Classic gaming thread

[Gabriel Girard]

How many of you are still playing older games? I think I'm fairly ''retro'' gamer at heart.I got the PS2 when it dropped to 100$ and I just ordered Blood Omen : Legacy Of Kain for the PS1, I'm also thinking about getting Alundra and Lunar... And then last week I had a sudden urge to play Super Metroid again. Most of the recent games I seem to enjoy are often part of old franchises or take older concepts and make something new with it (Borderlands is basically a mix between Diablo and old schooll shooters.)

[Steve T Power]

I don't generally find myself gravitating much further back than the PSOne these days, but it's just because this year has been so completely insane for video games. I'm a huge fan of Legacy of Kain, and i still pop a lot of Square Enix's old RPG's into my machine from time to time (Chrono Cross and Vagrant Story rocked the hizzouse). Over the last few months it's been retro PC stuff (Gothic II, Neverwinter Nights II, Morrowind) and PS2 games (Indigo Prophecy, Summoner, Driver 3) and Xbox 1 titles (UK only Conan actioner, Enclave, Red Dead Revolver, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory) when i haven't been inundated with new releases.

It must be said, when the dust settles and the smoke clears on the latest hardware generation (360/wii/ps3), i don't think you're going to see the same level of awesome that hit in the PS2/Xbox era. It's really been more of an evolution of the revolution that hit with Sony and Microsoft's big black boxes.

[Gabriel Girard]

Indigo Prophecy

I bought this fairly recently but haven't really gotten into it yet. I played it a little and it looks promising. Right now I'm alternating between my second run through of Ratchet And Clank : Going Commando and enjoying Legend Of Kay. Have never heard of Summoner or seen it for sale around here. I shall look it up.

Both Neverwinter Nights are classics for me - same goes for KOTOR - I'm still hoping for another traditionnal KOTOR RPG but I guess, that with the MMO, I can forget about it.The ending to the second one was a true cliffhanger.

[mkiker2089]

Personally I think most of the proper nostalgia goes to Nintendo. I loved my PSX games more, but they seem dated now in an odd way. The NES and SNES games however don't. They play well, are simple, and cartoony but it seems as if that's part of the charm instead of a flaw. PSX games however feel like PS3 games with bad graphics. I know it may seem odd, but it's how I feel.

[mavrach]

As gaming generations go on, I hate that I start to find former greats to be obsolete. The other day I popped in Half Life, which is one that I respect as one of the most important and influential games ever made. Nonetheless, I couldn't play it. Same for Thief, another former PC favorite. I hate myself for feeling that way about some of these games, but gaming since has grown so much (with these games being a big reason for it), that I have trouble going back to more basic games.


For older games, I'll go back to the NES & SNES sometimes. But you can argue that Nintendo just keeps tech-updating all of those games anyway for the Wii. Super Mario Galaxy hasn't really come that far from Super Mario Bros, has it?

I have a rack of PC games that I never play, but hold them because I feel like I would eventually go back to them. Starcraft holds a special place for me, and I'm sad that my laptop can't handle the sequel coming out next month.

PS1 is a rarity for me, as I can't get over the early 3D days. Everything comes off as blocky, and am I the only person who thought the PS1 was too dark & grainy? So basically the only games I can play are Final Fantasy Vii, Castlevania: SOTN & Metal Gear Solid.

My PS2 still gets regular play, with an occasional Gamecube game.

[Gabriel Girard]

The other day I popped in Half Life, which is one that I respect as one of the most important and influential games ever made. Nonetheless, I couldn't play it.

[Steve T Power]

I installed and attempted to play the first Deus Ex a week or so ago as well... it didn't end very well...

[Gabriel Girard]

I installed and attempted to play the first Deus Ex a week or so ago as well... it didn't end very well...

Yeah that one aged badly. Even back then the graphics were subpar if I remember well, still a cool concept though.

[mavrach]

The other day I popped in Half Life, which is one that I respect as one of the most important and influential games ever made. Nonetheless, I couldn't play it.

I know, I know. But it was little basic things that bugged me, since they've been improved in the years since Half Life came out. The final straw was when I died due to a sily misstep, and I had to go all the way back because I'm so used to current games' auto-save feature. I'd forgotten that you have to pause and manually save this game every time.


I feel like with movies, an influential or important movie is still quite viewable as time goes by, but video games tend to improve on themselves to the point where you can't go back sometimes.

[Gabriel Girard]

I know, I know. But it was little basic things that bugged me, since they've been improved in the years since Half Life came out. The final straw was when I died due to a sily misstep, and I had to go all the way back because I'm so used to current games' auto-save feature. I'd forgotten that you have to pause and manually save this game every time.

I get what you mean. Save points are even less forgivable than the lack of an auto-save feature. I tried playing Call Of Cthulhu : Dark Corners of the Earth which looks like a deep,Morrowind-like game but I stopped once I realized I couldn't save where I wanted. Oh and I could never get used to the way the camera was set up in the recent Dead Space. It's a nifty idea and the game looks amazing, but it just bugged me.

And I agree that getting back to the first Half-Life is harder when you have the second one on hand. Have you ever tried replaying the first Diablo? - not recommended.

[Steve T Power]

Oh man, I still play the first Diablo all the damn time.

Those opening guitar chords when you stroll into Tristram are ingrained permanent-like in my psyche.

" Hello my friend! Stay a while and listen!"

[Gabriel Girard]

Maybe I should give it another whirl - last time I tried I couldn't back into it. It's been a while since I played Diablo II as welll.

[Gabriel Girard]

One of my favorite old school games ever is Shadowcaster. If I remember well it came on a disk that was included with either the sound or video card for my 486 back in 94. There were a few other games on that disk : Space Hulk, Savage Empire, Populous 2...

And of course Commander Keen IV : Secret of the Oracle - it's kind of weird when you think ID made this game. Kinda like Blizzard and Lost Vikings...

[Steve T Power]

I remember Shadowcaster more for its ugly as a bag of assholes cover art more than anything. The old store had a used copy sitting in the PC section for the better part of a decade. It may still be there...

[Gabriel Girard]

The box might have been ugly but the game was pretty awesome for the time. Kinda like the reverse of movies with awesome cover art that suck...

[Dave Ryan]

I always like to give a shout-out to one of my all-time favorite games: Anachronox. A really good game that got completely buried by all the negative press and user backlash for Ion Storm's immediately previous title, Daikatana. Great sound, great use of the Quake II engine, incredibly great story and writing -- and that was with the game being released only half finished! (Ion Storm pushed it out the door figuring 3.5 years was enough development, and they needed the money. The other half obviously never got made...) Difficult to find these days -- I'm hoping it shows up on Steam someday.

[Steve T Power]

I always like to give a shout-out to one of my all-time favorite games: Anachronox. A really good game that got completely buried by all the negative press and user backlash for Ion Storm's immediately previous title, Daikatana. Great sound, great use of the Quake II engine, incredibly great story and writing -- and that was with the game being released only half finished! (Ion Storm pushed it out the door figuring 3.5 years was enough development, and they needed the money. The other half obviously never got made...) Difficult to find these days -- I'm hoping it shows up on Steam someday.

I still have my copy, but i'll be damned if the bastard will run in a 64-bit environment.

[Gabriel Girard]

Started playing Primal which I picked up a while ago. Enjoying it so far. I like how it's more about exploring thana ction. Kinda like a good Tomb Raider game.

Also felt like replaying Clive Barker's Undying - avery underrated game IMHO.

[Steve T Power]

Started playing Primal which I picked up a while ago. Enjoying it so far. I like how it's more about exploring thana ction. Kinda like a good Tomb Raider game.

Also felt like replaying Clive Barker's Undying - avery underrated game IMHO.

Primal was pretty solid stuff. Didn't quite hit the "Soul Reaver" highs, but i enjoyed the heck out of it. I recall being completely and utterly lost early on in Undying, so i never went back to it.

I did fire up Shadow of the Colossus yet again, and drooled over its glory - God i hope we get that HD version for the PS3.

[Gabriel Girard]

I did fire up Shadow of the Colossus yet again, and drooled over its glory - God i hope we get that HD version for the PS3.

It's a beautiful and interesting game, too bad I suck at it. I've heard that Ico is worth tracking down. Is it a little more ''traditional''?

[Steve T Power]

I did fire up Shadow of the Colossus yet again, and drooled over its glory - God i hope we get that HD version for the PS3.

It's a beautiful and interesting game, too bad I suck at it. I've heard that Ico is worth tracking down. Is it a little more ''traditional''?

Not hardly - unless by traditional you mean lading a chick who can't speak your language around by the hand while battling demons composed of ethereal smoke with a 2x4 and solving environmental puzzles...

[Gabriel Girard]

I did fire up Shadow of the Colossus yet again, and drooled over its glory - God i hope we get that HD version for the PS3.

It's a beautiful and interesting game, too bad I suck at it. I've heard that Ico is worth tracking down. Is it a little more ''traditional''?

Not hardly - unless by traditional you mean lading a chick who can't speak your language around by the hand while battling demons composed of ethereal smoke with a 2x4 and solving environmental puzzles...

Well that sounds more up my alley than Colossus...

[Dan Mancini]

Oh and I could never get used to the way the camera was set up in the recent Dead Space.

[Gabriel Girard]

Oh and I could never get used to the way the camera was set up in the recent Dead Space.

I know, I know. The game looks amazing and fun and the suit is a great idea to get rid of sometimes intrusive HUD - but the angle of the camera is just weird. I played it for a little while and it really made me sorry to put it aside - but I just coudn't get into it because of this. What can I say? I've got no taste.

[Steve T Power]

Oh and I could never get used to the way the camera was set up in the recent Dead Space.

I know, I know. The game looks amazing and fun and the suit is a great idea to get rid of sometimes intrusive HUD - but the angle of the camera is just weird. I played it for a little while and it really made me sorry to put it aside - but I just coudn't get into it because of this. What can I say? I've got no taste.

It's ok, i preferred Dante's Inferno to God of War III.

[Gabriel Girard]

I was talking about evolving technology with my dad the other day. What do you feel is the biggest jump between gaming generations? I think that it is the jump between the NES and the SNES - kinda like the jump between VHS and DVD - the other jumps are closer to the gap between DVD and Blu-Ray, and sometimes not even that...

[Steve T Power]

I was talking about evolving technology with my dad the other day. What do you feel is the biggest jump between gaming generations? I think that it is the jump between the NES and the SNES - kinda like the jump between VHS and DVD - the other jumps are closer to the gap between DVD and Blu-Ray, and sometimes not even that...

The two big ones:

NES to SNES: Graphics and sound definitely took a flying leap - from 16 color to 256 and MUCH higher sprite resolutions really allowed artwork to shine. The SNES also had some bitchin sound processing that gave us some wonderfully well implemented music and sound (the first time I heard the music in 'Actraiser' I was blown away, doubly so by the crack of thunder you hear fighting the first boss). Game design didn't really change per se, it just got a lot more complex. It would be the PC Boom of the mid-90's that really pushed the design element forward, which leads me to...

PSOne to PS2: The PC boom was a real evolution of 3D gaming following the Playstation One's ushering in of the third dimension in gaming. The Playstation, for better or for worse, matured gaming. It wasn't a kid's world anymore, and adults began designing games for adults. The PSone/N64 era was pretty ambitious, but it was a time of rampant experimentation and trial and error in game design. 3D worlds didn't really work well enough yet while devs found their feet with control schemes and techniques. The limited hardware available also made for much compromise, and in many cases, product was gimped when a development team's imagination was outstripped by the hardware available to them. Everything changed with the PS2. Game design evolved bigtime, and for the first time ever, really, developers had the power to get their ideas onto the screen, and the HUGE audience necessary to devote much higher budgets to development. The laughable attempt at an open world "driving" game that was Driver 2 on PSOne became the stunning Grand Theft Auto 3 on PS2. Every genre had one or two games that really came along and redefined what could be done. 3D visuals were also finally cemented and became the defacto standard, making may of the 3D experiments on earlier consoles look horrible by comparison. The PS2/Xbox generation provided the blueprint for the games of the current gen, and while visuals have gotten better than ever, it was really the innovation of the PS2 (and yes, to a smaller extent, the Xbox) that still drives design today. When we look back on the current generation in five years time, there will be some amazing games i'm sure, but it will pale by comparison to the one that preceded it.

[Gabriel Girard]

My PS2 haul for the week : Ghostbusters : The video game, Devil May Cry and No One Lives Forever. I almost bought another game ( a sequel to Shinobi I believe) but wasn't sure about it.

Steve if you have other under-the-radar games to recommend feel free to do so and I will try finding them online if I'm interested. It's getting harder to find and trade games at a decent price here - the place I bought these at sold them for 10 or 15 dollars but the guy said that they are buying them for 2 or 3... ridiculous. I might have to sell my other games on ebay if I want a decent price...

[Gabriel Girard]

FInally receibed my coppy of Blood Omen : Legacy Of Kain today!

Just a small question : Do I need a PS1 memory card in order to save my game? I got to the first save point and it didn't recognize my PS2 memory card...

[Steve T Power]

FInally receibed my coppy of Blood Omen : Legacy Of Kain today!

Just a small question : Do I need a PS1 memory card in order to save my game? I got to the first save point and it didn't recognize my PS2 memory card...

You do, yes.

[Gabriel Girard]

FInally received my coppy of Blood Omen : Legacy Of Kain today!

Just a small question : Do I need a PS1 memory card in order to save my game? I got to the first save point and it didn't recognize my PS2 memory card...

You do, yes.

Does that require an adaptor of any kind?

[Steve T Power]

FInally received my coppy of Blood Omen : Legacy Of Kain today!

Just a small question : Do I need a PS1 memory card in order to save my game? I got to the first save point and it didn't recognize my PS2 memory card...

You do, yes.

Does that require an adaptor of any kind?

Nope, just pops right into the PS2 memory card slot.

[Gabriel Girard]

Started replaying System Shock 2 such a great game.

[Steve T Power]

Been playing a lot of Enslaved during the week, and all it's done is remind me of how goddamn incredibly well Ninja Theory's first game for PS3 (Heavenly Sword) succeeded at telling an incredibly gripping and emotional story with one of the most beautiful endings I have ever seen. So far Enslaved has been a little disappointing.

[Attrage]

I still play a lot of old games thanks to DOSBox Like Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe, Syndicate, Day of the Tentacle, Centurion, Dune, X-Wing and Tie Fighter. Also I still play a few of my favourite PS1 and PS2 games.