Gaming by GlossGreen

Aren't The Only Things That Have Changed

I've been thinking a bit lately on this favorite hobby of mine. I've been thinking about the past. I've been thinking about the present. And I definitely have been thinking about the future. I keep wondering where gaming will be in 5 years, 10 years, even 20 years. Looking back at what I played as a kid, and how I played, is very different from today. Gaming has changed in the past 20 plus years, and I don't know if I like it.

I remember a time when gaming was pure fun. I remember hooking up the Atari 2600 to our 13 inch dial color TV. I remember playing brightly colored games that looked ambiguous but played great. I remember the classics that had me hooked then, and those same games still do today. I still own an Atari 2600 with most of the same games that I had as a kid. I remember playing Zelda on the NES for the first time. I remember Sonic on the Game Gear. I remember Rogue Squadron on the N64. I remember Gran Tourismo on the PS1. I remember Final Fantasy X on the PS2. I also remember only having one console during each of those periods. Then I never had to worry about multiplatform releases, or which console has the best exclusives. I used to read gaming magazines for whichever system I had, Nintendo Power, Computer Gaming Monthly, The Official PlayStation Magazine. I never worried about what the other guy was playing and it was great. But time does change things.

The present we have is one of conflict, half truths (or outright lies) and stolen ideas, all presented with a fresh coat of millions of polygons. I don't know when it happened, but gaming has lost the heart it once had. Just look at the news. Company A states that they have x number of people on their network, although Company B contends that they have Y more people then that. Company C doesn't say anything, they just don't give a damn as long as their console keeps selling. And it keeps on going round and round. It's gotten so bad that I don't know who or what to believe anymore. I may sound a little jaded and cynical, and I am. I am tired of console wars. I am tired of companies pushing out games that are no where near complete and require several updates to be finished. I'm tired of all the hate for no reason. Can't we just be happy that there are three successful consoles on the market, each with many good games. What brought this train of thought on? I think I finally had my buttons pushed once too often with all these damn Killzone 2 VS. Halo Wars articles I've been seeing.

Give me a second to explain this. OK, Killzone has been in the news for many, many years as a potential Halo killer. We've all heard it before, even before the game was finished it was tauted as being the one game, the one FPS, to unseat the king. We all know that the first Killzone didn't exactly meet expectations, but it was far from a bad game. Now, onto today. We have the release of the biggest Real Time Strategy game for the Xbox 360. Coincidentally, it has the Halo name attached to it. This game is putting up good sales numbers, which is great considering the fact that most Halo players wouldn't be interested in a game of this genre. Now I am ready to state my point. In the whole KZ2 VS. Halo Wars thing, I say this. The games are in two completely different genres and have absolutely no basis for competition. Halo Wars is not a FPS and therefore, not a direct competitor to Killzone 2. So why all the comparisons in the press? Answer me that one.

My point is that gaming should be fun. The reason for getting a console or a game should not be based on which company puts out the most outrageous press release. I don't care which console has the bigger install base. I don't care that Game A sold 250,000 more copies then Game B. I only care that the games I buy are fun. I care that a developer fulfills their promise of delivering a completed game as close to perfect as they can. I care that my console will not break down shortly after buying it. I care that I can download demos to see if I like a game before I buy it. I care that I can get as much truthful information about a console or game as I want. Enough with the bullshit. Lets get back to having fun.

Part 2

Continuing with my series on the history of innovation in gaming, we reach the silver age of gaming. Gaming since 1983 had been in a very bad place. Atari had lost some of it strength and other consoles, such as the Intellivison, ColecoVision, and the Odyssey systems, just ceased to be. The videogame industry's fortunes were about to change.

The Nintendo Entertainment System (third generation 1983-1992) was released in 1985 and quickly began to turn things around. The graphics were improved, the games were fun and (dare I say it?) innovative. Other manufactures soon took notice and released systems of their own. Sega began it's console history with the Master System in 1986 as did the continuing Atari series of consoles with the 7800. This generation was to be the last successful one for Atari.

The fourth generation (1987-1996) brought innovation in the form of a new type of game media. An add-on was available for most of this generation's consoles included a drive to play games on Compact Discs. The TurboGrafx-16, Sega Genesis, and the Neo Geo all sold a CD drive add-on for their consoles. At this stage though, the add-ons supporting the new format weren't very successful, but it did show us a bit of the future. Out of the numerous game systems released, one significant system didn't add a CD drive in the U.S. The Super Nintendo stuck stubbornly with the cartridge format. A decision they would regret later.

Another innovation of the fourth generation was the introduction of the first color screened handheld game consoles. This was not the first generation to have a handheld system, it was just the first to have a really successful one. This generation introduced the world to the Nintendo Game Boy, Sega's Game Gear, and the Atari Lynx. While both the Game Gear and the Lynx had color screens, it was the little system with the monochrome screen that stole the show. The Nintendo Game Boy (with the Game Boy Color) ended up selling over 118 million units worldwide. It's competition had to compete with Nintendo's sales muscle and marketing clout. Unfortunately, an expensive Lynx and battery hungry Game Gear just couldn't compete.

The fifth generation (1993-2002) saw the mass adoption of the CD format for most of the gaming systems. With this generation, the power of the machines gave way to another innovation. 3-d graphics began its dominance over the 2-d side scrollers and top-down shooters of the previous generation. 2-d games have still retained popularity today, especially within the fighting and top-down shooter genres, but was never to be the dominate style again. Two notable exceptions to adoption of the CD format were the Atari Jaguar and the Nintendo 64.

It is well documented history as to why the Nintendo did not include a CD on this generation of console. Originally the plan was to have Sony build a CD component for Nintendo's new system, but when Nintendo struck a deal with another manufacturer, Sony decided to go ahead and used it's new knowledge to create a gaming console of it's own. The Sony PlayStation did not have the best graphics, nor did it have a name known in gaming circles to promote it. What the PlayStation did do is appeal to a generation of gamer that started with the NES and wanted something a little more mature. While the Nintendo was looked at as a kiddy system and the Genesis suffered by having a lack of third party support, the PlayStation was the choice system for innovative developers and the maturing gamer demographic.

Handhelds also evolved during this period, albeit, mostly just the Nintendo console. The Game Boy underwent a significant change, one that would make it even more competitive in the market place. This generation saw the introduction of a color version of the Game Boy, named appropriately enough, Game Boy Color. In of itself, this was not a drastic innovation for Nintendo. What was unique was the first ever inclusion of backwards compatibility on a handheld system. Backwards compatibility was important to the Game Boy Color for one important reason. Instant game library for a new system. Every game from the original Game Boy would work on the color version. A very good more for launching a new version of a familiar console.