The Retro Revolution - How the Clock's Turning Back for Gaming

So, Russia have returned to the old faithful typewriter for their official documents, a strange decision that was supposedly spawned out of the increasing complexities of computer systems making valuable information vulnerable. But this blog doesn't document the life and times of the Russians, this is a video games blog so why is this useless piece of information here? Well dear cynical reader, it is because this event could act as a weirdly global metaphor for the return to retro that we can see happening in the gaming world.

While we all love our systems from the 90's, we all also love the crisply vibrant artwork that accompanies modern gaming. So what happens when these two ideals slowly merge into one another, we might just find out in the future of gaming.

New indie game releases are all highly reminiscent of early Nintendo - games like Fez use simplistic ideas and nostalgic controls in a modernised development suggesting that these game designers who are free to develop as they please look to using more simplistic visuals which in turn relate to these older games. These visual similarities between games created decades ago and newer releases are becoming more and more noticeable. Games like Hotline Miami are returning to simplistic visuals perhaps to recreate the importance of player imagination in gameplay. Finally, Wii virtual console sales are still higher than its Wii Ware sales and recently the Wii U virtual console has seen a large increase in sales. These methods of bringing retro gaming into the living rooms of millions of gamers across the world have obviously made Nintendo very happy bunnies, but the importance of the virtual console is much more than that. It has paved the way for this 'Retro Revolution' by making older games more accessible and more importantly, more recognisable. It's developed consumers' tastes and paved the way for preferences to games that reflect these older titles.

Is this return to retro gaming a positive step for the gaming industry though? Newcomers have the opportunity to enjoy where it all came from and in the same instant appreciate the development of modern gaming. This return to simplicity means that consumers will no longer take the high quality of gaming we have readily available for granted. Other industries hide their outdated models, whereas the gaming industry celebrates its evolution from slow, blocky button punching to linear, jaw dropping entertainment. There are also more controversial pros of the retro revolution - the idea that these older games were just plain better. I don't necessarily agree with this though - 'better' is not the same as 'different'. However, the gaming industry at the moment would do well to incorporate the high level of uniqueness displayed in these retro video games in their modern developments which are beginning to become fairly samey and bleh. However, while all this is good and well, does doing something first necessarily make it better? Just because the beginnings of Nintendo are displayed through this catalogue of titles doesn't mean that they are necessarily better than modern titles and this evolution back to retro may ultimately lead to a dead-end in the future of gaming.

So it's all very fun considering what may happen or yaying about what may happen but who's to say this will happen, and how could it happen? A major factor in the development of the retro revolution is the people who turn to these games. Returning fans seeking the nostaligia of their childhood, newcomers curious to experience the early franchises and the sudden requirements of fans seeking something different all vote retro. In terms of business, retro is the way to go to cover costs - old style graphics are considerably cheaper to produce, not only leaving room for greater development of storyline or controls but also making the end result cheaper and therefore more accessible to the common user - a move that would greatly benefit the consumers who are having to face prices slowly reaching the £50 mark.

The way i see it, there are 2 possible outcomes for this revolution. A yoyo effect - retro until consumers become bored and inevitably want more and so return to modern gaming, the age of games fluctuating through the decades from one end of the scale to the other. The other outcome being absolutely nothing new. BOOM. Nothing. This momentary return to retro is just the knee-jerk reaction to the importation of retro through the virtual console in every home and just a fad that will fade until the games we are buying brand new now are the classics of the future.

So the question now lies with the future. How far will games replicate those of today or of yesterday? Will they be top of the range graphics with brand new features we haven't even considered yet or nostalgic Super Mario Bros. spinoffs?

Follow Me on Twitter: @MusingsTwit

6 Literary Titles as Video Games - Because Why Not?

On The Road - Jack Kerouac
- I'm thinking some kind of Mario Kart, F-Zero hybrid where the game is actually attempting to get into the vehicle to begin with to finish the course and powerups consist of money being wired over.

The Catcher in the Rye - J D Salinger
- An RPG, open world game where you play as Holden Caulfield achieving goals and completing missions. Health bars are increased by alcohol and cigarettes while the all new "safety and protection" bar is increased by collecting several red hunting caps
- Mini-games: Search for the ducks on the pond once the winter has caused it to freeze over and help Holden get over his fear of what will happen to him when he grows up.

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
- Simply catch wealthy males in a giant butterfly net playing as each of the Bennett sisters, each with different skills and attributes. Build on these characters' attributes to be able to catch higher quality men.

Tess of the d'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
- GTA for the 1700s, play as Tess, give birth to children out of wedlock and pay the price in your later marriage
- Mini-games: Dodge religious symbols as you attempt to decide the difference between society and its religion

Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
- A Space Invaders tribute, shoot down the army of creations that Victor has bought to life and carelessly abandoned before they get too close to your family at the bottom of the screen. Avoid traps such as the legal system, religion and sexual encounters to protect the population of Geneva.

Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe
- Guide Crusoe through the his ordeal on the island, explore and survive through minigames such as 'Spot the Savage' and 'Canoe Creation'. Design your cave and personalise your improvised fashion while harvesting crops and breeding animals.
- Other mini games: Guide Crusoe's ship through the ocean, avoiding storms on the way
- Free demo of 'Lord of the Flies, The Video Game' included

A Letter To 6 Year Old Me

Hi Tabs,
First of all, I know you just got your silver Gameboy Advance with a "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" game. You need to understand that you need to stick with that game - i know it won't always be easy, you can't save it whenever you want and your attention span doesn't really cover the length of gameplay between save points. It's a game that you will be constantly searching for during your teenage years when you get back into Harry Potter for a bit - and the search will bring you much sadness. Also quickly while we're on the topic of the Gameboy Advance - just stop trying to keep it pristine, you will go on a camping holiday with it and it will get scratched and it will seem like the end of your life. It. Is. Not. It's just very annoying and it ends up pretty badly scratched up (but still playable as of July 2013). Also, you will get a handheld with a backlight pretty soon so you're attempts at playing it in bed will not all be futile. You're reading this on a "blog" and i am writing it on a "netbook" (basically you know that wierd little game you used to play with your lunchbox where you pretended it was a portable, flip open computer like the one Dad has under the stairs? THAT HAPPENS).
Onto more pressing matters, later on you will probably play "Golden Eye" with Dad. This is NOT being played on the playstation but in fact on the N64. Yes, you have an N64 in your possession ad you will not realise it until you're nearly 18. Keep this N64. Nurture it. Buy cheap games from CEX in 2013 and enjoy the summer locked in your room with the TV on like every self-respecting Nintendo fan.
There's quite a lot i could say here, keep "Crash Bash" safe so you can play it when you're 17, don't give up your job at the pub when it changes hands - you'll be skint for years, wait until buying the iPod touch in year 10 - a new generation will be out literally the next day with much better ios, Dad will win a giant Crash Bandicoot soft toy at Thorpe Park soon which will revolutionise your Crash Bandicoot gameplay, don't lose Dragon Quest 9 on DS and cuddle "Tug" the cat because he might not be around much after September 2012.

From Tabs

p.s. you're going to go to an end of GCSE exams party when you're 15 and you're going to play a game called "beer pong" with pints of Strongbow. Do. Not. Ever. Drink. Strongbow.

Follow me on Twitter: @MusingsTwit

RetroN 5

Hyperkin's E3 stand this year was dominated by the RetroN 5 - a console that differs from the rest of the E3 lot in that it looks to the past of gaming rather than the flashy, 3D, super-fast models of tomorrow. The RetroN 5 is a collaboration of Nintendo’s greats (bar the obvious choice of the N64 – what up wit dat?) all on one system which has basically been created to upgrade them to a modern television. The RetroN 5 incorporates Mega Drive, Super Famicon, Super Nintendo, Famicon and NES cartridges as well as a Gameboy Advance slot and is so far set for release this summer. I have a few problems though. Starting with the lack of N64, possibly the first console that comes to mind when the words ‘Retro Nintendo’ are uttered. Why, then is it not featured? It’s not like there isn’t a market for it (the reasoning behind the lack of Sega’s Master System) so perhaps there’s some other reason for the giant hole in the heart of the RetroN 5. My other problem is the upgrading to HD – these games are just meant to be played on a shit TV. 

I might be purchasing one of these if the price is right – but I’m not a retro game collector, so it might be worth more to someone who already has these cartridges stashed away in a cupboard. Saying that, however, the point has already been raised that this may boost the accessibility of retro gaming – the individual consoles and games would cost a bomb on their own.

In short, it’s a handy little system if you are already a collector – or you are seriously considering getting into retro gaming with a list of possible and favourite games to purchase. It is likely that this system will cost a whole lot less than all the individual consoles bought separately so it could be something to get into. A little ancient conundrum that we all have to face. 

More Open World Games Plz :)

After perusing this month’s copy of Official Nintendo Magazine I realised how much I love open world games – the freedom and escapism paired with the human instinct to explore. There’s one problem with this ideal though, and that is the 3DS format. There isn’t going to be a good open world game with a developed storyline on 3DS – there just isn’t the capacity for it. Lego came close but it was still lacking a storyline. Maybe I’m asking for too much but the open world games on the Wii U just look so good – screenshots from Watch Dogs look so realistic and satisfying that it’s difficult not to go straight out and steal a Wii U in order to play it.

That’s the essential problem – I need a Wii U. Possibly the hardest part of this revelation is the knowledge that it is highly unlikely (to the point of impossibility) that I will come into ownership of this beauteous technology (unless an unknown wealthy relative cops it and leaves the exact change for a Wii U to me in their will). I’m heading off to university in September, so it’s not going to happen for a while and living in the UK probably means i’ll be paying back for uni until I’m 60 so I won’t even get one then. When I’m 60 though – the Wii U is mine, and so is Watch Dogs. Ima be a badass granny.