Gaming Nostalgia

Games come and go. More often than not most games released on the market aren't purchased by all gamers. Even so, for a gamer to purchase all games released they would have to have a pretty deep pocket. While budget may restrict our choice of games quality can often dictate which games we go back to play again.

There are a few games which I often reinstall long after the release date and play over again. Most games come and go with a single play through and then I move on to the next. I believe that games fall in to certain categories. There are those that you don't finish for whatever reason except for difficulty (they may be too buggy, too bad, or too boring). Some games you may not finish because they are too hard (although I find that not happening as much any more). Some games are the ones that immediately after you've played them you restart and play over again. But most of these previously mentioned games aren't necessarily the ones that you go back to over time.

There are some games which I like to replay after having a stint away from them. I mentioned Elevator Action in a previous post. This is my all time favourite platform game. I keep it installed on my computer and pick up and play it often. Several others which I replay are Tron 2, Diablo, X3, Pirates (Gold), Transport Tycoon, and the UFO series to name just a few. There are many others as well, but I don't have time to name them all. I would love to find the original River Raid, but it hasn't been released on an Xbox Atari disc that I can find. One game which I have been playing again this year is the Commodore 64 game Paradroid and Speedball. Two games which I still really enjoy playing and I believe have stood the test of time over nearly twenty years of game releases.

Tron 2 is one of my all time favourite games and what I believe to be one of the best movie tie in games. The game managed to capture the feeling of the movie nearly perfectly. The film was one of my favourite film releases when I was younger. The game was essentially a sequel to the film and was done very well. The thing about the game is that it is home to a place that I enjoy going back to. Sometimes replaying an old game is like going back to a favourite holiday spot. The place itself holds happy memories and is somewhere that I enjoy spending my time.

Some of these games are extremely old and they are not graphically appealing (like Space Invaders or Elevator Action) but they are still pleasant to play. This highlights the strength of Retro Gaming for gamers. Abandonware and emulators have been extremely popular as they have allowed gamers to replay nearly every gaming device since gaming began. Further to this is Nintendo's decision to allow consumers who purchase the Wii to download all of the previous console games up to the N64. Finally a company which is providing some support for gamers to be able to play their old favourite games. Hopefully this trend will continue with some of the other manufacturers actually supporting their retro titles and giving them a new lease on life.