm not here to tell you how "It was so much better when I was a kid", or any other such nonsense. I'm not going to suggest that your money is wasted on modern consoles, when you could just stick to the classics, blah, blah, blah. But if look at the "Old School", as a bunch of 30 or 40-somethings trying to relive the glory of their youth with overly simple games, with lame sound effects and crappy graphics, then I will have to rebut your misconceptions. Because if you haven't experienced the joy of
Tempest with it's Neon-Vector graphic delights, or experienced the visceral joy that is
Centipede played with a trackball, or sat down at that aging
Ms. Pac-Man cocktail table machine in your local pizzeria and dropped a few quarters in, you really are missing out on something good. Not necessarily better, but definitely as good, but for different reasons.
As much as I love modern video games (PC, PS3, and Wii are the current rigs in my lineup), with their more complex control schemes, great depth of play, and visual and aural overload, the best of the classics still shine when compared to the latest and the greatest. Recent releases like Geometry Wars, Everyday Shooter, N+, as well as graphical updates to old arcade classics, demonstrate that their is demand for this simpler, bare-bones type of game play. I'm not here to make a case for a business model though. I'm here to tell you to play some classic arcade games, and understand why it is so many of us who have been gaming since the 70's still find ourselves drawn to the past. With the ready availability of arcade classic releases on various consoles, as well as emulators for a more "authentic" experience, there's no reason you shouldn't take trip back in time, back to when the arcade experience was what the home gaming market was constantly trying to match - and failing to do so.
While the Old School Arcade gamer can get called out for living in the past, or preferring to stick to games they can actually beat, or just being grumpy old farts, the truth is that most of us just like to play good games.
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Hey, I changed your name as _ doesn't like our blogging software.
Thanks for that.
/n00b
I know it might not be as "Old School" as you're refering to but I love the side-scrolling beat 'em ups of the late 80's early 90's. Some of my favorite games of all time are in that genre.
The tabletop games were always cool, but they should release an updated version of Chopper Command, or even the Masters of the Universe games most people have no idea what they are.
I got a chance to play Ms. Pac Man in a hotel's arcade (who knew?) a few weeks ago, and man that brought back memories. I was too little to really get into the arcade scene, but my tiny brother and I would beg and beg to play at the mall when my mom took us, and he'd have to stand on one of those little footstools to reach the controls. There's definitely something magic about oldschool arcade games.
The camaraderie among players, the strangely formal and surprisingly polite exchanges between people about to duel on a fighter ... it has this whole air of ritual and respect that the headset-communicating folks (because of anonymity?) almost never see.
There were definitely resident asshats in the arcades I frequented years ago, but far fewer than I can find in the average online match of COD4. There was something truly great about having a bunch of fellow players crowd around you the first time you beat Shinobi with a single credit, or watch you try out the patterns in the "How to Beat Pac-Man" book (note: I never did beat Pac-Man). There is definitely something to be said about the physical spaces that were arcades of the past. It's just a shame to see so many of the games that are out there these days, so neglected, that you fear dropping a quarter in one, because the joystick is probably broken, or the display has years of burn-in on it. Makes finding one in good condition all that much more enjoyable to play.